UNTANGLING SCIENCE EPISODE 2 – VIRUSES*****

 

By Megan

Link: https://www.untanglingscience.com/episode-2-viruses

Available until: Unknown

Episode 2 of Untangling Science, presented by Darragh Ennis, is really good. It asks questions like what viruses are, how they get into our bodies and make us feel so completely horrible and what kind of research scientists are doing in order to prevent viruses from doing that.

It is a really well presented podcast. Episode 1 was brilliant but there were a couple of tiny things that made it more difficult to understand but these have been completely sorted out now. Episode 2 is clear and well written, it doesn’t go too fast and it’s very easy to follow. There are regular recaps of what we’ve learned so far and these are really helpful as a reminder, a rest for our brains and also to show us just how much we have learned which is a nice confidence boost.

The language is very clear and simple but it’s never patronising. Everything is explained really well with some really good verbal images (I like the part about security guards a lot) and I really feel like I understand quite a lot about viruses now. Even if you have heard a lot about viruses over the past two years and you’re a bit fed up with it, this is still a really good podcast to listen to because it’s really interesting and there actually isn’t much about COVID-19. There are also some really interesting facts which aren’t things you have to know if you want to know what viruses are but they are fun things to know. I love what the word virus means. I think that’s so brilliant.

The podcast also feels like a sort of a story, like first it introduces the main character, then the story starts with the first hints that viruses are invading the world and how scientists slowly worked out what was going on. The way viruses were first discovered is so weird and random and the way the scientists found out more about them is really exciting. The way viruses actually get into your body and make you ill is horrible but so clever. The way the immune system fights to get rid of them is really amazing. The last bit of the podcast is about the research being done into viruses and what might happen in the future. So the podcast really does tell you the whole story.

I also really love how enthusiastic the podcast is. One reason why it can be difficult to pay attention at school sometimes (though I do try really hard) is because the teachers don’t sound very invested. Darragh Ennis has so much enthusiasm for his subject and that is something I really get caught up in. The tone of voice tells you it is interesting and when you listen to all the different amazing things viruses can do, you can hear for yourself that it is actually really exciting.

I think next time I get a virus, I won’t be as sad about it because I will understand what my immune system is doing and how clever it is. I don’t really want to get a virus because I don’t want to make other people ill too and I definitely don’t want COVID-19 because it is so dangerous and horrible and I don’t want to give it to anyone else but I think it will make me feel better to think about how I know what’s going on and that my body is helping me really.

I am so excited that the next episode will be about the periodic table. I love the periodic table. I know what all the elements are called and I know which three elements contain all the letters of my name but that’s not really science. I don’t really know anything scientific except there’s something called an atom and inside the atom there’s a nucleus and there are three things called subatomic particles inside the atom and that elements join together to make compounds but that’s all I know really. But I’m sure I’ll know a lot more after I listen to Episode 3.