The World’s Biggest Iceberg

BBC Inside Science

BBC

Technology, Science

4.5 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 6 February 2025

⏱️ 29 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

It’s the biggest story of recent weeks. Literally.

Trillion-tonne iceberg A23a is on the move. But where is it headed and why – and what might it mean for the scientists and penguins in its path?

And from a giant ‘megaberg’ to a giant pile of highly radioactive material, we find out what locking away a load of radioactive waste has in common with baking a cake.

And we’re joined by science journalist Caroline Steel to guide us through this week’s science news.

We’ll hear about the first study into whether banning phones in schools works, why scratching an itch might have benefits beyond just satisfaction, and the perfect formula to boil an egg...

Presenter: Victoria Gill Producers: Sophie Ormiston, Ilan Goodman & Gerry Holt Editor: Martin Smith Production Co-ordinators: Jana Bennett-Holesworth & Josie Hardy

Science-backed boiled egg recipe:

- You need two pans… and exactly 32 minutes - Keep one pan at 100 degrees Celsius (boiling) and the other pan at 30 degrees Celsius - Move the egg between the two every two minutes for 32 minutes

Enjoy!

To discover more fascinating science content, head to bbc.co.uk search for BBC Inside Science and follow the links to The Open University.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hello, I'm Greg Jenner. I'm the host of Your Dead to Me, where the best names in comedy and history
0:05.5	join me to learn about and laugh at the past. You are a traitor. And in the new series, we'll meet
0:11.2	Aristotle. I think he might have been a time traveller. Someone who's like almost a glitch.
0:15.3	We'll dive into the causes of the British Civil Wars in the 1600s. In England at this period,
0:19.8	there's people can't get on the housing ladder.
0:21.5	This sounds familiar.
0:23.2	And we'll discover the arts and crafts movement.
0:25.3	I love the clothes.
0:26.3	I love the vibe.
0:27.1	Yes, we're a comedy show that takes history seriously and then laughs at it.
0:30.5	You're dead to me.
0:31.3	Listen first on BBC Sounds.
0:34.3	BBC Sounds.
0:35.6	Music, radio, podcasts.
0:38.1	Hello, lovely curious-minded people and welcome to Inside Science,
0:41.7	an audio exploration of the scientific discoveries and developments that are shaping our world.
0:47.0	I'm Victoria Gill.
0:48.3	And as science stories go, it does not get much bigger than a trillion-ton iceberg.
0:53.3	We will be finding out exactly where the colossal
0:55.6	Megaburg A23A is, where it's headed, and what that means for thousands of penguins and a few
1:01.6	scientists that are in its path. We're also asking, how do you dispose of the world's largest
1:06.8	stockpile of radioactive plutonium? And we have a special guest to guide us through the highlights of this week's science news.
	...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in -49 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.