Weird Connections

Épisode 1 - The Locust That Watched Star Wars

Biologist Claire Rind tests the neural responses of a locust watching the film Star Wars, revealing why the insects are so good at avoiding obstacles

Épisode 2 - How Sticky Is Your Gecko?

An investigation into whether the gecko's renowned climbing ability can be applied as a model for robotics and nanotechnology that could be used to save lives

Épisode 3 - The Fly

Investigating insect flight, and how the fly has inspired machines that could be sent into disaster zones to search for survivors

Épisode 4 - Honey My Frog Is Flying

How physicist Andre Geim's 1996 experiment to make a frog levitate using magnetism inspired Nasa to explore whether a similar method could be used to help astronauts

Épisode 5 - Great Balls of Fire

How an amateur scientist's attempts to create a ball of lightning in his own home have led to groundbreaking experiments with plasma, and hopes of a future based on fusion power

Épisode 6 - The Roachmobile

Scientific experiments that have seen cockroaches driving electric vehicles, rat brains used to control aeroplanes and a typewriter that can be operated using only the mind

Épisode 7 - The Blindfolded

How a seal's ability to catch fish in zero visibility using its whiskers formed the basis of technology to detect leaks in oil pipes using robots

Épisode 8 - The Sound Of Vomit

21 octobre 2008

An experiment to explore a possible method of crowd dispersal and riot prevention using only the sound of people vomiting

Épisode 9 - Brain Drunk

28 octobre 2008

A professor demonstrates the placebo effect by tricking his students into getting `drunk' on alcohol-free beer, and how his results could be useful to air traffic controllers

Épisode 10 - Tripping Up Grannies

Scientists explain how the human sense of balance might be used to help make buildings safer

Épisode 11 - Quack Science

How research into a story about a duck's quack having no echo resulted in a discovery that had life-saving repercussions

Épisode 12 - The Vomitator

A scientist's research into vomiting, and how it could provide a cure for space sickness and allow astronauts to travel to Mars

Épisode 1 - Mosquito Banquet

How the discovery that body odour determines vulnerability to mosquito bites is leading to new techniques to detect cancer

Épisode 2 - Lying

Scientists study facial tics and movements to determine patterns of lying, techniques that could help in the fight against terrorism

Épisode 3 - Invisible Gorilla

Professor Dan Simons explains how to make gorillas disappear thanks to a phenomenon called inattentional blindness

Épisode 4 - Disgust

Dr Paul Rozin describes experiments with feelings of disgust and how they may provide a new way of dealing with mental illness

Épisode 5 - Facial Recognition

A doctor experiments with showing films to pigeons in his quest to design intelligent cameras that may identify terrorists

Épisode 6 - Swimming in Syrup

The work of Ed Cussler, whose experiments with syrup have helped influence the development of miniature surgical robots to perform operations inside patients

Épisode 7 - Monkey Genius

The work of Professor Matsuzawa, whose research into the photographic memory of chimps may lead to similar abilities being unlocked in humans

Épisode 8 - Good Vibrations

A London vet conducts experiments with farm animals by making them walk on treadmills to discover whether bone density can provide a clue to curing obesity

Épisode 9 - The Dog That Knew Too Much

Rupert Sheldrake's research into whether dogs have psychic abilities, and how his unusual experiments could lead to a system capable of predicting earthquakes

Épisode 10 - Human Sniffer Dogs

Professor Noam Sobel explains how studies of the human nose are helping to create robots that can smell landmines

Épisode 11 - The Moth That Thought It Was a Spider

The behaviour of a moth that mimics a spider to survive

Épisode 12 - The Law of the Urinal

Dr John Paul examines the ways that people act in accordance with unspoken social rules, and how understanding this behaviour could save lives

Épisode 13 - Bottomless Bowl of Soup

Professor Brian Wansink investigates a theory that people eat until the plate is empty, not until they are full

Épisode 14 - The Subsonic Chicken

Dr Roger White looks at the dangers to aeroplanes from impacts with birds