The 500 Year Astrobiology Experiment with Dr Toby Samuels from the UK Centre for Astrobiology

08/23/19 • 35 min

Completing his PhD in geomicrobiology at the UK centre for astrobiology, Dr Samuels investigated the extreme conditions that microbes can live in such as shale cliffs and acid mine draining sites. Now a post-doctoral research associate at the Institute of Evolutionary Biology Dr Samuels researches the adaptation of Southern Ocean plankton to ocean warming.
Our very own Verity Hill interviews Dr Toby Samuels about a recently started experiment expected to run for 500 years. Dr Toby Samuels is interested in the ability of certain microbes, called cyanobacteria, to survive in the most extreme of conditions. An experiment he is involved in consists of two separate chests consisting of vials containing an exact number of dormant cells. At regular intervals over the next 500 years the vials will be carefully opened and the number of cells alive and active will be counted. The depth of the ability of these microbes to survive or even thrive in these conditions is still unknown. Dr Samuels introduces us to the origins and the far reaching (think Martian) implications of the experiment.
This episode concludes by celebrating the long overdue awarding of degrees to the first female medical graduates in the UK, nicknamed the Edinburgh Seven. We focus on the inspiration life and work of Chrystal Macmillian who followed in the footsteps of the Edinburgh Seven to become the first female science graduate, graduating with a degree in mathematics in 1896.

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Smartphone Biosensors and SynBio with Dr Baojun Wang and Dr Xinyi Wan

BioPOD is back with an episode on Smartphone Biosensors and the importance of Synthetic Biology in today's global landscape. This episode focuses on a fluorescent bacterial biosensor that quantifies levels of toxic arsenic in the environment and connects to a smartphone. Stay tuned for this episode where we interview Dr Baojun Wang and Dr Xinyi Wan from the Synthetic Biological Engineering Lab at the University of Edinburgh. This lab specializes in engineering bacteria to act as biosensors which are applied to monitor toxic metal concentrations in the environment.

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Begonia Biodiversity and Field Trips in South-East Asia with Dr Mark Hughes

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Later, in the coda piece, we also discuss the milestone of the century: 100 years of genetics research here at the University of Edinburgh