Listener Christine wants to understand one of the strangest phenomena in the universe. But to get to grips with it, she’ll need a crash course in the bizarre behaviour of the very small. Here, things don’t act the way you might expect — and it’s famously hard to wrap your head around. Anand Jagatia has assembled some of the sharpest minds in the field and locked them in a studio. No one’s getting out until Christine and Anand know exactly what’s going on. Or at least, that’s the plan. On hand to help are Kanta Dihal, lecturer in science communication at Imperial College London; James Millen, King’s Quantum Director at King’s College London; and particle physicist Harry Cliff from the University of Cambridge. Prepare to enter the world of the very small—and the very weird—where particles can be in two places at once, influence each other across vast distances, and seem to decide what they are only when observed. Hear how these once-theoretical oddities are now driving a technological revolution, transforming everything from computing to communication. Presenter: Anand Jagatia
Producer: Harrison Lewis
Series Producer: Ben Motley
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30:28
Can eating honey help save bees?
CrowdScience listener Saoirse is vegan and doesn’t eat honey. But she’s been wondering - might honey actually have environmental benefits, by giving bee populations a boost? To find out, presenter Anand Jagatia dons a bee suit and opens up some hives with biologist Dave Goulson, who reveals that there are over 20,000 bee species on earth – and not all of them need saving. Honeybee researcher Alison Mcafee talks about the importance of beekeeping for crop pollination, and why honeybee colonies around the world are collapsing. Although, as she explains, in some places beekeeping might actually be bad for endangered wild bees. We travel to Kenya to meet Loise Njeru and Lucy King, who show how the humble honeybee can be a powerful tool for conservation – helping to protect the mighty elephant. And, on a rooftop in London, former beekeeper Alison Benjamin explains how we can support the wild bee species that need our help. Producer and presenter: Anand Jagatia
Location recording: Sophie Ormiston
Series Producer: Ben Motley
Production Co-ordinator: Ishmael Soriano
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26:50
Is my yoghurt really alive?
Bulgaria is famous for its yoghurt, a fermented milk food full of ‘good’ bacteria that has kept hungry Bulgarians healthy for over 4000 years. Inspired by that, and a question from a CrowdScience listener in California USA, Marnie Chesterton and Caroline Steel are immersing themselves in Bulgarian culture with a programme about Bulgarian cultures, recorded at the 2025 Sofia Science Festival. So, are the ‘live’ cultures in fermented foods actually alive by the time you eat them, and how can you tell? If you can eat the mould in blue cheese, can you eat the mould on cheese that isn’t supposed to be mouldy? Is traditional food really better for you? And if you put a drop of vanilla into a litre of milk, how come it all tastes of vanilla? Marnie and Caroline are joined by a chemist who was a member of Sofia University’s ‘Rapid Explosion Force’, a food technologist with a PhD in sponge cakes and a Professor of molecular biology who says that we contain so much bacteria that we’re only 10% human. With questions on food from around the world and from the audience in Sofia, Marnie and Caroline will be digesting the answers, as well as some local delicacies. Presenter: Marnie Chesterton & Caroline Steel
Producer: Emily Knight
Series Producer: Ben Motley
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26:27
Is red sky at night really sailor’s delight?
You may have grown up hearing the saying “red sky at night, sailor’s delight, red sky in morning, sailor’s warning” - or maybe a variation of it. CrowdScience listener Alison, who sees many dazzling red skies from her home in the Yukon, Canada, certainly did. And now she wonders if the saying is a sensible prediction of coming weather or just another old wives’ tale. Alison and presenter Anand Jagatia run a little experiment, getting up at the crack of dawn and staying up until dusk for 5 days to record if the sunset and sunrise can predict their local weather. While we wait for the results, we track this weather proverb back to its ancient roots to find out how important it may have been to the people without satellites or even thermometers to guide them. We also tap into the expertise of modern-day weather predictors, meteorologists. What are the atmospheric pressure systems that cause red skies, and how do they influence the weather globally? And what exceptions to the rules might turn a trusty old proverb on its head? Presenter: Anand Jagatia
Producer: Ella Hubber
Series Producer: Ben Motley
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27:49
Why can't I fall asleep?
Some people fall asleep almost as soon as their head touches the pillow, while for others it can take hours of tossing and turning. CrowdScience listener Assia needs at least 45 minutes to get to sleep: it's always taken her a long time to drift off no matter how tired she is, and nothing seems to make a difference. She asked us to investigate. Presenter Caroline Steel turns to experts to find out what happens in our bodies when we fall asleep, and why it’s more difficult for some than others. Eus van Someren explains how our bodies know when it’s time to get some rest and what can influence the difficulty of getting to sleep from our earliest years. Morten Kringelbach reveals that there may be more stages of sleep than we thought, and Ada Eban-Rothschild tells us why we have something to learn from the birds and the bees about getting a good night’s rest. Caroline has trouble getting to sleep herself, and volunteers to have her sleep monitored in Cardiff University’s sleep lab. And we share some expert tips on falling asleep more easily. Presenter: Caroline Steel
Producer: Jo Glanville
Editor: Cathy Edwards
Studio Manager: Jackie Margerum
Production co-ordinators: Jana Holesworth and Josie HardyWith thanks to Professor Milton Mermikides for permission to include his composition ‘Transitions’. (Photo: Caroline Steel takes a nap in Cardiff University’s sleep lab)
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