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Unexpected Elements

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The news you know, the science you don’t.

The news you know, the science you don’t. Unexpected Elements looks beyond everyday narratives to discover a goldmine of scientific stories and connections from around the globe. From Afronauts, to why we argue, to a deep dive on animal lifespans: see the world in a new way.

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Unexpected Elements: Genetics and Educational Attainment

Discussion & Talk

Pupils taking an exam

14/05/2016 GMT

Genetics and Educational Attainment

BBC World Service - Unexpected Elements, Genetics and Educational Attainment

A small but possibly significant link between genetics and educational attainment

Genetics and education; Early Earth’s atmosphere; AI and satellites fighting wildfires; Camel DNA; Benefits of Bilingualism; Coral fish behaviour; Red Knots and climate change

The biggest study of the relationship between genes and educational attainment – in this case, basically the measure of how long you stay in education – has been published this week. A huge number of environmental factors influence this trait, but genes also play a small role.  In the new study, a large team of researchers looked at over 300,000 people and identified 74 genetic variants, slight differences in our DNA, that do seem to associate with how long those individuals stayed in formal education.  Author Dan Benjamin, University of Southern California, talks of the caution with which we should treat such findings. 

Fizzy Rocks Yield Clues to Early Earth’s Atmosphere
Bubbles in rocks formed when lava was fizzing before it solidified are clues to Earth’s early atmosphere.  The orientation and size of bubbles of gas (captured when molten lava sets) can tell geologists how thick our atmosphere was 2.7 billion years ago and give clues as to its composition.  From this we can make inferences about life forms on the early Earth.

AI and Satellites Fighting Wildfires
The wildfire in Alberta, Canada, seems to be diminishing and residents should be able to return to the city of Fort McMurray over the next two weeks. The fire had appeared to be out of control just a few days ago but thanks to favourable weather conditions appears under control, though hundreds of firefighters are still battling the flames. The weather has played a huge part, but what about technology?  AI, drones and satellites have all been used.  Dr Guillermo Rein, from Imperial College, London and Editor-in-Chief of the journal Fire Technology explains how tech is now incorporated in fire management.

Camel DNA 
A study of one of the world's most important domesticated animals - the dromedary camel - has revealed how its genetic diversity has been shaped by ancient trade routes.
Scientists examined DNA samples from more than 1,000 one-humped camels.  Despite populations being hundreds of miles apart, they were genetically very similar.  Scientists explained that centuries of cross-continental trade had led to this "blurring" of genetics.  The findings are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and one of the authors, Olivier Hanotte from Nottingham University in England told the BBC why this could mean camel milk appearing in European supermarkets in the future.

Benefits of Bilingualism 
More than half of the world's people speak more than one language. Some people may have been forced to learn a language at school or had to pick up one because they moved to a new country. Others may just love learning new tongues and do so before they visit a new place.  Recently, psychologists have discovered that knowing more than one language helps us in some surprising ways. The skill of bilinguals to switch focus by filtering out or inhibiting one language to concentrate on the relevant one is the one that is thought to bring wider benefits.  Schools that teach in a second language have found that their students do better in tests in their original language.   Gaia Vince explores the research that shows the benefits of bilingualism.

Coral Fish Behaviour 
An international team of scientists studying coral reefs off Australia's east coast have found that damaged reefs dull the senses of some marine animals.  Researchers discovered that on dead coral, young fish were unable to detect the scent of a predator. Oona Lonstedt’s findings are published in the Royal Society journal Proceedings B. 

Red Knots and Climate Change
The shorebird, the red knot, is shrinking due to warming in the Arctic, and because its beak is getting shorter, it is struggling to find food in its tropical wintering grounds. The subspecies being studied has declined by 50% in the past 33 years of study.  It is all to do with the careful balance of nature being shifted - a ‘trophic mismatch’ – when the snow melts and the food insects erupt before the chicks have hatched and can eat them. 


(Photo caption: Pupils taking an exam © Ben Birchall/Press Association)


The Science Hour was presented by Gareth Mitchell with comments from BBC News science reporter Victoria Gill


Producer: Alex Mansfield

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