Biodiversity on the rocks: joining the dots between animate and inanimate

The third and final podcast in our Biodiverse Objects series explores some of the countless relationships between biology, biodiversity, and geology, past and present. How have geological processes on a large and small scale influenced life from the beginnings and how are they continuing to affect biodiversity today? We are also looking into - and listening into! - the physics of patterns. From black smokers to music chiming with a nautilus shell, from obsessions with basalt to deep-sea ooze and the beginning of life on Earth. Finally, a look at the coevolution of life and landscapes will conclude our meander to join the dots between animate and (so-called!) inanimate matter.

About Biodiverse Objects
This series of three epic (length-wise ;-)) podcasts takes a close look at some fascinating and surprising objects in the Oxford University Museum of Natural History. It is a kind of fringe-event to go hand in hand with the major redisplay happening at the Museum in 2022. Each podcast is a journey of discovery through the nooks and crannies of the Museum, talking to researchers and experts on the way.

We will seek out the rarely seen or heard-about enigmatic objects in the Museum and their stories – scientific, historical and personal. These objects can be specimens, natural objects, artefacts, tools, or even museum interna such as conservation fluids. What they all have in common is that they speak to us about ecology and biodiversity. Both terms are linked – without constantly evolving ecological relationships there is no biodiversity. Is there such a thing as “biodiverse objects”?