The Naked Scientists
Encyclopedia
| The Naked Scientists | |
| The Naked Scientists Radio Show & Podcast |
|
| Format | Science Talk radio Talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live... / Podcast Podcast A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication... |
|---|---|
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Country |  United Kingdom United KingdomUnited Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
| Language | English |
| Broadcast Time | Sundays, 6-7 p.m. UK time |
| Broadcast Area | BBC Radio in the East of England East of England The East of England is one of the nine official regions of England. It was created in 1994 and was adopted for statistics from 1999. It includes the ceremonial counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. Essex has the highest population in the region.Its... Worldwide Online and as a Podcast Podcast A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication... |
| Frequency | BBC Radio Cambridgeshire BBC Radio Cambridgeshire BBC Radio Cambridgeshire is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Cambridgeshire. It originally broadcast from studios on Hills Road close to the train station in Cambridge - which have now moved to a new multi-million pound centre at the Cambridge Business Park on Cowley Road - ... - 96.0 & 95.7 FM FM broadcasting FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"... BBC Essex BBC Essex BBC Essex is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Essex. It broadcasts from its studios on New London Road in Chelmsford on 103.5 and 95.3 FM, and on 729 , 765 , and 1530 AM. It is also available on DAB and live streaming via the internet.-History:BBC Essex launched on 5... - 103.5 & 95.3 FM BBC Radio Norfolk BBC Radio Norfolk BBC Radio Norfolk is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Norfolk, broadcasting since 11 September 1980. It broadcasts from the studios of BBC East in The Forum, Norwich on 95.1 FM , 104.4 FM , 95.6 FM , 855 kHz AM/MW , 873 kHz AM/MW BBC Radio Norfolk is the BBC Local... - 95.1 & 104.4 FM 855 & 873 AM AM broadcasting AM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave... BBC Radio Northampton BBC Radio Northampton BBC Radio Northampton is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Northamptonshire. It broadcasts from its studios in Broadcasting House, Northampton on 104.2 and 103.6 FM. The station also has two studios in Daventry and Corby... - 104.2 and 103.6 FM BBC Radio Suffolk BBC Radio Suffolk BBC Radio Suffolk is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Suffolk, commencing broadcasts on 12 April 1990. Its studios are at Broadcasting House in St Matthews Street, Ipswich on 95.5 , 95.9 , 103.9 and 104.6 FM... - 103.9, 104.6, 95.5 & 95.9 FM Online - BBC Radio Player As a Podcast |
| Website | TheNakedScientists.com |
| iTunes | Find us on the iTunes store |
| Archive | All our podcasts are available here |
| Podcast Feed | Naked Scientists Podcast.xml |
| Contact | |
The Naked Scientists is a one-hour audience-interactive science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
radio talk show broadcast live by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
in the East of England
East of England
The East of England is one of the nine official regions of England. It was created in 1994 and was adopted for statistics from 1999. It includes the ceremonial counties of Essex, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. Essex has the highest population in the region.Its...
, nationally by BBC Radio 5 Live and internationally as a podcast
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
. The programme was created and is edited by Cambridge University
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
Pathology Department clinical lecturer Dr Chris Smith
Chris Smith, The Naked Scientist
Dr Chris Smith - "the Naked Scientist" - is a medical doctor and a clinical lecturer in virology at Cambridge University where he is a fellow of Queens' College...
. He hosts the show with other scientists.
The present Naked Scientists line up includes producers Ben Valsler and Meera Senthilingam, scientist David Ansell, marine biologist Helen Scales and blogger and harpist Kat Arney. The group appointed the first official Naked Scientists PhD student, Diana O'Carroll, who is examining the educational impacts of science broadcasting and new media. O'Carroll also presents a Naked Scientists spin-off podcast, Naked Archaeology, which launched in 2008. A second spin-off, Naked Astronomy, a Valsler production featuring Cambridge University-based space scientists and astronomers, has been podcast since December 2009, and a combined video and audio programme, Naked Engineering, which is produced by Ansell and Senthilingam and supported by the Royal Academy of Engineering
Royal Academy of Engineering
-Overview: is the UK’s national academy of engineering. The Academy brings together the most successful and talented engineers from across the engineering sectors for a shared purpose: to advance and promote excellence in engineering....
, launched in September 2010. For Christmas 2010 the group also showcased a new video podcast strand, the Naked Science Scrapbook.
Naked Scientists Show Content
Each episode of the main Naked Scientists programme is one hour long and includes a digest of topical science news stories, audience questions answered live on the air and interviews with guest scientists. These individuals join the hosts in the studio to talk about their work and to take questions live from listeners. Previous featured guests include the discoverer of the DNA fingerprint, Alec JeffreysAlec Jeffreys
Sir Alec John Jeffreys, FRS is a British geneticist, who developed techniques for DNA fingerprinting and DNA profiling which are now used all over the world in forensic science to assist police detective work, and also to resolve paternity and immigration disputes...
, the Astronomer Royal
Astronomer Royal
Astronomer Royal is a senior post in the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. There are two officers, the senior being the Astronomer Royal dating from 22 June 1675; the second is the Astronomer Royal for Scotland dating from 1834....
Sir Martin Rees, and the co-discoverer of DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
structure, James D. Watson
James D. Watson
James Dewey Watson is an American molecular biologist, geneticist, and zoologist, best known as one of the co-discoverers of the structure of DNA in 1953 with Francis Crick...
.
The show also features on-location reports and interviews, and an interactive segment called Kitchen Science where listeners are encouraged to attempt a science experiment at home during the show. Kitchen Science experiments have included building a desktop trebuchet
Trebuchet
A trebuchet is a siege engine that was employed in the Middle Ages. It is sometimes called a "counterweight trebuchet" or "counterpoise trebuchet" in order to distinguish it from an earlier weapon that has come to be called the "traction trebuchet", the original version with pulling men instead of...
, a chocolate
Chocolate
Chocolate is a raw or processed food produced from the seed of the tropical Theobroma cacao tree. Cacao has been cultivated for at least three millennia in Mexico, Central and South America. Its earliest documented use is around 1100 BC...
teapot
Teapot
A teapot is a vessel used for steeping tea leaves or a herbal mix in near-boiling water. Tea may be either in a tea bag or loose, in which case a tea strainer will be needed, either to hold the leaves as they steep or to catch the leaves inside the teapot when the tea is poured...
and a Liver
Liver
The liver is a vital organ present in vertebrates and some other animals. It has a wide range of functions, including detoxification, protein synthesis, and production of biochemicals necessary for digestion...
powered Bottle Rocket
Bottle Rocket
Bottle Rocket is a 1996 comedy film directed by Wes Anderson. It was co-written by Anderson and Owen Wilson. As well as being Wes Anderson's directorial debut, Bottle Rocket was the debut feature for brothers Owen Wilson and Luke Wilson, who co-starred with James Caan and Robert Musgrave.The film...
. The Kitchen Science segment also hosts experiments that listeners may not be able to do at home, such as generating X-rays from Sticky Tape with Dr Carlos Camara of UCLA and testing how much fat would stop a bullet with researchers at Cambridge University's Cavendish Laboratory
Cavendish Laboratory
The Cavendish Laboratory is the Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge, and is part of the university's School of Physical Sciences. It was opened in 1874 as a teaching laboratory....
.
Awards and Prizes
The Naked Scientists have won 7 national and international awards for science communication since 2006.The show won the Biosciences Federation
Biosciences Federation
-Function:The Federation aimed to unite the bioscience community over issues of common interest that related to both research and teaching. These organisations are a key component of the UK's knowledge economy. It also aimed to influence the formulation of UK policy relating to biosciences, and to...
Prize for Science Communication, 2006, the JOSH Award 2007, the Society for General Microbiology
Society for General Microbiology
The Society for General Microbiology is a learned society based in the United Kingdom but with members in more than 60 countries. With approximately 5000 members, it is the largest microbiological society in Europe...
's Peter Wildy Prize 2008, the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
Kohn Award 2008, the Best Radio Show Award at the Population Institute's 29th Global Media Awards, 2008, the European Podcast Award for UK Non-Profit podcast, and the inaugural Royal College of Pathologists Furness Prize for science communication 2010.
The Naked Scientists was also in the 5 finalists in the 2006 World Podcast Awards and received two nominations, for "best produced" and "best science and technology podcast" in the 2007 awards. It was also a top 5 finalist in the 2008 and 2009 awards.
Bandwidth consumed by the programme's podcast exceeds 15TB (terabytes) of downloads per month.
Other media
The Naked Scientists also appear on TV Channel Five's panel gamePanel game
A panel game or panel show is a radio or television game show in which a panel of celebrities participates. Panelists may compete with each other, such as on The News Quiz; facilitate play by guest contestants, such as on Match Game/Blankety Blank; or do both, such as on Wait Wait.....
The What in the World? Quiz
The What in the World? Quiz
The What in the World? Quiz is a British comedy panel game first broadcast on 5 September 2008 on Five. The show is hosted by Marcus Brigstocke and guest stars Lee Hurst and Dominic Holland as the team captains. The show asks questions themed on science and technology. The guests on the show are...
and have contributed to the 2007 Channel 4 programme "The Farm Revealed". In September 2008, with the Open University, the Naked Scientists launched a new UK national radio edition of their programme, The Naked Scientists - Up All Night (subsequently re-named "Breaking Science") which was broadcast on BBC Radio 5 Live.
In November 2008, with the Royal Society of Chemistry
Royal Society of Chemistry
The Royal Society of Chemistry is a learned society in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemical sciences." It was formed in 1980 from the merger of the Chemical Society, the Royal Institute of Chemistry, the Faraday Society and the Society for Analytical Chemistry with a new...
, a series entitled "The Naked Scientists In Africa" began on Channel Africa
Channel Africa
Channel Africa is the international broadcasting service of the South African Broadcasting Corporation. Airing on shortwave, satellite radio and Internet radio platforms, the service airs news, cultural, sports and public affairs programming focusing on South Africa and the African...
, the international broadcasting
International broadcasting
International broadcasting is broadcasting that is deliberately aimed at a foreign, rather than a domestic, audience. It usually is broadcast by means of longwave, mediumwave, or shortwave radio, but in recent years has also used direct satellite broadcasting and the Internet as means of reaching...
service of the South African Broadcasting Corporation
South African Broadcasting Corporation
The South African Broadcasting Corporation is the state-owned broadcaster in South Africa and provides 18 radio stations as well as 3 television broadcasts to the general public.-Early years:Radio broadcasting began in South Africa in 1923...
. The Naked Scientists in Africa, which is produced by Naked Scientist team-member Meera Senthilingam, incorporates international science news and a focus on science stories originating in, or pertinent to, African countries.
Since January 2010, the Naked Scientists have returned to BBC 5 Live with a newly-formatted version of the show, which airs nationally every Monday.
Funders and Supporters
The Naked Scientists have received funding and awards from the Wellcome TrustWellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13.9 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research...
, the Natural Environment Research Council
Natural Environment Research Council
The Natural Environment Research Council is a British research council that supports research, training and knowledge transfer activities in the environmental sciences.-History:...
, the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council is a British Research Council that provides government funding for grants to undertake research and postgraduate degrees in engineering and the physical sciences , mainly to universities in the United Kingdom...
(EPSRC), Cambridge University including the Isaac Newton Trust, the Science and Technology Facilities Council
Science and Technology Facilities Council
The Science and Technology Facilities Council is a UK government body that carries out civil research in science and engineering, and funds UK research in areas including particle physics, nuclear physics, space science and astronomy .-History:It was formed in April 2007 as a merger of the Particle...
(STFC), the Royal Academy of Engineering
Royal Academy of Engineering
-Overview: is the UK’s national academy of engineering. The Academy brings together the most successful and talented engineers from across the engineering sectors for a shared purpose: to advance and promote excellence in engineering....
and the Royal Society of Chemistry
Royal Society of Chemistry
The Royal Society of Chemistry is a learned society in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemical sciences." It was formed in 1980 from the merger of the Chemical Society, the Royal Institute of Chemistry, the Faraday Society and the Society for Analytical Chemistry with a new...
.