The Infinite Monkey Cage (Series 11-20)
Series 11
1. Deception
This episodes focuses on the science of lying, how to spot people who are lying and why good liars could be the secret to our success as a social animal.
Guests: David Aaronovitch, Richard Wiseman, Sophie Scott
2. Fierce Creatures
Looking at some of Earth's deadliest creatures including bullet ants, tree frogs, sharks and scorpions, and whether our fears of some animals is justified.
Guests: Steve Backshall, Lucy Cooke, Andy Hamilton
3. Solar System
A discussion of solar system exploration including the Rosetta craft which landed on a comet, and the Cassini-Huygens mission which is looking in detail at Saturn.
Guests: Jo Brand, Monica Grady, Carolyn Porco
4. When Quantum Goes Woo
Quantum physics has seemed to attract fringe elements of pseudoscience. This episode observes whether there is any basis for learning from the weird suggestions.
Guests: Ben Goldacre, Jeff Forshaw, Sara Pascoe
5. What is the Point of Plants?
Plants have shaped the evolution of the world, and the discussion tries to ask how things would look if plantlife did not exist.
Guests: Jane Langdale, Jim Al-Khalili, Ed Byrne
6. Serendipity
Some discoveries including Pyrex and Cosmic Background Microwave Radiation were found by accident, and this episode wonders if this is part of the scientific process.
Guests: Lee Mack, Simon Singh, Andrea Sella
Series 12
1. The Infinite Monkey Cage USA Tour: New York
2. The Infinite Monkey Cage USA Tour: Los Angeles
3. The Infinite Monkey Cage USA Tour: Chicago
4. The Infinite Monkey Cage USA Tour: San Francisco
5. Speed
6. Forensic Science
An Infinite Monkey's Guide to General Relativity
Episode 1
This episode did not have a named title.
Episode 2
This episode did not have a named title.
Series 13
1. Artificial Intelligence
Analysing how close we are to a truly artificially intelligent machine, how intelligence is defined and what the moral and ethical issues will be.
Guests: Jo Brand, Anil Seth, Alan Winfield
2. What is Race?
Studying the concept of race, and what the scientific definition is, this episode looks into whether genes reveal racial differences and what it tells us about evolution.
Guests: Shappi Khorsandi, Adam Rutherford, Mark Thomas
3. Invisible Universe
A look at what makes up the 95% of the universe that we can not see, and what Dark Matter and Dark Energy would mean for the laws of physics.
Guests: Sarah Bride, Tim O'Brien, Jon Culshaw
4. What is Reality?
This episode asks how can define reality when different people experience the world in various ways.
Guests: David Eagleman, Sophie Scott, Bridge Christie
5. Maths of Love and Sex
Questioning whether it is ever possible a mathematical equation can help find a perfect mate, and if a scientific approach to love can be the answer.
Guests: Hannah Fry, Sir David Speigelhalter, Paul Foot
6. Climate Change
A forensic look at climate change including how we know that man is responsible, and if there is anything that can be done to stop it.
Guests: Dara O'Briain, Tony Ryan, Dr Gabrielle Walker
Series 14
1. The Sound of Music
An episode looking at why and how humans are programmed to love a variety of music, and whether there are any other animals with similar tastes.
Guests: Matt Kirshen, KT Tunstall, Nitin Sawhney, Lucy Cooke, Trevor Cox
2. The Recipe to Build a Universe
A look at the periodic table and the elements which form the building block of everything from humans to the universe itself.
Guests: Rufus Hound, Andrea Sella, Lucia Green
3. Science of Sleep
Robin has insomnia, and the panel discuss about the purpose of sleep in both humans and the animal kingdom, as well as the purpose of dreams.
Guests: Russell Foster, Richard Wiseman, Katy Brand
4. Battles of the Sexes
This episode tackles the subject of whether the divide between men and women is based on a fundamental difference in genetics, brain function, or upbringing.
Guests: Sophie Scott, Steve Jones, Sara Pascoe
5. 200 Years of Frankenstein
Looking at the cultural impact of Frankenstein, and the long-lasting impact it has had on science and scientists.
Guests: Noel Fielding, Nick Lane, Sir Christopher Frayling
6. The Universe: What Remains to be Discovered?
A live show on stage at Jodrell Bank in which the panel explores the big questions that are still to be answered in our universe.
Guests: Ben Miller, Charlotte Church, Dr Paul Abel, Tim O'Brien
Series 15
1. The Science of Everyday Life
A discussion about the science of everyday life - from making a cup of tea to the forces that govern our climate.
Guests: Russell Kane, Helen Czerski, Danielle George
2. How to Beat the House and Win at Games
Looking at mathematics and asking questions such as whether mathematicians or psychologists make better poker players, and the role of animals in maths.
Guests: Hannah Fry, Alex Bellos, Helen Zaltzman
3. Science's Epic Fails
Science has a string of great scientific failures including some from Darwin and Einstein, but this is not necessarily be a bad thing.
Guests: Rufus Hound, Alice Roberts, Adam Rutherford
4. Oceans: What Remains to be Discovered?
The deep ocean remains the last great unexplored frontier for our planet. As we've only just scratched the surface, this episode looks at what may be found in the future.
Guests: Andy Hamilton, Jon Copley, Helen Scales
5. The Human Story: How We Got Here and Why We Survived.
Starting with the earliest human ancestors of around five or six species, the panel discuss how human history has charted its way through time.
Guests: Ross Noble, Danielle Schreve, Chris Stringer
6. Making the Invisible Visible
A look at the history of the telescope and microscope, this episode also questions whether some things will remain invisible to us.
Guests: Katy Brand, Carlos Frenk, Matthew Cobb
Series 16
1. What Particles Remain to be Discovered?
A special episode where the panel look at what particles are to be discovered after the Higgs Boson, and whether the greatest physics question will be answered.
Guests: Sara Pascoe, Dane Baptiste, Katy Brand, Eric Idle, Sandra Magnus, Charlie Duke
2. Astronaut Special
In this special episode, three astronauts talk about their personal journeys and experiences and challenges to reach space.
Guests: Sandra Magnus, Terry Virts, Charlie Duke, Claude Nicollier
3. Oxygen: A Matter of Life and Death
A focus on chemistry and in particular oxygen, which plays a key role in the universe and our lives - even being the cause of aging.
Guests: Andrea Sella, Gabrielle Walker, Sara Pascoe
4. Will Insects Inherit the Earth?
An episode which discovers the joy of creepy crawlies, including why the flea is the ultimate master of Darwinian evolution and if cockroaches will outlive us all.
Guests: Dave Gorman, Tim Cockerill, Amoret Whitaker
5. Are We Living in a Simulation?
Some people, including Elon Musk, believe we are living in a simulation. The panel discuss how we can ever know we are living in a simulation.
Guests: Phill Jupitus, Nick Bostrom, Anil Seth
6. The Mind v the Brain
The panellists talk about the state of the mind, and whether it is simply a product of biology on our brain. They also pose the question of whether the mind can exist without the brain.
Guests: Katy Brand, Uta Frith, Sophie Scott
Series 17
1. When Two Stars Collide
Joining Brian and Robin, the panel talk about the discovery of gravitational waves from two colliding neutron stars, as it confirmed one of Einstein's predictions and revealed the source of gold.
Guests: Dara O'Briain, Sheila Rowan, Nils Andersson
2. The Secret Life of Birds
A look at the life of birds and their extraordinary and cunning behaviour. This episode features a visit from Brann the Raven.
Guests: Katy Brand, Steve Backshall, Tim Birkhead, Brann the Raven
3. Antibiotics
This episode takes a look at the history of antibiotics, and what the future holds from humans and animals with their use in the future.
Guests: Chris Addison, Sally Davies, Martha Clokie
4. Teenage Brain
The workings of the teenage brain are changing during these years, and subject to much research as to why teenagers and "teenagery".
Guests: Rory Bremner, Sarah-Jayne Blakemore, Matthew Cobb
5. How Animals Behave
A discussion about the behavioural lives of animals, including some of the mistakes science has made in the process of discovery.
Guests: Rufus Hound, Lucy Cooke, Rory Wilson
6. Volcanoes
Looking at the subject of volcanoes, new technologies are trying to predict the next major eruption. The episode also looks at the history and importance of volcanic activity.
Guests: Tamsin Mather, Clive Oppenheimer, Jo Brand
Series 18
1. The Infinite Monkey Cage 100
The 100th episode of the Infinite Monkey Cage sees the panel discuss what over discoveries might be made over the course of the next one hundred episodes.
2. Big Data
A look at the thing that is Big Data, where the data comes from, and what is hidden within the vast amounts of information that is collected on us.
Guests: Danny Wallace, Hannah Fry, Timandra Harkness
3. Invasion
Looking at the problems caused by alien invasions - though not of the green martian variety - but of plants, animals and other lifeforms.
Guests: Phill Jupitus, Kate Jones, Dr Mark Spencer
4. Immune System
The human body is able to fight diseases, but little was understood about the process until recently. The panel discuss the breakthroughs made in treatments.
Guests: Shappi Khorsandi, Dan Davis, Steve Jones
5. The Human Voice
Human voice has been key to our success and this episode analyses the ability to talk, sing, laugh and otherwise communicate.
Guests: Beardyman, Trevor Cox, Sophie Scott
6. GCHQ
At GCHQ, the show process cryptography and codebreaking as well as the history of code encompassing the birth of machines like Enigma to the digital era.
Guests: Katy Brand
Series 19
1. Microbes: Secret Rules of the World?
Microbes are found in almost every extreme environment on the planet, and this programme questions when they first arrived and what the implications are for microbes in space.
Guests: Jon Copley, Monica Grady, Ed Byrne
2. The Future of Humanity
A talk about the biggest challenges facing humanity at the moment, and whether science offers solutions to questions around artificial intelligence and climate change.
Guests: Chris Addison, Martin Rees, Cathy Ashton
3. Origin of Numbers
Numbers are important to lots of life on Earth, and this episode questions whether humans are the only lifeform that can count, and whether the origin predates that of language.
Guests: Matt Parker, Hannah Fry, Brian Butterworth
4. Are Humans Still Evolving?
A look at whether modern medicine and technology has meant that human evolution has stopped, or just been changed to allow us to survive in a changing world.
Guests: David Baddiel, Aoife McLysaght, Adam Rutherford
5. How to Build a Bionic Human
Talk about developments in the quest to build bionic people with a look at artificial organs and limbs, and the relationship to other animals.
Guests: Noel Fitzpatrick, Kevin Fong, Lucy Beaumont
6. How We Measure the Universe
Taking a look at how measurements in the universe are made, from the make-up of planetary atmospheres to the very earliest times at the beginning of the cosmos.
Guests: Jo Brand, Jo Dunkley, Adam Masters
The Infinite Monkey Cage Special
An hour-long episode to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Apollo moon landings which features people who were key players in activities on the day.
Guests: Rusty Schweickart, Gerry Griffin, Jan Aldrin, Andy Aldrin, Nick Rhodes
Series 20
1. Dinosaurs
A look at children's usual first interest in science - dinosaurs. This episode looks at whether we are in a new age of dinosaur discovery.
Guests: Rufus Hound, Susannah Maidment, Steve Brusatte
2. Clever Creatures
Intelligence is well-known about in some animals such as chimpanzees, however this programme looks at other animals whose intelligence may have been underestimated.
Guests: Danny Wallace, Tim Birkhead, Helen Scales
3. Science of Dreaming
Analysing the science of dreaming, the discussion questions whether dreams can help us solve problems and give us new ideas.
Guests: Bridget Christie, Penny Lewis, Richard Wiseman
4. Anniversary of the Periodic Table
With the anniversary of the periodic table, the panel look at the organisation of the table and how useful it is as a tool in science.
Guests: Katy Brand, Polly Arnold, Andrea Sella
5. Brits in Space
A discussion with Tim Peake and Helen Sharman about their experiences of training and life in space, as well as talk about the future of space missions.
Guests: Tim Peake, Helen Sharman, Mark Steel