Futureproof with Jonathan McCrea
Episodes
Extra: Can we cure nightmares?
16 Jun 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Michelle Carr, Director of the Dream Engineering Laboratory at Montreal's Centre for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine and author of ‘Into ...
Before Trees - What Were ‘Prototaxites’?
14 Jun 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr. Corentin Loron, Paleobiologist in Trinity College DublinDr. Susan Kelleher, Associate Professor of Chemistry in DCUShane Bergin, Physicist ...
Extra: Was there human sacrifice in ancient Rome?
09 Jun 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Frederic Auth, Doctoral Researcher at Goethe-Universität Frankfurt
How does sperm work in outer space?
07 Jun 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Hannah Lyons, Reproduction Researcher in Adelaide UniversityMatthew Campbell from Trinity College DublinDr Ruth Freeman from Research Ireland
Extra: How microbes tackle pollution
02 Jun 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Ludmilla Aristilde, Environmental Engineering Professor at Northwestern University
The Chimpanzee War in Uganda
31 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:John Mitani, Primatologist at the University of Michigan and Co-Founder of the Ngogo Chimpanzee ProjectLaura Hayes, Dublin Institute for Advanc...
Extra: New Prostate Cancer Trials in Ireland
26 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Paul Kelly, Medical Director of the UPMC Cancer Network in Ireland
Learning while you sleep!
24 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Karen Konkoly, Dream Scientist at the University of CambridgeDr Ruth Freeman of Research IrelandProfessor Annie Curtis of the RCSI
Extra: Does science back up weird skincare trends?
19 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Xinyi “Beibei” Du-Harpur, NIHR Academic Clinical Lecturer at St John’s Institute of Dermatology and King’s College London
Early flavour memories may shape picky eaters
17 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Professor Nadja Reissland of Science Foundation IrelandDr Ruth Freeman of Science Foundation IrelandDr Fergus McAuliffe of Trinity College Dubl...
Extra: Bodyoids
12 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Hank Greely, Professor of Law and Expert in Bioethics at Stanford University
What is ‘Forensic Botany’?
10 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Christopher Hardy, Forensic Botanist and Biology Professor at Millersville UniversityLaura Hayes, Dublin Institute for Advanced StudiesTara Shi...
Extra: The Power of Plankton
05 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Vincent Doumeizel, Senior Adviser on the oceans to the United Nations Global Compact and author of ‘The Power of Plankton: How Plankton Made ...
The Smell of the Past
03 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr. Barbara Huber, Archaeochemist at the at the University of Tubingen in GermanyJessamyn Fairfield from NUI GalwayJohn Regan from Maynooth Uni...
Extra: AI Improving Medicine
28 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Charlotte Blease, Associate Professor in the Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala University, Sweden and Author of ‘Dr Bot: W...
Building a Warp Drive
26 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr. Katy Clough, Astrophysicist at Queen Mary University of LondonAnnie Curtis Body Research Lecturer in RCSIShane Bergin, Physicist & Assi...
Extra: How apples are engineered
21 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Kate Evans, Professor in the Department of Horticulture at Washington State University
Will AI replace scientists?
19 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Jeff Clune, CIFAR AI chair at the Victor Institute and Professor of Computer Science at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada...
Extra: Why can’t we figure out static electricity?
14 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Scott Waitukaitis, Assistant Professor at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria in Klosterneuburg
The Dawn of Writing
12 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Genevieve Von Petzinger, Paleoanthropologist and Rock Art Researcher and Project Director of the LIAACAR Project (The Living, Intelligent Archi...
Extra: Why Are We Going Back To The Moon?
07 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dallas Campbell, BBC Space Presenter and author of ‘Space Journal: The Art and Science of Cosmic Exploration’
Building a Robotic Oesophagus
05 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Eoin O'Cearbhaill, Associate Professor in Biomedical Engineering at University College DublinDr Shane Bergin, Physicist at UCDDr Lara Dungan...
Why should we avoid creating contrails?
29 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Jessie Smith, Research Associate in Sustainable Aviation at the Department of Engineering at the University of CambridgeDr Fergus McAuliffe,...
Extra: Movies reconstructed from mouse brain activity
24 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Joel Bauer, Research Fellow at the Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour at UCL
What happens during a hallucination?
22 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Anna Georgiades, Lecturer in Early Intervention in Psychosis at King's College LondonDr Ruth FreemanDr John Regan
Extra: The Origins of Our Musical Ability
17 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Ani Patel, Tufts University, Massachusetts
How The Brain Can Recover Forgotten Memories
15 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Benjamin J. Griffiths, University of NottinghamDr Ruth Freeman, Research IrelandDr Tara Shine, Environmental Scientist
Extra: Why animals see the world at different speeds
10 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Kevin Healy, Lecturer in Zoology at the University of Galway
What you don’t know about respiration
08 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:New York Times bestselling author and Science Journalist James NestorDr Ruth FreemanDr Lara Dungan
Extra: What influences your willingness to be helpful towards strangers?
03 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Todd Vogel, Research Fellow in Psychology at the University of Birmingham
Clothes with health tracking technology
01 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Professor Steve Beeby, Chair in Emerging Technologies and Director of the Centre for Flexible Electronics and E-Textiles at the University of S...
Extra: What drives the power of our tides and waves?
24 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Prof Iris Möller, Coastal Geomorphologist and Chair of the Geography Department at Trinity College Dublin
Predicting Scorpion Strikes
22 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Michel Dugon, Assistant Professor in Zoology and Principal Investigator of the Venom Systems Lab at the University of GalwayDr Jessamyn Fair...
Extra: Does the Earth’s core hide vast hydrogen reservoirs and can it explain why it wont stop raining?
17 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest:With Prof Jon Wade, Associate Professor of Planetary Materials, Dept. of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford
Making Life with Artificial Biological Intelligence
15 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests: Dr Shelley Brady, Insight Research Ireland Centre for Data Analytics at DCUDr Shane Bergin, physicist at University College Dublin Adrian...
Extra: Solar Maximum and the Northern lights explained
10 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest:Dr Alexandra Ruth Fogg, Postdoctoral Fellow in Astronomy and Astrophysics at the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies
What is Aphantasia? Why some brains can’t visualize
08 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests: Dr Lara Dungan, immunologist, and Dr Shane Bergin, physicist at University College Dublin Prof Adam Zeman, Honorary Fellow at the Centre for C...
Extra: What Is Childhood Dementia?
03 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Prof Matthew Campbell, Head of the Genetics Department and Chair of Neurovascular Genetics at Trinity College Dublin
Building a womb lining in the lab
01 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests: Dr Susan Kelleher, School of Chemical Sciences at DCUDr Shane Bergin, physicist at University College DublinDr Peter Rugg-Gunn, group leader a...
Extra: Turning muscle signals into speech
27 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Professor Luigi Occhipinti, Research Professor of Smart Electronics, Biosystems and AI, at Cambridge University
Why some wounds won’t heal
25 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Professor Kimberly Kline, Professor in Microbiology and Molecular Medicine at The University of Geneva and Visiting Scholar at Nanyang Technolo...
Extra: What if stopping Alzheimer’s means targeting one gene?
20 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Dylan Williams, Principal Research Fellow in Molecular and Genetic Epidemiology at UCL
Tackling Space Debris
18 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Penelope Wozniakiewicz, Senior Lecturer in Space Science at the University of KentDr Shane BerginDr John Regan
Extra: What exactly is DNA?
13 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Kevin Mitchell, Associate Professor of Genetics and Neuroscience at Trinity College Dublin
How blood vessels boost lab-grown mini-brains
11 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Mihai Lomora, Scientist with CÚRAM, the Research Ireland Centre for Medical Devices based at the University of GalwayDr Jessamyn Fairfield ...
Extra: Earth’s Early Wildfires
06 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Clayton Magill, Associate Professor of Biogeochemistry at Heriot-Watt University in Scotland
The Surprising Flaws of Evolution
04 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Dr Andy Dobson, author of ‘Flaws of Nature: The Limits and Liabilities of Natural Selection’
Sustaining human life on the Moon and Mars
04 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Professor Matthew Gilliham, Director of the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Plants for Space, at the University of Adelaide
Extra: CAR T-Cell Therapy (Best of)
30 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Larry Bacon, Consultant Haematologist from St James’s HospitalDr Nicola Gardiner, Chief Medical Scientist at the Cryobiology Laboratory St...
Best of Futureproof: Creating Dark Matter, Curing Addiction
28 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr John Regan, Maynooth UniversityYale Neuroscientist Vaughn Steele
Extra: Obtaining Fingerprints from Ammunition (Best of)
23 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Colm McKeever, Assistant Lecturer and Researcher in Analytical Chemistry, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Biotechnology, at TUS
Best of Futureproof: Mirror Life & The Science of Embalming
21 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Kate Adamala, Associate Professor of Genetics, Cell Biology, and Development at the University of MinnesotaGlyn Tallon, Founder of Tallon Mortu...
Extra: Is butt breathing achievable?
16 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Prof John Laffey, Professor of Anaesthesia Intensive Care Medicine at the School of Medicine of the University of Galway and a Consultant in An...
The winter hibernation gene in animals
13 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Professor Tyler Stevenson, Head of Physiology, Ageing & Welfare at the University of GlasgowDr Ruth Freeman of Research IrelandDr Fergus Mc...
Extra: Vitamin D is linked to BMI?
09 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Prof Lena Zgaga, Professor in Epidemiology at the Department of Public Health and Primary Care at the School of Health in Trinity
Can we witness stars form planets?
06 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Emma Whelan, Department of Experimental Physics, Maynooth UniversityDr Tara Shine, Change by DegreesDr Ruth Freeman, Research Ireland
Extra: How we exploit artificial intelligence
02 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Taha Yasseri, Director of the Joint Centre for Sociology of Humans and Machines at Trinity College Dublin
Is the human mind the next frontier in warfare?
01 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Malcolm Dando, Emeritus Professor at the School of Social Sciences at the University of BradfordDr Shelley Brady of DCUDr Shane Bergin of UCD
Extra: The one thing you need to know about electricity
25 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Marcus Chown, Science Writer and author of ‘The One Thing You Need to Know’
Treatment-resistant depression
22 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Professor Valerie Voon, Professor of Neuropsychiatry and Neuromodulation at the University of CambridgeDr Jessamyn Fairfield of the School of N...
Extra: The Age of Rock
18 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Anjana Khatwa, earth scientist and author of ‘The Whispers of Rock – Stories from the Earth'
Creating 'Mirror Life'
16 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Kate Adamala, Associate Professor of Genetics, Cell Biology, and Development at the University of MinnesotaImmunologist Dr Lara DunganDr John R...
Extra: How chimps rationally revise their beliefs & face blindness
11 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Emily Sanford, Postdoctoral Researcher in Psychology at the University of California BerkeleyFiona Newell, Professor of Experimental Psychol...
Recovering Lost Memories
09 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Prof Jane Aspell, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience and Head of the Self and Body Lab at Anglia Ruskin UniversityDr Ruth Freeman of Research ...
Extra: How Close Are We To Lab-Grown Teeth?
04 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Ana Angelova Volponi of King’s College London
Unusual Metamorphoses
02 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Author Oren HarmanShane Bergin & Susan Kelleher
Extra: The Origin of Dark Energy
28 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Prof Kate Maguire, Professor In Astrophysics at Trinity College Dublin
Recovering fingerprints from ammunition for forensics
26 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Colm McKeever, Assistant Lecturer and Researcher in Analytical Chemistry, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Biotechnology, at TUSDr ...
Extra: How to verify supplement quality
21 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Professor John Nolan
Why do pregnant women get morning sickness?
19 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Professor Molly Fox of UCLALaura HayesShane Bergin
Extra: The Future of Solar Energy
14 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Paul Deane, Clean Energy Futures Lecturer at UCC
The Harms of Over-Diagnosis
12 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Neurologist Dr Suzanne O'SullivanShelley Brady, DCUShane Bergin, UCD
Extra: Huntington’s disease slowed with gene therapy
07 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Lauren Byrne, Principal Investigator at the Huntington’s Disease Centre at UCL
Rebuilding Our Body With Regenerative Medicine
05 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Mary Roach, Science AuthorDr Laura Hayes, DIASDr Jessamyn Fairfield, University of Galway
Extra: Making the world's smallest violin
30 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Prof Kelly Morrison, Professor of Experimental Physics at Loughborough University
The creation of artificial cartilage
28 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Prof Oren A. Scherman, Professor of Supramolecular & Polymer Chemistry, and Director of the Melville Laboratory for Polymer Synthesis at th...
Extra: Dinosaur eggs directly dated for the first time
23 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Professor Maria McNamara, Professor of Palaeontology at University College Cork
"Clearest sign" of life on Mars
21 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Professor Sanjeev Gupta, Professor of Earth Science at Imperial College LondonDr Susan Kelleher of DCUDr Shane Bergin of UCD
Extra: Heart attacks may be triggered by infections
16 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Prof Claudia Monaco, Professor of Cardiovascular Inflammation at the University of Oxford
Dublin head scanner is 'breakthrough' in brain research
14 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Prof Redmond O'Connell, Professor in Decision Neuroscience at Trinity College DublinDr Ruth Freeman of Research IrelandDr Shane Bergin of UCD
Extra: Misophonia Rehabilitation
09 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Olwyn Morris, Audiologist and clinic owner of Medico Audiology
How Humans Came to Walk Upright
07 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Terence D. Capellini, Chair of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard UniversityDr Lara Dungan, ImmunologistDr Shane Bergin of UCD
Extra: What is Weaver Syndrome?
02 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Adrian Bracken, Professor of Chromatin Biology at the Smurfit Institute of Genetics, Trinity College Dublin
Creating Toothpaste Made From Hair
31 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Dr Sherif Elsharkawy, Senior Clinical Lecturer in Prosthodontics, at the Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences at King's Colle...
Extra: Eirsat-1 and The Future of Irish Satellites
26 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
With Dr David McKeown, Assistant Professor at the UCD Centre for Space Research.
Attacking Cancer: CAR T-Cell Therapy
26 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
With Dr Larry Bacon, Consultant Haematologist from St James’s Hospital, and Dr Nicola Gardiner, Chief Medical Scientist at the Cryobiology Laborator...
Extra: Is slowing down ageing possible?
19 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Eamonn Mallon, Professor of Evolutionary Biology at the University of Leicester
The science behind memory distortion
17 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Ciara Greene, Associate Professor in the School of Psychology at UCD, where she heads up the Attention and Memory LaboratoryDr Lara Dungan, Imm...
Extra: Advances In Ophthalmic Medicine and Eyecare
12 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Patrick Condon, former Consultant Ophthalmic Surgeon at University Hospital Waterford and author of ‘Eye Healthcare – 90 Years of Progress’...
Can brain stimulation cure addiction?
11 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Yale Neuroscientist Vaughn SteeleDr Shane Bergin, UCDSciene Writer Dr Claire O'Connell
Extra: Why is our Earth spinning faster?
05 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Robin Edwards, TCD
Could colour be the answer to reviving marine life?
03 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Holly CunninghamScience Communicator Eoin MurphySusan Kelleher, DCU
Extra: The role of mitochondria in why we need sleep
29 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Gero Miesenböck of Oxford University
What determines the birth sex of a child?
27 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Siwen Wang, Harvard UniversityDr Ruth Freeman, Research IrelandDr Susan Kelleher, DCU
Extra: Why newborns feel pain differently to adults
22 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Professor Lorenzo Fabrizi, Professor of Developmental Systems Neuroscience at University College London
Biggest human imaging study completes scan of 100,000 people
20 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Kevin O'Sullivan of The Irish TimesCatherine McGuinness, Science CommunicatorProfessor Naomi Allen, Chief Scientist at UK Biobank and Professor...
Extra: Diabetes - could there be a cure?
15 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guest: Dr Simon Piggott, Clinical Research Fellow with the Diabetes Complications Research Centre at the Conway Institute, UCD
Why are some species better at fooling predators?
13 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guests:Science Communicator Eoin MurphyDCU's Shelley BradyDr Tom Reader, Evolutionary and Behavioural Ecologist, University of Nottingham
Extra: How Does Pure Mathematics Shape Our World?
08 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Is maths just about numbers and equations? Not even close. Today we’re exploring the hidden power of mathematical thinking with Junaid Mubeen, mathe...
Extra: Did black holes create dark matter?
02 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
We recently got an email in from a listener to the show about a topic they thought we should cover, and we’d encourage you to get in touch too if th...