The science of Game of Thrones: from the genetics of royal incest to the chemistry of death by molten gold--sifting fact from fantasy in the Seven Kingdoms

part 1. Fire: Here be dragons : where we discover dragons are entirely the stuff of legend, how real-life dragons have sex, whether they could actually fly, the truth about fire-breathing ; Fire power : where we find out how Wildfire is all too real, the hidden secret of Valyrian steel, a tried-and-tested golden formula for killing someone who's annoying to you ; Weapons of Westeros, a (battle) field guide : where we get licensed to kill: the art of poisoning, living and dying by the sword, the truth about shadowy assassins, sexy armour, and what it means to be a real warrior woman

part 2. Ice: Northern exposure : where we break the ice with our friends in the North, Hodor's "expressive aphasia", warging and the science of astral projection, the psychology of revenge: Arya Stark's kill list ; All creatures great and small (and cold) : where we encounter strange life in the Frozen North, running with dire wolves, the finest mounts Westeros has to offer, how cold makes things huge, giant-killing with Sir Isaac Newton and JBS Haldane, the truth behind zombification ; Another ice brick in the wall : where we scale the Wall, learn how sound waves can destroy solid matter, and recount the sorry tale of the cat piano (a keyboard worthy of Joffrey Baratheon)

part 3. Magic: Mother tongue of dragons : where we learn a few real and made-up language, discover noun-verb constructs in Dothraki, and eavesdrop on the talking trees ; Real magic : where we discover if magic exists and how to fake it, give the gift of death, and make fantastical creatures in the lab ; How will it end? : where we put on a sweater and consider astronomical answers to the perplexing question of a long winter, and attempt to finally settle the question posed by Robert Frost.