The Naked Scientists: COVID Inquiry, AlphaDev AI, Cat Contraception Gene Therapy, Butterfly Return, and Gas to Solid Deposition

The Naked Scientists explore a spectrum of science and policy this week, beginning with the UK Covid inquiry and its aim to improve future pandemic responses, then turning to DeepMind's AlphaDev and its ability to generate faster computer algorithms, followed by a discussion of a novel gene therapy approach to cat contraception. The program also reports on a rare sighting of the black-veined white butterfly in Britain and ends with a Question of the Week about whether gases can be directly compressed into a solid. Through expert interviews and accessible explanations, the episode highlights how science, policy and innovation intersect in real world impact.

• Covid inquiry aims to learn from the past and improve future pandemic preparedness through a modular public inquiry.
• AlphaDev shows AI can discover faster sorting and hashing algorithms with potential energy and efficiency benefits.
• Gene therapy delivering anti-Mullerian hormone offers a long-lasting, non-surgical method for feline contraception, with safety and regulatory steps ahead.
• Wildlife news reports a possible reestablishment signal for a butterfly species in the UK, underscoring habitat importance.
• Deposition in gases is possible under high pressures, but conditions and material changes matter for the solid state.

Introduction and scope

The episode of The Naked Scientists weaves together policy, computation, veterinary science, ecology and fundamental physics. The central thread is how science engages with public policy and real-world decision-making, from a major public inquiry into the COVID-19 pandemic to cutting-edge AI research, and from animal welfare science to butterfly conservation and a science-fictional question about phase transitions in gases.

Public inquiry: COVID-19 in context

The program opens with Emma Norris of the Institute for Government explaining the purpose of the UK COVID Inquiry. It is described as a statutory public inquiry with broad powers designed to examine preparation, government decision making, health service responses, and the pandemic’s impact on different groups, with the aim of learning and improving preparedness for future health emergencies. The inquiry is structured into modules, with interim reports after each module to ensure timely lessons while the broader investigation proceeds toward a final report in 2026. The discussion touches on the tension between speed and breadth: a broader inquiry can be slower, but the structure allows for early recommendations that guide reforms, while risk remains that the final report may become out of date due to rapid changes in public health administration. The interview also covers the actors involved, from medical professionals and epidemiologists to policymakers and politicians. A notable focal point is the material requested from high-level figures, including private diaries and WhatsApp messages, and the dispute over what constitutes relevant material. The segment emphasizes the importance of independent scrutiny and cross-institutional learning as a standard response to major crises.

AI and machine learning: AlphaDev and faster algorithms

The next segment shifts to the world of artificial intelligence with Daniel Mankiewicz of DeepMind discussing AlphaDev. The conversation centers on how the AI writes its own code to optimize common computer algorithms, achieving speedups of up to 70% for sorting tasks and significant improvements in hashing algorithms. The analogy to human-engineered problem solving is used to explain how the AI can explore parts of the computation space that humans might not consider, generating novel strategies that improve efficiency. The potential implications are framed in the context of the computing stack and energy usage as chips continue to face physical limits. The discussion cites AlphaGo’s historical breakthrough as a parallel to the unexpected yet highly effective moves that AI systems can propose, illustrating how machine-driven exploration can unlock new efficiencies in everyday computing tasks. The interview also clarifies the safety and applicability questions, noting the virus-based concerns around training data and the ethical dimensions of automated code generation. The study mentioned has been published in Nature Communications and demonstrates the practical impact of AI-driven optimization on widely used computational routines.

Contraception for cats: gene therapy as an alternative to surgery

The show then shifts to veterinary biotechnology with researchers Bill Swanson and David Pepin discussing a gene therapy approach to contraception in cats. The method leverages anti Mullerian hormone (AMH) and a viral vector to deliver the AMH gene, causing long-term suppression of follicle development. In their Nature Communications study, six treated cats showed high circulating AMH levels and reduced fertility, with six months to four years of observation indicating sustained expression and no adverse events. The vector used is an adeno-associated virus (AAV) that is non-replicative and non-integrating, reducing environmental spread and genomic disruption concerns. The team anticipates regulatory steps toward veterinary product approval, with main funding from the Michelson Found Animals Foundation and ongoing discussions with the FDA to determine the clinical path forward, including larger trials to verify safety and efficacy.

Butterflies in Britain: a rare sighting and what it means for conservation

BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner shares a conservation-friendly wildlife note about the first wild black veined white butterfly observed in Britain since 1925. The sighting, described as a potentially reestablished population, was photographed in southeast London after being reported by butterfly enthusiasts. Habitat considerations highlight hawthorn and blackthorn as essential for this species, and butterfly conservation groups urge caution in celebrating a full reintroduction. Local experts think the arrival may have come from a female butterfly that crossed from continental Europe last year, with a brood possibly persisting into the next season. The story emphasizes how habitat fragmentation and hedgerow loss have historically affected butterfly populations, and how targeted habitat restoration could influence revival opportunities for rare species.

Question of the Week: can gas become a solid directly

Rounding out the program, the Question of the Week addresses a classic physics question: is it possible to compress a gas into a solid directly, bypassing the liquid phase? Science communicator Dave Ansell explains that yes, under appropriate pressure and temperature conditions, a gas can solidify, but the resulting material and the subsequent state when pressure is released depend on the material and conditions. He notes that many gases will heat up under compression, complicating solid formation, and that some materials may undergo chemical changes under the required extremes. This discussion helps illustrate how phase transitions depend on both thermodynamics and kinetics.

Closing remarks

The episode closes with the standard sign-off and credits, underscoring the program’s home at the University of Cambridge and its connection to science communication and public policy discussion.