Showing results by publisher "BBC Audio" in Science & Engineering

Award-winning broadcaster, best-selling author and zoologist Lucy Cooke has produced and presented numerous natural history shows on TV and radio, and has been tipped by The Times as 'the next David Attenborough'. In this BBC Radio 4 series, first broadcast under the title The Power Of..., she delves into the animal kingdom, exploring what gives certain species the evolutionary edge over their rivals.

Since 2013, Tweet of the Day has been a daily delight for early risers, with its 90 seconds of beautiful birdsong and fascinating ornithological stories. But what of the people who tune in to this avian chorus? In this collection, we bring to the airwaves the conversational voices of an array of wildlife enthusiasts, all eager to recount their encounters with birds.

Presenters Becky Ripley and Emily Knight mull over a multitude of bewildering and brain-teasing questions as they try to make sense of what we humans are all about - with a little help from some other species. What can the swirling patterns in a starling murmuration tell us about the way our ideas spread? Can ants teach us anything about avoiding a pandemic? And how could a brainless single-cell slime mould help to solve our trickiest problems?

Beating climate change takes the best ideas from the smartest minds, and in this programme, Tom Heap reveals 39 ways to relieve the stress that climate change is exerting on the planet. Our brightest brains are developing potent carbon-cutting ideas - from the paddy fields of the Punjab to the Siberian permafrost. We hear about incredible new solar panel materials and robots repairing wind turbines, as well as thinking about biodiversity, trees and blue carbon - the marine and coastal ecosystems that are so important for storing carbon and preventing coastal erosion.

When it comes to our health, what constitutes 'normal'? Who decides, and where do they draw the line? Is 'normal' the same for everyone? And if you don't tick the box marked 'normal', do you need treatment or are you simply different? In these 34 episodes, science writer and broadcaster Vivienne Parry attempts to answer these questions and work out what 'normal' means with regard to our bodies and minds.

Physicist and popular science author Simon Singh explores the numbers and concepts that lie at the heart of some of the trickiest problems in mathematics, revealing their history, significance and unique qualities. Beginning with zero - which, amazingly, wasn't invented until 400 BC and then took thousands of years to catch on - he goes on to serve up a slice of pi, uncover the hidden beauty of the Golden Ratio, reveal the reality behind the imaginary number and explain why some infinities are bigger than others.

Art and science are often considered to be in conflict, with art dealing in creativity and science in cold, hard facts. But the two disciplines have always been interconnected, taking inspiration from each other and shaping each other's worlds. In this fascinating 20-part series, Sir Ian Blatchford, Director of the Science Museum, and Dr Tilly Blyth, the Science Museum's Head of Collections, reveal how science's ingenuity has been incorporated into artistic expression - and how art's creativity has stimulated scientific progress and technological change.

A collection of BBC radio documentaries celebrating the lunar landings and their legacy. On July 20th 1969, for the first time in history, man walked on the moon. Over 50 years later, this 'giant leap for mankind' still captures our imagination, and in this four-part collection, we bring together some of the most fascinating and insightful BBC documentaries about our ever-changing relationship with our only natural satellite. 

There are still dark corners of our planet that are yet to be explored. In this remarkable book, Steve Backshall offers an unflinching account of his adventures into these uncharted territories around the globe, in search of world firsts. Each location brings its own epic challenges - whether it's the first climb of an arctic ice fall in Greenland, the first recorded navigation of a South American river, or the first exploration of the world’s longest cave system in Mexico. But all of them represent new tests of the limits of human endeavour. 

 This 'shamelessly nerdy...deeply silly' (Radio Times) space extravaganza features fewer close-ups of Professor Brian Cox looking cool in front of a rocket than Wonders of the Universe but more weird, wonderful and occasionally woeful stories about the geniuses, Nazis and Satanists who plotted to propel humankind to the stars. Find out the many and varied ways to leave the planet as It Is Rocket Science takes you on a 'gleefully irreverent' (The Scotsman) whistle-stop comic tour of the Great Brains who put monkeys, ladies, dogs and gentlemen into orbit.     

The complete series 1-5 of the Sony Award Winning BBC Radio 4 show, The Infinite Monkey Cage, presented by physicist Brian Cox and comedian Robin Ince. The duo, assisted by a panel of experts and entertainers, tackle subjects such as biology, cosmology, physics and why Brian's hair is always so perfect. Guests include Dara Ó Briain, Jon Ronson, Stephen Fry and Dave Gorman, amongst many more.

In Britain, we're sometimes inclined to think of science as happening far away from us - in labs or universities or even in the past - and having little impact on our lives. In this groundbreaking series, Lisa Jardine weaves science back into the everyday by showing how the concerns of scientists have always been the concerns of us all. Starting in Restoration England, we travel through seven ages to examine Britain's unparalleled contribution to science. 

The long history of science is illuminated by eureka moments - occasional and startling breakthroughs that change the way we think about ourselves and our universe. Adam Hart-Davis guides us through the history of science by examining 16 of the most formative years for our understanding of astronomy, medicine, biology, space and time. Episodes include 1965, in which Adam examines how mankind's peculiar gift for self-destruction fuelled the race to the moon. He leafs through a book published in 1628, which described, for the first time, how blood circulates around the human body. 

In his first BBC radio series, New Comedy Award finalist Jacob Hawley examines one of the most important issues affecting young people today, looking into every aspect of British drug culture to discover its scope and effects. As a recreational drugs user for almost a decade, Jacob thought he knew more than most about the topic - but was shocked by how much he still had to learn.

In 1985, The Observer magazine sent Douglas Adams to Madagascar to look for the exotic and potentially extinct aye-aye lemur. There he met zoologist Mark Carwardine, and together they made a radio pilot about their travels, In Search of the Aye-Aye. This led to a hugely popular radio series, Last Chance to See, later adapted as a best-selling book. Douglas Adams died in 2001, but his friend Stephen Fry took his place for a follow-up 20th anniversary television series, broadcast on BBC Two in 2009.

In this irreverent and illuminating popular science show, award-winning geneticist Dr Adam Rutherford teams up with mathematics guru Dr Hannah Fry to solve puzzling conundrums sent in by listeners. For the past five years, they've been scrutinising a cornucopia of cases using the power of science - from why people shout on their mobile phones to how much the bacteria in our body weighs. In these 50 episodes, they tackle topics including what makes gingers ginger, how to make the perfect cup of tea, whether being left-handed affects your brain and why we get static shocks. 

Tony Hill, Director of Manchester's Museum of Science and Industry, honours the scientists who revolutionised microscopic technology, electrical power, air navigation, gyroscopic travel and digital sound. In their day they were dismissed as blue-sky time-wasters but now we recognise their genius. Hear how in these five episodes, as heard on BBC Radio 4.

The world of wildlife is full of surprising and magical quirks - and Sue Perkins - comedian, broadcaster and Just a Minute host - is on a mission to discover them all. In this fantastic series, recorded at ZSL London Zoo and the Eden Project, she's joined by a diverse group of comedians and natural history experts for some entertaining sessions of 'Show and Tell'.

Celebrating the wonders of the universe since 2009, The Infinite Monkey Cage combines wit and wisdom to explore scientific concepts in an entertaining, accessible way. In these four series, physicist Brian Cox and comedian Robin Ince are back to 'put a smile on the face of science' (The Independent). They're joined by a wealth of boffins, brainiacs and celebrity science enthusiasts, all keen to share their hard facts, soft theories and bold comic deviations.