If you want to know the hard mechanics, the mathematical underpinnings and other details behind string theory, look elsewhere. If you want to know what physicists are up to these days, then you've found your documentary.
The film makes no attempt to explain the equations behind string theory, but instead gives a synopsis of science history and thinking, followed by the theories developed from that history, in a very plain and simple way most people (read that as people who are not into physics) can understand.
There're no incredibly long differentials strung out on a chalk board or butcher paper for the more educated viewer to scrutinize, copy, and hence play with. What this film is is a presentation of how the scientific community, and specifically high energy physics, is dealing with explaining the basic and fundamental mechanics of existence. If you thought otherwise, and are into physics, and were subsequently let down by the program, then maybe you're not as bright as you thought. That's just some food for thought. I think Einstein once remarked that he believed the universe, at its core, ought to be elegant, simple, and easy to understand. That's the whole point of this documentary: To explain to people how and why the world around us is the way it is.
Myself, a person who's trained in science and who's read some literature on the more theoretical fields of physics, I found this mini-series to be very entertaining, and hope I get to see another special about the next big breakthrough in physics. I learned about things that, quite frankly, I had no idea existed.
If you're just an amateur scientist, or just have a passing interest in scientific things, then this small series should entertain. Heck, even if you're an undergrad you might learn something. Enjoy :-)
The film makes no attempt to explain the equations behind string theory, but instead gives a synopsis of science history and thinking, followed by the theories developed from that history, in a very plain and simple way most people (read that as people who are not into physics) can understand.
There're no incredibly long differentials strung out on a chalk board or butcher paper for the more educated viewer to scrutinize, copy, and hence play with. What this film is is a presentation of how the scientific community, and specifically high energy physics, is dealing with explaining the basic and fundamental mechanics of existence. If you thought otherwise, and are into physics, and were subsequently let down by the program, then maybe you're not as bright as you thought. That's just some food for thought. I think Einstein once remarked that he believed the universe, at its core, ought to be elegant, simple, and easy to understand. That's the whole point of this documentary: To explain to people how and why the world around us is the way it is.
Myself, a person who's trained in science and who's read some literature on the more theoretical fields of physics, I found this mini-series to be very entertaining, and hope I get to see another special about the next big breakthrough in physics. I learned about things that, quite frankly, I had no idea existed.
If you're just an amateur scientist, or just have a passing interest in scientific things, then this small series should entertain. Heck, even if you're an undergrad you might learn something. Enjoy :-)