Human by Chance? • 2021

9:38

Hank discusses some of the taboos which have plagued scientific inquiry in the past and a few that still exist today.

Science

58:49

In part two, Professor Al-Khalili looks at the 19th century chemists who struggled to impose an order on the apparently random world of the elements. From working out how many there were to discovering their unique relationships with each other, the early scientists' bid to decode the hidden order of the elements was driven by false starts and bitter disputes. But ultimately the quest would lead to one of chemistry's most beautiful intellectual creations - the periodic table.

S1E2 • Chemistry: A Volatile History • 2010 • Science

11:40

How does altruism begin. Is it biological? Is it taught? Researchers are trying to understand the DNA of altruism by studying toddlers.

S1E5 • Stories of Impact • 2019 • Science

10:22

The global search is on for the next Ramanujan, a poor Indian drop-out who won a coveted spot at Cambridge University in the 1920's for his extraordinary genius in mathematics.

S1E8 • Stories of Impact • 2019 • Science

58:42

Just 92 elements made up the world, but the belief that were only four - earth, fire, air and water - persisted until the 19th Century. Professor Al-Khalili retraces the footsteps of the alchemists who first began to question the notion of the elements in their search for the secret of everlasting life. He reveals the red herrings and rivalries which dogged scientific progress, and explores how new approaches to splitting matter brought us both remarkable elements and the new science of chemistry.

S1E1 • Chemistry: A Volatile History • 2010 • Science

59:00

Professor Sue Black is joined by Silent Witness's Emilia Fox to reveal the secrets of forensic science. Sue shows how the stories of our lives are hidden in the very fabric of our bodies by examining an archaeological skeleton, using techniques she uses in modern-day forensic investigations. She gradually builds up its identity until a pile of old bones once again becomes a real person. She explains how extraordinary clues in our bones can reveal everything from our age and our sex to our diets and our ancestry – there's even a bone in our ear that can reveal where our mother lived while she was pregnant. Professor Black's investigations into the trauma marks visible in the 1,000-year-old skeleton's bones reveal where this person died, and how they died. In the process, she tells this individual's extraordinary life story and sheds light on one of the darkest days in English history. The Christmas Lectures date back to 1825 when Michael Faraday founded the lectures for children at the Royal Institution. They are the world's longest running science television series, which today use demonstrations and interactive experiments with the live theatre audience.

S1E1 • Secrets of Forensic Science • 2022 • Science