Fuzzy Logic Science Show

Chickens, Bettongs and Chemical Bonds

On this episode of Fuzzy Logic, Jarrod and Broderick discuss chickens that can count, how to generate those "aha" moments, an expert poker playing computer and a new chemical bond.  This episode also features an interview by Ian with Dr Kate Grarock, senior ecologist at Mulligans Flat Woodland Sanctuary, one of Canberra's best kept secrets.

Transform your brain

Imagine you suffered depression or a condition such as Asperger's syndrome. Would you undertake treatment that would change your brain? It's a vexed question when we're talking about the the fundamentals of your self.
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is a technique that is evolving for these and other disorders.

Associate Professor Peter Enticott is from  the Cognitive Neuroscience Unit at Deakin University. Fantasy novellist  Katie also joins us, to tell the story from an asperger's point of view.

Brought to you by Ian, Eleanor, Rod, and a special guest appearance by Jimi Hendrix.

Rosetta, bionic eye, aspergers, and cannabis

1.5 billion is a lot for a space mission. Is it worth it? Today we update on the Rosetta probe onto comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. In an update after the show, we learn that the Philae's first bounce lasted nearly 2 hours.
 
Closer to Earth, Associate Professor Nick Barnes from NICTA talks to us about the bionic eye.

We probe into aspergers, what is, and what does it mean. In December, we'll be interviewing Dr Peter Enticott about TMS treatments for aspergers.

And then we look at medicinal uses of cannabis, a contentious subject covered in a recent Ask Fuzzy column. (Send your questions to AskFuzzy at Zoho.com)

Brought to you by Ian and Rod

Hot chocolate and dinosaur sex

We all love a bit of chocolate, but what do we make of research on its health benefits?
In our adults-only sealed section we talk about dinosaur private parts described in John Pickrell's book Flying Dinosaurs.  We interviewed John recently on Fuzzy.

We talk to the Federal Member for Wills, Kelvin Thomson, who is one of the few politcians prepared to raise the issue of population growth. Why should we care?

Brought to you by Ian and Rod.

Fuzzy Logic is proudly sponsored by Australian Science Communicators. Hurrah!

Flying Dinsoaurs

What's that creature perched in the tree? Perhaps it's a dinosaur!
You might think that a topic as old as dinosaurs was well settled, but in recent years the thinking on dinosaurs had changed radically.

Today's guests on Fuzzy Logic (or perhaps that should be Feathered Logic) is John Pickrell, editor of Australian Geographic, and author of the new book Flying Dinosaurs, and Phil Hore from the National Dinosaur Museum in Canberra.

Interview by Rod 

Feelings On Fuzzy

This week on Fuzzy Ian, Joe, Hannah and Broderick talk about science with all the emotion attached.  Ian talks about his work with Alzheimers Australia and the emotion behind the science of dementia, while Joe brings in some emotion to the climate change debate.  Stay tuned to the end to hear a clip from an awesome new podcast, Dissecting Love.

Future Cop

Is there a future of crime? Can we believe shows like CSI?

Join four top flight experts to discuss how science, technology, and social trends will affect our ability to prevent and solve crime.

But what do we gain, and what do we lose in our drive to safer society?

A National Science Week public forum with

Dr Bruce McCabe author Skinjob, thinker and futurist. 
Associate Professor Jeffrey Looi Deputy Head & Consultant Neuropsychiatrist ANU Medical School
Fiona Wilkes PhD candidate studying the link between brain structure and function 
Professor James Robertson Director, National Centre Forensics Studies

Hosted by Rod.

You'll find links to the videos referred to by Bruce McCabe on our Facebook

Are you conscious?

You might be conscious now, but were you this morning? Is your cat conscious?
Today on Fuzzy, we explore consciousness with neurscientists Prof Jeff Looi and Fiona Wilkes.

Interview by Rod

Find out more about Bruce McCabe's book Skinjob we talked about today.  Bruce will be a guest panellist at Future Cop, Sat 16 August.

3.5 Billion Years in 60 MInutes

We start today's Fuzzy with the perenial question, 'what is life', but run straight into trouble when we decide there is no rigorous way to define the term.  It's a slippery concept, but full of fascinating alleyways, from Darwin to Mars.

Get your skates on if you want to keep up on this wild ride through the history of life with two leading authorities on the topic.
Dr Jochen Brocks and Dr Charley Lineweaver are Associate Professors at the ANU Research School of Earth Sciences.

Interview by Rod

Don't miss Future Cop on Sat 16 Aug

Snail Sex

We'd say, join Fuzzy today for some hot snail action, but these little creatures go it alone. New Zealand Mud Snails are yet another pest invader in Australia, and lack of sex - or more correctly - asexual reproduction, which would usually be a disadvantage for a species in a new environment.

Our guest is PhD student Adrian Dusting from the University of Canberra is studying their genetic diversity. In a wide ranging conversation, we talk about the snail, and how it survives a journey down the gut of a trout, about sex and evolution, and pest species across the planet.

Interview By Rod.

And if you're in Canberra on Sat 16 August, don't miss Future Cop where Fuzzy Logic appears with top flight guests during National Science Week.