Everything and Nothing
- TV Mini Series
- 2011
- 1h
IMDb RATING
8.5/10
1.1K
YOUR RATING
Two of the most profound questions: what is everything and what is nothing?Two of the most profound questions: what is everything and what is nothing?Two of the most profound questions: what is everything and what is nothing?
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Great explanations of these hard-to-grasp theories. Very creative visualisations. Engaging narration.
Speaks in entirely generalized terms about the understanding of the Universe from a European/British historical perspective, while completely and deliberately ignoring the ancient yet advanced Indian understanding of a heliocentric solar system in particular and a nuanced understanding of the Universe in general. The Indian astronomer- mathematician Aryabhata (476- 550 AD), in his magnum opus Aryabhatiya, had propounded a heliocentric model in which the Earth was taken to be spinning on its axis and the periods of the planets were given with respect to a stationary Sun. The ancient Greeks probably pre-dated even Arybhata. However, all credit to Copernicus, inspite of being 18 centuries late.
"Everything and nothing" is an interesting and pleasantly watchable documentary about mankind's attempt at grasping the nature of the cosmos. The mini-series reflects a Western viewpoint, but this seems to be caused not by cultural chauvinism but rather by a wish to keep the explanation clear and concise.
The first episode deals with humanity's attempts at describing very very large things : stars, galaxies, the universe itself. The second deals with our attempts at describing very very small things, such as the components of an atom. Among the questions treated : how old is the universe, how many stars are there, why is it dark at night, where did this idea of nature abhorring a vacuum come from, does air have a weight, is there such a thing or such a state as complete nothingness ? The documentary also contains short biographies of the remarkable men and women who helped pierce a number of nature's secrets.
Speaking as a complete layperson : I rather liked "Everything and nothing", mainly for its didactic clarity. It was a pleasure to hear experts explain difficult concepts in an intelligible way. I also liked the accompanying images, many of which induced a deep sense of awe.
Anyway, it must be most frustrating to be a modern-day scientist active in fields like physics, astronomy and cosmology. To perform this kind of job requires order, patience, discipline and seriousness of mind. However, if and when answers arrive, they are so weird and so counter-intuitive that they might have been designed by a committee of stoners led by a four-year-old out of his trumpet on sugar. ("Of course time and space are linked ! Man ! That's why you can only have a good time if you're in a good place ! By the way, if you want to watch the invisible show yesterday you need to tip the waiter tomorrow.") If I were a scientist, I'd be sorely tempted to go and lie on an old mattress myself, in order to smoke pot and giggle about nothingness annihilating itself into being.
The first episode deals with humanity's attempts at describing very very large things : stars, galaxies, the universe itself. The second deals with our attempts at describing very very small things, such as the components of an atom. Among the questions treated : how old is the universe, how many stars are there, why is it dark at night, where did this idea of nature abhorring a vacuum come from, does air have a weight, is there such a thing or such a state as complete nothingness ? The documentary also contains short biographies of the remarkable men and women who helped pierce a number of nature's secrets.
Speaking as a complete layperson : I rather liked "Everything and nothing", mainly for its didactic clarity. It was a pleasure to hear experts explain difficult concepts in an intelligible way. I also liked the accompanying images, many of which induced a deep sense of awe.
Anyway, it must be most frustrating to be a modern-day scientist active in fields like physics, astronomy and cosmology. To perform this kind of job requires order, patience, discipline and seriousness of mind. However, if and when answers arrive, they are so weird and so counter-intuitive that they might have been designed by a committee of stoners led by a four-year-old out of his trumpet on sugar. ("Of course time and space are linked ! Man ! That's why you can only have a good time if you're in a good place ! By the way, if you want to watch the invisible show yesterday you need to tip the waiter tomorrow.") If I were a scientist, I'd be sorely tempted to go and lie on an old mattress myself, in order to smoke pot and giggle about nothingness annihilating itself into being.
Unfortunate BBC documentary with a false perspective from the usual British egocentrism, islands without which the civilized world would not exist. Greek culture and science Arabs and the Chinese and Mesoamerican civilizations are skipped at a stroke. Modern astronomy is not due to Copernicus, Galileo, but to some unknown. Surprise, all Anglo-Saxons! I'm sorry I stopped watching the documentary.
Very good documentary, as usual with a Jim Al-Khalili film.
But, there is no credit for the outstanding original music cues.
WHY?
Very good documentary, as usual with a Jim Al-Khalili film.
But, there is no credit for the outstanding original music cues.
WHY?
Very good documentary, as usual with a Jim Al-Khalili film.
But, there is no credit for the outstanding original music cues.
WHY?
Very good documentary, as usual with a Jim Al-Khalili film.
But, there is no credit for the outstanding original music cues.
WHY?
Very good documentary, as usual with a Jim Al-Khalili film.
But, there is no credit for the outstanding original music cues.
WHY?
But, there is no credit for the outstanding original music cues.
WHY?
Very good documentary, as usual with a Jim Al-Khalili film.
But, there is no credit for the outstanding original music cues.
WHY?
Very good documentary, as usual with a Jim Al-Khalili film.
But, there is no credit for the outstanding original music cues.
WHY?
Very good documentary, as usual with a Jim Al-Khalili film.
But, there is no credit for the outstanding original music cues.
WHY?
Very good documentary, as usual with a Jim Al-Khalili film.
But, there is no credit for the outstanding original music cues.
WHY?
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- Everything and Nothing: The Amazing Science of Empty Space
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By what name was Everything and Nothing (2011) officially released in Canada in English?
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