Curious Cases Folgen

Two questions about love and heartbreak in this episode for our Valentine's special edition.Jessica Glasco, aged 29, wrote in to ask about the power of love and how it affects our brain.Hannah tracks down Dr Helen Fisher, who conducted some of the first MRI studies on love by putting besotted couples into the brain scanner. Adam talks to broadcaster Claudia Hammond, author of Emotional Rollercoaster, to find out how psychologists have grappled with the messy business of love. And we hear why a small furry vole was thought to hold the answer to the mystery of monogamy.Our second question concerns the pain of heartbreak - why does our heart ache? Can emotional hurt cause physical pain? On call is our very own agony aunt, Irene Tracey, Prof of Pain Research.Presenters: Hannah Fry, Adam Rutherford Producer: Michelle MartinFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2020.

"How do you make gold?" asks curious listener, Paul Ruddick. Inspired by the promise of riches, Hannah and Adam embark on a mission to discover the origin of gold. It's a tale that takes them from the clandestine codes of Aristotle to the alchemy of Isaac Newton, alongside materials scientist Mark Miodownik.They boldly go into the cosmos with astronomers Lucie Green and Andrew Pontzen, to learn what happens in the most exotic areas of space. By the end one thing is for sure - you'll never look at your gold jewellery in quite the same way again.Presenters: Hannah Fry, Adam Rutherford Producer: Michelle MartinFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2020.

"What would become the dominant species if, or when, humans go extinct?"This cheery question leads Drs Rutherford and Fry to embark on an evolutionary thought experiment. Zoologist Matthew Cobb questions whether humans really are the dominant species. Ecologist Kate Jones explains why some species are more extinction-prone than others. Plus Phil Plait, AKA The Bad Astronomer, busts some myths about why the dinosaurs went extinct.Send your questions for future series, along with any Curio correspondence for the podcast, to: curiouscases@bbc.co.ukPresenters: Hannah Fry, Adam Rutherford Producer: Michelle MartinFirst broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2019.