A shadowy group of political insiders tries to cover up a crisis. A mobbed-up banker vanishes after embezzling millions of dollars. And one renegade ex-nun saw the whole thing coming.
For a full list of credits, and more information about this episode, visit our website at crimetownshow.com.
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Murderers in early 19th century London feared surviving their executions. That’s because their bodies were often handed to scientists for strange anatomical experiments. If George Foster, executed in 1803, had woken up on the lab table, it would have been in particularly undignified circumstances. In front of a large London crowd, an Italian scientist with a flair for showmanship was sticking an electrode up Foster’s rectum. This is how the story of the battery begins – a technology which has been truly revolutionary. As Tim Harford explains, it’s a story which is far from over.
Producer: Ben Crighton
Editors: Richard Knight and Richard Vadon
(Image: Used Batteries, Credit: Gerard Julien/Getty Images)
Can we really live on Mars? Or exist in a virtual world? And why does movie science sometimes have us shouting at the screen? Our panel of scientists and sci-fi experts reveal all in this special edition of CrowdScience recorded live at the South by Southwest Conference & Festivals in Austin, Texas, USA. To tackle all of our listeners’ questions about science in film, presenter Marnie Chesterton is joined by a team of specialists.
Prof Polina Anikeeva is an MIT materials scientist and engineer whose research focuses on developing devices that work directly with the human nervous system. A sci-fi fan, Prof Anikeeva knows just how realistic brain-computer interface movies such as Avatar and The Matrix are.
Former NASA astronaut Dr Mae Jemison is a medical doctor, engineer, educator and entrepreneur, and the first African-American woman to go into space aboard the shuttle Endeavour in 1992. She is leading the 100 Year Starship Project, which aims to take humans beyond our solar system by 2112.
Prof Clifford Johnson is a theoretical physicist at USC whose work leads him to think about space-time, black holes, and extra dimensions, making him a regular contributor to documentaries about science and sci-fi films.
Rick Loverd is Program Director of The Science & Entertainment Exchange at the National Academy of Sciences, which inspires better science in Hollywood by introducing entertainment professionals to scientists and engineers. The Exchange has consulted on movies including Star Trek: Into Darkness, Iron Man 2 and Thor.
Do you have a question we can turn into a programme? Email us at crowdscience@bbc.co.uk
Presenter: Marnie Chesterton
Producer: Jen Whyntie
Audio clip from Gravity
Warner Bros. Pictures
Director: Alfonso Cuarón
Audio clip from Interstellar
Warner Bros. Pictures and Paramount Pictures
Director: Christopher Nolan
(Image: Matt Damon in The Martian. Credit: Getty Images)
(Image: Zoe Saldana in Avatar. Credit: Getty Images)
(Image: Matthew McConaughey in Gravity. Getty Images)
After a successful blockade of President Obama’s Supreme Court nominee, the GOP-led Senate will convene hearings this week on President Trump’s pick for the Court’s year-old vacancy. Considering all that has happened in the past year, how should Democrats handle the proceedings? On this week’s episode, we put that question to U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
We also sit down with veteran journalist Tom Rosenstiel to discuss his debut novel Shining City, a timely thriller about the inner-workings of a controversial Supreme Court nomination. Tom describes how his decades of political reporting informed the book, and reflects on some of the parallels between reality and fiction.
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Slate senior legal correspondent Dahlia Lithwick walks us through the next steps for Donald Trump’s revised travel ban. Some judges may not use Trump’s campaign rhetoric in their rulings; however, “Every time Trump opens his mouth, he makes it harder,” says Lithwick. She also discusses next week's confirmation hearings of Neil Gorsuch. Besides covering the courts for Slate, Lithwick is the host of the Amicus podcast.
In the Spiel, it’s Lobstar time.
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Unpacked, a new Spotify original podcast that explores some of the planet’s hottest events. First up? Austin, Texas, for South by Southwest. Listen to Unpacked and all your favorite music on the Spotify mobile app for free now.
