Podcasts presented by Simon Rose

Professor Tim Evans of Middlesex University believes a coming reckoning for social media will be accelerated by the events in America's Capitol Building. He asks what the pandemic tells us about the evolution of science and how Britain has improved its early poor performance in the response to Covid-19. And he looks at the significance of the Strong Horse Theory in Political Science, particularly with regard to Keir Starmer and Labour and possibly Donald Trump too.

Share Radio's technology editor Steve Caplin marks the anniversary not only of the word "robot" but also of the first woman being sawed in half. He reveals the most-edited Wikipedia pages and Elon Musk's plans for bringing broadband to the remoter areas of the UK. He informs us of a sophisticated and expensive pet entry system as well as a robot that keeps pets occupied, along with a bird feeder with facial recognition. From the online CES he highlights a transparent computer screen, AR glasses with 5 virtual displays and a wellness lavatory.

With no cinemas open in the UK, James Cameron-Wilson looks at the news that Netflix is to move into movie-making in a big way, announcing a slate of 70 films featuring some major star names. He reviews one of Netflix's big hopes for awards glory, Pieces of a Woman starring our own Vanessa Kirby as well as One Night in Miami, a fictionalised account of an amazing night in American history. He also looks at the nominations for their awards just announced by the London Film Critics Circle.

James Cameron-Wilson runs us through the last box office chart of 2020 before the cinemas were all closed again. With streaming service still providing plenty of new content, he looks at The Midnight Sky, starring and directed by George Clooney, at Pixar's new hotly-tipped animated feature Soul, at Kirsten Johnson's documentary Dick Johnson Is Dead and at Charlies Brooker's Death to 2020.

Political commentator Mike Indian discusses the Capitol Hill rioters and asks what can possibly be done to defend the principles of democracy in America. As the UK is locked down for the third time since the pandemic started he wonders why more hard questions are not being asked about its efficacy and whether the right people are being prioritised for vaccination. And with the UK finally out of the EU, he looks at the details of the trade deal and what Britain managed to negotiate.

Share Radio's technology editor Steve Caplin discusses some of the more interesting innovations in the tech world. There's a competition for remote-controlled cars on the moon, the idea of wooden satellites to curb space junk, Facebook finally paying for news content, Amazon's first TV, the mistakes on the H G Wells' coin, a professional Polaroid camera, anti-radiation stickers, the UK's first electric hearse, restarting pigs' brains and self-healing phone screens.

In the first of a new weekly programme on Share Radio, Russ Mould, Investment Director of A J Bell, looks at the world of investment from a UK perspective. With markets and commodities buoyant despite the worldwide pandemic, Russ asks when or whether the money supporting them will run out. He wonders whether inflation will return seriously for the first time in decades and, if so, how investors might need to rethink their porfolios. And he asks if investors should treat Bitcoin seriously.

In the second of two end-of-year Bigger Picture specials, we look back at some of topics discussed in 2020 by Professor Tim Evans of Middlesex University. In one of his last discussions of the year, he wondered if a new, cultural Iron Curtain is splitting Europe into east and west. In other programmes, he mused on political psychology and the degrees of openness across the political spectrum, the Government's planning system reforms, whether China's Belt and Road Initiative is the success it is perceived to be and he lamented the loss of one of Britain's great thinkers.

Share Radio's technology editor Steve Caplin looks back over 2020 with Simon Rose. Here, looking at the second half of the year, he discusses self-driving hospital beds, robot dolphins in Chinese acquariums, a fly-in cinema, fitbits for lobsters, Alexa's regional accent, jet suit paramedics in the Lake District, making diamonds from thin air, NASA turning stars into sounds and the sale of the first ever mouse for rather more than the auction estimate of $800.