Show Notes
It makes your belly shake, make your eyes water, and binds us to each other - the power of a good laugh can be monumental. But why do we laugh, why are we prone to giggling a lot more depending on how many people we are around, and are we humans the only species who enjoy a good chuckle? This week Luke explores the science of laughter, and why some things can be good when they're contagious. Listen and subscribe to Show Me the Science on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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More from Show Me the Science with Luke O'Neill
Enceladus is a moon of Saturn, and it perhaps offers the best chance of finding life beyond Earth Scientists have been exploring and probing Enceladus for decades, and discovering more about the mysteries contained within. And now new findings, and one in particular, has some people excited that we could be closer than ever to discovering extra terrestrial life. This week Luke takes us through the story of how we have come to know Enceladus and what this new discovery could mean. Listen and subscribe to Show Me the Science on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
Can the humble mosquito be genetically altered to become not a spreader of disease, but rather something far more beneficial to the environment? This week Luke delves into the science behind mosquito modification and explains why life on earth could be changed hugely with some minor alterations to these insects. Listen and subscribe to Show Me the Science on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
Saying goodbye to a beloved pet is a heartbreaking moment for anyone, and perhaps more than anything underscores just how deeply we come to care for the animals in our lives. But what if it need not be a final goodbye? Science is making the idea of cloning your pet a reality and this week Luke explores the origins of the groundbreaking tech behind it, gives us some notable examples of animal cloning that have driven the science forward, and asks is there potential for this to mean we will one day be replicating humans. Listen and subscribe to Show Me the Science on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
We may think we know it all about the dinosaurs, and their end, but new discoveries continue to emerge and this week Luke delves into all that is new in the prehistoric world – including the “ultimate dinosaur drumstick” and what this one special bone is telling us. We learn about the tiny shrew which arrived after the dinosaurs, and which we evolved from and how aerosols and dust were the ultimate end for the dinosaurs. It is a story of pure chance and random events that altered our earth entirely, and Luke is only too happy to dive in. Listen and subscribe to Show Me the Science on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
In the course of Luke's career he has explored many areas and asked many questions, but one illness and the mysteries around it has taken up more of his life than almost any other - rheumatoid arthritis. This week he gives us a whistle stop tour through the science of a subject close to his heart, and explains why after decades of work there are today some potentially groundbreaking developments in motion. Listen and subscribe to Show Me the Science on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.