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PROGRAMME INFO |
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Quentin Cooper reports on developments across the sciences. Each week scientists describe their work, conveying the excitement they feel for their research projects.
material.world@bbc.co.uk
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LISTEN AGAIN 30 min |
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PRESENTER |
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"For me science isn't a subject, it's a perspective. There are fascinating scientific aspects to everything from ancient history to the latest gadgets, outer space to interior decorating; and each week on The Material World we try to reflect the excitement, ideas, uncertainties, collisions and collaborations as science continues its never-ending voyage into the unknown".
Quentin Cooper |
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BIOGRAPHY
INTERVIEW |
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PROGRAMME DETAILS |
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Predicting the Unpredictable
From the unpredictable British weather to the dendritic patterns of water channels on the beach, much of nature is governed by chaos. But do some people have the ability to predict these seemingly random chaotic systems? In this week's Material World Quentin Cooper speaks to psychologist Professor Richard Heath - who believes nearly a quarter of us have this unique ability - and statistician, Doctor Leonard Smith about the nature of chaos, statistics and weather prediction.
Professor Richard Heath carried out research on volunteers who were shown temperature figures for the previous eight days and were asked to predict the following four days. The temperatures were generated on a computer. One set was random and the other chaotic - similar to real weather patterns. Random sequences are by nature unpredictable whereas chaotic ones follow specific rules. However, in practice they are hard to predict. Despite this, one in four volunteers predicted the right temperatures for the next two days. If the research helps to prove that some people are sensitive to chaos patterns, it could help financial institutions to identify people who could do well as financial traders.
Dr Leonard Smith's Homepage
Chaos and Fractals
Richard Heath's Personal Webpage
Chaotic Conundrum
Last week we asked if you could predict the next four numbers in the chaotic sequence 1-0-0-1-1-1-1-0. We wanted to find out if a quarter of you have the ability to predict chaotic sequences - and nearly 300 of you thought you did. Unfortunately, just over 1% of you gave the correct answer - 1,0,1,0 - while over 27% of you believed you could see a pattern in the numbers, predicting the answer to be 0,1,1,1.
One of the reasons for this could be that the sequence of given numbers was not long enough to allow many of you to tune into the chaotic signal. Richard Heath describes the problem. "Imagine a plane flying to New York with a well defined trajectory", he says. "Now look at a 2 second snapshot of that trajectory and try to state the plane's final destination." This may be one of the reasons why the results do not mirror Professor Heath's work. To find out more click on the listen again icon to hear the full programme and Richard Heath's explanation of the results.
Chaos vs Random
To hear the difference between a chaotic and a random pattern, Dr Leonard Smith has produced 2 musical sequences based on Richard Heath's predictive tests. The chaotic signal is predictable and has patterns that do repeat, while the random sequence is far less predictable. Listen to the two tracks and see if you can tell the difference between randomness and chaos.
 Chaotic version
Random version
A Quantum leap to the centre of the world
Just what is at the centre of the Earth? Scientists and mere mortals alike have been intrigued by this question for ages, and it has inspired films such as 'Journey to the Centre of the Earth'. We know it's hot there and we know there is iron, but just how hot is it and is there only iron? In this week's Material World Quentin Cooper talks to Professor Mike Gillan and Dr Dario Alfe from University College London, the scientists at the core of the problem.
The answers to these particular questions have only ever lain in the realms of speculation, but with the help of some very fancy physics - quantum mechanics to be precise - these physicists and geophysicists now have the ability to predict the properties of materials at the extreme pressures and temperatures of the core. They have calculated this to be about 5600K- nearly as hot as the Sun. These calculations are of fundamental importance because the core is the heart of the earth's dynamic system, driving everything from plate tectonics to the earth's magnetic field.
Virtual Matter Laboratory at University College, London
Dario Alfie's current research interest |
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