Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Science
Presented by Alok Jha and produced by Andy Duckworth

Science Weekly Live: What makes a genius?

They let us out of the studio to spend a night in the museum...

It was our first ever recording in front of a live audience, taking over part of London's Science Museum to discuss the nature of genius.

Making his first appearance on this podcast was genius personified Stephen Hawking, who opened a debate on The Genius of Britain at the museum's IMAX cinema earlier in the evening.

The theoretical physicist features in Channel 4's new TV series Genius of Britain: Scientists Who Changed the World which began on 30 May. You'll be able to catch up with any episodes you miss on 4oD.

We spoke to someone who could be considered a modern day genius, a man estimated to be worth more than a billion pounds, entrepreneur-inventor Sir James Dyson.

Our guest for the night, and helping us to nail the nature of genius, was psychologist Dr Kevin Dutton. Kevin is an expert on social influence. His new book Flipnosis is out now.

On our panel of Guardian genii were Nell Boase and science correspondent Ian Sample. Earlier we sent them roaming around the museum's Lates event: Nell tested her IQ, and Ian watched as the Babbage difference engine came to life.

We also handed the mic over to our audience to nominate their favourite genius and ask questions of the panel.

If you came along, thanks so much. We would love to get your feedback on the night. We hope you enjoyed it. You can add your comments below or tweet @iansample, @alokjha or @scienceweekly. Relive the night by keying #swlive.

View our pictures and upload your own to our Flickr photostream. (You'll need to log in and join our group).

Finally, our thanks to the wonderful staff at London's Science Museum.

WARNING: contains strong language.

Follow the podcast on our Science Weekly Twitter feed and receive updates on all breaking science news stories from Guardian Science.

Email scienceweeklypodcast@gmail.com.

Join our Facebook group.

Listen back through our archive.

Subscribe free via iTunes to ensure every episode gets delivered. (Here is the non-iTunes URL feed).

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.