Vagrant birds are those that appear in locations where they are not usually found. They might have been blown off course by a storm or have been affected by changing weather patterns due to climate change. Although a treat for birders, these visitors can also have a big impact on their new environments as Victoria Gill finds out when she heads to Burton Mere Wetlands on the Dee Estuary with Dr Alexander Lees, reader in biodiversity at Manchester Metropolitan University.
As former Prime Minister Boris Johnson gives his testimony, we hear the latest from the UK Covid-19 Public Inquiry with BBC Health Reporter Jim Reed.
A new study reveals that, contrary to a commonly-held view, the brain does not have the ability to rewire itself to compensate for the loss of, for example sight, an amputation or stroke. This is despite what most scientists believe and teach. Moreover, the assumption that it has this ability has led to all manner of erroneous treatments for amputees, stroke victims and other conditions, the study suggests.
We’re joined by the study’s authors, Professor John Krakauer from Johns Hopkins University and Professor Tamar Making of the University of Cambridge. We’ll also hear from one of Tamar’s key case studies, Kirsty Mason, an amputee from the age of 18 who advanced the scientists’ experiments exponentially.
Presenter: Victoria Gill Producers: Hannah Robins and Louise Orchard Editor: Richard Collings Production Co-ordinator: Jana Bennett-Holesworth
BBC Inside Science is produced in collaboration with the Open University.
Noxious haze over south coast; In Pursuit of Memory book; technosphere; Big Wasp Survey
Killer robots; Myths and superstitions and conservation; Science book prize nominee - Cordelia Fine; Taxidermy
Antarctica's volcanoes, science book prize nominee - Mark O'Connell, US solar eclipse and 40 years of NASA's Voyager mission
European heatwave and climate change, Eugenia Cheng, Next generation batteries for electric cars, Joseph Hooker exhibition.
Gene-editing human embryos, Spaceman's eyes, Science book prize, Sexual selection in salmon
Cod fisheries, Our connection to nature, Domestic electricity and Gamma ray bursts
Genetics and privacy, Global plastic, Great Ape Dictionary, Ocean Discovery X Prize
Genetic testing; Pugs on treadmills; Frankenstein
Neonics dispute, Hygenic bees, Hip-hop MRI
Sex bias in biology, Engineering prize, Olympic bats, Angry Chef
Forensics Centre in Dundee; D'Arcy Thompson centenary; Scottish science adviser; Coffee and climate
Science in Fire Prevention
Early Humans Were Even Earlier Than We Thought
The Importance of Basic Research
Sherpas - dolphin rescue - quantum computing - hot lavas
Childhood cancers - Ghana telescope - Nano-listening device for cells - Ancient whales
Violins - Social networks and cliques in great tits and snow monkeys - Exploring DNA and art
The moral brain, stem cell developments, ancient DNA in cave dirt, mangrove forest
Homo naledi, First humans in America, Dark matter detector, New theory of dark matter
Cassini’s death, scrapping diesel, weather balloon, satellites monitoring volcanos
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