麻豆社

The Miss Universe pageant final has us considering the science of beauty. How much of our perception of beauty is genetic, and how much is down to personal experiences? We also look at the science behind competitions and the audience effect. Why do we sometimes perform better when we鈥檙e watched?

Also on the show, Oxford professor Marcus du Sautoy explains why maths can be beautiful, and former Miss Universe Ireland and NASA datanaut Fig O鈥橰eilly talks about balancing pageants and a career in science outreach.

Plus, the science behind death metal singing, why civet coffee tastes so good, and how ugly plants inflame allergies, on this week鈥檚 Unexpected Elements.

Presenter: Caroline Steel, with Katie Silver and Sandy Ong
Producers: Margaret Sessa-Hawkins with Alice Lipscombe-Southwell, Lucy Davies, Robbie Wojciechowski and Alice McKee