Question of the Week, from the Naked Scientists
571 episodes - English - Latest episode: 2 days ago - ★★★★ - 1 ratingEach week we set out to solve one of the world's weirdest, wackiest, funniest and funkiest scientific puzzles. And along with the answer there's a brand new question to think about for next time...
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Episodes
How long does it take for comets to melt?
April 04, 2013 23:00 - 3 minutes - 1.59 MBWe find out how long it takes for a comet to melt and we ask could we ever get a cometless sky? Plus we wonder the power of plants. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Could civilisation cope without computers?
March 22, 2013 00:00 - 4 minutes - 2.17 MBWe rely increasingly on computer networks. If a solar storm or malicious virus hit the network, could our current civilisation dependency on computer networks be damaged irreversibly? Plus we ask, will all the comets in the sky ever melt away? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Do other animals practice dental hygiene?
March 13, 2013 00:00 - 4 minutes - 2.18 MBAre humans the only species that practice dental hygiene to retain their pearly nashers? Plus we ask, could we cope if computers conked? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Will a body wrap help me lose weight?
March 07, 2013 00:00 - 3 minutes - 1.59 MBWe find out if a body wrap will help you lose weight. Plus we ask are humans the only animals that practice dental hygiene? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Will our increasing human population cause a water shortage on Earth?
February 28, 2013 00:00 - 4 minutes - 1.88 MBWe find out if Earth's expanding human population will affect water supplies. Plus we ask, does the new anti-fat fad Shrinking Violet work? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Are Humans Meant for Monogamy?
February 14, 2013 00:00 - 3 minutes - 1.63 MBMany other species have multiple partners, but are humans meant for monogamy? Plus we ask, do flies have a super sense of smell? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Can you make a mini Mars at home?
February 08, 2013 00:00 - 4 minutes - 1.98 MBWe find out if you can emulate a Martian environment in the kitchen, and if so, can you grow plants there? Plus we ask, are humans meant for monogamy? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Can you get a Tabby Human?
February 01, 2013 00:00 - 4 minutes - 1.93 MBCats can have patterned fur, but can you get a tabby human? Plus we ask can we make a miniature Mars at home? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Do anti-mosquito sound devices work?
January 25, 2013 00:00 - 4 minutes - 1.98 MBWe find out if there is any evidence that anti-mosquito sound devices actually work. Plus we ask, do you get tabby humans? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
How is sleepiness related to cheerfulness?
January 21, 2013 00:00 - 6 minutes - 2.9 MBWe find out if there is a relationship between early rising and cheerfulness. Plus we ask how best to repel mosquitoes! Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Why aren't blood donations rejected?
January 14, 2013 00:00 - 4 minutes - 2.16 MBWe find out why blood donations aren't rejected more readily. Plus we ask, is sleepiness related to cheerfulness? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
How do touch sensitive switches work?
December 17, 2012 00:00 - 3 minutes - 1.73 MBWe find out why touch sensitive switches are sensitive to skin, soap and potato but not everything else? Plus we ask how do drinks & exercise affect the taste of your chewing gum? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Do foetuses get cancer?
December 10, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 1.97 MBWe find out if foetuses get cancer, 15 yr old Louis from London got in touch asking: their cells divide rapidly, so surely they can make genetic errors and get cancer? Plus we ask, how do touch sensitive gadgets work? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Can we make a real life Spiderman?
December 03, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 1.89 MBWe find out if we could mix spider and human DNA to create a real life Spiderman. Plus we ask, do foetuses get cancer? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
On Mars nobody can hear you scream. Is that really true? And if so, why?
November 26, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 1.91 MBON MARS NO ONE CAN HEAR YOU SCREAM. Is that really true? And if so, why? Plus we ask, can we mix spider and human DNA to make Spiderman? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Do menstrual cycles synchronise?
November 21, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 2.11 MBDo menstrual cycles synchronise for women who live together? If so, is there any evolutionary reason for this? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
How long can one survive on self cannibalisation?
November 20, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 2.01 MBThis week we find out how long you could survive by just eating your own severed limbs, plus we search for synchrony in menstrual cycles. Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Why do certain fungi produce hallucinogens?
November 06, 2012 00:00 - 3 minutes - 1.82 MBThis week we find out why certain mushrooms contain hallucinogens, plus we ask, how long could you survive by eating your own limbs? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Can you melt a potato?
October 29, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 2.11 MBThis week we ponder potatoes! You can bake a potato, boil a potato, fry them, chip 'em and roast 'em. But CAN YOU MELT one? Plus we ask, why do fungi bother to produce hallucinogens? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Was pre-historic cave art only done in caves?
October 21, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 2.22 MBWe find out where our ancestors artistically expressed themselves, plus we ask, how can we melt a potato? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Could we converse with animals?
October 15, 2012 09:59 - 4 minutes - 3.76 MBThis week we find out if we there will ever be a real life Dr Doolittle. And sticking with expressing ourselves we ask - was prehistoric art restricted to caves? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Would self bone marrow transplants reverse aging?
September 30, 2012 23:00 - 6 minutes - 3.23 MBWe find out if banking our bone marrow early in life, and transplanting down the line, may help halt the aging process. Plus we ask, why are we so good at forgetting names?..... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Has Life Only Started on Earth Once?
September 16, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 2.08 MBEarth seems like such a good place for life to thrive, so is it a good place for life to get started? Has life started on Earth more than once? If so, where is it? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Can mirrors make an infinitely powerful laser?
September 08, 2012 23:00 - 5 minutes - 2.33 MBBy simply bouncing a laser beam between two mirrors, could you produce an infinitely powerful laser? And if not, why not? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
How does one telephone wire transfer all of that data?
September 02, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 2.06 MBWe find out how it is possible for a single telephone wire to carry information for a telephone conversation, file downloads to a computer, WiFi access, and allow us to watch a film and listen to the news. Plus we ask can we make an infinitely powerful laser simply by adding more mirrors? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Is Vitamin D Production like Photosynthesis?
August 12, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 2.11 MBWe need exposure to sunlight in order to be able to make vitamin D. Does this mean that humans, like plants, undergo a sort of photosynthesis? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Could we introduce life onto Mars?
August 05, 2012 23:00 - 3 minutes - 1.86 MBThis week we speak with NASA's Planetary Protection Officer to find out if we could, and should, introduce life onto Mars. Plus we ask is a human producing Vitamin D a bit like a photosynthesising plant?..... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Will your choice in cutlery alter how your food tastes??
July 08, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 2.15 MBCan the type of cutlery used to prepare and serve food really alter its flavour? And does it really change, or is it just our perception? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Does ice really reduce swelling and speed up healing?
July 02, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 2.07 MBWe find out if applying ice to an injury actually helps to speed up healing. Plus we ask, would dining with a silver spoon make your food taste better? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Could gene therapy be used to cheat a DNA test?
June 24, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 2.01 MBWe find out if you can escape detection at a crime scene by using clever gene therapy techniques. Plus we ask, does applying ice to an injury actually help? And if so, how? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Why do women live longer than men?
June 17, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 2.18 MBWe find out why men generally die before women. Plus we ask can we use gene therapy to cheat a DNA test and escape a crime scene...... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Can we create a living organism from basic elements?
June 09, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 2.1 MBWe find out if we can create a living organism from basic elements. Plus we ask, why do women live longer than men? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Do motorways create a microclimate?
May 27, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 2.18 MBThis week we find out how a species has so successfully infiltrated the verges of the UK road systems. Plus we ask can we create life by heating up basic chemicals... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Can a magnet be so powerful it crushes what it attracts?
May 20, 2012 23:00 - 3 minutes - 1.75 MBWe apply some Naked Science force to this week's question and find out if we make a magnet so strong that is squashes, rather thanks sticks to, your white goods. Plus we ask do motorways create a microclimate? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Why do feet smell cheesy?
May 13, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 1.86 MBThis week we hone our noses and sniff out the answer to this stinker of a question...."Why do toenails, and even feet in general, smell cheesy? Plus we ask can we make a magnet so strong that is squashes, rather thanks sticks to, our white goods? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Why don't women have beards?
April 30, 2012 23:00 - 3 minutes - 1.72 MBWe find out why, if the gene that codes for men having hairy chests and backs provides an evolutionary advantage in response to an environmental pressure, don't women have beards and hairy chests too? Plus we ask why feet smell cheesy....... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Would reading from a screen keep me awake?
April 22, 2012 23:00 - 3 minutes - 1.74 MBWe find out if monitors, screens and e.books are more than your standard page turner leaving you tossing and turning and up all night. Plus we ask, why have women lost their hairy beard and chests..... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Will my skin soak up the calories in skin cream?
April 15, 2012 23:00 - 3 minutes - 1.69 MBThis week we find out if a liberal slathering of oil based moisturiser makes up part of our daily calorie quota. Plus we ask, are monitor screens and e.books more than your standard page turner, leaving you tossing and turning and up all night?.... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Why don't you make best use of your energy reserves?
April 01, 2012 23:00 - 4 minutes - 1.91 MBThis week we find out why our bodies can't get their priorities right. We find out why we seek out food when we already have enough energy stored around our waists in the form of love handles and pot bellies. Plus we ask - will our skin soak up the calories in sun cream? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Is there an absolute maximum temperature?
March 25, 2012 23:00 - 3 minutes - 1.8 MBThis week we find out about the inequality of the temperature scale as a listener asks: "If we can have a lower limit on temperature - absolute zero - so cold that nothing happens, why do we not have an upper limit - a temperature that is so hot that atoms and particles are so hot that they are ripped into the most elementary units and become so excited that they cannot react with anything around them?" Plus we wonder why we don't always get our priorities right........ Like this podcast? Ple...
Can you Catch Cancer?
March 19, 2012 00:00 - 5 minutes - 2.42 MBCould you get cancer from someone else? Tasmanian devils can catch cancer transmitted through biting. Are there instances of cancers being transmitted this way in humans? Can you catch cancer through a blood transfusion? Plus we ask, why is there not an upper absolute in the temperature scale...... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Would you receive any warning before being squished by a meteoite?
March 13, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 2.04 MBIf there were a large object, say a meteorite falling straight down where you are standing, what kind of warning would you notice? Would there be an accompanying sound? Or would you not know until it's too late? Plus we ask, can you catch cancer?..... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
When will indestructible plastics finally degrade?
March 05, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 1.86 MBWe know that nothing persists for ever so surely plastics in the sea have to break down at some point. How long does it take? And where does the plastic end up? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Can you cross a kangeroo with a sheep to get a wooly jumper?
February 27, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 2.07 MBAs the joke goes.....if you cross a kangaroo with a sheep you get a wooly jumper. Is it now possible with modern techniques to cross different animals to make one completely new species? Plus we ask will the plastics in the oceans ever degrade? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Goldfinger versus Goldmember?
February 20, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 2.18 MBWhich film dominates with their most realistic use of lasers? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Can you brew beer in zero gravity?
February 13, 2012 00:00 - 3 minutes - 1.7 MBWe find out if fermentation yeast survive in Space, we ponder if it is possible to brew up a beer at zero gravity, plus we ask which is the most realistic fictional laser weapon?..... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
How much of me is the original me?
February 06, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 1.87 MBA 57 year old male wonders - do I have any original parts? How much of the baby that was born in 1954 is still part of me? Plus we ask can you brew beer in space..... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
Would turning off standby devices increase my heating bills?
January 30, 2012 00:00 - 4 minutes - 1.99 MBWe're told to save electricity by switching off devices on standby. But if a home is heated solely by electricity, would there still be any savings by turning off all those devices? And a 57 male asks if any of his original parts remain..... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
How does a Headache Hurt?
January 23, 2012 00:00 - 3 minutes - 1.81 MBThis week I'll be getting inside your head.....with a question from Jarraryd Dunn. Plus we'll be asking is there any point in switching off your lights, TVs, and phone chargers during the winter?... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
The Case of the Caramels
January 16, 2012 00:00 - 5 minutes - 2.35 MBWith New Year's Resolutions in full swing here's a sweet thermal caramel quandary for us to sink our teeth into..... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists