Bbc Revolutions The Ideas That Changed The World

'The telescope gave us what might be the greatest discovery of all – the universe itself.' - Jim Al-Khalili. Jim Al-Khalili and a team of experts explore the fascinating story of one of our greatest inventions, the telescope, using original notebooks, stylish visualisations and sophisticated computer graphics. It is a tale full of twists and turns, involving a seashore plant, a New York property boom and a spilt bottle of mercury. Thanks to these events, the telescope allowed us to discover not just our place in the cosmos, but our origins too.

Jim Al-Khalili investigates the fascinating story of the robot, using original documents, reconstructions and sophisticated computer graphics. It would take Lord Byron's daughter, three brothers in ancient Baghdad and a mission to Mars to give us the technology that could transform the world. In ancient Greece, Homer writes of Hephaestus, god of fire and metalworking, who forges two mechanical handmaidens to help him. The idea of artificial people is born.

‘It takes more than one mind to change the world’ - Jim Al-Khalili
In this major new landmark series for BBC Four co-produced by PBS, Jim Al-Khalili explores the extraordinary story of six remarkable inventions: The Aeroplane, The Car, The Rocket, The Smartphone, The Telescope, The Robot. They are familiar, yet hidden within them are thousands of years of thought, struggle, sacrifice, determination and insight.

'The rocket has changed us into a species that is no longer confined to Earth.' - Jim Al-Khalili . The rocket will revolutionise our species, expanding our future into space, but its origins are surprisingly old. Jim Al-Khalili explores the story of humanity’s greatest adventure and our grandest dreams. He peers inside the minds of the visionaries who made it possible, using new research and their original notebooks and sketches, bringing these stories to life using state of the art experiments, breathtaking drama and CGI.

im Al-Khalili and a team of experts investigate the fascinating story of the smartphone. It took a Hollywood star, a missed holiday and a Roman siege to give us the device that connects us all. In 133BC, Greek tutor Polybius updates the method the Roman army uses to communicate. His system uses fire to spell out words. It is the world’s first encrypted communications system. In 1825, Samuel Morse is far away from home when he receives a letter telling him that his wife is dying. By the time he gets back, she is already buried. Determined to find a faster way to communicate, Morse learns about electricity.

'Like it or not, the car defines not just what we are able to do, but in many cases who we think we are.' Jim Al-Khalili investigates how our innate drive to explore mobilised humanity and gave us the ultimate freedom machine, the car. Based on new research, he peers inside the original notebooks and sketches of the visionaries who, whether knowingly or not, risked death, poverty and ridicule to advance our species’ progression, bringing these stories to life using state of the art experiments, breathtaking drama and CGI.

How the invention of writing gave humanity a history. From hieroglyphs to emojis, an exploration of the way in which the technology of writing has shaped the world we live in.