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PODCAST

Why? with Emma Kennedy

The podcast for curious minds. Every Wednesday, Emma Kennedy delves into the science and psychology of why we are the way we are. Emma is joined by leading experts and some of science"s brightest minds to answer the big questions you never knew how to ask. Why do people join cults? Why do we need the moon? Why are we drawn to evil? Why do we have fetishes? Find out all of this and more on Why? from the makers of Oh God, What Now? and The Bunker . Follow us on social media: Threads Instagram Bluesky

science mental health

All Episodes

27:46

Are seed oils bad for us? – with ZOE's chief...

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/10/01

Seed oils are everywhere. They’re in your chips, your salad dressing and even in your biscuits. But in the age of social media, they’ve become the latest food villain. Accused of causing everything from heart disease to chronic inflammation. Suddenly that drizzle of sunflower oil has become a battleground over health, science and who we choose to believe. Today on Why? Emma Kennedy is joined by Dr Sarah Berry, Professor in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at King's College London and Chief

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26:21

Is listening to heavy metal a life hack?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/09/24

Forget spa music and whale songs, turns out the real relaxing music might be a blast of heavy metal. Studies suggest towns with more metal bands have fewer alcohol-related hospital visits and even lower mortality rates. Today on Why?, Emma Kennedy is joined by journalist for Independent Nurse and self confessed metal head Sumaiyah Uddin to find out how mosh pits could be the path to mental wellbeing.Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do

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22:54

Why do some people hate exercise?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/09/17

Why do some people love the gym while others hate it? A new study suggests it might be about personality, not willpower. Dr Flaminia Ronca, researcher at the Institute of Sport, Exercise and Health at UCL, joins Emma Kennedy to find out if there’s a workout your brain is secretly wired to love or whether loathing spin class is perfectly normal!Advertisers! Want to reach smart, engaged, influential people with money to spend? (Yes, they do exist). Some 3.5 MILLION people download and watch our

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30:54

Why is sunscreen suddenly controversial?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/09/10

For years, sunscreen was the dullest health advice around: slap it on, don’t burn, lower your cancer risk. Easy. But in the weird world of TikTok wellness hacks and alarmist headlines, SPF has been recast as something sinister. This week on Why, Emma Kennedy is joined by Brian Diffey, Emeritus Professor of Photobiology at the University of Newcastle, to unpack how sunscreen actually works and how a simple life-saving habit got tangled up in conspiracy and misinformation.Advertisers! Want to reach

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26:39

Why is sunscreen suddenly controversial?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/09/10

For years, sunscreen was the dullest health advice around: slap it on, don’t burn, lower your cancer risk. Easy. But in the weird world of TikTok wellness hacks and alarmist headlines, SPF has been recast as something sinister. This week on Why, Emma Kennedy is joined by Brian Diffey, Emeritus Professor of Photobiology at the University of Newcastle, to unpack how sunscreen actually works and how a simple life-saving habit got tangled up in conspiracy and misinformation.Advertisers! Want to reach

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28:40

Why can’t I pay attention to anything?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/09/03

From phones to laptops to smartwatches, modern life is constantly pulling us in a dozen directions at the same time and it’s leaving us stressed, distracted, and less productive than ever before. This week on Why, Emma Kennedy is joined by Professor Gloria Mark, Chancellor's professor in the Department of Informatics at University of California, Irvine and author of Attention Span, to uncover what’s really happening to our focus and if we can get it back. Buy Attention Span: Finding Focus for a

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32:55

Why can’t I pay attention to anything?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/09/03

From phones to laptops to smartwatches, modern life is constantly pulling us in a dozen directions at the same time and it’s leaving us stressed, distracted, and less productive than ever before. This week on Why, Emma Kennedy is joined by Professor Gloria Mark, Chancellor's professor in the Department of Informatics at University of California, Irvine and author of Attention Span, to uncover what’s really happening to our focus and if we can get it back. Buy Attention Span: Finding Focus for a

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34:37

Why are antibiotics losing their powers?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/08/27

What if the next health crisis isn’t a new virus, but the slow erosion of the medicine we’ve taken for granted? For nearly a century, antibiotics have been the quiet miracle behind modern medicine, making infections survivable and surgeries safe. But now superbugs are rising, resistance is spreading, and that invisible shield is cracking.This week Emma Kennedy is joined by biologist Liam Shaw joins us to discuss his book The Dangerous Miracle, to explain the fascinating history of antibiotics

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30:22

Why are antibiotics losing their powers?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/08/27

What if the next health crisis isn’t a new virus, but the slow erosion of the medicine we’ve taken for granted? For nearly a century, antibiotics have been the quiet miracle behind modern medicine, making infections survivable and surgeries safe. But now superbugs are rising, resistance is spreading, and that invisible shield is cracking.This week Emma Kennedy is joined by biologist Liam Shaw joins us to discuss his book The Dangerous Miracle, to explain the fascinating history of antibiotics and

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23:46

Why are we obsessed with protein?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/08/20

We’re back and we’ve got some questions. Protein has taken over the supermarket. Crisps, popcorn, cereal and even coffee now boast about their protein content. But do we actually need so much of it in our diet? This week Emma Kennedy is joined by Dr Dan Baumgardt, GP and lecturer in neuroscience and physiology at the University of Bristol to sort the science from sales pitch and find out why we’re all so obsessed with protein. WHY? is presented by Emma Kennedy. Produced by Liam Tait and Kathleen

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28:01

Why are we obsessed with protein?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/08/20

We’re back and we’ve got some questions. Protein has taken over the supermarket. Crisps, popcorn, cereal and even coffee now boast about their protein content. But do we actually need so much of it in our diet? This week Emma Kennedy is joined by Dr Dan Baumgardt, GP and lecturer in neuroscience and physiology at the University of Bristol to sort the science from sales pitch and find out why we’re all so obsessed with protein. WHY? is presented by Emma Kennedy. Produced by Liam Tait and

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28:45

Will we ever really understand evolution?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/08/13

We’re back and we’ve got some questions. Evolution has shaped us into the odd-looking, brilliant creatures we are, but how exactly did it do it? Why did our genetics settle on five fingers? And why do scientists have a perfect explanation for testicles but are completely stumped by our pointy chins?This week, Emma Kennedy is joined by Dr. Max Telford, Professor of Zoology and Comparative Anatomy at University College London and author of The Tree of Life: Solving Science's Greatest Puzzle, to

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24:30

Will we ever really understand evolution?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/08/13

We’re back and we’ve got some questions. Evolution has shaped us into the odd-looking, brilliant creatures we are, but how exactly did it do it? Why did our genetics settle on five fingers? And why do scientists have a perfect explanation for testicles but are completely stumped by our pointy chins?This week, Emma Kennedy is joined by Dr. Max Telford, Professor of Zoology and Comparative Anatomy at University College London and author of The Tree of Life: Solving Science's Greatest Puzzle, to help

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32:37

What are microplastics doing to our bodies?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/08/06

Microplastics are turning up everywhere; in our lungs, blood, even our brains. They’re tiny, toxic, and almost impossible to avoid. So what can we do about them? Today, Emma Kennedy speaks to Dr Antaya March and Prof Fay Couceiro from the University of Portsmouth to find out what this means for our health and the long term consequences of ignoring this tiny problem. WHY? is presented by Emma Kennedy. Produced by Liam Tait and Kathleen Johnston. Edited by Robin Leeburn. Theme music by Jade Bailey

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28:22

What are microplastics doing to our bodies?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/08/06

Microplastics are turning up everywhere; in our lungs, blood, even our brains. They’re tiny, toxic, and almost impossible to avoid. So what can we do about them? Today, Emma Kennedy speaks to Dr Antaya March and Prof Fay Couceiro from the University of Portsmouth to find out what this means for our health and the long term consequences of ignoring this tiny problem. WHY? is presented by Emma Kennedy. Produced by Liam Tait and Kathleen Johnston. Edited by Robin Leeburn. Theme music by Jade Bailey

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36:29

How is Ozempic changing the world?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/07/30

We’re back and we’ve got some questions. Weight-loss injections are reshaping more than waistlines. They’re changing the world we live in. Drugs like Ozempic were developed to treat diabetes, but now they’re transforming how we eat, fly, dress and maybe how we think about our impulses. This week, Emma Kennedy is joined by Professor Giles Yeo, obesity researcher at Cambridge University and author of Why Calories Don’t Count: How we got the science of weight loss wrong, to help us wrap our heads

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32:14

How is Ozempic changing the world?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/07/30

We’re back and we’ve got some questions. Weight-loss injections are reshaping more than waistlines. They’re changing the world we live in. Drugs like Ozempic were developed to treat diabetes, but now they’re transforming how we eat, fly, dress and maybe how we think about our impulses.This week, Emma Kennedy is joined by Professor Giles Yeo, obesity researcher at Cambridge University and author of Why Calories Don’t Count: How we got the science of weight loss wrong, to help us wrap our heads around

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25:40

Why do we fall for fake news?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/07/23

We’re back and we’ve got some questions. How does fake news pull us in? From deepfakes to dodgy headlines, we’re constantly navigating a minefield of misinformation. It spreads faster than the truth, plays on our emotions, and can confirm what we want to believe. This week, Emma Kennedy is joined by Dr. Gordon Pennycook, Associate Professor of Psychology at Cornell University and Dr. David Rand, Professor of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at MIT, to find out why it is so hard to combat fake news? WHY

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33:55

Why do we fall for fake news?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/07/23

We’re back and we’ve got some questions. How does fake news pull us in? From deepfakes to dodgy headlines, we’re constantly navigating a minefield of misinformation. It spreads faster than the truth, plays on our emotions, and can confirm what we want to believe. This week, Emma Kennedy is joined by Dr. Gordon Pennycook, Associate Professor of Psychology at Cornell University and Dr. David Rand, Professor of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at MIT, to find out why it is so hard to combat fake

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41:35

Why do we laugh?

Why? with Emma Kennedy ·

2025/07/16

We’re back and we’ve got some questions. What is laughter? A joyful cackle, a nervous snort, a full-body wheeze. It’s how we react when life gets silly, or sometimes painful, or uncomfortable. We laugh to connect, to disarm and, sometimes, to survive. This week, Emma Kennedy is joined by Laura Lexx, professional comedian with an actual masters in stand up comedy and host of Lexx Education, to help us decode the giggle. Why do we laugh? Is it really contagious? WHY? is presented by Emma Kennedy

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146 results

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