Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea

Epizode

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  Extra: Did Life Start Twice On Earth? 22.09.2026 15min

  Guest: Bill Martin - Evolutionary Biologist and Head of the Institute of Molecular Evolution at Heinrich Heine University in Düsseldorf 
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  Could ozempic cure addiction? 20.09.2026 36min

  Guests: Philip Smyth, Broadcaster and Science Communicator Dr. Laura Hayes, Dublin Institute of Advanced Studies Prof. Paul Kenny, Nash Family Professor of Neuroscience and Director of The Friedman Brain Institute in the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City 
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  Extra: Behind The Scenes of The Lost Bridge 15.09.2026 24min

  Presenter Jonathan McCrea and Producer Aidan McKelvey discuss the making of the Futureproof documentary ‘The Lost Bridge’.
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  Futureproof Special: The Lost Bridge 13.09.2026 43min

  Guests:Genevieve Von Petzinger, Paleoanthropologist and rock art researcher and Project Director of the LIACARA ProjectDr. George Nash, Associate Professor in the Department of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology at the University of LiverpoolDr. Barbara Oosterwijk, Postdoctoral Researcher at University of ExeterShane Diffily, National Treasurer Irish Cave Rescue Organisation
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  Gold: What is time? 10.09.2026 28min

  We conventionally think of time as something simple and fundamental that flows uniformly, independently from everything else, from the past to the future, measured by clocks and watches.In the course of time, the events of the universe succeed each other in an orderly way: pasts, presents, futures.The past is fixed, the future open... And yet, all of this has turned out to be false.Carlo Rovelli is a Theoretical Physicist and author of ‘The Order of Time’ and joins Jonathan to discuss.First aired 21/7/2018
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  Extra: Decoding Birdsong 08.09.2026 14min

  Guest: Julie Elie, Associate Project Scientist in the Department of Neuroscience at University of California, Berkeley.
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  Jim Al-Khalili on time and time travel 06.09.2026 39min

  Guests:Jim Al Khalili, Theoretical Physicist, Host of BBC’s ‘The Life Scientific’ and author of ‘On Time: The Physics That Makes the Universe Tick‘Dr. Ruth Freeman from Research IrelandMatthew Campbell, Professor of Genetics in Trinity College Dublin
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  Extra: The Genetics of Wrongdoing 01.09.2026 18min

  Guest: Kathryn Paige Harden, Professor of Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin and author of ‘Original Sin: The Genetics of Wrongdoing, the Problem of Blame and the Future of Forgiveness’
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  Did we find evidence of life on Mars in the 1970’s? 30.08.2026 42min

  Guests:Steven A. Benner, Chemist, Astrobiologist and author of ‘Meet the Neighbors: Life on Mars and How to Find It’Jessamyn Fairfield from the University of GalwayFergus McAuliffe, Head of Research Engagement and Impact Trinity College Dublin
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  Extra: Growing Old in Ireland - 20 Years of the TILDA Study 25.08.2026 19min

  Guest: Rose Anne Kenny, Regis Professor of Medicine at Trinity College Dublin and Founding Principal Investigator of The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA)
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  How many insects are there? 23.08.2026 37min

  Guests:Alex Smith, Associate Professor in the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Guelph, Ontario, CanadaDr Ruth Freeman from Science Foundation IrelandMatthew Campbell from TCD
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  Extra: The Irish scientists tackling organ transplant rejection 18.08.2026 17min

  Guest: Professor Róisín Dolan, Chief Investigator with the Sentinel Study Ireland at St. Vincent's University Hospital
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  The Greenland shark discovered on Ireland’s coast 16.08.2026 28min

  Guests:Emilie De Loose, Project Officer of the Atlantic Whale Deal in the Irish Whale and Dolphin GroupJohn Regan from Maynooth UniversityLaura Hayes, DIAS
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  Gold: Neil DeGrasse Tyson - A Brief Welcome to the Universe 11.08.2026 36min

  Science Communicator extraordinaire Neil deGrasse Tyson joined Jonathan in 2021 to discuss his book ‘A Brief Welcome to the Universe: A Pocket-Sized Tour’, and how we communicate science to the public.
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  Observing the Solar Eclipse 09.08.2026 46min

  Guests:Peter Gallagher, Director of Dunsink Observatory at the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies and an Adjunct Professor at Trinity College DublinJohn Regan from Maynooth UniversityLaura Hayes, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS)If you would like to listen to Jonathan’s experience of flying into the path of totality of the solar eclipse in 2015, here’s the link:https://soundcloud.com/whipsmart-media/path-of-totality-1
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  Gold: How does the brain conjure consciousness? 04.08.2026 21min

  For centuries, philosophers have theorised about the mind-body question. Is the mind something separate from the body? If so what does that mean?So, how does the brain conjure consciousness?In this interview from 2021, Jonathan speaks with Anil Seth, Professor of Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience at the University of Sussex, Editor-in-Chief of Neuroscience of Consciousness and author of ‘Being You: A New Science of Consciousness’.
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  Could AI be conscious? 02.08.2026 1h

  Guests:Charlotte Blease, Philosopher at Uppsala University and author of ‘Dr Bot: Why Doctors Can Fail Us – and How AI Could Save Lives’Kevin Mitchell, Associate Professor of Genetics and Neuroscience at Trinity College Dublin and author of ‘Free Agents – How Evolution Gave Us Free Will’Alan Smeaton, Professor of Computing at DCUMatthew Campbell from TCDLaura Hayes, DIAS
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  Extra: Could base editing lead to designer babies? 28.07.2026 13min

  Guest: Oliver Bower, Founding Scientist at ‘Preventive’
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  The fish species with no males 26.07.2026 41min

  Guests:Ed Ricemeyer, Senior Bioinformatician and Chair of Animal Systems Genomics at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität MünchenJessamyn Fairfield from the University of GalwayShane Bergin, Physicist & Assistant Professor in Science Education at UCD
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  Extra: ET Code of Conduct 21.07.2026 18min

  Guest: Professor Michael Garrett, Astrophysicist at the University of Manchester and Chair of the International Academy of Astronautics’ SETI Committee