Science Of The Times

Syma gives the second annual Ibn Sina lecture in Bradford City Hall.  The event was hosted by the Muslim Institute and the Lord Mayor of Bradford.

She discusses her work on using computer simulations to understand how harmful bacteria protect themselves. It is important we understand how they do this, so we can thwart them with new antibiotics.

To view the full vide go here:
https://youtu.be/OlTE0n9Bc00?feature=shared

For more information on the Muslim Institute, visit them here:
https://musliminstitute.org/

If you are a...

In This episode Tim & Syma talk to Jonathan Amos - recently retired science correspondent at the BBC. Jon talks us through his fascinating journey falling in love science through exposure to it via journalism and then going to study it more formally. From setting up the BBC website to breaking some of the big science stories - Jon tells his story honestly and engagingly. Whether your interest is science, journalism or both - please listen in!

Our sponsor for this episode is Grace and Garbo! Thank you.
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Some biological  molecules can be left handed or right handed - the sugars that are found in nucleic acids are right handed, whereas 19 of the 20 amino acids that make up proteins are left handed. And intriguingly samples of amino acids found on meteorites such as those brought back from the OSIRIX-REx missing from Bennu were present in mixtures containing roughly equal amounts of the left and right handed versions. So why does biology on our planet favour left handed amino acids?

A team of researchers led by Professor Tom Richard at the University of Oxford have shown t...

Migration is in the news continuously and everyone has an opinion. What does the science of migration reveal? Tim and Syma talk to Ian Goldin, an expert on the pros and cons of migration and migrants.

Ian's book: http://oldstreetpublishing.co.uk/100/the-shortest-history-of-migration

Do you have any questions you would like to ask Tim and Syma? Drop us a line:
scienceofthetimespodcast@gmail.com

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Starting in the UK in Doncaster Market in 2005, PinGui has a good and...

This week Tim and Syma talk to Max Telford, author of The Tree of Life: Solving Science's Greatest Puzzle published by John Murray. They explore LUCA, penis worms, and other oddball species.

Max's book 'The Tree Of Life' can be found here:
https://www.hachette.co.uk/titles/max-telford/the-tree-of-life/9781399806374/

Do you have any questions you would like to ask Tim and Syma? Drop us a line:
scienceofthetimespodcast@gmail.com

Our first sponsor on this episode is PinGui-Bags! Thank you.
https://www.pingui-bags.com/
Starting in the UK in...

In our latest science explainer release Syma chats to David Pyle, world renowned volcanologist, about the recent Mount Etna eruption. 

In this episode Syma and Tim conduct a Q and A session for the many fantastic questions that have been hitting our email inbox over the last three months or so. They also review some of their favourite episodes so far.

Do you have any questions you would like to ask? Drop us a line at:
scienceofthetimespodcast@gmail.com

Or leave a comment on our YouTube channel!

Our sponsor for this episode is Grace and Garbo! Thank you.
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Surely there is not much more to football than kicking a ball.?  Wrong, There is a whole science behind it. Professor Robbie Wilson explains his work in this area and even puts Tim and Syma through their paces in the park!

Our sponsor for this episode is Grace and Garbo! Thank you.
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In this explainer, Syma discusses some of the methods bacteria use to defend themselves from attack from external threats such as antibiotics. These ostensibly simple organisms have elaborate and sophisticated defence mechanisms which is why it is so hard to kill bacteria.

Dan MacNulty has studied the wildlife in Yellowstone National Park since 1995. His research, and that of his colleagues, has revealed that the narrative that wolves have changed the park, leading to forests coming back, and rivers being diverted is not true. The Yellowstone story is more complicated than you might think, and endlessly fascinating. Join us as we talk about wolves, mountain lions, elk, beavers, bison and bears and learn how wolves have been good for the park, but not in quite the way you might think. For this episode Syma joins the discussion remotely.
 
https://qcnr.u...

Tim breaks down a game-changing shift in global science research: as U.S. funding for future research faces uncertainty, UK funding agencies are seizing the moment—offering incentives to attract  scientists currently working in the US to relocate and thrive in the UK.

In this short bonus episode Syma talks to Philipp Kukura. Philipp led the development of a technique called mass photometry which enables tracking the movement of individual proteins. Here he briefly describes the technique, but importantly emphasises the need for more women in the areas of instrument and technology development in the physical sciences.

Link To Philipp's Paper:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41592-021-01261-w

In this third quick hit explainer of the week. Why are most ginger cats male? Simple genetics — the orange fur gene is on the X chromosome. Males only need one to flaunt that fiery coat, while females need two, making ginger ladies much rarer.

And as for wolves — not all are grey! Some are black. Nature loves a remix.

If we don’t build a more sustainable world our civilisation will collapse, potentially in the coming decades. Paul Behrens spends his time researching our impact on the world, and working out how civilisation can transition to a sustainable future. Covering multitudes of Lego to plant-based diets and solar power, we explore how we can create a civilisation to help humanity thrive in the future.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53230928-the-best-of-times-the-worst-of-times

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In our second quick-hit explainer episode this week, Tim breaks down how AI might be disrupting—not advancing—health science. Is the hype overshadowing real medical insight? Tune in for a sharp take on where AI could be leading us astray.

In this quick bonus episode, Tim breaks down one of science’s most intriguing mysteries as featured in BBC News today: the difference between matter and antimatter. Join us for a bite-sized explainer that sheds light on the surprising facts behind this cosmic puzzle!

Theoretical physics has two theories at its core that are not straightforward to link – quantum mechanics and general relativity. Lee Smolin, one of the world’s greatest living theoretical physicists, has spent his career working out why the theory of quantum mechanics is incomplete and how it might link to general relativity. He is an advocate of versions of quantum loop gravity. His work to marry the two theories resulted in him developing the theory of cosmological natural selection. Join Syma and Tim as they talk to Lee about theoretical physics.

His book is called Einst...

Biodiversity is under threat, and there are many ongoing efforts to help save it, including from within universities. But are academic contributions doing any good? Our cohost Tim Coulson discussed this topic with Professor Dame EJ Milner-Gulland in the Oxford Martin School (OMS) in April. Thanks to Carlyn Samuel, OMS and the OMS team for hosting the debate and allowing us to record. 

Artificial intelligence is a modern-day technology that will impact the way we live much as past innovations like mastering fire, and inventing the printing press, home computers and the internet changed civilisation. But what exactly is it, how does it work, and what are the opportunities and risks of its continued development? We talk to Chris Summerfield about Artificial Intelligence and his fabulous new book, “These Strange New Minds: How AI Learned to Talk and What It Means” recently published by Penguin.
https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/460891/these-strange-new-minds-by-summerfield-christopher/9780241694657

Our sponsor for this episode is Grace and...

Colossal Bioscience has brought genetic variation back from the grave. It is a remarkable technological achievement, but is it species de-extinction? In this second part of this podcast we talk to Professor Peter Hudson FRS,  a world-leading ecologist, who is concerned by Colossal’s claims and what they might mean.

Colossal Bioscience has brought genetic variation back from the grave. It is a remarkable technological achievement, but is it species de-extinction? We talk to Professor Bridgett vonHoldt, a world-leading dog geneticist, who was involved in Colossal Bioscience’s recent dire wolf de-extinction work that has caused some controversy. In part 2 of this podcast we talk a world-leading ecologist who gives us his - different - take.

The link below is a genetics paper, not talking about de-extinction.
https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.04.09.647074v1

A bonus episode in which Tim and Syma discuss how the zombie ant-based creatures seen on popular dystopian future drama Last of Us are based on real fungi (Cordyceps) which infect ants - and then exploit the now zombie ants to produce more fungi, killing the ants in the process. Yes it’s a bit gruesome, but it’s science!

Syma and Tim are joined by Nobel Laureate David Baker, one of the winners of the 2024 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his work on computational protein design. This follows the interview with Tim Jenkins, and Susana Vasquez in Episode 7 who worked with David. After the interview Tim asks Syma to explain in simple terms the process of protein design and what may be possible in the future.

Colassal says it has de-extincted an animal. Is this a dire wolf or a dire mistake? Join Tim and Syma on this short bonus edition!

Proteins are the workhorses of life, with thousands overseeing and getting involved in reactions within our cells. Biologists have long dreamed of being able to make designer proteins to do specific tasks, and recently a team of  scientists have made this happen. Syma and Tim talk to researchers who designed, and then made, a protein that neutralises a type of snake venom. In the first release we talk to Susana Vázquez and Tim Jenkins who were key members of the team, and in the second release, on Sunday, we chat with David Baker who was one of the re...

Dogs are people’s best friend, but how did that happen?  Did we tame them or did they train us, or is it a bit of both?  Join us as we discuss domestication with Greger Larson and Lachlan Scarsbrook

Not all Birds are the same. In analyses of thousands of hours of bird song our guests, Nilo Merino Recalde and Ben Sheldon found predictable variation in the calls of great tits. Showcasing the power of AI in analyses of data from the natural world they show birds show cultural differences much like humans do.

https://nilomr.github.io/

OSIRIS-REx is a space craft that visited the asteroid Bennu, returning samples to Earth in late 2023. The first exciting results from the analyses of these samples are just being published. In the first part of the Podcast we talk to Sara Russell about the mission and her recently published results, and then in the second Part we talk to Addy Pross on what the insights mean for the emergence of life elsewhere in the cosmos.

Link to Sara's paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08495-6
Link to Addy's book: https://www.amazon.co...

Tim and Syma’s guests are Gordon Sanghera and Lakmal Jayasinghe of Oxford Nanopore Technologies. They discuss how their elegant technology is transforming the ease with which we can now learn what information is contained in our genes and how this is being used already in hospitals to detect for example, cancers in children. Gordon gives his vision of what might be achievable in the future.

Later in this episode, Tim flies solo in the wake of Syma's imminent departure for duties on the west coast of the US!
Tim's guests are Ivan Vinogradov and Michael Jennions, both of the Australian National University, and co-authors of the scientific paper 'Paternity analysis reveals sexual selection on cognitive performance in mosquitofish".

It would appear that smarter male fish are more likely to mate and produce more offspring! How on earth could this be true?!! 

Join Tim, Ivan and Michael to find out.

Link to the paper - https://www.nature.c...

In this introductory episode, Syma and Tim introduce themselves and explain what subjects and ideas they hope to bring to their audience, and some of the things they will be covering in future episodes.  

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