The Thought Show

The Problem with Antibiotics; Opposition to Afrikaans; the Origins of Life


Listen Later

In More Or Less Wesley Stephenson finds out how the search for new antibiotics is hampered not by science but by economics. Despite the $40 billion market worldwide there is no money to be made so big pharmaceuticals have all but stopped their research. Why is this and how do we entice them back in?

BBC Trending reports on the violence which has erupted over the use of Afrikaans at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. Some students want to see the language banned from lecture theatres, and say its presence is a form of racism. But others think it should remain. And a Hollywood actor – Terry Crews – has posted several videos to Facebook about fighting his addiction to pornography. It sparked a wave of support in online communities dedicated to abstaining from porn.

In the Why Factor Mike Williams asks why we search for the origins of life. He visits the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, where researchers from around the world have built the largest single machine on earth to discover some of the most extreme elements of nature, from the heart of an atom to the origins of the universe.

(Photo: Computer artwork of bacteria. Credit: Science Photo Library)

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

The Thought ShowBy BBC World Service

  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5

4.5

10 ratings


More shows like The Thought Show

View all
In Our Time by BBC Radio 4

In Our Time

5,389 Listeners

The Documentary Podcast by BBC World Service

The Documentary Podcast

1,840 Listeners

Global News Podcast by BBC World Service

Global News Podcast

7,902 Listeners

6 Minute English by BBC Radio

6 Minute English

1,782 Listeners

Learning English Conversations by BBC Radio

Learning English Conversations

1,046 Listeners

The Infinite Monkey Cage by BBC Radio 4

The Infinite Monkey Cage

1,925 Listeners

Newshour by BBC World Service

Newshour

1,080 Listeners

13 Minutes Presents: The Space Shuttle by BBC World Service

13 Minutes Presents: The Space Shuttle

4,108 Listeners

Americast by BBC News

Americast

741 Listeners

You're Dead to Me by BBC Radio 4

You're Dead to Me

2,977 Listeners