Original version

BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

Unexpected Elements

Factual: Science & Nature

Factual: Science & Nature: Science & Technology

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.

BBC World Service Australasia

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa Schedule

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa

BBC World Service Online

BBC World Service schedule for American satellite radio and the Caribbean

BBC World Service Americas and the Caribbean

BBC World Service

BBC World Service South Asia

BBC World Service News Internet

BBC World Service West and Central Africa Schedule

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

BBC World Service East Asia

Unexpected Elements: Beyoncé, banjos and dancing chemistry

Discussion & Talk

12/04/2024 GMT

Beyoncé, banjos and dancing chemistry

BBC World Service - Unexpected Elements, Beyoncé, banjos and dancing chemistry

Beyonce's reappraisal of who can do country music spurs an Unexpected Elements hoedown

Beyonce's reappraisal of country music gets us rethinking who the original cowboys were, how the banjo gets its twang and we meet the man dancing chemistry in a tie dye lab coat

Beyonce's new album tops the charts with a reappraisal of who can do country music and the Unexpected Elements team has a hoedown. Panellist Christine Yohannes unearths new research that changes our understanding of the origins of cowboys. Chhavi Sachdev has a thing or two to teach Beyonce as she reveals why the banjo has it's characteristic twang and we meet a man with powerful chemistry - TikTok dance sensation Dr Andre Isaacs from the College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts tells presenter Marnie Chesterton how dancing in his lab helps explain click chemistry. 

We also hear how new species could be given names that refer to the locations they're found in, we discuss whether mining is causing the Earth to shrink and, of course, eclipses make an appearance. We shed some light on how an eclipse over 100 years ago helped prove Einstein's theory of relativity.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Unexpected Elements

Beyoncé, banjos and dancing chemistry

Genres

Formats

Brand

BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East

About BBC World Service