Andrea Sella, Professor of Chemistry at UCL, picks five elements that enhance our lives. Today it's aluminium, once fashionable as cutlery but now used in cans, bicycles and tinsel Show more
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Andrea Sella, Professor of Chemistry at UCL, celebrates five elements that enhance our lives. Today he admires how strontium gives us red fireworks and reveals our ancestors' past. Show more
Scientist Dorothy Hodgkin and her lover wrestle with the internal structure of complex molecules in 1930s letters. From October 2014. Show more
In the 1940s, Dorothy made more scientific strides even with a baby, prompting the college to award maternity pay. From October 2014. Show more
Dorothy's reputation grew post-war, conquering the structure of penicillin before the challenge of vitamin B12. From October 2014. Show more
Becoming the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1964, Dorothy shared her hopes for the future. From October 2014. Show more
Computing Britain
Episode 8: UK Gaming
15 minutes
First broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FMLatest broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 LW
Available for over a year
Teens write computer games in their bedrooms and a billion-dollar business is created. Hannah charts the rise of the UK games industry. Show more
Why do certain chords make us feel happy or sad? How do algorithms playlist our favourite tunes? Musician and science communicator Emer Maguire makes notes and looks for answers. Show more
Brand new science is helping explain how Placebo effects work. How could this change the way we think about modern medicine? Show more
How Niamh Houston creates Chiptune. How artificial Intelligence arranges your songs. Local gamers take music from screens to stage.
Is Auto-Tune the worst thing to happen to pop? Show more
Hidden Histories of the Information Age
Episode 2: Tat-1
15 minutes
First broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FMLatest broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FM
Available for over a year
In the 1950s, Paul Robeson was banned from leaving the USA. Aleks Krotoski tells the story of how he used the new transatlantic telephone cable to sing live to British fans. Show more
Hidden Histories of the Information Age
Episode 4: Leo Computer
15 minutes
First broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FMLatest broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 LW
Available for over a year
The company that brought computers into business was Lyons, known for its cakes and teashops. Aleks Krotoski tells the story of how this technology transformed office work. Show more
Hidden Histories of the Information Age
Episode 3: Our World
15 minutes
First broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FMLatest broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FM
Available for over a year
Aleks Krotoski looks back to June 1967, when 400 million people across the globe watched a groundbreaking TV show, Our World, the first programme linking countries by satellite. Show more
Hidden Histories of the Information Age
Episode 5: GPS
15 minutes
First broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FMLatest broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 LW
Available for over a year
Soldiers traditionally learned to find their way around with a compass and a map. Aleks Krotoski explores how GPS transformed navigation during the first Gulf War in 1991. Show more
Hidden Histories of the Information Age
Episode 1: Enfield Exchange
15 minutes
First broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FMLatest broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 FM
Available for over a year
With expertise from the Science Museum's curators, Aleks Krotoski uncovers the hidden histories of manual telephone exchanges and how they changed the working lives of young women. Show more
Emer Maguire explores the science of music and the music of science. Why do certain chords make us feel happy or sad? And how do algorithms playlist our favourite tunes?
Show more
Hardware, Software, Anywhere
2. Software
1 hour
First broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 ExtraLatest broadcast: on BBC Radio 4 Extra
Nick Baker explore how technology has changed our lives. But, do we run software or vice versa? From November 2019. Show more
The unknown story of the worst child-poisoning case since thalidomide, featuring a landmark legal battle by a group of mothers determined to uncover the truth. Show more
From colossal farms in America to the destruction of the Amazon, Liz Bonnin investigates how our hunger for meat is killing our planet. Show more
Stem cell therapies are sold as a new wonder cure by an increasing number of private clinics. But concerns are growing that unproven and unregulated treatments are not risk free Show more