They look at why such innocent and innocuous sounding plants such as floating pennywort strike terror and fear in the heart of environmentalists up and down the country, and how clever microbes and diseases are able to jump from animals such as bats to humans causing devastating consequences. In the last of the current series, physicist Brian Cox and comedian Robin Ince look at the notion of perfection and whether the latest advances in the biomedical sciences could ever lead us to the perfect body. Brian Cox and Robin Ince visit Nasa's JPL with comedian Conan O'Brien. Was Freud right with his symbolic interpretation of dreams, or if we dream about aggressive courgettes, does this reveal our inner most anxieties about. aggressive courgettes? A timely look at the question of time and hopefully just in time Brian Cox and Robin Ince look at the amazing capabilities of the super-adaptable, ever-changing human brain. Will a knowledge of probability give you the ultimate winning strategy for your next game of Monopoly? They are joined by the very game Matt Lucas, alongside Cosmologist Sean Carroll and Astrophysicist Janna Levin to discover just how strange things might get for our intrepid volunteer, as he ventures into the interior of a black hole. Brian Cox and Robin Ince find out about the materials that we couldnt live without. Brian Cox and Robin Ince visit Nasa's JPL with comedian Conan O'Brien. Described by judges of the Sony Award as 'a brilliant way of being both innovative and instructive, bringing humour to what some will see as a dull subject. With the help of some of the world's leading cosmologists, and a comedian or two, they explore the notions of space time, falling elevators, trampolines and bowling balls, and what was wrong with Newton's apple. The following is an episode list of the BBC radio series The Infinite Monkey Cage. Has the invention of modern medicine, and technology meant that survival of the fittest is a thing of the past or are humans evolving new adaptations that will help us cope and survive better in our ever changing world (better thumbs for texting anyone?). Not problems we'd encounter in every day life maybe, but all questions sent to Randall Munroe for his "What If?" They look at how radio and space telescopes have allowed us to look back in time and "see" the big bang, and understand the age and content of the early universe, and how space telescopes have thrown light on the mysterious substance known as dark matter. Brian Cox and Robin Ince discuss the hunt for elusive planets outside our solar system. Also features Brian Cox. BBC Radio 4 Unavailable 43 mins Short Cuts Series 31 Sound. The panel look at how this new understanding is already leading to some real breakthroughs in treatment for diseases such as cancer, and Shappi reveals the crucial role she played in one such discovery. Should we make a distinction between the organisms we want to save as opposed to those we need to save? Is cooking just chemistry? They'll be discovering the joy of creepy crawlies, why the flea is the ultimate master of Darwinian evolution, and whether those pesky cockroaches will really have the last laugh if we are unlucky enough to be wiped out by a nuclear explosion. Witty, irreverent look at the world through scientists' eyes. Perhaps they arent deserving of their fierce reputation after all. Professor Brian Cox and comedian Robin Ince return for a new series of the witty, irreverent science/comedy show. Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined on stage by chemist Andrea Sella, science broadcaster and writer Gabrielle Walker and comedian Sara Pascoe to look at the life and death properties of oxygen. Robin Ince and Brian Cox are joined by comedian Helen Keen ("It is Rocket Science") and space medicine expert Dr Kevin Fong, to discuss the future of human space travel. Brian Cox and Robin Ince wonder what we have learnt from Covid? Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined by comedian Sara Pascoe to get a unique maths lesson. Are some of us just innately bad at maths or can everyone get to grips with algebra and calculus? 24 FEB 2023; Australia's Scary Spiders . And Claude Nicollier describes his epic spacewalk to repair the Hubble Telescope. Brian Cox and Robin Ince return for a very special Christmas edition of the show. Now in it's 12th series, it has asked: what is death, what happened before the big bang, is philosophy dead, and are pandas overrated? Can our dreams help us solve problems, give us new ideas, help us write a symphony, even if they can't predict the future? It's the molecule we simply can't live without, but as fate would have it, oxygen is also the molecule that eventually leads to our death. Science often appears open ended and evolving, a reason to mistrust it, especially when it can feel like we are bombarded with so much contradictory information. Radio comedy; BBC Radio 4 / BBC Sounds; 2009 - 2023; 162 episodes (26 series) Witty, irreverent look at the world through scientists' eyes. Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined on stage by comedian Katy Brand, science writer Philip Ball and medic, author and broadcaster Kevin Fong. Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined by Alan Davies as they delve inside the human brain. They are joined by singer KT Tunstall and physicists Fay Dowker and Jeff Forshaw to discuss all things Quantum, in the most unlikely of places! Could a better understanding of what is going on during these formative years not only help teenagers themselves, but inform our education system and even help prevent many of the mental health problems that often begin during adolescence? The observation of this huge cosmic event not only confirmed one of Einstein's great predictions, some 100 years ago, but also revealed the source of gold in our universe. The Infinite Monkey Cage is a BBC Radio 4 comedy and popular science series. Brian Cox and Robin Ince find out about the materials that we couldnt live without. What are the big questions that dinosaur hunters are hoping to uncover, and did they go extinct at all? Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined by comedian Susan Calman, Prof Sue Black and Dr Julia Shaw as they invent Infinite Monkey Cluedo, and discover whether they can commit the perfect murder, or whether the latest forensic science will always be able to piece the clues together. They'll be asking why symmetry seems so ubiquitous and whether the key to Brian's large female fanbase is down to his more than usually symmetrical face. Just 2 microscopic organisms are responsible for the creation of these incredible structures, structures so huge that they can be seen from outer-space. The Infinite Monkey Cage. They also discover why the source of our heavier elements such as gold and platinum has been so difficult to prove, until now. Should badgers wear bicycle helmets? They are joined on stage by impressionist Jon Culshaw and astrophysicists Sarah Bridle and Tim O'Brien as they look up at the sky to discover that everything we see only accounts for 5% of the entire universe. The Science of Doctor Who Brian Cox and Robin Ince celebrate the festive season with a look at the science of Doctor Who. Continues tomorrow on Radio 4 at 7:15pm with Series 26, Episode 2; Catch-up on Series 26, Episode 1 They are joined on stage by Ben Miller, Charlotte Church, Dr Paul Abel and Professor Tim O'Brien to explore the big questions that are still to be answered about our Universe. Brian Cox and Robin Ince discover if we are living in a golden-age for conspiracy theories, Brian Cox and Robin Ince take the monkey cage to Australia to visit the Deep Space Network. Brian Cox and Robin Ince find out what science tells us about wine. Ince often imitates and quotes Carl Sagan. They are joined on stage by Noel Fielding, evolutionary biologist Nick Lane and writer and expert in popular culture, Sir Christopher Frayling. Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined by actor and space enthusiast Brian Blessed, Director of, Brian Cox and Robin Ince discuss the life and works of Alfred Russel Wallace, the lesser known co-founder of the, Brian Cox and Robin Ince transport their infinite cage to the more finite proportions of. Which materials have made us human? They look at whether coincidences are far more common than one might think and how a mathematical approach can make even the most unpredictable situations well, predictable. It has often been said that we know more about the surface of the moon than we do about much of what lies beneath the ocean waves, so how come we know so little about the vast majority of our own planet? Fear not though, a new revolution in understanding is underway, with some extraordinary insights into the cunning of our little white cells. The Infinite Monkey Cage: With Tim Minchin, Brian Schmidt, Patricia Williamson, Mango Parker. The image of the lumbering, ape like, simple, grunting neanderthal has been turned on its head with the discovery that we are far more related to Neanderthals then we ever thought possible. The subtle cues we get from other people and the information in their brains, affects our own wiring and experience of the world. Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined by rock enthusiasts Ross Noble, paleontologist Susie Maidment and geologist Chris Jackson to look at the history of rock. Brian Cox and Robin Ince ask what ingredients you need to build a universe? Let the battle commence. . The deep ocean remains the last great unexplored frontier of our planet, and as Brian and Robin discover, what we might find there could provide us with some extraordinary insights and applications. They are joined by fly sceptic David Baddiel, fly enthusiast and champion Dr Erica McAlister and maggot expert Matthew Cobb to discover why a life without flies would be no life at all. "The Universe: What Remains to Be Discovered?". Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined by comedian Sara Pascoe to get a unique maths lesson. Can you have a brain without a mind, and is the mind simply an unexpected consequence, an emergent property, of our highly evolved and sophisticated brain. They were formed in stars and during the big bang. Brian Cox and Robin Ince end their Australian science adventure with an episode all about spiders. "Oceans: The Last Great Unexplored Frontier?". On that cheery note the panel vote for their favourite apocalyptic ending and wonder what they might be doing and what they hope to have achieved when the final moment comes. Read about our approach to external linking. Brian Cox and Robin Ince are joined on stage by comedian Jo Brand, and physicists Prof Jo Dunkley and Dr Adam Masters to look at how we go about measuring our universe, from measuring the contents of atmospheres of planets and moons at the outer edges of our solar system to looking far back in time to study the very earliest beginnings of the cosmos. It's a serious topic, but never fear, on the way the intergalactic battles faced in Star Wars, and why only the French could come up with onions as a cure for burns, are all equally seriously investigated. They'll be asking why we seem to be so good at telling lies, but not very good at spotting them, and why being good liars could be the secret to our success as a social animal. Brian Cox and Robin Ince visit Nasa's JPL with comedian Conan O'Brien. They find out how scientists first realised that the elements that form the ingredients that make up our planet, are able to be organised in such a logical and ordered way, and whether its still a useful tool today. "2017 Christmas Special: The Science of Magic". They are joined by comedian and talk-show host Conan O'Brien, alongside JPL's Dr Katie Stack Morgan and Dr Kevin Hand, and discuss the incredible missions that are hunting for signs of life within our own solar system. "The Infinite Monkey Cage USA Tour: San Francisco". He and the rest of the panel discuss the role of mavericks in science, how new theories get accepted and whether you have to go to such extreme lengths to truly push the frontiers of our scientific understanding. Each show has a particular topic up for discussion, with previous topics including the apocalypse and space travel. 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