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The Story of Maths The Genius of the East

2008 Science

When ancient Greece fell into decline, mathematical progress stagnated as Europe entered the Dark Ages, but in the East mathematics reached new heights. In the second episode, Du Sautoy explores how maths helped build imperial China and discovers how the symbol for the number zero was invented in India. He also looks at the Middle Eastern inv ...ention of algebra and how mathematicians such as Fibonacci spread Eastern knowledge to the West. Show More

Series: The Story of Maths

The Southern Ocean

2009 Nature

The Southern Ocean, which circles the globe without being blocked by land, is home to the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC), the longest of the world's ocean currents. Also known as the "channel", it connects the Indian, Atlantic and Pacific Ocean basins and exerts a powerful influence over the Earth's climate. The ACC carries 150 times mor ...e water around Antarctica than the flow of all the world's rivers combined. Show More

Series: Oceans

The Red Sea

2009 Nature

The Red Sea is one of the youngest oceans in the world and one of the warmest. The northern region, with its diverse array of marine life, is one of the most visited dive locations on earth while the southern end remains virtually unexplored. It's a global hotspot for marine biology and an important trade route throughout human history, linki ...ng the trade goods of India and the Far East with the markets of Egypt and Europe. Show More

Series: Oceans

The Indian Ocean

2009 Nature

The Indian Ocean is the third largest body of water on Earth at more than 6,000 miles wide and covering 13% of the world's surface. It is home to 5,000 species of fish, many of which only exist in the Indian Ocean. But it is also an ocean under threat from global issues such as over-fishing and climate change, which make this an ocean on the ...edge. Show More

Series: Oceans

The Indian Ocean Coastal Waters

2009 Nature

The tropical Indian Ocean is home to the Spice Islands. Characterised by beautiful sandy beaches, fringing coral reefs and coastal mangrove forests, this is a vibrant nursery area for marine life, such as whale sharks, crabs, seahorses and a great variety of fish. The coastal areas are where humans have the most direct impact on the ocean's r ...esources. Show More

Series: Oceans

The Incredible Human Journey: Australia

2009 History

Dr Alice Roberts looks at our ancestors' seemingly impossible journey to Australia. Miraculously preserved footprints and very old human fossils buried in the outback suggest a mystery: that humans reached Australia almost before anywhere else. How could they have travelled so far from Africa, crossing the open sea on the way, and do it thous ...ands of years before they made it to Europe? The evidence trail is faint and difficult to pick up, but Alice takes on the challenge. In India, new discoveries among the debris of a super volcano hint that our species started the journey much earlier than previously thought, while in Malaysia, genetics points to an ancient trail still detectable in the DNA of tribes today. Alice travels deep into the Asian rainforests in search of the first cavemen of Borneo and tests out a Stone Age raft to see whether sea travel would have been possible thousands of years ago, before coming to a powerful conclusion. Show More

Series: The Incredible Human Journey

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