HERE’S WHAT’S ON SCIENCE WEEK ON RTÉ

A week of ‘infinite possibilities’ on RTÉ to celebrate Science Week 2022

www.rte.ie/scienceweek | #scienceweek

The exploration of infinite possibilities will take centre stage as RTÉ celebrates Science Week 2022 with a wide range of specially-themed content across RTÉ television, radio, and online, from Sunday 13th November until Sunday 20th November.

From the return of Future Island with host, Anna Daly to 10 Things To Know About, and from the RTÉjr Radio Podcast, Let’s Dive In to Episode 1 of Atom Town, the new cartoon themed around the periodic table, RTÉ has plenty in store for curious minds, including the exploration of ways in which we can reduce carbon emission and help save our planet.

Science Week on RTÉ is supported by Science Foundation Ireland.

Commenting on Science Week, Director General of Science Foundation Ireland, Professor Philip Nolan, said: “We are delighted to once again partner with RTE on Science Week.  It is fantastic to see the full range of engaging science-themed content planned for people of all ages, across RTE platforms for Science Week. This year building on Creating Our Future, we are concentrating on the themes that we know the public is concerned about such as sustainable living, mental health, and digital technologies. Science Week is a fantastic opportunity for people all over Ireland to discover and engage with science.”

RTÉ’s Head of Specialised Factual, Colm O’Callaghan said, “Given the uncertainty faced by global society, the infinite possibilities of science have never been more important. This is the 7th consecutive year that we’ve partnered with Science Foundation Ireland on Science Week and it has long been a staple in the RTÉ One calendar. We’re delighted to once again be offering such a variety of quality, home-produced and data-led content on all of RTÉ’s platforms throughout the week.”

>>> HIGHLIGHTS: TV + RTÉ PLAYER

FUTURE ISLAND RETURNS

(LIVE on RTÉ One, from 7-8pm on November 15th, 16th and 17th, and RTÉ Player)

Future Island is back to take a look towards the future in the worlds of science and technology LIVE from the O’Brien Science Building at UCD over three consecutive nights on RTÉ One. Through a mix of live studio guests and demonstrations, as well as a selection of illuminating films, Future Island, under the guiding hand of Anna Daly, will sift the science fact from the science fiction and look at how Irish innovators are currently trying to change the world for the better.

Presenter Anna Daly will employ her curiosity for how things work and how science might make the future better for her children, embracing the “infinite possibilities” of science – the theme of this year’s Science Week – across subjects like sustainability, future health, technology, climate change and future energies.

Anna will be joined on the series by a panel of experts, among them Dr. Shane Bergin, physicist and Assistant Professor in Science Education at UCD’s School of Education, and Dr Jessamyn Fairfield, an American physicist who researches biocompatible nanomaterials and neuromorphic devices at University of Galway, and who is also a stand-up comedian.

The series will also work closely with Birdwatch Ireland in order to build on the biggest citizen science project in the country: asking viewers to collect invaluable data regarding the birdlife that exists in their gardens. Each show will throw down a specific challenge to viewers. Can we affect the air quality around us by making simple lifestyle changes that can save lives? Is it possible to create a musical ensemble from scrap, using the science of various instruments to create a musical finale?

Future Island is an Indiepics production for RTÉ and is made with the support of Science Foundation Ireland.

See below for details on each episode.

10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT

(RTÉ ONE, Monday 14th November at 8.30pm, and RTÉ Player)

Award-winning television series 10 Things To Know About returns to RTÉ One for an eighth season to showcase and celebrate the Irish science behind aspects of modern life. Entertaining and informative, each episode is themed around one core topic or research area, with Kathriona Devereux, Jonathan McCrea and Fergus McAuliffe meeting Irish researchers working at home and internationally on projects that affect all our lives.

In episode 1 (Insects), Kathriona Devereux and Jonathan McCrea investigate if the solution to feeding the world in a more sustainable way could be the humble insect? .

As the global population rises, questions are being asked as to how we can continue to feed the planet with more sustainable food products and behaviours. Could the answer be the humble insect? Insects have a high protein content and carbon-friendly breeding methods, and with three types of insects already in use in the EU, we check out the latest Irish research into edible insects and try out some taste testing at the National Ploughing Championships to see if members of the public might be open to adding crickets to their cornflakes!

Unfortunately, not all insects are helpful to the food chain. Grain aphids carrying Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus (BYDV) can devastate cereal crops, reduce the yield by on average 30%, but can be as high as 80% in optimal conditions. With EU regulations limiting the amount of insecticide that farmers can use and aphids evolving to become resistant to it, we meet the Irish researchers looking to further understand these creatures and help farmers to combat BYDV.

THE CHANGE – IRELAND’S MENOPAUSE STORY

(Back by popular demand on RTÉ One, Thursday 17th November at 10.15pm, and RTÉ Player)

The phenomenal reaction to women’s stories on Liveline in May, 2021, proved that the subject of menopause is not niche, is not unmentionable, and, to state the obvious, effects 50 per cent of the population directly. Kicking off with some of the audio from emotional Liveline callers, this one-hour documentary explores the menopause experience in Ireland – the taboo, the science bit, the personal stories, and the future.

While no woman’s experience is the same, we look at the common, and some not so common symptoms, and talk to experts about what the causes and effects are, and what the long-term ramifications are. What can be done to help Irish women?

We look at the workplace, and how difficult it can be for women experiencing symptoms to seek support. 10 per cent of women will leave the workforce during these years. Is this where the taboo needs to be shattered?

The documentary centres around real women sharing their experiences. In powerful testimonies, a diverse group women from all over Ireland tell their stories, sometimes hard, sometimes using humour, but always impactful. Expert interviewees include Dr. Deirdre Lundy, Dr.Caoimhe Hartley, and Dr. Sarah Callaghan.The documentary aims to shine a light on menopause, and to take a hammer to any remaining secrecy, while looking at the real issues through a scientific lens. The Change – Ireland’s Menopause Story is an informative, warm and engaging documentary that opens up this conversation further and looks to the future.

>>> HIGHLIGHTS: ONLINE

ON RTE.IE/SCIENCEWEEK + RTE.IE/LEARN

Online, we’ll have a host of science-themed content across the week, including:

• From Monday to Friday, on YouTube, RTÉ Learn will produce a short show featuring 5 different topics with 5 young science communicators, along with ‘companion’ articles from the science expert.
• We’ll have an extract from Luke O’Neill’s Book, What Makes Us Human.
• We’ll also bring back some popular content like Body Brothers, Let’s Find Out and Hub Lab.

ON RTÉjr

There’s a new series of the RTÉjr Radio Podcast Let’s Dive in with Phil Smyth and Julie Gould.

· We’ll have Episode 1 of Atom Town, a new cartoon based on the periodic table where elements have the same characteristics as their scientific make-up. The full series will be available in December.

ON RTÉ PLAYER

RTÉ Player will host a special, science-themed rail of excellent, Irish-produced science-led documentaries – among them Cloud Control, My Broken Brain, Will A Robot Steal My Job and Róisín Murphy’s Big City Plan – and will also carry the 2018 Science Week strand, Growing Up Live, presented by Angela Scanlon.

ON RTÉ BRAINSTORM

There will be a week of science-related content on Brainstorm, RTÉ’s home of new ideas, fresh thinking and smart insights on Ireland and world. This will include pieces on children’s thinking, wildfires, dylexsia, alien life and designing a future Ireland for an ageing population

For more on Science Week on RTÉ, visit rte.ie/scienceweek, follow #scienceweekrte across RTÉ’s social channels.

FUTURE ISLAND: BY EPISODE

Episode One

• New thinking on, and treatments for, obesity.
• How might we keep the lights on in the future: where is the power coming from and can Ireland become more self-sufficient ?
• The fastest man in Ireland reveals how he hopes science will help him to become even faster.
• The gadgets that will make life either more efficient, or more complicated, depending on your point of view.
• The latest scientific innovations from around the world.
• What the movies correctly predicted … years in advance.
• The science of music. Using the scientific principles that make instruments work, can we create an orchestra from scrap?

Episode Two

• New thinking on – and new treatments for – leukaemia.
• How the forward thinking of Irish scientist William Rowan Hamilton has enabled space travel and video games.
• Agriculture: Is it remotely possible that farmers can achieve 25% cuts to their emissions without a culling of the national herd?
• Gadgets that will make life either more efficient, or more complicated … depending on your point of view.
• More of the latest scientific innovations from around the world.
• The things that the movies haven’t correctly predicted … yet.
• And the science of AI – what are the benefits and downsides to using Artificial Intelligence and how has its use affected Bruce Willis and Darth Vader?

Episode Three

• New thinking on – and new treatments for – Alzheimer’s
• The science of the body’s largest organ: skin.
• The gadgets that will make life more efficient, or more complicated … depending on your point of view.
• More of the latest scientific innovations from around the world.
• The things that Star Trek correctly predicted, years in advance.
• And the science of air quality – how much can we change the air quality around us?