Better Sleep: How psychology can help you beat insomnia
Over the past several decades it’s become abundantly clear that getting a good night’s sleep is essential for our health and wellbeing. However, currently around one in three of us often struggle to get enough shuteye thanks to the stress and anxiety caused by our hectic lifestyles. Thankfully, help is out there in the form of cognitive behavioural therapy, or CBT.
In this episode, part of our four-part Better Sleep miniseries, we speak to founder of The Insomnia Clinic, Kathryn Pinkham.
She tells us exactly what a good night’s sleep looks like, how developing a healthy sleep appetite is vital if we want to wake up feeling fresh and renewed in the morning and shares some psychological techniques we can use to help us sleep more restfully.
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How your brain builds your picture of reality
How do our brains help us build up a picture of the world around us? It’s a question that has both beguiled and fascinated scientists for centuries. The latest thinking suggests that the brain acts like a scientist that builds up a database of previous observations and experiences and uses this to make sense of the world around us.
In this episode, we speak to Daniel Yon, an experimental psychologist based at Birkbeck, University of London to talk about his latest book A Trick of the Mind: How the Brain Invents Your Reality.
He tells us about the intimate link between our brains and senses, how our brains create our sense of self and make judgements about others, and how our brains come up with new theories and ideas.
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Better Sleep: How snoring affects our health
More than four in ten of us in the UK are snorers. Far from being a trivial condition, snoring can have a significant impact on our ability to sleep, our partners’ ability to sleep and our health in general.
In this episode, part of our four-part Better Sleep miniseries, we speak to Ryan Chin Taw Cheong, a consultant ear, nose and throat and sleep surgeon based at University College London Hospitals and the Cleveland Clinic London.
He tells us about the many factors that can lead to us snoring, the difference between regular snoring and obstructive sleep apnoea, and why we shouldn’t be embarrassed to seek medical help if breathing problems during sleep are affecting our lives.
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The science behind Agatha Christie’s poisons
Humans are enthralled by stories about murder. And the mysteries we tell these days – like in the Glass Onion films or TV shows like The Residence – often follow a blueprint set by the iconic Agatha Christie. It turns out, Christie knew a whole lot about science.
In this episode, we speak to Dr Kathryn Harkup, a chemist who writes about the science behind famous works of literature. Her newest book, V is for Venom: Agatha Christie’s Chemicals of Death, is her sequel to A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie, exploring Christie’s expert use of dark chemistry.
She tells us about some of the poisons Christie used in her books – the brutal, the medicinal and the obscure – revealing Christie’s extensive chemical knowledge.
But be warned: this conversation gets quite dark. Listener discretion is advised.
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Better Sleep: The deep connection between sleep and memory
We humans spend roughly one third of our time sleeping. For the average person this adds up to around 26 years over our lifetimes. And though to the outside observer it may seem that there’s little going on, several processes are being carried out by our bodies and brains that are vital for our health and wellbeing.
In this episode, part of our four-part Better Sleep miniseries, we speak to Dr Alessio Delogu, a neurobiologist based at King’s College, London, about the intimate link between sleep our memory.
He tells how memories are encoded in our brains during sleep, how sleep deprivation hampers our ability to learn new skills, and shares some tips to help us keep our memory systems working in tiptop condition.
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Whether you’re curious about getting healthy, the Big Bang or the science of cooking, find out everything you need to know with Instant Genius. The team behind BBC Science Focus Magazine talk to world-leading experts to bring you a bite-sized masterclass on a new subject each week.
New episodes are released every Monday and Friday and you can subscribe to Instant Genius on Apple Podcasts to access all new episodes ad-free and all old episodes of Instant Genius Extra.
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