Whales and Aliens • 2019 • episode "S1E3" • Stories of Impact

53:18

Glass so strong you can jump on it, rubber so tough it protects a clay pot dropped from 50 feet, endless varieties of plastic. Scientists and engineers have created virtually indestructible versions of common materials by manipulating the chains of interlocking atoms that give them strength—but have they made them too tough? Host David Pogue explores the fantastic chemistry behind the everyday.

S1E1 • Beyond the Elements • 2020 • Science

52:00

Take a look back at many of the most fascinating science stories of 2017, a year full of stunning advancements in individual fields of study, from astronomy to biology, geology to history – when we piece these discoveries together we see the year in a new light.

2017 • Science

9:38

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

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

49:00

In the non-coding 98% of our DNA, we have countless switches to promote or suppress the physiological reactions of our bodies. Interestingly, we can change the states of these switches through our own efforts and even can affect the DNA conditions of our offspring before their birth.

S1E2 • Dynamic Genomes • 2019 • Science

5:38

David Spiegelhalter discusses how the work of amateur mathematician Thomas Bayes and statistician Ronald Fisher helped to shape the current thinking of probability.

S1E5 • People of Science with Brian Cox • 2018 • Science