It's that time of year again: it's muck up day at Sister Doctor Squared HQ! Tune in to hear what happens when Aleena and Janine do minimal prep and have maximum fun: reflections around space junk; Janine's progress with fighting bedtime procrastination; the perils of running on hardwood floors in socks; intentionally reduced news consumption; what …

Melanoma is a rare but incredibly lethal form of cancer. Although melanoma accounts for only 2% of skin cancers, it accounts for 80% of skin cancer deaths. How does melanoma develop? Why is UV light so dangerous? What role does genetics play? In this episode we explore these questions and highlight some of the latest targeted therapies for melanoma…

Having babies! It’s a part of so many people’s life plans. But for those who want kids, when is the ideal time to start trying? Our knowledge of fertility (our ability to conceive a pregnancy) and of how age affects fertility has a real impact on our aspirations and plans for family. But how much do we really know? And what could be skewing our kno…

Would you believe us if we told you that humans have left a bit of a mess in outer space? Orbiting Earth right now are tens of thousands of human made objects with no purpose – they are simply floating around as space junk. Why does this matter and what should we do? We’re telling you all about it! Plus, surprise! Janine introduces a brand new segm…

Janine introduces the episode by outlining her nightly ritual of bedtime procrastination: cleaning, journalling, compiling lists, listening to podcasts, embroidery, meme harvesting, party planning, and bingeing on Portlandia! Just a few of the things she got up to last night. Help. (Thanks to science, we have some answers!) Full show notes at the S…

As we come to the end of another year, Aleena and Janine take things down a notch and bring back muck up day! Muck up day in Australia is the last day of school for the year where there are much laughs, huge pranks, and minimal productivity. Tune in for a very loose episode where you'll be treated to some insights, a *SURPRISE* or two, and much ran…

What is all this fuss about blue light? You've probably heard about it having something to do with the backlighting on your smartphone or other electronic device. But what actually is blue light? What's it doing to your brain? Is it really that bad? In episode 20, Aleena and Janine are keen to see what the science says. They also have the final ins…

Engaging with music, whether it’s listening to it, or creating it, is one of life’s great joys. Neither Aleena nor Janine could get through a whole day without listening to some music. Humans have a deep emotional connection with music. But just how does music affect our mood, and how does our mood affect the music we listen to, or the music we cre…

How amazing is it to sit around a campfire? Watching those beautiful, flickering flames; listening to the gorgeous crackle of firewood. It's mesmerising. Humans are innately fascinated by fire, but our relationship with fire is complex. Sometimes, fire fascination turns into something more dangerous. Sometimes, humans intentionally set fires. And g…

Have you ever had a really strong gut feeling about something? You don't know why. You don't know where it's coming from, but it's telling you something very clearly. Should you trust it? In this episode, Aleena and Janine delve into the science behind gut instincts. Aleena then hijacks the inner square segment to update everyone on the latest kitc…

Tourette Syndrome Awareness Week is running from 2 - 8 May 2022! So, Janine and Aleena are raising understanding and busting some myths around Tourette Syndrome, especially as Janine's little boy has this condition. The sisters are joined by their first ever guest - Seamus Evans! Seamus is an awesome TV and radio broadcaster and now passionate publ…

WARNING: This episode contains discussion related to traumatic experiences that may be distressing for some listeners. Janine excitedly shares details of her new pet dog Calli (#RescueGreyhound), who massively inspired this episode, since Calli displays a very strong "freeze response" in times of stress. Aleena and Janine take a look at some resear…

Welcome to 2022! You might have mixed feelings about what is to come in the year ahead... a new year often brings a lot of hope, excitement and promise, but with so much uncertainty in the world at the moment, many are feeling quite despondent, and justifiably so. It follows that many of us have been less successful with attaining resolutions and g…

In the spirit of the traditional 'muck up day' on the last day of school in Australia, Aleena and Janine mix things up a bit in this episode... They reflect on Sister Doctor Squared turning 1, the many random and interesting things they've learned during the first year, and conduct the first ever Sister Doctor Squared Awards Ceremony, complete with…

With vaccination rates currently a topic of daily conversation, Aleena and Janine have been looking into what factors might be behind poor vaccination rates in some settings. They are surprised to find that fear or phobia of needles could be an important contributor to vaccine hesitancy. They also got their square on when voluntary primary-school l…

Aleena and Janine investigate how the passage of time can often feel slower or faster even when, objectively, we know that time is always passing at a constant rate. Why do some days drag on while others disappear in a flash? How is it possible that things can feel like they are happening in slow motion during traumatic events? Aleena also shares t…

Janine was helping some students with high school genetics when she came across some fascinating research suggesting that whales and other cetacean mammals hardly ever get cancer. She and Aleena were super intrigued and just had to know why, especially as there is such a strong history of cancer in their family. Meanwhile, Aleena tells us how she s…

Aleena was recently offered antibiotics by a doctor, for a situation where antibiotics were completely inappropriate. She called immediately called Janine and it was decided that they just needed to do an episode about this massive issue. Meanwhile, Aleena has been partnering with her cat and doing some citizen science experiments, while Janine is …

Janine and Aleena kick off by summarising the well-established 'placebo' effect, before focusing in on the lesser-known 'nocebo' effect. What's the difference? How might these effects play a big role in treatment effectiveness? Can these effects be minimised? Janine also confesses to sub-par performance on a university assignment and Aleena shares …

Aleena and Janine respond to a listener request for an episode about their own scientific research. They're happy to oblige! They kick off with Janine's past research into satin bowerbirds and explain just why males collect, hoard, and steal so much random blue stuff! Meanwhile, Aleena discusses her own peculiar past habit of collecting local bus t…

In this episode, Aleena and Janine get stuck into the research around human crying. Why do we do it? How did this bizarre behaviour even evolve? Why are humans the only animals shedding tears due to emotion? Should we hold in the tears or let them flow? Meanwhile Aleena then shares her newfound appreciation for protective eyewear for doggos and Jan…

In this episode, Aleena and Janine respond to a listener question (#exciting!): Deepak got in touch to ask them to explain the La Niña weather cycle that he keeps hearing about in the news in Australia this Summer. They start by breaking down the science that causes La Niña (and El Niño) weather patterns across the globe. Then they go deeper into s…

Aleena and Janine open this episode by chatting about how physics may partly explain your messy house. They go deeper into the scientific literature about clutter in your home - how bad is it really? And what can you do about it? Do Marie Kondo's methods really work? What does 'sparking joy' even mean?! They are well placed to chat about all of thi…

WARNING: This episode contains discussion related to violent crime that may be distressing for some listeners. In episode 3, Aleena and Janine admit to spending countless hours engaging in true crime media. They really want to get to the bottom of why they, and so many of us, are so obsessed with this stuff! The research they present sheds light on…

In this episode, Aleena and Janine delve in to the evidence behind multitasking – is it a myth or not? Janine’s consistent inability to multitask has always been a source of much amusement within the family. Aleena, on the other hand, has always appeared to be an effective multitasker. Their research delivers some clear evidence on whether multitas…

Aleena and Janine kick off the Sister Doctor Squared podcast by discussing the most pressing issue in our world right now: coronavirus. In this episode they delve into some aspects of the underlying biology of the virus, and also people’s psychological responses to the pandemic. Somehow they also end up discussing toileting and cat poo. Full show n…

Well hello there! This is a podcast where sisters Aleena and Janine get super chatty about research into science, health, psychology and more. In this short intro episode, they explain who the hell they are and that they already have a ridiculously long list of topics that they’ll probably never get through, and rattle off a few of the ideas (hope …