Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea
452 episodes - English - Latest episode: 20 days ago - ★★★★★ - 11 ratingsJonathan responds to your texts and tweets, is joined in studio for all the latest science stories for Newsround and speaks to one of our two guests featured on the show.
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Episodes
Futureproof Gold: What is Time?
June 30, 2022 06:30 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MBWe conventionally think of time as something simple and fundamental that flows uniformly, independently from everything else, from the past to the future, measured by clocks and watches. In the course of time, the events of the universe succeed each other in an orderly way: pasts, presents, futures. The past is fixed, the future open. . . . And yet all of this has turned out to be false. Carlo Rovelli is Director of the Quantum Gravity Group of the Centre de Physique Théorique (CPT) of the...
Futureproof Extra: Fair Seas & Potecting Our Marine Habitats
June 28, 2022 06:30 - 13 minutes - 12.7 MBWe here at Futureproof don't need to tell you that biodiversity is in crisis. This is true in our seas as much as in our oceans, and despite that, only 2% of our waters are designated "Marine Protected" areas but a national campaign called 'Fair Seas' is trying to change that. Joining Jonathan to discuss is Regina Classen, Marine Policy and Research Officer with the Irish Wildlife Trust and co-author of the 'Fair Seas' report, 'Revitalising Our Seas'.
SIRT 6: The Longevity Gene
June 26, 2022 10:15 - 42 minutes - 39.2 MBWhen it comes to maintaining that youthful luster, we have, over the years, concocted all manner of things - from cosmetics, dietary plans, and exercise regimes - to get the job done. But unless you’ve got the actual fountain of youth in your back garden or the holy grail sitting on your mantle you’re probably plum out of luck when it comes to reversing the aging process completely. That being said, researchers at the University of Rochester have uncovered more evidence that the key to long...
Could Google's LaMDA Really Be Sentient?
June 19, 2022 10:00 - 43 minutes - 40.2 MBWhether AI is capable of reaching the point of sentience has long been debated; and with the news this week around Blake Lemoine - an engineer at Google who has claimed that the firm's LaMDA AI system has achieved just that - the conversation has been given a new lease of life. It begs the question - at what point do we call something sentient? And does it even matter, if a computer programme is actually sentient if it appears to be thoughtful, self-aware and reflective? To tease out these ...
How The Science of Dogs Changed The Science of Life
June 15, 2022 15:00 - 32 minutes - 29.6 MBJonathan is joined by Jules Howard - Zoological Consultant & Correspondent and Author of Wonderdog: How the Science of Dogs Changed the Science of Life Shane Bergin and Catherine Mc Guinness join us for newsround
Futureproof Extra: Treating Spinal Cord Injuries
June 15, 2022 13:00 - 15 minutes - 14.6 MBAn injury to the spinal cord can be hugely traumatic and life-changing in nature. And while inroads have been made in terms of the development of treatments, there’s still a way to go. But what are the treatments currently in development and are outcomes getting any better than they were 20 years ago? Dr. Rory Murphy is a neurosurgeon in the Department of Neurosurgery at Barrow Neurological Institute, in Phoenix, Arizona - he joined Jonathan to discuss.
Futureproof Extra: How Sensors Shape Our Everyday Life
June 07, 2022 06:30 - 16 minutes - 15.1 MBFrom thermostats, to step counters, pressure gauges, and chips that guide the Roomba around your living room, there are now more electronic sensors in the world than there are people. So what do all of these sensors mean for us and our relationship with the world and where exactly will it take us? Chris Salter, artist & Professor of Immersive Arts at Zurich University of the Arts (ZHDK) and the author of ‘Sensing Machines: How Sensors Shape Our Everyday Life’ joins Jonathan to discuss.
What Does It Mean To Be Alive?
June 05, 2022 11:55 - 41 minutes - 38.4 MBFor centuries, stories about the origin of life have gripped us, while attempts to understand and define it have confounded us as for every metric we use to measure and qualify life, inevitably there’s some microbe or animal that doesn’t quite fit the bill. So, how do we answer this question and what does it mean to be a living thing anyway? Carl Zimmer, an award-winning New York Times columnist sought to discuss just that in his latest book - ‘Life’s Edge: The Search For What It Means To B...
Futureproof Gold: The Science of Smell
May 31, 2022 06:30 - 37 minutes - 34.7 MBOf the five (traditionally accepted) senses, smell is definitely the one that gets overlooked. But it can also be one of the most evocative. If you’ve ever had a smell bring you back to a specific time or feeling you’ll know exactly what we mean by that. But how does smell work exactly? Luca Turin is a Biophysicist, Group Leader in Quantum Neurobiology at the Fleming Institute in Athens, and author of 'The Secret of Scent: Adventures in Perfume and The Science of Smell' - He joined Jonath...
Futureproof Special: United By DNA
May 29, 2022 12:45 - 27 minutes - 25.3 MBKnowing where we come from can be one of the most important pillars by which we establish and develop our sense of who we are. Not only that, understanding our genealogy can help answer questions around personality traits, physical characteristics, and our genetic history - but what percentage of those traits get passed down through generations, and how much of ourselves is borne of our upbringing? In this special episode of Futureproof, we hear the heartwarming story of one woman and her ...
Futureproof Extra: The Sound of The Universe & Everything In It
May 24, 2022 06:30 - 18 minutes - 17.3 MBWhether you’re aware of it or not, right now, you are vibrating. In fact, the natural frequency of a human body while standing is roughly between 5Hz-10Hz. And the same goes for all things in the universe - the earth for instance resonates at 7.83Hz. But, if all things resonate then sure they must have a sound…and if so, then what do they sound like? Richard Mainwaring is a composer, broadcaster, and author of ‘Everybody Hertz: The Amazing World of Frequency, from Bad Vibes to Good Vibra...
The Cutting-Edge Science of Transplants
May 22, 2022 10:45 - 48 minutes - 44.7 MBThe incredible science behind organ transplant surgery is perhaps something that has become a bit normalised as for the majority of us, these life-saving and life-extending procedures have always been around. But is there a limit to what we can transplant and what might we expect in the years to come in this area? Reza Motallebzadeh, Head of the Centre for Transplantation at University College London joined Jonathan to discuss.
Futureproof Extra: A Genetic History of the Americas
May 17, 2022 07:30 - 14 minutes - 13.5 MBThe peopling of the Americas has long been a hot topic. After all, there are no written records and scant archaeological evidence to tell us what happened or how it took place. There have been many different models put forth to explain how the Americas were peopled but recent strides in the field of genetics are upending some long-held assumptions. Jennifer Raff is an associate professor of anthropology at the University of Kansas and author of ‘Origin: A Genetic History of the Americas’ - s...
What Happened Before The Big Bang?
May 15, 2022 10:49 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MBIf you ask most people how the universe began, they might say “the Big Bang” - but it’s hard to be satisfied with that answer and to resist the temptation to ask “but what happened before that?” Well, that is precisely the question that Will Kinney, Professor in the Department of Physics at the University at Buffalo, strives to answer in his new book - 'An Infinity of Worlds: Cosmic Inflation and the Beginning of the Universe'. He joined Jonathan to discuss. Dr.Ruth Freeman from SFI & Dr. La...
The Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory
May 10, 2022 12:18 - 37 minutes - 34.5 MBIn our efforts to better understand the very fabric of the universe we sometimes have to think outside the box. So it might seem strange then to think that in our search for the elusive dark matter we need not necessarily look to the depths of the solar system, the Milky Way, or the universe itself but to the ground beneath our feet. Alan Kelly, Professor in Astrophysics and Director of Space Technology and Industry Institute at Swinburne University of Technology in Australia joined Jonathan ...
Futureproof Extra: Upcycling CO2
May 10, 2022 07:30 - 16 minutes - 14.7 MBThe climate change problem can often seem intractable and in a political sense, painfully slow. But it's important to remember that some progress is being made and we are innovating new techniques and technologies to address the issue. One such innovation is CO2 upcycling - Andrea Ramirez Ramirez, Professor in the Faculty of Low-Carbon Systems and Technologies at Delft University of Technology joined Jonathan to discuss. Listen and subscribe to Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea on Apple Podcas...
A New Understanding Of Epilepsy
May 03, 2022 07:30 - 14 minutes - 13.4 MBJoining Jonathan on Futureproof this week was Dr Matthew Campbell - Associate Professor in Trinity’s School of Genetics and Microbiology . Dr Campbell has pioneered research on what actually triggers Epileptic seizures in the body. Epilepsy is a central nervous system (neurological) disorder in which brain activity becomes abnormal, causing seizures or periods of unusual behavior, sensations and sometimes loss of awareness. Anyone can develop epilepsy. Epilepsy affects both males and females ...
What Goes In To Designing A Rollercoaster?
May 01, 2022 11:00 - 41 minutes - 38.2 MBJoining Jonathan on Futureprooof this week was Kory Kiepert - Engineer & Partner at The Gravity Group. Kory is a rollercoaster engineer who designs rollercoasters. Kory in fact, got married on a rollercoaster. So what does Kory actually do as a rollercoaster engineer? He will do some of the structural engineering and the mechanical engineering for the ride. Usually an amusement park will come to him and show him the plot of land they have chosen for the ride, what the budget is, what kind of ...
Futureproof Extra: Are Smaller Scorpions More Deadly
April 25, 2022 07:30 - 15 minutes - 13.9 MBEvolution has a funny way of equipping creatures that are small in size with attributes that make them deadly to deal with - the poison frog, blue-ringed octopus, or some species of jellyfish for instance. But is this also true of scorpions? Is it really a case of "the bigger the better"? Well, that is exactly the question that Dr. Kevin Healy, Lecturer of Zoology at NUI Galway wanted to answer. He joined Jonathan to discuss. Listen and subscribe to Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea on Apple P...
Sequencing the Complete Human Genome
April 24, 2022 11:00 - 31 minutes - 28.8 MBSince the first draft of a human genome sequence was completed in 2000, genomics research has led to huge strides in the understanding of our biology, but it wasn't complete. Well, in 2019, an international team of scientists set out to rectify that - earlier this month unveiling the first-ever gap-free sequence of a human genome. So how did they do it and what does this mean for the likes of genetic diseases, human diversity, and evolution? Karen Miga, Assistant Professor of Biomolecular Eng...
Futureproof Extra: Paleoburrows
April 19, 2022 07:30 - 12 minutes - 11.6 MBWe can learn a lot about the animals of the past by studying the fossils we find in the ground but there’s something else that pre-historic creatures leave behind too - their burrows. To discuss what we can learn from these ‘paleoburrows’, Jonathan was joined by Renata Netto, professor at the Geology Graduate Program, Unisinos University in Brazil. Listen and subscribe to Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Download, listen and subscribe on the Newstalk App. ...
50 Years of the The Dunedin Study
April 17, 2022 11:10 - 38 minutes - 35 MBEarlier this month the Dunedin Study into health and behaviour marked its 50th birthday. In 1972, a researcher in the city set out to track the development of more than 1,000 newborn babies up to the age of three. Little did Phil Silva realise that over the next 50 years, his research would morph into one of the world’s most important longitudinal studies - the subsequent work yielding more than 1,300 peer-reviewed research papers, reports, and books. Terrie E. Moffitt, Ph.D. Nannerl O. Keoha...
Futureproof Extra: What We Don't Know About Gravity
April 12, 2022 07:30 - 17 minutes - 16 MBGravity is everywhere. We and every other thing in the cosmos experience its force at all times no matter how small, no matter how oblivious you might be to its presence - it's there. But for something that causes the falling of a leaf in autumn as well as the collision of supermassive black holes in interstellar space - there’s a whole lot we don’t know about it too. Claudia de Rham, Professor of Theoretical Physics at Imperial College London joined Jonathan to run through everything we don’...
Creating Synthetic Alcohol
April 10, 2022 11:26 - 42 minutes - 39 MBWe have a funny relationship with alcohol. Many of us enjoy how it can make us more outgoing or ready to laugh but for others, it can be a source of significant, long-term problems. So could a synthetic alcohol - which provides the relaxing and socially lubricating qualities of alcohol without the hangovers - be a solution? Professor David Nutt, Edmond J. Safra Professor of Neuropsychopharmacology at Imperial College London, and the man behind Alcarelle, joined Jonathan to discuss. Dr. Shane ...
Futureproof Extra: The Joy of Science with Jim Al-Khalili
April 05, 2022 07:30 - 17 minutes - 15.6 MBFutureproof Extra: The Joy of Science with Jim Al-Khalili
Designing a Vaccine for Covid-19
April 03, 2022 14:32 - 47 minutes - 43.5 MBDesigning a Vaccine for Covid-19
Futureproof Extra: Why Do We Hate?
March 29, 2022 07:30 - 25 minutes - 23.5 MBFor millenia the people’s and states of western Europe were at war with each other. They fought the 9 years war, the 100 years war, the Napoleonic wars, two world wars, and way too many others to mention. These people hated each other. It was a cauldron of “us versus them” But today with the rise of the EU and an extended period of peace in the region many of “them” have become “us”. So what caused those centuries of hate, where has it gone, and is it possible to eliminate hate altogether? Ma...
The End of the Age of Astonauts
March 27, 2022 11:00 - 28 minutes - 1.68 KBFor many people, the single greatest human achievement of the 20th century happened on July 20th, 1969 when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon, and a large proportion of those people probably hope for a similar spectacle on Mars in the coming decades. But aside from it being cool, is there actually any reason to send humans to these far-flung places? Britain's Astronomer Royal, Martin Rees, and Astrophysicist & Science Writer Donald Goldsmith consider this very question in thei...
The End of the Age of Astronauts
March 27, 2022 11:00 - 28 minutes - 26.3 MBFor many people, the single greatest human achievement of the 20th century happened on July 20th, 1969 when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon, and a large proportion of those people probably hope for a similar spectacle on Mars in the coming decades. But aside from it being cool, is there actually any reason to send humans to these far-flung places? Britain's Astronomer Royal, Martin Rees, and Astrophysicist & Science Writer Donald Goldsmith consider this very question in thei...
Futureproof Extra: Genomics
March 22, 2022 07:30 - 15 minutes - 14.3 MBOne of the things we here at Futureproof talk a lot about is the genome, the complete IKEA instructions to building you that exists in nearly every one of your living cells. As research and genetic technologies improve, the potential for medicine and society is huge, but there are also potential dangers too. It’s why the 'Irish Platform for Patient Organisations, Science & Industry' (IPPOSI) is looking for people to apply to join the Citizens’ Jury on Genomics to discuss all of the implicatio...
How Motorsport Science Can Save The World
March 20, 2022 11:01 - 41 minutes - 37.6 MBWhen you think of motorsport, your mind might think of the speed, the danger, or the excitement. But it might surprise you to find that it is the motorsport industry, and its various R&D Departments, that have contributed to a wide range of applications - from climate change solutions to help in the fight against Covid. Dr. Kit Chapman, an award-winning science journalist and author of ‘Racing Green: How Motorsport Science Can Save The World’ - joined Jonathan to discuss. Dr. Susan Kelleher &...
Futureproof Extra: The Expectation Effect
March 15, 2022 07:30 - 18 minutes - 17.4 MBFutureproof Extra: The Expectation Effect
Can Animals Detect Natural Disasters?
March 13, 2022 11:00 - 36 minutes - 33.4 MBCan Animals Detect Natural Disasters?
Futureproof Extra: Measuring Intelligence
March 08, 2022 07:30 - 17 minutes - 16.1 MBFutureproof Extra: Measuring Intelligence
NeoMimix: The New Sperm Selection Technology
March 06, 2022 11:00 - 33 minutes - 30.4 MBNeoMimix: The New Sperm Selection Technology
Futureproof Extra: The Winchcombe Lockdown Meteorite
March 01, 2022 07:00 - 17 minutes - 16.3 MBThe Winchcombe Lockdown Meteorite
A Forensic Look at Solving Crimes
February 27, 2022 11:00 - 44 minutes - 41.2 MBHow to Solve a Crime with Science with Dr. Angela Gallop
Futureproof Extra: Hybrid Humans
February 22, 2022 07:30 - 20 minutes - 18.9 MBFutureproof Extra: Hybrid Humans
Unraveling the Mysteries of our Ancient Dead
February 20, 2022 11:00 - 37 minutes - 34.3 MBUnraveling the Mysteries of our Ancient Dead
What Sleep Can Teach Us About Epilepsy
February 16, 2022 07:30 - 16 minutes - 15.5 MBWhat Sleep Can Teach Us About Epilepsy?
Can Geoengineering Help in the Fight Against Climate Change?
February 13, 2022 11:00 - 34 minutes - 31.6 MBCan Geoengineering Help in the Fight Against Climate Change?
Why Are We So Obsessed With Measuring Time?
February 08, 2022 07:30 - 17 minutes - 23.9 MBNow, while we may not be aware of it, each and every one of us is a slave to an unseen and unknowable master. It rules the sun and the earth, roving the cosmos with indifference - presiding over the birth and death of stars and galaxies and every living thing.It is Time. And, consequently, we have a long-standing obsession with measuring it. But just how far back does that obsession go? Chad Orzel, Associate Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Union College in Schenectady,...
Why Is Chewing So Important?
February 06, 2022 11:00 - 34 minutes - 46.9 MBWhen we eat it may not occur to us how important chewing is. Food impaction is when a morsel of food is blocking the oesophagus or needs to be taken out because it hasn't been broken down correctly via chewing. Jonathan speaks with a gastroenterologist about why chewing is both necessary and important. Gastroenterologists are doctors who are trained to diagnose and treat problems in your gastrointestinal tract and liver. These doctors also do routine procedures such as colonoscopies, which lo...
Could We Be On The Verge Of A Vaccine For MS?
January 30, 2022 11:00 - 36 minutes - 33 MBMultiple sclerosis is a chronic disease affecting the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord). MS occurs when the immune system attacks nerve fibers and myelin sheathing (a fatty substance which surrounds/insulates healthy nerve fibers) in the brain and spinal cord. A new paper has been published that seems to have discovered the cause of Multiple Sclerosis. This paper could pave the way for a vaccine for MS Dr. Claire McCoy Senior Lecturer in Pharmacy & Biomolecular Sciences at RC...
Futureproof Extra: How Do We Navigate?
January 25, 2022 07:30 - 16 minutes - 15.3 MBFutureproof Extra: How Do We Navigate?
Where Are All The Irish Dinosaurs?
January 23, 2022 11:01 - 41 minutes - 37.9 MBWhere Are All The Irish Dinosaurs?
Futureproof Extra: A Natural History of the Future
January 18, 2022 07:30 - 17 minutes - 16 MBFutureproof Extra: A Natural History of the Future
What Life In Space Teaches Us About Life On Earth
January 16, 2022 11:14 - 31 minutes - 29.1 MBWhat Life In Space Teaches Us About Life On Earth
Futureproof Gold: The Milgram Experiments
January 13, 2022 16:56 - 26 minutes - 24.6 MBNow, science is many things but at its core, it is fundamentally human - to strive to understand, to seek out; and to know. And while we strive to do this while adhering to strict codes of conduct & ethical boundaries. At least we do now anyway. But in the field of psychology In the middle of the 20th century however, all bets were off. Gina Perry, writer, science historian and author of ‘Behind the Shock Machine’ & ‘The Lost Boys’
Futureproof Extra: The Robbers Cave Experiment
January 11, 2022 07:30 - 40 minutes - 92.1 MBFutureproof Extra: The Robbers Cave Experiment