Episodes
| Series | Episode | Title | First Broadcast | Repeated | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| How the Leopard got his spots | 20130115 | Chemist Andrea Sella and biologist Buzz Baum explain why a leopard could change its spots, thanks to mathematician Alan Turing.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, with wondrous tales of how things really came to be.
Rudyard Kipling tells us how the leopard got his spots, the camel his hump, the whale his throat and so forth. But what does science make of these lyrical tales? For the most part, just-so stories are to be dismissed as the antithesis of scientific reasoning. They're ad hoc fallacies, designed to explain-away a biological or behavioural trait, more akin to folklore than the laws of science. But on closer inspection, might Kipling's fantasies contain a grain of truth? And might the "truth" as science understands it, be even more fantastic than fiction?
Vivienne meets researchers whose work on some of Kipling's 'best beloved' creatures is helping us to answer a rather inconvenient question: how do traits evolve? Why are some animals the way they are?
Excerpts from five of the Just So Stories are read by Samuel West.
Producer: Rami Tzabar
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2013.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | |||
| How the Leopard got his spots | 20130115 | 20130731 (R4) | Chemist Andrea Sella and biologist Buzz Baum explain why a leopard could change its spots, thanks to mathematician Alan Turing.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, with wondrous tales of how things really came to be.
Rudyard Kipling tells us how the leopard got his spots, the camel his hump, the whale his throat and so forth. But what does science make of these lyrical tales? For the most part, just-so stories are to be dismissed as the antithesis of scientific reasoning. They're ad hoc fallacies, designed to explain-away a biological or behavioural trait, more akin to folklore than the laws of science. But on closer inspection, might Kipling's fantasies contain a grain of truth? And might the "truth" as science understands it, be even more fantastic than fiction?
Vivienne meets researchers whose work on some of Kipling's 'best beloved' creatures is helping us to answer a rather inconvenient question: how do traits evolve? Why are some animals the way they are?
Excerpts from five of the Just So Stories are read by Samuel West.
Producer: Rami Tzabar
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2013.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | ||
| How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin | 20130117 | Rhinos and horses have much in common. John Hutchinson studies both, but just don't ask to look inside his freezer.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, with wondrous tales of how things really came to be.
Rudyard Kipling tells us how the leopard got his spots, the camel his hump, the whale his throat and so forth. But what does science make of these lyrical tales? For the most part, just-so stories are to be dismissed as the antithesis of scientific reasoning. They're ad hoc fallacies, designed to explain-away a biological or behavioural trait, more akin to folklore than the laws of science. But on closer inspection, might Kipling's fantasies contain a grain of truth? And might the "truth" as science understands it, be even more fantastic than fiction?
Vivienne meets researchers whose work on some of Kipling's 'best beloved' creatures is helping us to answer a rather inconvenient question: how do traits evolve? Why are some animals the way they are?
Excerpts from five of the Just So Stories are read by Samuel West.
Producer: Rami Tzabar
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2013.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | |||
| How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin | 20130117 | 20130807 (R4) | Rhinos and horses have much in common. John Hutchinson studies both, but just don't ask to look inside his freezer.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, with wondrous tales of how things really came to be.
Rudyard Kipling tells us how the leopard got his spots, the camel his hump, the whale his throat and so forth. But what does science make of these lyrical tales? For the most part, just-so stories are to be dismissed as the antithesis of scientific reasoning. They're ad hoc fallacies, designed to explain-away a biological or behavioural trait, more akin to folklore than the laws of science. But on closer inspection, might Kipling's fantasies contain a grain of truth? And might the "truth" as science understands it, be even more fantastic than fiction?
Vivienne meets researchers whose work on some of Kipling's 'best beloved' creatures is helping us to answer a rather inconvenient question: how do traits evolve? Why are some animals the way they are?
Excerpts from five of the Just So Stories are read by Samuel West.
Producer: Rami Tzabar
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2013.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | ||
| How the Whale Got His Throat | 20130114 | How does the largest creature that has ever lived feed itself? Howard Roe and Nick Pyenson, discuss the wonders of the whale's "lunge feeding", said to be the largest biomechanical event on Earth.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, with wondrous tales of how things really came to be.
Rudyard Kipling tells us how the leopard got his spots, the camel his hump, the whale his throat and so forth. But what does science make of these lyrical tales? For the most part, just-so stories are to be dismissed as the antithesis of scientific reasoning. They're ad hoc fallacies, designed to explain-away a biological or behavioural trait, more akin to folklore than the laws of science. But on closer inspection, might Kipling's fantasies contain a grain of truth? And might the "truth" as science understands it, be even more fantastic than fiction?
Vivienne meets researchers whose work on some of Kipling's 'best beloved' creatures is helping us to answer a rather inconvenient question: how do traits evolve? Why are some animals the way they are?
Excerpts from five of the Just So Stories are read by Samuel West.
Producer: Rami Tzabar
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2013.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | |||
| How the Whale Got His Throat | 20130114 | 20130724 (R4) | How does the largest creature that has ever lived feed itself? Howard Roe and Nick Pyenson, discuss the wonders of the whale's "lunge feeding", said to be the largest biomechanical event on Earth.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, with wondrous tales of how things really came to be.
Rudyard Kipling tells us how the leopard got his spots, the camel his hump, the whale his throat and so forth. But what does science make of these lyrical tales? For the most part, just-so stories are to be dismissed as the antithesis of scientific reasoning. They're ad hoc fallacies, designed to explain-away a biological or behavioural trait, more akin to folklore than the laws of science. But on closer inspection, might Kipling's fantasies contain a grain of truth? And might the "truth" as science understands it, be even more fantastic than fiction?
Vivienne meets researchers whose work on some of Kipling's 'best beloved' creatures is helping us to answer a rather inconvenient question: how do traits evolve? Why are some animals the way they are?
Excerpts from five of the Just So Stories are read by Samuel West.
Producer: Rami Tzabar
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2013.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | ||
| The Beginning of the Armadillos | 20130116 | Part mammal, part reptile, part just plain weird. Why the story of the Armadillo is stranger than fiction, according to Richard Dawkins and Mariella Superina.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, with wondrous tales of how things really came to be.
Rudyard Kipling tells us how the leopard got his spots, the camel his hump, the whale his throat and so forth. But what does science make of these lyrical tales? For the most part, just-so stories are to be dismissed as the antithesis of scientific reasoning. They're ad hoc fallacies, designed to explain-away a biological or behavioural trait, more akin to folklore than the laws of science. But on closer inspection, might Kipling's fantasies contain a grain of truth? And might the "truth" as science understands it, be even more fantastic than fiction?
Vivienne meets researchers whose work on some of Kipling's 'best beloved' creatures is helping us to answer a rather inconvenient question: how do traits evolve? Why are some animals the way they are?
Excerpts from five of the Just So Stories are read by Samuel West.
Producer: Rami Tzabar
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2013.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | |||
| The Beginning of the Armadillos | 20130116 | 20130828 (R4) | Part mammal, part reptile, part just plain weird. Why the story of the Armadillo is stranger than fiction, according to Richard Dawkins and Mariella Superina.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, with wondrous tales of how things really came to be.
Rudyard Kipling tells us how the leopard got his spots, the camel his hump, the whale his throat and so forth. But what does science make of these lyrical tales? For the most part, just-so stories are to be dismissed as the antithesis of scientific reasoning. They're ad hoc fallacies, designed to explain-away a biological or behavioural trait, more akin to folklore than the laws of science. But on closer inspection, might Kipling's fantasies contain a grain of truth? And might the "truth" as science understands it, be even more fantastic than fiction?
Vivienne meets researchers whose work on some of Kipling's 'best beloved' creatures is helping us to answer a rather inconvenient question: how do traits evolve? Why are some animals the way they are?
Excerpts from five of the Just So Stories are read by Samuel West.
Producer: Rami Tzabar
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2013.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | ||
| The Cat That Walked by Himself | 20130118 | Do we keep cats, or do they keep us? The myths and the mysteries of felis catus explored by Patrick Bateson and John Bradshaw.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, with wondrous tales of how things really came to be.
Rudyard Kipling tells us how the leopard got his spots, the camel his hump, the whale his throat and so forth. But what does science make of these lyrical tales? For the most part, just-so stories are to be dismissed as the antithesis of scientific reasoning. They're ad hoc fallacies, designed to explain-away a biological or behavioural trait, more akin to folklore than the laws of science. But on closer inspection, might Kipling's fantasies contain a grain of truth? And might the "truth" as science understands it, be even more fantastic than fiction?
Vivienne meets researchers whose work on some of Kipling's 'best beloved' creatures is helping us to answer a rather inconvenient question: how do traits evolve? Why are some animals the way they are?
Excerpts from five of the Just So Stories are read by Samuel West.
Producer: Rami Tzabar
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2013.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | |||
| The Cat That Walked by Himself | 20130118 | 20130814 (R4) | Do we keep cats, or do they keep us? The myths and the mysteries of felis catus explored by Patrick Bateson and John Bradshaw.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, with wondrous tales of how things really came to be.
Rudyard Kipling tells us how the leopard got his spots, the camel his hump, the whale his throat and so forth. But what does science make of these lyrical tales? For the most part, just-so stories are to be dismissed as the antithesis of scientific reasoning. They're ad hoc fallacies, designed to explain-away a biological or behavioural trait, more akin to folklore than the laws of science. But on closer inspection, might Kipling's fantasies contain a grain of truth? And might the "truth" as science understands it, be even more fantastic than fiction?
Vivienne meets researchers whose work on some of Kipling's 'best beloved' creatures is helping us to answer a rather inconvenient question: how do traits evolve? Why are some animals the way they are?
Excerpts from five of the Just So Stories are read by Samuel West.
Producer: Rami Tzabar
First broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in January 2013.
Vivienne Parry presents the science behind some of Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | ||
| 02 | 01 | How the Camel Got His Hump | 20140623 | Returning for a second series, Vivienne Parry considers the animals of Rudyard Kipling's much loved Just So Stories for Children. Assisted by researchers of 'infinite sagacity' (that means they're awfully clever) she'll discover if science can yet explain how the camel got his hump, the kangaroo his hop or the elephant his trunk. Kipling's tales are brought to life by the actor Samuel West.
In How the Camel Got his Hump, Kipling's beast is as grumpy as they come and is punished for his laziness. Vivienne talks to Dr Lulu Skidmore, Director of the Camel Reproduction Centre in Dubai about the tricky business of Camel IVF and the truth about just how grumpy (and lazy) these beasts are. The reader is Samuel West. Producer: Rami Tzabar.
Vivienne Parry discovers if camels truly deserve their reputation as lazy and grumpy Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | |
| 02 | 01 | How the Camel Got His Hump | 20140623 | 20150105 (R4) | Returning for a second series, Vivienne Parry considers the animals of Rudyard Kipling's much loved Just So Stories for Children. Assisted by researchers of 'infinite sagacity' (that means they're awfully clever) she'll discover if science can yet explain how the camel got his hump, the kangaroo his hop or the elephant his trunk. Kipling's tales are brought to life by the actor Samuel West.
In How the Camel Got his Hump, Kipling's beast is as grumpy as they come and is punished for his laziness. Vivienne talks to Dr Lulu Skidmore, Director of the Camel Reproduction Centre in Dubai about the tricky business of Camel IVF and the truth about just how grumpy (and lazy) these beasts are. The reader is Samuel West. Producer: Rami Tzabar.
Vivienne Parry discovers if camels truly deserve their reputation as lazy and grumpy Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. |
| 02 | 02 | The Crab That Played with the Sea | 20140624 | In The Crab that Played with the Sea, Kipling tells the tale of arrogant and mischievous Pau Amma the mighty King Crab who eventually gets his comeuppance. For Palaeontologist Richard Fortey, it's the indestructible horseshoe crab that should be regarded as truly regal, with its copper-rich blue blood and incredible longevity, having remained almost stubbornly the same for nearly 500 million years. The reader is Samuel West. Producer: Rami Tzabar
Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Kipling's tale of mighty king crab Pau Amma Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | |
| 02 | 02 | The Crab That Played with the Sea | 20140624 | 20150106 (R4) | In The Crab that Played with the Sea, Kipling tells the tale of arrogant and mischievous Pau Amma the mighty King Crab who eventually gets his comeuppance. For Palaeontologist Richard Fortey, it's the indestructible horseshoe crab that should be regarded as truly regal, with its copper-rich blue blood and incredible longevity, having remained almost stubbornly the same for nearly 500 million years. The reader is Samuel West. Producer: Rami Tzabar
Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Kipling's tale of mighty king crab Pau Amma Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. |
| 02 | 03 | The Sing-Song of Old Man Kangaroo | 20140625 | Vivienne Parry considers the science of how the kangaroo got his hop Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | |
| 02 | 03 | The Sing-Song of Old Man Kangaroo | 20140625 | 20150107 (R4) | Vivienne Parry considers the science of how the kangaroo got his hop Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. |
| 02 | 04 | The Butterfly That Stamped | 20140626 | Vivienne Parry explores the chaotic nature of science in Kipling's tale of a butterfly Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | |
| 02 | 05 | The Elephant's Child | 20140627 | In Kipling's tale, the elephant got his trunk from a crocodile on the banks of the great grey-green greasy Limpopo river. But does science understand how the trunk really evolved? Vivienne talks to researchers Kathleen Smith and her husband William Kier about the wonders of muscular hydrostats (trunks, tongues and tentacles to you and me) whilst vet Jon Hutchinson ponders the elephant's aquatic origins. Last of the series. The reader is Samuel West. Producer: Rami Tzabar
Vivienne Parry asks if science understands how the Elephant's trunk evolved Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. | |
| 02 | 05 | The Elephant's Child | 20140627 | 20150108 (R4) | In Kipling's tale, the elephant got his trunk from a crocodile on the banks of the great grey-green greasy Limpopo river. But does science understand how the trunk really evolved? Vivienne talks to researchers Kathleen Smith and her husband William Kier about the wonders of muscular hydrostats (trunks, tongues and tentacles to you and me) whilst vet Jon Hutchinson ponders the elephant's aquatic origins. Last of the series. The reader is Samuel West. Producer: Rami Tzabar
Vivienne Parry asks if science understands how the Elephant's trunk evolved Vivienne Parry explores the science behind Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories. |