Brian takes a fresh look at the concept of gravity, revealing it to be far more than just the force that makes things fall to the ground. In the last three years, we've made profound discoveries about the nature of gravity and the way it behaves, and how this relates to the origin of the universe and strange things like black holes. Our theory of gravity has become the attempt to understand the nature of space and time.
Time i s a concept which is so familiar, and yet recent discoveries have revealed it to be far stranger than we could have possibly imagined. In the final programme in the series, Brian explores the enigma of time - a phenomenon we take for granted but which is one of the biggest mysteries in the universe. He recalls highlights from his TV series that touch upon this conundrum.
Just outside Paris, inside a hi-tech vault, and encased in three vacuum-sealed bell jars, rests a small metallic cylinder about the diameter of a golf ball. It may not look like much, but it is one of the most important objects on the planet. It affects nearly every aspect of our lives including the food we eat, the cars we drive, even the medicines we take. It is the Kilogramme, the base unit of mass in the International System of Units. Yet over time, its mass has mysteriously eroded by the weight of an eyelash. A change that, unbeknownst to most, unleashed a crisis with potentially dire consequences. The film follows the ensuing high-stakes, two-year race to redefine the weight of the world, and tells the story of one of the most important objects on the planet.
Inside the world-renowned physics laboratory Fermilab, a team of scientists are constructing an audacious experiment to hunt for a mysterious new ‘ghost’ neutrino. If they find it, this could transform our understanding of the nature and fabric of our universe. The problem is, these tiny particles are almost impossible to detect. Elsewhere, physicists conduct experiments in some of the most extreme environments on the planet: from deep mine shafts in South Dakota to vast ice fields at the South Pole. In these unlikely places supersized neutrino detectors hope to unlock the universe’s deepest secrets. Could neutrinos overturn the most precise theory of particle physics that humans have ever written down? Could they even be a link to a hidden realm of new particles that permeate the cosmos – so called dark matter? Scientists at Fermilab are edging towards the truth.
Not an animal, nor a plant, nor fungi, the blob is one giant single cell whose amazing capacities are leading pioneer scientists to a very new world – that of brainless intelligence. More commonly known as slime mould, this extraordinary one-billion-year-old organism challenges our understanding in many different fields. This fascinating documentary follows top experts from Europe, Japan and the US on a scientific investigation into this most surprising organism.
We as humans often question the creation of the universe. How was the universe created? How does it work? This series uses global experts from organizations like NASA and CERN to help us understand how this works, and uses CGI to demonstrate the phenomena. Episode 1 starts the new season as we dive deep into the black holes. The galaxy M87 is known for having at the core a super massive black hole. This black hole is the first ever photographed and we will witness the experts trying to find out the secrets of this famous black hole. In the meantime, they have overcome the scorching winds and death ray jets. And of all its hurdles, the event horizon will be the most difficult. This place is known for its uniqueness of time and space, where time stays still while the laws of physics fail.
In the last three years, we've made profound discoveries about the nature of gravity and the way it behaves, and how this relates to the origin of the universe and strange things like black holes. Our theory of gravity has become the attempt to understand the nature of space and time.