This week we’re inspired by the price of a lobster dinner fit for a king. The recently revealed price tag for President Macron’s banquet back at the end of 2023, about half a million dollars, kickstarts an Unexpected Elements challenge – can the team create something similar and manage to save not only cash, but an Italian ecosystem from an American invader? And waste not want not as we discover how the bits of a crustacean dinner you’d usually throw in the bin may be the key to a new generation of rechargeable batteries. We’ll also be exploring the science of spices with Dr Stuart Farrimond and singing the praises of a blue-blooded crab that’s really a giant spider, which has been helping out the medical industry for decades. That plus many other Unexpected Elements. Bon appétit!
So this weekend, bits of my country broke out into race riots, which means, humiliatingly, that other countries are having to warn their citizens about the dangers of travelling here, which makes me incredibly sad.
I moped into my flatmate's room.
What's up with you?
He says.
I'm mouvet, says I, using a french word that, when applied to the weather, means it's all a bit gray and depressing and overcast.
It's pronounced meuvaise, he says, because you're female.
Adding helpfully, also, you don't mean mervaise, that means bad.
You mean tryst.
Sad.
And with that, I was cured.
I was no longer sad.
I was deeply irritated.
Instead.
I'm Marnie Chesterton from the BBC World Service.
This is unexpected elements.
And joining me are my band of joy inspiring journalists.
In Helsinki, Finland, we have Tristan Artone.
Hello, Hyundai.
Andre Baba.
Nice to see you, Marnie.