We are the generation of human beings that are going to know whether or not we're alone in the universe. This episode explores the search of exoplanets, from ancient Greek philosophers to the discoveries made possible with the Kepler Telescope. Unbelievable new worlds, planets made of diamond, planets of raining glass, worlds in collision, some plunging into stars, and others that just might harbor life. Thanks to today's planet hunters, our views of the universe and of our place in it are undergoing one of the greatest revolutions in scientific history.
Why were the most fearsome warriors our planet has ever known stopped by a flaming light in the sky? How did Columbus use secret knowledge of the heavens to cheat death in the New World? Our ancestors saw a universe
filled with bad omens. The film examines the interpretations by ancient peoples of celestial phenomena as bad omens, and the impact that the perceived omens may have had on history.
A Good American tells the story of the best code-breaker the USA ever had and how he and a small team within NSA created a surveillance tool that could pick up any electronic signal on earth, filter it for targets and render results in real-time while keeping the privacy. The tool was perfect - except for one thing: it was way too cheap. Therefore NSA leadership, who had fallen into the hands of industry, dumped it - three weeks prior to 9/11. This is the story of former Technical director of NSA, Bill Binney, and a program called ThinThread.
The nervous system is fundamentally electric. When we move our arm, it moves because a electric signal has been sent to the muscle that controls it. Now, because the brain is electric, we could also use electricity to record what the brain is doing or bypass it entirely, and control a body. That means that we could restore movement to people who are paralyzed, feel through an artificial hand as if it was our own, and even read people's minds. Michael Stevens explores how electricity can be used to move cockroaches, control other peoples' limbs and even read peoples' thoughts.
Changing diets and dramatic price swings have put dairy farmers on the ropes and fueled a surge in lucrative but controversial raw milk sales. Proponents of raw milk have stated that there are benefits to its consumption, including better flavour, better nutrition, and the building of a healthy immune system. However, the medical community has warned of the dangers, which include a risk of infection, and has not found any clear benefit
Looking back on the major stories of the year - from the New Horizons mission to the most distant world we have ever visited to the release of the first-ever picture of a black hole. The team relive the highlights and uncover the latest developments.
Thanks to today's planet hunters, our views of the universe and of our place in it are undergoing one of the greatest revolutions in scientific history.