BBC Sounds - Elements - Available Episodes

In the final programme in the series we look at the rarest members of the periodic table.

• 30 mins

Why do we value this useless metal? And does it bring out the worst in human nature?

• 29 mins

This metal offers thousands of years of nuclear energy, but is it any safer than uranium?

• 29 mins

Six rare metals that clean the air but are the focus of violent conflict in South Africa.

• 30 mins

The poison in everything from paint and sweets, to telegraph polls and drinking water.

• 30 mins

The shiniest and showiest of metals has some surprisingly modern applications.

• 29 mins

Why does iodine deficiency still blight children in developing countries like India?

• 29 mins

Could we finally be about to crack this source of potentially unlimited clean energy?

• 30 mins

This toxic metal is being phased out of our lives, but still keeps planes up in the air.

• 30 mins

India is completely dependent on imports of potash, a fertiliser essential for crops.

• 29 mins

Is the dream of a hydrogen-fuelled zero-carbon economy achievable?

• 29 mins

The self-sacrificing metal that brings shelter and good health to India's poorest.

• 29 mins

As climate change plays havoc with the rain, could we draw water directly from the ocean?

• 30 mins

Northwest India is fast running out of groundwater. Is migration and conflict inevitable?

• 30 mins

Why copper wires? And do solar power and batteries herald the death of the old AC grid?

• 26 mins
• 26 Mar 2016

Neon, argon, krypton & xenon: From blinding arc lights to the dying trade of sign-making.

• 29 mins

Two metals with sinister reputations - one for flammability, the other for lung disease

• 26 mins
• 19 Mar 2016

Nanotech, virtual reality, and the stuff that could oust the silicon from Silicon Valley.

• 29 mins

It's stronger than steel, but could this glamorous metal become as common as steel?

• 26 mins
• 12 Mar 2016

Radium, polonium and radon sound frightening, but are they actually useful for anything?

• 30 mins