Panta Rei - everything is flowing.
This ancient Greek philosophical phrase, which signifies that everything is in perpetual motion and subject to change, well describes the human species and its history, but also the career of British scientist Alaa al-Shamahi, nicknamed Ella.
When she enrolled at University College London at the age of 18 as a Muslim missionary, she wanted to "disproves Darwin's theory" evolution.
A few decades later, as an evolutionary biologist, she hosts a BBC documentary show Man (Human) about exactly that.
Series like these are extremely important for "understanding who we are and where we come from," Al-Shamahi believes.
"It's emotional and moving," so you feel like you've experienced it all, says the host.
The British researcher of Yemeni-Syrian origin takes viewers through the 300.000-year history of the human species in five episodes and the same number of hours of documentary programming.
In addition to a wealth of new knowledge, the 2025 series. shows how when Homo sapiens appeared in Africa, "we were not alone", there were already at least six other human species, and it also examines how we became the dominant form of life on the planet in this competition.
"We don't know the exact nature of that relationship, whether it was peaceful or violent, but we know that we interbred and shared the planet with each other," Ela al-Shamahi tells BBC Serbian.
She has hosted several science programs for various television stations, while she has recorded, among other things, shows for the BBC. Neanderthals - Meet your ancestors (Neanderthals - Meet Your Ancestors) of the Pojilo (water hole).
She has made documentaries about female warriors among the Vikings, whales, and the Amazon rainforest, written a book about the history of handshakes, and can also be seen as a stand-up comedian on various stages around the world.
She graduated from University College London, received her master's degree from the Taxonomy and Biodiversity program at Imperial College and the Natural History Museum in the British capital, and is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in paleoanthropology.
Ela al-Shamahi shared her experiences working on the series for the BBC Serbian service. Man, how important it is to present scientific facts to a wider audience in an entertaining way, as well as how to combat conspiracy theories and fake news on social media and the internet.
From rat dens in Indonesia to bears in Romania
On the series Man It took about three years to make, more than two of which were filmed on all seven continents and in 16 countries.
"It was very demanding," says Al-Shamahi.
Working on the documentary sometimes turned into an expedition, with inevitable "extremely difficult moments".
So some people from the team ended up sleeping in rat holes in Indonesia, while Eli and his colleagues happened to pick up fleas in Turkey.
"It was disgusting, they were all over us," the presenter recalls.
"And I think I picked up a bug in Peru and brought it into the apartment," she adds.
The schedule, he says, was extremely tight, and an additional challenge was the thousands of kilometers traveled and hundreds of hours of recorded material in which it was necessary to "find the story, landscapes, words and emotions", or rather "make a series".
The most inspiring locations, both from a scientific perspective and in terms of content, were Namibia, Botswana, Norway, and even Romania, especially its long mountain passes and numerous bears along the way.
"You sit there and think: 'Well, I have to go back here for a vacation, this place is beautiful.'"
"However, you never have time to do it again because when you finish filming, you're too tired, you don't want to move," says Al-Shamahi.
- A scientist from Serbia discovers the world of prehistoric mothers and babies
- Modern man and Neanderthal lived together longer than we think
- The mysterious giant footprint and the origin of the human species
Hobbits, Steve Jobs and Man as a Cooperative Species
Series Man is a combination of archaeology, history, travelogues and reconstruction of evolution, migrations, the life of the "wise man" (Homo sapiens) and our ancient ancestors in the image and through the words of numerous scientists and experts who participated in its creation.
Near Homo sapiens, the documentary also discusses related, extinct species such as Neanderthals, Denisovans, and tiny hobbits (Homo floresiensis), whose fossils have been found in this century in Siberia and Indonesia.
"The good thing about this type of show is that you get the opportunity to talk about these things and show them to the world, but also to visit the original archaeological site and hold the fossil in your hand," says Al-Shamahi.
However, they more often used replicas for filming so as not to damage the original skull and bone remains.
Al-Shamahi also finds the success of being the only surviving human species in cooperation.
"Whatever the future holds, we must remember that we are a naturally cooperative species."
"That gives us an advantage and makes us the most successful," he adds.
Credit for human progress, she believes, should also be attributed to "collective genius" because each generation "builds on knowledge from the previous one."
"Steve Jobs in the Paleolithic (Old Stone Age) 50.000 years ago would never have invented the iPhone (a type of telephone), but it would have taken millennia and a multitude of human inventions, refinements, copying, and learning."
"That's how you got Steve Jobs, and he wouldn't have been Steve Jobs without the other people."
Science and faith
Presenting scientific facts to the audience in an entertaining and understandable way is of utmost importance, believes Al-Shamahi.
She is not a fan of complications, and "her job, like that of other researchers," is to convey scientific knowledge and facts to people.
But also to explain why part of the tax goes to science, so that people understand why it is important, he adds.
He also believes that people should have access to information, including scientific information that is accurate.
However, this is not always the case, and there are those who fall into the traps of fake news and conspiracy theories from social networks and the internet.
As a former creationist, that is, a woman who believes that God created the world, she "understands people's motivations to believe in these things" considering their background, belonging to a particular community and society.
"I told my story partly to raise awareness among people not to be so aggressive and not to treat those who don't believe in science as morons," she says.
There are, he adds, reasons why people believe such things, and he hopes that others will have more empathy for them in such conversations.
"After all, I came to study evolution because I didn't believe in it, and if I had been able to disprove that theory, I would have won the Nobel Prize."
Al-Shamahi believes that people often believe misinformation because they perceive it as "good stories."
"So, let's tell our story," he concludes.
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- The story of Nišlija, the first Neanderthal in Serbia
- Prehistoric sex: When the eyes of humans and Neanderthals met
- Humans might not have survived without Neanderthals
- Is dragon-like man one of our closest ancestors
- The search for the origins of modern humans "leads to Botswana"
- Neanderthal skull with Down syndrome reveals secret of evolution
Bonus video:
