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Discovery

Explorations in the world of science.

World Service,1470 episodes

Episodes

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Adam Hart explores our relationship with some of the animal kingdom's deadliest predators
10 Aug 2020,26 mins
Human Genome Project's 20th Anniversary
Twenty years of the Human Genome Project
03 Aug 2020,26 mins
Brian Greene
Brian Greene studies the universe at the largest and smallest scales imaginable.
27 Jul 2020,26 mins
Jane Goodall
Jane Goodall describes her life with the wild chimpanzees of Gombe.
20 Jul 2020,26 mins
The Origin of Stuff
Toothbrush
Katy Brand investigates the toothbrush from its humble start, as a stick, to the present.
08 Jun 2020,26 mins
The Origin of Stuff
High heel
Katy Brand tracks the extraordinary life of the high heel, from past to the present.
15 Jun 2020,26 mins
The Origin of Stuff
Fork
Katy Brand explores the life of the unsung hero of the cutlery world – the fork.
22 Jun 2020,26 mins
The Origin of Stuff
Wine glass
Katy Brand toasts the wine glass, learning why it became the gargantuan glass it is today
29 Jun 2020,26 mins
The Origin of Stuff
Toilet
Katy Brand reveals how attitudes to the toilet have shaped it's place in history.
06 Jul 2020,26 mins
The Origin of Stuff
Bed
Katy Brand reveals how our attitudes to sleep, sex and status are played out in the bed.
13 Jul 2020,26 mins
Covid-19: Recovery
The latest on how people are recovering from Covid-19
11 Jul 2020,50 mins
The Evidence: Covid 19: vaccines and after lockdown
The latest on vaccines and how people are behaving after lockdown
27 Jun 2020,48 mins
The Evidence: Covid 19: Transmission and South America
How South America is handling the pandemic and a look at disease transmission.
13 Jun 2020,49 mins
In Their Element
Mercury - Chemistry's Jekyll and Hyde
The most beautiful and shimmering of the elements, the weirdest, and yet the most reviled
24 Jul 2017,26 mins
In Their Element
Oxygen: The breath of Life
Trevor Cox takes a deep breath and tells the story of oxygen on earth and in space
31 Jul 2017,26 mins
In Their Element
And then there was Li
The element that links the formation of the universe with the functioning of our brains
07 Aug 2017,26 mins
In Their Element
Carbon - the backbone of life
Why is all known life built on carbon?
14 Aug 2017,26 mins
In Their Element
Silicon - The World's Building Block
The key component of rocks, sand and materials from glass and concrete to microelectronics
28 Aug 2017,26 mins
In Their Element
Lead
The impact of the use and abuse of lead on humanity.
26 Feb 2018,26 mins
In Their Element
Phosphorus
How a discovery in boiled urine led to the trade union movement and chemical weapons.
05 Mar 2018,26 mins
In Their Element
Iodine
Why iodine is essential for our health?
12 Mar 2018,26 mins
In Their Element
Gold and silver
Science and art of gold and silver
18 May 2020,26 mins
In Their Element
Aluminium and strontium
Science and art of aluminium and strontium
25 May 2020,26 mins
In Their Element
Helium
Science and art of helium
01 Jun 2020,26 mins
The Evidence: Covid 19: Sub-Saharan Africa and Testing
How sub-Saharan Africa is handling the pandemic and the different kinds of tests
30 May 2020,49 mins
The Evidence: Covid 19: ending lockdowns
When and how to end lockdowns?
16 May 2020,50 mins
Science of Dad
Dr Oscar Duke discovers how pregnancy, birth and childcare affect the father
11 May 2020,26 mins
Ignaz Semmelweiss: The hand washer
Lindsey Fitzharris tells the story of Ignaz Semmelweiss, the hand washer
04 May 2020,26 mins
The Evidence: Mental health and Covid 19
How is our mental health during the pandemic?
02 May 2020,49 mins
Desert locust swarms
A second wave of locusts threatens crops in East Africa. Scientists lead the fightback
27 Apr 2020,26 mins