Ask the Naked Scientists

Dr Chris Smith
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Apr 5, 2024 • 22min

Do ants count their steps?

Do animals ever get lost? Do ants count their steps? Could we recreate the greenhouse effect on Mars? Why can you hear some aircraft, but not others? Could we mine the Moon? Is it ever too late to stop somking? Do people with autism have a different brain structure? Dr Chris Smith and Clarence Ford have all the answers... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
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Mar 22, 2024 • 18min

Do farmers produce double yolk eggs on purpose?

Dr Chris answers more listener submitted questions including, Why is South Africa on the bottom of the world map? Why are countries interested in landing on the moon again? How do undersea cables work? What is the Square Kilometre Array? Why are my car keys better at unlocking my car than my TV remote is at controlling my TV? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
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Mar 15, 2024 • 20min

Why do we want to scratch our wounds?

Chris Smith answers science questions from the public. Does the rate of nail growth differ between men and women? What are the advantages of a nose swab over a mouth swab? What could improve the connectivity of my remote? Accounting for the rotation of Earth, does a plane flying from London to Cape Town fly in a straight line? How does a colour printer work? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
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Mar 8, 2024 • 21min

Could popping a pimple on your face kill you?

Do statins affect your Vitamin D production? Why do we have leap years? Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Could we live on the moon of Titan? Did COVID come from a lab? What aspects of science can we still now answer? Could popping a pimple on your face kill you? How does wireless charging work? Dr Chris Smith and Clarence Ford have all the answers... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
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Mar 1, 2024 • 22min

How much does the internet weigh?

Chris Smith answers another sample of enquiries from across the scientific spectrum: What might have caused my beetle infestation? Why do so many cultures describe an afterlife? What's the medical explanation for 'cracking the seal?' How do lions identify cubs that aren't theirs? If the Earth stopped rotating, would we feel it? Will hydrogen combustion engines be efficient? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
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Feb 23, 2024 • 15min

Can you die of fright?

This podcast explores the physics of lightning strikes, the effects of prolonged space travel on blood vessels and erectile dysfunction, the impact of fear on the body's fight or flight response, looking into the past through light travel time, and the differences in falling impact between humans and insects.
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Feb 16, 2024 • 18min

Does your life flash before your eyes when you die?

Why do birds stand on one leg? Which animals can we eat, and which can we not? Does your life flash before your eyes when you die? Does a plug's wiring orientation matter? Why does hearing water make you need the toilet? Does anything travel alongside the ISS? Dr Chris Smith and Relebogile Mabotja have all the answers... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
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Feb 9, 2024 • 16min

How much rainfall becomes groundwater?

Dr Chris Smith answers listener questions including, how can we communicate science better? How much distance do we travel through space each second? Why might I feel stomach pain when I'm hungry and I take a cold drink? What causes people to feel sleepy when they're near a pregnant woman? Why do we enter planes on the left rather than the right? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
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Feb 2, 2024 • 15min

How does the Sun transfer heat to the Earth?

Chris Smith takes on listener questions, including: How far out to sea do seagulls fly? How is the malaria vaccine rollout going? Why does hot weather make your muscles more tired? What is the hottest temperature humans can survive? How do vultures track their lunch? How do some people retain more information? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
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Jan 26, 2024 • 18min

What is ultra processed food?

Chris Smith takes on listener submitted questions including, why do people disagree so much on what temperature to set the heating? Where do swallows and swifts go in the winter? Is it true that parrots don't have taste buds? And, what is dry ice? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

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