Main content

Bovine TB; Coral sunscreen; Space junk

Dr Adam Rutherford on today's announcement on bovine TB, stealing sunscreens from nature, and how engineers plan to clean up our space junk.

Today the government announced a plan to rid England of bovine TB within 25 years. Adam Rutherford looks back at how this issue has evolved and the extent to which scientific evidence has informed the eradication strategies, from culling badgers to vaccination programs.

Pharmacognosy is the study of medicines found in nature. Reporter Gaia Vince travels to the seaside to find out how corals could save us from sunburn in summers to come.

There are an estimated 23,000 pieces of space junk around the size of a tennis ball floating above us.
But there are millions of smaller bits of flotsam and jetsam, from the exploded rocket debris to fleck of paints. Even a 1cm bit of space debris could deliver the same energy as a car impacting on a concrete wall at 30 miles per hour.

Available now

30 minutes

Clip

TB and Badgers

TB and Badgers

The government have announced a plan to rid England of bovine TB within 25 years.

Μύ

Photo by: BadgerHero

Coral Sunscreen

Coral Sunscreen
Corals could save us from sunburn in summers to come.

Space Junk

There are an estimated 23,000 pieces of space junk around the size of a tennis ball floating above us.

Broadcasts

  • Thu 4 Jul 2013 16:30
  • Thu 4 Jul 2013 21:00

Explore further with The Open University

Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ Inside Science is produced in partnership with The Open University.

Podcast