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Hannah Fry and Dara Ó Briain tackle listeners' conundrums with the power of science!
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- Too Cute · 28 Min.Why do we find the young of other species cute? Finding baby humans adorable makes evolutionary sense, ensuring that we care for them properly. But what about babies of other…
- Tessellation Proliferation · 28 Min.We may think of tessellation as being about how to tile a flat plane but this week we reveal how repeating patterns actually occur all over the place, and can even help us solve…
- Yawn Chorus · 28 Min.We often associate yawning with being tired or bored - but this week's episode explores whether it could be a clever way to cool down our brains? Hannah and Dara discover humans…
- Making Waves · 28 Min.What happens when you give water a really good shake? You might expect splashing, spilling and general aquatic chaos - but under exactly the right conditions, something much…
- Identical(ish) · 28 Min.Ever wondered how close nature can get to making a human clone? And what happens if identical twin brothers marry identical twin sisters and have babies - how similar are they?…
- Trailer · 1 Min.Hannah Fry and Dara Ó Briain return for a new series, and a whole lot of new problems to solve!
- Frosty Fractals · 29 Min.One winter morning, listener Jane opened her curtains to find her car roof covered in breathtaking, fern-like frost so intricate it looked like a William Morris print. But how…
- Mining for Gold (GOLD!) · 28 Min.From pharaohs' tombs in Ancient Egypt and medieval currency, to priceless royal jewellery and Spandau Ballet songs - gold has been prized for millennia. But it's only really in…
- Phantom Pain · 28 Min.What exactly is 'phantom pain' and how does it work? Hannah and Dara investigate a medical phenomenon that's been known about for centuries but is often misunderstood; and…
- Tortoise Tomfoolery · 29 Min.Tortoises have traditionally been the poster child for slowness. These ancient, armoured reptiles are solitary, territorial and all-too-often dismissed as dull. In fact…
- Planetary Wobble · 28 Min.Could you survive an eternal winter? Or is endless summer sun a more appealing prospect? Lots of us are grateful for the seasonal changes that shape the world around us, but this…
- Immortal Jellies · 29 Min.Could immortality ever be possible for humans? It sounds like something from a sci-fi movie, but floating in oceans around the world is a tiny, transparent jellyfish that could…
- Mysteries from the Final Frontier · 29 Min.Space: the final frontier, a deep dark realm full of questions and mysteries - many of which science can't yet satisfactorily answer. But that won't stop the Curious Cases team!…
- Beam Me Up, Scotty! · 29 Min.Whether you’re stuck in traffic, waiting at the airport whilst delay after delay is announced or just really missing someone far away, a lot of us have probably wished we could…
- Going Viral · 29 Min.Cold and flu season is well and truly upon us, and whilst most of us are busy bemoaning the pesky viruses behind our sniffles and chesty coughs – one of our listeners has other…
- We Didn't Start the Fire · 29 Min.It has been said that you can't start a fire without a spark, but as Hannah and Dara are about to discover, that's not true! Welcome to the fiery phenomenon of spontaneous…
- Just My Luck · 29 Min.Are you a lucky person? Do the cards just fall well for you? Whether it's always finding a parking spot when you need one or chance encounters that change your life's trajectory…
- Good Vibrations? · 29 Min.It turns out that the whole world wobbles. Everything has a natural frequency - the rate at which it moves when disturbed - be it a cup of tea, a building or a human organ. Even…
- To Crab, or Not to Crab? · 29 Min.We can all picture a crab, but did you know that nature has reinvented those claw clicking, sideways scuttling crustaceans at least five separate times? In recent years the…
- Trailer · 2 Min.Hannah Fry and Dara Ó Briain return to Curious Cases HQ for a brand-new series. And curios, there’s a lot to unpack! Coming soon to BBC Sounds.
- Clever Crows · 29 Min.The term 'bird brain' might suggest our feathered friends are stupid, but Hannah and Dara learn it's completely untrue. They play hide and seek with a raven called Bran, and hear…
- Memory Swap · 30 Min.Could you ever trade memories with someone else? Fancy downloading the experience of landing on the moon, winning an Oscar or performing at Glastonbury? Listener Adam wants to…
- Clowns in Spacetime · 30 Min.Can you slow down time by hurtling through space at breakneck speed? Could listener Saskia’s friend - currently one year older - end up the same age as her if he went fast…
- Colossal Creatures · 29 Min.How big can animals really get before they collapse under their own weight or run out of snacks? Could a 12-foot comedian survive their first punchline without snapping in half?…
- Nano Sharks · 29 Min.Think of a shark and you'll probably conjure up images of Jaws, but it turns out their skin is also covered in tiny teeth. Hannah and Dara investigate the incredible properties…
- Chuckle, Snigger and LOL · 29 Min.Why do we giggle, snort, and bust a gut laughing? Is it just humans being weird, does it serve some higher function or do other animals crack up too? And, okay, Dara is a…
- Don't Bite Me! · 30 Min.Ever wondered why some people are mosquito magnets and other people barely get bitten? Hannah and Dara grapple with the question of whether these insects are evil or genius…
- Aches and Rains · 29 Min.The team test the theory that you can use the weather to predict pain, separating science fact from fiction. It's an area with a huge amount of conflicting research, but one man…
- Furnishing with Fungi · 29 Min.From mouldy bread to athlete’s foot, fungi don’t exactly scream “home improvement.” But what if this misunderstood kingdom is the secret to the sustainable materials of the…
- Love Neurons · 29 Min.What happens in your brain when Cupid’s arrow strikes? As a teenager, Alison developed an intense crush on George Harrison from the Beatles. But, she wants to know, why do we…
- Invisibility Quest · 30 Min.Hannah and Dara tackle a disarmingly simple question: is anything in the universe truly invisible? After ruling out mysterious Nordic spirits and ‘Dara’s ire’, our curious duo…
- Liar, Liar · 29 Min.For any of you who have ever told a porkie pie, don't worry, this week we hear why we all do it... and discover that deception is actually good for social bonding. From the red…
- The Diamond Throwdown · 32 Min.“Diamonds are nonsense!” Hannah boldly proclaimed in a previous episode. But listener Guy is a diamond enthusiast, and he and his diamond-loving pals were NOT OKAY WITH THIS. He…
- Trailer · 2 Min.Hannah Fry and Dara Ó Briain return to tackle listener's questions with the power of science!
- The Fastest Fly · 30 Min.The buzz of a fly hovering just above your head has got to be one of the most irritating sounds around, but this week we try to work out just how fast they could be flying. Could…
- Bored to Death · 30 Min.Anyone who has ever done a long car journey with kids will be familiar with the idea of being bored to death – but can this feeling really be fatal? Hannah and Dara hear about a…
- Freeze Me When I Die · 28 Min.When you die, would you want to be frozen so that one day you might be brought back to life? Listener Elspeth wants to know if that’s even possible. So Hannah and Dara embark on…
- Night Walkers · 29 Min.Wake up! It’s time for a dreamy new episode of Curious Cases all about the science of sleepwalking. Listener Abigail has done some strange things in her sleep, from taking all…
- A Lemon-Powered Spaceship · 30 Min.Fruit-powered batteries are the ultimate school science experiment, but they’re normally used to power a pocket calculator. This week’s listener wants to know if they could do…
- Be More Athlete · 30 Min.Are you more of a rhino or a kitten? More like a tortoise or a hare? Listener Ivy wants to know what makes a good athlete and so Hannah and Dara tackle the science of sport. Our…
- Invincible Moss Piglets · 29 Min.Listener Vivienne has heard that tardigrades - aka moss piglets - have special powers of survival. Radiation? Drought? Extreme cold? NO PROBLEM. Does that mean they could survive…
- The Shock Factor · 29 Min.If there’s one type of discharge you really want to avoid, it’s lightning, but what happens when it hits you? We hear from lightning survivor Kerry Evans, and discover that the…
- The Taste of Words · 30 Min.11 year old Esther visualises days of the week in a kind of 3D structure. It’s something called ‘synaesthesia’ and she wants to know why it happens - and why other people don’t…
- In the Groove · 31 Min.It’s sometimes said that timing is everything and this week the pair investigate the mystery of rhythm, discovering why some of us might be better at staying in tempo. From the…
- Mirror, Mirror · 30 Min.9 year old listener Koby sends Hannah and Dara on a mission to find the shiniest thing in the world. And so they enter a world of mirrors… The journey takes them into the…
- The 5 Second Rule · 29 Min.Would you eat food that fell on the floor? That’s the question Hannah and Dara are getting their teeth into this week as they put the so-called ‘5 second rule’ through its paces…
- Space Bubbles · 28 Min.While chatting at the back of class, best mates Abi and Sofia got curious about bubbles. How do you make really giant ones? Could you even get one around the entire planet?…
- Trailer · 2 Min.Curious Cases is returning! Superstar mathematician and broadcaster Hannah Fry teams up with legendary comedian and fellow science nerd Dara Ó Briain for an all-new series of the…
- The Impossible Number · 42 Min.There is a bizarre number in maths referred to simply as ‘i’. It appears to break the rules of arithmetic - but turns out to be utterly essential for applications across…
- The Mind Numbing Medicine · 44 Min.This episode will render you oblivious, conked out and blissfully unaware. It’s about anaesthetics: those potent potions that send you into a deep, deathly sleep. Listener Alicia…
