Summary
On 21st April 2025, Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church, died.
His funeral took place on 26th April, with thousands of mourners crowding into St Peter’s Square to pay their respects.
Following the death of a Pope, there are centuries-old traditions and rituals that must be followed, and that got the Unexpected Elements team thinking about the science surrounding loss. First up, we delve into the thorny issue of when early humans started to carry out funerary rituals, before turning our attention to graveyards and the life that thrives within these sacred environments.
Next, we are joined Carl Öhman from Uppsala University in Sweden, who reveals what happens to our data when we die and why we should care about it.
Plus, we discuss the precious materials hiding in our old devices, and find out whether animals mourn.
All that, plus many more Unexpected Elements.
Presenter: Marnie Chesterton, with Andrada Fiscutean and Edd Gent Producers: Margaret Sessa Hawkins, with Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, Robbie Wojciechowski and Minnie Harrop
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | In 2019, we began investigating the disappearance of Dr. Ruzha Ignatva. |
| 0:08.0 | I believe we are a very special network. |
| 0:10.0 | A scammer who stole billions from investors around the world. |
| 0:15.0 | She's on the FBI's 10 Most Wanted list. |
| 0:18.0 | And now, we have some unmissable updates. She has money and when you have |
| 0:23.0 | money you have power. Join me, Jamie Bartlett, as the hunt for the missing crypto queen continues. |
| 0:29.5 | Listen first on BBC Sounds. Do you feel from the bottom of your heart or trust your gut instinct? |
| 0:39.9 | Over the weekend, I was reading about the oldest known writing system, |
| 0:43.8 | cuneiform, which dates back to the ancient Mesopotamian civilization in what is now Iraq. |
| 0:49.8 | And it turns out that humans have been associating feelings with bits of their body for thousands of years. |
| 0:57.3 | So back then, folk must have fished through various internal organs to assign them a function |
| 1:03.0 | and decided that the liver, which is quite a hefty one, is the source of happiness and also where your soul is based. |
| 1:10.6 | Disgust lives in your shins right next door to |
| 1:13.5 | anger, which lives in your feet, whereas when you grieved, you did feel that in your chest, but the |
| 1:20.7 | seat of suffering is clearly your armpits. I'm Marnie Chesterton from the BBC World Service. |
| 1:28.4 | This is Unexpected Elements. |
| 1:48.4 | This show is a glorified chat, which is tricky to do alone. |
| 1:53.9 | Luckily, I am not alone because joining me is a global panel of excellent science journalists. |
| 1:58.0 | In Romania's capital Bucharest, we have Andrade Fisketan, welcome. |
| 1:59.3 | Hi, Mani, Munna. |
| 2:02.6 | And in Bangalore, in India, Ed Gent. Hello, good toan, welcome. Hi, Mani, Munna. And in Bangalore in India, Ed Gent. |
| 2:03.9 | Hello, good to have you back. |
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