We’re exploring the life and work of D’Arcy Wentworth Thompson - one of the first scientists to bring together the worlds of mathematics and biology in the quest to understand how living things are built.
All in History of genetics
S5.02 Breeding better humans: Exposing the dark legacy and troubling present of eugenics
We sit down with geneticist and author Adam Rutherford for a chat about his new book, Control, which explores the horrific legacy of eugenics and its present-day manifestations.
S5.01 How the zebra got its stripes: When maths and molecules collide
We find out how one of the world’s greatest minds revealed the maths behind the stripes on a zebra to the spots on a leopard, and even the pattern of bones in your own body.
S4.26 *Repost* Sex and death
We’re telling tales of genetic sex and death, from the evolutionary origins of sex to Francis Galton’s dark eugenic fantasies
S4.19 Reading the book of life: A brief history of DNA sequencing
We’re taking a look at how we learned to read the book of life, from the earliest days of DNA sequencing to the very latest futuristic technologies.
S4.17 Back to the beginning: Exploring the origins of life
We discover the origins of DNA, find out where genes come from, and explore what’s next for the genetic code.
S4.07 A brief history of CRISPR: how we learned to edit the genome
We take a look at the history of gene editing, from the early days of restriction enzymes in the 1960s through to the CRISPR revolution and the very latest base editing techniques.
S4.03 - A dominant character: The life of JBS Haldane
We look at the extraordinary life of JBS Haldane, whose work, writing and political leanings made him one of the most interesting characters of 20th century genetics.
S4.01 Genes and Vaccines: Where mRNA COVID-19 vaccines came from and how they work
We take a look at the history of mRNA, and the story behind the development of mRNA vaccines and how they’ve been pressed into service at breakneck speed to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic.