The dream team of Nell Boase, Bobbie Johnson and producer Ben Green join your host, Alok Jha to rustle through an animal-themed show today.
It's all very well saving elephants and pandas, but what about the less well-known species out there, the ones that aren't as cute yet still endangered? Sam Turvey of the Zoological Society of London is on hand in the pod to tell us about the Edge project, a scheme that wants public help in saving some unique animals including the Yangtze river dolphin, the long-eared jerboa and the world's smallest mammal, the bumblebee bat.
Exactly a year ago, London was captivated by a whale. Thousands lined the banks of the Thames as a northern bottlenose whale wandered into the capital by mistake. Though a frantic rescue effort ensued, the poor animal died. Now you can see the preserved skeleton in a Guardian exhibition. Richard Sabin of the Natural History Museum is curating the exhibit and he explains how scientists will be using the remains of the whale to understand how these mammals live.
Stephen Hawking is a bit worried. Last week, he joined scientists in London and America to bring the famous Doomsday clock closer to midnight -- a sure sign of the end of the world. He thinks that climate change and the threat of nuclear war are making the world a very bad place to live. But we investigate whether there are reasons to be cheerful.
