Ri Science Podcast

Why is it that we can vividly remember a particular smell from years ago, but can’t remember where we put our keys a mere few hours prior? This month, we’re joined by renowned neuroscientist and author Dr Charan Ranganath to discuss how and why we remember.

Charan is a Professor of Neuroscience and Psychology, and Director of the Dynamic Memory Lab at UC Davis, and has recently released his first book ‘Why We Remember’. Charan takes us on a journey through our own minds, and a forward look at the future of memory research. 

Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month. Subscribe to be notified as soon as the next episode is released! 

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In the second episode of this miniseries, we’re exploring how AI is impacting different areas of scientific research, and in this episode we discuss the applications of AI in healthcare. Lisa Derry is joined by Dr James Kinross, a colorectal surgeon and medical researcher at Imperial College London, to discuss everything from the impact of AI on medical publishing to robotic surgery.Ri Science Podcast episodes are released on the last Wednesday of every month. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts to be notified as soon as the next episode is released!Please leave this episode a rating and a review to let us know what you think, and to help other people discover the podcast.

Following on from his Discourse, Yang-Hui He is joined by LIMS science writer Madeleine Hall to discuss the past, present and future of Geometry. From Euclid’s postulates to how flower petals are arranged, explore how our modern understanding of geometry has come to be. LIMS is based here at the Ri, and you can find out more about their research by following the link below.  

New Ri Science Podcast episodes will be released on the last Wednesday of every month, so make sure to tune in for the next episode at the end of March! 

Please leave this episode a rating and a review to let us know what you think, and to help more people discover the podcast.  

How can we improve the use of renewable energy in the power grid? In the final episode of the series 'Tales from my PhD', Charlotte Collingwood talks to Karan Mukhi about his work in computer science, creating algorithms to improve the efficiency of the national grid.

How do you fight a fungus? In this episode of ‘Tales from my PhD’, Charlotte Collingwood talks to Camilla Molinari about her work in plant pathology, studying the mechanisms and genetics of the rice blast fungus in order to limit its impact on food crops.

How can maths and computational models help us treat anxiety and depression? In this episode of 'Tales from my PhD', Charlotte Collingwood talks to Sophie Shang about her research in the field of computational psychiatry. A hallmark symptom of anxiety and depression is an intolerance of uncertainty. Sophie's work involves designing studies to test people's response to changes in their environment, analysing the data mathematically and then coding computational models in order to reveal patterns in human behaviour and mental health that are otherwise invisible.

There are an estimated 5 trillion plastic particles in the oceans, spelling trouble for marine ecosystems. Manta rays are one group of species at risk – how can we protect these animals? In this episode of 'Tales from my PhD', Charlotte Collingwood talks to Jessica Savage about her work analysing the species distribution of manta rays and global plastic pollution maps to aid marine science and conservation.

How can we detect massive objects in space when we can't see them by light?

On 14 September 2015, scientists opened a new window to observing the Universe when, for the first time, they directly detected gravitational waves, rippled out through spacetime from the merger of two black holes. 

In this episode, astronomer Tessa Baker explores how Einstein’s theory of gravity predicted the existence of gravitational waves, how delicate experiments eventually confirmed their existence, and how we can translate this experimental data into sounds, allowing us to hear the Universe.

This talk was recorded from our theatre at the Royal Institution on 19 May 2023.

Astrophysicists grapple with the Universe's big questions, but what does their day-to-day research actually entail? In the first of our new mini-series, 'Tales from my PhD', Charlotte Collingwood sits down with Rohan Varadaraj to discuss his work discovering new galaxies billions of light years away.

Please leave this episode a rating and a review to let us know what you think.

How did societies develop across the globe and how did gender become so enmeshed in them? In this episode we join award-winning science journalist, Angela Saini, in conversation with former Australian prime-minister, Julia Gillard, as they go in search of the roots of gendered oppression. By looking at cultures throughout human history and in the modern day, they overturn simplistic universal theories to show that what patriarchy is and how far back it goes really depends on where you live.

Did you know that there is no widely agreed upon definition of what emotions actually are? After losing his dad to Covid-19 in the early days of the pandemic lockdown, neuroscientist Dean Burnett found himself wondering what life would be like without emotions. In today’s episode, Dean combines his personal story with expert analysis, humour and powerful insights into the grieving process, to uncover how emotions make us who we are.

How could we use shower wastewater to clean our clothes? To celebrate Earth Day and its specific focus on investing in the planet, we wanted to introduce you to ‘Undaunted’ - our partnership with Imperial College London that supports climate-positive startups tackling the climate crisis head on. We hear from Alyssa Gilbert, Director of Undaunted, and Katherine Mathieson, Director of the Ri, about the exciting work Undaunted is doing, alongside a sneak peek into some of the innovations.

Please leave this episode a rating and a review to let us know what you think, and to help more people discover the podcast. 

Are particles conscious? Can information be destroyed? Do we live in a computer simulation? Are we part of a multiverse? In this episode, theoretical physicist Sabine Hossenfelder draws on research in quantum mechanics, black holes and particle physics to explore what modern physics can tell us about life's big, existential questions.

You might have heard that vending machines are more likely to kill you than a shark, but they aren’t the only deadly object out there. You’re also more likely to be killed by falling coconuts, lightning strikes, bathtubs and your own bed. Swimming in shark-infested waters might actually be safer than hiding in your own house.

In this episode, statistician Jennifer Rogers delves into the numbers to show you how statistics can help you to make better decisions about risky activities.

On 4 July 2012, one of the longest-running mysteries in physics was finally clarified. The ATLAS and CMS collaborations at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider announced that they had produced and observed the elusive Higgs boson. This unstable elementary particle was theorised back in 1964 by 6 scientists – one of them was the particle’s namesake, Peter Higgs.

In this episode, physicist and former Ri Christmas Lecturer, Frank Close, explores the life of Peter Higgs, a Nobel prize-winning scientist and the only person in history to have an existing single particle named after them.

Do Diet Coke and salt cause heart disease? How do you transport a heart to be transplanted? How can you learn to live with angina? In this month's talk, we hear from world-renowned cardiac surgeon Samer Nashef. Samer discusses his book, ‘The Angina Monologues: Stories of Surgery for Broken Hearts’, with journalist Sathnam Sanghera.

Together they explore a collection of Samer’s stories that are sure to get your heart racing – from driving a donor heart up the motorway to Samer's personal experience with angina.

This talk was recorded from our theatre at the Royal Institution on 8 May 2019.

Please leave this episode a rating and a review to let us know what you think, and to help more people discover the podcast.

In this Christmas-special we go behind-the-scenes of our 2022 CHRISTMAS LECTURES, presented by Professor Dame Sue Black. Katherine Mathieson, Director of the Ri, managed to steal Sue away from rehearsals for a quick chat about her CHRISTMAS LECTURES memories, science communication and what we can expect to learn about forensic science.

The CHRISTMAS LECTURES will be broadcast on BBC Four on 26, 27 and 28 December 2022.

An advanced form of radiotherapy, proton beam therapy enables tumours to be targeted with greater precision, reducing the collateral damage to surrounding healthy tissue. Physicist Simon Jolly sheds light on this leading-edge technique and the technology needed to deliver it.

This talk was recorded from our theatre at the Royal Institution on 12 October 2018. Watch the video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/8YnQkUWTS64

Please leave this episode a rating and a review to let us know what you think, and to help more people discover the podcast.

Did you know that zoologists have only found 5 species of mammals that go through the menopause? That's 4 species of toothed whale, plus us humans. The animal kingdom reveals a lot about female evolution and this month, Lucy Cooke explores evolutionary biology through an array of animal examples and research stemming from Darwin's time.