The latest cutting-edge research on show at the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition

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Episode details

Radio 4,·02 Jul 2026,·28 mins

Available for 34 days

During this year’s visit to the Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition in London, Tom Whipple discovers how sea urchins are being used to develop techniques to digitally preserve natural history, why we haven’t got robot butlers just yet, and what it takes to bottle lightning.

Plus, in his ongoing quest to assemble a World Cup squad of science Tom recruits health reporter James Gallagher to scout out the best football science from around the world. This week, we want to know if there is robust evidence for a home advantage.

We speak with Associate Professor of Cell & Developmental Biology Laura Porro from University College London, Dr Alice Leavey and Dr Fernando Alvares from the University of Southampton, Professor Ingmar Posner who leads the Applied Artificial Intelligence Lab at the University of Oxford and Dr Daniel Mitchard who is co-lead of Cardiff University’s Lightning Laboratory.

Presenter: Tom Whipple

Producers: Katie Tomsett, Kate White & Tabby Taylor Buck

Editor: Martin Smith

Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth

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