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New research shows that the whip-like appendages on many types of cells are able to synchronise their movements solely through interactions with the fluid that surrounds them. The paper, published in the journal eLife, is available at: http://elifesciences.org/lookup/doi/10.7554/elife.02750

A bee swarm outside the Old Schools and Trinity Hall at Cambridge University filmed on the afternoon of 24 May. Dr Ristuccia explained that the bees visit once a year.

Cell biology and evolutionary medicine. Professor Sir Paul Nurse (Rockefeller University, New York, USA). Summary: Darwins ideas of the tree of life and natural selection continue to inform medicine and biomedical research. For example, the single tree of life means that model organisms from bacteria to mice can be recruited to better understand human health and disease, whilst natural selection

Hello and welcome back to Mind Over Chatter! This second series is all about the future - and in this first episode we’re going to be considering what the future even is… Have you ever wondered how time works? It turns out, the answer is a lot more complicated than we thought. Please fill out our survey https://forms.gle/r9CfHpJVUEWrxoyx9 to tell us what your mind thinks about our chatter.

Professor Didier Queloz hunts for extreme worlds and Earth twins in Cambridge’s Battcock Centre for Experimental Astrophysics. Here, he tells of the moment in 1995 when he became the first to discover a planet that orbits a star other than our Sun. Astronomers had speculated as to the existence of these distant worlds – called exoplanets – but, until the discovery of 51 Pegasi b by Queloz

What role do our genes play in influencing our body weight and what we like to eat? Why do some people gain weight more easily than others, and is it all down to genes or are there other factors at play? In this episode, we talked with a clinician and scientist Sadaf Farooqi, health psychologist Theresa Marteau, and geographer Thomas Burgoine about the multitude of factors that go into

A transformational new treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS) - the result of over three decades of research in Cambridge -- has now been approved by the EU agency responsible for regulating new drugs. In recognition of the highly effective new treatment, the University of Cambridge has produced this video which explores the history of the drug, showing the many challenges as well as successes

Where better to visit during Mental Health Awareness Week than Cambridge University Botanic Garden? The Botanic Garden is a green oasis in the heart of Cambridge, perfect for mindful walks, peaceful relaxation or spending time in nature. It's free for Cambridge students! If you can't visit in person, here's a mindful ASMR experience for you to tune into. Watch and listen to the team go about

Super-strong electrical wires made from carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are one-tenth the weight of copper, and if used in conventional systems, would make vehicles more fuel efficient and greatly reduce losses in electricity transmission. Additionally, the carbon wires developed by researchers at the University of Cambridge can be joined to conventional metal wires, which until now has not been possible.

On 24 February 2022, the Russian Federation launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. One year on, Dr Rory Finnin, associate professor of Ukrainian Studies, reflects on the war and asks: what have we learned? Recorded 20 February 2023, nine years after the start of the Russo-Ukrainian War.

Since its launch in 1994, the Cambridge Science Festival has brought science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine to an audience of all ages through hundreds of demonstrations, talks, performances and debates. During the Festival, which runs from 7 – 20 March 2016, you can explore everything from artificial intelligence to the latest breakthroughs in healthcare. Most events are free. To

The May Bumps are an annual competition between collegiate boat clubs, taking place in June (of course) on the River Cam. The Cam is too narrow to race side-by-side, so the rowing crews chase one another and try to bump into the boat in front. This is how a crew moves up the rankings. The boats at the top of their rankings when the competition ends are known as Head of the River. Find out more

The '60 Second Impressions' are a series of one-minute films featuring current Cambridge undergraduate students . These students talk about what it's really like to study at Cambridge, live in a College, and take part in a wide range of extra-curricular activities. Alexander is a mature student from Berlin, who is studying History of Art. In his 60 Second Impression, he talks about taking part in

Stage 3 of the Tour de France goes past the Pitt Building on Trumpington Street, Cambridge including a speedy replacement wheel between 3:30 and 4:20 for a rider in green.

Dozens of Cambridge University undergraduates come from care backgrounds and/or are estranged from their families, like Lily-Rose and Connall. Both met through the Realise Project, which aims to encourage more young people from similar backgrounds to go to University. They say the following schemes were incredibly useful in allowing them to focus on their studies: Realise Project-

As a child, Dr Paul Coxon from Cambridge’s Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy, was fascinated by the madcap inventions of the boy hero in Jan Wahl’s SOS Bobomobile (illustrated by Fernando Krahn) – and he still likes to tinker with his own inventions in the lab today. Here he talks about this favourite book as part of ‘Novel Thoughts’, a series exploring the literary reading

Welcome to Mind Over Chatter, the Cambridge University Podcast! One series at a time, we break down complex issues into simple questions. In this first series, we’ll explore climate change. Climate change is likely to affect almost every area of our lives… like a toddler with sticky fingers. But how did it become this way? What are we doing about it now? And what does the future hold?We’ll

Having decided to become a doctor at the age of 10, Professor Carol Brayne’s love of the novels of Charles Dickens and George Eliot fired up her determination to tackle social inequalities in healthcare. Today she is Director of the Cambridge Institute of Public Health. Here she talks about this favourite book as part of ‘Novel Thoughts’, a series exploring the literary reading habits of

Despite the rapid melting of ice in many parts of Antarctica during the second half of the 20th century, researchers have found that the floating ice shelves which skirt the eastern Antarctic Peninsula have undergone sustained advance over the past 20 years.

Researchers from the University of Cambridge, University of Toronto and the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) have confirmed that a 505 million-year-old creature, found only in the Burgess Shale fossil beds in Canada's Yoho National Park, is the most primitive known vertebrate and therefore the ancestor of all descendant vertebrates, including humans.

How and what we eat, and where our food comes from, these everyday choices that we often think very little about, have become increasingly relevant to climate change. Subscribe to the podcast here: mind-over-chatter.captivate.fm/listen With a global population projected to reach 10 billion by 2050, it is not unreasonable to ask: how are we going to feed all these people... and without causing

The end of the calendar year is a time to reflect on the past and look ahead to the future. In this video, University of Cambridge leaders thank the Cambridge community for their hard work and commitment through 2022. Hear from: Professor Kamal Munir​​​​​ - Pro-Vice-Chancellor – University Community and Engagement Professor Anne Ferguson-Smith - Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research and

When Cambridge University Lecturer in Archaeology Dr Catherine Hills discovered that Anglo Saxon remains could be buried in the grounds of Newnham College, Cambridge, she and her colleagues set about organising a dig to find them. Key to its success would be the help of 20 sixth-form girls from schools in London, Birmingham and Peterborough, all of whom stayed in the college for a week to sample

A presentation by Professor Lawrence Sherman, Wolfson Professor of Criminology, Director of the Jerry Lee Centre for Experimental Criminology at the University of Cambridge and Director, Police Executive Programme. Repeated experiments show that focused policing reduces crime. Yet research shows that prison increases offenders' crime rates, especially after they are sent to prison for the first

Dr Amy Milton from Cambridge’s Department of Psychology relates how Requiem for a Dream, Hubert Selby’s bleak portrayal of drug addiction, motivated her to dedicate her academic career to finding treatments for addiction. Here she talks about this favourite book as part of ‘Novel Thoughts’, a series exploring the literary reading habits of eight Cambridge scientists. From illustrated

Is antimicrobial resistance (AMR) the greatest threat to human health? In this episode, we discuss how the misuse and overuse of antimicrobials in humans and agriculture have accelerated bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens’ ability to mutate and develop resistance against the treatments designed to curb and control them. We talked with molecular biologist Stephen Baker, virologist Ian

Sport has long been at the heart of Cambridge life. With the London Olympics starting this week and the new £16 million state-of-the-art Cambridge Sports Centre currently under construction, sport at Cambridge continues to be a cornerstone of life at this University - the Cambridge 'pulse'. This short film gives a snapshot of the vast range of sporting activity that takes place at the University

April 2016 saw the first performance of reconstructed 11th-Century ‘lost songs’ that hadn’t been heard in over 1,000 years - a performance made possible by the research of one of our lecturers (http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/first-performance-in-1000-years-lost-songs-from-the-middle-ages-are-brought-back-to-life-0) Two years on, a CD of this repertoire has just been released, and we are

FameLab UK is a communications competition designed to engage and entertain by breaking down science, technology and engineering concepts into three minute presentations. The Cambridge regional final took place at Cambridge Junction on 8 March 2016 as part of Cambridge Science Festival. The FameLab UK Grand Final will take place in The Greenwood Theatre in London on 25 April

Hear curator Jane Munro talk about the Museum's mission to refurbish and redisplay one of its most popular galleries, and learn more about three painters featured on its walls: Augustus John, William Nicholson and William Orpen.

Salt marshes fringe much of the world’s low-lying coasts. They act as a first line of defence against storm surge waves, reducing storm water levels and the run up of waves on landward sea defences. As a result, vulnerable shorelines and engineered coastal defences are at lower risk of suffering under the impact of climate change, for example through sea level rise and intense storms. Little is

More than 20,000 people came to witness the spectacular light show which brought the University of Cambridge's 800th anniversary celebrations to a close. For three evenings beginning on Saturday, January 16th, an array of colourful images brought iconic buildings such as Senate House and King's College Chapel to life. Designed by world-renowned light artist Ross Ashton, the show highlighted some

A computer network closely modelled on part of the human brain is enabling new insights into the way our brains process moving images - and explains some perplexing optical illusions. Find out more here: https://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/artificial-brain-reveals-why-we-cant-always-believe-our-eyes This research was supported by the Leverhulme Trust and the Isaac Newton Trust. Reference Rideaux,

Each December members of St John's College, University of Cambridge, gather to listen to ghost stories being read in the splendour of the Combination Room. The coal fires glow, the candles flicker and the thick silk curtains are drawn against the bitter cold of the dark winter night. In this video, viewers are able to catch a glimpse of this magical event as they listen to Professor David Frost

Doing #ALevels and thinking about your next step in #Education ? Rajiv shares #WhyMyCollege is @TrinityHallCambridge

This year’s Women’s Varsity Match squad has just been announced (see below). Captained by Alice Middleton (Lucy Cavendish) from fullback, the Cambridge women will be looking to back up last year's 52-0 victory with another strong performance at Twickenham. The 135th Varsity Match and 30th Women’s Varsity Match will be held on Thursday, December 8 at Twickenham - tickets via the club. More

Folic acid deficiency can cause severe health problems in offspring, including spina bifida, heart defects and placental abnormalities. A study out today reveals that a mutation in a gene necessary for the metabolism of folic acid not only impacts the immediate offspring but can also have detrimental health effects on the next several generations. The new research, which also sheds light on the

Karen Yu’s growing love of science as a young girl was galvanised by reading the novelisation of the Star Wars movies (Star Wars: From the Adventures of Luke Skywalker by George Lucas). Her desire to build her own fusion reactor eventually morphed into a PhD in industrial photonics, using lasers for nanoscale manufacturing (if not for lightsabers), at Cambridge’s Department of Engineering.

Italian-born contemporary printmaker Lino Mannocci discusses the exhibition 'Clouds and Myths: Monotypes by Lino Mannocci' (9 February - 9 May 2010) - a haunting collection of works exploring the world of myth and its resonance. In this podcast, Mannocci talks about his enduring fascinating with the theme of the Annunication, and takes us behind the scenes of the printmaking process.

Mel Giedroyc (Trinity 1990) returns to Trinity College's B3 Angel Court to chat with Matt Rees, first year history student, who now resides in the room overlooking Trinity Street in Cambridge, UK.

See Stormzy behind-the-scenes at Cambridge University with students during the launch of the Stormzy Scholarship. For more details on eligibility criteria, follow this link: https://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/stormzy-scholarship

Our society is more unequal than ever, as the top 1% control over 44% of the world’s wealth while 689 million people are living on less than $1.90 per day. In this episode, we asked our guests what the future of fairness, justice, and equality should look like, and how their research can help to bring about a fairer society. Alexa Hagerty and Natalie Jones shared how injustice can be thought of

Seventy years after Allied soldiers stormed the beaches of Normandy, Cambridge University's Churchill Archives Centre has released a short film (free to embed) commemorating the 'forgotten architect' of D-Day. Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay was part of General Eisenhower's inner circle during the months and years of top secret planning that led to Operation Overlord, launched on June 6, 1944. Ramsay

Today, the University of Cambridge is launching a campaign to promote zero tolerance of sexual misconduct. Called ‘Breaking the Silence – Cambridge speaks out against sexual misconduct’, the campaign highlights prevention, support and reporting for those who’ve been affected by sexual misconduct, all of which are available via www.breakingthesilence.cam.ac.uk. CUSU’s women’s officer

What can the naked mole rat teach us about living longer? It turns out – a lot! In this 3-part animated series by Dr Ewan St. John Smith, discover how the weird biology of these amazing creatures could give us insight into treating/preventing cancer and brain damage in humans.

Interviews are an important part of the selection procedure at Cambridge and we try to interview everyone with a realistic chance of being offered a place. Interviewers know you may be nervous and aren't trying to catch you out. They want to see how you work through problems and take on new ideas. Often there aren't right or wrong answers to the questions asked, and the way you arrive at an

James Deutsch directs the Africa Program of the New York based Wildlife Conservation Society, with 1,100 staff implementing conservation work in 20 African countries. James studied philosophy at Harvard and biological anthropology and zoology at Cambridge King's College before holding a research fellowship at Churchill College and a lectureship in conservation biology at Imperial College, London.

These tiny oil droplets may hold a key to a new mechanism that drives the development of shapes and forms in nature, a process known as morphogenesis. When the droplets are slowly frozen, they shift through a range of different shapes. This shape-shifting is driven by a wax-like layer that forms beneath the surface of the droplets, suggesting that complex morphogenesis may be controlled by the

Cambridge graduate Tim Hunkin, inventor of unique seaside amusement machines and much more, will be speaking at the Cambridge Science Festival on 16 March