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Why is Water Exceptional?

Mike Williams explains why water is exceptional and what that means for all of us.

Water is the only molecule in the natural world which expands when it freezes. And that is not its only unusual feature. It is the cornerstone of all of life on this planet, and maybe others. Water is part of the myths and rituals of civilisations all over the world. But if H20, the one chemical formula just about everyone can recognise, was just a little bit different, life as we know it would not exist. Mike Williams explains why water is exceptional and what that means for all of us.

(Photo: Raindrops on a window. Credit to James Beard)

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18 minutes

Last on

Mon 8 Feb 2016 17:32GMT
BBC World Service US Public Radio

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  • Fri 5 Feb 2016 20:32GMT
    BBC World Service Online, Europe and the Middle East, UK DAB/Freeview & Americas and the Caribbean only
  • Fri 5 Feb 2016 21:32GMT
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  • Sun 7 Feb 2016 19:32GMT
    BBC World Service US Public Radio
  • Mon 8 Feb 2016 02:32GMT
    BBC World Service Americas and the Caribbean
  • Mon 8 Feb 2016 03:32GMT
    BBC World Service UK DAB/Freeview, Online, Europe and the Middle East & East Asia only
  • Mon 8 Feb 2016 04:32GMT
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    BBC World Service Australasia
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    BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East & East and Southern Africa only
  • Mon 8 Feb 2016 08:32GMT
    BBC World Service US Public Radio
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    BBC World Service UK DAB/Freeview & Online only
  • Mon 8 Feb 2016 14:32GMT
    BBC World Service Europe and the Middle East, West and Central Africa, East Asia, South Asia & East and Southern Africa only
  • Mon 8 Feb 2016 17:32GMT
    BBC World Service US Public Radio

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