Covid leaks and conspiracies

BBC Inside Science

BBC

Technology, Science

4.5 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 30 March 2023

⏱️ 37 minutes

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Summary

Science writer Philip Ball has followed the relationship between government and its scientific advisors throughout the pandemic. He discusses the role of scientific advisors in the light of conflicting information following the leak of a number of former Health Minister Matt Hancock’s WhatsApp messages. Phil tells us why he believes greater transpearency is needed around the advice offered to government. The head of the US FBI has suggested the Covid 19 pandemic may have been started through a leak from a laboratory. No evidence has been offered. The ‘lab leak ‘ theory is the counter idea to Covid having a natural origin. We hear from three scientists who have been to China to investigate different aspects of the virus origins story. Journalist and microbiologist Jane Qui visited the Wuhan Institute of Virology – the lab at the centre of the lab leak theory. Marion Koopmans from Erasmus University in Rotterdam was a member of the WHO mission to China to investigate the origins of Covid 19. And Eddie Holmes from the University of Sydney visited the market in Wuhan, the epicentre of the outbreak. Besides inflating party balloons helium gas has a vast range of industrial uses, particularly as a coolant. There’s a world shortage, and helium is only extracted with fossil fuels such as coal and methane gas. Earth scientist Anran Cheng at the University of Oxford has developed a method to look for helium deposits without the fossil fuel connection. And ever wondered how heavy all the animals in the world might be ? We have the answer thanks to Ron Milo and Lior Greenspoon from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. BBC Inside Science is produced in partnership with the Open University. Presenter: Victoria Gill Producer: Julian Siddle

Transcript

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0:00.0	Before you listen to this BBC podcast, I'd like to introduce myself.
0:03.7	My name's Stevie Middleton and I'm a BBC Commissioner for a Load of Sport Podcasts.
0:08.4	I'm lucky to do that at the BBC because I get to work with a leading journalist, experienced
0:12.2	pundits and the biggest sport stars.
0:14.3	Together we bring you untold stories and fascinating insights straight from the players'
0:18.5	mouths.
0:19.5	But the best thing about doing this at the BBC is our unique access to the sport in world.
0:25.0	What that means is that we can bring you podcasts that create a real connection to
0:28.8	dedicated sports fans across the UK.
0:31.4	So if you like this podcast, head over to BBC Sounds where you'll find plenty more.
0:35.8	Hello, you delightful, curious minded people.
0:38.3	This is the podcast edition of BBC Inside Science, originally broadcast on the 2nd of March,
0:43.4	2023.
0:44.4	I'm Victoria Gill.
0:45.9	This week we are once again trying to work out how the Covid-19 pandemic actually started.
0:51.7	And critically, how can we unpick the scientific evidence from the political blame game?
0:57.3	And we're weighing in on an attempt to measure the mass of all the wild mammals on planet
1:01.9	earth, as well as asking why on earth scientists have done that.
1:06.3	But first, Covid is in the headlines again.
1:08.9	Not one journalist worth their salt would sit on a cache of information in such an important
1:17.9	matter, such a historic matter.
1:21.4	This is our plan.
	...

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