Ep 1. Curiosity, childhood and the natural world: the making of two scientists

Ep 1. Curiosity, childhood and the natural world: the making of two scientists

Author: Stephen Simpson, David Raubenheimer, Charlotte Wood June 15, 2020 Duration: 45:13

Are scientists born or made? In Episode 1 we hear about the early years of Professors Steve Simpson and David Raubenheimer, and their childhood investigations into the natural world. From Steve's high school reconstructions of a cow skeleton to David's childhood hypothesis about the harmfulness of bees, we see how two schoolboys grew into two world-renowned scientists. We learn of their meeting at Oxford University and the early experiments with locusts that led to their groundbreaking findings about human nutrition. Along the way we discuss how curiosity makes room for the tenacity to go your own way as a scientist and challenge long-held 'truths' about the world. 

Hosted by novelist Charlotte Wood, the first writer-in-residence at the Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney. 

More details:

EAT LIKE THE ANIMALS

THE CHARLES PERKINS CENTRE, UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY

CHARLOTTE WOOD



What if the secret to human nutrition has been hiding in plain sight, observed in insects, primates, and fish for decades? EAT LIKE THE ANIMALS explores this very idea through a long-running conversation between acclaimed novelist Charlotte Wood and biologists David Raubenheimer and Steve Simpson. Their collaboration, spanning thirty-five years of research and friendship, forms the backbone of this series. Each episode delves into the pair's groundbreaking work, which upends many conventional beliefs about diet and health by starting with a simple question: how do animals instinctively know what to eat? The discussions are less about rigid diet plans and more about understanding the deep biological rules that govern appetite across species, including our own. You'll hear how their findings on protein regulation and nutrient balancing challenge popular food fads, offering a fresh, evidence-based perspective rooted in ecology and evolutionary biology. This podcast transforms complex science into accessible stories, revealing the profound and often surprising connections between the feeding habits of the animal kingdom and our daily meals. The result is a thought-provoking journey that reframes our relationship with food through the lens of nature's wisdom.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 7

EAT LIKE THE ANIMALS
Podcast Episodes
Ep 2: Big discoveries: the 'five appetites' & protein leverage [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:31
What drives our food preferences? In Episode 2 Professors Steve Simpson and David Raubenheimer explain their breakthrough discovery about what animals eat and why. They take us through some of their research with insects…