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PODCAST

Science On Top

The Science on Top Team

The Australian podcast about science, health and technology news. Join Ed Brown and his panel of co-hosts each week as we talk about the latest and coolest research and discoveries in the world of science. We"re joined by special guests from all over the science field: doctors, professors, nurses, teachers and more.

science natural sciences

All Episodes

29:51

SoT 232: Peanut Butter Makes Everything Better

Science On Top ·

2016/07/07

00:00:55 Fish that spend part of the time on land - such as mudskippers, American eels, and sea scorpions - may have evolved that ability separately more than 30 times! 00:07:08 Tabby's Star, also known as Where's The Flux, has been described as "the most mysterious star in the universe". It's the star with the strange dimming patterns that caused some speculation that it might be an alien megastructure. Well it almost certainly isn't an alien megastructure, but the story behind its discovery and

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46:55

SoT 231: Smoking Pigs

Science On Top ·

2016/06/26

00:01:05 For the second time, physicists have detected gravitational waves, proving that gravitational wave detection is a viable new form of astronomy. It also opens the way for theories about space-time having a memory, and possible explanations for dark matter. 00:30:38 A long awaited WHO report says that not only is coffee not carcinogenic, but it may even prevent some cancers. It's not so good news, however, if you like your coffee hot. 00:42:58 NASA's Juno spacecraft is set to enter orbit

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38:47

SoT 230: Meat Ants

Science On Top ·

2016/06/18

00:00:52 Michelle Franklin joins us to discuss invasive species control - from giving herpes to carp, to the moth that nearly wiped out the prickly pear. 00:16:57 Scientists have trained archerfish to recognise - and spit at - specific human faces. 00:22:46 A woman in Pennsylvania recently tested positive to an E. coli "superbug" that's resistant to most antibiotics. That's scary enough, but it also points to a worrisome lack of testing and reporting with urinary tract infections. Michelle

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45:23

SoT 229: Lower Ranked Rats

Science On Top ·

2016/06/13

00:01:03 Researchers from Johannes Gutenberg University have described the development of a potential universal cancer vaccine. But it's still very early days. 00:10:57 Scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have found a giant sponge - the largest on record and one of the oldest living creatures in the world. 00:14:43 A large rat study shows that exposing rats to large doses of mobile phone radiation over two years can cause a higher rate of some cancers. But it's a

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41:06

SoT 228: That's So Birch

Science On Top ·

2016/06/08

Researchers have just published a study that for the first time shows physical changes in trees that in some ways correspond to day-night cycles. Newly discovered evidence of a previously unknown population of Tasmanian devils could provide the genetic diversity that may be crucial to saving the devils from a deadly facial cancer. Dating a rock formation deep in a cave in France reveals Neanderthals were much more advanced than previously thought. Two Armenian physicists have published a study

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35:02

SoT 227: Aha! There's A Thing!

Science On Top ·

2016/06/01

A Canadian teenager may have found a lost Mayan city. Or, it might just be a marijuana plantation. Either way, he deserves credit for coming up with a hypothesis and testing it - with help from the Canadian Space Agency! There's a parasite that's turning Alaskan king crabs into zombies. The parasite castrates the males, takes over their bodies and makes them raise its offspring. But the good news is the crab's legs are still edible! A new study finds a link between folate and autism. But it's not

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26:55

SoT 226: Seismic Swarms

Science On Top ·

2016/05/23

A further 1,284 more exoplanets have been confirmed by NASA's Kepler mission. This puts the total number confirmed planets outside our solar system to 3,268! Does the increase in small earthquakes below Mount St. Helens signify an imminent eruption? Not quite, but that hasn't stopped the media from panicking. For a long time, climate change scientists have been warning that as sea levels rise, some countries could be lost underwater. This week, new research shows that at least five reef islands

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40:20

SoT 225: Memoirs Of A Janitor

Science On Top ·

2016/05/14

Chiropractors in Australia are coming under fire after a shocking video of manipulation of a baby goes viral. Dr. Mick Vagg gives us an in-depth look at the controversial industry. You can watch parts of the video here. Scientists are about to unleash "Carpageddon" - a radical form of biological control that aims to eradicate carp from an Australian river system. Watch out carp, herpes is coming! Mysterious gullies on Mars may be formed by water 'boiling'. Water in low pressure, such as at the

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36:51

Sot 224: Useless Babies

Science On Top ·

2016/05/07

SpaceX plans to send uncrewed Dragon capsules to Mars... as early as 2018. And they might even be able to do it! Study of a rare fossil of a baby titanosaur shows that some dinosaurs were left to fend for themselves immediately after hatching. The bittersweet nightshade plant has an ancient defense mechanism - it recruits armies of ants to ward off slugs and predators. Astronomers have discovered that Makemake, the second brightest dwarf planet in the Kuiper belt, has a moon. Surprisingly, it's

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29:07

SoT 223: Terminal Buzz

Science On Top ·

2016/04/30

A new study looks at the vocal talents of Queen frontman FreddieMercury, and reveals what we already knew: he had an extraordinary voice! A study of bats shows that when hunting insects, they don't plan one kill at a time. Instead they choose flight paths that take them to two victims in quick succession. A study looking at high powered hand dryers - in particular the Dyson Airblades - has found they can spread a lot of virus particles. But that's only a problem if you don't wash your hands

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24:13

SoT 222: Zombie Penguin!

Science On Top ·

2016/04/25

Penguins need to be counted, and scientists need your help counting them! PenguinWatch blends citizen science with cute penguins! Stephen Hawking and Yuri Milner team up again to fund an extremely ambitious $100m research program to send probes to Alpha Centauri. A new chemical test could reveal whether fossilised bones were from pregnant – and therefore female – dinosaurs. This episode contains traces of Stephen Hawking announcing the "Starshot" Breakthrough Initiative.

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16:40

SoT 221: A Brick On A Sparrow

Science On Top ·

2016/04/18

Scientists at the University of New South Wales could soon be able to regrow homan bone and tissue in the body, with stem cells. In the quest for better data to protect endangered vultures, conservationists are turning to 3D printing eggs. Korean researchers have discovered that Skuas - mid-sized Antarctic seabirds - can recognise individual humans. Hope is running out for the troubled Japanese space telescope, Hitomi.

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56:58

SoT 220: Paleo That!

Science On Top ·

2016/04/11

Dr. Brad McKay tells us about his time as a host on a medical reality TV show. Most Australian doctors agree that nobody has contracted Lyme Disease from a tick in Australia, but many victims feel they have. Dr. McKay weighs in on the science behind Lyme Disease. The anus was a pretty important evolutionary step that meant animals no longer had to poop out their mouths. But recent videos of gelatinous sea creatures called comb jellies shed new light on the evolution of the so-called through-gut. A

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33:10

SoT 219: Mother's Guilt

Science On Top ·

2016/03/28

PET is the most common kind of plastic, and most of it ends up in landfills and waterways. But now a team of Japanese researchers have discovered a plastic-eating bacterium that could be the key to a new approach to recycling and waste disposal. A newly discovered horse-sized dinosaur reveals how Tyrannosaurus Rex and its close relatives evolved into the top predators of their time. New research in mice has found that the food parents eat before their kids are born can affect their children's health

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28:40

SoT 218: It Rips Its Face Off

Science On Top ·

2016/03/20

The American Statistical Association has issued a warning over the misuse of P values. The group says P values cannot determine whether a hypothesis or true of if results are important. In April scientists will begin drilling into the Chicxulub crater, site of the meteorite impact that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs. They hope to examine how life rebounded after the mass extinction and to learn more about the formation of 'peak ring craters'. The tiny jellyfish-like Hydra have no mouth,

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41:29

SoT 217: The Telescope That John West Rejected

Science On Top ·

2016/03/13

Some giant viruses, called mimiviruses, have immune systems that fight intruders in a manner similar to the CRISPR mechanism that microbiologists use to edit genomes. NASA has announced the development of a next generation space telescope. Using donated mirrors, the WFIRST telescope will have the same resolution as the Hubble Space Telescope, but a hundred times greater field of view. Recent headlines have suggested that eating chocolate will improve brain function, but the actual study they're

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35:19

SoT 216: Wobble When They Waddle

Science On Top ·

2016/03/06

A team of astronomers have traced the origins of a Fast Radio Burst - a sudden, high energy blast or radio waves - to a galaxy 6 billion light years away. This has helped them find 'regular' matter (not dark matter or dark energy) that was previously missing. An experiment in Antarctica set out to see how a penguin's walk - or waddle - changes with variations in body mass. To do this it was necessary to put the penguins on treadmills. For science! A new study has found that Lyme Disease can be

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31:11

SoT 215: Yellow Big Head

Science On Top ·

2016/02/27

A brain parasite may make chimpanzees less cautious and fearful of leopards. Maybe. For over 60 years, fruit flies have been trapped in the dark in one of the longest ongoing scientific experiments. 1,500 generations later, some evolutionary effects are being revealed. A new technique of using modified cancer cells to fight cancer is showing some impressive results in mice, but it’s early days yet. The Australian town of Wangaratta is being swamped by tumbleweeds. And it’s all one person’s

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46:38

SoT 214: Gravitational Waves

Science On Top ·

2016/02/23

Astrophysicist Dr. Katie Mack joins us to explain "one of the most groundbreaking physics discoveries of the past 100 years" - the detection of gravitational waves. In September last year the aLIGO experiment detected the ripple in spacetime caused by the merger of two black holes. We talk with Dr. Mack about the implications this has for a new type of astronomy. Dr. Katie Mack is a theoretical astrophysicist at Melbourne University. Her work focuses on finding new ways to learn about the early

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41:01

SoT 213: Everything Zika

Science On Top ·

2016/02/13

Medical entomologist Dr. Cameron Webb joins the team to talk about the Zika virus and mosquitoes. Everything you need to know about the current outbreak - baggage Zika, insect repellents, mosquito eradication, sexual transmission, and the link between Zika and microencephaly.Also, beer could make you a target for mosquitoes. Possibly. Dr Cameron Webb is a Clinical Lecturer with the University of Sydney and Principal Hospital Scientist with the Department of Medical Entomology at Pathology West -

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390 results

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