How bedbugs took over the world
Unexpected Elements
BBC
4.4 • 567 Ratings
🗓️ 12 October 2023
⏱️ 54 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
How did bedbugs become a global concern? We examine why their unconventional reproduction methods are so successful, how bedbugs and humans even crossed paths in the first place and what public health has to do with nation building.
Also on the show, we look at why there's no human version of dog food, how conspiracy theories take hold, and the legal wranglings over an old Canadian oil pipeline.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Oh, hello. You have chosen a BBC podcast, but before you listen to it, we thought you might |
| 0:04.7 | like our podcast too. You might. You might. It is called Sightracked with me, Nick Grimshaw. |
| 0:09.2 | And me, Annie Mack. And we talk about the week in music. All the news, all the cultural |
| 0:14.0 | happenings in the UK and beyond. And great guests. And it's on BBC Sounds. Yes, where you can |
| 0:19.7 | also enjoy lots of playlists, music mixes and |
| 0:22.6 | live radio. Everything from my six music breakfast show to Radio 3 Unwind. But obviously start with |
| 0:29.3 | our podcast sidetrack. Obviously. Obviously. So if you like music, listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:34.0 | The explanation is the podcast from the BBC World Service that goes beyond the spin, |
| 0:41.1 | exploring the important questions about long-running stories and the latest global news, |
| 0:47.7 | an honest explanation of the events shaping our lives. |
| 0:52.3 | Search for the explanation. |
| 0:57.1 | Wherever you get your BBC podcasts. |
| 1:08.1 | So this week, I visited a fish farm in the highlands of Scotland. |
| 1:12.0 | 80,000 salmon in big netted pens, |
| 1:15.7 | swimming, eating, leaping out of the water, |
| 1:17.9 | general salmon behaviours. |
| 1:20.7 | This many salmon, so close together, |
| 1:24.0 | means there's a risk that they can catch and spread lice which burrow under their scales. |
| 1:26.4 | The farmers used to add lice-killing chemicals, |
| 1:29.5 | but now they prefer to add more fish. |
| 1:33.1 | Two species, rass and something called a lumpfish, |
| 1:36.8 | which, if there was an award for the most adorable cartoon-like fish, |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
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.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.