Rugby, Rockets, and Robots

About this episode

Lesley and Fraser discuss Scotland's rugby victory, the escalation of conflict in the Middle East, and advancements in AI for breast cancer detection.

In this week's episode, Lesley and Fraser digest a whirlwind week that saw Scotland’s rugby players secure another win—but this time, there’s a trophy involved with a very specific history. Fraser reveals his own "tangential" role in the creation of the Old Alliance Trophy and why it’s definitely not a cup. The mood shifts as we analyse the terrifying escalation in the Middle East following the bombing of a girls' school in Minab, South Iran. We discuss the chilling rhetoric of the US administration, the surge in oil prices, and the stark contrast in European leadership—from Spain’s firm "no" on base access to the "swithering" internal dynamics of the UK Labour Party. Closer to home, we look at a genuine medical breakthrough: a pioneering study at NHS Grampian showing that AI can increase breast cancer detection by 10%. But it's not all good news for the tech world; we discuss Donald Trump’s targeting of Anthropic (the makers of Claude) and what the future holds for software development jobs. Plus, Lesley shares how she’s using AI to sift through a decade of Nordic research, and we look ahead to the march on Calton Hill on the 28th. In this episode: The Old Alliance Trophy: The…

People in this episode

Hosts: Lesley Riddoch, Fraser Thompson

Topics covered

• Rugby
• Middle East conflict
• AI in healthcare
• Oil prices
• European leadership
• Scottish politics

Keywords

• rugby
• Middle East
• AI
• breast cancer detection
• Old Alliance Trophy
• oil prices
• Scottish politics

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: NHS Grampian, Anthropic

Places: Scotland, Iran, Minab

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