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If you reach for the old tea towel in the cupboard, this episode is for you. 
It's time to talk textiles: why older towels seem to be better at drying, and when it may be time to throw out your more well-worn towels.
Jonathan follows the thread with Ellen Phiddian to find out what we can do with our linen. 
You can binge more episodes of the Lab Notes podcast with science editor and presenter Jonathan Webb on the ABC Listen app (Australia). You'll find episodes on animal behaviour, human health, space exploration and so much more.
Get in touch with us: [email protected]
Or get yourself a Radio National tea towel commemorating Science Week 2026!
Featuring:
Ellen Phiddian, Science Reporter ABC
This episode of Lab Notes was produced on the lands of the Gadigal, Ngunnawal and Ngambri people.

And genetics reveals further details of a great friendship story – humans and dogs.

Your phone battery doesn't like being fully charged or discharged. This is why it's sometimes advised that to extend its life, you shouldn't charge your phone beyond 80 per cent, or let it drop below 20 per cent.
But what's actually happening inside a lithium-ion battery to cause this effect, and what does it mean for battery engineering — and the life of the battery in your phone, or your electric car?
Jonathan Webb powers through the chemistry of batteries with Professor Neeraj Sharma.
You can binge more episodes of the Lab Notes podcast with science editor and presenter Jonathan Webb on the ABC Listen app (Australia). You'll find episodes on animal behaviour, human health, space exploration and so much more.
Get in touch with us: [email protected]
Featuring:
Professor Neeraj Sharma, University of New South Wales
This episode of Lab Notes was produced on the lands of the Gadigal, Ngunnawal and Ngambri people.

Millions, perhaps billions of sharks teeth lie on the ocean floor. Valuable mineral deposits collect on their fossilised remains. Now they are viewed as a resource and if exploited devastation will come to an little known ecosystem.