Neuroverse
Episodes
112. Tools for Looking into the Brain: Neuronal Excitability and Communication in Ageing and Neurodegenerative Disorders (with Dr Paula Pousinha)
09 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Join us for another episode in our Tools for Looking into the Brain series, where we learn about methods used to understand the nervous system from ex...
111. Migraines - Causes & Treatments
19 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we are celebrating women's day by highlighting a condition that primarily affects women. In today's episode we discuss ...
110. Neuroverse 4th year Anniversary Q&A
19 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Today we celebrate Neuroverse being 4! In this episode Carolina and Clara asked each other random questions ranging from neuroscience to personal. Tun...
109. The Philosophy of Touch
15 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to the first episode of 2026!In usual Neuroverse tradition the first episode is a "Philosophy of..." - touch!Touch provides a very i...
108. 2025 Reviewed (Off the Record)
31 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Enjoy our last episode of 2025! In Neuroverse fashion, the last episode of the year is "Off the Record". In this episode we chat and reminis...
107. Tools for Looking into the Brain: Calcium, Cortex, and Cortical Flexibility (with Dr. Matthew Harvey)
17 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, we are joined by Dr. Matthew Harvey, a medical doctor turned neuroscientist, currently a postdoctoral researcher at the Franci...
106. Tools for Looking into the Brain: How Zebrafish Illuminate Spinal Cord Function for Movement and Locomotion (with Prof. David McLean)
20 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode Clara and Carolina are joined by Professor Dave McLean for another episode on Tools for Looking into the Brain. Dave is a Group...
105. Tools for Looking into the Brain: Untangling the Neural Mechanisms of Chronic Pain (with Professor Sascha Alles)
23 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What is pain—and why is it so hard to understand, treat, or even describe? In our latest Tools for Looking into the Brain episode, we sit down with ...
104. The Importance of Ideas in Neuroscience (with Dr. Mateusz Kostecki)
25 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, we are joined by Dr Mateusz Kostecki to discuss the importance of ideas as a theoretical and conceptual basis for generating a...
103. Making Habits (with Dr Francesca Greenstreet)
28 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode we are joined by Dr Francesca Greenstreet to discuss how habits are made and novel research on how habit-forming may not require ...
[Summer Rerelease] Enzyme-Directed Evolution
14 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to our special summer rerelease series! Carolina and Clara take a trip down memory lane with a special series dedicated to their older episode...
102. Tools for Looking into the Brain: Probing at Maternal Behaviour and Finding Purpose in Science (with Dr. Silvana Valtcheva)
31 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week we bring to you another episode of Tools for Looking into the Brain, our mini series in collaboration with Scientifica, where we discuss all...
[Summer Rerelease] The Entropic Brain
17 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week we're revisiting our episode on the entropic brain, where we discuss entropy, chaos, and disorder in the context of brain activity. In a...
101. Causality
03 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode Carolina and Clara probe at what causality means, both in a philosophical sense and a scientific one. We talk about how neurosc...
[Summer Rerelease] Breathing, the Brain, Being
19 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to our special summer rerelease series! Carolina and Clara take a trip down memory lane with a special series dedicated to their older episode...
100. The Science of Sleep - From Classical Theories to Novel Insights (with Dr Raffaele Sarnataro)
05 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode (our 100th!) we talk to Dr Raffaele Sarnataro, a postdoctoral researcher in Gero Miesenböck's group at the Centre for Neural Circ...
99. Children, Adolescents & Social Media (with Dr Jennifer Wills Lamacq)
22 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode Carolina and Clara are joined by Dr Jennifer Wills Lamacq to discuss how adolescents and children are socialised, affected by socia...
98. Ontology of Cognition- How Should We Define How We Think and Function?
01 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Carolina and Clara dive into the question of cognitive ontology. From philosophers like Plato, to psychologists like Thomas Reid, and...
97. Geometric Collective Decision Making (with Professor Iain Couzin)
24 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode Clara and Carolina are joined by Professor Iain Couzin, the director of the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior and the Ger...
96. Tools for Looking into the Brain: How to Make the Most of Your Postdoc (with Dr Ana Dorrego-Rivas)
10 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This week we bring to you another episode of Tools for Looking into the Brain, our mini series in collaboration with Scientifica, where we discuss all...
95. Auto-Immune Disorders: Causes & Treatments
27 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we delve into auto-immune disorders. What are they and how can they be treated? We also discuss why auto-immune disorders are s...
94. Tools for Looking into the Brain: Happily Ever After- You Finally Landed a PI Job, Now What? (with Dr Elisa Galliano)
13 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this newest episode of our Tools for Looking into the Brain series, we are joined by Dr Elisa Galliano, a neuroscientist, lecturer, and principal i...
93. Antibiotic Resistance
27 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode Carolina and Clara discuss antibiotic resistance, the danger it poses, how it happens and the new therapies being researched to...
92. Why We Love (Neuroverse Anniversary & Valentine's Special Episode)
13 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
To celebrate 3 years since our first Neuroverse episode aired, we are talking about one of the most fascinating and mysterious topics- Love! Join us a...
91. Philosophy of Smell
30 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, Carolina & Clara dive into the philosophy of smell/olfaction. The olfactory system and smell experience is unique to other...
90. 2024 Reviewed (Off the Record)
26 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Enjoy our last episode of 2024! Carolina and Clara chat and reminisce about their favourite episodes from the past year, the most enlightening and exc...
SWC Panel Discussion: Will Computational Models & Machine Learning Ever Be Able to Capture the Full Complexity of the Brain?
19 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this exciting event that took place at the Sainsbury Wellcome Centre on October 22nd 2024, Carolina and Clara were joined by invited panelists- Jai...
89. Tools for Looking into the Brain: Gaining Independence and the Importance of Mentorship in Academia (with Ashlan Reid & Mari Sosa)
12 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today's episode is the second part of our two-part conversation with Ashlan Reid and Mari Sosa, two neuroscience postdoctoral fellows, who share their...
88. Tools for Looking into the Brain: Roads to Research and Overcoming Challenges in Science (with Ashlan Reid & Mari Sosa)
28 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Carolina and Clara are joined by two postdoctoral fellows to discuss their research journeys, from undergraduate to postdoctoral expe...
87. From Letters to Physical Blobs: Visualising and Studying RNA, the Ultimate Mediator of Life (with Saron Tekie)
14 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Carolina and Clara discuss with Saron RNA, how to study it, visualise it and how it is the ultimate mediator of life. Saron Tekie carried out her a Bs...
86. Laugh and the World Laughs With You: The Science of Laughter in Humans and Other Animals (with Professor Sophie Scott)
31 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, we are joined by Sophie Scott, a professor in cognitive neuroscience and head of the speech communications group at University Col...
85. Mice Playing Poker: Probing the Neural Circuit Mechanism of Economic Decision Making in Mice (With Dr Ann Duan)
17 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join Carolina and Clara in today’s episode where we discuss economic decision-making in mice with Dr Ann Duan, a group leader in the Sainsbury Wellc...
84. Deep Mutational Scanning and How to Investigate Protein Behaviour (with Isabelle Zane)
03 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this week's episode we are joined by Isabelle Zane, a PhD student at the Wellcome Sanger Institute in Cambridge who is investigating the link betwe...
83. Transcriptomics to Translation (with Inga Van den Bossche)
19 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join Carolina and Clara in today's episode on transcriptomics to translation with Inga Van den Bossche. Inga carried out her undergrad and masters deg...
[Summer Rerelease] Biomimetics and Bioinspired Materials
05 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to our special summer rerelease series! Carolina and Clara take a trip down memory lane with a special series dedicated to their older episode...
82. Using Protein Engineering to Tackle Non-Biodegradable Materials (with Ryen O’Meara)
22 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we are joined by Ryen O’Meara, a Chemical Engineer graduate student in Caltech. Ryen joined Nobel Laureate Francis Arnold'...
[Summer Rerelease] Mycelium
08 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to our special summer rerelease series! Carolina and Clara take a trip down memory lane with a special series dedicated to their older episode...
81. Tools for Looking Into the Brain: Squiggly Lines, An Insight into Learning & Memory (with Dr. Sam Cooke)
25 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, we are joined by Dr. Sam Cooke, a group leader and senior lecturer at King's College London who researches the mechanisms ...
[Summer Rerelease] Oxygen - Friend or Foe: a Debate
11 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to our special summer rerelease series! Carolina and Clara take a trip down memory lane with a special series dedicated to their older episode...
80. BCI Breakthroughs: The Therapeutic Progress of Brain Computer Interfaces
27 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode Carolina and Clara discuss the latest research on brain computer interfaces (BCI), and how they aid patients with motor related def...
79. The Evolution of Self-Medication, and What Chimpanzees Know (with Dr. Elodie Freymann)
13 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This week we are joined by Elodie Freymann, an evolutionary anthropologist, primatologist, artist and storyteller to discuss the evolution of self-med...
78. Ways to Interrogate Synaptic Function (with Dr Rachel Jackson)
30 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode Carolina and Clara are joined by Dr Rachel Jackson to discuss different techniques to interrogate synaptic function. Neurotrans...
77. Dynamics of Strategy Learning of Deep Neural Networks (with Aaditya Singh)
16 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode Carolina & Clara discuss the dynamics of strategy-learning of deep neural networks with Aaditya Singh. Aditya is carrying o...
76. Interoception
02 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, Carolina & Clara discuss the neuroscience and psychology behind interoception, the process that guides our sense of self a...
75. Tools for Looking into the Brain: Reading and Writing Patterns in the Brain (with Dr. Adil Khan)
18 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For our third episode in our "Tools for Looking into the Brain" series, we are joined by Dr. Adil Khan, a neuroscientist and group leader at...
74. Neural Computation of Naturalistic Behaviours (with Professor Tiago Branco)
04 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, we are joined by Professor Tiago Branco, a Principal Investigator and Group Leader at the Sainsbury Wellcome Centre at UCL. The Br...
73. Evolutionary Impact of the Lichen Lifestyle on the Fungal Genome (with George Mears)
21 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Today's episode is about fungi & lichen! We are joined by George Mears, a PhD student at Royal Holloway and Kew Gardens. Having carried out re...
72. Women's Reproductive Health: Where we are and what needs to improve (with Professor Sohier Elneil) - Celebrating International Women's Day
07 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode we are celebrating women’s day by discussing the current state of women’s reproductive healthcare and research, how much prog...
71: Tools for Looking into the Brain: Fluorescence Microscopy
22 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome back to Neuroverse, this week we bring to you the second episode in our mini-series "Tools for Looking into the Brain", where we exp...
70. Love on the Brain - 2 year anniversary Neuroverse special
14 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Happy Valentines day! We hope today you celebrate love in all its shapes and forms. It is also our Neuroverse 2 year anniversary! What better way to c...
69. Q&A with Clara and Carolina
07 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we've answered some of your questions! Topics ranging from academic advice, lab and research environments, personal life choices an...
68. The Mosaic of Science (with Professor Carlos Ribeiro)
25 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we are joined by Professor Carlos Ribeiro, who is based at the Champalimaud Research Institute in Lisbon. We discuss research i...
67. Philosophy of Sound
11 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode, we delve into the complexities of sound. What is sound? Is it defined by what produces it or by what hears it? Is sound purely...
66. 2023 Reviewed (Off the Record)
28 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In our final episode of 2023, we chat about another full year of Neuroverse- our highlights, favourite episodes, what we've most enjoyed learning ...
65. Designing Generative Models (with Pierre Glaser)
14 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we are joined by Pierre Glaser to discuss designing generative models. Pierre Glaser is a PhD student in Machine Learning at th...
64. Tools for Looking into the Brain: Patch-Clamp
30 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We are launching a new mini-series focusing on experimental methods to study the brain! How do we look at and listen to the activity of neurons, popul...
63. Protein Dysregulation in Neurodegenerative Disorders (with Dr. Estella Newcombe)
16 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we are joined by a special guest, Dr. Estella Newcombe, to discuss protein dysregulation in neurodegenerative disorders. Estella is ...
62. What Makes Science Beautiful?
03 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode, Carolina and Clara discuss what beautiful science is, and what makes a beautiful experiment? We delve into aesthetics, what is g...
61. Reprogramming Cellular Identity (with Sydney Leaman)
19 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we were joined by a special guest, Sydney Leaman, to discuss cellular identity and reprogramming cells in the brain. Sydney holds a B...
60. Storing Data in DNA
05 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Carolina & Clara discuss the development of a novel technology- storing data in DNA. As the human population is producing an expontenti...
59. Biomimetic and Bioinspired Materials
21 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode Carolina and Clara discuss biomimetic and bioinspired materials and the challenge with understanding the biological structure of ...
58. Morphic Resonance
07 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Carolina & Clara discuss the theory of Morphic Resonance. First proposed by Rupert Sheldrake in 1981, the theory of Morphic Resonance a...
57. Stress, Cortisol and How to Overcome Stressors
24 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode Carolina and Clara discuss stress, stressors and the impacts of chronic stress. Stress is a physiological response that aids us ...
56. Synapses: Origin & Evolution
10 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Carolina & Clara discuss synapses in the brain. What are they? What is their function and importance? Where did they originate fr...
55. Predictive Processing and Flexible Control of Behaviour (with Prof. Sonja Hofer)
27 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we are thrilled to be joined by Professor Sonja Hofer, Group Leader at the Sainsbury Wellcome Centre in UCL. The Hofer Lab rese...
54. Animal Models in Neuroscience Research
13 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this week's episode, Carolina and Clara discuss the variety of model organisms that are used in scientific research and the unique advantages o...
53. Challenges with Collaborative Neuroscience & the Impact of Generative AI (with Jai Bhagat)
29 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Join us in today's episode where we discuss Challenges with collabroative neuroscience and how generative AI, language models are impacting the wo...
52. The Blob: Questioning Intelligence
15 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this week's episode, Carolina and Clara discuss intelligence without a nervous system, based on the enigmatic organism "the blob", al...
51. Reality
01 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Join us as we discuss Reality! We cover topics such as ideology and how it affects our perception on reality, philosophy of language and mind with som...
50. The Neurobiology of Schizophrenia (with Dr Alice Petty)
25 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this week's episode we are joined by Dr Alice Petty, a neuroscientist researching the neurobiology of schizophrenia in rodent models. We discus...
49. Neuro-Inspired AI (with Clémentine Dominé)
11 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Join us today in our discussion of Neuro-Inspired AI with Clémentine Dominé. Clémentine is a PhD student at the Gatsby Computational Neuroscience U...
48. The Science of Awe
27 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What is awe and how does it shape us? In this week's episode, Carolina and Clara discuss the science behind awe, a powerful state of being that ca...
47. Science Communication (with Élodie Chabrol)
13 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode we are joined by Élodie Chabrol, who is a prominent science communicator. We discuss the importance of communicating science, ho...
46. Anterior Cingulate Cortex’s Role in Uncertainty and Predictive Coding
30 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we discuss the many roles that the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) has in cognitive function. The ACC is associated with many h...
45. Measuring the Brain in Space & Time
16 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we discuss the variety of methods used to measure brain activity, and the important trade-off between spatial (where) and temporal (w...
44. Interview with CEO Meredith Gibson of the Association for Women In Science (AWIS)
02 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Join us in today's episode where we interviewed Meredith Gibson the CEO of the charity AWIS (Association for Women in Science). As two young femal...
43. In Conversation with Dr. Àlex Gómez-Marín
16 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we are joined with Dr. Àlex Gómez-Marín, a theoretical physicist turned neuroscientist. He is currently an associate professor at ...
42. Inequality in Women's Health and Research (with Anais Kruger-Ruiz)
02 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we are joined by a special guest, Anais Kruger-Ruiz, to discuss the gap in equality in research relating to women's health....
41. Criticality (with Dr. Dominic Burrows)
19 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we are joined by special guest and neuroscientist, Dr. Dominic Burrows, to discuss brain-wide dynamics and the concept of criticality...
40. Philosophy of Colour
05 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
What is colour? In today’s episode Carolina and Clara discuss the philosophy of colour. Whether it is eliminitivist or inherently subjective (as arg...
39. End of Year Episode - 2022 Reviewed!
22 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Join us in this more informal episode where we reminisce about how Neuroverse started, our favourite episodes and noting underlying themes across epis...
38. Dating Apps: The Architects of Contemporary Relationships (with Olivia Sirley)
08 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We are back! In today’s episode Carolina and Clara are joined with Olivia Sirley who completed her bachelor’s at the University of the Arts London...
37. Does Memory Equal Consciousness
03 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Carolina and Clara discuss whether or not memory equals consciousness. Are we, our personal identity and conscious experience, define...
36. Computational Units in the Brain
27 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What is the computational unit in the brain? At what scale does the brain store, transform, and transfer information? Is it within genes, or neurons, ...
35. Spatial Cognition
20 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this weeks episode Carolina and Clara discuss spatial cognition - the focus of their masters project at Professor Matt Nolan’s lab in the Univers...
34. Methodologies of Neuroscientific Investigation: A Philosophical Perspective (with Subham Ganguly)
13 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we are joined with another young neuroscientist, Subham Ganguly, to discuss methodological approaches to neursocience research from a ...
33. The Gut-Microbiome-Brain Axis
06 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Within each of us exists a gut microbiome- trillions of bacteria, virus, fungi, and other microorganisms living in our gut. Research is increasingly r...
32. Communicating Neuroscience in the 21st Century (with Dr. Ginger Campbell)
29 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode Carolina and Clara are joined with special guest Dr Ginger Campbell, who hosts the award-winning Brain Science podcast. They di...
31. Neurogenesis (with Carlotta Barelli)
22 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week we are joined by special guest and young neuroscientist, Carlotta Barelli, to discuss neurogenesis! While it was traditionally believed that...
30. Free will vs Determinism
15 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode Carolina and Clara discuss free will vs determinism in a philosophical, physics and neuroscience context! Can the philosophical d...
29. Predictive Coding and Dendrites
08 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dendrites are the tree like structures that extend out from neurons and have powerful roles in information processing. In this episode, Carolina and C...
28. Subjectivity and Emotional Valence
01 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today’s episode Carolina and Clara discuss subjectivity and emotional valence, inspired by Kay M. Tay’s review paper on emotional valence. Quan...
27. Science-Art with TakT (Adèle Tilouine and Tyler Kaufman)
25 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Carolina and Clara discuss science art with the incredible Science-Art duo: Adèle Tilouine and Tyler Kaufman. Together they are TakT...
26. Science Misinformation: Real Science, Desperate Scientists
18 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Carolina and Clara discuss yet another type of science misinformation in part 3 of the "Science Misinformation" series. Pre...
25. Scientific Planes of Understanding
11 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Carolina and Clara compare different scientific planes of understanding! Carolina coming from a biochemistry background and Clara fro...
24. The Hippocampus
21 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Carolina and Clara explore the hippocampus, a brain region that is critical for the formation of memories. The hippocampus is thought...
23. Cross-Modal Plasticity (with Johanna Jaansoo)
14 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode we are joined with special guest and young neuroscientist, Johanna Jaansoo, as we discuss plasticity of sensory modalities in response to...
22. Science Misinformation: The Lifestyle Industry
07 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Carolina and Clara discuss more examples of science misinformation. From collagen to therapy apps, this episode focuses on how the li...
21. Mycelium
30 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sometimes called the "Wood Wide Web", mycelium or mycorrhizal networks are a form of fungi that have an incredible capacity to connect plant...
20. The Philosophy of Machine Learning (with Alex Mussgnug)
23 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode Carolina and Clara discuss the philosophy of machine learning with Alex Mussgnug who is doing a PhD at the University of Edinburgh in ...