Instant Genius

There’s little doubt that we humans are a deeply social species; in many ways, our interactions with others define the very essence of who we are. But in recent times, studies have shown that we’re connecting with one another less and less, to the point where some say we may now be facing a loneliness epidemic. So, why are social interactions so vital to our health and well-being, what actually happens in our brains and bodies when we form meaningful relationships, and what measures can we take to reverse this worrying trend? In this episode, we’re joined by Dr Ben Rein, a neuroscientist, science communicator and author based at Stanford University, to talk about his latest book, Why Brains Need Friends, The Neuroscience of Social Connection – and Why We All Need More. He tells us how feel-good chemicals are released in our brains when we interact with others, how we all lie on a spectrum of introversion and extroversion and that recognising our own personalities can help us all make the most of our social interactions, and how small acts such as complimenting a stranger or putting emojis at the end of a text message can help us all to boost our social capital. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chances are that if you open your bathroom cabinet, many of the medicines you find there were first discovered by studying the chemical processes of the plants that grow all around us. But with 450,000 plant species existing in the world, the truth is that we’re only just scratching the surface of this almost limitless resource. In this episode, we’re joined by Prof Anne Osbourn, a group leader in biosynthesis research based at the John Innes Centre, Norwich, and co-founder of drug discovery platform HotHouse Therapeutics. She tells us about the long history we humans have of making use of the medicinal properties found in plants, how technological developments over the last several decades have enabled us to identify the genes and naturally occurring processes in plants that we can harness to produce life-saving drugs, and how artificial intelligence shows great promise in our search for new, innovative medicines. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Currently, around 40 per cent of children in the UK have been diagnosed with an allergy of some form or another – the most common being food allergies, eczema, asthma, and hay fever. Why is this number so alarmingly high, what can we do to treat them, and what measures can we take to ensure that our children don’t develop allergies in the first place? In this episode, we’re joined by Willem M. de Vos, a professor of microbiology based at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. He tells us how the recent rise in births by caesarean section may be contributing to the increase in childhood allergies, how exposure to microbes in early life can have a profound effect on our immune systems, and how cutting-edge microbial treatments such as faecal transplants are showing promise in our fight against this growing health epidemic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It sounds like a theory plucked from the page of a science fiction novel, but according to Enrique Gaztañaga from the University of Portsmouth, our entire Universe could be trapped inside a black hole. It's a mind-blowing theory, but it could help us better understand the fundamental nature of our reality. But how is it even possible for us to be inside a black hole? Will we ever know for sure? And what could lie beyond its boundaries. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chances are that when most of us think of spinosaurs our minds will turn to the hulking, predatory sail-backed dinosaur that famously took down a T. Rex in the Jurassic Park movies. But thanks to their highly fragmented fossil records, in the real world, our knowledge of these fascinating, ancient creatures is far from complete. Where did they live? How did they live? And what did they really look like? In today’s episode, we’re joined by David Hone, a palaeontologist based at Queen Mary University of London, and Mark P. Witton, a palaeontologist and paleoartist based at the University of Portsmouth, to talk about their latest book, Spinosaur Tales, The Biology and Ecology of the Spinosaurs. They tell us how palaeontologists piece together details of dinosaurs’ appearances and behaviours by painstakingly poring over fossil records, why we shouldn’t believe everything we see in the movies, and why there’s still so much to learn about these mysterious, and at times controversial, beasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices