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Rat eradication; elephant talk; the rise of the dinosaurs; physics of snooker

Why eradicate every rat on South Georgia? Also how elephants communicate through their feet, dinosaurs鈥 rise to power and how physics improves your snooker.

On the remote island of South Georgia, the invasion of rats from passing ships has wreaked havoc on the local wildlife. But the South Georgia Heritage Trust announced this week that all rats have been eradicated thanks to an extensive project. Adam Rutherford speaks to chairman Professor Mike Richardson about the achievement and how the wildlife is already healing.

Elephants don鈥檛 only communicate using their trunks but also their feet. A new study taps into this underground communication using seismic equipment to detect the vibrations. Dr Beth Mortimer explains how the technology may help to react in real-time to elephant distress such as panic running 鈥 for example 鈥 when being hunted by poachers.

We all know how dinosaurs became extinct but how did they rise to prominence? Author of the new book 鈥淭he Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs鈥 Steve Brusatte talks about how the beloved creatures came to dominate the Earth and the new technologies being used to discover even more about them.

How does science help us understand snooker? From the importance of chalking cues to how physics explains extraordinary snooker shots. Adam Rutherford tries to find out how he can up his game with the help of physicist Dr Phil Sutton.

Available now

30 minutes

Broadcasts

  • Thu 10 May 2018 16:30
  • Thu 10 May 2018 21:00

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