Ask The Naked Scientists SA

Do teabags carry microplastics?

Dr Chris answers a wide range of listener science questions. What is entropy and how does it reconcile with equilibrium? What happens when they put dogs to sleep? Why can I read words when the vowels are removed? How do hair implants work? How does a bird find worms? Can…

25 Jul 20 min

Why can't other apes grow long head hair?

Why does your washing sometimes smell bad? What is the difference between forecast temperature and 'real feel'? Why can't other apes grow long head hair? What is the difference between a sprinter and a marathon runner? Why do Greenland sharks live so long? Can parrots see themselves in the mirror?…

19 Jul 21 min

Are we overprotective of our children?

Dr Chris answers listener submitted questions including: would it be possible to slingshot continuously around the Earth and Mars? When does our consciousness 'switch on?' How worried should we be if we're outside during a thunderstorm? Is 0 positive or negative? What maintains our body temperature? Like this podcast? Please…

12 Jul 21 min

Why can we only recycle some types of plastic?

Do women suffer from flatulence, and what affects your level of flatulence? Does hitting someone on the head actually knock them out? Is being a psychopath down to nature or nurture? Why does the weather stay warm when the seasons shift? Why can we only recycle some types of plastic?…

5 Jul 19 min

What happens to the body in extreme cold?

Does laying on your left side clean your organs? Are faces the only difference that different populations have, and why do we notice facial differences? What happens to the body when your body drops drastically? How does the body react to extreme trauma? Why do we get blemishes on our…

28 Jun 21 min

Would an organ donor's DNA be in your body?

What causes monkeypox? Would an organ donor's DNA be in your body? Why does alcohol abate the symptoms of a hangover? Can you get bird flu from bird poo? Why do birds bob their head when they walk? Where does the word 'humour' come from? Is there a scientific basis…

20 Jun 20 min

Why is the longest day not the hottest day?

Dr Chris Smith answers listener science questions; what factors impact the onset of glycosuria? Might we have contaminated Mars with organisms from Earth? Why did the universe form the way that it did? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

14 Jun 21 min

Why don't our lungs fill up with dust?

Are skin tags an indication of diabetes? Why don't cattle flee from fire? Do apples stimulate your appetite? Why are some cats great at hunting, and others not? Why doesn't dust fill up our lungs? What is the sediment at the bottom of frozen wine? When did our tail become…

7 Jun 20 min

Are some people more prone to addiction?

Dr Chris Smith chats with Relebogile Mabotja and her listeners about their science questions. Today: do older people yawn less frequently? And should you avoid zero sugar fizzy drinks whilst pregnant? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

31 May 15 min

How were the pyramids built?

This time on Ask!, Dr Chris explains how tree rings helped scientists confirm last summer was the hottest for 2000 years. Also, how were the pyramids built? And where are we with understanding and treating Alzheimer's disease? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

24 May 15 min

Is there a cure for OCD?

Chris Smith covers another cast of interesting queries submitted by listeners. They include: Why do we have accents? Is there such a thing as the "devil's hour?" What is acid reflux? Is there such a thing as race? If you had unfettered access to the James Webb Space Telescope, what…

17 May 24 min

Do fish drink water?

Dr Chris takes on listener questions: how long can someone survive without food and water? Why are some of us more prone to hangovers? Do gorillas drink water? Does spicy food cause vivid dreams? What causes insomnia? Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

10 May 20 min

Is the '10,000 hours rule' accurate?

In this week's selection of science questions, Dr Chris explains the impact of sweetners on the body, what happens when we suffer a stroke, and where the other half of the moon disappears to... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists

3 May 17 min

How does cloud seeding work?

Why are viruses so contagious? Are there any treatments for macular degeneration? How are we treating depression with psychedelics? Why do people lose their sense of smell? Is cloud seeding a real thing? Dr Chris Smith and Relebogile Mabotja have all the answers... Like this podcast? Please help us by…

25 Apr 14 min

Why do we dream the things we dream?

Is our perfect total eclipse just a total coincidence? Where do our dreams come from? Can you launch a missile without it being picked up by satellites? Which animals have the best memory? Do humans have any instincts? Can gravity be 1g on a planet with a greater mass than…

18 Apr 20 min

Are lactose intolerant mothers allergic to their own milk?

Why did the eclipse move west to east across the Earth? Why are we so interested in nuclear fusion? Could we ever breathe underwater? What is the opposite force to gravity? Would alcohol sterilise a drowning fly? What the difference between cancer and cancerous growths? Are lactose introlerant mothers allergic…

11 Apr 20 min

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…

4 Apr 22 min

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…

21 Mar 19 min

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…

15 Mar 20 min

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…

8 Mar 21 min