River bomb archaeology, AI viruses and Viagra cancer cures

This week’s science news is a perfect example of the universe having a weird sense of timing. The Danube River hits record low water levels and suddenly Europe starts coughing up skeletons, WWII war relics, and Roman engineering like it’s doing a historical clear-out. If you’re into archaeological …

Snakes have necks, giant sperm physics and fungus fashion

Someone once described a snake as “a tail with a face”, and honestly, it’s hard to unsee it. Snakes look like pure commitment to the tube lifestyle, with very little going on besides forward motion and mild judgement. Except a 2015 study basically ruined the idea that snakes are neckless noodles by…

Cannibals, MRI snuggle sacks and sex inside a whale

Is there any evidence-based reason cannibalism shouldn’t make a comeback? It’s a question that really should come with a warning label, but we couldn’t resist digging into it properly this week. We’ve got researchers running the numbers on human-eating, rats in MRI “snuggle sacks” while tripping o…

Invention of the wheelie suitcase, orphan-powered vaccines and the Barbie drug

This week’s line-up is a reminder that humans will do anything except choose the obvious option straight away. We’ve got a wheelie suitcase that was probably invented by a woman, then ignored until a man made it respectable, plus a smallpox vaccine rollout that sounds like a historical thriller, an…

Pig Orgasms, Placebo Power and How iPhones are Ruining Sex

This week we went from “surely that can’t be true” to “oh… that’s actually happening”. We fact check the legendary pig orgasm claim, then get weirdly hopeful about placebo pills that work even when you’re told they’re fake. From there, we look at research that points a finger at the iPhone era for…

Rod's Best Of: The Experience Machine, Havana Syndrome, Venting Makes you Angrier and Boring People

Will’s gone walkabout, so Rod’s raided the archives and pulled out four of his favourite segments for you to enjoy. You’ll get a philosophical gut punch about the Experience Machine and why a perfect fake life still feels wrong, a genuinely weird global mystery with Havana Syndrome and the uncomfo…

Fake Microplastics, Freaky Lovebirds, and Numbers Too Big For Humans

Microplastics are everywhere. Birds are masturbating. A trillion dollars is still not a real number. And somewhere in the middle of all that, a mushroom case study pops up and reminds you Alzheimer’s is not just a punchline. This week, we ping pong between lab gear that can fake a crisis, wildlife…

Banned Baby Names, The Onion Gene, Hackable AI and Accidental World Kayaker

Australia has a list of baby names you are not allowed to use, a church once removed a devil statue for being distractingly hot, and one German bloke accidentally kayaked from Europe to Australia. This week, Will and Rod bounce between naming laws, scandalous art, and a seven-year adventure that so…

Titanium Exosuits, Iceman Sourdough & Pokemon Spyware

A robot exosuit now costs more than most people’s houses, scientists are pitching a telescope built from the solar system itself, and Pokémon Go has somehow ended up feeding the war tech pipeline. This week, Will and Rod bounce between expensive robotics, slow burn space ambition, biosecurity chaos…

Mosquitoes Got Smarter, Mutant Pigs, Cows Know You And So Does Your Router

Mosquitoes are learning how to ignore your repellents, cows can recognise human faces on TV, and Wi Fi can identify you through a wall with the help of AI. This week, Will and Rod flick between animal intelligence, ocean weirdness, and technology that is getting a little too confident.  We start w…