One of the main battles of the Second World War took place inside the brain of a mathematician called Alan Turing. During the war, the allies' key objective was to crack the German army's encrypted communications code. Without a doubt, the key player in the game was this interdisciplinary scientist and a long-forgotten hero. Alan Turing's breakthroughs, his story and tragic destiny, gives us a chance to look at the Second World War from a different angle.
This award-winning series, Private Life of a Masterpiece, reveals the full and fascinating stories behind famous works of art, not just how they came to be created, but also how they influenced others and came to have a life of their own in the modern world. The works of art featured here are both instantly familiar and profoundly mysterious. Revolutionary in their conception, and iconic years after their execution, they each have their own compelling stories. For behind the beautiful canvases and sculptures are tales of political revolution, wartime escapes, massive ego clashes, social scandal, financial wrangling and shocking violence. In this fascinating series key works of art are investigated and the intricate details of their lives revealed - the history, contemporary reactions, and legacies of each are illustrated. A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte is a popular masterpiece and yet an enduring enigma. It seems to show a quiet scene in a Paris park but there are hints at the demi-monde, if you know where to look. The most remarkable aspect of this vast canvas however remains Seurat's technique his revolutionary pointillism.
Time i s a concept which is so familiar, and yet recent discoveries have revealed it to be far stranger than we could have possibly imagined. In the final programme in the series, Brian explores the enigma of time - a phenomenon we take for granted but which is one of the biggest mysteries in the universe. He recalls highlights from his TV series that touch upon this conundrum.
From icy worlds with more fresh water than Earth to flying mountains of pure metal, asteroids shaped our past and promise much for the future. Could these enigmatic space rocks hold the key to how life in the Universe arises and is extinguished?
The film explores the science of black holes and delves into the incredible techniques used to uncover their secrets. Researchers reveal the fundamental role of black holes in the evolution of our universe and galaxies, with new findings from James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO), and analogue experiments. The documentary also features experiments on Earth that mimic black hole physics, offering insights into their behaviors. Although we may never directly observe the inside of a black hole, these experiments allow us to test theoretical physics and gain a deeper understanding of these enigmatic cosmic phenomena.
For all of human history, the Sun, our home star, has measured our days and our seasons while fueling all life on Earth. Yet it remains an enigma. NASA's Parker Probe Plus is on a mission to change that, flying through dangerous radiation to become the closest spaceship to orbit our Sun. It's a journey to the center of our solar system, a mission to gather information about the most critical celestial body in the sky, our star.
Alan Turing's breakthroughs, his story and tragic destiny, gives us a chance to look at the Second World War from a different angle.