Cold and flu season is well and truly upon us, and whilst most of us are busy bemoaning the pesky viruses behind our sniffles and chesty coughs - one of our listeners has other ideas. Elizabeth wants to know whether we’re too hard on these oft-maligned microbes? We’ve all heard that some bacteria...

   It has been said that you can’t start a fire without a spark, but as Hannah and Dara are about to discover, that’s not true Welcome to the fiery phenomenon of spontaneous combustion, when something can ignite all on its own: no matches, no sparks, no external flame. It happens when certain...

   Are you a lucky person? Do the cards just fall well for you? Whether it’s always finding a parking spot when you need one or chance encounters that change your life’s trajectory for the better, some people seem to have more luck than others. Hannah and Dara explore the world of probability and...

   It turns out that the whole world wobbles. Everything has a natural frequency - the rate at which it moves when disturbed - be it a cup of tea, a building or a human organ.Even more incredibly, if an external force matches an object’s natural frequency, it causes it to absorb that energy and...

   We can all picture a crab, but did you know that nature has reinvented those claw clicking, sideways scuttling crustaceans at least five separate times? In recent years the internet has run wild with the idea that crabs are the ultimate life-form, and that even humans might one day end up with...

   Hannah Fry and Dara à Briain return to Curious Cases HQ for a brand-new series. And curios, there’s a lot to unpack Coming soon to BBC Sounds.

   The term ’bird brain’ might suggest our feathered friends are stupid, but Hannah and Dara learn it’s completely untrue. They play hide and seek with a raven called Bran, and hear how his behaviour changes depending on his mood. Corvid expert Nicola Clayton explains these creatures are actually...

   Could you ever trade memories with someone else? Fancy downloading the experience of landing on the moon, winning an Oscar or performing at Glastonbury? Listener Adam wants to know, and Hannah Fry and Dara à Briain are on the case.With expert insights from Professor Chris French and Professor Amy...

   Can you slow down time by hurtling through space at breakneck speed? Could listener Saskia’s friend - currently one year older - end up the same age as her if he went fast enough? It sounds bananas, but it’s all part of Einstein’s mind-warping theory of relativity.With expert copilots Professor...

   How big can animals really get before they collapse under their own weight or run out of snacks? Could a 12-foot comedian survive their first punchline without snapping in half? Listener Andrew sends Hannah and Dara on a deep dive into the science of supersized species.With evolutionary biologists...

   Think of a shark and you’ll probably conjure up images of Jaws, but it turns out their skin is also covered in tiny teeth. Hannah and Dara investigate the incredible properties of these so-called dermal denticles, to find out whether they could be replicated at a nanoscale to increase vehicle...

   Why do we giggle, snort, and bust a gut laughing? Is it just humans being weird, does it serve some higher function or do other animals crack up too? And, okay, Dara is a comedian, but has he ever really made anyone laugh, like properly? With help from Professor Greg Bryant and Professor Sophie...

   Ever wondered why some people are mosquito magnets and other people barely get bitten? Hannah and Dara grapple with the question of whether these insects are evil or genius, discovering how they’re experts at finding blood when they’re hungry, even using a specially designed syringe to suck it out....

   The team test the theory that you can use the weather to predict pain, separating science fact from fiction. It’s an area with a huge amount of conflicting research, but one man who has investigated this is Professor Will Dixon, who explains that low pressure could be causing people’s joints to...

   From mouldy bread to athlete’s foot, fungi don’t exactly scream home improvement. But what if this misunderstood kingdom is the secret to the sustainable materials of the future?Listener Alexis - definitely not a gnome - wants to know how much of our homes we could build with fungi. Professor Katie...

   What happens in your brain when Cupid’s arrow strikes? As a teenager, Alison developed an intense crush on George Harrison from the Beatles. But, she wants to know, why do we develop these feelings for pop stars we’ve never actually met? And what potent swirl of neurochemistry drives those fierce...

   Hannah and Dara tackle a disarmingly simple question: is anything in the universe truly invisible? After ruling out mysterious Nordic spirits and Dara’s ire’, our curious duo start to track down the invisible waves all around them. Including, it turns out, some which are emanating from their VERY...

   For any of you who have ever told a porkie pie, don’t worry, this week we hear why we all do it... and discover that deception is actually good for social bonding. From the red squirrels who cry wolf to scare off the competition, to kids who look you in the eye as they tell bare faced lies, this is...

   Diamonds are nonsense Hannah boldly proclaimed in a previous episode. But listener Guy is a diamond enthusiast, and he and his diamond-loving pals were NOT OKAY WITH THIS. He demanded we re-open the case, and here we are...SO in this glittering showdown, Dara is on a quest to flip Hannah’s...

   Hannah Fry and Dara à Briain return to tackle listener’s questions with the power of science

   The buzz of a fly hovering just above your head has got to be one of the most irritating sounds around, but this week we try to work out just how fast they could be flying. Could a claim horseflies reach speeds of up to 90 mph possibly be true, and Dara wants to know if this is what makes them so...

   Anyone who has ever done a long car journey with kids will be familiar with the idea of being bored to death - but can this feeling really be fatal? Hannah and Dara hear about a club where members count roundabouts and collect milk bottle tops, but boredom expert Wijnand van Tilburg explains these...

   When you die, would you want to be frozen so that one day you might be brought back to life? Listener Elspeth wants to know if that’s even possible. So Hannah and Dara embark on a quest to explore the chiling science of cryobiology’: preserving living things at really low temperatures.It turns out...

   Wake up It’s time for a dreamy new episode of Curious Cases all about the science of sleepwalking. Listener Abigail has done some strange things in her sleep, from taking all the pictures off the wall, to searching for Turkish language courses. And she wants to know: WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?It turns...

   Fruit-powered batteries are the ultimate school science experiment, but they’re normally used to power a pocket calculator. This week’s listener wants to know if they could do more, and sends the team on a quest to discover whether they could used to send a rocket into space?Professor Saiful Islam...

   Are you more of a rhino or a kitten? More like a tortoise or a hare? Listener Ivy wants to know what makes a good athlete and so Hannah and Dara tackle the science of sport. Our curious duo get to grips with the rigours of training tailored for endurance events vs those based on more explosive...

   Listener Vivienne has heard that tardigrades - aka moss piglets - have special powers of survival. Radiation? Drought? Extreme cold? NO PROBLEM. Does that mean they could survive an apocalypse? And could they even help us master space travel ?Hannah and Dara learn how to find these little moss...

   If there’s one type of discharge you really want to avoid, it’s lightning, but what happens when it hits you?We hear from lightning survivor Kerry Evans, and discover that the best place to shelter - if you ever find yourself in a similarly charged storm - is in a car, or low to the ground. And why...

   11 year old Esther visualises days of the week in a kind of 3D structure. It’s something called synaesthesia’ and she wants to know why it happens - and why other people don’t experience things the way she does. Hannah Fry and Dara à Briain explore the vibrant and varied ways different people...

   It’s sometimes said that timing is everything and this week the pair investigate the mystery of rhythm, discovering why some of us might be better at staying in tempo.From the daily cycle of dawn and dusk to sea tides and circadian clocks, rhythm governs many aspects of our lives, and cognitive...

   9 year old listener Koby sends Hannah and Dara on a mission to find the shiniest thing in the world. And so they enter a world of mirrors... The journey takes them into the subatomic goings on of shiny metal surfaces, where electrons waggle and dance and send light waves back at just the right...

   Would you eat food that fell on the floor? That’s the question Hannah and Dara are getting their teeth into this week as they put the so-called 5 second rule’ through its paces. For some people it’s 3 seconds, and for others its 10 - especially if it involves a dropped ice cream and a screaming...

   While chatting at the back of class, best mates Abi and Sofia got curious about bubbles. How do you make really giant ones? Could you even get one around the entire planet?Hannah and Dara set out to investigate. They hear from a renowned ’bubbleologist’, and learn how NASA helped him blow his way...

   Curious Cases is returning Superstar mathematician and broadcaster Hannah Fry teams up with legendary comedian and fellow science nerd Dara à Briain for an all-new series of the show which takes your quirkiest questions and solves them with the power of SCIENCE.In this short preview ep, our dynamic...

   There is a bizarre number in maths referred to simply as i’. It appears to break the rules of arithmetic - but turns out to be utterly essential for applications across engineering and physics. We’re talking about the square root of -1. WHICH MAKES NO SENSE.Professor Fry waxes lyrical about the...

   This episode will render you oblivious, conked out and blissfully unaware. It’s about anaesthetics: those potent potions that send you into a deep, deathly sleep. Listener Alicia wants to know how they work, so our sleuths call on the expertise of consultant anaesthetist Dr Fiona Donald. Fiona...

   Can we bring back extinct species?’ wonders listener Mikko Campbell. Well, Professor Fry is pretty excited by the prospect of woolly mammoths roaming the Siberian tundra once more. And everyone is impressed with the science that might make it happen. But Dr Rutherford comes out STRONGLY against the...

   The Great Pyramids of Giza are awesome feats of engineering and precision. So who built them - and how? Was it a mysteriously super-advanced civilization now oddly extinct? Was it even aliens? Nah, course not Rutherford and Fry investigate how these inspiring monuments were really constructed, and...

   Magnets are inside loads of everyday electronic kit - speakers, motors, phones and more - but listener Lucas is mystified: what, he wonders, is a magnetic field? Our sleuths set out to investigate the mysterious power of magnets, with the help of wizard physicist Dr Felix Flicker - author of the...

   Close your eyes and think of a giraffe. Can you see it? I mean, really see it - in rich, vivid detail? If not - you aren’t alone We’ve had scores of messages from listeners who report having a blind mind’s eye’. They don’t see mental images at all and they want to know why. Jude from Perth wants to...

   The new series kicks off very soon As a little aperitif, Hannah and Adam review some surprising studies published in scientific journals. Warning: contains fruity language and grisly medical scenarios...

   What do you get if you smash two hydrogen nuclei together? Helium and lots of energy. That’s no joke - it’s nuclear fusion Nuclear fusion is the power source of the sun and the stars. Physicists and engineers here on earth are trying to build reactors than can harness fusion power to provide...

   Sneezes, wheezes, runny noses and red eyes - this episode is all about allergies. An allergic reaction is when your immune system reacts to something harmless - like peanuts or pollen - as if it was a parasitic invader. It’s a case of biological mistaken identity. Professor Judith Holloway from the...

   Hungry for pi? Chow down on this Pi is the ratio between a circle’s diameter and its circumference. Sounds dull - but pi turns out to have astonishing properties and crop up in places you would never expect. For a start, it goes on forever and never repeats, meaning it probably contains your name,...

   Why are some smells so nasty and others so pleasant? Rutherford and Fry inhale the science of scent in this stinker of an episode. Our sleuths kick off with a guided tour of the airborne molecules and chemical receptors that power the sense of smell. Armed with a stack of pungent mini-flasks,...

   How do winds start and why do they stop? asks Georgina from the Isle of Wight. What’s more, listener Chris Elshaw is suprised we get strong winds at all: why doesn’t air just move smoothly between areas of high and low pressure? Why do we get sudden gusts and violent storms? To tackle this breezy...

   DO WE HAVE YOUR ATTENTION?Good But how does that work ? Our intrepid science sleuths explore why some things immediately catch your eye - or ear - while others slip by totally unnoticed. Even, on occasion, basketball bouncing gorillas. Professor Polly Dalton, a psychologist who leads The Attention...

   We asked you to send us the boldest, barmiest bits of published research you could find and, dear Curios, you didn’t disappoint It’s time for some silly science.

   The world is full of colour But, wonders listener Maya Crocombe, how do we see colour and why are some people colour blind?’Dr Rutherford and Professor Fry set out to understand how special light-sensitive cells in our eyes start the process of colour perception, why people sometimes have very...

   Mathematician Hannah Fry and geneticist Adam Rutherford investigate your everyday science queries. They get stuck into two questions about tides. Lynn Godson wants to know why isn’t high tide at the same time at all points around the coast? Whilst Tim Mosedale asks, could we ever harness tidal...