ATOM
The discovery that everything is made from atoms has been referred to as the greatest scientific breakthrough in history. As scientists delved deep into the atom, they unravelled nature’s most shocking secrets and abandoned traditional beliefs, leading to a whole new science which still underpins modern physics, chemistry and biology, and maybe even life itself. Nuclear physicist Professor Jim Al-Khalili tells the story of this discovery and the brilliant minds behind the breakthrough.
The second part of Professor Jim Al-Khalili’s three-part documentary about the basic building block of our universe, the atom. He shows how, in our quest to understand the tiny atom, we unravelled the mystery of how the universe was created – a story with dramatic twists and turns, taking in world-changing discoveries like radioactivity, the atom bomb and the Big Bang, as the greatest brains of the 20th century competed to answer the biggest questions of all.
The final part of Professor Jim Al-Khalili’s documentary series about the basic building block of our universe, the atom. He explores how studying the atom forced us to rethink the nature of reality itself, discovers how there might be parallel universes in which different versions of us exist and finds out that ‘empty’ space isn’t empty at all. Al-Khalili shows how the world we think we know turns out to be a tiny sliver of an infinitely weirder universe than which we could have conceived. (Excerpt from bbc.co.uk)
The Clash of the Titans
The Key to the Cosmos
The Illusion of Reality
For those who have always looked for a simplistic approach to explain the ever complex quantum mechanics and particle physics , this documentary is definitely the right place to start with.
Personally, the biggest riddle in theoretical physics that desperately needs a breakthrough is the “measurement problem”. Infact I was wondering if Hawking’s Paradox was somehow incorporated in this documentary. That could have been a great fit in the third part “Illusion of reality”.
Overall a very solid introduction to the world of “Atoms”.
Such an awesome piece of documentary…….
Complex theories of Quantum Mechanics are explained in a very simplistic and nice manner……
The content of all the 3 parts is very well prepared and presented!!
I barely passed physics in school. They dumbed the information down enough that even i could understand it. This series was very thought provoking, in my opinion it shows myself that the Bible to be true in what it states. The Apostle Paul states, “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:18); and
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 6:12). The heavenly realms would be the unseen world, these authors most likely were not able to explain the atom the way the brilliant scientist have, but they were aware of this unseen world thousands of years ago.
The Bible is truly an amazing Book. I feel that with science and the Bible i am able to experience ultimate reality (the seen and the unseen world we live in).
I’m wondering why he suggested that the number of electrons changes the element in the minute 36 of clash of the titans. its certainly a proton that changes the element.
Really enjoyable series, liked how it expanded upon things as it went through the docs and kept me thinking the whole time.
Fantastic intro into quantum-mechanics and the (sub)atomic-world. A must see!
From watching episode 2,
Essentially, Science is a religion.
The explanation for the creation of the universe is;
1 Theory – A big bang, Presense of an Immense energy, Presence of Helium and Hydrogen
- Where did the Radeon energy come from?
- Where did the Helium and Hydrogen come from?
2nd Theory – The Universe always existed.
Also, there is no theory explaining why the nucleus, or the force which keeps the atom together, never simply splits and runs out of energy.
Science actually, Proves the presence of a divine emergence And sustainance of creation.
loved this documentary. If quantum physics helps me do better osteopathic techniques to help people heal, that’s great. We do not need to know everything, just to use what we’ve learned and share it with others.
@BBC
No, the only reason why the bible sounds like its correct is because your only interpreting it in another context. The quotes your used used only made sense to us because we just saw the whole documentary on quantum physics. Also your not only interpreting it in another context but your doing it out of context which is even worse because your only suppose to understand the bible in terms of its own historical, cultural, political, and theological context.
Also, I think the whole documentary at least implies or suggest that you don’t need God to explain how the universe runs, the universe has at least been explained naturalistically without resorting to theological assumptions. The fact that the sun and supernova produced all the elements in the periodic table only suggests that everything that we see here (the elements of the periodic table) do not need to appeal to God to be explained, their origins can be traced to the stars, not God.
@Simon
No, science is not a religion. Religion simply keeps or believes in the assumptions only through the appeal to authoritative interpretation, without requiring empirical methods (deductive or inductive) to ascertain those assumptions. Science, on the other hand, depends upon the method of falsification and testability to be able to prove that even an accepted theory can be wrong if it does not completely describe the natural phenomena. The reason why Science is not a religion is that unlike theologians, scientist can at least admit that a theory can be wrong and move on to another theory that can best explain nature. Theologians and religious dogmatist simply persist in their faith to believe in a specific belief in spite of evidence.
Science, as I said, can only describe natural phenomena that can be ascertained by our empirical methods (such as experiments). God is not natural but, supposedly, supernatural and transcendental. Therefore Science cannot falsify or prove the existence of God who is beyond the laws of nature.
Also just because there are no explanations for why the strong nuclear force simply doesn’t split does not conclude that there has to be a God that sustains it, you can’t prove or conclude something by a absence of explanation and evidence. it is easily conceivable that another theory, that is not theological, can explain the natural phenomena scientifically.
To Philonus;
“The quotes your used used only made sense to us because …and theological context.”
My friend, the fact is simple, Science has no logical explanation for how the stars came into being, but that it simply did.
listen If you hear a big bang, you would ask “Where did it come from?” if someone said, “It just happened, without any logical explanation” and someone else said “God created that sound”
Tell me, how is the first more provable than the second and how is the second out of context from the first. They are both based on the unseeable held up by faith.
“It’s origins….stars not God” applies to my earlier example.
“Science, as I said,…the laws of nature.”
A Scientific mind is based on facts, When you cannot falisfy, or disprove the explanation that God created the universe, with a cohesive scientific explanation of how the nucleus energy, and stars came into existence, aren’t you in essence simply “Believing” that “Science must be right, in esense saying “Although I cannot disprove the supernatural, the supernatural explanations simply MUST be wrong”
The bible is not out of context from science, since the bible serves as a historical documentation, and all the scientific explanations in this documentary, fits perfectly in line with what I’ve read in the bible, I can see no contradictions.
MICHAEL
The scientific world had proved itself to be the authority by showing and proving the best explanation through checking,reviewing and accurately experimenting to the point of replacing time accepted universal theories with the new and more profound findings of the ultimate building blocks
of matter.The time emerging new brilliant scientific minds is still lined up from our time and the coming generations, parallel with their coming new theories.But as they go deeper and deeper to the realm of the micro atomic field,the same reality will be there “The smallest particle unimaginable the proton ,is still a cloud of empty existence if we are as the observer a billion,billionth time smaller than it.” This theory is perfectly the ultimate because it is co existent with mans questioning and thinking mind.
To put in the most simple way in the micro sense of observation, atomic and quantum particles takes its form
depending on the depth of the micro infinitisemal ratio of an imaginary observer placed inside the region or the inner space of a single atom,as we plunged the observer deeper and deeper into the depth and limitless horizon that encompass an equally universal scale region of space inside an atom.”Everything will look like nothing.”
One way to establish the beginning and end of the universe is to think deeper,imagine the inside of an atom and place our thoughts in its region of emptiness, pass through its layers and go through the core end of nothing.That’s the beginning “nothing can be seen”.The far end is at a distance of 13.5 billion lightyears, the boundary of our universe,and if you travel farther and farther away that universe will look like a single dot which is becoming fainter and fainter until “nothing can be seen”.So its the thing ,the universe may have started from a big bang,or maybe a steady state.but one thing is sure its smallest part,the atom begins from “nothing” and the whole universe ends to “nothing”. It’s the human mind that co exist with the physical universe that dictates it has to begin and to end.
I disagree. Stickinig with creation.
The scientist in all their wisdom, as an explanation for how everything came into existence and years of research have come up with “It just happened” How? What caused the sudden bang, creation of nuclei energy, emergence of the building blocks (atom)? Endless Cycles, Gravitational force? It just happened.
Tell me, how does that differ from “A being created it all”. The role of science in explaining the world, analogically is – A Man builds a Bicycle, while a child (science) runs into the bicycle, concludes the bicycle simply appeared, and documented the different parts which make up the bicycle dictating how it functions. It dosen’t disprove the account that a man created the Bicycle.
All you’ve done is explain how what has been created works.
Science can only prove God dosen’t exist, if it proves The universe came from nothing, in which case, man will have to create Hydrogen and the other gases which came as an occurence of the big bang, from nothing.
@ Simon
Science has a very logical explanation for where the stars come from. Just because your blind belief in the supernatural does not allow you to consider real evidence does not mean science is flawed. It means we as humans are flawed by nature, science is an attempt to move past that instinctual nature into the realm of true intelligence.The stars where created by huge collapsing clouds of hydrogen. Once the hydrogen became dence and hot enough, due to this collapse it started nuclear fusion. This created helium and other heavier elements. Now if you choose to believe some supernatural being just “turned on the lights” go ahead, its your right. But do not claim that the explanation science provides is bogus. It is entirely possible and through the hind sight of reason even probable that this is the correct explanation. The beauty of science is that it is says if you can prove this explanation wrong with empirical evidence that can be veriffied, and if your explanation can hold up to years of rigorouse assault form very motivated and intelligent people- we will accept your version as the truth. Theism can not and has not been able to accomplish this, science has many times. Science requires faith in reality in testable provable ideas ( Want to test gravity? Jump off your roof.) I hardly think you can compare this with faith in an omnipotent supposedly kind God. Even if you do not look at the scientific evidence you can not explain other paradoxes. Like how can you call a God that has commanded murder, infanticide, genocide, slavery, rape, and war over and over, according to your hebrew bible, a good God. How do you explain the millions of good decent people that believe totally in thier own religion that says your religion is false, are they going to hell or are you. We are all athiest about ninety percent of the gods that have been theorized to exist in the past. Some of us just go one diety further.
Ok Let’s discuss the creation account for a moment.
I did not dispute the big bang theory, nor the process the galaxies came into existence, through a sudden influx of light, energy, hydrogen
and I believe Helium, as you mentioned which transformed through the heat of the initial explosion into the planets and galaxies. No, I did not dispute that.
We see the “Effect” of the Big bang, but no one can explain the cause. When you say
“Now if you choose to believe some supernatural being just “turned on the lights” go ahead, its your right.”
Does not science say “The Big Bang -Just- Happened”, how did it happen “It just did”..o_O
Some theories include the Inflationary model which I believe says, the universe expands
then contracts, then expands again, hence the big bang,…but as others this theory is flawed, as according to the laws of physics there
had to be a point of singularity, in which case where did that singularity come from. Another theory is the “Galaxy regenerating machine” Which creates
universes in a field of energy, following the laws of Quantum physics – well, where did the energy, and information required for that Machine to exist, and carry out it’s functions come from? As a scientist said, to make a simple machine requires intelligence, if you heard a loud noise, and someone said, “It just happened” You’d ask, well what caused it?
Look, to say that the universe in it’s Mind boggling complexity, it’s trillion * Trillion to the power of 73, chance of life spawning on the earth,
the perfect degree and equipose of gravity, cosmological constant, Oxygen cycle, carbon cycle, e.t.c. e.t.c. each to the trillionth degree,
and to which if one of those factors we’re moved a percentage up, or down would make life impossible — All just happened is un-scientific, un-empirical — as un-empirical as Darwins theory of
evolution which is disproved by 98% of Paleonthological recrods (This is fact).
I’m not scientifically arguing God created the heavens and the earth, I’m scientifically arguing, The big bang, life on earth, the human Brain more complicated than the very Universe itself, required an Intelligent design, and did not just happen.
Go do your own research.
In regards to your comment “because your blind belief in the supernatural does not allow you to consider real evidence does not mean science is flawed” and Intelligent design standing up to rigorous assult from intelligent people.
Watch this documentary,
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/expelled-no-intelligence-allowed/
In conjunction with the book
“Case for a Creator” Lee Strobel,
These are Cambridge and Oxford scientists, Proffeseurs at Ivy League universities, The best minds in Cosmology, Physics, Biomedics, paleontology e.t.c. Saying Eolution is a fairy tale, and the more science finds, the greater leverage is for intelligent design.
It’s no point in arguing with me, look at those sources I meantioned, and make up your mind for yourself.
@Simon
Science doesn’t seek to disprove the existence of god, it has it’s own path and direction, without which you would all still be living in a mud hut! etc, etc, etc. Due to sci/tech you life is immesurably better than your ancestors. According to MIT proffessor Walter Lewin we all have the equivalent of 100 servants. Due to, yes, you guessed it sci/tech. Don’t bite the hand that feeds you to appease your god!
You are using the same argumennt as many others on TDF: that is, because we don’t know alot of things god must of done it! this is not an exaustive argument for the existence of god in fact is actually very limiting and regressive.
Whenever there is difficulty in a project and progress is stiffled for any reason we say, ok lets just put it down to god did it and call it a day, have a beer, smoke a cigarillo and say god is the answer!! How is this going to help towards the solution of a given problem? its not going to. It’s a cop out solution for simplistic minds and even worse it is then used to excert influence on large numbers of people by unscrupulous priests and organizations.
The ‘i dont know why, so god must have done it’ argument is limiting, dangerous and regressive.
@ Epicurean_Logic
The level of pre-judgement and patronisation vested in your statement is 90% of the reason for your statement, it’s almost as if you perceive me, and other Leading scientist against your views, as Fire fearing cavemen, closing their eyes and covering their ears to science.
Let me be clear, I am not argung God created the world, I am arguing science is leaning more on the epigraph dictating the world was created for a reason, rather than It all just happened by chance.
Darwin said “Time will prove evolution right”, well looking at the leagues of scientific findings dictating the precision required for life in the universe, earth’s position in the galaxy, the complexity of the cell functioning on the pre-defined information embedded in DNA, The Cambrian explosion which inherently invalidates Darwins theory, and 98% of paleontheological find all screams Intelligent design.
Science done right points to God.
Ironically, time has not proved Darwin right.
@Simon
I can’t really comment on the biological parts of your argument but i am sure that if you look at @Epicurus’ multiple posts on the subject of biology and evolution you will find that they will clear up the confusion that you have!
You don’t understand the big bang theory. The important part is that there are many observations (started by Hubble 100 years ago) that show that the universe is expanding! the reason we know this is becaue of redshifts of stellar objects… So if we trace backward in time and space we will see a contracting effect, with me so far? then if we trace backwards far enough (14 billion years or so) the universe must have been very small! This is how the big bang theory was postulated.
With that in mind. Please answer me this. Which is the more reasonable model of creation? the big bang or god did it in 6 days? Any reasonable mind can see that it is the former. Hence i can only conclude that you have drawn your line in the sand and have your take on things based on mystical and tribal speculation rather than observable facts! and for an intelligent guy like you to do that is a real shame. Blocking logic for the sake of a fluffy fantasy that makes you feel better about death is weak and irrational.
you said, ‘Science done right points to God.’
this makes no sense whatsoever. Its impossible to rationalise god! He was designed by man that way!
@Simon
To pre-emt your next statement, ‘what caused the big bang to happen?’ it must have been god. No no no my friend, The ancient tribal and demonic book that you call the OT makes no mention of god initiating a big bang.
If you have actually read it, which i doubt very much you will see that there are two contradictary versions of the creation myth one written by the followers of El and one by the followers of the demonic god Jahweh and neither of them mention a big bang type event!
So don’t presume that god started it! presumption are fun ‘n all. but they certainly don’t bake any bread!!
I’m not good at all at physics.But this documentary made me think about it in a new way! A way that beautifully reveals that this universe can’t be created in vain and that it has One and only One creator:Allah
“Behold! in the creation of the
…heavens and the earth, and the alternation of Night and Day, there are indeed Signs for men of understanding.” \Quran Surah 3 Verse 190.
“The Unbelievers say, “Never to us will come the Hour”: say, “Nay! but most surely, by my Lord, it will come upon you; – by Him Who knows the unseen – from Whom is not hidden
the least little atom in the Heavens or on earth: nor is there anything less than that, or greater, but is in the Record Perspicuous”
Quran Surah 34 Verse 3
it made us think …. thats a start.
the fact that “modern” science is able to demonstrate the dependency principle is great, but im not sure that even the physicists are aware of what immensely profound subject they are studying… or maybe they just do not want to let go of the inherent view of things, its seems that if we would let go of expectancy fallacy we might be able to experience things they really are …..
for antimatter to exits it seems matter needs to exist and vice versa, but if neither can exist without the other how can they be separate? my, may it be incorrect answer, is that they are one and the same, but dualistic appearance come into play when an inherent observer “measures it”…. if there is no inherent observer there is no problem to be solved…can you let go of the problem? if the answer is: but……. than probably not…..
BTW lots of beautiful religious statements down here too, but question: how does that lead you to understanding the nature of existence?
@Epicurean_Logic
nice reasoning i like the way you thinking, about the mind and evidence based reasoning.
although the problem of big bang is created by the expectancy of a start of things (the same problem with god….)
why big bang? why not infinite continuity down to the small or the big?
why would there be no existence in a tiny universe?
if there is only continuity the small or big becomes a mere name just words, which depends on a valid observer….