Podcast · 66 episodes
CrowdScience
by BBC World Service · English
We take your questions about life, Earth and the universe to researchers hunting for answers at the frontiers of knowledge.
Latest episodes
Do plants know we're here?The episode of CrowdScience asks whether plants “know” humans are around, and what happens when people touch or hug plants.25 Sep 2026 · 26 min
How many dead people are on the internet?How many “dead people” (and inactive accounts) exist online, what happens to accounts after death, and whether platforms should delete or preserve digital remains.18 Sep 2026 · 34 min
Can my veggie sausages save the world?CrowdScience answers listener Lisa Farrant’s questions about plant-based “fake” meats and lab-grown/cultivated meat—whether they’re healthier and better for the environment than real meat.11 Sep 2026 · 26 min
All episodes
Do plants know we're here?The episode of CrowdScience asks whether plants “know” humans are around, and what happens when people touch or hug plants.25 Sep 2026 · 26 min · 11 chapters
How many dead people are on the internet?How many “dead people” (and inactive accounts) exist online, what happens to accounts after death, and whether platforms should delete or preserve digital remains.18 Sep 2026 · 34 min · 14 chapters
Can my veggie sausages save the world?CrowdScience answers listener Lisa Farrant’s questions about plant-based “fake” meats and lab-grown/cultivated meat—whether they’re healthier and better for the environment than real meat.11 Sep 2026 · 26 min · 12 chapters
Why do I love rollercoasters?Why people enjoy roller coasters, using physics (G-forces), astronaut/aviation analogies (parabolic flight), and neuroscience/psychology of “thrill.”4 Sep 2026 · 29 min · 11 chapters
How do electric fish make electricity?How electric fish generate electricity, how they use it to sense/navigate/communicate or to stun prey, and why they don’t get shocked by human-made electricity.28 Aug 2026 · 26 min · 11 chapters
Why am I warm blooded?The episode answers listener Matt’s question “Why am I warm-blooded?” It explains that “warm-blooded/cold-blooded” are misleading: warm-blooded endotherms generate internal heat and maintain body…21 Aug 2026 · 26 min · 14 chapters
Why can't I concentrate?Why paying attention can feel hard work; how distraction, interruptions, sensory load, and task difficulty affect concentration, energy use, and performance.14 Aug 2026 · 26 min · 12 chapters
Why is TB still killing people?Why tuberculosis (TB) still kills people despite the BCG vaccine and antibiotics; includes vaccine limits, long multi-drug treatment, antibiotic resistance risk, TB’s biology (latency/quiescence),…7 Aug 2026 · 26 min · 10 chapters
Will I get hit by a meteor?Risk of being hit by space objects—meteoroids/meteorites, larger asteroids (planetary defense), and man-made space debris (including “urine crystals” and Kessler syndrome).31 Jul 2026 · 37 min · 24 chapters
Is anything truly random?Whether anything is truly random, using a bathroom-tiling listener problem to explore human intuition, probability, and quantum physics.24 Jul 2026 · 27 min · 11 chapters
Are there diseases in space?Whether infectious diseases could exist in space or on other planets, and what risks they pose to astronauts and to Earth (including “backwards contamination” and “forward contamination”).17 Jul 2026 · 26 min · 10 chapters
What are these strange rocks?Why some volcanic rocks form striking hexagonal columns, linking Lombok (Indonesia) and the Giant’s Causeway (Northern Ireland), and the math/geology behind hexagons.10 Jul 2026 · 26 min · 11 chapters
How did plants evolve to attract insects?How flowering plants evolved to attract insect and animal pollinators, focusing on plant “sex,” co-evolution, and examples like Rafflesia, figs, and scent/shape specialization.6 Jul 2026 · 26 min · 9 chapters
Do animals care about the past?Whether animals “care about” or are interested in the past, testing a textbook claim that “an interest in the past separates humans from other animals.”26 Jun 2026 · 26 min · 11 chapters
How does Bluetooth work?How Bluetooth works, why it uses 2.4 GHz radio waves, how devices avoid interfering (frequency hopping and agreed hopping patterns), and how Bluetooth Low Energy enables tracking tags; includes a…19 Jun 2026 · 27 min · 16 chapters
Why does paper fold so well?Why paper folds so well, and why creases are hard to undo; includes how paper is made and how different papers affect origami performance.12 Jun 2026 · 26 min · 10 chapters
Do plants have personalities?Whether plants have “personalities,” explored through genetic trait variation, plant behavior/intelligence, and learning.5 Jun 2026 · 29 min · 11 chapters
What's the deal with tongues?Why animals have such different tongues, and how tongue shape evolved for feeding, swallowing, and sensing.29 May 2026 · 26 min · 10 chapters
Why am I an introvert?Listener Daniel from Ghana asks why he’s an introvert and whether introversion limits career success.22 May 2026 · 26 min · 9 chapters
Why do we itch?The science of itch and scratching: what itch is, why it happens (skin, immune system, brain), why it can become chronic, why scratching relieves it but can also spread or worsen it, and why itch can…15 May 2026 · 26 min · 12 chapters
How come sea levels are rising faster in some places than others?Why sea levels rise at different rates in different places, and how that translates into real-world impacts (e.g., faster rise in the Philippines).8 May 2026 · 31 min · 16 chapters
Why can't I recognise faces?CrowdScience episode about face blindness—why people can struggle to recognise faces, whether it’s normal to worsen with age, and what brain changes and coping strategies are involved.1 May 2026 · 26 min · 9 chapters
Do animals hold funerals?The episode of BBC World Service’s CrowdScience answers whether animals hold funerals and what happens to animal bodies after death.24 Apr 2026 · 26 min · 11 chapters
Why does salt taste so good?Why salt tastes so good, explored via Hallstatt’s working salt mine (Austria) and science of taste and sodium in the body.17 Apr 2026 · 26 min · 11 chapters