Discover
Biology
Are video games good for my mental health?
Most of us have probably heard of video games being described as "addictive", but is there evidence of this? Are they damaging to our mental health, or could they actually have a positive impact on our metal wellbeing? In this episode of the Big Questions podcast we're booting up our consoles, and asking Prof Andrew Przybylski, Director of...
Inside Oxford Science podcasts with Marcus du Sautoy
A crack team of Oxford scientists, including Marcus du Sautoy, investigate the most exciting new science topics. Learn about dark matter and the Big Bang, why people love Pi, the science of pheromones and much more by clicking the link below!
Jennifer Wild
I’m fascinated by how and why our brains over-remember the memories we most want to forget. I studied at the University of Toronto, diving deep into theories of how the brain makes memories and then overplays unwanted memories. This got me interested in post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, the severe stress reaction that afflicts soldiers and...
Can we diagnose heart attacks faster?
With one person admitted to hospital every 5 minutes in the UK because of a heart attack, the ability to diagnose and treat them quickly is vital. In this episode of the ‘Big Questions’ podcast, find out how Dr Tingting Zhu is using a machine learning algorithm, trained on 15,000 ECGs, to diagnose heart attacks faster, potentially eliminating...
Tom Hart
My research centres around how to monitor penguins and other marine predators in difficult environments such as Antarctica. Many of the most important environments on the planet are too data deficient to understand the changes occurring there, and the implications for global change, which in turn stalls effective management. I spend a lot of...
Qihua Ling
I have been interested in plants since I was little. And later I heard that there is a place called Kew Gardens in England, where a huge collection of plants from all over the world can be found. Since then, I had always dreamed of visiting Kew Gardens, and enjoying her beauty for all four seasons. And that dream finally came true luckily...
Andrew Przybylski
"Professor Przybylski is an experimental psychologist and Director of Research at the Oxford Internet Institute. His work is mainly concerned with applying psychological models of motivation and health to study how people interact with virtual environments including video games and social media. He is particularly interested in integrating open...
Are bats superheroes or villains?
The Big Questions podcast is back with a new series, and we start with a special Halloween edition! Join University of Oxford evolutionary virologist Emilia Skirmuntt as we learn all about the weird and wonderful world of bats, and ask the question 'Are bats superheroes or villains?'
When did dogs become our best friends?
In this year's Valentine's episode, we're exploring that most special of relationships. That's right - the one between us and our dogs! We often hear pooches described as "(wo)man's best friend", but for how long has this been the case? Join Prof Greger Larson, an expert in palaeogenomics and bio-archaeology, as we journey back thousands of...
When did cats arrive in Britain?
Sunning themselves outside or curled up on our sofas …many of us have a pet cat in our homes. But do we ever pause to wonder where our feline friends came from and how long they have been by our sides?
