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Scientists discover how brains beat fear
Season 1
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Professor of neuroscience at University College London, Sonja Hofer, explains how researchers made the fascinating discovery, with hopes it can one day support PTSD and anxiety treatments.
We head back to Paris for the AI Action Summit, with Andrew Strait, associate director at the Ada Lovelace Institute and former ethics researcher at Google’s DeepMind AI project.
Why the moon has been placed on a heritage protection watchlist, with John Darlington, director of projects at the World Monuments Fund.
Also in this episode:
- Has Earth’s inner core changed shape?
- Female downhill mountain-bikers at ‘significantly greater risk of injury’
- When is the ‘most affordable’ iPhone SE 4 release date? Plus, new date for Apple’s AI iOS 18.4 beta testing
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Babies can sense pain before they can understand it
10:11||Season 1That’s according to neuroscientists at UCL, UCLH and King's College London, who investigated how different types of pain processing develop very early on, by scanning the brains of premature babies two weeks after birth.Tech & Science Daily spoke to the lead author of the breakthrough study, Lorenzo Fabrizi, professor in developmental system neuroscience at UCL.We were told their research can help support vulnerable babies with paediatric care, tailored pain management, and contribute to the planning of medical interventions.US President Donald Trump has extended the impending US TikTok ban for a third time.The new deadline is September 17th, pushing the decision back another 90 days.Plus, in a world-first discovery, researchers say that Australia’s nocturnal Bogong Moth - whose population is in decline - uses constellations of stars and the Milky Way to navigate hundreds of kilometres across the country during its annual migration.Also in this episode:-Be careful with heading your football; it can subtly alter the brain, regardless of whether there is a concussion or not.-The UK's amber heat health warning, as London experiences its first "tropical night" forecast of the year.-ESA's driverless spacecraft creates 'fake' solar eclipse in space.-Ozzy Osbourne's iced tea cans, which include his DNA, for a price of £365 a piece.Elon Musk's Starship rocket erupts in a ball of flames
08:06||Season 1A SpaceX rocket exploded into a huge fireball when getting ready for a flight test. The disastrous explosion of Elon Musk’s Starship 36 happened on Wednesday evening at Starbase in Texas; thankfully, no one was hurt. The Chartered Trading Standards Institute has raised concerns about the ‘Wild West’ of fat injections, Brazilian butt lifts (BBLs), botox and fillers, which they say are being offered by untrained people in places such as public toilets.Kerry Nicol from the CTSI joins us to explain more.Plus, Iran’s largest crypto exchange Nobitex has been hacked.Also in this episode:-Doctors warn that patients who film their treatment for TikTok or Instagram are endangering themselves and others.-Toxic air will claim 30,000 lives this year due to pollution.-Apple has a new short film - Big Man - which was shot on an iPhone 16 Pro and features Stormzy.-Captain Cook’s ship HMS Endeavour, has been discovered off the US coast, 250 years after the vessel sank.Hexagon's AEON humanoid robot for industry is here...
08:44||Season 1With the help of Nvidia, Hexagon, a leading global robotics, AI, automation and measurement technology company, has revealed its humanoid robot, AEON.The humanoid has been designed to support the automotive, aerospace, transportation, and warehousing industries, safely without direct supervision.The Tower of London and Central Park are part of five sites from across the globe to join a Cultivating Resilience programme.Tech & Science Daily spoke to Meredith Wiggins, senior director of Climate Adaptation at the World Monuments Fund.As part of the programme, the sites will receive climate modelling, planning resources and technical support to tackle climate-related threats, such as flooding, drought, biodiversity loss, and extreme weather.The Natural History Museum’s first immersive exhibition, Our Story with David Attenborough, opens on June 19Also in this episode:-Moon dust is significantly less toxic than city pollution, research suggests-Pamela Anderson says AI and photo filters lead to people becoming ‘boring-looking’-A young tarantula can run just as fast after losing two of its legsHow safe is flying in 2025, and will climate change impact air travel?
16:53||Season 1The Air India flight to London Gatwick carrying 242 people, which crashed shortly after takeoff on June 12, marked the latest aviation disaster of 2025.We’re still waiting for the investigation into the cause, which is expected to take some time.With aviation disasters seemingly on the rise this year, the safety of air travel has come under increasing scrutiny, alongside questions around climate change and its relationship with air travel safety.Joining us to explain how safe air travel currently is and the future of aerodynamics in the face of rising global temperatures is Dr Guy Gratton, associate professor of Aviation and the Environment at Cranfield University.Dr Gratton has nearly 40 years of aviation experience, including a PhD and three commercial pilot licenses.Blaise Metreweli appointed first female MI6 chief
08:04||Season 1Blaise Metreweli will take over from Sir Richard Moore as “C”.To walk us through her role, why she got the job, and how important her job is in current times, we’re joined by the Standard’s political editor, Nicholas Cecil.The UK prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, said Blaise joins at a time when Britain is facing “unprecedented threats”Also in this episode:Signing up for clinical trials to be a new feature on NHS AppBlood test for early signs of pancreatic cancer trialled by UK doctorsNew GPS tracking of Australian birds reveals a remarkable 38-hour journeyYoung homeowners turn to TikTok for design inspoLTW 2025: The rise of the AI super agent...
10:26||Season 1London Tech Week has wrapped for 2025.For a look at this year’s highlights, we’re joined by The Standard’s technology editor, Alex Pell, who not only attended the event but also joined multiple panels across the week.Alex told us about why he thinks we need to use AI to become more than human ("bionic if you will”), plus, he explains the rise of the artificial intelligence super agents.UK officials are being deployed to India to support the investigation into the Air India Crash, the Air Accidents Investigation Branch has said.The Boeing 787 Dreamliner struck a medical college moments after takeoff on Thursday in the Indian city of Ahmedabad, killing 241 people on board.Blood cancer patients in England and Wales will be among the first in the world to have access to a new “Trojan horse” treatment.Blenrep has been approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence for NHS use.Also in this episode:-Tesla sues former Optimus humanoid robotics engineer over alleged trade secret theft-A 'Google Maps for the sea' that’s aiming to help cut the shipping industry’s CO2 emissions-Flo Health respond to claims that women face “real and frightening privacy and safety risks” when using period tracker apps-US caregivers are dressing up as bears to care for a bear cubLondon Gatwick-bound flight crashes in India
08:57||Season 1An Air India plane bound for London Gatwick has crashed, with 53 Britons on board.UK consumers urged not to buy ‘unsafe’ American sweets amid cancer concerns.And from London Tech Week the COO of Altilium, Dr Christian Marstona, explains the critical role minerals play in the clean energy transition.Altilium is recycling EV batteries and creating a circular economy for critical minerals in the UK.Also in this episode:-ESA release world-first views of the Sun's poles-Fan of a T.Rex? Well... a new species of dinosaur could rewrite its history-World-famous movie props are going up for auction in JulyWomen face ‘frightening privacy and safety risks’ from period tracker apps
09:12||Season 1Dr Stefanie Felsberger from Cambridge’s Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy, alongside her team at the University of Cambridge, are calling for better regulation in FemTech.They believe women face “real and frightening privacy and safety risks” when using period tracker apps.Flo Health respond to their claims on this episode of Tech & Science Daily.Humpback whales could be secretly trying to talk to humans by creating circular bubbles in water during friendly interactions.And why a TV ad for the chocolate bar Twix has been banned.Also in this episode:-History-making week for Nintendo: More than 3.5 million of the Switch 2 consoles have been sold so far.-Robotic surgeries are set to soar under NHS plans.-Tesla boss Elon Musk says he ‘went too far’ in posts against Trump.WWDC 2025: Apple's latest iPhone offerings, with GadgetsBoy
10:25||Season 1GadgetsBoy aka Tomi Adebayo, joins us from Apple Park in California to run us through Apple's exciting updates announced in their WWDC 2025 opening keynote, such as a new software design crafted with ‘liquid glass’, iOS operating system name changes, and new Apple Intelligence features.Rachel Reeves has committed £16.7 billion to nuclear power projects as the country shifts away from fossil fuels.The government have signed off £14.2 billion of investment towards the build of the new Sizewell C nuclear plant in Suffolk.Doctors in the UK are warning of the symptoms of a newly reported Covid strain - the Nimbus variant.Also in this episode:-Wildlife declining in UK woods despite more tree cover, report finds-Eurostar announces trains from London to Germany and Switzerland dubbed 'golden age for international sustainable travel'-TikTok grandmother Norma, 91, dies as legion of fans pay tribute to 'nation's Nana'