Discovery

Here's a little fact you might have heard before: Humans are around 70% water. About the same percentage as a sweet potato, incidentally. But what does that actually mean? Sure, there's blood, that accounts for some of it. And the lymphatic system has a fair amount too, sloshing around. There's water in each of our cells. But that doesn't add up to the full 70% - where is the rest of it? In 2018, a scientific paper was published which gives a tantalising clue. The authors revealed for the first time that our 'interstitial spaces' - those gaps, between our bones and joints and all of our organs - spaces which are often somewhat sidelined in conventional anatomy - those spaces were full of a kind of soft, gel-like liquid. Flowing around the body. Bringing essential substances to where they're needed. Connecting all the disparate parts of us and communicating between them. They called this massive, fluid-filled system 'The Interstitium', and suggested that it might be a brand new, previously undiscovered organ. This moist, fibrous network seems to be important, in ways we still don't quite understand. It seems to have a key role in so many of our body's essential functions, from wound repair, to the maintenance of our body-clocks, to the spread of cancer from one tissue to another. And it's everywhere. Emily Knight takes a journey deep into the human body, into the ocean within us, the spaces in between the things we think of as 'us'. And discovers the way it flows, and the things that flow through it.

An ant becomes infected by a fungus which takes over its nervous system, turning the ant into a vehicle for the fungus’s reproduction and killing the ant in the process. It sounds like science fiction, but it is happening in rainforests around the world.
It is a parasitic relationship that has inspired the TV series The Last of Us, but it also reveals a great deal about control, autonomy and the interconnectedness of the natural world.
Cultural entomologist Bridget Nicholls investigates this intriguing natural phenomenon with Merlin Sheldrake, mycologist and writer; Philip Ball, science writer; Mark Brown, director of the University Museum of Zoology at Cambridge University; Nura Sidarus, lecturer in Psychology at Royal Holloway, University of London; Lore Lixenberg, mezzo-soprano and sound artist, and Jason Singh, sound artist and composer. Jason's recordings and compositions feature throughout this documentary.
Presenter: Bridget Nicholls
Producer: Eliane Glaser

Design is never neutral and small choices can have a big impact.
Dr Ella Hubber and journalist Katie Silver explore how consumer products marketed to women are frequently developed without fully understanding their needs. Along with expert insight, they look at everything from footwear based on male anatomy to menstrual products tested with unrealistic methods, revealing how these decisions can affect comfort, performance and even health.
As awareness grows, they also ask what change can look like and whether everyday products can finally reflect women’s real needs.
Presenter/producer: Ella Hubber
Assistant Producer: Scarlett Victoria
Researcher: Elliott Prince
Editor: Ilan Goodman

CPR mannequins, medical implants and surgical tools. These are life changing and lifesaving medical devices. But when they are built around male bodies, what does that mean for everyone else?
Through expert insight, Dr Ella Hubber and journalist Candice Bailey uncover how gaps in research can lead to higher complication rates in women, why the “one-size-fits-all” design method falls short, and how even the operating theatre can fail women.
As awareness grows, they also ask what change can look like and whether the tools used in healthcare can finally serve every body.[EH1.1]
Presenter/producer: Ella Hubber
Researcher: Elliott Prince
Editor: Ilan Goodman

Dr Ella Hubber and journalist Katie Silver unpack how artificial intelligence is far from neutral, and why that matters. They speak to experts who reveal how some AI is trained with bad data and how this means it can often reflect the same inequalities found in society be that in voice assistants, hiring tools, or translation apps.
As awareness grows, they also ask what change can look like. Better training, better regulation, and the technologies shaping our future working fairly for everyone.
Presenter/producer: Ella Hubber
Researcher: Elliott Prince
Editor: Ilan Goodman