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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

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

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

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

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

A ground-breaking imaging system to track malarial infection of blood cells in real time has been created by researchers at the University of Cambridge. Malaria is caused by Plasmodium falciparum parasites transmitted to humans through the bites of infected mosquitoes. The researchers have focused on a mysterious step in the life cycle of the parasite occurring inside the infected human's

Dr Juliet Foster’s ongoing fascination with the portrayal of mental illness in literature was triggered by reading The Madness of a Seduced Woman by Susan Fromberg Schaeffer. Today she carries out research in Cambridge’s Department of Psychology. Here she talks about this favourite book as part of ‘Novel Thoughts’, a series exploring the literary reading habits of eight Cambridge

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

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

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