Instant Genius

Over thousands of years, human beings evolved to walk upright on two legs, efficiently and over long distances. But these days, thanks to changes in our lifestyles, we’re becoming more sedentary than ever, and this is having profound effects on our health and well-being.

In this episode, we’re joined by Courtney Conley, a doctor of chiropractic medicine, and Milica McDowell, a doctor of physical therapy and exercise physiologist, to talk about their latest book, Walk – Your Life Depends on it.

They tell us why the oft-quoted 10,000 steps rule has no grounding in science, and was in fact originally, dreamt up as a marketing slogan to sell pedometers in the 1960s, explain the many things the way we walk can tell us about that state of our health, and give us some advice on what we should look out for when shopping for shoes that will help us get the most benefit from our daily walks.
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Hedgehogs are in decline all over Europe. These prickly little fellas are faced with so many threats – in their rural habitats, in our gardens, and on our roads. But new research about hedgehog hearing could help us protect these adorable creatures from going extinct.

As part of our Science of Sound miniseries, we speak to Dr Sophie Lund Rasmussen, a scientist who has dedicated her life to hedgehog research and conservation. Also known as Dr Hedgehog, she’s a research fellow at the University of Oxford, and assistant professor at the University of Copenhagen.

Sophie tells us all about hedgehogs – what she loves about them, and how we can do our bit to help them thrive. She also explains her recent study on ultrasound, which she hopes could significantly reduce encounters between hedgehogs and cars.
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Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, or ADHD, is currently thought to affect around one in 20 of the world’s population, making it one of the most prevalent types of neurodivergence. Despite this, the condition is still surrounded by stigma, misunderstanding and significant challenges in diagnosis.

In this episode, we’re joined by Prof Ellie Dommett, a neuroscientist based at King’s College London, to talk about the latest thinking on this common neurodevelopmental condition.

She explains why, despite its prevalence, ADHD is still commonly misunderstood, why it’s frequently diagnosed later in life, and also tells us about her work on developing effective non-pharmaceutical treatments to help those living with the disorder.
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The vast majority of us take listening to and appreciating music for granted. But for those of us living with hearing loss, continuing to enjoy our favourite songs, symphonies or dance tracks can be something of a challenge. Maybe we find it difficult to distinguish one instrument from another, have a reduced ability to hear pitch, or struggle to make out a song’s lyrics.

As part of our Science of Sound miniseries, we’re joined by Prof Trevor Cox, an acoustic engineer based at the University of Salford, to talk about his work on the Cadenza Project – a multidisciplinary research group using the latest technology and thinking to help restore the enjoyment of music for those living with hearing loss.

He tells us how most hearing aids currently on the market are optimised for speech, not music, talks about the challenges researchers face in tackling this issue due to the hugely varied frequency and dynamic range of music, and explains the innovative approaches taken by the project to help us all get the most possible enjoyment out of the music we listen to.

https://cadenzachallenge.org/
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There’s so much we don’t know about Neanderthals. Our stocky, muscular relatives went extinct around 40,000 years ago, leaving a trail of mystery in their wake – about what they were like, how they lived, and why they disappeared. But, while Neanderthals themselves have gone, fragments of their DNA live on inside us.

In this episode, we speak to Prof Chris Stringer, scientific associate at London’s Natural History Museum, and author of several books, including Britain: one million years of the human story (with Rob Dinnis) and Our Human Story (with Louise Humphrey).

Chris tells us all about Neanderthals, from what they looked like, to where they lived, and how they might have interacted with Homo sapiens – that’s us. He also explains why so many of us have Neanderthal genes, and what that might be doing to our health.
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