The Genius of Britain Episode 1

Aired May 30, 2010


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"We may only be a small island, but Britain's great scientists and inventors have literally created the modern world, from the invention of the steam engine, computers and the world-wide web, to the discovery of the theory of evolution and the atom. In a new five-part series some of Britain's leading scientific figures tell the stories of the people behind these innovations. The first programme begins 350 years ago when a small group of friends, colleagues and rivals defied everything that was known about the world at that time. Stephen Hawking and Jim Al-Khalili explain how Isaac Newton saw mathematics at the root of everything, from gravity to light."

(New Series, Part 1 of 5)

The Genius of Britain Episode 2 (HD)

"In this new five-part series, leading scientific figures - Stephen Hawking, Richard Dawkins, James Dyson, David Attenborough, Robert Winston, Paul Nurse, Jim Al-Khalili, Kathy Sykes and Olivia Judson - celebrate the British scientists and inventors who literally created the modern world. The second programme in the series looks at the scientific spark that ignited the Industrial Revolution in Britain. James Dyson tells the story of how a young James Watt was inspired to perfect the steam engine that would change the world forever. Jim Al-Khalili explains how Joseph Priestley, a clergyman with a fascination for gases, discovered the very air we breathe and started a craze for soda water. David Attenborough talks about his hero Joseph Banks, the great naturalist who sailed to the South Seas and founded Kew Gardens on his return. And Robert Winston reveals the extraordinary story of John Hunter, surgeon, anatomist... and body-snatcher."
(Part 2 of 5)


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