Witness the secret powers of extraordinary animals, experience the world as they do and see the SUPER/NATURAL side of nature as never before. Executive produced by James Cameron and narrated by Benedict Cumberbatch, this series uses the scientific innovations and leading-edge filmmaking technology to reveal the secret powers and super-senses of the world’s extraordinary animals. See flowers in bee-vision to eavesdropping on conversations between elephant seals to soaring the length of a football field with glow-in-the-dark squirrels. They say in nature that only the strongest survive. But when cooperation and communication bring animals and plants together and superpowers combine even the most vulnerable can become unstoppable. If you think you know nature, think again.
The fifth episode of the series is a fascinating exploration of the dinosaur era and its impact on the evolution of life on Earth. Through a journey of 200 million years, we discover how the breakup of Pangea and tectonic changes shaped biodiversity and created environments for dinosaurs and other forms of life to flourish. From the majestic Diplodocus to the formidable Allosaurus, the documentary brings to life the giants that once dominated our planet. Additionally, it shows the evolution of plants, highlighting the emergence of flowers and their symbiotic relationship with insects, such as termites and ants, whose social and evolutionary dynamics are explored in depth. The narrative also addresses the rise of mammals and their coexistence with dinosaurs, highlighting species such as the Numbat and their struggle for survival. With stunning imagery and a captivating narrative, this episode is an invitation to learn, marvel, and reflect on the extraordinary history of life on Earth.
The film reveals the secret story behind one of the greatest intellectual feats of World War II, a feat that gave birth to the digital age. In 1943 Bill Tutte, a 24-year-old maths student and a GPO engineer called Tommy Flowers combined to hack into Hitler's personal super code machine - not Enigma but an even tougher system, which he called his 'secrets writer'. Their break turned the Battle of Kursk, powered the D-day landings and orchestrated the end of the conflict in Europe. But it was also to be used during the Cold War - which meant both men's achievements were hushed up and never officially recognised.
From space, Earth is a kaleidoscope. Turquoise plankton blooms trigger a feeding frenzy, China turns yellow with rapeseed flowers, and mysterious green lights appear in the ocean. Satellites give us a new perspective on its greatest and most beautiful spectacles allowing us to make new discoveries We can watch landscapes change through the seasons and marvel in the scale of their transformations. Satellite cameras capture a kaleidoscope of extraordinary colours surprising and constantly changing, created by natural phenomena, by animals and by people. These colours are revealing new insight into the health of our fragile planet, transforming our understanding of our colourful home.
Go with us on a mathematical mystery tour, a provocative exploration of math's astonishing power across the centuries. We discover math's signature in the swirl of a nautilus shell, the whirlpool of a galaxy, and the spiral in the center of a sunflower. Math was essential to everything from the first wireless radio transmissions to the successful landing of rovers on Mars. But where does math get its power?" Astrophysicist and writer Mario Livio, along with a colorful cast of mathematicians, physicists, and engineers, follow math from Pythagoras to Einstein and beyond, all leading to the ultimate riddle: Is math an invention or a discovery? Humankind's clever trick, or the language of the universe? Whether we think we're good with numbers or not, we all use math in our daily lives. The Great Math Mystery sheds fascinating light on how math works in our brains and ponders the ultimate mystery of why it works so well when decoding the universe.
Sir David Attenborough reveals plants as they have never been seen before - on the move and dangerously devious. About the major problems of life - growing, finding food, reproduction - and the varied ways plants have evolved to solve it. Filmed from the plant's point of view, using computer animations, fibre-optics and unique time-lapse photography. The first episode looks at how plants are able to move". The bramble is an aggressive example: it advances forcefully from side to side and, once settled on its course, there is little that can stand in its way. An altogether faster species is the birdcage plant, which inhabits Californian sand dunes. When its location becomes exposed, it shifts at great speed to another one with the assistance of wind — and it is this that allows many forms of vegetation to distribute their seeds. While not strictly a plant, the spores of fungi are also spread in a similar fashion. One of the most successful (and intricate) flowers to use the wind is the dandelion, whose seeds travel with the aid of 'parachutes'. They are needed to travel miles away from their parents, who are too densely packed to allow any new arrivals. Trees have the advantage of height to send their seeds further, and the cottonwood is shown as a specialist in this regard. The humidity of the tropical rainforest creates transportation problems, and the liana-species Alsomitra macrocarpa is one plant whose seeds are aerodynamic 'gliders'. Some, such as those of the sycamore, take the form of 'helicopters', while others, such as the squirting cucumber release their seeds by 'exploding'. Water is also a widely used method of propulsion. The tropical sea bean Entada gigas has one of the biggest fruits of all plants and is dispersed by water streams. However, most plants use living couriers, whether they be dogs, humans and other primates, ants or birds, etc., and to that end, they use colour and smell to signify when they are ripe for picking.
They say in nature that only the strongest survive. But when cooperation and communication bring animals and plants together and superpowers combine even the most vulnerable can become unstoppable. If you think you know nature, think again.