0:00:02 > 0:00:03'This is Absolute Genius!
0:00:03 > 0:00:05'Dive into a world of action...
0:00:05 > 0:00:06'adventure...
0:00:06 > 0:00:08'and explosions!'
0:00:08 > 0:00:12'Each show, we'll introduce you to a different genius.'
0:00:12 > 0:00:17'An amazing person who had a genius idea which shaped the world.'
0:00:17 > 0:00:21'And they will inspire us to come up with our own genius idea
0:00:21 > 0:00:22'at the end of each show.'
0:00:22 > 0:00:24'But will it be any good?'
0:00:24 > 0:00:26'Will it be any good?!
0:00:26 > 0:00:27'It'll be...'
0:00:27 > 0:00:29- BOTH:- '..Absolute Genius!'
0:00:31 > 0:00:33'Today, we'll be looking at all kinds of creatures...'
0:00:33 > 0:00:34DOM LAUGHS
0:00:34 > 0:00:37'..from the pickled and preserved...'
0:00:37 > 0:00:38Why is it after me?!
0:00:38 > 0:00:40'..to the live and dangerous...'
0:00:40 > 0:00:42'..as we tackle a genius
0:00:42 > 0:00:45'who transformed the way we understand nature.'
0:00:48 > 0:00:51MONKEYS CHATTER
0:01:19 > 0:01:22Today we bring you a man who, 150 years ago,
0:01:22 > 0:01:25changed the way we understand the entire world around us.
0:01:25 > 0:01:28Yeah, if there was ever a Champions League of Geniuses,
0:01:28 > 0:01:30this guy would qualify every season.
0:01:30 > 0:01:32Ladies and gentlemen, we bring you the great,
0:01:32 > 0:01:34the incredible, Charles Darwin!
0:01:34 > 0:01:35Greetings, gentlemen!
0:01:35 > 0:01:38Inspired by this man's sheer brilliance and genius,
0:01:38 > 0:01:41we're going to be coming up with our own daring genius idea
0:01:41 > 0:01:43later on in the show.
0:01:43 > 0:01:46We'll be taking the plunge, going face-to-face
0:01:46 > 0:01:49with one of the most perfectly evolved predators on the planet.
0:01:50 > 0:01:54But first, let's find out a bit more about this revolutionary chap.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58Charles Darwin was born in 1809.
0:01:58 > 0:02:02From an early age, he was fascinated in the world around him.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06He became a naturalist, someone who studies everything in nature.
0:02:06 > 0:02:10He would gaze for hours at rocks, plants and flowers,
0:02:10 > 0:02:12and loved collecting all kinds of living things.
0:02:12 > 0:02:16From wiggly worms to feisty little critters like this.
0:02:16 > 0:02:17DOM LAUGHS
0:02:17 > 0:02:21Then, in 1831, Darwin went on a five-year voyage,
0:02:21 > 0:02:25in a ship called the Beagle, to South America.
0:02:25 > 0:02:28What he learnt on his travels and the years of research that followed
0:02:28 > 0:02:29would lead him to come up with
0:02:29 > 0:02:32one of the most important ideas there has ever been.
0:02:32 > 0:02:35And the idea is STILL amazing now!
0:02:35 > 0:02:37Darwin said that everything in nature
0:02:37 > 0:02:41was connected in a kind of giant family tree,
0:02:41 > 0:02:44and started from a single living organism
0:02:44 > 0:02:46that lived millions of years ago.
0:02:46 > 0:02:50His genius idea is known as the theory of evolution.
0:02:50 > 0:02:54It's based on something he called "natural selection".
0:02:54 > 0:02:59Different kinds or species of animal, insect, fish, bird, plant -
0:02:59 > 0:03:02every living thing - would, over thousands of years,
0:03:02 > 0:03:04adapt and slowly change,
0:03:04 > 0:03:08until sometimes an entire new species would come into being.
0:03:08 > 0:03:10Ah, good morning!
0:03:10 > 0:03:13Evolution was a revolutionary idea
0:03:13 > 0:03:16because, in Darwin's day, most Europeans believed
0:03:16 > 0:03:19that EVERYTHING was created by God, as told in the Bible.
0:03:19 > 0:03:23To start to find out how Darwin came up with his theory of evolution,
0:03:23 > 0:03:28we've come here, to the magnificent Natural History Museum in London.
0:03:28 > 0:03:31In here are some of the actual things he collected
0:03:31 > 0:03:33on his travels and lots more besides.
0:03:33 > 0:03:36This is the Tank Room.
0:03:37 > 0:03:41And, to show us some of the amazing creatures in here,
0:03:41 > 0:03:43it's Genius Helper Jon Ablett.
0:03:44 > 0:03:47CHAINS RATTLE
0:03:47 > 0:03:48- Lovely.- Urgh!
0:03:48 > 0:03:50What is THAT?!
0:03:50 > 0:03:51These are some of our fish specimens
0:03:51 > 0:03:54that we keep in the Tank Room of the Natural History Museum.
0:03:54 > 0:03:55- Oh, bleurgh!- It stinks!
0:03:55 > 0:03:57And I just breathed in through me nose!
0:03:57 > 0:04:00- DOM COUGHS - Is that like just pickling vinegar?
0:04:00 > 0:04:03Yeah, well, we use alcohol and they should keep for hundreds of years.
0:04:03 > 0:04:04But why do you preserve them?
0:04:04 > 0:04:07Scientists from inside the museum and around the world
0:04:07 > 0:04:08can come here and study them.
0:04:08 > 0:04:09Are we...? Are we allowed?
0:04:09 > 0:04:11You're not going to touch one of them. Don't do it!
0:04:11 > 0:04:12Blargh!
0:04:12 > 0:04:14It feels like...leather.
0:04:14 > 0:04:16Let it swim away. Let it swim away.
0:04:16 > 0:04:18Right, swim away.
0:04:18 > 0:04:20DEEP VOICE: "All right? My name's Dave."
0:04:20 > 0:04:21All right, Dave?
0:04:21 > 0:04:23Argh...it's heavy! What is that?
0:04:23 > 0:04:25It's me mother. THEY LAUGH
0:04:25 > 0:04:26What's she doing in this tank?
0:04:26 > 0:04:28- It's a monkfish? - It's a monkfish, yeah.
0:04:28 > 0:04:30These are brilliant, but have you got anything
0:04:30 > 0:04:33that Darwin brought back from his travels all those years ago?
0:04:33 > 0:04:35Yeah, we've got lots of different specimens. Let's go.
0:04:37 > 0:04:39This is Darwin's pet tortoise.
0:04:39 > 0:04:42- This is actually...- This is it? - This is HIS pet tortoise?
0:04:42 > 0:04:44And what about the octopus in this jar?
0:04:44 > 0:04:46Pet octopus? It's not very cuddly, is it?!
0:04:46 > 0:04:50It's one of the first things that he collected on his Beagle voyage.
0:04:50 > 0:04:52Darwin wanted to know how the octopus
0:04:52 > 0:04:55fitted into his theory of evolution.
0:04:55 > 0:04:58Octopuses are part of a group of creatures called molluscs
0:04:58 > 0:05:02that also includes squid, slugs and snails.
0:05:02 > 0:05:04But how do we know that?
0:05:04 > 0:05:07What we do is we look at the shared characteristics they had.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10On a snail, for example, it's very easy to see they have a shell.
0:05:10 > 0:05:11All right, fellas?
0:05:11 > 0:05:13But squid and octopus are a bit more like a slug.
0:05:13 > 0:05:15The shell has been reduced through evolution -
0:05:15 > 0:05:17it's actually on the inside of the body.
0:05:17 > 0:05:19So these have a shell inside them.
0:05:19 > 0:05:21Look, it's part of your family.
0:05:21 > 0:05:24- It's a bit older than you, though! - DOM CHUCKLES
0:05:24 > 0:05:28Darwin was fascinated by the way different animals were related.
0:05:28 > 0:05:30But there was one bizarre sea creature,
0:05:30 > 0:05:34with over 1,000 species, that he was obsessed with.
0:05:35 > 0:05:39To show us is Miranda Lowe, Curator of Crustacea.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42These look like birds' claws. What are they?
0:05:42 > 0:05:44These are actually barnacles.
0:05:44 > 0:05:47- What exactly are barnacles?- They're creatures that live in the sea.
0:05:47 > 0:05:48They're in the family crustacea,
0:05:48 > 0:05:51which include shrimps, crabs, lobsters.
0:05:51 > 0:05:54Darwin studied them obsessively for eight years.
0:05:54 > 0:05:56Eight years?!
0:05:56 > 0:05:58He studied them so much that his children
0:05:58 > 0:06:02actually thought that everybody's dad did that.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04So, when they went to visit their friends,
0:06:04 > 0:06:06they would say, "Where does your father do barnacles?"
0:06:06 > 0:06:08Yeah, "Where's your dad's barnacles?"
0:06:08 > 0:06:09Why for so long?
0:06:09 > 0:06:11He studied them for so long
0:06:11 > 0:06:14because he wanted to accurately describe them or classify them.
0:06:14 > 0:06:17And, from that, he found out there was one barnacle
0:06:17 > 0:06:20that was the basis for all the other species.
0:06:20 > 0:06:23So, if you trace back time far enough,
0:06:23 > 0:06:26there would be one grandaddy of all barnacles
0:06:26 > 0:06:28- and that's where it all started, right?- Absolutely.
0:06:28 > 0:06:30That idea - of every living thing
0:06:30 > 0:06:33being descended from a single ancestor -
0:06:33 > 0:06:35was a key part of Darwin's theories.
0:06:35 > 0:06:39And there's one interesting thing about barnacles.
0:06:39 > 0:06:44When they're small, they secrete something similar to concrete,
0:06:44 > 0:06:48which will attach them to a rock for the rest of their lives.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51And, because of that, it's very difficult for them to reproduce.
0:06:51 > 0:06:54Yeah, of course, cos you need to contact each other to reproduce.
0:06:54 > 0:06:56So, if they're separate here and here, what happens?
0:06:56 > 0:07:00They are known in the animal kingdom of having the largest willy
0:07:00 > 0:07:03so that they can reproduce with other barnacles...
0:07:03 > 0:07:04Hold on a minute, Miranda!
0:07:04 > 0:07:06Are you saying that the barnacle...?
0:07:06 > 0:07:08The reproductive organ came out of here
0:07:08 > 0:07:10and travelled all the way round, to one round here and...?
0:07:10 > 0:07:12It can.
0:07:12 > 0:07:16Because they're cemented to a rock, so that's the only way to reproduce.
0:07:17 > 0:07:21DOM, AS DAVID ATTENBOROUGH: And here we see the barnacle mating.
0:07:21 > 0:07:23A lovely example of evolution there!
0:07:23 > 0:07:27Barnacles evolved so they could mate whilst stuck to a rock.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30In the same way, giraffes have evolved long necks
0:07:30 > 0:07:33to reach food that other animals can't,
0:07:33 > 0:07:37and some lizards have grown very long tongues to catch insects.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42OK, so Darwin was onto something pretty big back then.
0:07:42 > 0:07:44Yeah, because Darwin's evolutionary theories
0:07:44 > 0:07:46weren't just about octopuses and barnacles.
0:07:46 > 0:07:48Oh, no, no!
0:07:48 > 0:07:51It was about every living thing on the planet,
0:07:51 > 0:07:53including human beings.
0:07:53 > 0:07:57This is the Grant Museum of Zoology in London.
0:07:57 > 0:08:00Here there are tons of preserved animals and skeletons -
0:08:00 > 0:08:02more examples of how different species
0:08:02 > 0:08:04are connected through evolution.
0:08:04 > 0:08:05Smile!
0:08:05 > 0:08:06Show us your teeth.
0:08:06 > 0:08:08That's it. Lovely. CAMERA CLICKS
0:08:11 > 0:08:14Meet Professor Steve Jones.
0:08:14 > 0:08:15He's an expert in biology
0:08:15 > 0:08:20and knows all about how one species can evolve into another.
0:08:20 > 0:08:23So, Steve, obviously Darwin's theories changed the way
0:08:23 > 0:08:27that we look at animals, humans, the human race, biology.
0:08:27 > 0:08:31But what did we think of animals beforehand?
0:08:31 > 0:08:34I mean, if you look at this lion, for example.
0:08:34 > 0:08:35Now, when you look at it,
0:08:35 > 0:08:38that looks like a very big cat when you think about it, a domestic cat.
0:08:38 > 0:08:40And, of course, it is.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43There's evidence now that cats are related to lions.
0:08:43 > 0:08:46And we know that dogs have evolved from wolves.
0:08:46 > 0:08:49But these were radical new ideas in Darwin's time.
0:08:49 > 0:08:52To people of that day, either God had done it
0:08:52 > 0:08:55or, somehow, it just kind of happened.
0:08:55 > 0:08:56It just was.
0:08:56 > 0:08:59People interested in lions knew a lot about lions
0:08:59 > 0:09:01but they didn't know anything about wolves.
0:09:01 > 0:09:05And what Darwin did was to connect everything together.
0:09:05 > 0:09:10And he connected them together with his genius idea, natural selection.
0:09:10 > 0:09:12Natural selection, remember, is Darwin's way
0:09:12 > 0:09:16of explaining how evolution can change one creature,
0:09:16 > 0:09:19so much so that it becomes a whole new species.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21Like this one, called the dugong.
0:09:21 > 0:09:25Believe it or not, this used to be a completely different animal
0:09:25 > 0:09:29that lived on land and even had arms and legs.
0:09:29 > 0:09:33But, through evolution, it slowly lost them over millions of years.
0:09:33 > 0:09:37And the evidence is these rather eccentric-looking bones here.
0:09:37 > 0:09:38Oh, yeah.
0:09:38 > 0:09:40And what that is is what we call the pelvis.
0:09:40 > 0:09:43The part of your body which your legs are attached to.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46But there's nothing attached to the pelvis here.
0:09:46 > 0:09:47It's been reduced to almost nothing.
0:09:47 > 0:09:49And you can see another example.
0:09:49 > 0:09:51If you look at a living dugong,
0:09:51 > 0:09:53it's got nice flippers, a bit like a seal.
0:09:53 > 0:09:56But, if you look at the bones, that flipper is in fact a hand...
0:09:56 > 0:09:57Wow, look!
0:09:57 > 0:10:01..with one, two, three, four, five digits and a little tiny thumb.
0:10:01 > 0:10:03Now in this glass case is a series of skulls
0:10:03 > 0:10:07showing how human beings have evolved from apes.
0:10:07 > 0:10:12And today there's lots of evidence that we are related to chimpanzees.
0:10:13 > 0:10:18But, back in Darwin's time, this was a difficult idea to accept.
0:10:18 > 0:10:19Why were people uncomfortable with the idea
0:10:19 > 0:10:21that humans were related to apes?
0:10:21 > 0:10:26I think it's because they seemed to think that this dragged them down,
0:10:26 > 0:10:29this made them less human than they had thought they were.
0:10:29 > 0:10:33But we have all kinds of things that these creatures simply don't have.
0:10:33 > 0:10:35As far as we can tell, they're unique to us.
0:10:35 > 0:10:38We have a sense of beauty, a sense of history, a sense of the future.
0:10:38 > 0:10:40Some people have a sense of religion.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43To me, you needed the theory of evolution
0:10:43 > 0:10:45to make us feel truly human.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48Darwin's theories were really controversial at the time
0:10:48 > 0:10:51because they conflicted with religious views,
0:10:51 > 0:10:54like those in the Bible about the creation of the world
0:10:54 > 0:10:55and the creatures in it.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58And his ideas can still cause controversy today
0:10:58 > 0:10:59for the same reasons.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03So I'm starting to understand Darwin's genius idea
0:11:03 > 0:11:05and this process of natural selection,
0:11:05 > 0:11:07but we could do with seeing it in action.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11Yeah, if only Fran, our friendly scientist, was here to help.
0:11:11 > 0:11:12Fran!
0:11:12 > 0:11:13Hello!
0:11:13 > 0:11:15'This is Fran.'
0:11:15 > 0:11:17'She just loves experimenting...'
0:11:17 > 0:11:18Wow!
0:11:18 > 0:11:20'..to help explain the ideas of our geniuses.'
0:11:20 > 0:11:22Argh!
0:11:22 > 0:11:25'And she's sure to pop up just when you really need her.'
0:11:25 > 0:11:27Fran, what on earth are you doing in there?
0:11:27 > 0:11:28I'm testing my camouflage.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31- So camouflage... You know camouflage, right?- Yeah, yeah.
0:11:31 > 0:11:34Characteristics that a lot of animals use to try and blend in
0:11:34 > 0:11:36with their background to hide from their predators.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38What's this got to do with natural selection?
0:11:38 > 0:11:41Well, I've got an experiment that involves camouflage
0:11:41 > 0:11:45that's going to show us exactly how natural selection works.
0:11:45 > 0:11:48Lots of animals have natural camouflage.
0:11:48 > 0:11:52And, over years and years, nature "selects" the best kind.
0:11:52 > 0:11:56Creatures with good camouflage are more likely to survive.
0:11:56 > 0:11:59We're going to play a kind of experimental hide-and-seek
0:11:59 > 0:12:00to show how this works.
0:12:03 > 0:12:05Right then, Fran, what do you think?
0:12:05 > 0:12:08- Well, you-you're camouflaged, sort of.- Yup.
0:12:08 > 0:12:11- By the way, you look ridiculous. - I mean, look at that.- Stupid!
0:12:11 > 0:12:14Imagine we're a species of woodland creature.
0:12:14 > 0:12:16- Quite a timid woodland creature. - Oh, timid.
0:12:16 > 0:12:18- We're scared of the Predator. - Oh.- Yeah.
0:12:18 > 0:12:21- So meet the Predator. - The Predator?- The Predator?
0:12:21 > 0:12:24Ooh, this is going to be nasty, isn't it?
0:12:24 > 0:12:28All right, mate? Apparently, there's a predator turning up in a minute.
0:12:28 > 0:12:29Be careful.
0:12:29 > 0:12:32Where is it? Eh?
0:12:32 > 0:12:34THEY LAUGH YOU'RE the Predator?!
0:12:34 > 0:12:37Look - little fella, wearing an orange jumper!
0:12:37 > 0:12:39- Brilliant, can't wait for this. - Easy.
0:12:39 > 0:12:41Well, this Predator is going to hunt us.
0:12:41 > 0:12:45So we're going to see who's selected the best camouflage.
0:12:45 > 0:12:46'While we look for hiding places...'
0:12:46 > 0:12:48One, two...
0:12:48 > 0:12:50'..the Predator counts to 100.
0:12:52 > 0:12:54'He's going to try to find us
0:12:54 > 0:12:56'and splat us with orange paintball pellets.'
0:13:07 > 0:13:11'Fran's camouflage hides her really well.'
0:13:11 > 0:13:13He can't see me - it's brilliant!
0:13:18 > 0:13:21'But pink camouflage can't hide you for long in these woods.'
0:13:25 > 0:13:26He's seen me.
0:13:26 > 0:13:27Agh!
0:13:27 > 0:13:28Urgh...
0:13:30 > 0:13:34'My yellow camouflage is better than pink in these surroundings.
0:13:34 > 0:13:35'But it's only a matter of time...'
0:13:35 > 0:13:37Spotted him.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40Ah, yes. Now, Tom, you see, I know I was taking the mick earlier.
0:13:40 > 0:13:43But, to be honest, I love orange. It's my favourite colour.
0:13:43 > 0:13:44Get away...! Ooh! ARGH!
0:13:44 > 0:13:46- Gentlemen, you've been splatted! - HE LAUGHS
0:13:46 > 0:13:48What does that all mean?
0:13:48 > 0:13:50This is natural selection in action.
0:13:50 > 0:13:51So it means that, in our species,
0:13:51 > 0:13:55animals with my colouring would be more likely to survive -
0:13:55 > 0:13:59because I didn't get shot - to an age where we could reproduce.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01This means that, over time,
0:14:01 > 0:14:04our species would all have Fran's colouring.
0:14:04 > 0:14:07We've seen how important camouflage is to survive in the wild.
0:14:07 > 0:14:11So which creatures have the best camouflage?
0:14:13 > 0:14:15It's the Genius Top Five.
0:14:15 > 0:14:17At five, the polar bear.
0:14:17 > 0:14:20That furry white coat is perfect for hunting in the snow.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22Let's get out of here!
0:14:22 > 0:14:24Four, the slipper sole.
0:14:24 > 0:14:25A sandy-coloured flatfish
0:14:25 > 0:14:27that blends in brilliantly with the sea bed.
0:14:27 > 0:14:29Mwahahaha!
0:14:29 > 0:14:30Three, the leopard.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32Dark spots and a yellowy-brown coat
0:14:32 > 0:14:35for hiding under the hot African sun.
0:14:35 > 0:14:37Yum, yum, yum, yum.
0:14:37 > 0:14:39Two, the walking leaf.
0:14:39 > 0:14:41This isn't part of a tree, it's actually an insect.
0:14:41 > 0:14:43That's a leaf, or I'm a monkey!
0:14:43 > 0:14:45One, the chameleon.
0:14:45 > 0:14:49A lizard that changes its colour depending on how it's feeling.
0:14:49 > 0:14:51Greeny-brown is great camouflage in the jungle
0:14:51 > 0:14:55but red means, "Danger! Keep your distance!"
0:14:55 > 0:14:56You should be seeing red, mate!
0:14:58 > 0:15:01So we're starting to understand Darwin's theory of evolution,
0:15:01 > 0:15:05how everything in nature is connected and changes over time.
0:15:05 > 0:15:08And, later on, we'll be coming face-to-face
0:15:08 > 0:15:11with a perfectly-evolved predator.
0:15:11 > 0:15:12THEY BOTH YELL
0:15:12 > 0:15:14It's got the pole!
0:15:14 > 0:15:16When Darwin got back from South America,
0:15:16 > 0:15:18he continued his naturalist studies here in Britain.
0:15:18 > 0:15:21Yeah, he settled down, had a family, got married
0:15:21 > 0:15:25and lived HERE for 40 years, in this beautiful house.
0:15:25 > 0:15:27This is Down House in Kent,
0:15:27 > 0:15:30where Darwin worked and where he lived...
0:15:30 > 0:15:32with his wife and ten children.
0:15:32 > 0:15:35Yes, TEN!
0:15:35 > 0:15:38Darwin's little 'uns used to like to play a trick on their dad.
0:15:38 > 0:15:39Yeah. Now, Darwin was the kind of guy
0:15:39 > 0:15:42that liked a fixed daily routine.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45And, every single day, he would walk around this part of the garden
0:15:45 > 0:15:49five times, which meant he would have walked exactly one mile.
0:15:49 > 0:15:53He measured his walk by placing five stones at a certain point
0:15:53 > 0:15:57and then kicking one away each time he went round.
0:15:57 > 0:15:59His children, though, would hide in the undergrowth,
0:15:59 > 0:16:03sneak out once he had gone by and replace the stone.
0:16:03 > 0:16:04Naughty children!
0:16:04 > 0:16:06But, when he was at home,
0:16:06 > 0:16:09Darwin spent most of his time in this study.
0:16:09 > 0:16:13It's here that he wrote down all his ground-breaking ideas.
0:16:14 > 0:16:18And giving us access-all-areas is Annie Kemkaran-Smith,
0:16:18 > 0:16:20Curator of Down House.
0:16:20 > 0:16:22Annie, it's incredible being in this room.
0:16:22 > 0:16:24But it's actually quite... small and modest,
0:16:24 > 0:16:27considering the amount of AMAZING work that came out of here.
0:16:27 > 0:16:29He spent an awful lot of time in this room.
0:16:29 > 0:16:31He wrote all of his 19 books in this room,
0:16:31 > 0:16:34including this one, On The Origin Of Species,
0:16:34 > 0:16:36which was published in 1859.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38- BOTH:- Can we? - Yes.
0:16:38 > 0:16:39DOM CHUCKLES
0:16:39 > 0:16:42- Don't touch it with your finger! - Argh!
0:16:42 > 0:16:44DOM LAUGHS
0:16:44 > 0:16:47"When on board HMS Beagle as a naturalist,
0:16:47 > 0:16:49"I was much struck with certain facts in the distribution
0:16:49 > 0:16:51"of the inhabitants of South America."
0:16:51 > 0:16:54- That's enough for today. More tomorrow!- Lovely.
0:16:54 > 0:16:55'On The Origin Of Species
0:16:55 > 0:16:58'is Darwin's most famous book about evolution.
0:16:58 > 0:17:02'But he delayed publishing it for 15 years.'
0:17:02 > 0:17:05Annie, why have you taken us to a cupboard under the stairs?
0:17:05 > 0:17:08This is possibly one of the most important cupboards in history,
0:17:08 > 0:17:12because, in here, Darwin put his rough version of his book -
0:17:12 > 0:17:14On The Origin Of Species -
0:17:14 > 0:17:18and, in 1844, packaged it up, put it under the stairs,
0:17:18 > 0:17:20with a note to his wife, Emma, saying,
0:17:20 > 0:17:22"If I'm to die, you're to get this published,"
0:17:22 > 0:17:24because he realised how important it was.
0:17:24 > 0:17:28What he had here in this package was the very beginnings
0:17:28 > 0:17:31of questioning the story that the Bible set out.
0:17:31 > 0:17:33He knew that people weren't going to be very happy about that.
0:17:33 > 0:17:38So he needed to have absolute 100% evidence to back that up
0:17:38 > 0:17:40before he put it in the public domain.
0:17:40 > 0:17:43Darwin realised that his theories would only be accepted
0:17:43 > 0:17:48if he could explain the relationship of everything in nature.
0:17:48 > 0:17:52He had to show how even the really weird stuff fitted in.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56Why, for instance, would a plant evolve to eat insects?
0:17:56 > 0:17:59Like this one, the Venus fly trap.
0:17:59 > 0:18:03Meet Rowan Blaik, Head Gardener at Down House.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07He works here, in Darwin's original greenhouse.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10Why was Darwin so interested in carnivorous plants?
0:18:10 > 0:18:12What was he trying to discover about them?
0:18:12 > 0:18:15He knew that carnivorous plants live in really poor soil
0:18:15 > 0:18:16with very few nutrients,
0:18:16 > 0:18:21and he wanted to show that they're just like other living plants -
0:18:21 > 0:18:23they need nitrogen to survive.
0:18:23 > 0:18:27But they're getting their nitrogen from the bugs that they catch.
0:18:27 > 0:18:29Darwin tested lots of carnivorous plants
0:18:29 > 0:18:31including this one, called the sundew.
0:18:31 > 0:18:33We're going to do an experiment to find out
0:18:33 > 0:18:36how the sundew is related to other plants
0:18:36 > 0:18:38and why it evolved into a meat eater!
0:18:40 > 0:18:44With the sundew, what Darwin did was he would feed them cheese,
0:18:44 > 0:18:46and cooked meat, and toenail clippings.
0:18:46 > 0:18:48Ah, right. Well, it just so happens
0:18:48 > 0:18:49I've got my ham sandwich here from lunch.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52- Can we feed the plant a bit of this ham?- Yeah, sure.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55So we've got meat for our sundew plant.
0:18:55 > 0:18:56That's got nitrogen.
0:18:56 > 0:18:58And so have my nail clippings.
0:19:00 > 0:19:01There we go.
0:19:01 > 0:19:04And, believe it or not, something else Darwin tried with the sundew
0:19:04 > 0:19:06was his own urine.
0:19:06 > 0:19:09Yes, piddle is full of nitrogen!
0:19:09 > 0:19:11Time for a tinkle.
0:19:11 > 0:19:13Oh, I know. Do bogies have nitrogen?
0:19:13 > 0:19:16- They do a bit, yeah.- Ahh! - Do they?!- Yeah.
0:19:16 > 0:19:18It's all in the name of science.
0:19:18 > 0:19:20Hold your wee in one hand. Hold my nails here.
0:19:20 > 0:19:23Sorry, viewer, it's all in the name of science!
0:19:23 > 0:19:24'Don't try this at home.'
0:19:24 > 0:19:25Goodness' sake!
0:19:25 > 0:19:27It's black! You've got black bogies!
0:19:27 > 0:19:29I work down the mines.
0:19:29 > 0:19:31Now to put the ham,
0:19:31 > 0:19:33nail clippings,
0:19:33 > 0:19:34bogey,
0:19:34 > 0:19:37and piddle on the sundew and see if it tries to eat them.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40To compare, we're also putting sugar on the plant
0:19:40 > 0:19:43because that doesn't contain nitrogen.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46While we wait for the sundew plant to do its stuff...
0:19:46 > 0:19:50..it's time for the Not So Genius Idea!
0:19:50 > 0:19:53Darwin's great ideas came from hours of thinking,
0:19:53 > 0:19:55often on long walks on his own.
0:19:55 > 0:19:57But thinking can be dangerous.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00One time, he was so preoccupied in his thoughts,
0:20:00 > 0:20:03he walked right off the edge of a wall and fell.
0:20:03 > 0:20:06Fortunately, the drop wasn't very far and he wasn't seriously hurt.
0:20:06 > 0:20:11But he was thinking while falling! Later, he wrote...
0:20:11 > 0:20:14"The number of thoughts which passed through my mind
0:20:14 > 0:20:18"during this very short but sudden and wholly unexpected fall,
0:20:18 > 0:20:20"was astonishing."
0:20:20 > 0:20:22- SPLAT! - Urgh!
0:20:22 > 0:20:2524 hours later, has the sundew plant experiment worked?
0:20:25 > 0:20:27Well, yes. Mostly.
0:20:27 > 0:20:31Unsurprisingly, it didn't fancy nitrogen-free sugar or the nails.
0:20:31 > 0:20:33But, on this special camera,
0:20:33 > 0:20:37we can see how the sundew's hairs wrap greedily around my bogey
0:20:37 > 0:20:41and slurp up the nitrogen from Dick's wee.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44So, Darwin's experiment shows why the sundew evolved
0:20:44 > 0:20:49into a carnivorous species and how it's related to other plant life.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54- Pumpkins.- It was great to recreate one of Darwin's experiments.
0:20:54 > 0:20:57And I think it's given us some ideas for our own Genius Challenge!
0:20:57 > 0:20:59It really has. When Darwin was off on his voyage,
0:20:59 > 0:21:00he got up close and personal
0:21:00 > 0:21:02with all of the wildlife he was documenting.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05Yeah, I think we need to find an animal that's hungry, more ravenous,
0:21:05 > 0:21:07- top of the food chain!- I know it!
0:21:07 > 0:21:08- Sharks!- Yes!
0:21:08 > 0:21:10But where will we find sharks? Where do we go?
0:21:10 > 0:21:11- Do we go to Sydney, Australia?- No.
0:21:11 > 0:21:14- Do we go to the Caribbean?- No. I've got somewhere better in mind.
0:21:14 > 0:21:16- Hm?- Cheshire.- Cheshire...
0:21:16 > 0:21:18- THINKS:- 'I love Cheshire.'
0:21:18 > 0:21:21Our Genius Idea, to go diving with sharks.
0:21:21 > 0:21:24These terrifying fish are one of the most perfect examples
0:21:24 > 0:21:26of evolution in the animal kingdom.
0:21:26 > 0:21:30Our challenge - to come face-to-face with these mighty marine predators,
0:21:30 > 0:21:33to find out for ourselves why they're top of the food chain!
0:21:33 > 0:21:37Our problem - can we pluck up the courage to get in the water
0:21:37 > 0:21:38with these fearsome fish?!
0:21:38 > 0:21:40BUUUURP!
0:21:44 > 0:21:45Right. Sharks!
0:21:48 > 0:21:49- Come on.- OK, I'm coming.
0:21:51 > 0:21:53- No.- Come on.- All right, yes.
0:21:54 > 0:21:57Helping us with our challenge is marine biology dude,
0:21:57 > 0:21:59and heavy rock fan, the Blowfish.
0:21:59 > 0:22:03His favourite shark is, of course, the guitar shark.
0:22:05 > 0:22:07That's just one of eight different kinds of shark
0:22:07 > 0:22:11here at the Blue Planet Aquarium in Cheshire.
0:22:11 > 0:22:13But before we get in the water with these fellas,
0:22:13 > 0:22:18Blowfish is going to show us some other examples of perfect evolution,
0:22:18 > 0:22:20creatures that brilliantly adapted to their environment
0:22:20 > 0:22:22millions of years ago.
0:22:24 > 0:22:26First up is the spider crab.
0:22:26 > 0:22:28This is a crustacean and, believe it or not,
0:22:28 > 0:22:32these guys are related to the gooseneck barnacle.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34Ah! Darwin's favourite little pet.
0:22:34 > 0:22:35That's the one!
0:22:35 > 0:22:39Next, a reptile that's as old as the dinosaurs.
0:22:39 > 0:22:43These guys are cayman. They belong to the alligator family.
0:22:43 > 0:22:45They look like dinosaurs, right?
0:22:45 > 0:22:47Well, essentially, they ARE dinosaurs.
0:22:47 > 0:22:49They're not as big as they used to be
0:22:49 > 0:22:52but they have not changed in any other way.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55And they share their pond with this turtle.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57- You cheeky so and so! - Look at that!
0:22:57 > 0:23:02Believe it or not, long, long ago, snakes used to have legs.
0:23:02 > 0:23:06This reticulated python is perfectly evolved for slithering.
0:23:06 > 0:23:08WHY...?! DICK LAUGHS
0:23:08 > 0:23:09Why is it after me?!
0:23:11 > 0:23:14But, just like the dugong we saw earlier, it once had legs,
0:23:14 > 0:23:16but lost them through evolution.
0:23:17 > 0:23:21And so to the kings of perfect evolution.
0:23:21 > 0:23:23SHARKS!
0:23:23 > 0:23:25HE GASPS What the...?!
0:23:25 > 0:23:30Sharks have been around for an incredible 420 million years -
0:23:30 > 0:23:33that's long before the dinosaurs even arrived.
0:23:33 > 0:23:37So they've spent all that time on the planet being honed by evolution.
0:23:37 > 0:23:40But very, very quickly, they hit a winning formula.
0:23:40 > 0:23:43The thing that really changed the game was those jaws -
0:23:43 > 0:23:45when a shark opens its mouth,
0:23:45 > 0:23:49special muscles on either side of its jaw lock into place,
0:23:49 > 0:23:52throwing the mouth forward, up and down.
0:23:52 > 0:23:54Just about the size of your head.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59Time to see those jaws in action.
0:24:02 > 0:24:04That fish is surrounded. It's got no chance.
0:24:04 > 0:24:07Oh, my goodness! Look at the size of that.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13Oh, look. Look, look, look, look.
0:24:13 > 0:24:14- Ah!- Oh!
0:24:14 > 0:24:16It's got the pole.
0:24:16 > 0:24:18- Ah!- Ho!
0:24:18 > 0:24:20Look at the teeth!
0:24:21 > 0:24:23- It's ripped the bit of wood!- Look!
0:24:23 > 0:24:24Like a saw!
0:24:25 > 0:24:27We've seen that they like their food
0:24:27 > 0:24:30and that they're very feisty predators.
0:24:30 > 0:24:31And now...
0:24:31 > 0:24:33we're going to swim with them.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38This is it. The moment of truth.
0:24:38 > 0:24:41I am absolutely terrified.
0:24:41 > 0:24:44For the first time on this show,
0:24:44 > 0:24:46I'm looking forward to doing a challenge.
0:24:46 > 0:24:48I'm not that scared.
0:24:48 > 0:24:49And look...
0:24:49 > 0:24:53HE is in my boat for once.
0:24:53 > 0:24:55Mm. Yeah. It's absolutely awful.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57'But there's no turning back now.'
0:25:02 > 0:25:04There he goes, look at him. He's gone!
0:25:06 > 0:25:08Underwater, it's a whole new world...
0:25:12 > 0:25:14Oh, no, my turn. All right.
0:25:14 > 0:25:17- BLOWFISH:- See you on the other side, Dom.
0:25:17 > 0:25:18Oh, man...
0:25:28 > 0:25:31Down on the bottom, we look out for our first shark.
0:25:35 > 0:25:36Here it is -
0:25:36 > 0:25:38a massive sand tiger shark!
0:25:40 > 0:25:43It looks terrifying.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46And it's not just sharks swimming around our heads.
0:25:46 > 0:25:48That is a deadly stingray.
0:25:49 > 0:25:51We're surrounded!
0:25:55 > 0:25:57But, after a few minutes down here,
0:25:57 > 0:26:01you realise that the sharks aren't really interested in us.
0:26:02 > 0:26:05Knowing that, I finally begin to relax
0:26:05 > 0:26:08and admire all these fantastic creatures.
0:26:08 > 0:26:12All of them the result of millions of years of evolution.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15And, soon, we forget about the danger altogether.
0:26:19 > 0:26:22But, when our air runs low, it's time to come back to the surface.
0:26:26 > 0:26:29- How was that, Dom? - Absolutely brilliant!
0:26:29 > 0:26:31Really, it was.
0:26:31 > 0:26:34It was like being in someone else's universe.
0:26:34 > 0:26:35Here he comes.
0:26:38 > 0:26:40DOM LAUGHS
0:26:40 > 0:26:44Wasn't that AMAZING, eh?!
0:26:44 > 0:26:47- I'm almost speechless.- Incredible! - Like walking into a different world.
0:26:47 > 0:26:49And they didn't care.
0:26:49 > 0:26:52And there's us being really stressed before and it was actually possibly
0:26:52 > 0:26:56- one of the most peaceful things you could ever do.- Yeah.
0:26:56 > 0:26:57Like... Oh!
0:26:57 > 0:26:59'What a journey this has been!
0:26:59 > 0:27:02'We've seen pickled monsters and live snakes...'
0:27:02 > 0:27:03Why is after me?!
0:27:03 > 0:27:06'..and creatures Darwin brought back from his travels.'
0:27:06 > 0:27:09'We've learned how Darwin's theory of evolution
0:27:09 > 0:27:12'explains how every living thing on the planet has evolved...'
0:27:12 > 0:27:16'..how humans came from apes, how barnacles have babies...
0:27:16 > 0:27:18Clever old chap, really!
0:27:18 > 0:27:21'..but how some, like sharks,
0:27:21 > 0:27:24'got everything just right a long, long time ago...'
0:27:24 > 0:27:28Boys, you've just been in the water with 420 million years of evolution!
0:27:28 > 0:27:31- THEY LAUGH - Thank you, Charles Darwin.
0:27:31 > 0:27:33Yeah. I think you're an Absolute Genius!
0:27:33 > 0:27:35Jolly kind of you to say so.
0:27:40 > 0:27:41Argh!
0:27:41 > 0:27:43Wargh!
0:27:43 > 0:27:44It smacked me in the face!
0:27:44 > 0:27:45- Dom's...- Oh, no!
0:27:45 > 0:27:47THEY LAUGH
0:27:47 > 0:27:49What are you doing?!
0:27:49 > 0:27:52- THEY LAUGH - Let me get it straight!
0:27:52 > 0:27:53Oh!
0:27:53 > 0:27:55Oh, what's all that?! What's all the black stuff?!
0:27:55 > 0:27:58- Ha-hey!- WHY...?!
0:27:58 > 0:28:01DICK LAUGHS
0:28:01 > 0:28:03DICK SCREAMS AND LAUGHS