logo
episode-header-image
May 2024
49m 29s

Unexpected birthday party

Bbc World Service
About this episode
<p>It’s time for an unexpected celebration and we look to science for advice on clothes, cake and how presenter Marnie and panellists Christine and Candice can improve their singing. We also hear about the sleuths who have tracked down an animal that’s been presumed extinct for almost a century, we help a listener find the answer to whether using sunscreen i ... Show More
Up next
Apr 17
The ribbiting science of frogs
In 2025, Russian-born scientist Kseniia Petrova picked up some spliced frog embryos from a laboratory in France and brought them back to the USA to aid her research into ageing and cancer. She was detained by the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), charged wi ... Show More
49m 31s
Apr 10
Is everyone accounted for?
This month, India began the immense undertaking of surveying its population of 1.4 billion people in the world’s largest ever census. Inspired by this huge task, the Unexpected Elements team explores some population science. First, counting – or miscounting – populations. The glo ... Show More
49m 30s
Apr 3
Putting science on the map
China’s ambitious underwater mapping operation takes us on a voyage into the depths of ocean and map science.We look at what a network of underwater microphones can tell us about underwater geography, noisy ships, and whale conversations, and how it took nearly 300 researchers wo ... Show More
49m 31s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2024
Inside Health: How can we age well?
From the Hay Festival, James and a panel of experts explain what we can all do to help ourselves age well.We discover what’s going on in our bodies when we age, the difference between biological and chronological age, as well as getting the audience moving for a physical test.Jam ... Show More
26m 28s
Sep 2024
Why aren’t we eating more insects?
We try some cricket tacos and ask what role insects might play in our future diets, in a special programme with a live audience at Green Man Festival in the Bannau Brycheiniog National Park in Wales. Our panellists: Peter Smithers, an entomologist and fellow of the Royal Entomolo ... Show More
27m 54s
Nov 2024
Why can't my dog live as long as me?
As we enter our teenage years, many of us feel like life is just getting started. But for dogs, celebrating a ‘teen’ birthday is a sign of old age, entering a phase when things start slowing down. Listener Susan was besotted with her beloved corgi Copper John and wants to know wh ... Show More
28m 44s
Jul 2024
How can we age well?
From the Hay Festival, James and a panel of experts explain what we can all do to help ourselves age well. We discover what’s going on in our bodies when we age, the difference between biological and chronological age, as well as getting the audience moving for a physical test. J ... Show More
27m 51s
May 2024
Do we need a new model of cosmology?
Earlier this week, some of the world's leading astrophysicists came together at The Royal Society to question the very nature of our Universe. Does the Lambda Cold Dark Matter model, which explains the evolution of the cosmos and the Big Bang, need a rethink? Dr Chris North, an a ... Show More
31m 39s
Jun 2025
AGING with Caleb Finch
<p>How long can we live? How much of aging is genetics vs. environment? How old are your cells? What can we learn from the world’s oldest people? World-renowned aging expert and biogerontologist Dr. Caleb "Tuck" Finch takes a quick break from his prolific research at USC to answe ... Show More
20m 39s
Aug 2024
Summer picks: what can our dogs teach us about obesity?
Labradors are known for being greedy dogs, and now scientists have come up with a theory about the genetic factors that may be behind their behaviour. In this episode from April 2024, the Guardian’s science correspondent and flat-coated retriever owner Nicola Davis visits the Uni ... Show More
20m 44s
Jun 2025
What ‘Immortal’ Jellyfish and Famously Old Tortoises Tell Us about Aging
Animals’ lifespans can be far shorter or much longer than those of humans. Scientists are researching creatures such as “immortal” jellyfish and long-lived tortoises and digging deep into genetic codes to figure out why animals age—and what we can do to improve longevity in human ... Show More
14m 27s
Jun 2025
What ‘Immortal’ Jellyfish and Famously Old Tortoises Tell Us about Aging
Animals’ lifespans can be far shorter or much longer than those of humans. Scientists are researching creatures such as “immortal” jellyfish and long-lived tortoises and digging deep into genetic codes to figure out why animals age—and what we can do to improve longevity in human ... Show More
14m 27s
Dec 2024
Bored to Death
Anyone who has ever done a long car journey with kids will be familiar with the idea of being bored to death – but can this feeling really be fatal? Hannah and Dara hear about a club where members count roundabouts and collect milk bottle tops, but boredom expert Wijnand van Tilb ... Show More
30m 21s