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BBC World Service


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.


Unexpected Elements

What's got rabbit-like ears, huge eyes, nine teeth and a demonic grin? It’s Labubu! These ugly-cute toys have gone viral online, largely thanks to social media’s trending machine. Their fame was previously limited to China and parts of Asia, but since 2024 their popularity has grown and the dolls can now be purchased in more than 30 countries round the world. 

This week, the global demand for Labubu inspired us to play around with trend-based science. First up, we hear how the special sauce behind TikTok’s algorithm helps drive viral trends. 

Next, we find out that humans are not the only ones that love a fad – chimpanzees are susceptible to them too!

We then discover what connects the hugely popular Beanie Baby toys of the 1990s with modern CubeSat exploration, thanks to aerospace engineer Professor James Cutler, from the University of Michigan. 

Plus, we discuss a weird object thousands of light-years away that could lead to new physics.

And why do we find songs annoying after multiple listens?

All that, plus many more Unexpected Elements. 

Presenter: Marnie Chesterton, with Godfred Boafo and Edd Gent
Producers: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, with Imaan Moin, Lucy Davies and Margaret Sessa Hawkins

Why do we follow trends?

This week, floods have hit the global headlines. First up, we delve into the various reasons why floods form. 

After learning about the causes of floods, we discover a nature-based solution in the form of mangrove forests. Laura Michie from the Mangrove Action Project tells us why these ecosystems are important, and how they can protect coastal zones.

We also find out that humans have moved so much water around the planet that we’ve shifted the location of the geographic North Pole. 

Plus, a rare flooding event is currently taking place in the Australian Outback, awakening an ecosystem after years of dormancy. 

And what could happen when hackers take control of tractors?

All that, plus many more Unexpected Elements. 

Presenter: Marnie Chesterton, with Andrada Fiscutean and Sandy Ong
Producers: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, with Lucy Davies, Debbie Kilbride and Margaret Sessa Hawkins

Floods, mangroves and rampaging tractors

This week, a viral video of a robo-traffic-cop in Shanghai has the team contemplating the science of traffic. How do traffic jams with no discernible cause actually form? Does the weather experience traffic jams? And why do our cords also seem to get tangled in their own little cord-traffic-jams no matter how hard we try to keep them separate?

Christine Yohannes from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and Tristan Ahtone in Helsinki, Finland, join Marnie Chesterton to discuss all this, plus many more Unexpected Elements.

Presenter: Marnie Chesterton, with Christine Yohannes and Tristan Ahtone
Producers: Margaret Sessa-Hawkins, with Alice Lipscombe-Southwell and Lucy Davies

Traffic science

The epic space story of a sci-fi dream that changed spaceflight forever. Told by the Nasa astronauts and team who made it happen. Our multi-award-winning podcast is back, hosted by space scientist Maggie Aderin-Pocock. She tells the story of triumph and tragedy - of a dream that revolutionised modern space travel forever.

You can listen to the trailer here. To hear episodes, search for 13 Minutes Presents: The Space Shuttle, wherever you get your BBC podcasts. 
 
13 Minutes Presents: The Space Shuttle is a BBC Audio Science Unit production for the BBC World Service. 
 
Theme music by Hans Zimmer and Christian Lundberg, and produced by Russell Emanuel, for Bleeding Fingers Music. 
 
Archive: 
Mission audio and oral histories, Nasa History Office.

Trailer: 13 Minutes Presents: The Space Shuttle

This week, Cameroon’s Paul Biya announced his plan to run for an 8th term as president at the grand old age of 92. So, we have elected to investigate the science of ageing.

First, we ask if a 60-year-old brain is as sharp as a 20-year-old one. Then, we find out about parts of the world that boast impressively long life expectancies. Have these places found the secret to longevity, or are they not what they seem?

Next up, we talk to Professor Thomas Boothby from the University of Wyoming about tiny, eight-legged animals called tardigrades, and what they could teach us about living longer. 

We also dig into the story behind a recently uncovered ancient Peruvian city, before finding out the science behind so-called ‘old wives’ tales’.

All that, plus many more Unexpected Elements.

Presenter: Marnie Chesterton, with Camilla Mota and Phillys Mwatee
Producers: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, with Margaret Sessa-Hawkins, Lucy Davies and Robbie Wojciechowski

The science of ageing

This week, a new report into the dangers that sand and dust storms pose to the world's health and economy has inspired us to delve in the science of dust.

First, we look at the report by the World Meteorological Organisation and hear about what can be done to mitigate the dangers of dust. 

We also find out the surprising way in which the Sahara is keeping the Amazon rainforest well-fed, and Derek Fabel from the University of Glasgow tells us how dust can help us to determine the age of glaciers.

Plus, the dusty maths that took 15 years to solve, and the musician who swapped jazz for space dust.

All that, and many more Unexpected Elements.

Presenter: Caroline Steel
Producers: Margaret Sessa-Hawkins with Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, Minnie Harrop, Lucy Davies, and Robbie Wojciechowski

How dust affects the world

Shark Awareness Day on 14th July sends us on a deep dive into marine biology.

First, we learn how shark-inspired materials could help make aeroplane flights more efficient.

Next, we hear about the fish that don’t flee from sharks... instead, they seek them out to help them hunt. 

Bob Duke, Meyerson Professor of Music and Human Learning at the University of Texas, Austin, joins us in the studio to reveal how and why the iconic Jaws music taps into our psychology to leave us trembling. 

We also hear about a couple of tiny islands in the Southern Ocean, on which an unexpected predator is wreaking havoc.

Plus, why a tiny fish is being ground up and fed to other fish. 

All that, plus many more Unexpected Elements.
 
Presenter: Marnie Chesterton, with Leonie Joubert and Christine Yohannes 
Producer: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, Imaan Moin, Minnie Harrop and Margaret Sessa Hawkins

Sharks, albatrosses, the Jaws theme and fishing

The X-Press Pearl shipping disaster takes us on a voyage through shipping-related science. 

First, we learn about how pollution from the X-Press Pearl explosion impacted the foundation of the marine food web – plankton. We also hear about an innovative system that can help slash the shipping industry’s greenhouse gas emissions. 

And we take a short trip in a time-machine back to the Stone Age, where biological anthropologist Professor Yousuke Kaifu from the University of Tokyo explains what it takes to recreate a Palaeolithic voyage from Taiwan to the Ryukyu Archipelago. 

We also look at how artificial intelligence could help Canadian caribou cross sea ice, the science of lightning and thunder, and the tricky disputes around shipwrecks and treasure. 

All that, plus many more Unexpected Elements. 
 
Presenter: Marnie Chesterton, with Meral Jamal and Godfred Boafo 
Producer: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, Minnie Harrop and Imaan Moin

Cargo ships, chemical spills and caribou

This week, Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae has been unveiled at London's Natural History Museum. This newly described herbivorous dinosaur has inspired us to take a stomp through the science of ancient animals, mass extinctions and fossils.

First up, we hear about a shepherd who recently found a South African dinosaur, which has helped shed light on the period between the Triassic and Jurassic. 

We then take a look at some new theories that suggest the mass extinctions that wiped out ancient creatures may not have been as massive as we thought. 

But one extinction definitely is currently underway, according to ecologist Professor Dave Goulson. And that’s the mass extinction of insects. 

Plus, we find out the latest theory of why the Tyrannosaurus rex had such tiny arms, and we meet the rat ancestors that munched on dinosaurs. 

All that, plus many more Unexpected Elements.
 
Presenter: Marnie Chesterton, with Candice Bailey and Camilla Mota
Producer: Margaret Sessa Hawkins, with Alice Lipscombe-Southwell and Minnie Harrop

A roarsome episode

This week, the Florida Panthers beat the Edmonton Oilers at ice hockey’s Stanley Cup championship, which sent us skating into ice-related science.

First up, we hear about an ancient ice skate that’s been unearthed in Prerov, Czech Republic, which sends us pondering about the physics of ice-skating. 

We then discover why licking a flagpole on a chilly day is a bad idea, before delving into the science of cryopreservation. 

Next up, we speak to Dr Mark Drinkwater of the European Space Agency, who reveals how satellites can help us monitor and better understand our planet’s melting ice sheets. 

Plus, what do you do if you want to play ice hockey but you live near the equator? 

All that, plus many more Unexpected Elements.
 
Presenter: Marnie Chesterton, with Chhavi Sachdev and Sandy Ong
Producer: Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, with Margaret Sessa Hawkins and Minnie Harrop

Some really cool science

A look at some unexpected elements of congestion: Why does pollen make so many of us wheezy, and sneezy? What can it tell us about the distant past? Plus, we take a look at what we can learn from the construction and engineering behind aquatic snot palaces.

Plus your enemy’s enemy can be your friend – hear about the tiny viruses that invade certain bacteria. Speaking of bacteria, we look at the latest place to hunt for new antibiotics – the fur of a certain animal, and with reports of famine emerging from North Korea, we hear about the scientist who is said to have saved more lives than any other person who has ever lived.

Hayfever, paleobotany and snot palaces

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