Eavesdrop on Experts
Overhear researchers talk about what they do and why they do it. Hear them obsess, confess and profess - changing the world one experiment, one paper and one interview at a time. Listen in as seasoned eavesdropper Chris Hatzis follows reporters Dr Andi Horvath and Steve Grimwade on their meetings with magnificent minds. Made possible by the University of Melbourne.
1
Getting involved
The pandemic has changed student life rapidly – impacting on mental wellbeing. But our sense of belonging and connection can help protect our mental health.
26 min
2
AI and humans: Collaboration rather than domina...
When algorithms make important decisions, we also need to involve humans who understand the context, explains AI and ethics researcher Jeannie Paterson.
27 min
3
Eavesdrop on Ideas: Finding friendship in art a...
The COVID era has reinforced the vital nature of friendship, community and connection - not just to other humans but also nature, algorithms, animals and art. Friendship also influences our health and humanity.
31 min
4
How can we prevent Insect Armageddon?
Professor Phil Batterham discusses his work on insecticides; how they work and how we can develop more effective and sustainable pest control strategies, with a reduced environmental impact.
20 min
5
Eavesdrop on Ideas: Tipping points - is viral m...
In this episode, we explore how the art of viral marketing can influence science for good.
25 min
6
Is opera dead or can it redefine itself?
Caitlin Vincent, a lecturer in the creative industries, describes how we can interpret classical operas in a way that does not perpetuate harmful stereotypes or cultural appropriation.
31 min
7
Eavesdrop on Ideas: The Event Horizon - from im...
Einstein theorised a point in the universe where time, space and gravity bend. Almost 100 years later, we took a photo... a photo of something we weren’t even sure was there. Now it hangs in an art gallery. Is it really art? Come with us to edges of the universe - and back again to New York.
21 min
8
How to create Oscar-nominated visual effects
Special effects artist Genevieve Camilleri describes how her work makes movie monsters ‘real’ and her Best Visual Effects nomination for the 2021 Academy Awards.
18 min
9
The other side of happiness
Social psychologist Brock Bastian explains how life’s painful and difficult experiences play a very important role in producing happiness.
23 min
10
Mindfulness is everywhere, but what actually is...
Clinical psychologist Dr Nicholas Van Dam explains that despite it being associated with everything from eating to the army, mindfulness isn’t what many of us think it is.
32 min
11
Prevention and justice for sexual violence
Professor Bianca Fileborn is researching the different factors surrounding sexual violence – including place – and how we can better prevent it while providing new forms of justice for survivors.
33 min
12
The power of queer performance
Alyson Campbell will co-lead the Feral Queer Camp, hosting activities about what makes performance queer and how we might develop a network of queer thinkers.
27 min
13
What does our constitution say about freedom of...
Professor Adrienne Stone discusses the differences between the Australian and US constitutions on freedom of speech and why asserting a right to free speech doesn’t make it true.
27 min
14
If our animals could speak
Dr Laura Jean McKay, winner of the 2021 Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for literature, discusses her astonishing first novel – The Animals in That Country.
24 min
15
The music of politics and protest
Musicologist Dr Nick Tochka discusses his research into music in Europe and the Americas – particularly the politics of music-making since 1945.
28 min
16
The stuff of death and the death of stuff
Cultural anthropologist Dr Hannah Gould researches death and discarding – looking at spirituality and how COVID-19 is changing the way we deal with the dead.
27 min
17
The politics of hacking
Associate Professor Dunbar-Hester discusses the cultures and the communities of the digital era, with a focus on media and tech activists.
24 min
18
What COVID has taught us about the wildlife trade
Wildlife trade is the third largest illegal market in the world behind drugs and munitions – so the fact that COVID-19 may have emerged from this trade tells us more regulation is vital.
21 min
19
Everything is Country
Wiradjuri man and geographer Associate Professor Michael-Shawn Fletcher explores how belonging to Country embeds us within the world around us and reveals the obligation we have to care for it.
33 min
20
The science of coughing
Coughing is an important human defensive reflex - it keeps our airways clear - but there’s a big difference between a good cough and a bad cough.
16 min
21
What makes super-viral content so shareable?
Dr Brent Coker researches what makes social media content shareable. He reveals what psychological triggers evoke sharing motives, and how they are activated.
26 min
22
The algorithms of art
Professor Kate Smith-Miles studies how mathematics can help us trust algorithms, but her work unexpectedly created beautiful, mathematically-generated art.
19 min
23
The tiny world of peptides
Many commonly available cosmetic and health products contain peptides – but what actually are they and what do they do in the human body?
22 min
24
The brain benefits of music
Professor Sarah Wilson discusses music neuroscience and why no other species uses a complex musical system like we do.
28 min
25
New targets for epilepsy treatment
Associate Professor Chris Reid is developing new drugs for epilepsy, focussing on both genetics and small molecules, to treat more people with epilepsy.
16 min