The Rest Is Science
Goalhanger
Join mathematician Professor Hannah Fry and science creator Michael Stevens (Vsauce) as they dig into the weird scientific questions that often go unexplored.
Welcome to The Rest Is Science, a show that sits in the fascinating space between what we think we know, and what we actually know. Why do we assume we understand things like time, randomness, or even gravity? Once you start questioning these familiar ideas, reality becomes astonishingly strange and completely fragile.
Whether you're a lifelong science fan or just naturally curious, The Rest Is Science will change your perception of reality, and prove that the biggest questions are always the most fun.
Welcome to The Rest Is Science, a show that sits in the fascinating space between what we think we know, and what we actually know. Why do we assume we understand things like time, randomness, or even gravity? Once you start questioning these familiar ideas, reality becomes astonishingly strange and completely fragile.
Whether you're a lifelong science fan or just naturally curious, The Rest Is Science will change your perception of reality, and prove that the biggest questions are always the most fun.
Episodes
Mentioned books
34 snips
Mar 26, 2026 • 57min
How Evolution Is Shaping Cancer Research
A tour of how cancer behaves like a fast‑evolving ecosystem and what that means for new therapies. They highlight mapping tumor evolution and targeting durable mutations. Listeners hear about neoantigen detection and early‑stage vaccine ideas. The conversation covers animal cancer resistance, unusual whale studies, extrachromosomal DNA, viral fossils and novel immune and viral delivery strategies.
44 snips
Mar 24, 2026 • 1h
Paradoxes Of Infinity
They tumble into the paradoxes around infinity, from Hilbert's Hotel to Zeno's motion puzzles. They trace the history and symbols behind the infinite and revisit Pythagorean fears about non-finite numbers. They unpack calculus, limits, and mind-bending thought experiments like Thompson's lamp and the Ross-Littlewood jar.
57 snips
Mar 19, 2026 • 53min
Michael's Favourite Science Books
A lively tour through Michael’s favourite science, philosophy and fiction picks, from accessible popular science to deep reads on consciousness and the limits of reason. They chat about how books shaped curiosity and thinking. Practical talk includes airflow hacks to clear pet hair and smells from a car. Short, eclectic recommendations that mix wonder, history and hands-on tips.
116 snips
Mar 17, 2026 • 1h 10min
Cognitive Ghosts
They unpack déjà vu, presque vu and jamais-vu and how familiarity can trick memory. They explore blindsight, multiple self illusions and lab tricks that create sensed presences. They probe the high-place phenomenon and the strange urge to harm when overwhelmed. They explain cute aggression, hypnic jerks, deathbed visions and cultural tales that shape what we accept as real.
19 snips
Mar 14, 2026 • 27min
Introducing: The Book Club - Never Let Me Go
Dominic Sandbrook, historian and cohost of Rest Is History, talks about Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go and his new show The Book Club. They explore the novel’s chilling premise about cloned students and moral questions of mortality. Conversations touch on dehumanization, cloning science and ethics, memory and identity, and the book’s emotional core centered on Kathy, Ruth and Tommy.
46 snips
Mar 12, 2026 • 55min
Why We Cry Out In Pain
A lively tour of favorite science books, reading habits and oddball anecdotes. They dive into quantum computing, NP-hard problems and F1 rule-bending. Imaginative ideas about huge telescopes and listening to the past spark speculation. Conversations range from pain vocalizations and breathing to famous scientist feuds and the pitfalls of emotional AI companionship.
17 snips
Mar 10, 2026 • 51min
What's The Most "Vegetable" Vegetable?
A playful investigation into what makes a plant piece feel like a vegetable, mixing botany, linguistics and food law. They tour plant anatomy, odd classifications like tomatoes and cinnamon, and cultural quirks that shape our supermarket logic. The discussion ends with a surprising, everyday winner crowned for plainness and versatility.
52 snips
Mar 5, 2026 • 50min
How Words Shape Your Body
A playful look at whether bees can be trained to compute and what animal swarms reveal about computation and consciousness. A lively dive into whether speech patterns and diet subtly shape facial features. A visual thought experiment that reframes human history by adding ten thousand years to our calendar.
86 snips
Mar 3, 2026 • 1h 1min
You Don't Exist For One Third Of Your Life
They explore why humans still need a third of life unconscious and whether sleep could ever be cured. Strange sleep strategies across species and historical hacks like WWII amphetamines get dissected. The conversation covers lethal sleep disorders, animal studies on immune and gut damage, and the many biological roles that make a single cure unlikely. Practical nap tips and why rest matters wrap things up.
42 snips
Feb 26, 2026 • 44min
How To Fall To Earth (Without Burning Up)
They explore why returning to Earth is harder than leaving it and how shockwaves and heat form during reentry. The conversation covers blunt-body designs that deflect heating and the fragile silica tiles that saved shuttles. They also touch on historical fear-conditioning experiments and a playful energy breakdown of which superhero powers would fry you.
