Appetite. Aggression. Puberty. Parenthood. Even 48-hour prairie vole mating marathons. Is there anything the hypothalamus isn’t involved in? In Episode 5 (Part 1) of Leafing Through Science, Hedi is joined by neuroendocrinologist Gareth Leng, author of “The Heart of the Brain: The Hypothalamus and Its Hormones”.

From the “love hormone” and maternal bonding, to why your brain is more like a quantum computer, discover the brain’s secret hormonal languages that drive your behaviour and keep you alive.

Every two weeks, the new podcast series Leafing Through Science brings together host Hedi Young, Champalimaud Foundation neuroscientist and science communicator, with the authors behind some of the most fascinating non-fiction books in the life sciences. From new releases to timeless classics, we explore everything from the mysteries of consciousness and free will, to alien hands and minds under siege. Expect page-turning ideas, head-spinning science, and stories that might just change how you see the world – and yourself.

Relevant links

“The Heart of the Brain: The Hypothalamus and Its Hormones”

More about Gareth

Chapters:

(00:00) The Hypothalamus: All Human Life Is There

(01:06) Introduction

(02:19) "Let me know when you’ve found something interesting"

(06:52) From Heresy to Nobel Prizes: the Birth of Neuroendocrinology

(10:34) Behaviour: From Primal Drives to Profound Bonds

(12:59) Clans of the Hypothalamus

(15:41) Whispers and Public Announcements

(18:02) Why Connections Aren’t the Whole Story

(20:04) Is the Brain a Quantum Computer?

(22:47) Shakespeare and Peptides

(24:46) Same Hormone, Different Message: The Many Lives of Oxytocin

(29:26) Beyond the Love Hormone: Breastfeeding, Birth and Bonding

(34:15) From Sex to Attachment: Voles and Valentines

(40:03) Vasopressin and the Making of a Monogamous Male

(45:13) The Hypothalamus: His and Hers

(46:11) Pulse and Surge: The Rhythm of Reproduction

(50:38) Kisspeptin Enters the Story

(56:12) Sexual Rejection and Fertility

(58:40) Wrapping Up

Credits

Creator & Series Producer: Hedi Young

Concept Development & Curation: Ana Rita Mendes, António Monteiro, Carla Emilie Pereira, Catarina Ramos, Diana Cadete, Hedi Young, João Van Zelst, John Lee, Marta Correia, Thaïs Lindemann and Teresa Fernandes

Host: Hedi Young

Guest: Gareth Leng

Graphic Design: Marta Correia

Sound Design: João Van Zelst

Dissemination: Ana Rita Mendes and Diana Cadete

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the participants and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Champalimaud Foundation.

Why is there something it’s like to be you – and could AI ever be truly conscious? In Episode 4 of Leafing Through Science, neuroscientist and bestselling author Anil Seth joins Hedi to explore the mystery at the heart of his acclaimed book Being You: A New Science of Consciousness.

From philosophical zombies and the purpose of dreaming, to measuring consciousness like temperature and why brains aren’t computers, Seth unpacks the idea that our experience of reality – and of ourselves – is a kind of waking dream, a “controlled hallucination”, shaped by prediction, perception, and the body’s primal drive to stay alive. His theory of what it means to ‘be you’ challenges how we understand perception – and turns what you thought you knew about yourself on its head.

Every two weeks, the new podcast series Leafing Through Science brings together host Hedi Young, Champalimaud Foundation neuroscientist and science communicator, with the authors behind some of the most fascinating non-fiction books in the life sciences. From new releases to timeless classics, we explore everything from consciousness and free will, to alien hands and minds under siege. Expect page-turning ideas, head-spinning science, and eye-opening stories.

🔗 Relevant links:

“Being You: A New Science of Consciousness” by Anil Seth

More about Anil

⏱️ Chapters:

(00:00) Turning People into Objects

(01:07) Introduction

(02:26) From Vitalism to Consciousness

(03:54) A Definition in Progress

(06:01) Why Aren’t We Just Zombies?

(10:22) The Real Problem of Consciousness

(13:34) A Yellow Mug, Not a Blue Teapot

(14:41) Can We Build a Consciousness Meter?

(25:55) Perception as Controlled Hallucination

(34:02) How the Brain Builds Time

(38:17) Dreams as Uncontrolled Perception

(42:28) Inferring the Body, Just Like the World

(44:46) Emotions Holding the Self Together?

(46:39) The Beast Machine Theory

(51:39) Brains Aren’t Computers

(56:08) Would This Robot Be Conscious?

(01:02:41) Wrapping Up

🎙️ Episode Credits:

Creator & Series Producer: Hedi Young

Concept Development & Curation: Ana Rita Mendes, António Monteiro, Carla Emilie Pereira, Catarina Ramos, Diana Cadete, Hedi Young, João Van Zelst, John Lee, Marta Correia, Thaïs Lindemann and Teresa Fernandes

Host: Hedi Young

Guest: Anil Seth

Graphic Design: Marta Correia

Sound Design: João Van Zelst

Dissemination: Ana Rita Mendes and Diana Cadete

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the participants and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Champalimaud Foundation.

In Episode 3 of Leafing Through Science, Hedi sits down with David Adam – science writer and author of the bestseller The Man Who Couldn't Stop: The Truth About OCD – to explore the strange and unrelenting world of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).

What drives someone to fear their own thoughts, or an Ethiopian schoolgirl to eat the wall of her house, bit by bit? Why do millions of us get stuck in loops of doubt and dread? And what does it mean to have a brain that simply won’t let go?

David reveals the hidden mechanics of OCD – from the weird thoughts that exist within us all, to the condition’s so-called “patient zero”, white bears and Winston Churchill’s own battle with egodystonia. David traces the fine line between ordinary mental noise and debilitating compulsion and gives an honest account of his own struggles.

Along the way, their discussion challenges the notion of what counts as “normal” thought, and reflects on the evolution of treatment – from lobotomies and cavalier surgeons to today’s more effective, evidence-based approaches like Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.

Every two weeks, the podcast series Leafing Through Science brings together host Hedi Young, Champalimaud Foundation neuroscientist and science communicator, with the authors behind some of the most fascinating non-fiction books in the life sciences. We explore everything from the mysteries of consciousness and free will, to alien hands and minds under siege. Expect page-turning ideas, head-spinning science, and stories that might just change how you see the world.

🔗 Relevant links:

The Man Who Couldn't Stop: The Truth About OCD

More on David

Interview with Gonçalo Cotovio on Lesional OCD using TMS

Neuropsychiatry Unit - Champalimaud Foundation

OCD-UK

International OCD Foundation

⏱️ Chapters:

(00:00) Teaser

(01:04) Intro

(02:36) What is OCD?

(04:22) Common Themes of Obsessions & Compulsions

(06:20) Everyone Has Intrusive Thoughts

(08:35) Why OCD Develops

(10:05) Egodystonic Thoughts

(12:34) The White Bear Phenomenon

(15:02) Inflated Responsibility

(18:01) David's Personal Journey with OCD

(21:10) Living Life on Autopilot

(24:10) Hitting Bottom

(26:02) Success with Cognitive Behavioural Therapy

(30:03) Surgical Horrors

(31:43) PANDAS & TMS

(33:06) New Approach to OCD and Mental Illness

(35:50) Advice & Resources for Those Affected by OCD

🎙️ Episode Credits:

Creator & Series Producer: Hedi Young

Concept Development & Curation: Ana Rita Mendes, António Monteiro, Carla Emilie Pereira, Catarina Ramos, Diana Cadete, Hedi Young, João Van Zelst, John Lee, Marta Correia, Thaïs Lindemann and Teresa Fernandes

Host: Hedi Young Guest: David Adam

Graphic Design: Marta Correia

Sound Design: João Van Zelst

Dissemination: Ana Rita Mendes and Diana Cadete

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the participants and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Champalimaud Foundation.

Sian Harding, a world leader in cardiac research, joins Hedi to reveal the heart as you’ve never seen it before, as they discuss her book The Exquisite Machine: The New Science of the Heart. From how social rank, air pollution, noise, and even your mother’s pregnancy diet can shape heart health, to the heart’s mini-brain or growing hearts in the lab from skin cells, they uncover the remarkable ways this muscular organ does far more than “just” pump blood.

They also talk about how the heart doesn’t only respond to emotions – it creates them too – and how a broken heart is more than just a metaphor, as we explore the mystery behind “Broken Heart Syndrome” and the heart’s response to emotional shock. Harding takes us on an eye-opening journey through the science that’s rewriting how we understand our body’s most poetic organ – and how it could help us tackle one of the world’s biggest health challenges.

Relevant links:

“The Exquisite Machine: The New Science of the Heart” by Sian E. Harding

More about Sian

British Heart Foundation

WomenHeart

Chapters:

(00:00) The Quake That Broke Hearts

(00:57) Introduction

(01:51) A Heart Like You’ve Never Heard Before

(04:04) The Influence of Social Status

(07:05) Pollution, Noise and the Heart

(10:20) Heart Health and Maternal Diet

(13:07) Mutations and "Second Hits"

(15:59) Inside the Engine Room

(17:58) Alive Without a Heart

(18:45) Artificial Hearts and Stolen Lifelines

(20:31) Living Without a Pulse

(21:13) The Beating Beauty Beneath the Glass

(22:06) Heart Cells Need Company (and a Workout)

(23:13) Hidden Hills and Valleys

(24:46) Heart Failure and Heart Attacks Explained

(28:35) The Cardiac Cost of Cancer Drugs

(30:14) The Heart's Mini-Brain

(32:46) Heartbeat Timing and Subliminal Fear

(35:56) Broken Heart Syndrome

(38:56) Sudden Collapse on the Football Pitch

(41:03) Gender and the Heart

(44:01) Growing Hearts in the Lab

(49:53) "Disease in a Dish" Approach

(52:29) Gene Therapy to the Rescue?

(56:26) Wrapping Up

Episode Credits:

Creator & Series Producer: Hedi Young

Concept Development & Curation: Ana Rita Mendes, António Monteiro, Carla Emilie Pereira, Catarina Ramos, Diana Cadete, Hedi Young, João Van Zelst, John Lee, Marta Correia, Thaïs Lindemann and Teresa Fernandes

Host: Hedi Young

Guest: Moheb Costandi

Graphic Design: Marta Correia

Sound Design: João Van Zelst

Dissemination: Ana Rita Mendes and Diana Cadete

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the participants and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Champalimaud Foundation.

Following Episode 1 - Part 1, this second part of Hedi’s conversation with science writer Moheb Costandi unpacks how our sense of agency – the feeling of being in control of our actions and responsible for their outcomes – can be disrupted in conditions like Alien Hand Syndrome and schizophrenia, manipulated on the operating table, or even altered in everyday life. Their discussion also ranges from the science behind anorexia nervosa and Alice in Wonderland Syndrome to peripersonal space – the invisible bubble around our bodies that helps define the boundary between self and world. What do these insights reveal about the nature of consciousness itself?

Relevant links:

Book – Body Am I: The New Science of Self-Consciousness by Moheb Costandi

More about Moheb

Further Reading & Support for Conditions Mentioned:

Research and support for chronic pain and phantom limb pain

Support for amputees and prosthetics users

Charity for limbless veterans and their families

Supporting those with eating disorders, including anorexia nervosa

Chapters:

(00:00) Introduction and Overview of Bodily Awareness

(01:52) When Hands Have a Mind of Their Own

(03:30) Distorted Agency in Schizophrenia

(06:25) Avatar Therapy

(07:33) An Alien Hand Case

(08:52) Manipulating Agency in the Lab

(10:57) Surgically Hijacking Free Will

(12:25) Body Awareness in Anorexia

(16:27) Alice in Wonderland Syndrome

(19:53) Peripersonal Space

(24:40) Prosthetic Limbs and Robotic Hands

(26:15) Implications for Consciousness

(27:34) Wrapping Up

Episode Credits:

Creator & Series Producer: Hedi Young

Concept Development & Curation: Ana Rita Mendes, António Monteiro, Carla Emilie Pereira, Catarina Ramos, Diana Cadete, Hedi Young, João Van Zelst, John Lee, Marta Correia, Thaïs Lindemann and Teresa Fernandes

Host: Hedi Young

Guest: Moheb Costandi

Graphic Design: Marta Correia

Sound Design: João Van Zelst

Dissemination: Ana Rita Mendes and Diana Cadete

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the participants and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Champalimaud Foundation.

In this inaugural episode, Hedi sits down with veteran science writer Moheb Costandi about his fascinating book Body Am I: The New Science of Self-Consciousness.

From phantom breasts and rubber hands to the Pinocchio illusion and out-of-body experiences; from amputating a healthy leg to feel whole, to scratching an itch with a ghostly third arm – prepare to journey through the strange and astonishing ways our brains construct a sense of bodily self. Moheb walks us through the science, the syndromes, and the people whose experiences reveal just how malleable – and downright bizarre – our sense of owning a body really is.

Relevant links:

Book – Body Am I: The New Science of Self-Consciousness by Moheb Costandi

More about Moheb

Chapters:

(00:00) Losing a Limb to Feel Whole

(01:12) Introduction

(03:36) Understanding Bodily Awareness

(04:41) A Hand That Isn’t Mine vs. A Hand I Can’t Control

(05:51) Phantom Limbs, Breasts, and Beyond

(08:26) Phantom Sensations in Transgender Individuals

(09:49) Counting with Invisible Fingers

(11:14) Therapies for Phantom Pain

(12:50) Rubber Hands, Rubber Tails: The Illusion from Humans to Mice

(16:34) Hammers, Knives, and Illusions in the Pub

(18:32) Body Integrity Identity Disorder

(21:08) A Surgeon, a Pistol, and a Leg

(22:02) Hemiplegia and The Denial of Paralysis

(23:36) Discovering Body Maps in the Brain

(26:58) Scratching an Itch with a Ghostly Third Arm

(29:02) The Multisensory Mind

(30:13) Inducing Out-of-body Experiences

(31:50) The Body Swap Illusion

(32:35) The Barbie Doll Illusion

(33:49) Proprioception and the Pinocchio Illusion

(35:00) The Story of Ian Waterman

(36:20) Interoception and the Origins of Emotion

(39:21) Alexithymia and Emotional Blindness

(39:56) Wrapping Up & What’s Next

Episode Credits:

Creator & Series Producer: Hedi Young

Concept Development & Curation: Ana Rita Mendes, António Monteiro, Carla Emilie Pereira, Catarina Ramos, Diana Cadete, Hedi Young, João Van Zelst, John Lee, Marta Correia, Thaïs Lindemann and Teresa Fernandes

Host: Hedi Young

Guest: Moheb Costandi

Graphic Design: Marta Correia

Sound Design: João Van Zelst

Dissemination: Ana Rita Mendes and Diana Cadete

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the participants and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Champalimaud Foundation.