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A Question of Science

A Question of Science

Written by: The Francis Crick Institute
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Science you can trust. Questions that matter.

Join Professor Brian Cox and a panel of the world’s top scientists and experts as they tackle your questions about some of the biggest science challenges facing society today.

Can we cure cancer? How do you separate nutrition fact from fiction? What do climate change and the march of AI mean for our future? Could we live forever? Each episode is recorded in front of a live audience and it’s their questions that drive the debate.

Hear from the experts who actually know what they’re talking about, including Adam Rutherford, Helen Sharman, George Monbiot, Giles Yeo, Jeanette Winterson, Rory Cellan-Jones, Paul Nurse, Kevin Fong and You, Me and the Big C’s Lauren Mahon.

With a focus on accuracy, openness, and debate, A Question of Science brings you the latest on what we know, what we don’t, and where science might take us next.

A BBC Studios production for the Francis Crick Institute, an independent charity and world-leading research lab.

Hygiene & Healthy Living Physical Illness & Disease Science
Episodes
  • Introducing.... More Questions of Science

    Introducing.... More Questions of Science
    Dec 10 2025

    Introducing More Questions of Science – bite-size episodes where we revisit some of the biggest ideas from the first 12 episodes of the series and take the conversation even further.

    Professor Brian Cox will be in his home studio, catching up with some of the expert panellists from earlier in the series. Together, they’ll tackle your follow-up questions, explore new angles and go deeper into the topics that sparked your curiosity.

    And because science never stops, we’ll also bring you the latest breakthroughs, discoveries and developments.

    Send your follow up questions on cancer, fertility, ageing, ancient DNA, climate change and nutrition to the team: aquestionofscience@bbc.co.uk

    More Questions of Science arrives on YouTube and podcast platforms in early 2026.

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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    2 mins
  • Can We Build A Human?

    Can We Build A Human?
    Dec 3 2025

    Professor Brian Cox and our expert panel explore the frontier of human bioengineering and building, replacing, and enhancing our bodies.

    Will we ever have bionic brains and cloned humans? Is there a danger of science fiction getting too close for comfort?

    From mechanical implants to lab-grown organs to whether humans could evolve to live in space, the discussion delves into what’s possible today and where science might take us next.

    Panellists

    • Mark Pollock – Explorer, motivational speaker and Chairman of Collaborative Cures
    • George Malliaras – Prince Philip Professor of Technology, University of Cambridge
    • Madeline Lancaster – Group Leader, Medical Research Council (MRC) Laboratory of Molecular Biology
    • Robin Lovell-Badge – Group Leader, Stem Cell Biology and Developmental Genetics Laboratory, Francis Crick Institute

    Watch the video version of this episode and read a transcript on our website: www.crick.ac.uk/podcast/buildahuman

    A BBC Studios Production for the Francis Crick Institute.

    Music by John Biddle

    © BBC Studios / Francis Crick Institute 2025

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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    38 mins
  • What is consciousness?

    What is consciousness?
    Nov 26 2025

    Professor Brian Cox and an expert panel explore the elusive science of consciousness – what it is, how it arises, whether it can be observed in the brain, and the most compelling theories explaining it.

    In a deep, often mind-bending discussion, the panel tackles the many ways of interpreting consciousness itself, and how fields like psychophysics can be used to quantify imagination and perception.

    With questions from the audience, the conversation delves into hallucinations and reality, how memory helps to build identity, and whether AI could ever be conscious too.

    Panellists

    • Anil Seth – Professor of Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience, University of Sussex
    • Katharina Schmack – Consultant Psychiatrist and Group Leader, Neural Circuits and Immunity in Psychosis Laboratory, Francis Crick Institute
    • Steve Fleming – Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience, UCL
    • Alex O’Connor – Host of ‘Within Reason’ podcast

    Watch the video version of this episode and read a transcript on our website: www.crick.ac.uk/podcast/consciousness

    A BBC Studios Production for the Francis Crick Institute.

    Music by John Biddle

    © BBC Studios / Francis Crick Institute 2025

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
    Show More Show Less
    54 mins
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