Ep 139: Christmas special - Santa, sport and out-takes

It's scarcely believable that another Christmas has rolled around! I hope that 2010 has been a wonderful year for you.

In this year's Christmas podcast, I've compiled some of my favourite segments from the last few years. First up, I chat to Bianca Nogrady, who assembled a crack team of health experts to look into the health of Santa Claus. Not only does he eat copious amounts of sugar and drink gallons of beer, he is also at risk of altitude sickness, deep-vein thrombosis, jet-lag, zoonotic diseases from exposure to wild reindeer and countless other problems associated with lack of sleep and poor diet. Not to mention all the concerns associated with smoking. However, he does compile the naughty/nice list each year, keeping his mind active, and unlike many other elderly folk, he gets out of the house and travels. You can read more about the findings of the Santa-team in Bianca's original article Health alert for Christmas visitor, and also at Ep 98: Santa Claus - a fat, diabetic substance abuser?

Next up is a classic out-take from Diffusion Science Radio from the velvet-voiced Matt Clarke discussing the fact that some women are allergic to their partner's semen. You will also hear the laughing of myself, Darren Osborne, Lachlan Whatmore and Tilly Boleyn (and possibly Ian Woolf). These same folk then join me in an interesting, and irreverent, take on some of the mental aspects of cricket. These recordings were originally released in the episode North Koreans, Mammoths, Invisibility and what did not make it to air on the Diffusion Radio Science Show.

Take care this break, and see you in the new year, when my family will have expanded by one!

Click play below or listen to this show here, and have yourself a merry Christmas!

Nano Snowman

In 2009 we had Nano-teddy, this year it's Nano Snowman!

David Cox from the National Physical Laboratory in the UK has built the world's smallest snowman - perhaps because he was trapped inside by the winter blizzards with nothing much else to do...

The snowman is 10 µm across, which is roughly 1/5th the width of a human hair. Its head and body are made from two tin beads. The eyes and smile were carved from the tin with a focused ion beam, and the nose, which is less than 1 µm across, is a deposited blob of platinum.

Hope all our UK and European readers are enjoying the snow!

Merry Christmas from the Mr (and soon Mrs) Science Show!

Christmas is a time for over-indulgence. But has Santa gone too far?

As Christmas is only two sleeps away, have a listen back to last year's Christmas special on Santa, the fat, diabetic substance abuser (Episode 98). Santa Claus is a ticking time-bomb. Not only does he eat copious amounts of sugar and drink gallons of beer, he is also at risk of altitude sickness, deep-vein thrombosis, jet-lag, zoonotic diseases from exposure to wild reindeer and countless other problems associated with lack of sleep and poor diet. Not to mention all the concerns associated with smoking.

Australian science writer Bianca Nogrady assembled a crack team of health experts to look into the state of the big man, and the prognosis wasn't good. You can read more about the findings of the Santa-team in Bianca's original article for Australian Doctor, Health alert for Christmas visitor.

Listen to this show here:


Continuing the Christmas theme, listen in to some reindeer facts and the problems Santa is having at the North Pole (Episode 95). Due to global warming, and the global financial crisis, in 2008 Santa had to put his North Pole residence up for auction and is currently looking for a new place in Lapland.

Listen to this show here:


My Christmas treat came early - soon there will be a Mrs Science - thanks Euge for saying yes! One of the conditions, however, is that this moustache never returns...

Ep 98: Santa Claus - a fat, diabetic substance abuser?

Santa Claus is a ticking time-bomb. Not only does he eat copious amounts of sugar and drink gallons of beer, he is also at risk of altitude sickness, deep-vein thrombosis, jet-lag, zoonotic diseases from exposure to wild reindeer and countless other problems associated with lack of sleep and poor diet. Not to mention all the concerns associated with smoking.

Australian science writer Bianca Nogrady assembled a crack team of health experts to look into the state of the big man, and the prognosis wasn't good.

However, there were some up-shots, despite the likelihood of a cirrhotic liver. Due to the fact that he compiles the naughty/nice list each year, at least his mind is active and healthy. And he gets out of the house and travels - another plus for the elderly.

Our conclusion in the end is that Santa Claus probably has some kind of substance abuse problem to keep him going all Christmas Eve and to keep him jolly.

You can read more about the findings of the Santa-team in Bianca's original article for Australian Doctor, Health alert for Christmas visitor.

Listen to his podcast here:

Ep 96: Reflecting on the science year 2008

This week I sat down with a kebab and Darren Osborne, editor of ABC Science Online, to reflect on the science year that was 2008. Darren was immersed in science in 2008 and is across nearly all the science topics that hit the headlines - as well as breaking the science news himself. Topics we discussed include:

• Climate Change;
• The LHC;
• X-rays and Sticky tape;
• Genomic Research;
• Biofuels and the food crisis;
  
• Alternative Energy Sources;
• Beer made from 45 million-year old yeast;
• A 380-million year-old fossilised fish, which was in the process of giving birth;
• The Sumo Diet.
  

I also get Old Man and Woman Science, my Dad and Mum, on the phone to get their opinions on the year that was.

Listen to his podcast here:

And remember to tell us your science highlights from 2008 to go into the running for some sciencey prizes. Answers will also contribute to our year-in-review podcast coming out in a few weeks. Let us know here before the competition closes.

Ep 95: Merry Christmas from Mr Science!

Reindeer and Santa Claus are the topic of this week's Mr Science Show. With Christmas here, we thought we'd look at some Christmas news, and this week we take a look at reindeer facts and the problems Santa is having at the North Pole. Due to global warming, and the global financial crisis, Santa has had to put his North Pole residence up for auction and is currently looking for a new place in Lapland.

Merry Christmas from the Mr Science Show!

Listen to his podcast here:

And remember to tell us your science highlights from 2008 to go into the running for some sciencey prizes. Answers will also contribute to our year-in-review podcast early in 2009. Let us know here.