"WHERE DO WE COME FROM?" "HOW DID THE UNIVERSE BEGIN?" "WHY IS THE UNIVERSE THE WAY IT IS?" "GOOD MORNING." "WELCOME TO GONVILLE AND CAIUS," "MORE COMMONLY KNOWN AS CAIUS COLLEGE." "CAIUS COLLEGE WAS FOUNDED IN 1348" "BY EDMUND GONVILLE." "WHERE ARE WE GOING?" "NOW WE COME TO THE PORTRAIT" "OF PROBABLY OUR MOST FAMOUS CAIUSAN," "PROFESSOR STEPHEN HAWKING, THE WORLD-FAMOUS COSMOLOGIST." "LIKE PREDECESSOR SIR ISAAC NEWTON BEFORE HIM," "HE IS LUCASIAN PROFESSOR OF MATHEMATICS" "FOR THE UNIVERSITY," "AND HIS PARTICULAR SPHERE IS RESEARCH OF THE BLACK HOLE" "AND THE HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSE," "CULMINATING IN HIS BOOK "THE BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME,"" "WHICH WORLDWIDE HAS SOLD OVER 8 MILLION COPIES." "HAWKING:" "ALL OF MY LIFE, I HAVE BEEN FASCINATED" "BY THE BIG QUESTIONS THAT FACE US," "AND HAVE TRIED TO FIND SCIENTIFIC ANSWERS TO THEM." "PERHAPS THAT'S WHY I HAVE SOLD MORE BOOKS ON PHYSICS" "THAN MADONNA HAS ON SEX." "NOW THIS IS PROFESSOR HAWKING'S STUDY," "WHICH HE WILL USE WHEN HE'S IN RESIDENCY IN COLLEGE." "HE'LL USE THIS FOR HIS TUTORIALS OR MEETINGS" "OR ANY PRIVATE WORK HE NEEDS TO DO." "IT IS VERY MUCH A PERSONAL ROOM WITH HIS BOOKS" "AND HIS PORTRAITS AND PICTURES, SO IT'S REALLY A HOME FROM HOME" "WHEN THEY'RE IN COLLEGE." "HE'S GOT AN INHERITED DISEASE, MOTOR NEURON DISEASE." "HE CAN PROJECT HIS VOICE WITH A SYNTHESIZER" "WHICH IS ATTACHED TO HIS WHEELCHAIR." "HOPE YOU ENJOYED YOUR VISIT." "BYE." "BYE." "IF, LIKE ME, YOU HAVE LOOKED AT THE STARS" "AND TRIED TO MAKE SENSE OF WHAT YOU SEE," "YOU TOO HAVE STARTED TO WONDER WHAT MAKES THE UNIVERSE EXIST." "THE QUESTIONS ARE CLEAR AND DECEPTIVELY SIMPLE," "BUT THE ANSWERS HAVE ALWAYS SEEMED WELL BEYOND OUR REACH" "UNTIL NOW." "NARRATOR:" "OUR VIEW OF THE UNIVERSE" "HAS LONG BEEN SHAPED SIMPLY BY WHAT WE COULD SEE." "FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS, THAT MEANT WE UNDERSTOOD" "ONLY WHAT THE NAKED EYE COULD BEHOLD." "NOW, NEW BREAKTHROUGHS IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY" "ARE RAPIDLY ADVANCING OUR HORIZONS." "WE ARE WITNESS TO THE VERY BRINK OF TIME AND SPACE." "HAWKING:" "I WANT YOU TO SHARE MY EXCITEMENT" "AT THE DISCOVERIES, PAST AND PRESENT," "WHICH HAVE REVOLUTIONIZED THE WAY WE THINK." "FROM THE BIG BANG TO BLACK HOLES," "FROM DARK MATTER TO A POSSIBLE BIG CRUNCH," "OUR IMAGE OF THE UNIVERSE TODAY" "IS FULL OF STRANGE-SOUNDING IDEAS" "AND REMARKABLE TRUTHS." "THE STORY OF HOW WE ARRIVED AT THIS PICTURE" "IS A STORY OF LEARNING TO UNDERSTAND WHAT WE SEE." "NARRATOR:" "WITH EVERY CENTURY," "OUR EYES ON THE UNIVERSE HAVE BEEN OPENED A NEW." "ONLY 75 YEARS AGO," "AT THE MOUNT WILSON OBSERVATORY IN CALIFORNIA," "A YOUNG ASTRONOMER PEERED INTO A NOW-PRIMITIVE TELESCOPE" "AND FOREVER CHANGED OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE HEAVENS." "HIS NAME -- EDWIN HUBBLE." "WE KNOW, THANKS TO HUBBLE, THAT" "ALTOGETHER WITHIN THE LIMITS" "OF THE OBSERVABLE UNIVERSE" "THERE'S SOMETHING LIKE 100 BILLION TRILLION STARS." "IT'S A LOT OF STARS." "AND WE NOW KNOW THANKS TO RECENT DISCOVERIES" "VERY RECENT DISCOVERIES ALSO " "WHAT WE HAD BELIEVED BUT HAD NO PROOF OF," "AND THAT IS THAT MANY OF THOSE STARS HAVE PLANETS." "SO THERE ARE COUNTLESS TRILLIONS OF PLANETS" "IN THE OBSERVABLE UNIVERSE." "NARRATOR:" "THIS WAS AMONG HUBBLE'S" "MOST STRIKING CONTRIBUTIONS" "EVEN AS IT WAS FOR HIS PREDECESSORS." "THE MORE WE LEARN ABOUT THE UNIVERSE," "THE HUMBLER THE ROLE WE SEEM TO PLAY IN IT." "JASTROW:" "TWO-THIRDS OF THE STARS AND PLANETS" "AND LIFE, IF IT'S THERE, IN THE UNIVERSE" "ARE BILLIONS OF YEARS OLDER THAN WE ARE." "AND IF YOU ASK WHAT A BILLION YEARS MEANS" "IN THE HISTORY OF LIFE, I MUST TELL YOU" "THAT A BILLION YEARS AGO" "THE HIGHEST FORM OF LIFE ON THE EARTH WAS A WORM." "THREE BILLION YEARS AGO," "THE HIGHEST FORM OF LIFE ON THE EARTH WERE BACTERIA." "SO WE MUST ASK OURSELVES," "WE WHO ARE SO PROUD OF OUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS," "WHAT IS OUR PLACE IN THE COSMIC PERSPECTIVE OF LIFE" "IF MOST OF THOSE BEINGS OUT THERE," "IF THEY ARE THERE, STAND IN RELATIONSHIP TO US" "AS WE DO TO THE WORMS ON THIS PLANET?" "AND THAT IS NOT MEANT TO BE A DENIGRATING REMARK," "BUT ONLY TO SUGGEST THAT HUMANKIND'S GREATEST EXPERIENCES" "STILL LIE AHEAD OF US." "NARRATOR:" "IT WAS THE SUMERIANS AND BABYLONIANS" "WHO FIRST STUDIED THE WORKINGS OF THE HEAVENS." "TIONS LAID THE GROUNDWORK" "FOR THE ANCIENT GREEKS WHO FOLLOWED." "THEY COULD SEE THE STARS" "AND WONDER ABOUT THE SKY AND THE HEAVENS" "BUT THEY HAD VERY LITTLE INFORMATION INDEED " "JUST WHAT THEIR EYES COULD PICK UP." "THEY THOUGHT THAT EVERYTHING THEY KNEW CAME OUT OF THE WATER." "OBVIOUSLY WATER WAS A VERY IMPORTANT SUBSTANCE," "AND SO THEY GAVE WATER A SORT OF COSMIC SIGNIFICANCE." "THEY THOUGHT THAT THE HEAVENS ARE MADE OF MANY HOLES," "AND THESE HOLES REPRESENTED THE STARS," "AND JUST BEHIND THEY HAD THIS DIVINE FIRE." "NARRATOR:" "THE GREEKS HAD LONG EXPLAINED WHAT THEY SAW" "WITH MYTHS AND LEGENDS." "NOW THEY BEGAN TO USE REASON." "COTSAKIS:" "THEY THOUGHT THAT THEY HAD TO FIND" "A MORE ACCURATE WAY OF EXPRESSING" "THEIR VIEWS ABOUT THE UNIVERSE," "AND THAT WAY DRAMATICALLY TURNED OUT TO BE MATHEMATICS" "NARRATOR:" "THE SCIENCE OF LOGIC WAS BORN," "AND LONG-HELD ASSUMPTIONS WERE CALLED INTO QUESTION." "COTSAKIS:" "WHEN YOU SEE FROM THE DISTANCE" "A BOAT COMING," "YOU DON'T SEE THE WHOLE BOAT IN THE BEGINNING," "BUT YOU GRADUALLY SEE THE BOAT APPEARING" "FROM THE HORIZON AS IF IT WAS RAISING UP FROM THE SEA." "SO IN THIS WAY THEY QUESTIONED THE VIEW" "THAT THE EARTH WAS FLAT." "NARRATOR:" "PROOF THAT THE EARTH WAS ROUND" "WOULD HAVE TO BE PERSUASIVE." "A PHILOSOPHER NAMED ERATOSTHENES" "DEVISED ONE OF THE FIRST SCIENTIFIC EXPERIMENTS." "IDENTICAL OBJECTS ON A FLAT EARTH" "SHOULD CAST IDENTICAL SHADOWS." "SO AT THE SAME TIME OF DAY," "IN TWO PLACES MILES APART," "HE PUT THIS TO THE TEST." "IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL WAY THAT HE DISCOVERED" "WHERE HE USED TWO STICKS." "HE NOTICED THAT THE RAYS COMING FROM THE SUN" "PRODUCED DIFFERENT AMOUNTS OF SHADE" "IN EACH OF THE TWO STICKS." "NARRATOR:" "SINCE EACH PEG CAST SHADOWS OF DIFFERENT LENGTHS" "THE EARTH'S SURFACE HAD TO BE CURVED." "FROM THE ANGLE OF THE SHADOWS, ERATOSTHENES COULD ESTIMATE" "THE EARTH'S CIRCUMFERENCE AT 25,000 MILES " "LESS THAN 100 MILES OFF TODAY'S MEASUREMENTS." "TO ITS FIRST STUDENTS," "THE EARTH ITSELF SUBMITTED TO ITS LAWS." "MATHEMATICS WAS THE DISCIPLINE" "THAT ENDOWED THE GREEKS WITH ULTIMATE TRUTHS." "COTSAKIS:" "THEY REALIZED" "THAT THEY CAN USE MATHEMATICS TO DEVELOP" "THEORIES AND APPLICATIONS" "TO ALL SORTS OF DIFFERENT KINDS OF PHENOMENA." "HAWKING:" "BUT MATHEMATICALLY BEAUTIFUL THEORIES" "ARE NOT ALWAYS SUPPORTED BY OBSERVATION." "IN THE EARLIEST DAYS OF ASTRONOMY," "THE ANCIENT GREEKS FOUND THE HEAVENS" "LESS PERFECT THAN THEY HAD FIRST IMAGINED." "LOOKING AT THE SKIES MORE CLOSELY," "THEY BEGAN TO SEE STARS MOVE" "IN A WAY WHICH DEFINED THEIR LOGIC." "IF EVERY NIGHT YOU GO OUT" "AND YOU HAVE A CAREFUL LOOK SEEING TOWARDS SOUTH," "AFTER TWO OR THREE DAYS" "IF YOU WATCH AGAIN YOU'LL SEE FIVE STARS." "AND THIS IS SOMETHING UNUSUAL" "IN RESPECT TO THE OTHER STARS OF THE SKY" "WHICH DON'T CHANGE ANY POSITION." "THEY LOOK AS MOVING FROM WEST TOWARDS THE EAST." "SOMETIME THEY LOOK STAYING STILL." "THEN THEY BEGIN TO MOVE FROM THE EAST TOWARDS THE WEST" "NARRATOR:" "THE GREEKS HAD IDENTIFIED" "FIVE HEAVENLY BODIES THAT NEIGHBORED US." "THEY DUBBED THEM "PLANETOS" OR "WANDERERS."" "THEY BELIEVED IN A UNIVERSE IN PERFECT BALANCE." "THE PLANETS, THEY WERE CONVINCED," "WERE PRECISE GLOBES," "TRAVELING IN SUBLIME CIRCULAR ORBITS." "BUT OBSERVATION SAID OTHERWISE" "IT WAS THE ASTRONOMER PTOLEMY" "WHO TRIED TO EXPLAIN THE DISCREPANCY WITH MATH." "HE MADE ADJUSTMENTS TO THE PLANETS' ORBITS," "RETRACING THEIR PATHS AS CIRCLES WITHIN CIRCLES," "ALL NEATLY FITTING WITHIN A SPHERE OF FIXED STARS." "AT THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE " "THE EARTH." "PTOLEMY LIVED OVER A CENTURY AFTER THE DEATH OF CHRIST." "THE NEW CHRISTIAN CHURCH" "WAS QUICK TO SEIZE UPON A MODEL OF THE UNIVERSE" "THAT IMAGINED US, GOD'S PRIDE, AT ITS CENTER." "PAPATHANASSIOU:" "THE COSMOLOGY OF THE CHURCH" "IS THE COSMOLOGY OF THE GENESIS," "AND IF SOMETHING HAS THE SAME IDEAS" "AS THEY ARE DESCRIBED IN "GENESIS," IT'S OKAY." "FOR THOSE WHO COULD UNDERSTAND" "THE MATHEMATICS OF PTOLEMY'S MODEL," "WELL, IT'S A MODEL WHICH CAN FORETELL" "THE POSITION OF THE PLANETS" "WITH AN ACCURACY WHICH IS SATISFYING." "AND ON THE OTHER HAND THERE IS NOTHING" "WHICH CAN CONTRADICT THE IDEA OF THE GENESIS." "3, 2, 1, ZERO," "LIFTOFF!" "HAWKING:" "TODAY, THE CLAIMS OF THE SCRIPTURES" "ARE BEING PUT TO THE TEST" "BY EXPERIMENTS LAUNCHED INTO THE HEAVENS." "STEADY IMPROVEMENTS IN TECHNOLOGY OVER THE YEARS" "HAVE ENABLED US TO TEST OUR THEORIES" "ABOUT THE UNIVERSE." "BUT BEFORE SUCH DETAILED" "OBSERVATIONAL EVIDENCE WAS AVAILABLE," "BELIEF IN ANY THEORY WAS OFTEN" "AS MUCH A MATTER OF FAITH AND CONVICTION" "PTOLEMY'S MODEL OF THE UNIVERSE" "WENT VIRTUALLY UNCHALLENGED FOR 1,500 YEARS," "SUPPORTED ALL THE TIME BY THE CHURCH," "WHICH WAS AT THAT TIME THE REPOSITORY OF LEARNING" "LORD, RECEIVE OUR GIFTS." "LET OUR OFFERINGS MAKE US HOLY" "AND BRING US SALVATION." "NARRATOR:" "PTOLEMY'S VISION PREVAILED" "OF A UNIVERSE THAT ACKNOWLEDGED OUR SUPREMACY " "OF AN EARTH THAT, AFTER ALL," "DID NOT SEEM TO MOVE." "AND IF SIMPLE EXPERIENCE WEREN'T ENOUGH" "TO LEND PTOLEMY CREDENCE," "HE HAD THE SUPPORT OF THE AUTHORITIES AS WELL" "THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, BY AND LARGE," "THROUGH THE CENTURIES, SAY, FROM PTOLEMY" "FOR 1,000 YEARS " " A BIT MORE " "WAS THE EDUCATED WORLD." "PTOLEMY THOUGHT THAT IT WASN'T REALLY SENSIBLE" "TO HAVE ANYTHING BUT THE EARTH AS THE CENTER, NOT SO MUCH" "FOR ASTRONOMICAL REASONS, BUT BECAUSE, AFTER ALL," "IF YOU'RE NOT USED TO IT, IT DOES SEEM INCREDIBLE" "THAT THE EARTH CAN BE MOVING" "AND PTOLEMY CATALOGUED" "QUITE A FEW OF THE OBVIOUS REASONS" "WHICH AFFRONT COMMON SENSE" "LIKE, WHY AREN'T WE HURLED OFF A ROTATING EARTH?" "HOW COULD THE BIRDS FLY IF THERE WAS A CONSTANT GALE BLOWING?" "AND SO ON." "SO THAT, I THINK, WEIGHED FAIRLY HEAVILY WITH PTOLEMY." "NARRATOR:" "BY THE 16TH CENTURY, PTOLEMY'S FOLLOWERS WERE FACED" "WITH INCREASINGLY CONTRADICTORY OBSERVATIONS" "THE CHURCH'S TEACHINGS WOULD SOON ENOUGH BE UNDONE" "BY ONE OF ITS OWN SCHOLAR-PRIESTS." "SHARRATT:" "NICHOLAS COPERNICUS WAS A CHURCH MAN" "NOT JUST IN THE SENSE HE WAS CATHOLIC," "BUT HE ACTUALLY HELD" "A CHURCH OFFICE AS A CANON" "OF A CATHEDRAL." "HE HAD A GREAT ADMIRATION FOR PTOLEMAIC ASTRONOMY." "LACKED A CERTAIN ELEGANCE FOR COPERNICUS" "HE FOUND HE COULD BETTER EXPLAIN OBSERVATIONS" "IF HE MADE ONE STAGGERING SHIFT." "HE PUT THE SUN," "NOT THE EARTH, THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE." "HAWKING:" "IT WAS A REVOLUTIONARY MOMENT FOR COSMOLOGY." "COPERNICUS HAD RADICALLY RE-ORGANIZED" "THE MODEL OF THE UNIVERSE WHICH HAD LASTED FOR CENTURIES." "HE BEGAN AN IRREVERSIBLE PROCESS" "THAT HAS DOWNGRADED US FROM THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE" "TO THE OUTER SUBURBS" "OF ONE AMONG BILLIONS OF GALAXIES." "NARRATOR:" "FOR THE CHURCH, THOUGH," "COPERNICUS' MODEL AMOUNTED TO HERESY." "GOD HAD PUT MAN ON EARTH," "AND THE EARTH AT THE HUB OF HIS CREATION." "COPERNICUS DIED IN 1543," "HIS LIFE'S WORK DISMISSED BUT NOT FORGOTTEN." "SOME 60 YEARS LATER," "JOHANNES KEPLER, A GERMAN MATHEMATICIAN," "TOOK UP HIS WORK." "SHARRATT:" "HE BROKE WITH 2,000 YEARS" "OF PHILOSEPHICAL AND ASTRONOMICAL TRADITION." "WHAT KEPLER FINISHED UP WITH WAS NON-CIRCULAR MOTION." "HE REALIZED THAT THE PLANETS" "ARE ACTUALLY TRAVELING IN ELLIPTICAL ORBITS." "THE GREAT THING ABOUT KEPLER'S SYSTEM" "IS HE CAN DO EVERYTHING COPERNICUS DID" ", SIMPLY WITH THE ONE CLEAR CURVE OF THE ELLIPSE" "IN A COLOSSAL ACHIEVEMENT." "NARRATOR:" "AT FIRST, THE CHURCH FAILED TO COMPREHEND" ". THE DRAMATIC CHANGE COMING" "BUT WHEN GALILEO GALILEI, AN ITALIAN SCIENTIST," "DARED TO PUBLISH" ", COPERNICUS' HERETICAL IDEA" "THE VATICAN TOOK ACTION." "MAN:" "WE ARE NOW AT THE TOP FLOOR OF THE VILLA IL JULIELLO" "IN THE PLACE WHERE GALILEO" "SPENT HIS LAST 10, 15 YEARS OF LIFE," "THE MOST DRAMATIC PART OF HIS LIFE," "AS A PRISONER BEING CONDEMNED NOT TO LEAVE THE HOUSE," "NOT TO RECEIVE GUESTS." "AND THAT'S WHY THIS WAS A PLACE AT THE BEGINNING VERY HAPPY," ". AT THE END, VERY SAD FOR HIM" "ISOLATION WAS TORMENT FOR GALILEO" "BUT, IN SOLITUDE, HIS STUDIES CAME INTO SHARP FOCUS." "THE ONLY WORK HE COULD PERFORM" "DURING THE PERIOD IN WHICH HE WAS PRISONER" "IN HIS OWN HOUSE WAS THE COMPLETION" "OF THE LAWS OF MOTION." "NARRATOR:" "KEPLER'S MODEL" "HAD RAISED SOME BOGGLING QUESTIONS." "FOR DAY TO FOLLOW NIGHT," "THE EARTH WOULD HAVE TO ROTATE AT A THOUSAND MILES AN HOUR." "WHY, THEN, DIDN'T WE FALL OFF?" "YOUR FIRST IMPRESSION " " EVERYBODY " "A KID FOR INSTANCE, 5 YEARS OLD," "NOT YET GOING TO SCHOOL," "YOU ASK HIM IF THE EARTH IS IN MOTION," "HE WILL SAY NO." "HE WILL NOT HAVE ANY IDEA, ANY POSSIBLE IDEA." "THIS IS WHAT WAS THE SITUATION , NOT JUST FOR KIDS," "BUT FOR EVERYBODY TIME OF GALILEO." "NARRATOR:" "THAT THE EARTH WAS MOVING," "GALILEO HAD NO DOUBT." "HE REALIZED WE WERE UNAWARE OF ITS MOTION" "SIMPLY BECAUSE AS IT MOVED WE MOVED WITH IT." "BUT HE COULD NOT EXPLAIN WHAT FORCE" "KEEPS US FIXED TO ITS SURFACE." "[ BELLS RING ]" "AS HE STUDIED THE LAWS OF MOTION," "GALILEO LONGED FOR A CLEARER VIEW OF THE FIRMAMENT." "GALUZZI:" "AT THE END OF 1609 HE HEARD" "THAT THERE WERE INTO THE MARKET" "SOME FUNNY OBJECTS WHICH WERE A TUBE WITH SOME GLASSES," "WERE GIVING SOME FUNNY PERFORMANCE." "THIS INSTRUMENT" "WAS COMING FROM HOLLAND" "AND WAS SOLD AS A TOY." "WHEN GALILEO TOOK IT, IT BEGAN TO BE TRANSFORMED" "FROM A TOY TO AN INSTRUMENT." "HE STARTED TO USE" "THE MAGNIFICATION POWER OF THE TELESCOPE" "TO LOOK AT THE SKIES." "THIS IS A MAJOR STEP IN HIS CAREER" "AND ALSO IN THE HISTORY OF MODERN COSMOLOGY." "NARRATOR:" "THIS NOVELTY TRINKET , REMODELED AS A SCIENTIFIC TOOL" "WAS TO REVOLUTIONIZE OUR VISION OF THE HEAVENS." ". AT ONCE GALILEO WAS WITNESS TO WORLDS WE HAD ONLY IMAGINED" "ACCORDING TO THE CHURCH," "THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN PERFECT SPHERES" "ORBITING THE EARTH." "THEY WERE NOT." "GALUZZI:" "THE MOON WAS NOT SO POLISHED" "AND SO ROUND AS PEOPLE BELIEVED," "BUT THEY WERE PRESENTED" "VALLEYS AND MOUNTAINS EXACTLY AS THE EARTH." "AND HE MOVED AFTERWARDS TO OTHER BODIES." "HE STARTED TO OBSERVE MERCURY, MARS " ". BUT HE WAS CAPTURED BY JUPITER" "HE STARTED TO OBSERVE, SERIOUSLY," "JUPITER IN JANUARY 1610," "AND HIS DIARY NOTE IS VERY TOUCHING." "IT SAYS, "I HAVE DISCOVERED A FUNNY BODY," "SOMETHING LIKE THAT WHICH IS CIRCULATING AROUND JUPITER,"" "7 JANUARY, IF I REMEMBER CORRECTLY." "AND THE DAY AFTER," ". HE WAS IMMEDIATELY AT THE SUNSET AT THE TELESCOPE" "NARRATOR:" "STRUCK WITH DISBELIEF, HE SKETCHED WHAT HE SAW." "GALUZZI:" "IN A FEW DAYS HE BECAME AWARE" "THAT THOSE MOONS AS HE CALLED THEM WERE FOUR," "AND THEY WERE SATELLITES BECAUSE THEY WERE DOING" ". RHYTHMIC AND CYCLIC PERFORMANCES AROUND THE BODY OF JUPITER" "NARRATOR:" "SOMETHING ORBITING JUPITER" "COULD NOT BE ORBITING EARTH." "THE CHURCH'S MODEL OF THE UNIVERSE WAS SHATTERED." ", WHY GALILEO BECAME CONVINCED" "SO HE STARTED TO PUBLISH" "AND STARTED TO PRODUCE WORK SAYING, BE CAREFUL." "WE CANNOT STAY ANYMORE WITH PTOLEMY." "WHAT THE BIBLE WAS SAYING IN MANY TIMES" "ABOUT THE POSITION OF THE SUN" "AND THE MOTION OF THE SUN AROUND THE EARTH" "WAS NOT TENABLE ANYMORE." "GALILEO ENTERED A FIGHT WITH THE AUTHORITIES." "THE BOOK OF COPERNICUS WAS SUSPENDED" "AND SENT TO CORRECTION." ". GALILEO WAS CALLED TO ROME AT THE TRIBUNAL OF INQUISITION" "FINALLY HE WAS CONDEMNED." "NARRATOR:" "THREATENED WITH DEATH AT THE STAKE," ". GALILEO RETRACTED HIS CLAIMS" "HE WAS SENTENCED TO SPEND THE OF HIS LIFE" "UNDER HOUSE ARREST." "GALUZZI:" "IT'S THE BEGINNING OF THE CONFLICT" ", BETWEEN SCIENCE AND RELIGION" "SCIENCE AND THEOLOGY," "AND IT'S A TENSION WHICH IS GOING TO BE" "MANY OTHER EPISODES DURING THE MODERN AGE." "NARRATOR:" "GALILEO'S VOICE COULD BE STILLED," "BUT HIS SPIRIT COULD NOT." ", THE SPARK HE LIT CAUGHT FIRE , AND FOR THOSE WHO FOLLOWED" "OBSERVING THE SKY BECAME A CONSUMING QUEST." "TO THIS DAY, WE PEER INTO SPACE" "WITH THE SAME SENSE OF WONDER HE FELT." "OBSERVING IS ALMOST MYSTICAL ." "IT'S THE ACT THAT REALLY PUTS ME IN CONTACT" "WITH THE REST OF THE UNIVERSE." "I OFTEN THINK IF SOMEBODY' S LOOKING BACK AT ME " "I WONDER IF THEIR TELESCOPE IS BIGGER THAN MINE." "NARRATOR:" "TODAY'S TELESCOPES DEPEND IN PART" "ON REFINEMENTS INTRODUCED" "BY A MAN BORN THE YEAR GALILEO DIED " "ISAAC NEWTON." "HAWKING:" "I FEEL I HAVE LINKS TO BOTH NEWTON AND GALILEO." "I NOW HOLD THE SAME PROFESSORSHIP AT CAMBRIDGE" "THAT NEWTON ONCE HELD," "AND I WAS BORN 300 YEARS TO THE DAY AFTER GALILEO DIED." "BUT AT LEAST" "HALF A MILLION OTHER BABIES" "WERE BORN THAT DAY." "MAN:" "ISAAC NEWTON" "WAS BORN HERE IN THIS HOUSE IN WOOLSTHORPE" "ON CHRISTMAS DAY, 1642." "NEWTON, BY ALL ACCOUNTS, WAS A VERY DIFFICULT MAN." "HIS FATHER DIED" "BEFORE HE WAS BORN." "HIS MO" "THE RATHER RICH RECTOR IN THE NEIGHBORING VILLAGE ." "NEWTON WAS LEFT HERE IN WOOLSTHORPE" "AT THE AGE OF 3," "AND WAS BROUGHT UP FOR THE NEXT SEVEN OR EIGHT YEARS" "BY HIS GRANDMOTHER." "SO I THINK HE PROBABLY HAD A SENSE OF INSECURITY." "NARRATOR:" "THE YEAR WAS 1660." "THE WORLD OF ASTRONOMY WAS FILLED WITH QUESTIONS" "AND RIPE FOR CHANGE." "BARBOUR :" "AT CAMBRIDGE, MORE OR LESS BY CHANCE," "HE PICKED UP ABOUT FOUR OR FIVE BOOKS ON MATHEMATICS," "AND HE SET TO WORK TO READ THEM." "SIX MONTHS LATER HE WAS MAKING" "IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTIONS TO MATHEMATICS." "18 MONTHS LATER HE WAS" "THE GREATEST MATHEMATICIAN ALIVE." "IT'S JUST STAGGERING." ", HE TAUGHT HIMSELF, JUST FROM FOUR OR FIVE BOOKS" "AND IT ALL CAME OUT OF THAT." "NARRATOR:" "NEWTON DIDN'T LACK AMBITION." "HE SET HIS SIGHTS ON TACKLING MYSTERIES" "GALILEO HAD LEFT UNSOLVED." "HE BETTERED HIS CHANCES" "BY INCORPORATING AN INTERNAL MIRROR IN THE TELESCOPE," "DOUBLING ITS POWER." "BARBOUR:" "THE NEWS OF THIS TELESCOPE" "WAS DISTRIBUTED AROUND EUROPE," "AND THAT'S ACTUALLY WHAT MADE HIS NAME." "AND LATER ON, THAT DESIGN OF TELESCOPE" "TURNED OUT TO BE THE BEST ONE OF ALL" "FOR STUDYING THE HEAVENS," "SO IN THAT WAY HE GREATLY ADVANCED ASTRONOMY." "NEWTON HAD BEEN AT CAMBRIDGE FOR SEVERAL YEARS" "WHEN THE PLAGUE FORCED HIM" "TO COME BACK HOME HERE TO WOOLSTHORPE." "AND AT THE TIME HE'D LEFT CAMBRIDGE," "HE WAS BEGINNING TO THINK ABOUT THE LAWS OF MOTION," "HOW THINGS ARE MOVING," "AND HE HAD THE IDEA THAT BASICALLY THINGS" "WOULD ESSENTIALLY MOVE IN A STRAIGHT LINE" ". IF THEY WERE LEFT ON THEIR OWN" "HE WAS BEGINNING TO THINK ABOUT THE FORCES" "THAT MIGHT BE AT WORK," "AND ONE OF THE MOST OBVIOUS IS THE PULL OF GRAVITY," "WHICH IS PULLING AN OBJECT TOWARDS THE EARTH." "NARRATOR:" "NEWTON'S DISCOVERY BECAME THE STUFF OF MYTH.." "REMEMBER THE STORY OF THE APPLE FALLING FROM A TREE?" "I THINK IT PROBABLY IS TRUE" "S THAT HE DID START THINKING ABOUT THESE THING" "FROM SEEING APPLES FALL," "BUT I'M ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN HE DIDN'T HAVE" "THE COMPLETE THEORY OF UNIVERSAL GRAVITATION" ", BACK HERE IN THE PLAGUE YEAR" "AND THE FULL WORKING OUT CAME MUCH LATER." "HIS IDEA OF GRAVITY " "AND HE CALLED IT UNIVERSAL GRAVITY" "BECAUSE THAT IS A VERY IMPORTANT THING " "IS THAT EVERY SINGLE PIECE OF MATTER IN THE UNIVERSE" "PULLS EVERY OTHER PIECE" ". OF MATTER IN THE UNIVERSE TOWARDS IT, AND VICE VERSA" "THE EARTH IS BILLIONS OF TIMES MORE MASSIVE THAN THE APPLE," "SO BASICALLY THE EARTH IS MOVING" "EVER SO SLIGHTLY TOWARDS THE APPLE," "BUT YOU JUST CAN'T SEE THAT." "THE MOTION OF THE APPLE IS MUCH MORE PRONOUNCED" "THAN THAT OF THE EARTH." "THE IMPORTANCE OF THE APPLE IS THAT IT SYMBOLIZES THE IDEA" "THAT THE LAWS OF NATURE THAT ARE WORKING ON THE EARTH" "ARE ALSO WORKING THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE UNIVERSE." "NARRATOR:" "NEWTON'S CROWNING ACHIEVEMENT" "WAS TO UNITE ALL THAT HAD PRECEDED HIM." "HE APPLIED HIS THEORY OF GRAVITY" "TO THE HEAVENS KEPLER DESCRIBED," "THEN UNITED GALILEO'S LAWS WITH HIS OWN." ", HE DESCRIBED THE PATH OF THE MOON AROUND THE EARTH" "THEN LOOKED BEYOND." "BARBOUR:" "AND THAT WAS ENOUGH TO GIVE NEWTON THE HINTS" "TO THEN APPLY THOSE SAME TECHNIQUES OF GALILEO," "BUT NOW TO THE PLANETS." "AND THAT ESSENTIALLY WAS THE WHOLE OF THE UNIVERSE." "NARRATOR:" "WITH ONE SWEEPING THEORY," "NEWTON HAD REDEFINED THE COSMOS." "HE HAD SOLVED THE MYSTERY OF WHAT KEPT US ON EARTH," ". WHAT KEPT THE EARTH MOVING , WHAT SET THE STARS IN MOTION" "EVEN THE CHURCH HAD TO BOW TO THE INEVITABLE." "THE PTOLEMAIC SYSTEM" "HAD SURRENDERED TO ONE WORD " " GRAVITY." "BARBOUR:" "HE WAS THE FIRST PERSON" "WHICH MANIFESTLY WORKED." "AND THE TITLE OF HIS GREAT BOOK, THE"PRINCIPIA,"" "THAT REAL MAKES THE POINT " "HE DESCRIBED IT AS THE MATHEMATICAL PRINCIPLES" "OF NATURAL PHILOSOPHY." "HAWKING:" "NEWTON'S EQUATIONS" "FOR GRAVITY EXPLAINED THE ELLIPTICAL ORBITS" "OF THE PLANETS PERFECTLY." "KEPLER AND COPERNICUS WERE VINDICATED." "ACCORDING TO NEWTON'S THEORY" "THE UNIVERSE RAN LIKE CLOCKWORK FOREVER." "I THINK PEOPLE WERE COMFORTED BY THE THOUGHT" "THAT EVEN THOUGH THEY GREW OLD AND DIED," "THE UNIVERSE WAS ETERNAL AND UNCHANGING." " NARRATOR:" "WITH NEW TELESCOPES BASED ON NEWTON'S DESIGN " "WITH A NEW VISION OF THE SKY BASED ON HIS THEORIES " "STARGAZING BECAME POPULAR." "IT WAS THE AGE OF GENTLEMAN ASTRONOMERS." "MAN:" "I AM WILLIAM BRENDAN, THE 7TH EARL OF ROSSE," "GREAT-GREAT-GRANDSON" ". OF THE 3RD EARL, WHO WAS ALSO ANOTHER WILLIAM" "HIS GREAT ACHIEVEMENT WAS THE BUILDING" "OF THE GREAT 6-FOOT TELESCOPE," "OR LEVIATHAN OF PARSONS TOWN , AS IT WAS CALLED," "THAT WAS THE BIGGEST AND THE MOST POWERFUL TELESCOPE" "IN THE WORLD UP TILL THE PRESENT CENTURY." "NARRATOR:" "BRENDAN'S GREAT-GREAT-GRANDFATHER" "IN THE MARSHY COUNTRYSIDE OUTSIDE DUBLIN." "HE MADE EVERYTHING HE NEEDED HIMSELF, HERE." "HE MADE IT IN A FOUNDRY THAT HE SET UP" "AT THE BOTTOM OF THE MOAT," "THAT WAS FUELED BY THE TURF FROM THE LOCAL BOGS," "BY MAKING THE MOST OF ALL THE RESOURCES HE HAD." "I THINK HE WANTED TO SEE FARTHER" "THAN ANYONE ELSE HAD EVER BEEN ABLE TO SEE BEFORE." "HE INVITED GREAT SCIENTIST S AND ASTRONOMERS" "FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD" "TO SHOW THEM WHAT HE SAW HERE AT BIRR," "AND THAT WAS AMAZING AT THE TIME," "BECAUSE MANY OTHER OF THE EARLY ASTRONOMERS" "HAD GUARDED FAR MORE CAREFULLY," "AND HE DIDN'T WANT TO DO THAT." "HE WANTED TO SHARE WHAT HE'D DISCOVERED WITH EVERYONE." "NARRATOR:" "TODAY, A KINDRED SPIRIT" "PAYS A CALL ON THE EARL OF ROSSE'S TELESCOPE." "MAN:" "MY NAME IS FRANCISCO DIEGO." "I AM INVOLVED IN OPTICAL DESIGN IN UNIVERSITY COLLEGE, LONDON," "AND WE ARE PLANNING TO BUILD A NEW MIRROR FOR THIS TELESCOPE." "NARRATOR:" "THE ANTIQUE DIEGO IS RESTORING" "WORKED THE SAME WAY AS NEWTON'S TELESCOPE." "IMAGES FROM SPACE WERE CONCENTRATED" "ON A CONCAVE MIRROR." ". IN NEWTON'S DAY, THE MIRROR WAS 5 INCHES WIDE" "S 200 YEARS LATER, THE EARL'" "WAS 6 FEET IN DIAMETER." "DIEGO:" "WITH TELESCOPES LIKE GALILEO OR NEWTON," "YOU COULD ONLY SEE THE SOLAR SYSTEM " "I MEAN THE MOON, THE SUN, THE PLANETS," "AND ALMOST NOTHING ELSE." "EARL OF ROSSE:" "AND YOU SEE HERE A PLATE" "OF THE 6-FOOT TELESCOPE WITH AN OBSERVER" "HERE IN POSITION." ", REMEMBERING, OF COURSE, THAT THIS IS A REFLECTING TELESCOPE" "SO THE OBSERVERS HAD TO GET INTO POSITION AT THE TOP" "TO LOOK RIGHT DOWN THE LENGTH OF THE TUBE" "TO SEE THE IMAGE REFLECTED" "IN THE GIANT 6-FOOT MIRROR AT THE BOTTOM." "I WAS BROWSING IN YOUR LIBRARY," "AND FOUND THIS BOOK " "THIS IS "TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY,"" "1850 OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT." "AND THERE IS THE 3RD EARL'S" "DRAWING OF THE WHIRLPOOL." " THE WHIRLPOOL GALAXY " "THE FIRST TIME THE WHIRLPOOL GALAXY WAS EVER SEEN." "NARRATOR:" "TELESCOPES LIKE THE EARL OF ROSSE'S" "GAVE NEW DETAIL TO DISTANT WISPS OF LIGHT," "ASSUMED TO BE STRANGE GASEOUS CLOUDS" ". ON THE FRINGES OF OUR GALAXY" "THE REALIZATION THAT THESE WERE INDEED OTHER GALAXIES" "WOULD ONLY COME AFTER ANOTHER CONCEPTUAL BREAKTHROUGH." "THE UNIVERSE WAS ONCE AGAIN ABOUT TO BE REDEFINED " "NOW BY LIGHT," "BORN ACROSS TIME AND THE INCOMPREHENSIBLE" "DISTANCES OF SPACE." "DIEGO:" "SPECTROSCOPY IS THE ANALYSIS OF LIGHT." "THE INFORMATION THAT WE GET FROM STARLIGHT OR FROM SUNLIGHT" "OR FROM LIGHT IN GENERAL IS TREMENDOUS, IS ENORMOUS ." "NARRATOR:" "IT WAS A GERMAN PHYSICIST" "WHO DISCOVERED SPECTROSCOPY IN THE EARLY 19TH CENTURY " "JOSEPH VON FRAUENHOFER." "DIEGO:" "HE WAS AN OPTICAL MANUFACTURER." "HE WAS WORKING IN A COMPANY WHICH WAS BUILDING" "LENSES FOR ASTRONOMERS." "HE WAS VERY METHODICAL." "HE USED TO WRITE EVERYTHING HE DID." "AND FORTUNATELY WE HAVE THESE TEXTS" "OF HIS OWN VERY WORDS" ""IN A SHUTTERED ROOM I ALLOWED SUNLIGHT TO PASS" ""THROUGH A NARROW OPENING IN THE SHUTTERS" ""ONTO A PRISM." ""I FOUND WITH THE TELESCOPE ALMOST COUNTLESS" ""STRONG AND WEAK VERTICAL LINE S CROSSING THE SPECTRUM," ""WHICH HOWEVER ARE DARKER THAN THE REMAINING PART" ""OF THE SPECTRUM OF THE COLOR IMAGE." "SOME SEEM TO BE NEARLY COMPLETELY BLACK."" "HE COULDN'T EXPLAIN THE ORIGIN OF THESE LINES." "HE JUST SAW THAT PART OF THE SPECTRUM WAS MISSING." "NARRATOR:" "IN THE CRYPTIC TRACES OF ITS LIGHT," "THE UNIVERSE REVEALS ITS TRUE COLORS." "WE CAN SEE ITS CHEMICAL STRUCTURE." ". LIGHT IS ORIGINATED IN ATOMS" "LIGHT IS ORIGINATED" "EVERY TIME THAT ELECTRONS IN THESE ATOMS" "IT'S EMITTING OR ABSORBING LIGHT AT A PARTICULAR FREQUENCY." ". SO EACH CHEMICAL ELEMENT HAS A PARTICULAR WAY OF BEHAVIOR" "THE ELECTRONS ARE JUMPING IN PARTICULAR PLACES." "SO DEPENDING ON THESE PLACES" "IS THE POSITION OF THE LINE IN THE SPECTRUM." ""AH, THIS IS HYDROGEN."" ", BUT IF THE LINE APPEARS HERE" "SO IN THE SOLAR SPECTRUM WE HAVE THE FINGER PRINTS" "OF A LOT OF CHEMICAL ELEMENTS" "THAT WE CAN IDENTIFY IN OUR LABS," "BECAUSE WITH THE SAME EQUIPMENT WE TAKE A SPECTRUM OFF OUR LAMP," "SAY, FOR EXAMPLE, AN ARC OF IRON " ". AND WE CAN PRODUCE THE SAME LINES IN OUR LABS" "AND WE MATCH THE LINES FROM THE SUN" "WITH THE LINES FROM THE LAMP IN OUR LABORATORY," "AND THE MATCH IS PERFECT." "HAWKING:" "USING SPECTROSCOPY IT WAS FOUND" "THAT THE CHEMICAL CONTENT OF OUR SUN" "WAS IDENTICAL TO THAT OF ANY STAR IN THE UNIVERSE." "OUR SUN, AND OUR SOLAR SYSTEM ITSELF," "WAS JUST ONE OF AN INFINITE NUMBER OF OTHERS." "PERHAPS WE OURSELVES" "HAVE NO SPECIAL PLACE IN THE UNIVERSE." "DIEGO:" "THE CHEMISTRY OF STAR S IS MORE OR LESS THE SAME" "AS THE CHEMISTRY OF THE SUN," "SO THE SUN BECOMES A STAR OR STARS BECOME SUNS." "THIS IS A BIG REVOLUTION." "THIS IS LIKE A COPERNICAN REVOLUTION," "WHEN YOU ABANDON THE IDEA" "THAT THE EARTH IS THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE," "AND YOU SAY, WELL," ". IT'S NO LONGER THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE" ", NO CENTER AT LEAST OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM" "AND THAT WAS A MAJOR REVOLUTION IN SCIENCE." "NOW WE HAVE ANOTHER REVOLUTION IN WHICH WE SAY," "WELL, WE ARE NOT SO SPECIAL ABOUT IT," "BECAUSE OUR OWN BODIES, OUR OWN CHEMISTRY," "OUR BLOOD, OUR BONES, OUR SKINS " " THEY ARE MADE OF HYDROGEN, NITROGEN, OXYGEN, ETCETERA " "SODIUM, ETCETERA." "AND WE FIND HYDROGEN AND OXYGEN, ETCETERA," "IN NEBULAE, IN STARS, IN THE UNIVERSE." "SO IT IS THE SAME CHEMISTRY," "SO THERE IS NOTHING SPECIAL ABOUT IT." "NARRATOR:" "LIGHT, IT TURNS OUT, IS A MESSENGER," "AS SWIFT AS IT IS INFORMATIVE." "THE NEWS IT BEARS IS NOT JUST ABOUT CHEMISTRY." "IT ALSO SIGNALS THE MOTION OF THE UNIVERSE ITSELF." "THAT DISCOVERY IS OWED IN PART TO CHRISTIAN DOPPLER." "DIEGO:" "THE DOPPLER SHIFT HAS BEEN, PERHAPS," "ONE OF THE TOOLS IN ASTROPHYSICS," ", I WOULD SAY IN COSMOLOGY NOW" "BECAUSE IT IS OUR SPEEDOMETER, IF YOU LIKE." "IT IS THE METER THAT WE US E TO MEASURE THE SPEED" "OF ALMOST EVERYTHING IN THE UNIVERSE." "NARRATOR:" "DOPPLER SUGGESTED THAT, AS AN OBJECT MOVES," "THE LIGHT IT EMITS WILL APPEAR TO BE ALTERED." "WE CAN'T OBSERVE THIS IN EVERYDAY LIFE," "BECAUSE LIGHT MOVES TOO FAST , BUT WE HEAR THE SAME EFFECT." ". SOUND IS ALSO CARRIED IN WAVES" ".AS IT APPROACHES, SOUND IS ALSO CARRIED IN WAVES" "ITS WAVES ARE SQUASHED TOGETHER." "AS IT DEPARTS, THE SOUND WAVES ARE STRETCHED APART." ". THE CHANGE IN PITCH IS AUDIBLE AND KNOWN AS THE DOPPLER SHIFT" "[ SIREN APPROACHES ]" "[ PITCH OF SIREN DECREASES ]" "BY ANALYZING STARS," "SCIENTISTS FOUND THE DOPPLER SHIFT AT WORK" "IN THE LIGHT SPECTRUM AS WELL." "IF A LIGHT SOURCE MOVES TOWARD US," "THE FRAUENHOFER LINES ARE SHIFTED" "TOWARDS THE BLUE END OF THE SPECTRUM." "IF THE LIGHT SOURCE IS RECEDING," "THE LINES SHIFT TOWARDS THE RED." "HAWKING:" "THESE EXTRAORDINARY PATTERNS IN STARLIGHT" "BROUGHT THE DAWN OF A NEW AGE FOR COSMOLOGY." "IT BECAME POSSIBLE TO TELL" "NOT ONLY WHAT THE UNIVERSE WAS MADE OF," ". BUT ALSO HOW IT WAS MOVING" "THE BREAKTHROUGH CAME" "BY ANALYZING LIGHT FROM DEEP IN THE UNIVERSE " "LIGHT SEEN THROUGH POWERFUL NEW TELESCOPES IN AMERICA." "THEY COULD REVEAL" "DETAILS OF THE UNIVERSE NEVER SEEN BEFORE." "JASTROW:" "EVERYBODY KNEW WHAT THE MILKY WAY GALAXY WAS " "A COLLECTION OF BILLIONS OF STARS" "TO WHICH THE SUN BELONGS," "BUT NOBODY KNEW" "WHAT THESE LITTLE PATCHES OF NEBULOUS MATERIAL" "THAT LOOKED LIKE SPIRALS AND PANCAKES AND SO ON WERE." "AND SOME PEOPLE THOUGHT THAT THE MILKY WAY GALAXY" "WAS THE WHOLE UNIVERSE," "AND THESE LITTLE SPIRALS WERE WISPS OF GAS IN THAT UNIVERSE." "THE MOST FAMOUS PERSON THAT WORKED AT MOUNT WILSON" "WAS EDWIN HUBBLE," "WHO CAME HERE WHEN HE WAS QUITE YOUNG, ACTUALLY," "RIGHT AFTER HIS SERVICE IN WORLD WAR I," "AND HUBBLE HAD THE GOLDEN TOUCH." "HE HAD A KNACK OF PICKING THE IMPORTANT PROBLEMS." "NARRATOR:" "NO PROBLEM SEEMED MORE PUZZLING" "THAN THE ONE POSED BY THE EARL OF ROSSE" "AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES." "WHAT WERE THOSE STRANGE SWIRLS THEY'D SIGHTED?" "HUBBLE WANTED TO KNOW." "JASTROW:" "MAKING USE OF THE EXTRAORDINARY CLARITY" "OF THE ATMOSPHERE OVER MOUNT WILSON," "WHICH IS THE BEST ON THE CONTINENT," "HE WAS ABLE TO DISTINGUISH INDIVIDUAL STARS" "IN THESE LITTLE CLOUDS OF GAS, THESE SO-CALLED NEBULAE," "AND THAT TOLD HIM IN ITSELF" "THAT THEY WERE NOT WISPS OF GAS IN OUR GALAXY," "BUT GALAXIES IN THEIR OWN RIGHT," "EACH ONE CONTAINING BILLIONS OF STARS," "AND THAT THE UNIVERSE, THE TRUE UNIVERSE," "WAS POPULATED WITH COUNTLESS NUMBERS" "OF ISLAND UNIVERSES," "EACH ONE LIKE OUR MILKY WAY GALAXY." "THE DISTANCES THAT HE MEASURED" "WERE ABSOLUTELY STUPEFYING TO THE ASTRONOMERS OF THAT TIME." "HE FOUND THAT THE ANDROMEDA NEBULA," "WHICH IS THE CLOSEST GALAXY TO US LIKE OUR OWN," "WAS AT LEAST A MILLION LIGHT YEARS AWAY," "AND A LIGHT YEAR IS 6 TRILLION MILES " "A VERY, VERY GREAT DISTANCE," "FAR OUTSIDE THE EDGE OF OUR OWN MILKY WAY GALAXY." "FOR THE FIRST TIME WE KNEW HOW BIG THE UNIVERSE WAS" "WITH THAT DISCOVERY." "NARRATOR:" "MEANWHILE, DOPPLER'S THEORY CAME INTO PLAY" ". UNDER THE STUDIED GAZE OF A COLLEAGUE OF HUBBLE'S" "VESTO SLIPHER BEGAN TO ANALYZE LIGHT." "JASTROW:" "ALL OF THE GALAXIES THAT HE COULD SEE AROUND HIM" "HAD RED SHIFTS," "TOWARDS LONGER WAV ELENGTHS." "AND THAT WOULD MEAN, OF COURSE , THAT RELATIVE TO US," "THEY WERE MOVING AWAY." ". WHEN SLIPHER GAVE THIS REPORT, EVERYBODY STOOD UP AND CHEERED" "THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHAT IT MEANT , BUT THEY HAD A GUT FEELING" "THAT IT WAS SOMETHING COSMIC IN ITS SIGNIFICANCE." "NARRATOR:" "THAT GALAXIES WERE SPEEDING AWAY FROM US" "WAS A DISCOVERY AS STRIKING AS IT WAS BAFFLING." "BUT UNKNOWN TO SLIPHER AND HUBBLE," "AN EXPLANATION WAS BEING FORMED AN OBSCURE GERMAN PHYSICIST." "HIS NEW MODEL OF THE UNIVERSE WOULD BE NO LESS RADICAL" ", THAN THOSE OF CENTURIES PAST" "AND AMONG ITS PREDICTIONS WOULD BE THE REVELATION" "THAT THE UNIVERSE IS RAPIDLY EXPANDING." "ALL THE MORE REMARKABLE WAS THAT THIS INSIGHT CAME" "FROM A MAN NOW WORKING AS A PATENT CLERK" ". BECAUSE HE HAD SHOWN SO LITTLE ACADEMIC PROMISE" "HIS NAME -- ALBERT EINSTEIN." "HE WAS FORCED TO LEARN" "A LOT OF VERY COMPLICATED MATHEMATICS IN ORDER TO DO SO." "BUT IN 1915 FINALLY THE THEORY WAS BORN." "THE THEORY WAS CALLED GENERAL RELATIVITY," "AND IT DIFFERED FROM THE THEORY OF GRAVITY" "THAT HAD HELD SWAY UP UNTIL THEN FOR MORE THAN 200 YEARS," "WHICH WAS NEWTONIAN GRAVITY." "ALL OBJECTS IN THE UNIVERSE ATTRACT EACH O" "EINSTEIN'S THEORY OF GRAVITY IS RADICALLY DIFFERENT," "IN FACT, THAT THE OBJECTS DON'T" "ATTRACT EACH OTHER DIRECTLY AT ALL." "ONE OBJECT MAKES DENTS OR DIMPLES OR WARPS" "IN THE FABRIC OF SPACE-TIME ITSELF," "AND THE OTHER OBJECT, AS IT MOVES BY," ", IS ACTUALLY BENT BY THE CURVATURE OF SPACE-TIME" "BY THE FACT THAT THERE'S THIS DIMPLE THERE." "AND IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S BEING ATTRACTED TO THE FIRST OBJECT," "THE OBJECT THAT'S MAKING THE DIMPLE," "BUT, IN FACT, IT'S NOT DIRECT." ". IT'S JUST REACTING TO THE WARPAGE OF SPACE-TIME" "SO ONE THING TO UNDERSTAND ABOUT GENERAL RELATIVITY" ", IS THAT YOU CAN'T HAVE A WHOLE COLLECTION OF MATTER" "SAY, OF GALAXIES OR STARS," "WHICH ARE SITTING IN STATIC CONFIGURATION" "WITH RESPECT TO EACH OTHER , AND EXPECT THEM TO STAY THERE." "THEY WON'T." "THEY ARE GOING TO COLLAPSE IN TOWARDS EACH OTHER." "SO THIS MEANS" "THAT YOU CAN'T HAVE" "A STATIC MODEL OF THE UNIVERSE IN GENERAL RELATIVITY." "THE MODEL " " THE UNIVERSE EITHER HAS TO BE EXPANDING" "OR IT HAS TO BE CONTRACTING " "IT HAS TO BE DYNAMICAL IN SOME WAY." "IT CAN'T P" "NARRATOR:" "EINSTEIN IMAGINE D THAT THERE MUST BE" "SOME UNKNOWN FORCE KEEPING THE COSMOS" ". FROM COLLAPSING IN ON ITSELF" ". IN FACT, HE HAD PREDICTED THAT THE UNIVERSE IS EXPANDING" "JASTROW:" "THE ASTRONOMERS" "LOOKED AT SLIPHER'S DISCOVERY OF THE MOTION OF THE GALAXIES," "AND THE PREDICTION THAT THE UNIVERSE EXPANDS," "AND THEY SAID, AHA!" "THESE ARE TWO SIDES OF ONE COIN." "THEY FIT TOGETHER." "AND HUBBLE AGAIN WITH THAT GOLDEN TOUCH" "S FOR WORKING ON THE BIG PROBLEM" "TURNED HIS ATTENTION TO THIS QUESTION," "AND HE ASKED HIMSELF, HOW CAN I INVESTIGATE IT?" "AND THE WAY HE DID SO WAS TO START TO MEASURE" "THE RED SHIFTS, AS THEY ARE CALLED " "THE VELOCITIES WITH WHICH" "THESE GALAXIES ARE MOVING AWAY FROM US." "NARRATOR:" "HUBBLE BEGAN THE PAINSTAKING PROCESS" "OF COMPARING THE DISTANCE AND REDSHIFTS" "OF DOZENS OF GALAXIES." "THE RESULTS WERE STAGGERING." "JASTROW:" "AND HE FOUND SOMETHING KNOWN TODAY AS HUBBLE'S LAW," "QUITE EXTRAORDINARY, THAT THE RED SHIFT" "OR THE VELOCITY OF RECESSION FROM US" "IS PROPORTIONAL TO DISTANCE." "IF A GALAXY AT THIS DISTANCE" "IS MOVING AWAY FROM YOU AT A CERTAIN SPEED," "A GALAXY TWICE AS FAR AWAY WILL BE GUARANTEED" "TO BE MOVING AWAY FROM YOU AT TWICE THE SPEED." "HUBBLE ACTUALLY CHANGED" "THE PICTURE OF THE UNIVERSE" "BECAUSE THE PTOLEMAIC PICTURE WAS STATIC," "AND NEWTON'S PICTURE" ". OF THE UNIVERSE WAS STATIC" ". BUT HUBBLE SHOWED THAT THE UNIVERSE IS DYNAMIC" "EVERYTHING IS MOVING AWAY FROM EVERYTHING ELSE." "GREEK ASTRONOMERS THOUGHT -- MOST OF THEM, NOT ALL OF THEM " ". THAT THE EARTH WAS THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE" "COPERNICUS SHOWED THAT THAT WAS NOT SO," "AND THOUGHT THE SUN WAS THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE." ", OTHER LATER ASTRONOMERS SHOWED" ", NO, THE SUN WAS NOT THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE" "BUT MANY OF THEM THOUGHT" ". THAT THE CENTER OF OUR GALAXY WAS THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE" "HUBBLE SHOWED THAT THERE IS NO CENTER." "THAT WAS A TREMENDOUS SCIENTIFIC, THEOLOGICAL," "AND PHILOSOPHICAL ACCOMPLISHMENT." "E HE SHOWED THAT THE UNIVERSE AS FAR AS THE TELESCOPE CAN SE" "IS POPULATED WITH COUNTLESS NUMBERS OF ISLAND UNIVERSES," "AND THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE WHATSOEVER." "THERE IS NO CENTER." "THE SECOND IMPLICATION IN HIS FINDING WAS " "WELL, TO EXPLAIN IT," "IMAGINE THAT THE PICTURE OF THE EXPANDING GALAXIES" "MOVING AWAY FROM US AND ONE ANOTHER" "IS A MOVIE STRIP." "NOW RUN THAT IN REVERSE." "AND ALL THE GALAXIES GOING BACKWARD IN TIME" "COME CLOSER AND CLOSER TOGETHER." ", AND FINALLY THEY ALL MEET TOGETHER AT ONE POINT" "SPEAKING LOOSELY, BECAUSE THERE IS NO ONE POINT," "THERE IS NO CENTER IN THE UNIVERSE." "THEY ALL COME TOGETHER IN AN INFINITELY DENSE" ", AND YET INFINITELY EXTENDED MOMENT" "AND BEYOND THAT, OF INFINITE DENSITY," "ONE CANNOT GO." "SO THAT MOMENT MARKS THE BEGINNING" ". OR THE BIRTH OF THE UNIVERSE" "AND ALL OF THE THINGS THAT WE SEE AROUND US " "EVERY STAR, EVERY PLANET," ", EVERY LIVING THING ON THE EARTH AND IN THE COSMOS" "OWES ITS GENESIS TO THAT MOMENT" ", YOU CAN CALL IT THE BIG BANG" "BUT YOU CAN ALSO CALL IT WITH ACCURACY" "THE MOMENT OF CREATION." "NARRATOR:" "TODAY, OUR EXPANDING VISION" ". IS KEEPING PACE WITH AN EXPANDING UNIVERSE" "THERE ARE NEW REVELATIONS" ". OF THE BIG BANG, OF DARK MATTER, OF A STRANGE BREACH OF SPACE" "WHAT ARE CALLED BLACK HO" "A BLACK HOLE IS A GAPING VOID IN SPACE" "THAT SUCKS IN AND DEVOURS ANYTHING THAT GETS TOO NEAR." "IT BECOMES COMPACT, MASSIVE, AND THEREFORE ABLE TO " "IF IT ENCOUNTERS SOMETHING ELSE " ". ABLE TO EAT SOME MORE MATTER" "IT BECOMES THE EATER OF ALL THINGS." "NARRATOR:" "COSMOLOGISTS ARE NOW" "EXPLORING A UNIVERSE THEIR PREDECESSORS" "WOULD HARDLY RECOGNIZE." "HAWKING:" "IT SEEMS THAT THE KIND OF MATTER" "OF WHICH WE ARE MADE" "CONSTITUTES ONLY A SMALL FRACTION" "OF THE UNIVERSE." "OVER 90% IS SOMETHING WE CANNOT EVEN SEE " "DARK MATTER." "IT SORT OF PUTS ONE IN " "AS A HUMAN BEING " "INTO SOME PERSPECTIVE," "THAT THE EARTH IS NOT" ". THE CENTER OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM" "WE ARE NOT EVEN MADE OF PARTICULARLY" "COMMON MATTER THAT'S AROUND," "BECAUSE MOST OF IT'S DARK MATTER." "NARRATOR:" "GRADUALLY, THE HEAVENS ARE YIELDING" "THEIR SECRETS TO US." "THESE PHOTOGRAPHS ARE FROM THE ORBITING TELESCOPE" "NAMED AFTER HUBBLE." "HAWKING:" "FROM SITTING AT THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE," "WE NOW FIND OURSELVES ORBITING AN AVERAGE-SIZED SUN," "WHICH IS JUST ONE OF MILLIONS OF STARS" "IN OUR OWN MILKY WAY GALAXY." "AND OUR GALAXY ITSELF" "IS JUST ONE OF BILLIONS OF GALAXIES" "IN A UNIVERSE THAT IS INFINITE AND EXPANDING." ". BUT THIS IS FAR FROM THE END OF A LONG HISTORY OF INQUIRY" "HUGE QUESTIONS REMAIN TO BE ANSWERED" "BEFORE WE CAN HOPE TO HAVE" ". A COMPLETE PICTURE OF THE UNIVERSE WE LIVE IN" "" TO LEARN MORE ABOUT "STEPHEN HAWKING'S UNIVERSE," "VISIT PBS ONLINE AT THE INTERNET ADDRESS ON YOUR SCREEN." "CAPTIONS BY VITAC" " BURBANK, PITTSBURGH, TAMPA, AND WASHINGTON, D.C." ""STEPHEN HAWKING'S UNIVERSE" WAS MADE POSSIBLE" "BY ALFRED P. SLOAN FOUNDATION, TO ENHANCE PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING" "OF THE ROLE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY," "THE ARTHUR VINING DAVIS FOUNDATIONS," "THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING," "AND VIEWERS LIKE YOU." "CORPORATE FUNDING IS PROVIDED BY AMGEN," "UNLOCKING THE SECRETS OF LIFE THROUGH BIOTECHNOLOGY." "AT AMGEN, WE PRODUCE MEDICINES" "THAT IMPROVE PEOPLE'S LIVES TODAY" "AND BRING HOPE FOR TOMORROW." ""STEPHEN HAWKING'S UNIVERSE" IS MADE POSSIBLE" "BY ALFRED P. SLOAN FOUNDATION TO ENHANCE PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING" "OF THE ROLE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY," "THE ARTHUR VINING DAVIS FOUNDATIONS," "THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING," "AND VIEWERS LIKE YOU." "CORPORATE FUNDING IS PROVIDED BY AMGEN," "UNLOCKING THE SECRETS OF LIFE THROUGH BIOTECHNOLOGY." "AT AMGEN, WE PRODUCE MEDICINES" "THAT IMPROVE PEOPLE'S LIVES TODAY" "AND BRING HOPE FOR TOMORROW." "STEPHEN HAWKING:" "FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS," "PEOPLE HAVE WONDERED ABOUT THE UNIVERSE." "DID IT STRETCH OUT FOREVER , OR WAS THERE A LIMIT?" "AND WHERE DID IT ALL COME FROM?" "A MOMENT OF CREATION, AS THE CHURCH THOUGHT" "OR HAD THE UNIVERSE EXISTED FOREVER," "AS MANY PHILOSOPHERS BELIEVED?" "THE DEBATE BETWEEN THESE TWO VIEWS" "RAGED FOR CENTURIES WITHOUT REACHING ANY CONCLUSIONS." ", BUT WHILE I WAS GROWING UP" "THE DEBATE WAS VIRTUALLY SETTLED." "ONE VIEW OF THE UNIVERSE PREVAILED." "NARRATOR:" "WHAT SPARKED CREATION?" "FOR HALF THE 20TH CENTURY, THE BEST MINDS OF COSMOLOGY" "WERE CONSUMED WITH THAT QUESTION," "AND THE STRUGGLE BETWEEN TWO CONFLICTING THEORIES." "IT ALL BEGAN RIGHT HERE." "WE'RE AT AN ALTITUDE OF JUST OVER A MILE," "AND THERE'S COOL AIR COMING IN FROM THE OCEAN," ". ON TOP OF A LAYER THAT'S IN THE LOS ANGELES BASIN BELOW" "SO THERE'S A PRESSURE LID IN THE ATMOSPHERE" "THAT KEEPS THE WARM AIR AND THE HAZE DOWN BELOW" "AND KEEPS THE SMOOTH, COOL AIR FLOWING OVER THE MOUNTAINTOP." "THE IMAGES HERE ARE THE CRISPEST A" "IN THE NORTH AMERICAN CONTINENT." "NARRATOR:" "THE YEAR WAS 1917." "MOUNT WILSON IN LOS ANGELES WAS CHOSEN FOR CONSTRUCTION" "OF THE LARGEST AND MOST OPTICALLY PERFECT TELESCOPE THE WORD HAD KNOWN" "ITS OBSERVATIONS WOULD CALL INTO QUESTION" "OUR VISION OF THE COSMOS." "BUT AT THE SAME TIME, AS IF ON CUE," "ALBERT EINSTEIN WAS ALREADY PURSUING" "SOME ANSWERS OF HIS OWN." "HIS THEORY OF RELATIVITY HELD PREDICTIONS" "THAT WOULD ULTIMATELY BEAR OUT" "THE REVELATIONS FROM MOUNT WILSON." ". STILL, HE WAS BOTHERED BY ONE BAFFLING CONTRADICTION" "THE MODELS OF THE UNIVERSE YOU BUILD" "IN GENERAL RELATIVITY HAVE TO HAVE THE UNIVERSE" "EITHER EXPANDING OR CONTRACTING." "THEY CAN'T BE STATIC." "THIS DISTURBED EINSTEIN." "HIS ASSUMPTION THAT THE UNIVERSE IS STATIC WAS SO STRONG," "HE DIDN'T SEE THE EXPANSION OR CONTRACTION OF THE UNIVERSE" "AS A PREDICTION OF THE THEORY." "HE JUST THOUGHT OF IT AS A PROBLEM" "THAT HAD TO BE OVERCOME" "BY CHANGING THE THEORY IN SOME WAY." "NARRATOR:" "EINSTEIN MISTAKENLY DISMISSED" "THE POSSIBILITY OF AN EXPANDING UNIVERSE," "STRIKING IT FROM HIS THEORY." "S HE SIMPLY FUDGED HIS FORMULA" "WITH WHAT HE CALLED A COSMOLOGICAL CONSTANT." "BUT EINSTEIN SHOULD HAVE HAD MORE CONFIDENCE." "IT WOULD TAKE A CATHOLIC PRIES T TO TELL HIM SO." ". HIS NAME WAS GEORGE LEMAITRE" "LEMAITRE BELIEVED SCIENCE AND RELIGION" "COULD GO HAND IN HAND" "TODAY, FATHER MICHAEL HELLER AGREES." "HELLER:" "THERE ARE TWO WAYS OF MAKING DIALOGUE" ". BETWEEN SCIENCE AND RELIGION" "ONE IS A DIRECT DIALOGUE," "WHEN THEOLOGIANS AND SCIENTISTS SIT TOGETHER," "AND THEY TRY TO SPEAK TO EACH OTHER," ". AND USUALLY IT IS A DISASTER" "BUT THERE IS ANOTHER WAY OF MAKING A DIALOGUE" "BETWEEN SCIENCE AND RELIGION," "WHEN, FOR INSTANCE, A PRIEST OR A RELIGIOUS MAN" "SIMPLY DOES SCIENCE." "NARRATOR:" "CENTURIES AGO," "THE SCIENTIFIC WORLD PRODUCED WITHIN THE CHURCH" "HAD A PROFOUND INFLUENCE ON THE WORLD BEYOND." "THE VATICAN MAINTAINS THAT TRADITION." "TODAY IT IS HOSTING A COSMOLOGICAL CONFERENCE." "FATHER HELLER HAS BEEN INVITED TO ROME TO ATTEND." "HELLER:" "THE VATICAN ESTABLISHED" "THE PONTIFICAL ACADEMY" "TO HAVE SCIENTIFIC COUNSEL TO THE POPE." "I THINK IT WAS AN INTENTION" "TO ENGAGE THE CHURCH INTO THE DIALOGUE WITH SCIENCE." "AND THE BEST WAY OF DOING THIS DIALOGUE" "IS JUST DOING SCIENCE WITHIN THE VATICAN ." "NARRATOR:" "IN THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY," "THE BURNING QUESTION DEBATED AT THE PONTIFICAL ACADEMY WAS," "?" "HOW DID THE UNIVERSE BEGIN" "FOR SOME, THE SCRIPTURES HELD THE ANSWER." "FOR LEMAITRE, SCIENCE DID, AS WELL." "HELLER:" "GEORGE LEMAITRE" "WAS ELECTED A MEMBER OF THIS ACADEMY." "HE STUDIED BOTH THEOLOGY AND MATHEMATICS." "HE WAS RATHER A MATHEMATICIAN BY TRAINING," "BUT HE GOT VERY EARLY INTERESTED" "IN EINSTEIN'S THEORY OF RELATIVITY." "NARRATOR:" "A PRIEST AND THEORIST" "AS DEVOUT AS HE WAS RADICAL," "LEMAITRE HAD A WAY OF WINNING PEOPLE OVER." "HELLER:" "UNFORTUNATELY, I NEVER MET HIM," "BUT I LEARNED A LOT ABOUT HIM." "HE WAS A BIG MAN." "HE LIKED GOOD FOOD AND GOOD DRINK." "HE HAD A VERY GOOD SENSE OF HUMOR." "HE WAS VERY OFTEN LAUGHING IN A GOOD COMPANY," ". AND HIS LAUGH WAS CONTAGIOUS" "NARRATOR:" "LEMAITRE HAD THE GUMPTION" "TO CHALLENGE EINSTEIN AND TO PRESENT THE CHURCH" "WITH HIS OWN IDEAS OF GENESIS." "THE UNIVERSE, HE SAID," "HAD A PRECISE MOMENT OF CREATION." "HE IMAGINED EVERYTHING SPRANG" "FROM A DENSE, PRIMEVAL ATOM." "HE INVOKED HARD SCIENCE WITH A FLAIR FOR POETRY." "HELLER: "THE EVOLUTION OF THE WORLD" "CAN BE COMPARED TO A DISPLAY OF FIREWORKS" "THAT JUST HAS ENDED," "RED WISPS, ASHES, AND SMOKE." "E FEW" "STANDING ON A WELL-CHILLED CINDER," "WE SEE THE SLOW FADING OF THE SUNS," "AND WE TRY TO RECALL THE VANISHED BRILLIANCE" "" OF THE ORIGIN OF THE WORLDS." "HAWKING:" "THIS CATACLYSMIC BEGINNING" "AND EXPANDING UNIVERSE THAT LEMAITRE PROPOSED" "ARE WHAT WE NOW ACCEPT AS A BIG BANG." "FEW SCIENTISTS TOOK THE BEGINNING" "OF THE UNIVERSE SERIOUSLY." "NARRATOR:" "LEMAITRE HAD TO RISE" "TO HIS THEORY'S DEFENSE." "HE EVEN WON AN AUDIENCE WITH THE MASTER, HIMSELF," "TO NO AVAIL." "DOWKER:" "EINSTEIN DEFINITELY REJECTED THE MODEL" "AS SOMETHING UNPLEASANT," "AND HE TOLD LEMAITRE" "THAT HIS PHYSICS WAS NOT VERY GOOD." "EVERYONE ASSUMED THAT THE UNIVERSE WAS STATIC," "AND EINSTEIN WAS NO EXCEPTION." "SO PROBABLY THE IDEA THAT THE UNIVERSE WAS EXPANDING" "WAS JUST SIMPLY NOT SOMETHING" "THAT HE WAS PREPARED TO CONSIDER." "NARRATOR:" "THE CONFLICT HAD REACHED A STALEMATE," "AND THERE IT WOULD HAVE REMAINED," ". HAD IT NOT BEEN FOR A NEW MARVEL OF TECHNOLOGY" "BALLIUNAS:" "THE 100-INCH TELESCOPE" "WAS THE LARGEST IN THE WORLD" "WHEN IT WAS BUILT IN 1917." "IT DREW OBSERVERS HERE," "THE PEOPLE WHO COULD USE THE TELESCOPES THE BEST" ". TO TICKLE OUT THE DETAILS OF HOW THE COSMOS OPERATED" ". NARRATOR:" "EDWIN HUBBLE WAS ONE" "IT WOULD TAKE AN OBSERVER" "OF HIS UNCANNY INSTINCT," "PLUS THE PRIEST AND THE THEORIST," "TO RESOLVE THE ULTIMATE RIDDLE OF CREATION." "BALLIUNAS:" "EDWIN HUBBLE CAME TO MOUNT WILSON" "IN THE EARLY 1920S." "FOR HIS THESIS GUESS," "FOR HIS THESIS HE HAD MADE A GUESS, WHICH IS UNLIKE HUBBLE TO HAVE DONE, A SPECULATION." "HE THOUGHT THAT SOME OF THE FAINT, WISPY CLOUDS" "THAT YOU COULD SEE IN THE NIGHTTIME SKY " "AND THESE ARE CLOUDS ON THE SKY," "NOT CLOUDS IN THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE " "THESE NEBULAE, AS THEY'RE CALLED," "HAD A SPIRAL SHAPE, HAVE A SPIRAL SHAPE." "AND HE THOUGHT THEY MIGHT BE EXTERNAL TO OUR OWN GALAXY." "NARRATOR:" "HIS CONJECTURE WAS A CONCEPTUAL BREAKTHROUGH" "WE HAD LONG IMAGINED OUR GALAXY" ". AS THE WHOLE OF THE UNIVERSE" "ASSUMED TO BE GASEOUS OBJECT S WITHIN OUR MILKY WAY." "NOW HUBBLE TRAINED HIS GAZE ON THEM." "NEWLY REVEALED BY THE 100-INCH TELESCOPE," ". THE NEBULAE SHOWN AT A DISTANT FRONTIER OF SPACE" "THEY WERE, IN FACT, GALAXIES THEMSELVES." "HUBBLE SET OUT TO CAPTURE THEM IN PHOTOGRAPHS." "TO TRACK A CLOUD IN SPACE AS THE EARTH IS TURNING" "TOOK GREAT PATIENCE AND ENDURANCE." "TO TAKE A PICTURE OF IT," "KEEPING THOUSANDS OF STARS IN PERFECT REGISTRATION," "WAS A MONUMENTAL FEAT." "BALLIUNAS:" "SOME OF HIS EXPOSURES" "ARE 30 OR 40 HOURS," "WHICH MEANS HE DID THIS FOR ONE NIGHT," "LEFT THE PLATE IN, CAME BACK THE NEXT NIGHT" "AND RE-OPENED THE PLATE AND BEGAN EXPOSING AGAIN." "HUBBLE WOULD BE STANDING ON THIS PLATFORM" "ALL NIGHT LONG, GUIDING AND GUIDING AND GUIDING." "NARRATOR:" "HUBBLE'S PERSISTENCE WAS REWARDED" "WITH IMAGES OF BREATHTAKING CLARITY." "SUDDENLY, HE COULD MAKE OUT THE DISTINCT PRESENCE" "OF INDIVIDUAL STARS" "WITHIN THE FOLD OF THE ANDROMEDA SPIRAL." "BY METICULOUS MEASUREMENTS OF THEIR BRIGHTNESS," "HE COULD TELL HOW FAR AWAY THE GALAXY WAS." ", HE FOUND THAT THIS, OUR NEAREST NEIGHBORING GALAXY" "WAS OVER A MILLION LIGHT-YEARS AWAY." "HE TURNED AROUND OUR NOTION OF THE SIZE OF THE" "HE INCREASED THE VOLUME" "BY SOMETHING LIKE A FACTOR OF A THOUSAND MILLION," "BECAUSE NOW ALL THESE FAINT SMUDGES OF LIGHT" "WERE NOT INTERIOR TO OUR SMALL MILKY WAY GALAXY," "BUT WERE EACH INDIVIDUAL GALAXIES" "HOLDING 100 BILLION STARS OR SO." "SO HE INCREASED THE SIZE OF THE UNIVERSE" "INTO THIS VAST COSMOS THAT WE KNOW TODAY," "AND ALSO MADE OUR PLACE, SIMULTANEOUSLY," "MADE THE UNIVERSE LARGE AND OWN PLACE VERY HUMBLE." ". NARRATOR:" "BUT HUBBLE DIDN'T STOP THERE" "THE LIGHT FROM DISTANT GALAXIES," "HE COULD TELL THEY ARE SPEEDING AWAY." "BALLIUNAS:" "HUBBLE LOOKED AT GALAXIES," "AND AS HE ANALYZED THE LIGHT OF THE GALAXIES," "WITHIN THE LIGHT THAT HE IS LOOKING AT" "HE COULD TELL WHETHER OR NOT AND HOW FAST" "THE GALAXIES ARE MOVING TOWARDS OR AWAY FROM US." "THE AND HE FOUND OUT THAT THE MORE DISTANT A GALAXY WAS," "THE FASTER IT WAS MOVING AWAY FROM US." "THIS IS HUBBLE'S LAW." ". NARRATOR:" "THAT GALAXIES WERE RACING APART MEANT ONE THING" "THE UNIVERSE IS EXPANDING." "INCREDIBLE AS THE DISCOVERY WAS," ". HUBBLE APPROACHED IT WITH A SCIENTIST'S CAUTION" "IT WAS THE SAME IMPULSE" "THAT HAD PROMPTED EINSTEIN" "TO QUESTION THE PREDICTIONS OF HIS THEORY." "BUT WHEN GEORGE LEMAITRE HEARD OF HUBBLE'S CLAIM," "HE KNEW THIS WAS THE PROOF HE'D BEEN WAITING FOR." "IN 1931, WHILE EINSTEIN WAS VISITING HUBBLE," "LEMAITRE SEIZED THE MOMENT" "TO PAY THEM BOTH A SURPRISE CALL." "BALLIUNAS:" "SO IMAGINE THESE THREE" "INCREDIBLE IDEAS ALL IN THE SAME ROOM AT THE SAME TIME " ", EINSTEIN'S VERY BEAUTIFUL THEORY OF GENERAL RELATIVITY" ", WHICH TALKS ABOUT SPACE-TIME" "LEMAITRE'S ELEGANT SOLUTION, MATHEMATICAL SOLUTION," ", THAT SAYS AN EXPANSION IS ALLOWED FROM A PRIMEVAL ATOM" "A PRIMORDIAL START," "AND THEN HUBBLE'S EVIDENCE TAKEN FROM OBSERVATIONS" "THAT TRACED THE MOTION OF GALAXIES" "FROM THIS INITIAL EXPANSION." "HAWKING:" "WHEN THEORY AND OBSERVATION COME TOGETHER," "SCIENCE OFTEN TAKES A GREAT LEAP FORWARD." "THE BASIS OF MODERN COSMOLOGY" "WAS ESTABLISHED AT THIS MEETING." "LOOKING BACK, I CAN RECOGNIZE THIS" "AS THE FOUNDATIONS FOR MY OWN WORK." "[ DING ]" "BALLIUNAS:" "LEMAITRE HAD TO WORK THROUGH EINSTEIN'S THEORY" "THROUGH THE MATHEMATICS" "WHICH ARE EXTRAORDINARILY COMPLEX." "AND AFTER PRESENTING THIS TO EINSTEIN" "AND PRESSING AND PRESSING AND PRESSING HIS POINT," "AND THEN HAVING THE EVIDENCE OF HUBBLE THERE" "TO TOP THIS ALL OFF," "EINSTEIN WAS BEGINNING TO BE CONVINCED" "OF THE EVIDENCE FOR THE EXPANSION." "HE BEGINS TO REALIZE, AS LEMAITRE PRESSES HIS POINT," "THAT HE HAD MADE" "A GREAT BLUNDER " "THAT IS, PUTTING IN THIS COSMOLOGICAL CONSTANT" "TO OFFSET THE NATURAL EXPANSION" ". THAT FALLS OUT OF HIS THEORIES" "EINSTEIN ROSE AT THE END OF THE MEETING AND SAID," ""THIS IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING I'VE EVER SEEN."" "NARRATOR:" "FROM THEN ON," "EINSTEIN CALLED THE ADJUSTMENT S HE'D MADE TO HIS THEORY" "THE BIGGEST BLUNDER" "OF HIS LIFE." "HUBBLE'S WORK, LEMAITRE, AND EINSTEIN, I THINK," "MAKE UP THE BIG BANG OF COSMOLOGY." "THAT IS, THIS IS THE ORIGINS OF MODERN COSMOLOGY." "HUBBLE'S WORK STARTED IT ALL" "FIRST BY INVESTIGATING WHAT THESE NEBULAE WERE," "AND THEN SEEING THIS MOTION," ", THIS LARGE-SCALE MOTION OF THE UNIVERSE, THE EXPANSION" "HOW THAT LINKED TO EINSTEIN'S THEORY," "SHOWING THAT THE UNIVERSE HAD A BEGINNING" "AND THIS IS WHERE COSMOLOGY HAS RISEN FROM." "HAWKING:" "I WAS FASCINATED BY THE EXPANSION OF THE UNIVERSE" "EVEN WHEN I HEARD OF IT AS A BOY AT SCHOOL." "BUT MANY SCIENTISTS DIDN'T LIKE THE IDEA" "THAT THE UNIVERSE HAD A BEGINNING," "A MOMENT OF CREATION." "FROM CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY." "FRED HOYLE WASN'T CONTENT" "TO VOICE HIS REBUTTAL TO HIS STUDENTS ALONE." "HE TOOK TO THE AIRWAVES," "DELIVERING HIS MESSAGE STRAIGHT TO THE PUBLIC." "THE QUESTION OF HOW THE UNIVERSE BEGAN," "HE TOLD THEM, WAS FAR FROM SETTLED." "HOYLE:" "PERHAPS LIKE ME YOU GREW UP WITH A NOTION" "THAT THE WHOLE OF THE MATTER IN THE UNIVERSE" "G WAS CREATED IN ONE BIG BAN" "AT A PARTICULAR TIME IN THE REMOTE PAST." "WHAT I'M NOW GOING TO TELL YOU IS THAT THIS IS WRONG." "NARRATOR:" "FRED HOYLE MADE IT HIS PERSONAL MISSION" "TO CHALLENGE WHAT HE DERISIVELY CHRISTENED" ""THE BIG BANG."" "THE NAME STUCK." " IT WAS HOYLE VERSUS THE PRIMEVAL ATOM " "THE STEADY STATE THEORY VERSUS THE BIG BANG." "THE DEBATE CONSUMED YOUNG COSMOLOGISTS." "TODAY, DENNIS SCIAMA" "TEACHES IN ITALY." "AS A YOUNG GRADUATE STUDENT AT CAMBRIDGE," "HE SIDED WITH HOYLE." "YOU'VE GOT TO REMEMBER AT THAT TIME" "THERE WERE NOT MANY PEOPLE WORKING IN COSMOLOGY," "SO ONE OR TWO REBELLIOUS CHARACTERS" "COULD MAKE A VERY BIG IMPACT ON THE SUBJECT." "HOYLE:" "NOW THIS BIG BANG IDEA SEEMED TO ME" "TO BE UNSATISFACTORY" "EVEN BEFORE DETAILED EXAMINATION," "FOR IT'S AN IRRATIONAL PROCESS" "THAT CAN'T BE DESCRIBED IN SCIENTIFIC TERMS." "SCIAMA:" "SO IN 1948," "THEY PROPOSED THE FAMOUS STEADY STATE THEORY" "WHICH WAS A CONTRADICTION TO THE BIG BANG," "ACCEPTING THE UNIVERSE WAS EXPANDING," "BUT SUPPOSING THAT AS THE GALAXIES" ", MOVE AWAY FROM ONE ANOTHER" "NEW MATTER WAS CREATED BETWEEN THE GALAXIES" "CONTINUOUSLY ON THIS IDEA." "NARRATOR:" "HOYLE ARGUED THAT AN EXPANDING UNIVERSE" "NEED NOT NECESSARILY HAVE BEGUN G." "RATHER, IT COULD SIMPLY BE ENDLESSLY SPREADING," "GENERATING MORE AND MORE ADDITIONAL MATTER" "TO FILL THE VOIDS." ", IF YOU GO BACKWARDS IN TIME, THERE'S NO INCREASE OF DENSITY" "AND THEREFORE NO BIG BANG." "SO YOU HAVE THIS RATHER GRAND PICTURE" "OF A UNIVERSE WHICH IS EXPANDING," "BUT WHICH STAYS THE SAME IN IT'S OVERALL PROPERTIES" "FOR ALL TIME." "I PERSONALLY LIKED THE THEORY" "BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT HAD A GRAND ARCHITECTURAL SWEEP." "IT JUST SEEMED SO GRAND TO HAVE A UNIVERSE" ", THAT DIDN'T CHANGE IN ITS LARGE-SCALE STRUCTURE EVER" "AND HAD NO AWKWARD INITIAL MOMENT." "[ BELL CHIMES ]" "NARRATOR:" "STILL, A STEADY STATE UNIVERSE" "THAT REJECTS A MOMENT OF CREATION" "OFFERS NO ACCOUNTING FOR HOW ITS MATTER WAS FIRST FORMED." "THIS WAS THE ONE ADVANTAGE BIG BANG PROPONENTS HAD" "OVER HOYLE'S FOLLOWERS." "THEY COULD EXPLAIN HOW THE ELEMENTS" "THAT MAKE UP THE COSMOS WERE CREATED" "IN THE THROES OF THE BIG BANG ITSELF." "SCIAMA:" "FRED HOYLE DEVELOPED THIS IDEA" "THAT WE WANTED TO DO WITHOUT THE HOT BIG BANG." "THE QUESTION WAS WHERE TO MAKE" "THE HEAVY ELEMENTS." "HOYLE HAD TO FIND PLACES IN THE UNIVERSE" "WHICH WERE HOT ENOUGH FOR THE NUCLEAR REACTIONS" "TO MAKE THE ELEMENTS WE NOW SEE." "NARRATOR:" "THE SEARCH HAD ITS BEGINNINGS" "ON THIS PLANET." "ONLY 92 SIMPLE ELEMENTS ARE THE BUILDING BLOCKS" "FOR EVERYTHING ON EARTH." "WHERE, THEN, DID THEY COME FROM?" "GOING BACK TO BASICS IS A CONSUMING PURSUIT" "FOR GEOLOGIST CHRIS HALLS." ". TO STUDY A SITE, HE USES TRADITIONAL PANNING TECHNIQUES" "HEAVY ELEMENTS DON'T DISSOLVE, SO THEY CAN BE SIFTED OUT." "IN FACT, THEY STAND UP" "TO ANY NATURAL FORCES THE EARTH CAN MUSTER." "GOLD ISN'T SUBJECT TO ANY NATURAL FORCES THE EARTH CAN MUSTER" "TO CHEMICAL BREAKDOWN IN THE ATMOSPHERE." "AND ONCE YOU HAVE GOLD ACCUMULATING IN A RIVER," "IT'S LIKELY TO STAY THERE." "ONE SUSPECTS, OF COURSE," "THAT THINGS WHICH ARE SO DURABLE ONE SUSPECTS, OF COURSE," "MUST THEMSELVES HAVE HAD THEIR ORIGIN" "IN SOME PLACE" "OF VERY INTENSE PHYSICAL CONDITIONS." "NARRATOR:" "NO PROCESS ON OUR PLANET" "IS EXTREME ENOUGH TO PRODUCE THE ELEMENTS." "SO PROPONENTS OF THE STEADY STATE SCHOOL" "HAD TO TURN ELSEWHERE." "THEY LOOKED TO THE STARS." ", HALLS:" "THE GREAT ACHIEVEMENT" ", IN TERMS OF UNDERSTANDING THE ORIGIN OF THE ELEMENTS" "CAME FROM THE THEORETICAL WORK" ". DONE BY THE ASTRONOMERS OF THE STEADY STATE SCHOOL" "AND THEY WERE ABLE TO DEMONSTRATE" "WHAT WAS POSSIBLE IN TERMS OF PUTTING ELEMENTS TOGETHER" "TO SYNTHESIZE NEW AND HEAVIER ELEMENTS IN STARS." "NARRATOR:" "DEEP IN SPACE, VAST CLOUDS OF HYDROGEN" "ROIL AND CHURN." "GRAVITY PULLS THEM TOGETHER." "THE PRESSURE BUILDS AND THE TEMPERATURE RISES" "IGNITING A MASSIVE FUSION REACTION." "THE HYDROGEN ATOMS MELD TOGETHER TO FORM HELIUM," "A HEAVIER ELEMENT." "THIS IS THE PROCESS THESE STARS BURN SO BRIGHTLY." "THEY ARE HOT, DENSE FURNACES STOKED BY FUSION." ", AS GRAVITY EXERTS ITS RELENTLESS PULL INWARD" "THE ENERGY OF A STAR'S NUCLEAR REACTIONS PUSHES OUTWARD." "THESE OPPOSING FORCES ARE HELD IN AWESOME EQUILIBRIUM," "AS LONG AS THERE IS ENOUGH HYDROGEN" "TO KEEP THE PROCESS GOING." "ONCE THE STAR USES UP THAT FUEL," "ITS FUSION REACTIONS BEGIN TO DIE DOWN." ". BUT GRAVITY IS UNRELENTING" "THE STAR IS SQUEEZED EVER TIGHTER." "THE HELIUM ATOMS FUSE." "IN A MORE MASSIVE STAR," "ELEMENTS YET HEAVIER BEGIN TO FORM," "ONE AFTER ANOTHER," "UNTIL AT LAST IT HITS A DEAD END WITH IRON." "THE PROCESS OF FUSION CAN GO NO FURTHER." "THE FATE OF THE STAR THEN DEPENDS ON ITS SIZE." "IN SMALL STARS, GRAVITY IS TOO WEAK" "TO CRUSH THEM ANY FURTHER." "THEY COOL AND GENTLY FADE INTO OBLIVION." "BUT LARGE STARS SUFFER A MORE VIOLENT DEATH." "HALLS:" "IN MASSIVE STARS," "THE MASSES DRAW TOGETHER" "IN A TREMENDOUS CATACLYSMIC CONTRACTION," "AND THIS PRODUCES A KIND O F ELASTIC NUCLEAR REBOUND" ", WHICH DRIVES ALL THE MATTE R OUTWARDS IN A GIGANTIC BURST" ". WHICH WE KNOW AS A SUPERNOVA" "NARRATOR:" "IT IS THE SINGLE MOST VIOLENT EVENT" "IN THE PRESENT UNIVERSE." "IN A FEW SHORT SECONDS," "A SUPERNOVA PRODUCES MORE ENERGY" "THAN THE SUN WILL IN ITS LIFETIME." "WHEN ASTRONOMERS ANALYZED THE LIGHT OF SUPERNOVAS," "THEY SAW THE SIGNATURES" "OF THE ELEMENTS HEAVIER THAN IRON." "SUPERNOVAS SCATTER THEIR SEEDS ACROSS THE UNIVERSE." "THEY SPILL INTO OTHER DUST CLOUDS" ". TO FORM NEW STARS, PLANETS , AND EVENTUALLY LIFE ITSELF" "HALLS:" "THE STEADY STATE THEORISTS" "PROCEEDED TO BUILD UP STAGE BY STAGE" "A LOGICAL EXPLANATION" "OF HOW THESE ELEMENTS COULD ORIGINATE SUCCESSIVELY" "BY SYNTHESIS IN THE STARS," "BUT THE PROBLEM WAS THAT THEY HAD TO FIND" "THE FUNDAMENTAL FUEL TO START THE PROCESS ITSELF." "AND OF COURSE THAT FUEL IS HYDROGEN." "AND THE MILLION-DOLLAR QUESTION IS," "WHERE DID THE HYDROGEN COME FROM?" "NARRATOR:" "FRED HOYLE THOUGHT HYDROGEN" "MUST SOMEHOW BE CREATED CONTINUOUSLY THROUGHOUT SPACE." "BUT NOTHING SHORT OF A NEW LAW OF PHYSICS" "WOULD MAKE THAT POSSIBLE." "JUST AS BAFFLING, ASTRONOMERS DETECTED" "E FAR MORE HELIUM IN SPACE THAN COULD POSSIBLY HAVE COM" "FROM THE FUSION OF HYDROGEN IN STARS." "THE OBVIOUS ANSWER WAS THAT THE BIG BANG ITSELF" ". CREATED HYDROGEN AND HELIUM IN ITS MONSTROUS EXPLOSION" "THAT WAS THE LAST THING HOYLE WANTED TO CONCEDE." "HALLS:" "FRED HOYLE SAID" "THAT IF THERE HAD BEEN A BIG BANG," "THERE SHOULD BE A TRACE OF THAT EVENT" "PRESERVED FOR US IN THE UNIVERSE " ". A KIND OF FOSSIL RADIATION" "AND THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT THE BIG BANG THEORISTS" "WENT OUT TO LOOK FOR." "NARRATOR:" "IF, INDEED, THE UNIVERSE BEGAN" "WITH A GREAT EXPLOSION," "IT WOULD HAVE BEEN SO INTENSE THAT EVEN TODAY" "SOME FAINT AFTERGLOW SHOULD BE IN EVIDENCE ACROSS SPACE." "HAWKING:" "AS A RESEARCH STUDENT WORKING FOR A DOCTORATE," "I REALIZED HOW SIGNIFICANT IT WOULD BE" "IF THE RADIATION COULD STILL BE DETECTED" "SOME 15 BILLION YEARS LATER." "BY NOW, IT WOULD HAVE COOLED" "TO ALMOST THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE POSSIBLE," ". MINUS 273 DEGREES CENTIGRADE" "CONCEIVED A WAY TO DETECT THE BIG BANG" "ONE OF HIS STUDENTS" "WAS DAVID WILKINSON." "WILKINSON:" "ONE AFTERNOON HE CAME IN AND HE WAS " "SEEMED PARTICULARLY EXCITE D ABOUT SOMETHING." "HE STARTED OUTLINING THIS IDEA" "ABOUT PROVING THAT THERE'S A BIG BANG." "WELL, OF COURSE, AT THAT TIME" "THE BIG BANG WAS VERY CONTROVERSIAL." "NOT EVERYBODY BELIEVED IT, BY A LONG SHOT." "THE STEADY STATE THEORY WAS VERY POPULAR." ", BUT ONE THING THE BIG BANG WOULD PREDICT" "IF THERE WERE A BIG BANG," "IS THAT THERE MUST HAVE BEEN SOME HEAT RADIATION IN IT." "THOUGHT IT WAS A LONG SHOT , KIND OF A RISK," "SUCH A RADICAL IDEA," "BUT IT LOOKED LIKE IT WAS POSSIBLE" "TO DO AN EXPERIMENT AND CHECK IT OUT." "AND IT WASN'T GOING TO TAKE A LOT OF TIME," "AND I DIDN'T HAVE ANYTHING ELSE TO DO," "SO I DECIDED TO PITCH IN" "AND HELP ON THE EXPERIMENTAL SIDE." "NARRATOR:" "WILKINSON WAS 28 YEARS OLD" "WHEN THE OPPORTUNITY PRESENTED ITSELF" "TO TAKE PART IN WHAT MIGHT BE THE DISCOVERY OF A LIFETIME." ".YOU HAVE TO IMAGINE THAT WE ARE EMBEDDED IN THIS EXPLOSION" "SO IF YOU'RE THINKING" "OF AN EXPLOSION, SAY, A BOMB GOING OFF," "AND YOU SEE THIS BIG FIREBALL," "WE'RE ACTUALLY INSIDE THAT FIREBALL." "SO THE RADIATION IS COMING FROM ALL DIRECTIONS." "WE'RE NOT OUTSIDE LOOKING AT IT" "AND HAVING IT GO BY US." "WE'RE EMBEDDED INSIDE," "SO WE SEE THE SAME THING LOOKING ALL AROUND." ", NARRATOR:" "THEIR TOOLS WERE PRIMITIVE BY TODAY'S STANDARDS" "BUT A DIRECTIONAL HORN ANTENNA , HOISTED ON A ROOFTOP," "WOULD HEAR WHISPERS FROM THE MOMENT OF CREATION." "IT'S PURPOSE " " TO DETECT" "THE MINUTE AMOUNTS OF RADIATION IN SPACE" "LEFT IN THE WAKE OF THE BIG BANG." "WILKINSON:" "WE CAN MEASURE THE TEMPERATURE UP ABOVE" "IF WE PUT A GOOD CALIBRATOR," "WHAT'S CALLED A COLD LOAD, AT THIS POINT." "IF YOU POUR A LITTLE LIQUID NITROGEN ON IT," "WE'LL KNOW EXACTLY WHAT ITS TEMPERATURE IS." "THE RADIATION FROM THE SKY" "COMES INTO THIS HORN," "WITH THE RADIATION COMING INTO THIS H" "THEN WE SEE A READING THAT'S THE DIFFERENCE" "BETWEEN THE TEMPERATURE OF SPACE" "AND THE TEMPERATURE OF OUR COLD LOAD." "NARRATOR:" "BUT WHILE DAVID WILKINSON AND HIS GROUP" "WERE FINE TUNING THEIR EQUIPMENT," "EVENTS WERE CONSPIRING AGAINST THEM." "BOB WILSON HAD JUST STARTED WORK" "AT BELL LABORATORIES." "A RADIO ASTRONOMER BY TRADE, HE'D BEEN RECRUITED" "BY THE COMPANY'S RESEARCH DEPARTMENT." "BELL, TOO, HAD A SPECIAL HORN-SHAPED ANTENNA." "ITS PURPOSE " "TO RECEIVE SATELLITE RADIO TRANSMISSIONS." "WILSON:" "WHEN WE WERE GIVEN CONTROL" "OF THE HORN REFLECTOR," "WE SAW SOMETHING WHICH WE HAD HOPED NOT TO SEE." "THAT IS THAT THERE WAS MORE NOISE" "COMING OUT OF THE HORN THAN WE EXPECTED." "WE EXPECTED A LITTLE BIT FROM THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE," "AN EVEN SMALLER AMOUNT" "FROM THE WALLS OF THE HORN ITSELF," "AND THEN WE THOUGHT SPACE WOULD ESSENTIALLY ZERO," "SO THAT SHOULD BE IT." "NARRATOR:" "BUT ZERO, IT WASN'T." "WHEREVER WILSON'S TEAM POINTED THEIR DETECTOR," "IT PICKED UP AN ANNOYING HISS." "THE RADIO NOISE DIDN'T STOP," "EVEN IF THE ANTENNA WAS DIRECTED AT EMPTY SPACE." "WILSON:" "WE WORRIED BECAUSE WE WERE LIVING ON A HILL" "WHICH OVERLOOKS NEW YORK CITY," "NOT THE TYPICAL PLACE THAT A RADIO ASTRONOMER WOULD GO." "SO WE TURNED OUR HORN REFLECTOR DOWN" "AND LOOKED AT NEW YORK CITY," "AND THERE WAS NOTHING UNUSUAL FROM THERE." "NEW YORK CITY DOESN'T RADIATE AT THOSE FREQUENCIES." "SO, YOU KNOW, SORT OF ONE BY ONE" "WE ELIMINATED THE SOURCES OF EXCESS NOISE" "THAT WE COULD THINK OF." ". WE STILL BELIEVED IN PHYSICS" "WHAT CAME OUT HAD TO COME FROM SOMEWHERE." "NARRATOR:" "THEY PONDERED THE POSSIBILITIES." "PERHAPS THE HISS WASN'T COMING FROM SPACE AT ALL." "MAYBE THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE HORN ITSELF." "THE MOST OBVIOUS WAS" "THAT THERE WAS A PAIR OF PIGEONS LIVING IN IT," "AND WHENEVER WE WEREN'T USING IT," ", WHICH WAS MOST OF THE TIME" ". THEY WOULD CLIMB UP NEAR THE CAB AND ROOST THERE" "S OF COURSE THEY COVERED IT WITH WHITE PIGEON DROPPING" "THE SAME AS THEY DO ALL SORTS OF THINGS IN CITIES." "AND WE KNEW THAT THAT COULD VERY WELL" "HAVE AN EFFECT." "NARRATOR:" "SO BOB WILSON AND HIS GROUP" "OF HIGHLY QUALIFIED RADIO ASTRONOMERS" "SPENT TWO WEEKS CLEANING PIGEON DROPPINGS." "FINALLY THE BIRDS WERE TRAPPED AND SENT BY COMPANY MAIL" "MILES AWAY TO WHIPENY, NEW JERSEY." "BUT THESE WERE HOMING PIGEONS." "WELL, A COUPLE OF DAYS LATER , SAME PIGEON'S BACK." ". LATER ON, OUR TECHNICIAN BROUGHT IN A SHOTGUN AND.." "NARRATOR:" "THAT TOOK CARE OF THE CULPRITS," "BUT NOT THE HISS." "FOR ANOTHER YEAR, THE NOISE LINGERED." "IN THE SPRING OF 1965, IN DESPERATION," "WILSON'S TEAM PHONED PRINCETON UNIVERSITY FOR HELP." "THE CALL WAS PUT THROUGH TO BOB DICKE." "WILKINSON:" "WE WERE IN BOB DICKE'S OFFICE" "HAVING LUNCH ONE DAY," "AND THE TELEPHONE RANG." "AND HIS PHONE RANG A LOT, SO WE DIDN'T THINK MUCH OF IT," "UNTIL WE HEARD HIM SAY SOMETHING ABOUT "HORN ANTENNA."" "" AND A FEW MINUTES LATER, "COLD LOAD, LIQUID HELIUM." "SO THEN WE PERKED RIGHT UP BECAUSE IT WAS PRETTY CLEAR" "THAT HE WAS TALKING TO SOMEBODY WHO HAD THE EQUIPMENT" "THAT WE WERE BUILDING." "THIS TURNED OUT TO BE ARNO PENZIAS" "AND BOB WILSON FROM BELL LABS, ONLY 35 MILES AWAY." "AND BOB HUNG UP THE PHONE," "AND I'LL NEVER FORGET EXACTLY WHAT HE SAID." "HIS PRECISE WORDS WERE," ""WELL, BOYS, WE'VE BEEN SCOOPED."" ""WELL, BOYS, FOR DICKE AND HIS STUDENTS" "THE QUICK DRIVE TO BOB WILSON'S LAB" "WAS NO DOUBT THE LONGEST RID E THEY'D EVER TAKEN." "WHEN DAVID WILKINSON SAW WILSON'S EQUIPMENT" ". AND HIS METICULOUS RECORDS , HE KNEW THERE WAS NO MISTAKE" "THE BIG BANG HAD REVEALED ITSELF." "HI, THERE." "GOOD TO SEE YOU." "WILKINSON:" "IT WAS QUITE DISAPPOINTING" "TO FIND OUT THAT ANOTHER GROUP HAD GOT THERE FIRST." "T I PERSONALLY WAS ONLY GIVING I" "ABOUT A 50-50 CHANCE OF WORKING ANYWAY." "AND THEN WHEN WE FOUND OUT THAT, YES, INDEED," "THERE WAS THIS RADIATION COMING FROM SPACE" "THAT MIGHT BE COMING FROM THE BIG BANG," "THAT OF COURSE WAS VERY EXCITING." "THIS IS A PARADIGM SHIFT IN COSMOLOGY RESEARCH," "AND IT WOULD HAVE BEEN NICE TO BE THE FIRST TO SEE IT." "HERE YOU SEE THE ANTENNA, AND THIS IS COLD LOAD PLUS..." "NARRATOR:" "IN A STROKE," "A HALF-CENTURY OF DEBATE WAS ESSENTIALLY SETTLED." "DEFINITELY HOTTER THAN THE COLD LOAD." "SURE IS." "WILSON:" "THE DISCOVERY OF THE BACKGROUND RADIATION" "ALONG WITH A NUMBER OF OTHER THINGS" "THAT WERE COMING UP AT THE SAME TIME" "REALLY DROVE THE FINAL NAIL IN THE COFFIN" ". OF THE STEADY STATE THEORY" "I THINK IT WOULD BE VERY HARD TO SUPPORT" "OR TO UNDERSTAND THE SOURCE OF THE BACKGROUND RADIATION" ". IN A STEADY STATE UNIVERSE" "NARRATOR:" "IT'S SAID THAT LEMAITRE HIMSELF" "HEARD OF THE DISCOVERY JUST DAYS BEFORE HE DIED." "IN 1978, THE ULTIMATE ACCOLADE IN SCIENCE" "WAS AWARDED TO BOB WILSON" "AND HIS COLLEAGUE ARNO PENZIAS." "WILSON:" "IT WAS 13 YEARS OR SOMETHING" "BEFORE WE RECEIVED THE NOBEL PRIZE FOR IT." "THE NOBEL PRIZE IS GIVEN FOR DISCOVERIES." "IT'S NOT GIVEN FOR BEING THE BEST PHYSICIST" "OR THE BEST SCIENTIST," "IT'S GIVEN FOR DISCOVERING THINGS" "THAT ARE INTERESTING OR USEFUL TO MANKIND." "I STILL HAVE A HARD TIME" "PUTTING MYSELF IN THE SAME CATEGORY AS EINSTEIN," ", BUT I DO REALIZE THAT THIS WAS AN IMPORTANT DISCOVERY" "AND FEEL THAT I WAS VERY LUCKY" "TO BE IN THE RIGHT PLACE WHEN THAT HAPPENED." "AND I HAVE ENJOYED THE RESULTS FROM IT." "HAWKING:" "RADIATION WAS DISCOVERED" "WHILE I WAS FINISHING MY DOCTORATE." "HERE AT LAST WAS OBSERVATIONAL EVIDENCE" ". THAT COULD CONFIRM MY WORK" "I HAD GONE TO CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY" "BECAUSE I HAD WANTED TO WORK WITH HOYLE ON COSMOLOGY" "AND THE EXPANSION OF THE UNIVERSE." "BUT LUCKILY FOR ME," "I DIDN'T GET THE SUPERVISOR I WANTED." "HE WAS HOPING TO WORK WITH FRED HOYLE," "BUT HOYLE WAS NOT TAKING NEW STUDENTS AT THAT TIME," "AND I WAS THE ONLY OTHER PERSON IN THE DEPARTMENT" "ABLE TO SUPERVISE STUDENTS IN COSMOLOGY," "HEN WANTED TO WORK ON." ". SO I BECAME HIS SUPERVISOR" "AND WE TALKED TOGETHER ABOUT VARIOUS PROJECTS." "HAWKING:" "I MADE A BAD START AT CAMBRIDGE." "I HAD JUST BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH ALS," "OR MOTOR NEURON DISEASE," "AND DIDN'T KNOW IF I WOULD LIVE LONG ENOUGH" "TO FINISH MY DOCTORATE." "AND I WAS HAVING DIFFICULT FINDING A PROBLEM FOR MY THESIS." "YOU HAVE TO WRITE A THESIS WHICH CONTAIN" "A SUBSTANTIAL ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION TO KNOWLEDGE." "AND THAT'S A VERY HEAVY REQUIREMENT," "AND IT'S VERY UNNATURAL IN A WAY" "BECAUSE YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO PRODUCE THIS PARTICULAR" "SUBSTANTIAL ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION TO KNOWLEDGE" ". IN A GIVEN THREE-YEAR PERIOD" "AND SO YOU'RE FORCED A BIT ARTIFICIALLY" "IN A GIVEN TIME SCALE" ",IN STEPHEN'S PARTICULAR CASE," "COSMOLOGY WAS FALLOW AT THAT TIME," "AND HE COULDN'T FIND A REALLY GOOD PROBLEM." "AND I COULDN'T FIND ONE FOR HIM." "NARRATOR:" "TIME WAS RUNNING OUT." "THERE WAS LESS THAN A YEAR LEFT" "WHEN A WORTHY PROJECT WAS FINALLY FOUND." "HAWKING SET HIS SIGHTS ON DEVELOPING A THEORY" "TO DESCRIBE THE PRECISE CONDITIONS FOR THE BIG BANG." "HIS INSPIRATION WAS THE WORK" "OF A YOUNG LUMINARY OF THE FIELD." "SCIAMA:" "ROGER PENROSE WAS BY THAT TIME A GOOD FRIEND OF MINE" "AND HE WAS WORKING ON A PROBLEM" "WHICH LED TO A REMARKABLE DISCOVERY OF HIS," "WHICH I SUPPOSE WAS" "THE MOST IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTION TO RELATIVITY" "SINCE THE VERY EARLY DAYS OF THE THEORY," "AROUND 1916 OR SO." "THE ISSUE INVOLVED NOT THE WHOLE UNIVERSE " "THAT WAS STEPHEN'S LATER CONTRIBUTION " "BUT A STAR." ". NARRATOR:" "WHEN A LARGE STAR RUNS OUT OF FUEL, IT COLLAPSES" "ONLY ONE STAR IN A THOUSAND IS MASSIVE ENOUGH TO COLLAPSE" "INTO WHAT'S CALLED A BLACK HOLE." "AT THE CORE OF A BLACK HOLE," "ALL THE STAR'S MATTER WOULD BE CRUSHED INTO A POINT" "INFINITELY DENSE, CALLED A SINGULARITY." "IT WAS THOUGHT THIS WOULD ONLY HAPPEN" "IF THE STAR WAS EXACTLY SYMMETRICAL," ". SO ITS COLLAPSE WOULD BE THE SAME IN ALL DIRECTIONS" "BUT IT SEEMED ALTOGETHER IMPOSSIBLE" "THAT A STAR COULD HAVE THAT QUALITY." "PENROSE'S GREAT CLAIM WAS TO SHOW" "IF A STAR IS BIG ENOUGH IT CAN BECOME A SINGULARITY" "NO MATTER WHAT ITS SHAPE." "AND IT SO HAPPENED THAT, POSSIBLY AT MY SUGGESTION," "STEVE HAWKING HEARD A SEMINAR GIVEN BY PENROSE" "IN WHICH HE ANNOUNCED THIS RESULT." "AND A LITTLE LATER, STEPHEN SAID TO ME," ""BUT LOOK," HE SAID," ""WE CAN ADAPT ROGER'S ARGUMENT TO THE WHOLE UNIVERSE."" "IN A CERTAIN SENSE" "THE UNIVERSE IS LIKE A BIG STAR." "OF COURSE THE UNIVERSE IS EXPANDING," "BUT IF IN YOUR MIND YOU REVERSE THE SENSE OF TIME," "THEN THE UNIVERSE IS COLLAPSING." "IT'S A BIT LIKE A COLLAPSING STAR," "VERY LARGE STAR." "PERHAPS YOU CAN PROVE THAT IN THAT COLLAPSE" "YOU AGAIN MUST ACHIEVE A SINGULARITY." ", SO GOING BACK TO THE ORDINARY DIRECTION OF TIME" "IT WOULD MEAN THAT THE BIG BANG" "ORIGIN OF THE UNIVERSE WOULD HAVE TO BE SINGULAR." ""SHOULD I WORK ON THAT?"" "SO I SAID THAT SOUNDS" "LIKE A VERY GOOD PROBLEM, STEPHEN, YES, I THINK," "BECAUSE THAT WOULD BE A GREAT DISCOVERY." "SO HE WENT AWAY, AND IN HIS LAST YEAR HE PROVED" "HIS FIRST SINGULARITY THEOREM FOR THE UNIVERSE," "THAT ON THE BASIS OF CERTAIN VERY REASONABLE ASSUMPTIONS," "THE BIG BANG HAD TO BE SINGULAR." "HAWKING:" "I WAS AWARDED MY PH.D." "FOR SHOWING THAT EINSTEIN'S GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY" ". IMPLIED THAT THE UNIVERSE MUST HAVE BEGUN WITH A BIG BANG" "IT COULDN'T HAVE" ". COLLAPSED, BOUNCED, AND THEN HAVE EXPANDED AGAIN" "FROM LEMAITRE'S PRIMEVAL ATOM TO MY OWN WORK" ". HAD TAKEN ONLY A FEW DECADES" "THE CASE FOR THE BIG BANG" "WAS NOW ALMOST COMPLETE." "NARRATOR:" "ALMOST." "FOR GALAXIES TO HAVE BEEN ABLE TO FORM," ", THE EARLY UNIVERSE HAD TO HAVE IRREGULARITIES" "COOLER AND DENSER POCKETS" "WHERE MATTER COULD HAVE COALESCED." "BUT THE RADIATION SIGNAL" "BOB WILSON HAD DETECTED WITH HIS ANTENNA" ". SHOULD HAVE REFLECTED THAT" "INSTEAD, THE HISS SEEMED" "THE SAME IN EVERY DIRECTION." "IF THE BIG BANG MODEL WAS REALLY RIGHT," "?" "WHY WEREN'T THERE SLIGHT IRREGULARITIES IN THE SIGNAL" "A YOUNG COSMOLOGIST IN CALIFORNIA WOULD PRODUCE" "THE BIG BANG'S FINAL CONFIRMATION." "GEORGE SMOOT BEGAN A QUEST TO FIND TEMPERATURE VARIATIONS" "IN THE EARLY UNIVERSE, TINY IMPERFECTIONS" "THAT WOULD MARK THE FUTURE BIRTHPLACES OF GALAXIES." "SMOOT:" "FOR THE BIG BANG TO BE RIGHT," "WE HAD TO LOOK OUT" "AND WE HAD TO SEE THESE IMPERFECTIONS THAT TELL US" "HOW THE UNIVERSE FORMED AND STARTED EXPANDING," "AND ALSO WHAT WERE GOING TO BE THE SEEDS" "FOR THE LARGE STRUCTURE THAT WE SEE " "THAT IS, THE STARS AND THE GALAXIES" ". AND THE CLUSTERS OF GALAXIES" "ALL OF THOSE THINGS HAD TO BE THERE." "WHEN YOU START OUT, YOU THINK," "WELL, WE SHOULD DISCOVER I T PRETTY EASILY RIGHT AWAY." "WE'LL POINT OUR ANTENNA UP HERE AND SEE WHAT THE TEMPERATURE IS." "WE'LL POINT IT OVER HERE AND SEE WHAT THE TEMPERATURE IS." "WE'LL COMPARE AND SEE IF WE SEE THE VARIATIONS." "WHEN YOU START REALIZING THOSE IMPERFECTIONS" "ARE GOING TO BE A PART IN A HUNDRED THOUSAND," "IT BECOMES A VERY GREAT EXPERIMENTAL CHALLENGE." "NARRATOR:" "USING DIRECTIONAL HORNS" "LIKE THE ONE BUILT BY BOB WILSON'S TEAM," "SMOOT BEGAN A SERIES OF EXPERIMENTS." "HE SET OUT TO CREATE A DETAILED MAP" "OF THE BIG BANG RADIATION," "AN IMAGE THAT WOULD REVEAL" "THE COLD SPOTS WHERE GALAXIES WOULD EVENTUALLY FORM." "ONE THING STOOD BETWEEN SMOOT AND HIS DATA " "THE EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE." "HE LAUNCHED GIANT HELIUM BALLOONS," "EACH AS LONG AS A FOOTBALL FIELD." "THEY HAD TO BE BIG." "THEIR PAYLOAD OF EQUIPMENT WAS AS HEAVY" "AS A SMALL CAR." "BUT BALLOONS ARE HARD TO CONTROL." "SMOOT'S EQUIPMENT OFTEN GOT LOST OR DAMAGED." "HE TURNED TO SOMETHING MORE MANAGEABLE," "U-2 SPY PLANES." "BUT SMOOT'S DATA TOOK TIME TO COLLECT." "THE PILOTS RAN OUT OF FUEL" "BEFORE ENOUGH ACCURATE MEASUREMENTS" "COULD BE TAKEN IN ANY ONE DIRECTION." "SMOOT:" "FROM THE BEGINNING" "IT WAS CLEAR TO ME IF WE COULD GET INTO SPACE" "THAT WAS THE RIGHT WAY TO DO IT." "I HAD TO WAIT FOR AN OPPORTUNITY," "S A CHANCE FOR NASA TO SAY, WE'RE LOOKING FOR NEW IDEA" "FOR EXPERIMENTS FOR SATELLITES THAT COULD GO INTO SPACE." "NARRATOR:" "AFTER YEARS OF WAITING," "NASA GAVE SMOOT HIS CHANCE," "THE FIRST SATELLITE EVER DEVOTED TO COSMOLOGY, COBE." "SMOOT:" "FINALLY, IN 1989, THEY SCHEDULED US" "FOR A DAWN LAUNCH, AND IT WAS WINDY." "IF YOU WERE ON THE TEAM, YOU KNEW TOO MUCH" "THAT IT MIGHT GO OR MIGHT NOT GO." "THERE WAS THIS PROBLEM AND THAT PROBLEM." ". WE HAD A PROBLEM IN THE TEST" "THERE ARE ALL THESE THINGS TO BE CONCERNED ABOUT." "AND THEN IT BECAME TIME FOR THE LAUNCH." ". WE HAD ONLY A FEW MINUTES LEFT IN THE WINDOW, AND IT WAS OKAY 5, 4, 3, 2..." "WE HAVE MAIN ENGINE START." "SMOOT:" "YOU SAW SUDDENLY A SECOND SUN," "WHICH WAS THE FIRE OUT OF THE ROCKET COMING OUT." "AND I WAS GOING, "WHAT'S THE MATTER?" "I DON'T HEAR ANY SOUND."" ", THEN I REALIZED LIGHT GOES FASTER THAN SOUND" "AND THEN SUDDENLY YOUR CHEST IS SHAKING." "IT'S LIKE YOU'RE BEING HIT AT A ROCK CONCERT," "YOU'RE STANDING AT THE SPEAKER S AT THE ROCK CONCERT," "JUST BEING VIBRATED LIKE THIS." "AND THIS THING LIFTS OFF MAJESTICALLY AND GOES UP." "IT'S JUST A SPECTACULAR THING, AND YOU'RE GOING," "EVERYTHING IS CROSSED," ""PLEASE MAKE IT UP, PLEASE MAKE IT UP."" "WAS A SPECTACULAR SUCCESS." "SMOOT:" "AT THE END OF THAT FIRST DAY," "WE HAD MADE A MAP THAT COVERED HALF THE SKY," "AND IT WAS AS GOOD A MAP AS WE'D EVER HAD BEFORE," "BUT IT WAS WAY LESS THAN WHAT WE EVENTUALLY ENDED UP." "IT TOOK A WHOLE YEAR'S WORTH OF DATA," "ALMOST 300 MILLION OBSERVATION S TO BE SUMMED TOGETHER," "BEFORE WE GOT A MAP THAT STARTED TO SHOW" ". SOME INTERESTING STRUCTURE" "NARRATOR:" "A PORTRAIT OF THE UNIVERSE AS IT WAS 15 BILLION YEARS AGO." ". IN ITS TRACES IS THE SIGNATURE OF STAR SYSTEMS COALESCING" "THE COLORS REPRESENT MINUTE TEMPERATURE DIFFERENCES." "THE BLUE AREAS ARE COOLER, AND IT'S HERE MATTER" "IS BEGINNING TO CLUSTER TO EVENTUALLY FORM GALAXIES." ". SMOOT:" "COBE REALLY PUTS THE BIG BANG ON A FIRM FOOTING" "NOT ONLY DO YOU KNOW THE BIG BANG IS RIGHT," "BUT NOW YOU HAVE SOME IDEA" "ABOUT HOW STRUCTURE IS GOING TO FORM." "BUT ALSO YOU CAN LEARN ABOUT" "HOW THE UNIVERSE ITSELF WAS CREATED." "NARRATOR:" "THE PROJECT HAS NO W COME TO AN END." "THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION IS PREPARING TO COMMEMORATE" "COBE'S HISTORIC ACHIEVEMENT." "A SINGLE SNAPSHOT OF CREATION." "SMOOT:" "IF YOU'RE RELIGIOUS , IT'S LIKE," "D YOU KNOW, YOU'RE SEEING GO" "OR YOU'RE SEEING THE HANDWRITING OF GOD" "WHEN HE WROTE OUT HOW HE WAS GOING TO MAKE THE UNIVERSE." "IT'S LIKE GETTING THE 10 COMMANDMENTS" "IN FRONT OF YOU AND BEING ABLE TO READ," "EXCEPT INSTEAD OF THE COMMANDMENTS THESE ARE," "HERE'S HOW THE UNIVERSE IS PUT TOGETHER." "S JUST READ BETWEEN THE LINE" "AND YOU'LL KNOW THE RECIPE FOR MAKING THE UNIVERSE." "NARRATOR:" "IN THIS TECHNOLOGICAL CATHEDRAL," "A SUCCESSOR TO COBE CALLED THE PLANCK SURVEYOR" "IS BEING PLANNED." "WHATEVER IT IS DESTINED TO REVEAL," "THE BIG BANG SEEMS IRREFUTABLE" "IN LEMAITRE'S PRIMEVAL ATOM, WE HAVE FOUND CONSENSUS" "BETWEEN THE CLAIMS OF THE SCRIPTURES" "AND THE RIGORS OF SCIENCE." "WE ARE AT LAST WITNESS TO THE DAWN OF TIME." "HAWKING:" "IN 1975, I WAS AWARDED A MEDAL BY THE POPE" "FOR MY PART IN PROVING THE BIG BANG THEORY." "I WENT BACK TO THE VATICAN IN 1981" "FOR A CONFERENCE ON COSMOLOGY," "THIS TIME UNDER A DIFFERENT POPE." "HE TOLD US THAT IT WAS FINE" "TO STUDY THE UNIVERSE AFTER THE BIG BANG," "BUT THAT WE SHOULD NOT INQUIRE INTO THE BIG BANG ITSELF," "BECAUSE THAT WAS THE MOMENT OF CREATION" "AND THE WORK OF GOD." "IF SCIENCE AND RELIGION WERE NOW AT ONE," "PERHAPS THEY WERE STILL NOT QUITE SEEING EYE TO EYE." "Stephen Hawking:" "THE WORLD AROUND US" "IS FULL OF VARIETY ..." "DIFFERENT MATERIALS, DIFFERENT TEXTURES." "HOW DID THEY ALL ARISE?" "I HELPED TO SHOW THAT THE UNIVERSE" "HAD A SIMPLE BEGINNING" "AS A SINGLE POINT IN THE BIG BANG." "THE QUESTION IS," "HOW DID EVERYTHING WE SEE GET MADE FROM THAT?" "Narrator:" "THE SECRETS OF CREATION" "LONG SEEMED BEYOND THE REACH" "OF SCIENCE." "TODAY THEY ARE BEING STARKLY REVEALED." "Man:" "WE COSMOLOGISTS," "WE TRY TO RECREATE THE HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSE" "IN A SENSE VERY MUCH LIKE AN ARCHEOLOGIST." "WE HAVE SOME CLUES ABOUT THE UNIVERSE" "AS IT WAS A LONG TIME AGO." "AND BASED ON THOSE CLUES," "WE TRY TO TRACE BACK ITS HISTORY" "TO AS CLOSE TO THE BEGINNING" "AS POSSIBLE." "WE CAN PUSH BACK THE FRONTIER OF WHAT WE KNOW OF THE UNIVERSE" "TO VERY, VERY CLOSE TO ZERO ..." "TIME EQUALS ZERO." "Narrator:" "WE NOW KNOW HOW THE UNIVERSE BEGAN" "IN THE BIG BANG." "STARS AND GALAXIES, PLANETS AND LIFE," "TIME AND SPACE ITSELF CAME FROM A SINGLE POINT." "IT SEEMS AN UNLIKELY PROPOSITION." "HOW COULD THE UNIVERSE," "IN ALL ITS VARIETY AND COMPLEXITY," "HAVE COME FROM ONE COMMON PRIMAL SOURCE?" "JUST AS STAGGERING IS THAT SCIENTISTS BELIEVE" "THEY KNOW THE ANSWER." "THEIR QUEST TO UNDERSTAND" "THE ESSENCE OF MATTER IS AGES OLD." "IN MEDIEVAL EUROPE," "ALCHEMISTS BELIEVED IN A PROCESS CALLED TRANSMUTATION." "THEY SOUGHT TO UNLOCK THE MYSTERY ..." "WHAT IS THE BASIC BUILDING BLOCK OF CREATION?" "ALCHEMY IS ABOUT THE SEARCH TO MAKE GOLD." "IT'S ABOUT TAKING SOME PRIMAL SUBSTANCE" "AND SUBJECTING IT TO VARIOUS OPERATIONS" "WHICH CHANGE THE SUBSTANCE TO EVENTUALLY BECOME" "THE MOST PERFECT SUBSTANCE OF ALL, GOLD." "TO THE ALCHEMIST, THE PROCESS OF ALCHEMY" "WAS ALMOST AS IMPORTANT AS THE GOAL." "SOME ALCHEMISTS WOULD SAY," ""IF I CAN SEE THE SECRETS OF CREATION" "IN MY WORK, IF I CAN LOOK INTO MY VESSEL AND SEE" "THE MYSTERIES OF THE CREATION UNFOLDING," "THEN THAT IS THE MOST SIGNIFICANT THING."" "THE MAN WHO LIVED HERE AT OWLPEN MANOR" "WAS CALLED THOMAS DAUNT VII," "AND HE WAS THE LAST OF A LONG LINE OF ALCHEMISTS." "Narrator:" "ALCHEMISTS WERE CONVINCED" "ONE KIND OF MATTER COULD BE TRANSFORMED INTO ANOTHER." "THEIR PURSUIT OF GOLD WAS AT THE SAME TIME" "A SEARCH FOR FUNDAMENTAL FORCES" "AND FUNDAMENTAL ELEMENTS." "Gilchrist:" "ALCHEMISTS TOOK ON BOARD" "THE GREEK IDEA OF THE ELEMENTS WHICH WAS THAT" "EVERYTHING IN THE UNIVERSE" "IS COMPOSED OF THE FOUR ELEMENTS ..." "EARTH, WATER, FIRE, AND AIR." "EARTH IS SEEN AS GIVING FORM TO THINGS, GIVING SUBSTANCE." "WATER IS LIKE A UNIVERSAL SOLVENT." "IT CONNECTS, IT FLOWS," "IT DISSOLVES THINGS." "FIRE BRINGS ENERGY AND LIGHT AND HEAT." "IT HELPS TO CREATE THE VITAL INNER FIRE" "THAT EVERYTHING IS SAID TO HAVE." "AND AIR GIVES SOME SPACE, IT GIVES SOME MOVEMENT." "IT'S THE MEDIUM OF COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THINGS." "EVERYTHING HAS ITS OWN" "PARTICULAR COMBINATION OF THOSE ELEMENTS" "WHICH ARE PUT TOGETHER IN A PARTICULAR PROPORTION" "TO MAKE A PARTICULAR THING." "ALCHEMISTS FOLLOWED THE LINE" "THAT IF YOU SHIFT AROUND THAT BALANCE OF ELEMENTS," "IF YOU CHANGE THOSE PROPORTIONS," "THEN YOU'LL CHANGE THE ACTUAL IDENTITY" "OF THE SUBSTANCE THAT YOU'VE GOT." "Narrator:" "SEEKING TO MAKE THE ULTIMATE SUBSTANCE," "ALCHEMISTS LIKE THOMAS DAUNT" "BELIEVED THEY HAD TO START WITH A BASIC MATERIAL," "ONE THAT WAS THE SOURCE FOR ALL EXISTING SUBSTANCES." "THEY CALLED IT PRIMAL MATTER." "Gilchrist:" "PEOPLE TRIED ALL KINDS OF THINGS" "TO SEE IF THEY COULD GET THE RIGHT PRIMAL MATTER," "WHICH INCLUDED DUNG AND URINE" "AND PRETTY UNSPEAKABLE CONCOCTIONS TO START WITH." "THOMAS DAUNT LIVED" "IN THE 18th CENTURY," "SO HE WAS PRACTICING" "VERY LATE FOR AN ALCHEMIST, REALLY," "BECAUSE THE SO-CALLED" "MODERN SCIENTIFIC VIEW OF THE WORLD" "HAD TAKEN HOLD BY THEN." "Narrator:" "THIS WAS THE AGE OF REASON." "ITS NEW BREED OF SCIENTISTS" "WANTED EXPERIMENTS, NOT MIRACLES." "THEY RALLIED AGAINST THE DANGEROUS WITCHCRAFT" "ALCHEMISTS WERE SAID TO PRACTICE." "Gilchrist:" "THAT'S POSSIBLY WHY THOMAS DAUNT" "GOT HIMSELF A RATHER BAD REPUTATION LOCALLY." "HE WAS THOUGHT OF AS A MAGICIAN." "AFTER HIS DEATH, THE LITTLE ROOM WHERE HE WORKED" "WAS SEALED UP ALONG WITH ALL HIS BOOKS AND PAPERS." "BUT LOCAL PEOPLE GOT RATHER NERVOUS ABOUT THIS, TOO," "IN CASE IT WAS GOING TO HAVE AN EVIL INFLUENCE," "SO THEY SUMMONED THE PARSON" "TO OPEN THE DOORS AND BURN THE BOOKS." "WHEN THE PARSON BURNT THE BOOKS, A FLOCK OF BIRDS FLEW OUT." "THE ATTITUDE OF THE NEW SCIENTISTS COMING ALONG" "DISAGREED WITH THE PRACTICES OF ALCHEMY," "BUT THE VISION OF IT" "THAT EVERYTHING HAS COME FROM ONE SOURCE," "THAT THERE IS A KIND OF BASIC ELEMENTAL FORM TO LIFE," "AND THAT YOU CAN ACTUALLY REARRANGE" "THE STRUCTURE OF MATTER" "SEEMS VERY PERTINENT TO SCIENCE TODAY." "Hawking:" "MYSTIC BELIEFS AND A GREED FOR GOLD" "ARE NOT A GOOD BASIS FOR SCIENCE." "THE ALCHEMISTS HAD LITTLE INTEREST" "IN HOW MATTER WAS CREATED WHEN THE UNIVERSE BEGAN." "BUT THE IDEA OF TRANSMUTATION," "ALLOWING ALL VARIETIES OF MATTER TO EVOLVE" "FROM THE PRIMAL SOURCE, WAS, PERHAPS ACCIDENTALLY," "A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION." "Narrator:" "THE ALCHEMISTS' TECHNIQUES" "FOR BREAKING DOWN AND STUDYING MATTER ENDURED" "IN THE NEW SCIENCE OF CHEMISTRY." "FOR ONE OF ITS PIONEERS," "INSPIRATION CAME NOT IN A LAB, BUT IN A SIBERIAN GLASS FACTORY." "IN THE MID-19th CENTURY, A BOY, THE PROPRIETOR'S SON," "WAS ENTRANCED BY THE MAGIC OF PRIMAL FORCES." "HE WAS DMITRI MENDELEEV." "MENDELEEV WROTE IN HIS DIARY THAT MAYBE FIRST IMPRESSIONS" "OF CHEMISTRY HE HAS GOT JUST AT THIS GLASS FACTORY ..." "HAVING SEEN THESE COMBINATIONS," "HOW THE GLASS IS FORMED" "AND HOW THE ADDITION OF DIFFERENT SALTS" "CHANGED THE COLOR OF THE GLASS." "Narrator:" "IT WAS THE HEIGHT OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION." "STOKED BY THE DEMANDS OF MASS PRODUCTION," "THE SCIENCE OF CHEMISTRY FLOURISHED." "UNDERSTANDING WHAT THINGS WERE MADE OF" "WAS VITAL TO ENTREPRENEURS." "TO THE NEW CHEMISTS," "THE GREEK VISION OF ONLY FOUR ELEMENTS ..." "EARTH, AIR, FIRE, AND WATER ..." "NOW SEEMED PATENTLY SIMPLISTIC." "THEY SET OUT TO DECONSTRUCT THE WORLD" "AND FIND WHAT IT WAS MADE OF." "THEY BROKE DOWN COMPLEX SUBSTANCES" "INTO SIMPLER ONES," "THE BASIC INGREDIENTS OF CHEMISTRY." "Babaev:" "THESE SIMPLE PARTS" "HAVE BEEN CALLED ELEMENTS," "SO THERE WERE ABSOLUTELY NO POSSIBILITY" "TO DIVIDE THEM FURTHER." "Narrator:" "IN MENDELEEV'S TIME," "CHEMISTS BELIEVED THERE WERE ABOUT 65 ELEMENTS," "RUNNING THE GAMUT OF GASES, LIQUIDS, AND SOLIDS." "THEY THOUGHT EACH ELEMENT'S" "UNIQUE PROPERTIES WERE TRACEABLE" "TO ITS FUNDAMENTAL ESSENCE," "THE SMALLEST COMPONENT OF ANY SUBSTANCE." "LIKE THE EARLY GREEKS," "THEY CALLED THIS BASIC UNIT OF MATTER AN ATOM," "WHICH MEANT "UNCUTTABLE."" "BUT EVEN AS MENDELEEV WAS GRAPPLING WITH THESE NOTIONS," "HIS WORLD WAS REDUCED TO ITS ESSENTIALS." "HIS FAMILY'S GLASS FACTORY BURNED DOWN." "WELL, MENDELEEV HAS GOT" "HIS FIRST ACQUAINTANCE WITH CHEMISTRY" "AT THE GLASS FACTORY." "BUT, WELL, SUDDENLY THE FACTORY WAS BURNED," "SO THE ONLY HOPE OF HIS MOTHER" "WAS TO GIVE EDUCATION TO HER YOUNGEST SON." "AND THAT'S WHY SHE TOOK HIM TO A VERY LONG JOURNEY" "TO ST." "PETERSBURG FROM THE MIDDLE OF SIBERIA." "Narrator:" "THE YOUNG MENDELEEV AND HIS MOTHER" "TRAVELED 1,400 MILES ACROSS RUSSIA" "SO HE COULD ENROLL AT ST." "PETERSBURG UNIVERSITY." "HE QUICKLY BECAME" "ONE OF RUSSIA'S MOST PROMINENT CHEMISTS." "YET HIS WAS A SOLITARY QUEST." "SOME SCIENTISTS ALREADY UNDERSTOOD" "THAT WHAT DISTINGUISHED ONE ELEMENT FROM ANOTHER" "WERE DIFFERENCES IN THE WEIGHTS OF THEIR ATOMS." "THEY ALSO BELIEVED IT WAS THIS, THE WEIGHT OF THE ATOMS," "THAT DETERMINED AN ELEMENT'S UNIQUE CHARACTER." "MENDELEEV HAD A HUNCH HE COULD GROUP THEM IN A WAY" "THAT LINKED THEM" "IN THE BEHAVIOR OF THEIR CHEMICAL PROPERTIES." "SO WHAT WAS IMPORTANT THAT MENDELEEV HAS ASSOCIATED" "THE CHANGES IN PROPERTIES OF ELEMENTS ..." "THESE CHANGES FROM METALLIC CHARACTER" "TO NON-METALLIC CHARACTER ..." "JUST WITH THE CHANGES IN ATOMIC WEIGHT." "SO THIS WAS HIS REVOLUTION." "Narrator:" "IN THE RESTLESS IMAGINATION" "OF A YOUNG SCIENTIST," "A REALIZATION BEGAN TO TAKE SHAPE" "THAT PERHAPS THERE WAS AN UNDERLYING ORDER" "TO ALL THE ELEMENTS ON EARTH." "ONE NIGHT IN 1869," "MENDELEEV SHUT HIMSELF INTO HIS COTTAGE" "BY THE BLACK SEA," "DETERMINED TO DECIPHER THE SECRET CODE OF MATTER." "Babaev:" "MENDELEEV WAS VERY FOND OF PATIENCE GAMES," "AND THAT'S WHY HE HAS USED PIECES OF PAPERS AS CARDS." "HE TRIED TO MOVE THEM ON THE TABLE" "WITH THE IDEA TO FIND AN INITIAL ARRANGEMENT." "THIS IDEA TO ORDER ELEMENTS" "WITH THE INCREASE OF THEIR ATOMIC WEIGHTS" "HAS COME TO HIS MIND ONLY EARLY IN THE MORNING." "Narrator:" "SHUFFLING CARDS" "BEARING THE SYMBOLS OF EACH ELEMENT," "MENDELEEV TRIED TO SORT THEM IN A LOGICAL ORDER." "HE STARTED WITH HYDROGEN, WHICH HAS THE LIGHTEST ATOMS." "HE WORKED HIS WAY THROUGH TO URANIUM," "THE HEAVIEST NATURAL ELEMENT." "HE GROUPED TOGETHER ANY ELEMENTS" "WITH SIMILAR CHEMICAL PROPERTIES." "WITHIN EACH GROUP OF LIKE ELEMENTS," "THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ONE ATOMIC WEIGHT AND THE NEXT" "WAS ALWAYS NEARLY THE SAME." "WHERE THE PATTERN WAS BROKEN, MENDELEEV PREDICTED" "THAT, IN TIME, AN ELEMENT WOULD BE DISCOVERED" "TO FILL THE GAP." "IT WAS A LANDMARK DISCOVERY." "HERE WAS AN UNMISTAKEABLE PATTERN" "TO THE WAY MATTER IS ORGANIZED." "IN AN UNLIKELY GAME OF SOLITAIRE," "MENDELEEV HAD CREATED THE PERIODIC TABLE." "Hawking:" "THE PERIODIC TABLE SUGGESTED FOR THE FIRST TIME" "A FUNDAMENTAL PATTERN FOR THE DIFFERENT ELEMENTS." "ALTHOUGH NO ONE REALIZED IT THEN," "MENDELEEV WAS POINTING TOWARDS A COMMON ORIGIN" "FOR ALL OF THE MATTER IN THE UNIVERSE." "HIS WORK WAS THE BASIS" "FOR ALL FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS." "Babaev:" "LET US SAY HE PUT SO MANY QUESTIONS" "THAT A LOT OF SCIENTISTS HAVE TRIED TO ANSWER," "AND BY THIS MANNER" "HE OF COURSE STIMULATED THE DEVELOPMENT OF IDEA" "OF EVOLUTION OF ELEMENTS, OR, WELL, THE ORIGIN OF MATTER." "MAYBE MOST IMPORTANT THAT HE HAS CHANGED" "THE ATOMIC WEIGHT OF URANIUM," "AND HE CHANGED IT SO THAT URANIUM HAS BECOME" "THE LAST ELEMENT OF THE SYSTEM." "AND THIS WAS MOST INTRIGUING TO MENDELEEV," "AND HE HAS WRITTEN A FEW TIMES THAT, WELL," ""I RECOMMEND TO YOUNG SCIENTISTS" "TO START THEIR CAREER WITH STUDY OF URANIUM."" "Narrator:" "NEARLY 30 YEARS LATER," "A YOUNG FRENCH SCIENTIST MADE A FATEFUL DECISION" "TO TAKE UP MENDELEEV'S CHALLENGE" "AND PROBE THE SECRETS OF URANIUM." "HER NAME WAS MARIE CURIE." "I AM THE DAUGHTER OF IRENE AND FREDERIK JOLIOT CURIE," "AND THE GRANDDAUGHTER OF PIERRE AND MARIE CURIE." "Narrator:" "IN 1897, MARIE SKLODOWSKA," "A POLISH EXPATRIATE STUDYING IN PARIS," "MARRIED THE WELL-KNOWN PHYSICIST" "PIERRE CURIE." "AT THE TIME, SHE WAS SEARCHING FOR A SUBJECT" "FOR HER DOCTORAL DISSERTATION." "SHE WAS CAPTIVATED BY AN EERIE EXPERIMENT" "PERFORMED ACCIDENTLY" "BY HENRI BECQUEREL." "HE HAD PLACED SOME URANIUM ON A PHOTOGRAPHIC PLATE," "PLANNING TO FIND OUT WHAT EFFECT SUNLIGHT HAS ON IT." "BUT THAT DAY, IT RAINED." "HE WRAPPED HIS EXPERIMENT IN THICK PAPER" "WHERE NO LIGHT COULD STRIKE IT." "HE TUCKED IT AWAY IN A DARK DRAWER." "IT WAS CLOUDY FOR THREE DAYS." "ON A WHIM," "BECQUEREL DEVELOPED THE PLATE, NONETHELESS." "HE WAS AMAZED TO FIND A GHOSTLY IMPRINT." "URANIUM, IT SEEMS," "EMITS STRANGE, INVISIBLE RAYS." "A CENTURY LATER," "RADIOACTIVITY IS A FAMILIAR WORD WITH OMINOUS OVERTONES." "BECQUEREL'S DISCOVERY" "LIT A FIRE IN MARIE CURIE." "Langevin-Joliot:" "IF YOU WISH TO UNDERSTAND," "IT'S NECESSARY TO HAVE QUANTITATIVE MEASUREMENT" "OF THESE RADIATIONS." "AND YOU CANNOT DO THAT WITH PHOTOGRAPHIC PLATES." "Narrator:" "SHE SET OUT TO FATHOM THE ENIGMATIC RAYS." "HER FIRST STEP WAS TO SOMEHOW DETERMINE THEIR POWER." "BECQUEREL HAD ALREADY SHOWN" "THEY COULD CONDUCT AN ELECTRIC CURRENT," "BUT ITS STRENGTH WAS SO MINUTE," "IT SEEMED IMPOSSIBLE TO MEASURE ACCURATELY." "IT'S SOMETHING 10 TO MINUS 11 SMALLER." "TRY TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IS 10 TO MINUS 11 SMALLER." "DIVIDE BY 10 AND 10 AND 10 AND 10," "AND SEE THAT IT IS REALLY THE KIND OF THING" "YOU CANNOT MEASURE WITH ORDINARY APPARATUS AT ALL," "SO YOU HAVE TO BUILD A SPECIAL ONE." "Narrator:" "WHAT SHE DESIGNED WAS A SCALE ..." "ONE THAT WOULD COMPARE A NEARLY IMMEASUREABLE CURRENT" "WITH ONE SHE COULD GAUGE." "AT ONE END SHE PUT A SAMPLE OF URANIUM." "IT EMITTED ITS ELECTRICAL CHARGE BETWEEN TWO METAL PLATES." "AT THE OTHER END, USING WEIGHTS," "SHE PUT STRESS ON A SPECIAL KIND OF CRYSTAL," "TO GENERATE ELECTRICITY." "THE STRENGTH OF THAT CURRENT COULD BE ADJUSTED" "BY THE AMOUNT OF WEIGHT ADDED." "THE APPARATUS COMPARED THE TWO CURRENTS." "WHEN, AT LAST, BOTH WERE EQUAL, IT POINTED TO ZERO." "THAT HAPPENED WHEN THE WEIGHT ON THE CRYSTAL" "GENERATED A TRILLIONTH OF AN AMP," "THE CURRENT THAT MATCHED" "THE URANIUM'S." "THAT MINUTE FIGURE REPRESENTED" "A COLOSSAL ACHIEVEMENT." "CURIE AND HER HUSBAND WONDERED" "IF ANYTHING ELSE WOULD EMIT RAYS LIKE URANIUM." "THEY DECIDED TO TEST PITCHBLENDE," "THE MINERAL FROM WHICH THEIR URANIUM" "HAD BEEN EXTRACTED." "SINCE IT WAS UNREFINED," "THEY THOUGHT IT WOULD GENERATE A MUCH SMALLER CURRENT" "THAN PURE URANIUM." "THEY WERE IN FOR A SURPRISE." "AND WHAT HAPPENS WAS THAT THE CURRENT WAS MUCH HIGHER," "AT LEAST FOUR TIMES HIGHER THAN WITH URANIUM," "WITH THE CORRESPONDING AMOUNT OF URANIUM." "AND THAT WAS INCREDIBLE BECAUSE NONE OF THE IMPURITIES" "OR ELEMENTS PARTICIPATING IN PITCHBLENDE" "HAVE SHOWN ANY SIGN OF HAVING THE SAME PROPERTY." "Narrator:" "BAFFLED, THE CURIES SEPARATED OUT" "THE CHEMICALS IN THE PITCHBLENDE," "AND FOUND THE STRANGE CURRENT" "WAS THE SIGNATURE OF TWO UNKNOWN ELEMENTS." "THEY CALLED THE FIRST POLONIUM, AFTER MARIE'S HOMELAND, POLAND." "THEY DUBBED THE SECOND RADIUM." "BEFORE THE DISCOVERY, THE CURIES HAVE DISCUSSED" "ABOUT THE POSSIBLE PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF THE NEW ELEMENTS." "AND PIERRE CURIE HAS TOLD HER," ""I WISH IT HAVE A BEAUTIFUL COLOR."" "SO WHAT THEY FOUND," "THAT WITH ENOUGH AMOUNT OF RADIUM IT EMITTED LIGHT" "MORE BEAUTIFUL THAN BEING" "JUST A BEAUTIFUL COLOR." "SO SOMETIMES THEY COME BACK IN THE EVENING" "JUST TO SEE THE RADIUM LIGHTING," "AND JUST LOOK AT IT IN THE EVENING." "THIS WAS NOT THE BEST THING TO DO." "Narrator:" "LITTLE DID THE CURIES KNOW" "THE INSIDIOUS DANGER THEIR SPECIMENS HARBORED." "THEIR NEW RADIOACTIVE DISCOVERIES" "WERE ALMOST CERTAINLY THE CAUSE OF MARIE CURIE'S FATAL LEUKEMIA." "Hawking:" "BUT WHILE THE CURIES HAD MANAGED" "TO MEASURE THE RADIATION THAT THESE ELEMENTS GAVE OFF," "THEY WERE NO CLOSER TO UNDERSTANDING" "WHAT THE RADIATION ACTUALLY WAS." "THAT WAS LEFT TO A YOUNG NEW ZEALAND SCIENTIST" "CALLED ERNEST RUTHERFORD." "Narrator:" "URANIUM AND RADIUM" "AND THE STRANGE ENERGY THEY RADIATED" "SEEMED TO HOLD CLUES TO THE VERY NATURE OF MATTER." "THE MYSTERY OF THESE ELEMENTS UNKOWN" "FELL TO ONE OF THE GREAT MINDS OF SCIENCE." "TODAY, THE TOOLS OF ERNEST RUTHERFORD'S STUDIES" "ARE TREASURED RELICS AT CANADA'S McGILL UNIVERSITY." "BUT IN THEIR DAY," "HE AND HIS PARTNER, FREDERICK SODDY," "TIRELESSLY WORKED THEIR EQUIPMENT." "THEY EXPLORED THE NATURE OF THE CURIES' MYSTERIOUS RAYS," "AND ROCKED THE WORLD OF SCIENCE TO THE CORE." "THEY SET UP A PHYSICAL EXPERIMENT" "IN WHICH THEY TRIED TO DISCOVER" "THE NATURE OF THIS EMANATION WHICH WAS EMITTED BY RADIUM," "AND MEASURE THE RATE AT WHICH THIS EMANATION WOULD DIFFUSE" "FROM ONE POINT TO ANOTHER." "Narrator:" "PERHAPS THE RAYS WOULD TURN OUT TO BE" "JUST RADIUM IN THE FORM OF A VAPOR," "AS WHEN WATER BECOMES STEAM." "IN THAT CASE, THE ATOMIC WEIGHT OF THIS STRANGE GAS" "WOULD BE IDENTICAL TO THAT OF RADIUM." "BUT IT WASN'T." "IN FACT, IT WASN'T RADIUM AT ALL." "THE EMANATION COULD NOT POSSIBLY BE RADIUM" "IN VAPOR FORM IN THE WAY THAT, SAY, MERCURY GIVES OFF A VAPOR." "THEREFORE IT HAD TO BE SOMETHING DIFFERENT." "AND THE ONLY RATIONAL CONCLUSION WAS" "THAT ONE ELEMENT, RADIUM," "WAS SOMEHOW PRODUCING ANOTHER ELEMENT" "WHICH WAS NOT RADIUM VAPOR," "WAS A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT ELEMENT" "WITH A DIFFERENT ATOMIC WEIGHT." "Narrator:" "THE IMPOSSIBLE HAD HAPPENED." "ONE ELEMENT, RADIUM, HAD GENERATED ANOTHER, HELIUM." "IT WAS THE MIRACLE THAT ELUDED THE ALCHEMISTS." "Cohen:" "THEY WERE INDEED QUITE WORRIED" "THAT PEOPLE WOULD ACCUSE THEM" "OF RETURNING TO ANCIENT MEDIEVAL ALCHEMY." "AND THEY WERE VERY CAREFUL" "IN THEIR USE OF LANGUAGE IN THE PUBLICATIONS," "TO EMPHASIZE THAT THIS WAS NOT ALCHEMY." "THIS WAS" "A GENUINE TRANSFORMATION THAT WAS TAKING PLACE." "Narrator:" "THE IMPLICATIONS WERE STAGGERING." "IF ONE ELEMENT COULD ARISE FROM ANOTHER," "THEN ALL ELEMENTS, ALL MATTER IN THE UNIVERSE," "COULD WELL HAVE BEEN THE PRODUCT OF A PRIMAL TRANSFORMATION" "OF THEIR OWN." "BUT HOW DID THIS PROCESS WORK?" "AND WHY, IN RADIUM, WAS IT ACCOMPANIED" "BY THE RELEASE OF RADIOACTIVE ENERGY?" "IN FACT, THE ANSWER HAD BEEN FOUND YEARS EARLIER." "IN 1905, AN EXTRAORDINARY REVELATION" "WOULD FOREVER CHANGE THE WAY WE LOOK AT THE UNIVERSE." "AMONG THE CLAIMS OF ALBERT EINSTEIN'S" "THEORY OF RELATIVITY" "WAS A SINGLE, ELEGANT EQUATION, E = M C-SQUARED." "Dowker:" "ONE OF THE MAJOR QUESTIONS" "IN COSMOLOGY AND IN ASTROPHYSICS" "IS HOW THE CHEMICAL ELEMENTS" "CAME TO BE IN THE UNIVERSE." "Narrator:" "THE "E" STANDS FOR ENERGY," "THE "M" FOR MATTER," ""C" IS THE SPEED OF LIGHT." "ACCORDING TO EINSTEIN," "JUST AS HEAT AND LIGHT ARE DIFFERENT FORMS OF ENERGY," "SO IS MATTER ITSELF." "Dowker:" "SO ENERGY IS NEVER LOST OR IN FACT GAINED." "IT'S JUST TRANSFORMED FROM ONE FORM INTO ANOTHER." "YOU CAN'T ACTUALLY PROVE THAT MASS CAN BE" "COMPLETELY CONVERTED INTO ENERGY USING SPECIAL RELATIVITY." "BUT EINSTEIN MADE THAT CONCEPTUAL LEAP," "AND CONJECTURED THAT THAT WAS IN FACT TRUE." "Narrator:" "EINSTEIN IMAGINED MATTER" "AS SOMETHING LIKE A BATTERY," "A FORM OF STORED ENERGY." "THE CONCEPT WAS POWERFUL, BUT COULD IT BE PROVEN?" "AND WOULD IT EXPLAIN THE ORIGIN OF THE UNIVERSE?" "RUTHERFORD DECIDED TO DELVE DEEPER BY PEERING WITHIN" "THE BUILDING BLOCK OF MATTER ITSELF, THE ATOM." "Hawking:" "WE NEED TO DISCOVER THE INNER WORKINGS OF THE ATOM" "IF WE ARE TO UNDERSTAND HOW MATTER WAS MADE" "AT THE BEGINNING OF THE UNIVERSE." "I WOULD HAVE TAKEN" "A THEORETICAL APPROACH TO THE PROBLEM," "BUT RUTHERFORD WAS AN OUT-AND-OUT EXPERIMENTALIST." "HE SIMPLY COLLECTED SOME OLD TUBES AND WIRES," "AND BUILT A MACHINE TO BREAK THE ATOM APART." "Narrator: 60 YEARS LATER, ERNEST RUTHERFORD" "HAS A KINDRED SPIRIT IN A 20-YEAR-OLD STUDENT." "Man:" "IN THE TRUE TRADITION OF PARTICLE PHYSICS," "I HUNG OUT AT JUNKYARDS" "TO COLLECT METAL AND ODD BITS OF ELECTRONICS" "THAT WERE JUST THROWN AWAY BY EVERYONE ELSE," "BUT VERY IMPORTANT TO ME." "Narrator:" "FRED NEILL'S QUEST" "TO FOLLOW IN RUTHERFORD'S ILLUSTRIOUS FOOTSTEPS" "BEGINS IN A SCRAP HEAP NEAR MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE." "HE USED RADIUM WHICH WAS" "A NEWLY DISCOVERED ELEMENT AT THE TIME." "AND HE USED METAL CANS" "AND GLASS TUBES, HUGE AMOUNTS OF WIRE," "AND ALL SORTS OF ECLECTIC BITS" "THAT HE COLLECTED FROM VARIOUS PLACES." "MOST SCRAPYARDS PURCHASE CARS AND CRUSH THEM UP." "THIS SCRAPYARD" "SPECIFICALLY PURCHASES FROM THE UNITED STATES MILITARY" "ALL OF THEIR SURPLUS." "THEY HAVE EVERYTHING FROM BOLTS TO BATTLESHIPS, LITERALLY." "THEY HAVE ELECTRONIC BITS FROM WORLD WAR II." "THEY HAVE PLANES ..." "ANYTHING ..." "ANYTHING IMAGINABLE." "HOW MUCH DO YOU WANT FOR THIS OLD THING?" "A BUCK AND A QUARTER A POUND." "ALL RIGHT." "Narrator:" "NEILL MUST HAGGLE AND TINKER HIS WAY" "TO THE ESSENCE OF MATTER." "AT LEAST HE KNOWS HOW TO FIND WHAT HE'S LOOKING FOR," "THANKS TO HIS MENTOR." "ALL RIGHT, THAT'LL WORK." "GOOD DEAL." "RUTHERFORD KNEW THAT THESE PARTICLES" "WERE COMING OFF OF THE RADIUM WITH A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF SPEED." "SO HE AIMED THE PARTICLES" "THAT WERE COMING OFF OF THE RADIUM" "AT A VERY THIN PIECE OF GOLD FOIL." "AND HE FOUND THAT SOME OF THE PARTICLES" "WERE BOUNCING OFF OF THE GOLD FOIL." "RUTHERFORD WAS QUOTED SAYING" "THAT THIS IS SOMEWHAT LIKE SHOOTING A 15-INCH SHELL" "AT A PIECE OF TISSUE PAPER" "AND HAVING IT BOUNCE BACK AND HIT YOU." "WELL, THIS MEANT THAT THERE WAS SOME SORT OF IMMENSE FORCE" "INSIDE THE ATOM." "Narrator:" "BEFORE RUTHERFORD," "THE WORLD HAD ONLY A VAGUE PICTURE" "OF HOW THE ATOM WORKED." "NOW HE SET OUT TO PRY HIS WAY INTO THE INNER SANCTUM OF MATTER" "BY VENTURING WITHIN ITS FOLD." "FRED NEILL HAS HIS OWN JURY-RIGGED" "PARTICLE ACCELERATOR." "USING RADIUM IN HIS EXPERIMENT" "WOULD NOT MAKE HIM POPULAR WITH THE NEIGHBORS." "HE OPTS FOR A SAFE ALTERNATIVE." "MY MACHINE, JUST LIKE RUTHERFORD'S," "USED ELECTRICAL SIMULATION" "OF THE EMANATIONS FROM THE RADIUM" "BY HEATING UP A PIECE OF METAL ELECTRICALLY." "NOW, IN ORDER TO MAKE THESE MOVE," "I USE ELECTROSTATIC ELECTRICITY." "NOW COULOMB SHOWED THAT PARTICLES THAT HAVE A CHARGE" "ARE ATTRACTED TO THEIR OPPOSITE CHARGE." "SO WHAT I DO IS I BUILD UP A HUGE AMOUNT OF CHARGE" "JUST LIKE A BATTERY." "YOU HOOK ONE END OF THE TUBE UP TO A BATTERY," "AND YOU HOOK UP THE OTHER END OF THE TUBE" "TO THE OPPOSITE POLE OF THE BATTERY," "AND YOU CAN MAKE PARTICLES MOVE." "AND THEY HIT A TARGET RIGHT HERE." "BUT IN ORDER TO DO THAT," "THEY CAN'T BE HAMPERED BY ANYTHING" "ON THEIR JOURNEY TO THE END OF THE TARGET." "SO TO PULL EVERYTHING OUT" "THAT MIGHT SLOW THE PARTICLES DOWN," "I HAVE TO TAKE ALL OF THE AIR OUT" "WITH THIS VACUUM PUMP..." "LIKE SO." "NOW WHAT YOU SEE IS THE PARTICLES" "INTERACTING WITH THE AIR," "WHICH MEANS I HAVEN'T PULLED ENOUGH AIR OUT." "SO AFTER SOME AMOUNT OF TIME I'VE PULLED OUT ALL OF THE AIR," "AND THE PARTICLES BEGIN TO MOVE STRAIGHT TO THE TARGET" "WITHOUT ANY INTERACTION." "Narrator:" "NOW THERE IS VIRTUALLY NOTHING INSIDE THE TUBE" "EXCEPT THE ATOMIC NUCLEI NEILL IS FIRING," "AND THOSE RICOCHETING OFF THE TARGET." "Neill:" "YOU CAN DETECT THEM" "BY USING A TUBE JUST LIKE THIS." "[ CLICKING ]" "I AM ONLY PICKING UP PARTICLES FROM THE TARGET" "BECAUSE THERE IS NOTHING ELSE THERE." "THERE'S ONLY PARTICLES COMING" "FROM THE SYNTHESIZED RADIUM EMANATIONS" "AND FROM THE BITS OF THE TARGET." "Narrator:" "THE PARTICLES HIS GEIGER COUNTER IS RECORDING" "ARE BEING DEFLECTED BY A LIKE CHARGE," "TESTAMENT THAT THE ATOM HAS A POSITIVE NUCLEUS." "LIKE RUTHERFORD, HE IS DEFINING THE ATOM'S STRUCTURE." "Neill:" "THE GREEK PHILOSOPHERS HAD SAID THAT THE ATOM" "WAS THIS INDIVISIBLE OBJECT" "THAT WAS THE BUILDING BLOCK OF ALL THINGS." "WELL, RUTHERFORD FOUND THAT IT MOST CERTAINLY IS NOT." "THE ATOM HAS BUILDING BLOCKS OF ITS OWN." "HE'D FOUND THAT THERE IS" "SOME HUGE AMOUNT OF ENERGY HELD IN ELECTRIC CHARGES" "THAT WAS SOMEHOW BOUND TOGETHER IN THE CENTER," "AND THAT THERE WAS JUST THIS MYRIAD OF PARTICLES." "IT WAS NEVER KNOWN BEFORE" "THAT THE ATOM WAS MADE UP OF HUGE NUMBERS" "OF THESE BIZARRE, ODD THINGS THAT HAD NEVER BEEN SEEN." "Narrator:" "SCIENTISTS BEGAN TO EXPLORE A NEW HORIZON." "THEY FOUND EVEN SMALLER ATOMIC COMPONENTS" "BY SMASHING THEM AT EVER HIGHER RATES." "Neill:" "THE NEXT ADVANCEMENT, IN ORDER TO MAKE" "PARTICLES GO FASTER AND FASTER," "WAS TO CHANGE THE DIRECTION THE PARTICLES ARE GOING." "SO LIVINGSTON AND LAWRENCE FIGURED" "THAT PERHAPS WE CAN MAKE THEM GO IN A CIRCLE," "BECAUSE WE ALREADY KNOW" "THAT CHARGED PARTICLES MOVE IN A MAGNET." "SO THAT'S WHAT I'VE DONE." "I'VE BUILT A CYCLOTRON JUST LIKE LAWRENCE AND LIVINGSTON DID." "SO I'VE GOT A RATHER LARGE MAGNET." "YOU CAN SEE IT'S RATHER STRONG." "AND I HAVE A CHAMBER WHERE THE PARTICLES GO IN." "THE PARTICLES HAVE TO GO IN A CIRCLE," "SO I HAVE THESE SPECIAL ELECTRODES" "THAT ARE HOLLOWED OUT" "TO ALLOW THE PARTICLES TO GO IN A CIRCLE" "INSIDE THE MAGNETIC FIELD." "I EVACUATE THE CHAMBER," "AND I APPLY AN ELECTROSTATIC FIELD" "JUST LIKE THE LINEAR ACCELERATOR, ONLY THIS TIME," "SINCE THE PARTICLES ARE MOVING IN A CIRCLE," "I HAVE TO HAVE THE ELECTROSTATIC FIELD CHANGE ALSO." "SO THE CONNECTION BETWEEN THIS PARTICLE ACCELERATOR" "AND THE ONES THAT ARE MANY MILES IN DIAMETER," "JUST LIKE THE ONE IN CERN," "ONE OF THE LARGEST ACCELERATORS IN THE WORLD, IS VERY SIMPLE." "THE PARTICLES ARE MOVING IN A CIRCLE," "AND THEY ARE GOING TO EXTREMELY HIGH SPEEDS," "THE ONLY DIFFERENCE BEING THAT THE LARGER THE ACCELERATOR," "THE LARGER THE ELECTROSTATIC CHARGE" "YOU CAN PUT ON THE PARTICLE." "THUS, THE FASTER THE PARTICLE WILL GO," "AND THE MORE INTERESTING" "NUCLEAR REACTIONS YOU CAN CARRY OUT," "AND THE MORE YOU CAN LEARN ABOUT THE STRUCTURE OF THE ATOM." "Hawking:" "THE EVIDENCE FROM PARTICLE ACCELERATORS" "REVEALED A NEW WORLD OF SUBATOMIC PHYSICS." "IT WAS NOW THAT THE FULL SIGNIFICANCE" "OF EINSTEIN'S FAMOUS EQUATION, E = M C-SQUARED," "BEGAN TO BE REALIZED." "MATTER AND ENERGY WERE INTERCHANGEABLE." "Narrator:" "EINSTEIN'S CORRELATION WAS PROVEN RIGHT." "THE MORE ENERGY RELEASED WHEN A PARTICLE IS SMASHED," "THE MORE MASS THE PARTICLE LOSES." "BUT A MATHEMATICIAN NAMED PAUL DIRAC" "WENT ONE THEORETICAL STEP FURTHER." "Dowker:" "PAUL DIRAC HELD" "THE LUCASIAN CHAIR OF MATHEMATICS IN CAMBRIDGE" "WHICH WAS ONCE HELD BY NEWTON" "AND IS CURRENTLY HELD BY STEPHEN HAWKING." "Narrator:" "DIRAC'S THEORY WAS ALTOGETHER COUNTER-INTUITIVE." "HE ARGUED THAT FOR EINSTEIN'S THEORY TO BE RIGHT," "ENERGY WOULDN'T JUST PRODUCE MATTER." "IT ALSO HAD TO GENERATE" "A PERFECT MIRROR IMAGE, ANTIMATTER." "EVERY PARTICLE HAS A TWIN, AN ANTI-PARTICLE." "IF EVER THE TWO MET, THEY WOULD UNLEASH A FURY." "Dowker:" "THE SPECIAL QUALITY THAT ANTIMATTER HAS" "IS THAT IT CAN COMPLETELY ANNIHILATE" "WITH MATTER TO FORM ENERGY." "IT'S ONLY WHEN MATTER INTERACTS WITH ANTIMATTER" "THAT ALL THE MASS CAN COMPLETELY ANNIHILATE" "AND YOU CAN BE LEFT" "WITH ONLY PURE ENERGY." "Narrator:" "AT FIRST, ANTIMATTER WAS NOTHING MORE THAN THEORY," "A MATHEMATICAL ABSTRACTION" "THAT DEFIED COMMON SENSE." "BUT PHYSICISTS HAD ALREADY SHOWN THAT THERE ARE UNTOLD REALITIES" "WELL BEYOND THE WORLD WE EXPERIENCE." "ONE WAY OF THINKING ABOUT MATTER AND ANTIMATTER" "IS TO THINK THAT WE HAVE TWO WORLDS" "WHICH ARE MIRROR IMAGES OF EACH OTHER." "THE QUESTION IS," "WHAT IS THIS ANTIMATTER?" "IT SOUNDS VERY SCIENCE FICTION-LIKE," "SOUNDS VERY FANCIFUL." "AND IT TURNS OUT" "THAT THERE IS A VERY BORING ASPECT TO ANTIMATTER," "AND THERE IS A VERY EXCITING ASPECT TO ANTIMATTER." "SO STARTING WITH THE BORING ONE," "THE BORING ONE IS THAT ANTIMATTER" "IS VERY MUCH LIKE MATTER." "IT REALLY IS BASICALLY THE SAME THING." "ANTIMATTER DOES NOT GO UP WITH GRAVITY." "IT GOES DOWN WITH GRAVITY JUST LIKE MATTER DOES." "THE MAIN DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MATTER AND ANTIMATTER" "IS THE ELECTRIC CHARGE." "SO IF YOU HAVE A LITTLE PARTICLE OF MATTER" "SUCH AS AN ELECTRON," "ITS ANTIMATTER PARTICLE, IT'S GOING TO BE A POSITRON," "WHICH WILL HAVE A POSITIVE CHARGE." "AND SO TO EACH PARTICLE OF MATTER," "THERE'S GOING TO BE A PARTICLE OF ANTIMATTER" "WITH OPPOSITE ELECTRIC CHARGE." "THE MOST EXCITING PART IS" "THAT WHEN MATTER AND ANTIMATTER COME TOGETHER" "THEY DISAPPEAR." "THEY BECOME SOMETHING NEW." "THEY BECOME SOMETHING THEY WEREN'T BEFORE." "AND WHAT THEY BECAME IS JUST PURE ENERGY." "ONE OF THE BEAUTIFUL CONSEQUENCES" "OF THIS WHOLE PROCESS OF MATTER AND ANTIMATTER" "DISINTEGRATING INTO ENERGY" "IS THAT YOU COULD ALSO OUT OF ENERGY" "CREATE MATTER AND ANTIMATTER." "SO THE PROCESS IS PERFECTLY REVERSIBLE." "YOU CAN GO BOTH WAYS." "Narrator:" "STILL, IF ENERGY" "COULD BE CONVERTED INTO MATTER AND ANTIMATTER," "THEY WOULD BOTH BE INSTANTLY ANNIHILATED," "TURNING BACK INTO ENERGY." "COULD ANTIMATTER EVER ACTUALLY BE DETECTED?" "Hawking:" "IT SEEMED THERE COULD BE" "WHOLE ANTI-WORLDS AND ANTI-PEOPLE" "MADE OF ANTIMATTER." "IF YOU MEET YOUR ANTI-PARTNER, DON'T KISS OR SHAKE HANDS." "YOU WOULD BOTH DISAPPEAR IN A TREMENDOUS FLASH OF LIGHT." "COULD THE REVERSE PROCESS," "OF ENERGY TURNING INTO MATTER AND ANTIMATTER," "HAVE HAPPENED IN THE BIG BANG?" "WAS THAT WHERE ALL OF THE MATTER IN THE UNIVERSE CAME FROM?" "DIRAC'S THEORY HAD TO BE CONFIRMED." "ANTIMATTER HAD TO BE FOUND SOMEWHERE," "IF ONLY FOR AN INSTANT," "BEFORE IT WAS ANNIHILATED BY MATTER." "Narrator:" "THE SEARCH TURNED SKYWARD." "IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT A STRANGE RADIATION FROM SPACE" "WAS BOMBARDING THE EARTH." "PERHAPS COSMIC RAYS COULD REVEAL" "HINTS OF ANTIMATTER." "Woman:" "PEOPLE DIDN'T GO OUT LOOKING FOR COSMIC RAYS." "THEY FOUND THEM BY PURE ACCIDENT." "WHAT THEY WERE DOING WAS TRYING TO FIND OUT" "MORE ABOUT RADIOACTIVITY," "AND SO THEY TOOK THEIR VARIOUS DEVICES" "LIKE ELECTROSCOPES AND SO FORTH AT DIFFERENT ALTITUDES." "THERE WAS ACTUALLY A PRIEST ..." "WENT UP IN THE EIFFEL TOWER" "AND SUGGESTED THAT OTHER PEOPLE ..." "NOT HIM BUT OTHER PEOPLE ..." "GO UP IN BALLOONS." "AND WHEN THEY DID THESE EXPERIMENTS," "THEY KEPT FINDING THAT THEY WERE GETTING" "MORE RADIATION THAN THEY EXPECTED," "SO THEY DECIDED THERE WAS SOMETHING COMING FROM ABOVE," "AND THIS IS WHAT'S NOW CALLED COSMIC RADIATION." "THEY WENT TO MOUNTAINTOPS" "BECAUSE THEY WERE TRYING TO GET AS HIGH UP AS POSSIBLE" "SO THAT THEY GOT THE COSMIC RAYS" "BEFORE IT INTERACTED WITH THE ATMOSPHERE." "COSMIC RAYS COME FROM ANYWHERE WE KNOW IN THE GALAXY." "AND THERE ARE CERTAIN PLACES I THINK THAT THEY ARE COMING" "FROM MAYBE OTHER GALAXIES OUTSIDE," "AND WE ARE NOT SURE HOW MUCH OF THE UNIVERSE" "THEY ARE COMING FROM." "Narrator:" "SCIENTISTS DEVISED AN APPARATUS" "THAT COULD CAPTURE THE IMPRINT" "OF COSMIC RAYS PASSING THROUGH IT." "IN A CLOUD CHAMBER, PARTICLES ARE BETRAYED" "BY THEIR MOVEMENT." "Erzberger:" "ALL YOU HAVE TO HAVE FOR A CLOUD CHAMBER" "IS SOMETHING YOU CAN SEE THROUGH." "AND THEN YOU HAVE TO HAVE SOMETHING LIKE ALCOHOL" "THAT EVAPORATES EASILY." "YOU PUT IT ON DRY ICE" "WHICH MAKES IT REALLY COLD IN THE BOTTOM" "SO IT BECOMES SUPERSATURATED, SO IT'S READY TO FORM A CLOUD" "WHENEVER SOME PARTICLE GOES THROUGH THERE," "AND THAT MAKES A LITTLE TRAIL OF DROPLETS." "THAT'S THE SAME KIND OF THING THAT HAPPENS" "WHEN AN AIRPLANE GOES THROUGH THE SKY," "THAT YOU SEE THE WATER VAPOR TRAIL" "AFTER THE EXHAUST OF THE AIRPLANE." "THEY ARE VERY TEMPORARY TRAILS" "THAT ARE FORMED BY COSMIC RAYS OR EVEN RADIOACTIVE PARTICLES" "BECAUSE THE LITTLE DROPLETS WILL FORM," "AND THEY FALL DOWN TO THE BOTTOM OF THE CHAMBER" "DUE TO GRAVITY," "AND SO IT JUST SORT OF WISPS PAST THERE." "SUPPOSEDLY ON TOP OF VERY HIGH MOUNTAINS" "YOU SEE ABOUT ONE COSMIC RAY" "PER SQUARE CENTIMETER EVERY SECOND." "NEAR SEA LEVEL YOU SEE FAR FEWER THAN THAT," "MAYBE A FEW A MINUTE." "Narrator:" "IN 1932, AN AMERICAN PHYSICIST," "CARL ANDERSON," "DESIGNED AN INGENIOUS WAY TO TEST IF ANY OF THE PARTICLES" "PASSING THROUGH A CLOUD CHAMBER WERE FROM THE ANTIMATTER WORLD." "MAGNETS ON EITHER SIDE OF THE CHAMBER" "WOULD PULL EACH PARTICLE" "IN A PREDICTABLE DIRECTION." "TO SLOW THE PARTICLE DOWN," "HE PUT A LEAD BAR ACROSS ITS PATH," "MAKING ITS TRACK MORE PRONOUNCED." "BUT WHAT HE FOUND WERE PARTICLES THAT ARCED IN A DIRECTION" "THAT RAN COUNTER TO THE MAGNET'S PULL." "THESE WERE ANTI-PARTICLES." "WHAT DIRAC HAD PREDICTED, ANDERSON DISCOVERED." "ANTIMATTER HAD LEFT AN UNMISTAKEABLE MARK." "Erzberger:" "WHEN ANDERSON SAW THE FIRST TRACKS," "THIS WAS REALLY EXCITING," "AND IT JUST SORT OF BLEW PEOPLE'S MINDS" "BECAUSE THEY HAD NOT EVER SEEN ANTIMATTER BEFORE." "THERE WAS NO EVIDENCE FOR IT," "AND ALSO THIS WAS THE FIRST PARTICLE THEY HAD EVER SEEN" "THAT WAS NOT FOUND IN AN ATOM." "SO EVEN THOUGH PAUL DIRAC HAD PREDICTED" "THERE MUST BE SOME KIND OF A PARTICLE" "THAT WAS THE OPPOSITE OF AN ELECTRON," "NOBODY HAD REALLY BELIEVED IT OR THOUGHT IT WAS POSSIBLE" "UNTIL THEY ACTUALLY HAD TRACKS." "Narrator:" "TODAY, IN COLOSSAL SUBTERRANEAN ACCELERATORS," "THE VIOLENT BIRTH OF MATTER AND ANTIMATTER" "REVEALS THE VERY TRACES OF CREATION." "Glaiser:" "YOU MAY THINK THAT THIS IS SOME SORT OF BEAUTIFUL ART," "AND IT IS IN A SENSE ART," "BUT IT'S AN ART MADE BY PHYSICISTS." "WHAT YOU HAVE IS A BIG SNAPSHOT THAT CAPTURES IN ONE MOMENT" "ALL THIS DANCE OF PARTICLES BEING CREATED AND DESTROYED" "INSIDE PARTICLE ACCELERATORS." "SO IT MAY LOOK LIKE JACKSON POLLOCK," "BUT IT IS ACTUALLY A COMPUTER-ENHANCED PICTURE" "OF A PARTICLE COLLISION WITHIN A DETECTOR." "EACH ONE OF THESE PARTICLES IN A SENSE TELLS THE STORY" "OR A POSSIBLE STORY" "OF HOW THE UNIVERSE WAS A LONG, LONG TIME AGO." "Narrator:" "THE CRYPTIC PATTERNS OF CRASHING PARTICLES" "IS NATURE'S OWN CALLIGRAPHY." "THEY ARE A SCRIPTED CHRONICLE FOR HOW MATTER WAS FORMED" "IN THE BIG BANG." "Glaiser:" "HERE YOU HAVE A DETAIL OF WHAT PEOPLE WOULD SEE" "IN A DETECTOR IN WHICH YOU HAVE" "THE DEBRIS OF A LITTLE BANG CREATING MATTER AND ANTIMATTER" "OUT OF ENERGY." "AND THIS IS A PHOTON." "AND A PHOTON IS A LITTLE BUNDLE OF ENERGY" "THAT DOESN'T LEAVE A TRACK" "BECAUSE IT DOESN'T HAVE AN ELECTRIC CHARGE." "SO IT MOVES UP HERE, IT COLLIDES WITH A PARTICLE," "AND OUT OF THE STRENGTH OF THIS COLLISION" "YOU HAVE THESE TWO SPIRALS COMING OUT," "ONE OF THEM BEING A PARTICLE WHICH IS MATTER," "AND THE OTHER ONE BEING ITS ANTIMATTER COUSIN," "ITS ANTI-PARTICLE." "AND OUT OF THIS COLLISION YOU HAVE TWO TRACKS ..." "THIS ONE THAT YOU CAN SEE," "AND THEN YOU HAVE ANOTHER ONE WHICH IS AN INVISIBLE ONE," "WHICH IS ANOTHER PHOTON, A BUNDLE OF ENERGY." "AND YOU CAN SEE PRECISELY THAT THIS BUNDLE OF ENERGY" "WILL EVENTUALLY CREATE MATTER AND ANTIMATTER." "AND THIS HAPPENS AT THIS POINT QUITE SUDDENLY," "WHEN THIS PHOTON GIVES BIRTH IN A SENSE" "TO AN ELECTRON AND A POSITRON." "AND THAT IS A BEAUTIFUL MANIFESTATION" "OF MATTER BEING CREATED OUT OF ENERGY." "WELL, IF MATTER AND ANTIMATTER ARE ESSENTIALLY THE SAME," "WITH OPPOSITE ELECTRIC CHARGES, WHERE IS THE ANTIMATTER?" "HOW COME THE UNIVERSE IS MADE OF MATTER?" "WE GO BACK TO THE LAWS THAT CONTROL" "HOW PARTICLES AND ANTI-PARTICLES INTERACT," "AND THOSE LAWS SHOW THAT THE UNIVERSE" "IS NOT PERFECTLY SYMMETRIC BETWEEN MATTER AND ANTIMATTER." "OF COURSE ALL THESE PICTURES THAT WE SCIENTISTS BUILD" "ARE VERY MUCH DEPENDENT" "ON OUR TRUST OF THE LAWS OF PHYSICS." "I MEAN, WHY SHOULD THE PICTURES" "THAT WE BUILD OF THE UNIVERSE" "REALLY CORRESPOND TO REALITY OR NOT?" "HOW COULD WE TRUST THOSE PICTURES?" "WELL, I THINK THE BEST WAY TO EXPLAIN THAT" "IS JUST TO LOOK AT TECHNOLOGY." "IN A SENSE, A LOT OF WHAT WE HAVE" "IS VERY MUCH DEPENDENT ON THE LAWS OF PHYSICS." "WE WOULDN'T HAVE COMPUTERS, WE WOULDN'T HAVE TV SETS" "IF WE DIDN'T UNDERSTAND HOW ATOMS FUNCTIONED," "HOW ELECTRONS ORBIT AROUND NUCLEI," "HOW QUANTUM MECHANICS ..." "WHICH IS THE PART OF PHYSICS THAT EXPLAINS" "HOW THE LITTLE PARTICLES BEHAVE ..." "OPERATES." "AND WE WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND HOW PLANETS GO AROUND THE SUN" "IF WE DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THE LAWS OF GRAVITY FOR EXAMPLE," "OF HOW GRAVITY BEHAVES AND ACTUALLY CONTROLS" "THE UNIVERSE AS A WHOLE." "NOW WE HAVE CERTAIN CLUES" "ABOUT HOW THE UNIVERSE BEHAVED IN THE BEGINNING." "THE UNIVERSE THAT WE KNOW EXISTED THEN" "WAS VERY RICH." "THERE WAS A LOT OF ENERGY." "THERE WAS A LOT OF POTENTIALITY FOR THAT ENERGY" "TO BE TRANSLATED INTO PARTICLES AND ANTI-PARTICLES." "THEN WHAT WE HAVE IS A PICTURE OF THE UNIVERSE" "OF MANY, MANY PARTICLES ..." "THE ELEMENTARY PARTICLES" "THAT ARE THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF MATTER," "WHICH ARE COLLIDING WITH EACH OTHER AT A FRANTIC RATE," "AND THEY DON'T REALLY BIND." "ALL YOU HAVE IS A DANCE OF PARTICLES" "MOVING AROUND AT TREMENDOUS ENERGIES," "COLLIDING WITH EACH OTHER," "AND HENCE CREATING MORE PARTICLES" "AND MORE ENERGY OUT OF PARTICLES" "IN THIS CREATION-DESTRUCTION DANCE." "AS THE UNIVERSE COOLS AND EXPANDS," "THE PARTICLES STOP COLLIDING" "SO STRONGLY AND SO ENERGETICALLY," "AND THEY HAVE MORE TIME TO LOOK AT EACH OTHER" "AND PERHAPS BIND AND DO SOMETHING." "SO AT ABOUT ONE SECOND OF LIFE," "THE UNIVERSE STARTED TO MAKE NUCLEI." "THAT IS, PROTONS AND NEUTRONS STARTED TO BIND." "AT ABOUT 300,000 YEARS OR SO, ATOMS FORMED," "WHICH MEANS THAT THE NUCLEI BIND WITH ELECTRONS" "TO FORM THE ATOMS." "MOST OF THEM ..." "OVERWHELMING MAJORITY, HYDROGEN." "FROM THOSE HYDROGEN ATOMS," "THEY, BECAUSE OF GRAVITY, FORM CLOUDS." "THOSE CLOUDS START CONDENSING." "THEY GET DENSER AND DENSER AND HOTTER AND HOTTER." "AND AS THAT HAPPENS," "THOSE CLOUDS START FORMING GALAXIES" "AND STARS WITHIN THESE GALAXIES" "WHICH ARE BASICALLY 99% OF HYDROGEN BURNING." "AND EVENTUALLY THOSE STARS ARE GOING TO HAVE" "SOLAR SYSTEMS ATTACHED TO THEM." "THAT IS, THEY ARE GOING TO HAVE PLANETS ORBITING AROUND THEM," "AND MAYBE YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE A PLANET" "WHICH IS CLOSE ENOUGH SO THAT IT IS HOT," "BUT NOT TOO FAR ENOUGH SO IT'S NOT TOO COLD," "THAT LIFE AS WE UNDERSTAND IT HERE ON EARTH COULD DEVELOP." "AND THEN WE COULD COME BACK HERE AND TELL THE STORY" "ABOUT THE LIFE OF THE UNIVERSE FROM SCRATCH TO THE END." "IF THE UNIVERSE WAS PERFECTLY SYMMETRIC" "BETWEEN MATTER AND ANTIMATTER, WE WOULDN'T BE HERE," "BECAUSE THE UNIVERSE WOULD JUST BE A BIG SEA OF ENERGY." "SO THE FACT THAT THE UNIVERSE IS NOT PERFECTLY SYMMETRIC" "IS THE ULTIMATE REASON FOR US TO BE HERE." "Hawking:" "FROM A WHITE-HOT BIG BANG" "TO PLANETS AND PEOPLE" "IS A LONG AND EXTRAORDINARY JOURNEY." "FROM ENERGY TO PARTICLES, FROM PARTICLES TO ATOMS," "AND FROM ATOMS TO EVERYTHING WE SEE," "IT IS A REMARKABLE STORY." "IT MAY BE DIFFICULT TO BELIEVE" "THAT ALL OF THE MATTER IN THE UNIVERSE" "CAME FROM JUST ENERGY," "BUT THAT IS THE WAY THE UNIVERSE SEEMS TO BE." "Stephen Hawking:" "PERSONALLY, I AM SURE" "THAT THE UNIVERSE BEGAN" "WITH A HOT BIG BANG, BUT WILL IT GO ON FOREVER?" "AND IF NOT," "HOW WILL IT END?" "I AM MUCH LESS CERTAIN ABOUT THAT." "THE EXPANSION OF THE UNIVERSE SPREADS EVERYTHING OUT," "BUT GRAVITY TRIES TO PULL IT ALL BACK TOGETHER AGAIN." "OUR DESTINY DEPENDS ON WHICH FORCE WILL WIN." "AND THE INFLUENCE OF GRAVITY IN TURN DEPENDS" "ON WHAT THE UNIVERSE IS MADE OF," "AND JUST HOW MUCH OF IT THERE IS." "IT WON'T BE EASY TO FIND OUT IF, AS WE SUSPECT," "MOST OF IT IS DARK MATTER, STUFF WE CAN'T EVEN SEE." "Narrator:" "IN OUR AGE-OLD ATTEMPTS" "TO GIVE THE UNIVERSE DEFINITION," "WE'VE OFTEN GRAPPLED WITH PHENOMENA WE COULD NOT SEE." "PRIYA NATARAJAN IS AN ASTROPHYSICIST" "STUDYING SOMETHING THAT MAY BE BEYOND OUR IMAGINATION." "BUT WORKING WITH THE UNSEEN MAY BE EASIER FOR HER THAN MANY," "FOR SHE ONCE ASPIRED TO BE A POET." "Natarajan:" "THERE IS THIS IMPRESSION THAT EVERYTHING" "THE SCIENTISTS DO IS VERY CIRCUMSCRIBED," "WHEREAS IT IS NOT, BECAUSE WE ARE BRINGING" "THE WAYS IN WHICH" "WE PERFORM A MODEL," "THE WAYS ..." "THE INGREDIENTS THAT WE PUT IN." "AND THE WAYS IN WHICH WE CHOOSE" "TO MIX THE INGREDIENTS" "HAS A LOT TO DO WITH OUR INDIVIDUAL CREATIVITY" "AND OUR FEELINGS AND OUR SENSE AND INTUITION" "OF HOW THINGS OUGHT TO BE." "SO IT'S ALMOST LIKE WRITING POETRY," "WHERE YOU PICK A PARTICULAR POETIC FORM." "FOR INSTANCE, YOU COULD PICK THE SONNET" "OR YOU COULD PICK THE JAPANESE HAIKU," "WHICH, EACH OF THESE FORMS HAS A SET OF RULES," "SO YOU OPERATE WITHIN A SET OF RULES," "WHICH IS VERY MUCH LIKE THE LAWS OF PHYSICS" "THAT YOU OPERATE WITHIN IN A MODEL." "BUT, THEN, INSIDE THE FORM OR INSIDE THE MODEL," "THERE'S A LOT OF FREEDOM," "THERE'S A LOT OF CHOICES YOU CAN MAKE." "Narrator:" "NATARAJAN GREW UP IN INDIA." "HER LIFE CHANGED WHEN SHE WAS AWARDED A SCHOLARSHIP" "TO CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY IN BRITAIN." "HERE SHE'S TAKEN ON A QUEST," "AS SPIRITUAL AS IT IS SCIENTIFIC." "SHE PONDERS THE ULTIMATE DESTINY OF THE UNIVERSE." "Natarajan:" "WE SEE THE STARS THAT SHINE IN THE GALAXY," "AND WE ALSO HAVE EVIDENCE THAT THERE IS SOME GAS IN THE GALAXY," "BECAUSE WE CAN SEE THE LIGHT THAT'S SCATTERED OFF THE GAS." "BUT AS IT TURNS OUT," "GALAXIES CONTAIN A LOT MORE THAN JUST THAT." "Narrator:" "NATARAJAN OWES HER INSPIRATION" "TO A MAVERICK ASTRONOMER NAMED VERA RUBIN," "WHO, IN THE LATE 1960s," "DARED QUESTION A BASIC PREMISE OF ASTRONOMY." "Natarajan:" "WHAT VERA RUBIN DID IN HER WORK" "WAS MAP THE SPEEDS OF STARS AT DIFFERENT DISTANCES" "FROM THE CENTER OF A HUGE SPIRAL GALAXY." "Narrator:" "VERA RUBIN NOTICED SOMETHING" "WHICH DEFIED ACCEPTED WISDOM." "STARS SPINNING AROUND THE CENTER OF GALAXIES" "WERE SUPPOSED TO BEHAVE LIKE THE PLANETS" "THAT ORBIT THE SUN." "THEY DON'T." "Natarajan:" "WITH OUR SOLAR SYSTEM," "YOU HAVE THE SUN IN THE CENTER" "AND YOU HAVE SORT OF THE PLANETS ORBITING AROUND." "AND SINCE THE DOMINANT GRAVITY IS THAT OF THE SUN," "THE PLANETS THAT ARE THE OUTER PLANETS," "THEY MOVE MUCH SLOWER THAN THE PLANETS ON THE INSIDE." "SO NATURALLY WHAT PEOPLE EXPECTED TO FIND" "WAS SIMILARLY IN A GALAXY," "IF YOU MEASURE THE SPEED OF THE STARS" "AWAY FROM THE CENTER TOWARDS THE EDGE," "YOU EXPECT IT TO FALL OFF." "AND WHAT VERA RUBIN FOUND, INSTEAD," "WHEN SHE ACTUALLY MEASURED THAT FOR A SPIRAL GALAXY," "WAS THAT THE SPEED STAYED THE SAME." "AS SHE SORT OF MAPPED THE SPEED OF THE STARS" "FROM THE INSIDE OUT, ALL THE WAY OUT TO THE EDGE," "THEY STAYED THE SAME." "Narrator:" "RUBIN WAS THE FIRST TO POSE A QUESTION" "THAT HAS BAFFLED SCIENTISTS EVER SINCE." "IF ALL THE STARS IN A GALAXY MOVE AT THE SAME SPEED," "REGARDLESS OF THEIR DISTANCE FROM THE CENTER," "THEN THE CENTER COULDN'T BE" "THE ONLY SOURCE OF GRAVITY AFFECTING THEM." "SOMETHING ELSE WOULD HAVE TO BE EXERTING A POWERFUL FORCE," "SOMETHING WE SIMPLY CAN'T SEE." "WHAT SHE FOUND WAS" "THAT IN ORDER TO EXPLAIN THE SPEEDS THAT SHE OBSERVED," "SHE NEEDED TO HAVE A LOT MORE STUFF" "IN THE GALAXY THAN WE SEE," "AND SINCE THE STUFF IS NOT VISIBLE" "AND IT'S NOT EMITTING ANY LIGHT," "SHE COINED THE TERM "DARK MATTER"" "TO REFER TO THAT." "Narrator:" "RUBIN HAD EVERY REASON TO BELIEVE" "HER DISCOVERY WOULD BE MET WITH GREAT EXCITEMENT." "IT WAS, THOUGH NOT THE KIND SHE MIGHT HAVE EXPECTED." "Natarajan:" "HER ANNOUNCEMENT THAT THERE WAS DARK MATTER" "ASSOCIATED WITH EVERY INDIVIDUAL GALAXY" "WAS RECEIVED WITH MUCH SKEPTICISM," "BECAUSE OF THE FAR-REACHING IMPLICATIONS IT HAD," "AND BECAUSE, ALSO," "OF THE INFERRED PERCENTAGE OF DARK MATTER." "FROM HER WORK, SHE INFERRED THAT ALMOST 90% OF THE MASS" "IN A SPIRAL GALAXY HAD TO BE DARK." "Narrator:" "RUBIN'S FINDINGS SUGGESTED" "THAT THE DESTINY OF GALAXIES" "IS GOVERNED BY A VAST AND INSCRUTABLE NETWORK." "EVERY GALAXY IS ENVELOPED IN DARK MATTER," "INVISIBLY LOCKING ALL THE STARS IN ITS EMBRACE" "WITH THE GRAVITY IT EXERTS." "THE BLACK EMPTINESS OF SPACE," "IT SEEMS, ISN'T THAT EMPTY AFTER ALL." "99% OF THE UNIVERSE COULD WELL BE MADE UP" "OF DARK MATTER," "A SPRAWLING, COSMIC WEB." "FOR COSMOLOGISTS LIKE MYSELF," "IT'S CRUCIAL TO KNOW PRECISELY HOW MUCH DARK MATTER THERE IS" "IN ORDER TO KNOW" "WHAT WILL BECOME OF THE UNIVERSE EVENTUALLY." "Natarajan:" "THE TOTAL MASS OF OUR UNIVERSE IS WHAT DECIDES" "THE FATE OF OUR UNIVERSE, WHETHER WE CONTINUE EXPANDING," "OR WHETHER WE STOP AND DECELERATE," "OR WE TURN AROUND BACK ON OURSELVES." "SO THE ULTIMATE FATE OF WHAT REALLY HAPPENS TO US" "DEPENDS ON HOW WELL WE HAVE MADE AN INVENTORY" "OF THE MASS IN THE UNIVERSE." "AND THEREFORE, IF SUCH A LARGE FRACTION IS INDEED DARK," "THAT HAS VERY IMPORTANT CONSEQUENCES." "Hawking:" "FEW PEOPLE NOW DOUBT THAT VERA RUBIN WAS RIGHT." "DARK MATTER DETERMINES THE FUTURE OF THE UNIVERSE." "TO KNOW OUR ULTIMATE FATE," "WE NEED TO BE SURE THAT DARK MATTER EXISTS," "AND HOW MUCH OF IT THERE IS." "SEARCHING FOR THE INVISIBLE IS NOT FOR THE FAINT-HEARTED." "WHEN CHRIS STUBBS FIRST TOLD HIS COLLEAGUES" "HE WANTED TO LOOK FOR DARK MATTER," "THEY TOLD HIM HE WAS OUT OF HIS MIND." "THAT WASN'T THE WAY TO A SAFE JOB." "THERE'S AN INFINITE AMOUNT OF SCIENCE TO DO," "AND I THINK THE TRICK IS TO CHOOSE CAREFULLY" "WHAT YOU SPEND YOUR TIME DOING." "AND MY TASTE, FOR A LONG TIME," "HAS RUN TOWARDS FUNDAMENTAL PROBLEMS" "THAT MAY BE VERY DIFFICULT TO ADDRESS EXPERIMENTALLY," "BUT WHICH HAVE A VERY LARGE IMPACT" "ON OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE UNIVERSE." "Narrator:" "CHRIS STUBBS HAS MADE A CAREER" "OF SHOOTING IN THE DARK." "HE'S PART OF AN INTERNATIONAL TEAM" "OF 18 SCIENTISTS AND 3 INSTITUTIONS," "ALL WITH ONE IMPROBABLE GOAL." "Stubbs:" "WE'RE CARRYING OUT" "AN EXPERIMENT TO LOOK" "FOR A PARTICULAR KIND OF DARK MATTER," "WHICH WE CALL "MACHOS," WHICH IS A SHORTHAND" "THAT STANDS FOR "MASSIVE COMPACT HALO OBJECTS."" "THE IDEA IS THAT OUR GALAXY" "HAS A BIG HALO OF DARK MATTER AROUND IT" "THAT'S MADE OUT OF ASTRONOMICAL OBJECTS" "THAT, FOR ONE REASON OR ANOTHER," "DON'T SHINE LIKE THE STARS THAT WE SEE." "Narrator:" "STUBBS BELIEVES THESE STRANGE VESTIGES OF STARS," "THEIR COMPRESSED CORPSES," "LITTER THE UNIVERSE." "MACHOS RANGE FROM THE SIZE OF THE EARTH" "TO 10 TIMES THAT OF THE SUN." "IF THEY ARE THE SECRET PHANTOMS THAT GOVERN THE MOTION OF STARS," "THEY WOULD BE MOST NUMEROUS ON THE FRINGES OF GALAXIES." "Hawking:" "IT WAS THE RIGHT PLACE TO SEARCH," "BUT FINDING THEM WOULD BE LIKE" "LOOKING FOR A BLACK BAT ON A DARK NIGHT." "THE ONE THING THAT HE KNEW WAS THAT HIS SUBJECTS" "WERE FAIRLY HEAVY." "AND IF THEY WERE HEAVY," "THEY WOULD HAVE A GRAVITATIONAL EFFECT" "ON LIGHT PASSING NEARBY." "THE MACHO-HUNTER TURNED" "TO EINSTEIN'S GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY" "TO TELL HIM HOW GRAVITY AFFECTS LIGHT." "Narrator:" "STUBBS SET OUT TO FIND STEALTH STARS" "IN THE DARK REACHES OF SPACE." "BY SHEDDING A LITTLE EINSTEINIAN LIGHT ON THEM." "ACCORDING TO RELATIVITY," "SPACE AND TIME CAN BE THOUGHT OF AS ONE." "AN OBJECT MARKS ITS PLACE IN THE FABRIC OF SPACE-TIME" "WITH A DENT, A POCKET INTO WHICH OTHER OBJECTS" "THAT PASS WITHIN ITS SPHERE MUST FALL." "THIS IS HOW GRAVITY WORKS," "AND NOTHING IS IMMUNE TO ITS POWER," "NOT EVEN LIGHT." "WE'RE USED TO THE IDEA THAT LIGHT TRAVELS IN STRAIGHT LINES," "AND WHEN SPACE-TIME ITSELF" "IS CURVED, LIGHT STILL TRIES" "TO TRAVEL IN A STRAIGHT LINE," "BUT IT CAN'T," "BECAUSE SPACE-TIME ITSELF" "ACTUALLY HAS SHAPE AND DENTS AND WARPS IN IT." "SO JUST LIKE MATTER," "LIGHT WHICH IS TRAVELING IN A SPACE-TIME" "WHERE THERE'S SOME LARGE MASSIVE OBJECT" "WILL ACTUALLY BE ATTRACTED TO THE OBJECT," "AND ITS PATH WILL BE BENT TOWARDS IT." "THIS EFFECT OF THE BENDING OF LIGHT" "IS WHAT IS USED BY ASTRONOMERS" "IN THEIR SEARCH FOR MACHOS IN THE HALO OF OUR GALAXY." "Stubbs:" "EINSTEIN'S GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY TELLS US" "THAT LIGHT PASSING CLOSE TO AN OBJECT," "LIKE THE SUN OR A LUMP OF DARK MATTER," "IS DEFLECTED ..." "IT GETS BENT." "AND THE EFFECT THAT A MASS HAS" "ON THE LIGHT COMING FROM A DISTANT STAR OR GALAXY" "IS JUST LIKE PUTTING A LENS IN FRONT OF THE STAR." "IT DISTORTS THE IMAGE, AND IT MAKES IT APPEAR BRIGHTER." "Narrator:" "IF A MACHO PASSES BETWEEN US" "AND A DISTANT GROUP OF STARS," "THEY WOULD BRIGHTEN, THEN FADE BACK TO NORMAL," "A TELLTALE SIGN OF THE MACHO'S PRESENCE." "STUBBS USED THE STARS AS A MILLION COSMIC SPOTLIGHTS," "HOPING ONE MIGHT FLARE," "MAGNIFIED BY THE CHANCE SWEEP OF A STRAY MACHO." "IT WAS A PAINSTAKING HUNT FOR A FAINT GLIMMER" "FROM SOMETHING THAT MAY NOT EVEN EXIST." "THIS IS JUST BEFORE PEAK BRIGHTNESS." "IT STILL STANDS OUT FROM THE REST OF THE STARS." "Stubbs:" "OUR EXPERIMENT HAS MADE MORE MEASUREMENTS" "OF THE BRIGHTNESS OF INDIVIDUAL STARS" "THAN THE ENTIRE CUMULATIVE HISTORY OF ASTRONOMY COMBINED," "AND WE THEN SIFT THROUGH ALL OF THESE RECORDS" "IN ORDER TO FIND THE ONE TIME IN A MILLION" "WHEN A STAR GETS BRIGHTER" "AS A RESULT OF A MACHO" "TRAVELING CLOSE TO THE LINE OF SIGHT" "BETWEEN US AND THE STAR." "Narrator:" "HOURS OF PATIENT OBSERVATION," "MONTHS OF MARSHALING DATA ..." "A LOT WAS RIDING ON LITTLE MORE THAN A GOOD GUESS." "Stubbs:" "TWO YEARS AFTER WE STARTED THE EXPERIMENT," "WE WERE LOOKING THROUGH THE DATA," "TRYING TO UNDERSTAND HOW TO ANALYZE IT," "AND MUCH TO OUR SURPRISE" "FOUND EXACTLY WHAT WE THOUGHT WE WERE LOOKING FOR," "IN THAT WE SAW A STAR GET BRIGHTER" "AND THEN FAINTER AGAIN WITH EXACTLY THE SIGNATURE" "THAT'S PREDICTED BY GENERAL RELATIVITY." "OKAY, THIS LOOKS LIKE IT DEFINITELY" "FITS PRETTY WELL." "IT'S EASY TO DRAW A NICE CURVE." "Stubbs:" "OUR EXPERIMENT HAS DETECTED" "A PREVIOUSLY UNKNOWN COMPONENT OF THIS GALAXY." "IT'S A STUNNING RESULT." "Narrator:" "CHRIS STUBBS CLINCHED IT." "DARK MATTER IS NO FANTASY." "IT'S ACTUALLY OUT THERE." "BUT A MYSTERY LINGERS." "TO POWER THE FAST ROTATION OF STARS" "VERA RUBIN HAD DETECTED WOULD TAKE A LOT OF DARK MATTER." "IT SEEMS THERE ARE JUST NOT ENOUGH MACHOS" "TO ACCOUNT FOR THAT KIND OF COLOSSAL GRAVITATIONAL PULL." "Stubbs:" "THE SIMPLEST POINT OF VIEW" "IS THAT THE MACHOS ARE ORDINARY MATTER" "MADE UP OF THE SAME MATERIAL THAT EXISTS IN STARS." "IT JUST DIDN'T HAPPEN TO END UP IN STARS." "AND WE THINK WE KNOW EXACTLY HOW MUCH ..." "WE THINK WE KNOW HOW MUCH ORDINARY MATTER" "THERE IS IN THE UNIVERSE, AND IT JUST ISN'T ENOUGH" "TO SOLVE THE DARK MATTER PROBLEM OF THE UNIVERSE." "WE NEED TO FIND SOMETHING ELSE" "TO ACCOUNT FOR MORE OF THE DARK MATTER." "MACHOS WERE BIG, SO WHY NOT TRY SOMETHING TINY?" "ONE CANDIDATE WAS A WELL-KNOWN PARTICLE," "THE NEUTRINO." "THIS IS PRODUCED IN ATOMIC BOMB EXPLOSIONS," "SO IT WOULD ALSO HAVE BEEN PRODUCED" "IN THE BIG BANG EXPLOSION." "IF IT HAD A TINY MASS OF ITS OWN," "IT COULD BE THE DARK MATTER," "OR IT COULD BE ONE OF THE SO-CALLED EXOTIC PARTICLES" "WHOSE EXISTENCE WAS PREDICTED BY THEORY," "BUT WHICH WERE VERY HARD TO DETECT IN REALITY." "PERHAPS THEY ARE ACTUALLY OUT THERE," "SILENTLY SHAPING THE EVOLUTION OF THE UNIVERSE." "Narrator:" "PROFESSOR CARLOS FRENK" "BELIEVES SMALL THINGS CAN HAVE A POWERFUL INFLUENCE," "IN THE CASE OF NEUTRINOS AND IN THE CASE OF HIS SON DAVID." "Frenk:" "I THINK THERE IS A GREAT PARALLEL" "BETWEEN THE EVOLUTION" "OF THE LARGEST SYSTEM THAT WE KNOW OF," "WHICH IS THE UNIVERSE," "AND THE EVOLUTION OF THE BIOLOGICAL SYSTEM," "LIKE A PERSON OR LIKE MY SON." "I OFTEN WONDER WHAT ARE THE FACTORS" "THAT ARE GOING TO INFLUENCE THE DEVELOPMENT OF MY SON," "WHETHER HE WILL BE A PHYSICIST OR A SCIENTIST," "WHETHER HE WILL BE A MUSICIAN," "OR WHETHER HE WILL BE ANYTHING ELSE." "I DON'T QUITE UNDERSTAND WHAT ARE THE FORCES" "THAT ARE GOING TO DRIVE HIM IN ONE DIRECTION OR THE OTHER." "THE UNIVERSE, HOWEVER, IS SIMPLER," "BECAUSE WE HAVE A MUCH GREATER MASTERY" "OVER THE LAWS THAT GOVERN THE EVOLUTION OF THE UNIVERSE." "Narrator:" "FRENK IS DETERMINED TO RECONSTRUCT THE WAY" "THE YOUNG UNIVERSE EVOLVED INTO THE UNIVERSE WE KNOW TODAY." "THE MOST CRUCIAL PIECE OF THE PUZZLE" "IS THE MOST ELUSIVE ..." "THE ROLE PLAYED BY DARK MATTER." "DAVID'S SCIENCE CLASS RELIES ON MODELS." "IT IS THE LOT OF THE PROBING MIND" "TO REQUIRE THE CONCRETE" "TO ENVISION CONCEPTS BEYOND OUR GRASP." "SO IT IS, FOR DAVID'S FATHER." "FRENK EXPERIMENTS WITH COMPUTERIZED REPRESENTATIONS" "OF A UNIVERSE LARGELY UNSEEN," "FROM ITS ELEMENTAL BIRTH" "TO THE RICH COMPLEXITY WE KNOW TODAY." "BUT HIS MODEL WILL ONLY WORK IF HE PROGRAMS IN" "THE PRECISE CHARACTERISTICS FOR DARK MATTER." "HE STARTS EACH RECREATION JUST A SECOND AFTER THE BIG BANG." "Frenk:" "PRIOR TO THAT TIME," "THE UNIVERSE WAS MADE UP OF A COSMIC SOUP" "OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND RADIATION." "NOTHING ELSE COULD EXIST" "IN THE MIDST OF THIS TREMENDOUS HEAT." "BUT THEN, AFTER ABOUT 100 SECONDS," "THE UNIVERSE HAD COOLED DOWN A LITTLE BIT" "TO A MERE 10 BILLION DEGREES," "BUT THIS TEMPERATURE IS NOW LOW ENOUGH" "THAT THE FIRST THERMONUCLEAR FUSION REACTIONS CAN TAKE PLACE." "Narrator:" "AT THAT CRITICAL INSTANT," "ACCORDING TO FRENK'S SCENARIO," "A MYSTERIOUS GROUP OF PARTICLES BROKE FREE FROM THE PACK." "LONG BEFORE THE APPEARANCE OF STARS AND GALAXIES," "THEY SWARMED INTO GREAT CLUSTERS OF DARK MATTER." "THESE VAST AGGREGATES EXERTED A POWERFUL GRAVITATIONAL PULL" "ON THE REMAINING ORDINARY MATTER." "AS THE DARK EMPIRE GREW" "IN TANDEM WITH THE EXPANDING UNIVERSE," "IT REINED IN MORE AND MORE ORDINARY MATTER," "ULTIMATELY GIVING RISE TO THE STARS." "EVENTUALLY, ONE BILLION YEARS AFTER THE BIG BANG," "CONGREGATIONS OF STARS DREW TOGETHER" "TO FROM THE EARLIEST GALAXIES." "FRENK'S TALE WAS AN EPIC ONE." "HE HAD ITS FRAMEWORK BY THE EARLY 1980s," "BUT IT WAS MISSING ONE CRUCIAL INGREDIENT." "WHAT WAS THE DARK MATTER?" "THE IDEA THAT WAS AROUND AT THE TIME" "WAS THAT THE DARK MATTER COULD CONSIST" "OF SMALL ELEMENTARY PARTICLES CALLED NEUTRINOS." "Narrator:" "COULD THIS MINUTE SHRAPNEL FROM THE BIG BANG" "WORK AS THE DARK MATTER IN HIS MODEL?" "Frenk:" "THAT WAS A VERY TRENDY," "FASHIONABLE IDEA, IF YOU LIKE, IN THOSE DAYS," "AND IT WAS THE FIRST CONCRETE PROPOSAL WE HAD" "FOR WHAT THE DARK MATTER COULD BE," "AND THIS WAS VERY SIGNIFICANT." "AND SOME PEOPLE WOULD SAY ..." "A VERY SIGNIFICANT IDEA," "AND SO PEOPLE WOULD SAY IT SIGNALLED" "THE BEGINNING OF A REVOLUTION IN THE WAY" "IN WHICH WE STUDY THE UNIVERSE," "BECAUSE FOR THE FIRST TIME, THE NEUTRINO HYPOTHESIS" "PROVIDED A CONCRETE STARTING POINT" "THAT WE COULD EXPLORE IN AN UNAMBIGUOUS FASHION" "USING THE TOOLS OF EVOLUTIONARY COSMOLOGY." "Narrator:" "NEUTRINOS STREAM THROUGH THE UNIVERSE" "AT VIRTUALLY THE SPEED OF LIGHT." "EVERY SECOND, ABOUT 100 TRILLION" "SHOOT STRAIGHT THROUGH YOUR BODY." "THESE TINY PARTICLES SUFFUSE THE UNIVERSE," "THEY ARE EVERYWHERE," "YET THEY WILL SLIP THROUGH ANY BARRIER," "SO THEY'RE ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO NAB." "FOR PARTICLE PHYSICISTS, NO CATCH IS MORE CHALLENGING." "THEIR GOAL IS TO FIND OUT IF NEUTRINOS HAVE MASS." "WITHOUT MASS, THEY WOULDN'T HAVE A GRAVITATIONAL EFFECT," "AND THEY WOULDN'T BE A CANDIDATE FOR DARK MATTER." "IN NORTHERN FRANCE," "YVES DECLAIS IS LEADING AN AMBITIOUS EFFORT" "TO REEL IN NEUTRINOS." "Declais:" "WHEN YOU PREPARE YOUR BAIT," "WHEN YOU HAVE PREPARED YOUR DETECTOR," "WHEN YOU HAVE PREPARED YOUR TRAP," "YOU HAVE TO INSTALL IT AT THE RIGHT PLACE," "AND SO YOU HAVE TO GO" "WHERE YOU THINK YOU WILL BE ABLE TO DETECT NEUTRINO," "WHERE YOU WILL BE RIGHT TO GET OUT SOME FISH" "OUT FROM THE RIVER." "AND AFTER THAT," "YOU HAVE NOT ONLY TO WAIT, BUT YOU HAVE TO WORK," "AND YOU WILL SEE WHAT WILL BE THE RESULT." "YOU WILL SEE HOW MANY NEUTRINO, HOW MANY FISH" "YOU WILL GET OUT FROM THE RIVER." "Narrator:" "THE BEST PLACE TO CAST A LINE IS ALREADY KNOWN." "NEUTRINOS ARE PRODUCED WHERE THERE'S RADIOACTIVE DECAY." "BOTH ARE GOVERNED BY THE PHYSICS OF NUCLEAR REACTIONS." "FRED REINES WORKED ON THE ATOMIC BOMB," "THEN BECAME THE FIRST NEUTRINO HUNTER." "Declais:" "HE THOUGHT IT WAS POSSIBLE TO SEE" "THE FLASH OF LIGHT PRODUCED" "BY THE INTRODUCTION OF A NEUTRINO" "INTO SOME WATER DETECTOR," "WHEN YOU HAVE THE EXPLOSION OF THE BOMB," "AND IN ORDER TO DETECT THIS FLASH" "WITH RESPECT TO THE NATURAL BACKGROUND AROUND." "BUT IT WAS QUITE DIFFICULT TO INSTALL SUCH AN EXPERIMENT" "NEAR AN ATOMIC BOMB." "Narrator:" "EVENTUALLY, REINES SHIFTED HIS EXPERIMENTS" "TO A SAFER SOURCE OF NEUTRINOS, A NUCLEAR POWER PLANT." "IN 1956, HE BECAME THE FIRST TO TRAP A NEUTRINO." "THE ACHIEVEMENT WON HIM THE NOBEL PRIZE." "BUT REINES WASN'T ABLE TO LEARN IF THE NEUTRINO HAD ANY MASS." "THAT CHALLENGE NOW FALLS TO YVES DECLAIS." "LIKE REINES, HE WILL STALK HIS TINY QUARRY" "IN THE BOWELS OF A COLOSSAL FURNACE." "BESIDE A NUCLEAR POWER STATION IS AN UNDERGROUND BUNKER," "SHIELDED BY THE EARTH FROM THE INTERFERENCE OF COSMIC RAYS." "Declais:" "YOU HAVE TO BE IN THE RIGHT PLACE," "VERY STRONG NEUTRINO SOURCE IN ORDER TO BE ABLE" "TO SEE SOME INTERACTION OF THESE NEUTRINO." "AND YOU HAVE, ALSO," "TO PROTECT YOUR DETECTOR AGAINST THE BACKGROUND." "AND WHEN YOU DETECT LOW-ENERGY NEUTRINOS," "THE MAIN BACKGROUND COMES FROM THE SKY," "COMES FROM COSMIC RAYS," "SO YOU HAVE TO INSTALL YOUR DETECTOR" "AS DEEP AS POSSIBLE UNDERGROUND." "IN THIS EXPERIMENT WE WANT TO SEE" "IF THE NATURE OF THE NEUTRINO" "CHANGE BETWEEN THE SOURCE OF THE NEUTRINO" "AND THE DETECTOR ONE KILOMETER AWAY." "AND IF THE NATURE OF THE NEUTRINO CHANGE" "DURING THIS PATH OF ONE KILOMETER," "WE CAN DEMONSTRATE," "WE CAN PROVE THAT THIS IS RELATED" "TO THE EXISTENCE OF A MASS FOR THE NEUTRINO." "IT IS A LITTLE BIT COMPLICATED TO COMPUTE," "BUT IT IS A VERY, VERY SIMPLE SYSTEM." "Narrator:" "NEUTRINOS, BY DEFINITION," "MUST HAVE MASS IF THEY UNDERGO" "A SUBTLE DISTINGUISHABLE TRANSFORMATION." "DECLAIS AND HIS TEAM HAVE ALREADY CONDUCTED" "A NEUTRINO CENSUS NEARBY THE REACTOR." "NOW THEY WANT TO TAKE A COMPARATIVE TALLY HERE," "TWO-THIRDS OF A MILE AWAY." "YOU CAN SEE YOURS ..." "NO, PASSED TOO QUICKLY." "TWO EVENTS VERY FAR APART." "Narrator:" "THEY WANT TO SEE IF THERE ARE FEWER" "OF THE KIND OF NEUTRINOS THEY CLOCKED" "CLOSER TO THE REACTOR." "THE REST, THEN, WOULD HAVE UNDERGONE" "THE TELLTALE TRANSFORMATION" "BY THE TIME THEY TRAVELED THIS DISTANCE," "PROVING THE PARTICLES HAVE MASS." "IT MAY TAKE YEARS, BUT YVES IS PERSISTENT." "Declais:" "THIS IS REALLY IMPORTANT" "FOR PARTICLE PHYSICS" "AND ALSO FOR COSMOLOGY AND ASTROPHYSICS." "ONE OF THE BEST CANDIDATES FOR THE DARK MATTER," "FOR THE MISSING MATTER IN THE UNIVERSE," "IS THE NEUTRINO, IF THE NEUTRINO HAS A MASS." "EVEN IF THE MASS OF THE NEUTRINO CAN BE VERY TINY ..." "VERY, VERY, VERY SMALL ..." "BECAUSE THE UNIVERSE IS COMPLETELY FILLED" "BY A LOT OF NEUTRINO COMING FROM THE EARLY UNIVERSE," "FROM THE FIRST THREE SECONDS OF THE UNIVERSE." "Narrator:" "MEANWHILE, CARLOS FRENK" "WASN'T WAITING FOR WORD." "HE KEPT HAMMERING AWAY AT HIS DIGITAL REENACTMENT OF CREATION." "HIS APPROACH WAS TO ASSUME NEUTRINOS HAVE MASS," "AND SEE WHAT KIND OF UNIVERSE WOULD RESULT." "Frenk:" "SO WE PROGRAMMED OUR COMPUTER" "TO FOLLOW THE EVOLUTION OF THE UNIVERSE" "IN WHICH THE DARK MATTER WAS MADE UP OF MASSIVE NEUTRINOS," "AND THAT THE AIM WAS TO PRODUCE IN THE COMPUTER" "A SYNTHETIC UNIVERSE" "THAT WE COULD THEN COMPARE WITH THE REAL THING." "SO WE PROGRAMMED OUR COMPUTER UP IN THIS FASHION," "AND LET IT CHURN AWAY OVER CHRISTMAS," "AND WHEN WE CAME BACK, WE SAW THE FIRST MAPS" "BEING GENERATED BY THE COMPUTER." "HERE WE HAVE A RECOGNIZABLE UNIVERSE," "A CREDIBLE UNIVERSE, SOMETHING THAT'S MADE GALAXIES," "SOMETHING THAT'S MADE GALAXY CLUSTERS," "SOMETHING THAT IS COMPETITIVE VIS-A-VIS THE REAL UNIVERSE." "THERE WAS A GREAT SENSE OF ELATION," "AND THE THOUGHT THAT WE MIGHT HAVE SOLVED" "WHAT WAS ALREADY, CLEARLY THEN, AND SADLY STILL IS TODAY," "THE MAIN UNSOLVED PROBLEM IN COSMOLOGY." "IT WAS ONE OF THOSE FEELINGS YOU HAVE ONCE IN A LIFETIME," "WHEN YOU THINK YOU'VE REALLY STUMBLED UPON SOMETHING MAJOR." "NOW, THAT WAS OUR FIRST IMPRESSION." "Narrator:" "THE IMPRESSION WAS FLEETING." "FRENK WAS SO ELATED" "TO HAVE CONCOCTED HIS OWN DIGITAL UNIVERSE," "AT FIRST HE DIDN'T NOTICE A FATAL FLAW." "ON CLOSER INSPECTION, HIS MODEL FOR CREATION" "DIDN'T QUITE LOOK LIKE THE REAL THING." "AND THAT WAS VERY DEPRESSING." "WE THOUGHT FOR A WHILE, FOR A FEW WEEKS, PERHAPS," "THAT WE REALLY HAD FOUND THE KEY TO THE UNIVERSE," "AND THAT KEY EVAPORATED," "AND IT WAS A TERRIBLY DISAPPOINTING PERIOD." "Narrator:" "IN FAILURE, THERE CAN BE LESSONS." "IN PERSEVERANCE THERE CAN BE RESULTS." "FRENK WASN'T ABOUT TO GIVE UP." "Frenk:" "IT IS PARADOXICAL THAT WE CAN UNDERSTAND THE UNIVERSE" "BETTER THAN WE CAN UNDERSTAND A TINY LITTLE PART." "MY SON IS AN INSIGNIFICANT LITTLE SPECK" "IN THIS GIGANTIC UNIVERSE," "AND YET I CAN UNDERSTAND THE UNIVERSE BETTER" "THAN I CAN UNDERSTAND MY SON." "AND SO OFTEN I REGARD MYSELF AS BEING VERY LUCKY" "THAT I AM A PHYSICIST," "RATHER THAN A BIOLOGIST OR A PSYCHOLOGIST." "THEY HAVE A MUCH TOUGHER TIME THAN WE DO," "BECAUSE WE DEAL WITH SYSTEMS THAT ARE INTRINSICALLY SIMPLE." "BIOLOGISTS AND PSYCHOLOGISTS" "DEAL WITH THIS MUCH MORE COMPLEX," "AND IN SOME WAYS MAGICAL WORLD OF HUMANS," "WHO ARE ESSENTIALLY UNPREDICTABLE." "Narrator:" "PARTICLE PHYSICISTS URGED A STARTLING ALTERNATIVE," "TO REPLACE THE NEUTRINO" "WITH AN ENTIRELY HYPOTHETICAL COMPONENT." "FRENK DUBBED IT "COLD DARK MATTER."" "HIS LONG STRUGGLE WITH NEUTRINOS HADN'T WORKED," "BUT HE HAD LEARNED MUCH IN THE PROCESS." "NOW, MAYBE, PRACTICE WOULD MAKE HIS MODEL PERFECT." "Frenk:" "OUR NEXT STEP, THEN," "WAS TO CHANGE OUR STARTING ASSUMPTION," "AND NOW TAKE THE DARK MATTER TO BE COMPOSED" "OF COLD DARK MATTER." "[ PLAYS SCHUMANN'S "MELODY" ]" "[ PLAYS WRONG NOTES ]" "Frenk:" "I MUST SAY, WE WERE VERY SKEPTICAL" "WHEN WE STARTED THIS NEW PROJECT." "BY THEN WE HAD GOT SLIGHTLY FED UP" "WITH PARTICLE PHYSICISTS TRYING TO TELL US ASTRONOMERS" "WHAT OUR UNIVERSE WAS MADE OF." "PARTICLE PHYSICISTS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE WORKING ON SOMETHING ELSE," "AND THEY HAVE NO RIGHT TO COME AND TELL US ASTRONOMERS" "WHAT OUR UNIVERSE IS MADE OF." "SO OUR APPROACH AT FIRST WAS REALLY, FRANKLY, CYNICAL ..." "WE STARTED OFF SAYING, RIGHT, LET'S GO AND PUT" "THESE PARTICLE PHYSICISTS RIGHT." "WE RULED OUT NEUTRINOS." "NOW LET'S GO RULE OUT COLD DARK MATTER AS WELL," "AND GET THOSE GUYS OFF OUR BACKS SO THEY CAN" "GO AND DO THEIR OWN THING WITH ACCELERATORS" "AND WE CAN KEEP ON TRYING TO UNDERSTAND HOW GALAXIES FORM." "[ PLAYING SCHUMANN'S "MELODY" ]" "Frenk:" "WHAT HAPPENED WAS THAT," "THESE COLD DARK MATTER UNIVERSES TURNED OUT TO BE" "FAR RICHER AND FAR MORE INTERESTING" "THAN WE EVER HAD ANY RIGHT TO EXPECT." "Narrator:" "FRENK'S NEW MODEL WORKS AT LAST," "BUT THERE'S A CATCH." "IT RELIES ON AN INVENTED PARTICLE," "A SYMBOL TAPPED OUT ON A KEYBOARD." "DOES COLD DARK MATTER EXIST?" "THE BURDEN OF PROOF IS ON THE EXPERIMENTALISTS" "WHO NOW HAVE TO GO AND DETECT THESE PARTICLES." "AND UNTIL THAT HAPPENS," "THEN WE CANNOT BE BY ANY MEANS CERTAIN" "THAT THIS IS A CORRECT THEORY." "BUT IF THEY DO SUCCEED," "THIS REALLY WILL BE AN OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT," "AND I THINK IT'S NOT AN EXAGGERATION" "TO SAY THAT IF THE DARK MATTER" "TURNS OUT TO BE AN EXOTIC ELEMENTARY PARTICLE," "THIS REALLY WILL GO DOWN IN HISTORY" "AS ONE OF THE GREATEST SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERIES EVER." "Hawking:" "THE EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT MOST OF THE UNIVERSE" "IS MADE UP OF SOMETHING NO ONE HAS EVER SEEN." "BY ITS VERY NATURE," "COLD DARK MATTER HAS TO BE HARD TO DETECT." "FINDING A WAY TO DO SO" "IS ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT TASKS IN PHYSICS TODAY." "Narrator:" "NOW, IN SEARCH OF A PARTICLE" "THAT CAN'T BE SEEN," "ONE THAT HAS ONLY PURE CONJECTURE" "TO VOUCH FOR ITS EXISTENCE," "A TEAM OF SCIENTISTS HAS COME" "TO THE MINING COUNTRY OF NORTHERN ENGLAND." "LEADING THEM IS NEIL SPOONER." "Spooner:" "IT'S FAIRLY ASTOUNDING" "THAT AT THE END OF THE 20th CENTURY," "WE ACTUALLY DON'T KNOW" "WHAT MOST OF THE UNIVERSE IS MADE OF ..." "NOT 90%, MAYBE EVEN 99% ..." "AND THAT IT SORT OF" "PUTS ONE IN, AS A HUMAN BEING ..." "INTO SOME PERSPECTIVE THAT WE ..." "THE EARTH IS NOT THE CENTER" "OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM, ET CETERA," "AND MAYBE WE'RE NOT EVEN" "THE ONLY LIFE NOW." "AND WE'RE NOT EVEN MADE" "OF PARTICULARLY COMMON MATTER," "IN THAT WE'RE NOT THE TYPICAL" "MATTER THAT'S AROUND, BECAUSE" "MOST OF IT'S DARK MATTER," "WHICH WE DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS." "Narrator:" "SPOONER'S FIRST CHALLENGE" "WAS FINDING A WAY TO GLIMPSE THE PARTICLES HE WAS AFTER." "AS WITH NEUTRINOS," "THE SEARCH FOR COLD DARK MATTER MUST BE CONDUCTED UNDERGROUND," "BEYOND THE REACH OF COSMIC RAYS." "HIS TEAM IS GOING TO GREAT LENGTHS TO FIND DARK MATTER," "AND GREAT DEPTHS." "Spooner:" "IT JUST HAPPENS" "THAT MY FATHER IS A MINING ENGINEER BY PROFESSION." "SO I JUST ASKED HIM WHAT WAS THE DEEPEST MINE IN BRITAIN," "NAIVELY THINKING IT WOULD BE A COAL MINE, WHICH WOULD BE" "USELESS FOR US BECAUSE IT WOULD BE QUITE DIFFICULT" "TO WORK IN THE COAL MINE," "BECAUSE OF THE SAFETY ASPECT OF IT." "BUT IT TURNED OUT THAT HE LOOKED IT UP," "AND IT WAS BOULBY, WHICH IS A SALT MINE," "WHICH IS IDEAL FOR US." "Narrator:" "BOULBY MINE IS NOT ONLY THE DEEPEST IN BRITAIN," "BUT IN ALL EUROPE." "THE ELEVATOR BORES INTO THE GROUND" "FOR FIVE LONG MINUTES," "PLUMMETING A MILE BELOW THE SURFACE." "AT THIS DEPTH, THE AIR IS 18 DEGREES HOTTER" "THAN AT THE SURFACE, AND CHOKED WITH DUST." "BUILDING DELICATE INSTRUMENTS" "THAT CAN STAND UP TO THESE CORROSIVE CONDITIONS" "WAS A DAUNTING PROSPECT." "Spooner:" "IT'S A TECHNOLOGICAL FIGHT," "TRYING TO WORK DEEP UNDERGROUND" "IN THE SALT MINE, WHICH IS AN ENVIRONMENT WHICH," "WELL, WE'RE DEALING WITH FAIRLY INTRICATE ELECTRONICS," "AND WE'RE TRYING TO BE CLEAN." "AND TRYING TO DO THAT IN A MINE IS SORT OF VERY, VERY DIFFICULT." "Narrator:" "DEEP IN THE EARTH, IT'S HARD TO TELL THE LOCALS," "WORKING THEIR PICKS AND SHOVELS," "FROM THE PARTICLE PHYSICISTS MINING FOR MATTER." "Spooner:" "THEY ALL SAY, "HAVE YOU FOUND IT YET?"" "WE USUALLY SAY, "NOT YET, BUT WE'RE WORKING ON IT."" "Narrator:" "EVEN THOUGH DARK MATTER MAY OCCUPY 99% OF THE UNIVERSE," "THE PARTICLES SPOONER AND HIS TEAM ARE AFTER ARE ELUSIVE." "THEY AREN'T KNOWN AS "WEAKLY INTERACTING MASSIVE PARTICLES,"" "OR "WIMPS," FOR NOTHING." "THEY MEEKLY SHUN CONTACT WITH ANYTHING ELSE." "Spooner:" "THESE PARTICLES ARE NEUTRAL." "THEY'RE NOT CHARGED." "THEIR INTERACTION IS LIKE A SORT OF A BILLIARD-BALL EFFECT" "IF THEY INTERACT, WHICH MAINLY THEY DON'T." "BUT WHEN THEY DO, THEY JUST WILL STRIKE AN ATOM" "WHICH WILL RECOIL." "SO WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR IS THESE LITTLE RECOILS OF ATOMS." "I'M TALKING ABOUT VERY SMALL DISTANCES ..." "THOUSANDTHS OF A MILLIMETER OR SO." "AND AS THIS ATOM RECOILS, IT GIVES OFF SOME ENERGY," "IN OUR CASE, LIGHT." "AND YOU TRY AND DETECT THIS LIGHT." "Narrator:" "THAT GLINT WOULD BE SO FAINT AND EVANESCENT" "THAT EVEN SLIGHT RADIATION FROM SURROUNDING ROCKS MIGHT MASK IT." "SO THE DETECTOR IS FURTHER INSULATED" "WITHIN 200 TONS OF DISTILLED WATER." "Spooner:" "WE'RE OVER A KILOMETER UNDERGROUND," "SO WE'VE GOT RID OF THE COSMIC RAYS," "AND THEN WE'RE IN THE WATER," "SO WE CAN SCREEN OFF THE STUFF COMING FROM THE WALLS," "AND THEN WE'VE GOT OUR DETECTOR IN THE MIDDLE," "SITTING THERE WAITING FOR A WIMP." "OUR DETECTOR WAS A SIMPLE CRYSTAL," "WHICH GIVES OFF LITTLE BURSTS OF LIGHT" "WHEN STRUCK BY THE PARTICLE." "WE HAVE TO REALLY AMPLIFY THIS LIGHT," "BECAUSE IT'S VERY LOW LEVEL." "SEEMS TO BE OKAY." "Spooner:" "WE USE THIS DEVICE CALLED A PHOTOMULTIPLIER" "TO CONVERT LIGHT INTO ELECTRONS." "THESE ARE THEN MULTIPLIED," "AND YOU GET ..." "FOR EVERY ONE THAT COMES IN," "YOU GET ABOUT A MILLION COMING OUT." "AND THAT PROVIDES A NICE, BIG SIGNAL," "WHICH YOU CAN THEN MEASURE AND RECORD." "IN THE LAST YEAR OR TWO," "WE HAVE MADE FAIRLY SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS." "WE'VE IMPROVED OUR DETECTORS" "SUCH THAT WE'RE NOW ABOUT 50 TIMES MORE SENSITIVE" "THAN ANYONE ELSE WAS PREVIOUSLY." "BUT WE STILL NEED TO GET" "PROBABLY ANOTHER 100 TIMES BETTER." "IF WE DO THAT," "THEN WE SHOULD SEE THEM" "OR WE SHOULD NOT SEE THEM." "IF WE SEE THEM, THEN OBVIOUSLY" "THAT'S VERY EXCITING," "AND MAYBE WE'VE DISCOVERED" "WHAT DARK MATTER IS, OR WHAT" "MOST OF THE DARK MATTER IS." "IF WE DON'T SEE THEM, THAT'S ALSO PRETTY EXCITING," "BECAUSE IT'S GOT TO BE SOMETHING," "AND IF IT'S NOT WIMPS, MAYBE IT'S NOT MACHOS," "AND MAYBE NEUTRINOS DON'T HAVE MASS." "WE DON'T KNOW, BUT IT'S GOT TO BE SOMETHING." "SO THAT WOULD DEEPEN THE MYSTERY." "Frenk:" "IF AND WHEN THE DARK MATTER ..." "OR I SHOULD SAY, WHEN THE DARK MATTER IS DISCOVERED," "BECAUSE IT'S NOT A QUESTION" "THAT DARK MATTER IS THERE TO BE DISCOVERED" "AND IT WILL BE DISCOVERED." "I CAN SAY THAT WITH COMPLETE CERTAINTY ..." "WELL, AS COMPLETE AS A SCIENTIST CAN EVER DO." "BUT WHEN THE DARK MATTER IS DISCOVERED," "I THINK THE WHOLE JIGSAW OF OUR UNIVERSE" "WILL FALL INTO PLACE." "WE WILL UNDERSTAND NOT ONLY" "WHY OUR UNIVERSE LOOKS THE WAY IT DOES," "WE WILL UNDERSTAND WHY THERE ARE GALAXIES," "HOW THEY CAME TO BE, WHY THERE ARE PLANETS," "WHY THERE ARE STARS, BUT WE WOULD ALSO UNDERSTAND" "WHAT THE ULTIMATE FATE OF OUR UNIVERSE WILL BE." "THERE ARE TWO POSSIBILITIES." "IF THERE'S ONLY A FAIRLY SMALL AMOUNT OF DARK MATTER," "THE UNIVERSE WILL CONTINUE TO EXPAND FOREVER," "GETTING COLDER AND COLDER, AND MORE AND MORE EMPTY." "ON THE OTHER HAND, IF THERE'S A LOT OF DARK MATTER," "GRAVITY WILL SLOW DOWN THE EXPANSION OF THE UNIVERSE" "AND STOP IT EVENTUALLY." "THEN THE UNIVERSE WILL BEGIN TO CONTRACT," "AND WILL END UP IN A BIG CRUNCH, LIKE THE BIG BANG IN REVERSE." "FROM WHAT WE KNOW NOW, IT COULD GO EITHER WAY." "IF I PLACED A BET," "I THINK I KNOW WHICH FATE I'D BACK." "BUT HOW WOULD I COLLECT AFTER THE BIG CRUNCH?" "WHICHEVER WAY THE UNIVERSE EVENTUALLY GOES," "ITS EVOLUTION IS BEING AFFECTED BY DARK MATTER RIGHT NOW." "BEFORE WE HAVE EVEN DISCOVERED WHAT IT'S MADE OF," "SOME ASTRONOMERS HAVE BEGUN MAPPING ITS EFFECTS." "Woman:" "THE CHALLENGE OF MAPPING THE UNIVERSE" "IS THAT YOU HAVE TO DO IT IN THREE DIMENSIONS." "AND HUMAN BEINGS ARE VERY GOOD AT MAKING TWO-DIMENSIONAL MAPS." "IT'S THE CHALLENGE OF GETTING THAT THIRD DIMENSION" "AND PUTTING IT IN YOUR HEAD, BEING ABLE TO CLOSE YOUR EYES" "AND SEE IN 3-D WHAT'S AROUND YOU." "IT'S A CHALLENGE, BUT IT'S FUN." "SO I THINK WE'LL LAY THINGS OUT" "WITH THE EQUATOR DOWN HERE." "Faber:" "WHEN WE FIRST STARTED THIS MAPPING BUSINESS," "IT WAS VERY, VERY PRIMITIVE," "AND PEOPLE KNEW THAT THERE WERE CLUSTERS OVER THERE" "AND A FEW OVER THERE AND SO ON." "IT WAS A LITTLE BIT LIKE STANLEY" "GOING TO DARKEST AFRICA." "HE KNEW WHERE THE CONGO RIVER WAS, AND THE NILE MAYBE," "BUT NOT MUCH ABOUT ANYTHING ELSE." "LOOKS LIKE IT'S OVER THERE." "Narrator:" "EXPLORING A DARK CONTINENT OF HER OWN," "SANDRA FABER HAS SPENT YEARS CHARTING UNKNOWN TERRAIN." "HER MAPPING TECHNIQUES HAVE REVOLUTIONIZED" "THE WAY WE LOOK AT THE UNIVERSE AND CONTEMPLATE ITS FUTURE." "Faber:" "WHAT WE'RE GOING TO SEE HERE" "IS THREE SLICES OF THE UNIVERSE." "AND EARTH IS DOWN HERE IN THIS DIAGRAM," "RIGHT HERE AT THE POINT." "AND NOW WE SEE THE FIRST SLICE" "BEING DISPLAYED LIKE THIS." "EACH LITTLE BLACK DOT IS A GALAXY." "THIS WAS TAKEN FROM THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE," "AND NOW WE SEE FINALLY THE THIRD SLICE IS COMING UP HERE." "WHAT'S INTERESTING ABOUT THESE MAPS" "IS THAT THE GALAXIES ARE NOT UNIFORMLY DISTRIBUTED IN SPACE." "INSTEAD, WHAT WE SEE IS THAT THEY TEND TO PILE UP" "ALONG THESE WALLS." "SOME PEOPLE HAVE CALLED THEM SOAP BUBBLES." "AND THEN THE INSIDES OF THESE SPACES ARE CALLED VOIDS." "THEY'RE RELATIVELY EMPTY OF GALAXIES." "AND, OF COURSE, THIS WHOLE STRUCTURE" "IS EXPANDING AS THE UNIVERSE EXPANDS." "NOW, THE QUESTION IS, OF COURSE," "WHY DO THE GALAXIES TRACE" "THIS BEAUTIFUL LARGE-SCALE STRUCTURE?" "Narrator:" "SANDRA'S HUNCH WAS THAT THIS STRUCTURE" "WAS CREATED BY THE UNSEEN INFLUENCE OF DARK MATTER." "SHE SET OUT TO PROVE IT" "WITH THE MOST ADVANCED TELESCOPES IN THE WORLD." "OBSERVING IS ALMOST MYSTICAL." "IT'S THE ACT THAT REALLY PUTS ME IN CONTACT" "WITH THE REST OF THE UNIVERSE." "SITTING THERE AND ACCEPTING THESE PHOTONS," "I IMAGINE PROJECTING MYSELF BACK ALONG THAT SAME PATH," "AND IN SOME WAY, I KNOW THIS SOUNDS RIDICULOUS," "BEING IN COMMUNICATION AND COMMUNION" "WITH WHERE THEY CAME FROM." "I OFTEN THINK IF SOMEBODY'S LOOKING BACK AT ME," "I WONDER IF THEIR TELESCOPE IS BIGGER THAN MINE." "Narrator:" "EVEN THROUGH THE MOST POWERFUL INSTRUMENTS," "GALAXIES MILLIONS AND BILLIONS OF LIGHT-YEARS AWAY" "APPEAR AS TINY SPECKS." "YET FABER'S WORK DEMANDS THE MOST EXACTING MEASUREMENTS," "EVEN OF THESE FAR-FLUNG GALAXIES." "SO SENSITIVE ARE THE TELESCOPE'S DETECTORS" "THAT BEFORE EACH RUN THEY MUST BE COOLED" "WITH LIQUID NITROGEN." "AT OVER 300 DEGREES BELOW ZERO," "THEIR VERY ATOMS ARE STILLED." "Faber:" "HAVING CHECKED EVERYTHING OUT," "WE THEN WALK INTO THE CONTROL ROOM OFF THE DOME." "GONE ARE THE DAYS OF STANDING IN THE COLD." "WE DON'T DO THAT ANYMORE." "WE AIM THE TELESCOPE" "AND WE SIT THERE AND WE WAIT, WE EXPOSE." "AH!" "SO THIS IS OUR NEXT OBSERVATION." "WHAT WAS THIS GALAXY?" "THIS WAS NGC-5813." "5813, OKAY." "Narrator:" "SANDRA AND HER COLLEAGUES" "DEVELOPED THEIR MAPPING TECHNIQUE" "TO FATHOM THE ROLE DARK MATTER PLAYS" "IN THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE UNIVERSE." "THIS LOOKS DIFFERENT FROM OUR PREVIOUS SPECTRUM." "Narrator:" "THAT DARK MATTER GOVERNS" "THE MOTION OF INDIVIDUAL STARS, THERE'S NO QUESTION." "AT STAKE IS HOW IT GUIDES THE PATHS OF ENTIRE GALAXIES" "AS THEY DRIFT THROUGH SPACE." "BIT BY BIT, THE DATA" "IS FALLING TOGETHER" "INTO AN AWESOME PORTENT OF OUR GALAXY'S FATE." "Faber:" "SUDDENLY IT CAME TO US" "THAT IF WE PLOTTED ALL OF THESE MOTIONS OF GALAXIES," "THAT AN ENORMOUS REGION OF SPACE, INCLUDING US," "WAS MOVING ROUGHLY IN PARALLEL, LIKE A BIG RIVER OF GALAXIES," "AT THE BREAK-NECK SPEED" "OF 600 KILOMETERS PER SECOND," "AND THAT WAS A DEFINITELY NEW THOUGHT FOR US." "THAT REALLY STRUCK US VERY STRONGLY." "WE SAID, WHAT HAVE WE DISCOVERED?" "THIS IS TRULY REMARKABLE." "THEN WE BEGAN TO LOOK AT OUR SURVEY" "IN MORE DETAIL, AND WE SAW" "THAT, IN FACT, OFF IN THE DISTANCE THERE," "TOWARDS WHICH THIS GREAT RIVER WAS FLOWING," "WAS A VERY LARGE STRUCTURE, WHICH ONE OF US LATER NAMED" ""THE GREAT ATTRACTOR,"" "AND IT TURNED OUT TO BE A VERY, VERY BIG SUPERCLUSTER," "A SUPER-SUPERCLUSTER OF GALAXIES," "AND OUR MOTION TOWARDS THAT IS DUE TO ITS GRAVITY." "IT'S PULLING ALL OF US IN." "AND AT SOMETHING LIKE 50 TO 100 BILLION YEARS FROM NOW," "OUR GALAXY WILL BE ONE OF SEVERAL THOUSAND ON AN ORBIT" "IN THE GREAT SUPERCLUSTER CALLED THE GREAT ATTRACTOR." "Narrator:" "A STAGGERING FORCE," "EMANATING FROM A HUGE CONCENTRATION OF MATTER," "KNOWN AND UNKNOWN," "IS RELENTLESSLY REELING US IN ACROSS INTERGALACTIC SPACE." "THE FATE OF THE UNIVERSE" "IS SHAPED BY A VAST SPRAWL OF DARK MATTER," "BY A COSMIC SPECTER DRAWING THE GALAXIES TOGETHER" "INTO CLUSTERS AND SUPERCLUSTERS," "TURNING GREAT PATCHES OF SKY INTO EMPTY VOIDS." "Faber:" "THE WAY THE DARK MATTER CLUSTERS" "WILL AFFECT EXACTLY HOW GALAXIES FORM" "AND HOW SUPERCLUSTERS, VOIDS, WALLS, AND SO ON FORM." "DARK MATTER IS KEY." "IT IS CONTROLLING THE MOTION OF EVERYTHING ELSE." "IT'S MAKING THE GALAXIES FORM." "IT'S MAKING THE LARGE-SCALE STRUCTURE FORM." "IT'S IN CHARGE." "Narrator:" "WE CAN STILL ONLY GUESS" "WHAT DARK MATTER HOLDS IN STORE FOR US." "AND IT SEEMS NOT ALL GREAT MINDS GUESS ALIKE." "Faber:" "WELL, CURRENTLY, IT LOOKS AS THOUGH" "THERE'S NOT ENOUGH MATTER IN THE UNIVERSE, QUITE," "TO RETARD THE EXPANSION." "IF WE HAD TO BET RIGHT NOW, WE'D PROBABLY BET" "THAT THE UNIVERSE WILL EXPAND FOREVER." "IT'S A FASCINATING IDEA." "IF THE UNIVERSE EXPANDS FOREVER," "WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO IT AS IT COOLS OFF?" "STARS ARE GRADUALLY CONSUMING ALL THE GAS IN GALAXIES." "OVER TIME, IT WILL ALL BE USED UP." "THOSE STARS WILL BURN AND USE UP THEIR FUEL AND DIE," "BECOME COLD, DEAD REMNANTS, WHITE DWARVES," "MAYBE SOME BLACK HOLES IN THERE." "GALAXIES ARE EVER MERGING TO MAKE YET LARGER STRUCTURES," "BUT WILL BECOME EVER DIMMER AS THE STARS IN THEM DIE OUT." "AND ULTIMATELY," "EVEN THE VERY STUFF OF WHICH STARS ARE MADE ..." "THE PROTONS, NEUTRONS, AND SO ON ..." "WILL DECAY." "AND IT MAY BE THAT THE ULTIMATE STATE OF THE UNIVERSE" "IS TO HAVE NO MATTER AT ALL ..." "A SEA OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES," "DEAD PHOTONS, AND NOTHING ELSE." "Hawking:" "AND THE ALTERNATIVE OF A BIG CRUNCH" "IS NOT MUCH BETTER." "A FEW YEARS AGO, WHEN I WAS GIVING A LECTURE," "I WAS ASKED NOT TO MENTION THE END OF THE UNIVERSE," "IN CASE IT DEPRESSED THE STOCK MARKET." "BUT I CAN REASSURE WORRIED INVESTORS," "EITHER WAY, THE UNIVERSE IS GOOD" "FOR MANY BILLIONS OF YEARS MORE." "THE END MAY BE COMING, BUT NOT JUST YET." ""STEPHEN HAWKING'S UNIVERSE" IS MADE POSSIBLE" "BY ALFRED P. SLOAN FOUNDATION TO ENHANCE PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING" "OF THE ROLE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY," "THE ARTHUR VINING DAVIS FOUNDATIONS," "THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING," "AND VIEWERS LIKE YOU." "CORPORATE FUNDING IS PROVIDED BY AMGEN," "UNLOCKING THE SECRETS OF LIFE THROUGH BIOTECHNOLOGY." "AT AMGEN, WE PRODUCE MEDICINES" "THAT IMPROVE PEOPLE'S LIVES TODAY" "AND BRING HOPE FOR TOMORROW." "Hawking:" "THE FARTHER WE PROBE INTO THE UNIVERSE," "THE MORE REMARKABLE ARE THE DISCOVERIES WE MAKE." "MUCH OF MY WORK HAS BEEN CONCERNED" "WITH THE MYSTERIES OF BLACK HOLES." "MANY PEOPLE DISMISS BLACK HOLES" "AS JUST AN ARTIFACT OF THE THEORY," "WHICH WOULDN'T EXIST IN THE REAL WORLD." "BUT THEN OBSERVERS BEGAN TO FIND THINGS IN THE SKY" "WHICH WERE JUST AS PECULIAR." "Narrator:" "IN THE END, SCIENTISTS WOULD FIND" "SOME VERY PECULIAR THINGS " "IMPOSSIBLY BRIGHT OBJECTS BLAZING FROM THE DISTANT PAST," "AND FORCES OF IMPENETRABLE DARKNESS." "THE FIRST THING THEY FOUND WAS SIGNALS," "RADIO WAVES FROM SPACE." "ASTRONOMERS TUNED IN IN SEARCH OF ALIENS." "Man:" "WELL, MY NAME IS SETH SHOSTAK," "AND I'M A AN ASTRONOMER AT THE SETI INSTITUTE" "HERE IN LOVELY MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA." "THE ACRONYM "SETI" STANDS FOR" "SEARCH FOR EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL INTELLIGENCE." "NOW, THAT "I" ON THE END" "MEANS WE'RE NOT LOOKING FOR EXTRATERRESTRIAL LIFE," "BUT WE'RE LOOKING FOR INTELLIGENT LIFE." "THAT MEANS THEY CAN HOLD UP THEIR SIDE OF THE CONVERSATION," "IF YOU WILL." "AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR," "RADIO ASTRONOMY REALLY GOT GOING." "AND IN THE LATE '50s," "THEY STARTED BUILDING LARGE RADIO TELESCOPES," "LIKE THE ONE WE'RE SITTING UNDERNEATH." "COULD THIS TECHNOLOGY" "ACTUALLY BE USED TO SEND MESSAGES, AS IT WERE," "BETWEEN THE STARS?" "IN 1959, 1960, THE FIRST EXPERIMENTS WERE MADE" "USING THIS KIND OF TECHNOLOGY -- A BIG RADIO TELESCOPE " "TO TRY AND EAVESDROP ON ANY CIVILIZATIONS" "THAT MIGHT BE NEARBY." "Narrator:" "NO ALIENS FOUND, GRANTED," "BUT THERE WAS NO MISTAKING THE SIGNALS." "Shostak:" "SUDDENLY, YOU WERE GETTING" "THESE CLEAR RADIO VIEWS, SO YOU KNEW THAT" "IN THAT DIRECTION" "THERE'S A VERY STRONG SOURCE OF RADIO WAVES." "YOU WOULD TELL YOUR FRIEND THE OPTICAL ASTRONOMER," "AND THEY WOULD GO USE A BIG TELESCOPE," "LIKE THE PALOMAR 200-INCH TELESCOPE," "OR SOMETHING SIMILAR," "AND THEY WOULD POINT IT IN THAT DIRECTION." "Narrator:" "WHERE THE UNIVERSE EMITTED A RADIO SIGNAL," "OPTICAL ASTRONOMERS NOW TRAINED THEIR GAZE." "WHAT THEY SAW DEFIED EXPLANATION." "BUT AT FIRST, ITS SIGNIFICANCE ELUDED THEM." "Man:" "PEOPLE SAW THAT THEY WERE UNUSUAL OBJECTS." "FOR EXAMPLE, A GALAXY THAT HAD A PECULIAR BLOB WITHIN IT" "IN SOME CASES WAS FOUND TO EMIT RADIO WAVES." "WHEREAS A NORMAL-LOOKING, BORING-LOOKING GALAXY DID NOT." "OR, FOR EXAMPLE," "A CLOUD OF GAS THAT HAD" "ALL SORTS OF LITTLE STRIATIONS IN IT," "AND LOOKED AS THOUGH IT MIGHT BE EXPLODING " "THOSE WERE PRECISELY THE OBJECTS" "THAT SEEMED TO EMIT RADIO WAVES." "WHEREAS MORE NORMAL, QUIESCENT CLOUDS OF GAS DID NOT." "Narrator:" "GRADUALLY, THE STRANGE EVIDENCE MOUNTED." "WHEN OBSERVERS TURNED THEIR TELESCOPES" "ON THE SOURCE OF PARTICULARLY STRONG RADIO SIGNALS," "THEY EXPECTED TO SEE COSMOLOGICAL CATASTROPHES." "INSTEAD, THEY WERE LEFT WITH COSMIC QUESTIONS." "Filippenko:" "IN THE EARLY 1960s," "OPTICAL ASTRONOMERS TOOK PHOTOGRAPHS" "OF CTAIN POSITIONS IN THE SKY" "FROM WHICH RADIO WAVES SEEMED TO BE COMING," "AND THEY JUST SAW NOTHING UNUSUAL." "THERE WAS JUST THE USUAL SMATTERING OF STARS," "AND THERE WAS NO OBVIOUSLY EXPLODING STAR," "NO TURBULENT CLOUD OF GAS, NOTHING SEEMINGLY UNUSUAL " "JUST NORMAL STARS." "AND THIS PERPLEXED THE ASTRONOMERS." "Narrator:" "TAKE THE CASE OF 3C273," "A STAR OF NO PARTICULAR DISTINCTION." "IT HARDLY SEEMED WORTH NOTICE," "THAT IS, UNTIL OBSERVERS BEGAN TO LOOK A LITTLE CLOSER." "Filippenko:" "3C273 IN THE CONSTELLATION VIRGO" "LOOKED JUST LIKE A STAR," "YET WE KNOW THAT ORDINARY STARS DON'T EMIT RADIO WAVES," "AND SO THIS WAS HIGHLY, HIGHLY UNUSUAL." "Narrator:" "USING A TECHNIQUE CALLED SPECTROSCOPY," "ASTRONOMERS STUDIED THE LIGHT" "EMITTED BY 3C273." "WHEN YOU TAKE A SPECTRUM OF AN ORDINARY STAR," "THAT IS WHEN YOU PASS THE LIGHT THROUGH A PRISM" "AND BREAK IT UP INTO A RAINBOW," "YOU CAN SEE SMALL DIPS, SMALL WIGGLES IN THE SPECTRUM." "AND THOSE ARE THE WIGGLES THAT ARE PRODUCED BY ATOMS," "BY GASES IN THE ATMOSPHERE OF THOSE STARS" "THAT ARE ABSORBING SOME OF THE LIGHT." "AND BY IDENTIFYING THE PATTERN OF THESE LINES," "THESE LITTLE WIGGLES THAT APPEAR IN A STAR," "YOU CAN DEDUCE WHETHER THE ATMOSPHERE OF THE STAR" "HAS HYDROGEN OR HELIUM AND OXYGEN " "THINGS LIKE THAT." "BUT IF THAT PATTERN IS SHIFTED TOWARD REDDER COLORS," "THEN YOU DEDUCE NOT ONLY THAT THE STAR HAS HYDROGEN" "OR OTHER COMMON ELEMENTS," "BUT ALSO THAT THE STAR IS MOVING AWAY FROM YOU." "Hawking:" "34 YEARS EARLIER," "THE AMERICAN ASTRONOMER, EDWIN HUBBLE," "HAD USED SPECTROSCOPY TO DISCOVER THAT" "THE UNIVERSE IS EXPANDING." "DISTANT GALAXIES ARE MOVING AWAY FROM US." "THE SPECTRUM OF 3C273 WAS ABOUT TO TELL US EVEN MORE." "Filippenko:" "THE SPECTRUM OF 3C273" "DIDN'T FIT ANY PATTERNS OF NORMAL GASES" "THAT HAVE BEEN OBSERVED IN NORMAL STARS." "AND SO THIS REALLY BEFUDDLED ASTRONOMERS." "NOT ONLY WAS THE OBJECT EMITTING RADIO WAVES PROFUSELY," "BUT IT HAD THIS REALLY STRANGE SPECTRUM" "THAT COULDN'T BE MATCHED WITH ANY KNOWN TYPE OF GAS." "Narrator:" "A STAR'S SPECTRUM IS ITS SIGNATURE," "AND THIS ONE WAS AN ABERRATION." "IT WAS ENOUGH TO LEAVE MANY ASTRONOMERS CONFOUNDED." "BUT FOR ONE, 3C273 WAS A REVELATION." "HE WAS CONVINCED SPECTROSCOPY COULDN'T LIE." "Filippenko:" "MARTIN SCHMIDT AT CALTECH." "NOTICED THAT TWO OF THE WIGGLES" "HAD THE SAME SPACING BETWEEN THE COLORS" "AS HYDROGEN DOES, BUT BOTH OF THE LINES" "WERE SHIFTED WAY OVER TOWARD REDDER PARTS OF THE SPECTRUM" "THAN NORMAL HYDROGEN GAS IS." "AND IF HE BELIEVED THAT THAT IDENTIFICATION WAS CORRECT," "THEN THE CONCLUSION WAS THAT THE SHIFT IS A FULL 16%." "YET A SHIFT OF 16% MEANT THAT THIS OBJECT" "WAS MOVING AWAY FROM US ENORMOUSLY FAST, AND HAD TO BE" "ONE OR TWO BILLION LIGHT YEARS AWAY." "SO, NO WAY COULD IT BE A NORMAL STAR" "OR EVEN A PECULIAR MAGNETIC STAR IN OUR OWN GALAXY." "IT HAD TO BE SOME SORT OF A STRANGE OBJECT" "THAT LOOKS STELLAR OR QUASI-STELLAR" "SIMPLY BECAUSE IT'S SO, SO FAR AWAY," "AND YET IT'S ENORMOUSLY BRIGHT." "SO THIS REALLY CAUGHT PEOPLE BY SURPRISE," "AND A FEW PEOPLE, I THINK, HAD A HARD TIME BELIEVING" "THAT ANYTHING SO RELATIVELY BRIGHT" "COULD BE SO FAR AWAY." "ASTRONOMERS DECIDED TO CALL THESE OBJECTS," "THESE RADIO-STARS," "QUASI-STELLAR RADIO SOURCES." "THEY WERE CLEARLY RADIO SOURCES " "THEY WERE DISCOVERED WITH RADIO TELESCOPES " "AND THEY LOOKED STAR-LIKE," "AND HENCE THE STELLAR ASPECT OF THE TERM." "SO "QUASI-STELLAR RADIO SOURCES" GOT CONTRACTED TO "QUASARS."" "MARTIN SCHMIDT CONCLUDED THAT IT MUST BE, INTRINSICALLY," "AN EXTREMELY POWERFUL SOURCE " "AN EXCEEDINGLY BRIGHT OBJECT INTRINSICALLY " "BECAUSE TO APPEAR AS BRIGHT AS IT DOES IN THE SKY," "YET BE SO FAR AWAY," "IT HAS TO PUT OUT A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF ENERGY PER SECOND " "MUCH, MUCH MORE THAN OUR SUN " "IN FACT, 100 TO 1,000 TIMES MORE" "THAN OUR ENTIRE MILKY WAY GALAXY OF STARS." "AND THIS WAS THE REAL KICKER." "Hawking:" "WHEN THE MYSTERIOUS QUASARS WERE DISCOVERED," "I WAS JUST BEGINNING MY POST-GRADUATE RESEARCH." "MY WORK WAS TO LEAD ME TO STUDY THINGS" "EVEN MORE MYSTERIOUS " "BLACK HOLES." "I WAS DEALING WITH EINSTEIN'S GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY," "AND THIS SEEMED, TO SOME PHYSICISTS," "A PROMISING PLACE TO LOOK" "FOR AN EXPLANATION OF THE QUASARS." "ASTRONOMERS AND ASTROPHYSICISTS WANTED AN EXPLANATION" "FOR HOW THESE STRANGE OBJECTS" "COULD BEHAVE IN THIS EXTRAORDINARY WAY " "HOW THEY COULD PRODUCE SO MUCH ENERGY," "AND YET BE SO SMALL." "AND SO THEY TURNED TO THE GENERAL RELATIVISTS," "AND ASKED THEM," ""WELL, DO YOU HAVE ANY MODELS FOR OBJECTS" ""THAT COULD LOOK LIKE THIS," "THAT COULD BEHAVE IN THIS WAY AT ALL?"" "AND THE RELATIVISTS SAID," ""WELL, THERE IS THIS ISSUE OF GRAVITATIONAL COLLAPSE," "AND MAYBE THIS IS WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR."" "Narrator:" "GRAVITY IS THE DOMINANT FORCE" "IN THE UNIVERSE." "THIS TENET OF EINSTEIN'S WAS IRREFUTABLE." "BUT THERE WAS NO SUCH CONSENSUS ABOUT WHAT WOULD HAPPEN" "UNDER VIOLENT CONDITIONS, LIKE THE DEATH OF A LARGE STAR." "EINSTEIN WONDERED, COULD ITS GRAVITATIONAL COLLAPSE" "CRUSH ITS VAST QUANTITIES OF MATTER" "INTO THE TINIEST OF POINTS?" "Dowker:" "IN 1939, TWO PAPERS APPEARED." "ONE WAS BY EINSTEIN HIMSELF," "AND ONE WAS BY THE AMERICAN PHYSICIST," "ROBERT OPPENHEIMER, AND HIS CO-WORKER, SNYDER." "THEY DISCUSSED WHAT WOULD HAPPEN" "WHEN A LARGE AMOUNT OF MATTER" "WAS CONCENTRATED IN A SMALL REGION." "Narrator:" "EINSTEIN REJECTED" "THE PROSPECT OF INFINITE COLLAPSE." "BUT OPPENHEIMER AND SNYDER'S CALCULATIONS" "MADE THE CONCEPTUAL LEAP." "Dowker:" "USING THE RULES OF GENERAL RELATIVITY," "THEY PREDICTED THAT THAT MASSIVE OBJECT" "WOULD UNDERGO CATASTROPHIC GRAVITATIONAL COLLAPSE" "AND WOULD REACH A CRITICAL RADIUS" "AT WHICH IT SEEMINGLY CUTS ITSELF OFF" "FROM THE REST OF THE UNIVERSE." "Narrator:" "FOR MANY, THE IDEA OF A STAR" "DESCENDING INTO SUCH AN ABYSS WAS UNTHINKABLE " "ALL THE MORE SO WHEN THE VIEW WAS SHARED" "BY THE GREATEST LIVING SCIENTIST." "Dowker:" "EINSTEIN WAS CONVINCED" "THAT YOU COULD NEVER GET TO THIS CRITICAL RADIUS," "THAT THIS CRITICAL RADIUS WAS AN IMPOSSIBILITY IN NATURE." "Narrator:" "THE CONTROVERSY WAS SHORT-LIVED FOR NOW." "WITH THE SECOND WORLD WAR," "OPPENHEIMER'S TALENTS WERE NEEDED ELSEWHERE," "DEVELOPING THE ATOMIC BOMB." "HIS EARLIER WORK LANGUISHED, DISMISSED BY PEERS" "AS A RADICAL DEPARTURE FROM EINSTEIN." "BUT OPPENHEIMER HAD CONVINCED ONE COLLEAGUE," "JOHN WHEELER." "STICK UP FOR SOMETHING." "AND I THINK THAT'S A WONDERFUL WAY OF SAYING" "WHAT SCIENCE IS ALL ABOUT." "STICK UP FOR SOMETHING." "Man:" "I'M DANIEL HOLZ, I'M A GRADUATE STUDENT" "AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO," "AND I'M GOING TO SEE JOHN WHEELER," "WHO WAS MY UNDERGRADUATE ADVISER HERE AT PRINCETON." "Narrator:" "FOR HOLZ," "THESE PERIODIC VISITS WITH HIS MENTOR ARE A PRIVILEGE." "AT AGE 85, JOHN WHEELER IS STILL A LUMINARY" "OF 20th CENTURY SCIENCE." "Holz:" "HE'S CERTAINLY ONE OF THE GREATEST PHYSICISTS ALIVE," "AND HE'S CONTRIBUTED IN IMPORTANT WAYS" "IN MANY DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF PHYSICS." "HE'S HAD FRESH IDEAS" "THAT HAVE PUSHED THE VERY EDGES OF OUR KNOWLEDGE." "HE LOVES TO JUST SINK HIS TEETH INTO PROBLEMS." "PART OF HIS APPROACH IN PHYSICS IS," "FIND THE BIGGEST, MOST CONFUSING THING HE CAN," "AND THEN GO AT IT FULL STEAM AND TRY TO MAKE SENSE OF IT." "Narrator:" "WHEELER WAS WITNESS TO A REMARKABLE CHAPTER" "IN THE ANNALS OF PHYSICS." "HE WORKED WITH OPPENHEIMER ON THE ATOMIC BOMB." "BUT BEFORE THAT," "WHEN WHEELER ARRIVED AT PRINCETON" "IN THE 1940s," "EINSTEIN WAS THE MOST EMINENT MEMBER OF THE FACULTY." "IN 1963, THE CONTROVERSY ABOUT COLLAPSING STARS" "WAS REKINDLED BY THE DISCOVERY OF QUASARS." "WHEELER HAD A DIFFICULT CHOICE BETWEEN TWO CONVICTIONS" "AND TWO CHERISHED COLLEAGUES." "THOUGH HE DIFFERED WITH EINSTEIN," "HE RECALLS HIM FONDLY." "Wheeler:" "HE WAS KIND ENOUGH TO INVITE ME" "TO BRING MY GRADUATE STUDENTS AROUND TO HIS HOUSE" "ONE DAY FOR TEA." "ONE OF THOSE STUDENTS, JOE CALLAWAY, SAID," ""PROFESSOR EINSTEIN," "WHEN YOU'RE NO LONGER LIVING, WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO THIS HOUSE?"" "AND EINSTEIN'S FACE WAS A STUDY " "DEEP WRINKLES, A WONDERFUL SMILE AND LAUGH," "AND HIS BEAUTIFUL VOICE" "WITH A BIT OF A GERMAN ACCENT, BUT IN CLEAR ENGLISH " ""THIS HOUSE WILL NEVER BECOME A PLACE OF PILGRIMAGE" "WHERE THE PILGRIMS COME TO LOOK AT THE BONES OF THE SAINT."" "[ LAUGHTER ]" "AND SO IT IS." "Narrator:" "WHEELER WAS NEVER ONE TO SHY AWAY FROM CONTROVERSY." "TO HIM, THE NOTION OF EXTREME GRAVITATIONAL COLLAPSE" "WAS THE STUFF OF INSPIRATION." "AND AT OPPENHEIMER'S BIDDING, HE TOOK UP THE CAUSE." "IN FACT, THE IDEA WAS PREDICTED" "BY THE LAWS OF GENERAL RELATIVITY." "BUT TO EINSTEIN, IN THIS CASE," "THERE WAS JUST SO FAR HIS OWN THEORY COULD GO" "BEFORE IT DEFIED REALITY." "Wheeler:" "HE SEEMED TO HAVE A PSYCHOLOGICAL BLOCK" "AGAINST CONSIDERING COLLAPSE." "I DON'T KNOW WHY." "Narrator:" "THE TRUTH IS, EVEN EARLIER THEORISTS" "HAD NO SUCH MISGIVINGS." "AS EARLY AS THE 18th CENTURY," "THE MATHEMATICIAN PIERRE LaPLACE PONDERED THE POSSIBILITY." "OPPENHEIMER WENT ON TO CALCULATE THE MATHEMATICS," "BUT WHEELER COINED THE NAME." "Wheeler:" "AFTER I'D USED THAT PHRASE," ""GRAVITATIONALLY COMPLETELY COLLAPSED OBJECT,"" "SEVERAL TIMES," "I REALIZED THAT IT WAS JUST TOO LONG-WINDED," "AND I SWITCHED TO "BLACK HOLE."" "Narrator:" "THE NAME STUCK." "A BLACK HOLE, BY DEFINITION," "IS A PLACE WHERE GRAVITY IS SO GREAT," "IT ENGULFS EVERYTHING AROUND IT." "Holz:" "THE KEY FEATURE OF A BLACK HOLE" "IS THAT IT'S BLACK," "THAT NO LIGHT ESCAPES FROM THIS REGION." "SO WHAT HAPPENS IS YOU HAVE THIS OBJECT" "THAT'S GETTING DENSE, SAY, A STAR THAT'S COLLAPSING," "AND IT GETS MORE AND MORE COMPRESSED." "AS IT DOES THAT, OBJECTS CLOSE TO THE STAR" "HAVE A HARDER AND HARDER TIME GETTING AWAY." "IN SOME SENSE," "THE GRAVITATIONAL PULL IS STRONGER AND STRONGER." "IF YOU KEEP ON EXTRAPOLATING THAT," "THE OBJECT GETS MORE AND MORE DENSE." "AT SOME POINT, YOU REACH THE STAGE" "WHERE EVEN LIGHT CAN'T ESCAPE," "AND IF WE WE'RE STANDING FAR AWAY FROM THIS STAR," "THE LIGHT CANNOT GET FROM THE SURFACE OF THE STAR TO US." "AT THE POINT WHERE THAT IS REACHED," "YOU HAVE A BLACK HOLE." "Wheeler:" "OUR RUSSIAN FRIENDS HAD A DIFFERENT WORD," "AND THE FRENCH THOUGHT IT SOUNDED OBSCENE," "BUT FINALLY THEY WERE WON AROUND AND THEY ACCEPTED IT." "SO A LOT OF PEOPLE DECIDED THAT THE WHOLE IDEA" "OF A BLACK HOLE WAS PATENTLY LUDICROUS," "AND THAT THEY COULDN'T EXIST." "IN FACT, EINSTEIN WAS IN THIS CAMP" "AND DID NOT SEE BLACK HOLES AS REAL PHYSICAL OBJECTS." "THE IDEA WAS SOMETHING IN NATURE" "WOULD PREVENT A BLACK HOLE FROM FORMING " "AS YOU TRIED TO PUT ALL THIS MASS IN ONE PLACE," "SOME MYSTERIOUS FORCE WOULD COME OUT" "AND ALWAYS PREVENT YOU" "FROM ACTUALLY GETTING THAT MUCH MASS" "THAT YOU WOULD ACTUALLY END UP COLLAPSING TO A BLACK HOLE." "Hawking:" "I BELIEVED THAT BLACK HOLES SHOULD EXIST," "BUT MANY PHYSICISTS THOUGHT" "THAT WAS TAKING GENERAL RELATIVITY TOO FAR." "Narrator:" "WHEELER HAD ANOTHER AGENDA" "IN EMBRACING THE UNLIKELY PREMISE OF BLACK HOLES." "QUASARS HAD BECOME A NAGGING MYSTERY." "COULD IT BE, HE WONDERED, THAT ONE PHENOMENON" "COULD SOMEHOW EXPLAIN THE OTHER?" "Holz:" "WHEELER, ALWAYS BEING AT THE FOREFRONT," "SAW THAT THESE BLACK HOLES WERE A WINDFALL" "FOR EXPLAINING ALL SORTS OF ASTROPHYSICAL OBSERVATIONS," "AND WOULD BECOME VERY IMPORTANT" "IN OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD." "AND SO HE WAS EGGING EVERYONE, URGING EVERYONE ON" "TO JOIN IN EXPLORING THIS VISTA THAT OPENED UP" "THIS LANDSCAPE OF SCIENCE." "WHAT CAN WE DO WITH THESE BLACK HOLES?" "WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR THEM?" "HOW WILL THIS AFFECT THE WAY WE LOOK AT OUR UNIVERSE?" "Hawking:" "MANY OF US WERE BEGINNING TO THINK" "THERE MIGHT BE LARGE NUMBERS OF BLACK HOLES IN THE UNIVERSE." "BUT THAT DEPENDED ON WHAT HAPPENED" "IN THE GIANT EXPLOSIONS" "THAT OCCUR AT THE END OF THE LIFE OF MASSIVE STARS." "Narrator:" "IN THE SCRUBLANDS OF CENTRAL CALIFORNIA" "IS A FACILITY WHERE SCIENTISTS PRODUCED" "SOME OF THE MOST IMPORTANT WEAPONS OF OUR TIME." "EVEN TODAY, IT IS A COMPOUND SHROUDED IN SECRECY." "THE LAWRENCE LIVERMORE NATIONAL LABORATORY" "STILL BUZZES WITH IMPORTANT SCIENTIFIC WORK." "BUT SOME OF ITS TECHNOLOGY, OUTDATED NOW AFTER THE COLD WAR," "LIES IDLE, AWAITING THE DAY" "IT WILL BE SCRAPPED OR CARTED AWAY." "AMONG ITS GUARDED PRIZES IS A POWERFUL TOOL" "THE DEFENSE DEPARTMENT HELPED CREATE," "THE FIRST SUPERCOMPUTER." "ITS PURPOSE " "TO HELP MAKE THE ELABORATE CALCULATIONS" "NEEDED FOR NUCLEAR WEAPONS." "DICK WHITE WAS ONE OF THE FIRST SCIENTISTS TO USE IT." "White:" "I CAME HERE IN 1956." "WE WERE ONE OF TWO NATIONAL LABORATORIES" "CHARGED WITH DEVELOPING NUCLEAR WEAPONS" "FOR THE UNITED STATES." "THE LABORATORY HERE AT LIVERMORE," "AND LOS ALAMOS LABORATORY," "HAD A VIRTUAL MONOPOLY ON COMPUTERS." "THE COMPUTERS WERE DESIGNED FOR US." "SO FOR A PERIOD OF 20 YEARS," "THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMPUTERS" "DEPENDED ON THE EXISTENCE OF THESE LABS." "IT OPENED UP TO US" "THE POSSIBILITY OF CALCULATING THINGS" "THAT WE COULD NOT EVEN THINK OF DOING BEFORE." "Narrator:" "AT FIRST," "WHITE NEEDED THE COMPUTER'S POWER" "TO TEST EACH NEW GENERATION OF THE BOMB." "BUT BY THE EARLY '60s, THE WORK WAS LARGELY DONE," "SO WHITE AND HIS COLLEAGUES" "AIMED THEIR COMPUTER AT A NEW PROBLEM," "BLACK HOLES." "MANY THEORISTS STILL DIDN'T BELIEVE IN THEM." "THEY ENVISIONED A VERY DIFFERENT OUTCOME" "FOR A LARGE STAR." "A MASSIVE SUPERNOVA" "WOULD BLAST IT INTO OBLIVION." "White:" "THE THEORY THAT THEY PUT FORWARD" "WAS THAT THE CORE OF THE STAR," "THE IRON CORE, WOULD COLLAPSE." "THEY BELIEVED THAT THIS COLLAPSE" "WOULD CAUSE THERMONUCLEAR REACTIONS" "THAT WOULD BLOW UP THE STAR." "WE SET OUT BELIEVING IN THIS MODEL." "SURE ENOUGH IT COLLAPSED." "WE HAD NO DOUBT IT WAS GOING TO DO THAT," "BUT IT DIDN'T FOLLOW THEIR SCRIPT." "WHAT IT DID WAS TO" "INSTEAD, JUST CONTINUE ON COLLAPSING," "AND NEVER CAME TO REST" "AS THE PRESSURE BUILT UP." "Narrator:" "WHITE CONFIRMED" "THAT A LARGE DYING STAR WOULD CONTINUE COLLAPSING" "AND END UP AS A BLACK HOLE." "IT SEEMS WHEELER AND OPPENHEIMER HAD BEEN RIGHT." "White:" "WE HAD BEEN LED BY THE COMPUTER CALCULATIONS" "TO RESULTS THAT WE HAD NOT ANTICIPATED," "AND THAT WAS AN EXTRAORDINARY TIME FOR ME." "THERE WAS A LOT OF EXCITEMENT ABOUT THIS RESULT." "THE PEOPLE THAT WORKED IN GENERAL RELATIVITY" "WERE QUITE EXCITED, BECAUSE IN A WAY, IT SAID," "WELL, THE THINGS THAT THEY HAD BEEN" "TALKING ABOUT FOR YEARS " "VERY SUPERMASSIVE CONDENSED STARS" "WITH BIG GRAVITATIONAL FIELDS -- MAY INDEED EXIST." "THIS IS A PLOT OF THE VELOCITY" "OF THE IN-FALLING MATERIAL IN A STAR THAT HAS COLLAPSED" "AND BEGINNING TO FORM A BLACK HOLE." "AT THIS POINT, WHERE THE MOST RAPIDLY IN-FALLING MATERIAL IS," "THE VELOCITY IS ABOUT 99% THE VELOCITY OF LIGHT." "Hawking:" "COMPUTER CALCULATIONS" "SHOWED THAT AT LEAST SOME EXPLOSIONS OF STARS" "WOULD FORM BLACK HOLES." "BUT IF NOTHING CAN GET OUT OF A BLACK HOLE," "HOW COULD WE DETECT ONE?" "Narrator:" "SIGHTING THE UNSEEABLE WASN'T GOING TO BE EASY." "EXCEPT, THAT IS, FOR A SELECT BREED OF THINKER," "SCIENCE FICTION WRITERS." "BLACK HOLES WERE JUST TOO HOT AN IDEA TO PASS UP." "Man:" "TOBY GOT IT NOW." ""THE BLACK HOLE?" "IT'S PULLING THE STAR APART?"" "COLLEEN NODDED." ""A RARE EVENT, AND WE'RE JUST IN TIME FOR IT." ""THE HOLE SWALLOWS STARS," "BUT FIRST IT LIKES TO CHEW THEM UP."" "HE COULD BARELY MAKE HIMSELF LOOK AS THE VIEW SWUNG INWARDS" "TOWARDS EYE-HURTING BRILLIANCE." "THE DISC REVOLVED ABOUT A WHITE-HOT BALL," "SIZZLING WITH BLISTERING ENERGY." "Narrator:" "GREGORY BENFORD IS A BEST-SELLING AUTHOR." "HIS SCIENCE FICTION IS REMARKABLY CONVINCING," "BECAUSE HE ALSO HAPPENS TO BE A PHYSICIST." "Benford:" "I SLOWLY BEGAN TO REALIZE" "THAT THERE WAS, AT LEAST, A CASE NOW EMERGING" "THAT THERE MIGHT BE A BLACK HOLE" "AT THE CENTER OF OUR OWN GALAXY " "NOT JUST A COUPLE OF TIMES THE MASS OF THE SUN," "BUT A THOUSAND TIMES, OR A MILLION TIMES," "AND THAT PROSPECT THRILLED ME." "I THOUGHT, WOW, THERE'S GOT TO BE" "SOME GREAT SPECIAL EFFECTS ON OFFER IN A PLACE LIKE THAT." "WHAT WOULD IT DO?" "WHAT WOULD IT BE LIKE IF YOU FELL INTO ONE," "AND WHAT WOULD IT FEEL LIKE TO BE STRETCHED OUT" "AS THIN AS A NOODLE BY THE TIDAL FORCE" "AS YOU FALL INTO ONE?" "HOW CAN YOU LIVE NEAR ONE?" "HOW WOULD YOU MAKE A LIVING?" "Narrator:" "IN SCIENCE FICTION," "BLACK HOLES BECAME THE ULTIMATE COSMIC MONSTER." "THEY COULD WEIGH AS MUCH AS A BILLION SUNS." "THEY COULD SWALLOW MATTER WHOLE, EVEN STARS," "AND ONCE ONE STARTS MOVING IN FOR THE KILL," "THERE'S NO STOPPING IT." "Benford:" "IT BECOMES COMPACT, MASSIVE, AND THEREFORE ABLE TO," "IF IT WERE TO ENCOUNTER SOMETHING ELSE," "ABLE TO EAT SOME MORE MATTER." "IT BECOMES THE EATER OF ALL THINGS," "BECAUSE NOTHING SURVIVES IT." "IF THIS HAPPENS, AS IS MOST PROBABLE," "AT THE CENTER OF THE GALAXY" "WHERE THE STARS ARE MORE CONCENTRATED," "THERE'S MORE DUST AND GAS," "THEN THAT'S WHERE YOU WOULD PROBABLY FIRST MAKE BLACK HOLES," "AND THEN THAT'S WHERE THE FEEDING TROUGH IS." "THEY START TO EAT THE SURROUNDINGS." "Hawking:" "BLACK HOLES WERE AN AREA" "IN WHICH SCIENCE FACT, REAL SCIENTIFIC CALCULATIONS," "WAS WAY AHEAD OF SCIENCE FICTION." "THAT ONLY CAUGHT UP LATER." "ONE QUESTION MANY SCIENCE FICTION WRITERS" "SPECULATED ON WAS," "WHAT WOULD HAPPEN INSIDE A BLACK HOLE?" "COMPUTER CALCULATIONS COULDN'T BE TRUSTED FOR THIS," "BECAUSE THEY WOULD BECOME INACCURATE" "IN THE EXTREME CONDITIONS." "BUT THE ANSWER WAS SUPPLIED BY A MATHEMATICIAN" "CALLED ROGER PENROSE," "WHO, LIKE ME, HAD BEEN ENCOURAGED TO WORK" "ON GENERAL RELATIVITY" "BY MY SUPERVISOR, DENNIS SCIAMA." "ROGER AND HIS FATHER, LIONEL PENROSE," "WROTE A PAPER, WHICH I GUESS" "THE ARTIST ESHER PARTLY MADE FAMOUS LATER," "CALLED "IMPOSSIBLE OBJECTS,"" "WHERE YOU CAN DESIGN AN OBJECT ON A PIECE OF PAPER " "AND ESHER MADE SUCH DESIGNS " "WHICH CAN'T BE REALIZED IN THE REAL WORLD." "FOR INSTANCE, THERE'S A PICTURE" "WHERE THE STEPS GO ROUND IN A CIRCUIT," "BUT THEY'RE ALWAYS GOING DOWN AS YOU KEEP GOING ROUND." "YOU THEN END UP WHERE YOU BEGAN," "AND YET YOU'VE BEEN GOING DOWN ALL THE WAY." "AND YOU CAN DRAW SOMETHING WHICH SUGGESTS THAT." "BUT IN FACT," "YOU COULDN'T CONSTRUCT IT IN THE REAL WORLD." "ROGER PENROSE HAD THE KIND OF MIND" "THAT WOULD CONCEIVE RELATIONSHIPS OF THAT SORT." "Narrator:" "PENROSE GRASPED CONCEPTS" "NO COMPUTER EVER COULD." "BUT HIS IMAGINATION ALSO TOOK HIM TO A CONCLUSION" "OTHER SCIENTISTS WERE DESPERATELY TRYING TO AVOID." "OPPENHEIMER'S IDEA OF GRAVITATIONAL COLLAPSE" "WAS STRANGE ENOUGH." "NOW PENROSE WAS CLAIMING" "THE AWESOME POWER UNLEASHED IN THAT COLLAPSE" "WOULD BREAK THE KNOWN LAWS OF PHYSICS." "Sciama:" "THERE WAS A DEBATE GOING ON AT THE TIME" "AS TO WHETHER, IN THE COLLAPSE OF A STAR IN IT'S LATE STAGES," "IT WOULD ACHIEVE INFINITE DENSITY" "IN THE CENTRAL REGION." "IF THE THEORY SAYS IT REACHES INFINITE DENSITIES," "THEN IN A CERTAIN SENSE THE THEORY HAS BROKEN DOWN" "AND THERE WOULD BE A CONTRADICTION." "THE THEORY WOULD NOT BE SELF-CONSISTENT." "IF OUR BEST THEORY OF GRAVITATION" "IS NOT EVEN SELF-CONSISTENT," "THEN WE HAVE A CRISIS IN PHYSICS." "THE THEORY OF RELATIVITY CONTAINS IN ITSELF" "THE SEEDS OF ITS OWN DECAY." "Narrator:" "IT'S CALLED A SINGULARITY..." "A POINT OF INFINITE DENSITY." "MOST SCIENTISTS THOUGHT IT UTTERLY IMPOSSIBLE." "Sciama:" "BUT PENROSE HAD NO SUCH HANGUPS," "AND HE SHOWED IN 1965" "THAT A STAR IN ITS END STAGES" "UNDER NATURAL CONDITIONS WOULD END UP" "IN THIS SELF-CONTRADICTORY STATE OF INFINITE DENSITY." "SO THE WHOLE SPACE-TIME HAS GONE PATHOLOGICAL." "Narrator:" "IT WAS A PHYSICIST'S NIGHTMARE." "IN A BLACK HOLE," "MATTER COULD ACTUALLY EXIT THE KNOWN UNIVERSE." "TIME AND SPACE DREW TO A CLOSE," "AND PHYSICS AS WE KNOW IT BECAME MEANINGLESS." "STILL, DENNIS SCIAMA ENCOURAGED HIS STUDENTS TO DELVE DEEPER." "Sciama:" "STEPHEN SAID TO ME, IN A CERTAIN SENSE," "THE UNIVERSE IS LIKE A BIG STAR " "OF COURSE, THE UNIVERSE IS EXPANDING " "IF IN YOUR MIND YOU REVERSE THE SENSE OF TIME," "THEN THE UNIVERSE IS COLLAPSING." "IT'S A BIT LIKE A COLLAPSING STAR," "A VERY LARGE STAR." "SHOULD I WORK ON THAT?" "Hawking:" "I WAS AWARDED MY DOCTORATE" "FOR SHOWING THAT THE QUESTIONS" "PENROSE WAS RAISING ABOUT BLACK HOLES" "WOULD APPLY EQUALLY WELL TO THE EARLY UNIVERSE." "BOTH THE BIG BANG AND BLACK HOLES WOULD" "CONTAIN SINGULARITIES," "PLACES WHERE SPACE AND TIME COME TO AN END," "AND THE LAWS OF PHYSICS BREAK DOWN." "Narrator:" "SINGULARITIES, IT SEEMS," "ARE CAULDRONS OF STAGGERING ENERGY." "IN BLACK HOLES," "THEY CAN CONSUME EVERYTHING IN THEIR PATH." "WITH THE BIG BANG," "A SINGULARITY WILLED THE WHOLE UNIVERSE INTO BEING." "AND WHAT ELSE, SCIENTISTS WONDERED," "COULD BE BEHIND THE FORCE UNLEASHED IN QUASARS?" "Sciama:" "THEY WERE ACTUALLY APPLYING EINSTEIN'S THEORY," "NOT JUST TO MATHEMATICAL" "OR MATHEMATICALLY DOMINATED SITUATIONS ON PAPER," "BUT TO ACTUAL OBJECTS IN THE SKY THAT WERE EXPLODING." "IN FACT, A QUASAR IS THE MOST VIOLENT EXPLOSION WE KNOW OF" "OTHER THAN THE BIG BANG ITSELF." "Narrator:" "IN RUSSIA," "AS IN AMERICA," "SCIENTISTS WHO HAD WORKED ON NUCLEAR WEAPONS" "WERE NOW TACKLING THE UNLIKELY PHYSICS OF SINGULARITIES." "BUT FIRST THEY HAD TO PROVE THESE BLACK HOLES," "IMMENSE YET HIDDEN, REALLY EXISTED." "ONE SET OUT TO FIND THE INVISIBLE," "YAKOV ZELDOVICH." "Benford:" "ZELDOVICH, APPARENTLY, NEVER FORGOT ANYTHING." "EVERYTHING WENT INTO UNDERSTANDING" "HOW TO SEE A BLACK HOLE." "I'M SURE THAT WORKING ON THE H-BOMB" "ACTUALLY HELPED HIM IN ASTROPHYSICS," "BECAUSE AFTER ALL, MOST OF ASTROPHYSICS" "IS FORMS OF CONTROLLED H-BOMBS." "HOW WOULD YOU SEE A BLACK HOLE ANYWAY?" "YOU CAN'T SEE IT DIRECTLY." "YOU KNOW THE LION BY ITS PAW," "OR EVEN BETTER BY ITS PAW PRINT." "THAT'S LESS DANGEROUS THAN ACTUALLY APPROACHING A LION." "SO HE SAID, SUPPOSE YOU'VE GOT" "TWO STARS GOING AROUND LIKE THIS," "AND ONE OF THEM IS A BLACK HOLE," "SAY THIS LITTLE ONE RIGHT HERE." "THIS BLACK HOLE HAS A POWERFUL GRAVITATIONAL INFLUENCE," "AND IT CAN ACTUALLY SUCK THE GAS" "OFF THE SURFACE OF THIS OTHER STAR." "FIRST IT GETS TORN APART BY TIDAL FORCES" "AS IT TRIES TO ORBIT THE BLACK HOLE." "THEN THESE SHRED IT," "SMEARS IT AROUND," "AND THE PARTS BUMP INTO EACH OTHER " "THEY BEGIN TO GRIND UPON EACH OTHER." "THE DENSITY IS FAIRLY HIGH, AND THEY HEAT UP." "THEY HEAT UP, THEY GIVE OFF EMISSION " "ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVES," "X-RAYS, VISIBLE, INFRARED " "AND FROM THAT WE CAN SEE THIS DISC OF HOT MATERIAL." "THAT'S ONE WAY TO SEE A BLACK HOLE INDIRECTLY." "THE MOST GAUDY WAY IS IF YOU'VE GOT A BLACK HOLE" "THAT IS REALLY SPENDING ITS ENERGY ACCOUNT." "MEANWHILE, MAGNETIC FIELDS" "HAVE BEEN DRAGGED INTO THIS GIANT SALVAGE DUMP," "PERHAPS, AT THE CENTER OF A GALAXY." "THESE MAGNETIC FIELDS TEND TO GET ORDERED," "AND THEY GO LIKE THIS." "THEY COME OUT OF THE ACCRETION DISC" "AND PEEL AWAY OUTSIDE." "THIS SET OF STRAIGHT FIELD LINES," "PERPENDICULAR TO THE DISC, MEANS THAT MATERIAL," "IF IT GETS REALLY HOT," "CAN TAKE OFF ALONG THESE FIELD LINES," "AND HEAD ON OUT ALL THE WAY " "PERHAPS WITH ENOUGH ENERGY TO BLOW OFF THE FIELD LINES," "AND TO TAKE OFF AND LEAVE THE GALAXY," "IN WHICH CASE YOU HAVE A BRIGHT STREAM" "OF WELL-ORDERED MATERIAL, LIKE WATER OUT OF A FIRE HOSE," "SPEWING OUT INTO INTERGALACTIC SPACE," "AND RADIATING, BECAUSE IT'S STILL HOT." "IT'S GOT LOTS OF ENERGY." "THAT WE CALL A GALACTIC JET." "AND IF YOU SEE TWO OF THEM, THEN IT'S CLEAR EVIDENCE" "THAT THERE IS A KIND OF AN INTERESTING SYMMETRY" "AT THE CENTER OF A GALAXY." "YOU GET TWO DISCS -- SORRY, YOU GET ONE DISC," "AND YOU GET TWO JETS." "AND THOSE " " A DOUBLE PAIR OF JETS IS, OF COURSE," "THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING TO FIND." "Hawking:" "OBSERVATIONAL EVIDENCE WAS BEGINNING TO COME," "BUT WAS STILL VERY UNCERTAIN." "I DIDN'T WANT TO SEE" "ALL MY WORK ON BLACK HOLES GO TO WASTE." "SO I MADE A BET WITH KIP THORNE," "WHO HAD BEEN A STUDENT OF JOHN WHEELER." "ONE SUSPECTS THAT IT WAS" "MORE AN INSURANCE POLICY BY STEVE," "RATHER THAN WHAT HE REALLY BELIEVED." "BECAUSE HE BET WITH KIP THORNE " "CLAIMING THAT BLACK HOLES DID NOT EXIST IN NATURE," "EVEN THOUGH THEY EXISTED IN THEORY," "AND HE BET ONE YEAR OF PENTHOUSE" "AGAINST FOUR YEARS OF PRIVATE EYE" "AGAINST KIP THORNE" "ON THE GROUNDS THAT IF BLACK HOLES DO EXIST," "HE HAS TO PAY KIP THORNE A RELATIVELY MODEST AMOUNT," "BUT IF THEY DON'T EXIST," "AND ALL HIS WORK ON BLACK HOLES IS WASTED," "AT LEAST HE GETS COPIES OF A NICE MAGAZINE." "Narrator:" "WHILE HAWKING WAS HEDGING HIS BETS," "THE EVIDENCE FOR BLACK HOLES WAS STARTING TO MOUNT." "GALACTIC JETS HAD BEEN SIGHTED." "BUT THIS STILL WASN'T PROOF." "THERE WAS NO GUARANTEE" "THE EMISSIONS CAME FROM BLACK HOLES." "SO A NEW GENERATION OF ASTRONOMERS" "TRIED A DIFFERENT TACT." "THEY BEGAN TO LOOK FOR STARS THAT MIGHT BE TRAPPED IN ORBIT" "AROUND A BLACK HOLE." "FOR ALEX FILIPPENKO, THE SEARCH WAS ON." "Filippenko:" "YOU CHOOSE THE ONES" "THAT ARE THE MOST LIKELY CANDIDATES." "AND THOSE, BY THE HYPOTHESIS OF ZELDOVICH AND OTHERS," "WERE THE X-RAY-EMITTING STARS." "SO WE FIND AN OBJECT WHICH HAD BURST OUT" "INTO THE X-RAY WORLD IN 1988." "WE WANTED TO WAIT" "UNTIL IT QUIETED DOWN AT X-RAY ENERGIES, BECAUSE," "ALONG WITH THE X-RAY OUTBURST," "YOU GET AN OUTBURST OF OPTICAL LIGHT," "RADIO LIGHT, EVERYTHING." "AND SO WHAT HAPPENS IS, FOR QUITE A WHILE," "THE MATTER WHICH IS BEING DUMPED INTO THE BLACK HOLE" "GLOWS SO MUCH AT ALL WAVELENGTHS" "THAT IT COMPLETELY DOMINATES THE LIGHT FROM THE STAR," "WHICH YOU MIGHT FIND TO BE OSCILLATING BACK AND FORTH." "SO YOU HAVE TO WAIT FOR A WHILE UNTIL THIS THING FADES," "UNTIL THE BLACK HOLE STOPS STEALING MATERIAL" "FROM THE COMPANION STAR." "SO WE WAITED." "[ ALARMS BUZZ AND RING ]" "Narrator:" "THEY WAITED A LONG TIME." "AFTER SEVEN YEARS," "THE OBJECT THEY BELIEVED TO BE A BLACK HOLE" "BEGAN TO QUIET DOWN, LEAVING THE COMPANION STAR" "CIRCLING IT IN STARK RELIEF." "FILIPPENKO AND HIS TEAM WERE READY." "Filippenko:" "WE WANT TO FIND AS DIRECT EVIDENCE AS WE CAN" "THAT A MASSIVE COMPACT OBJECT, A DARK STAR," "IS PULLING ON A COMPANION STAR." "SO THE WAY TO DO THAT" "IS TO MEASURE THE MOTION OF THE COMPANION STAR." "SINCE YOU CAN NEVER DIRECTLY TAKE A PHOTOGRAPH" "OF A BLACK HOLE, IT JUST APPEARS BLACK," "THE BEST YOU CAN REALLY DO" "IS MEASURE ITS INFLUENCE ON MATERIAL AROUND IT." "WE CAN THEN LOOK FOR MINUTE SHIFTS" "IN THE COLOR OF THE LIGHT COMING FROM THIS STAR," "AND IF THESE SHIFTS ARE FOUND," "AND THEY GO BACK AND FORTH PERIODICALLY," "THEN THAT'S AN INDICATION" "THAT SOMETHING IS TUGGING ON THE STAR," "BECAUSE STARS ON THEIR OWN DON'T JUST GO AROUND," "GOING BACK AND FORTH," "OR GOING AROUND IN CIRCLES IN THE SKY." "BY NEWTON'S LAWS, THERE HAS TO BE SOMETHING" "TUGGING ON THEM IN ORDER TO INDUCE THAT MOTION." "Narrator:" "WITH HIS TELESCOPE FINALLY WITNESS" "TO THE COMPANION STAR," "FILIPPENKO CAN ANALYZE ITS LIGHT." "OKAY, THERE'S THE STAR" "WE THINK IS ORBITING A BLACK HOLE." "LET'S GET A SPECTRUM OF IT." "Narrator:" "AS IT ORBITS, ITS SPECTRUM SHIFTS." "BY THE AMOUNT OF THAT SHIFT, FILIPPENKO CAN MEASURE" "THE SPEED OF THE STAR, AND THE GRAVITATIONAL EFFECT" "THE OBJECT IT'S CIRCLING IS EXERTING." "THE BIGGER THE PULL, THE BIGGER THE OBJECT." "WOW, WHAT A BEAUTY." "IT'S A BLACK HOLE, AT LEAST FIVE TIMES THE MASS OF THE SUN." "HERE WE ARE, TRYING TO PROVE" "THAT AN EXTREME FORM OF NATURE EXISTS," "A FORM OF NATURE PREDICTED" "BY EINSTEIN'S GENERAL THEORY OF RELATIVITY," "BUT WHICH IS NOT NECESSARILY" "SOMETHING THAT NATURE CHOOSES TO ADOPT." "BLACK HOLES " "THEY'RE IN SCIENCE FICTION AND EVERYTHING ELSE," "SO IT'S A WONDERFUL TOPIC, IT'S A WONDERFUL CONCEPT." "Narrator:" "AS THE EVIDENCE BUILDS," "SCIENTISTS HAVE BECOME CONVINCED" "BLACK HOLES DO EXIST." "Filippenko:" "CLEVER THEORISTS CAN COME UP WITH" "MANY EXPLANATIONS" "FOR INDIVIDUAL OBJECTS." "BUT WHEN YOU FIND A WHOLE COLLECTION OF OBJECTS," "ALL OF WHICH COLLECTIVELY SHOW THE SAME PHENOMENON," "THAT CAN BE EXPLAINED QUITE NATURALLY" "UNDER THE BLACK HOLE HYPOTHESIS" "AND QUITE UNNATURALLY USING OTHER HYPOTHESES" "WHERE YOU CONJURE UP SPECIAL CONDITIONS" "FOR EACH OF THESE DIFFERENT OBJECTS," "THAT LEAVES YOU WITH AN UNFULFILLED FEELING." "YOU'RE THINKING UP A NEW THEORY FOR EVERY OBJECT," "AND IT JUST DOESN'T SIT WELL, YOU KNOW, IT DOESN'T SEEM RIGHT," "IT DOESN'T FEEL RIGHT." "YET, WHEN YOU HAVE A WHOLE CLASS OF OBJECTS" "WHICH ARE BEHAVING THE SAME WAY," "AND ARE WELL EXPLAINED WITH ONE SIMPLE THEORY," "THAT GIVES YOU SOME CONFIDENCE" "THAT WHAT WE'RE REALLY SEEING IS A BLACK HOLE." "Hawking:" "THE EVIDENCE FOR BLACK HOLES" "WAS NOW SO GOOD THAT I NO LONGER FELT" "THE NEED FOR INSURANCE." "I CONCEDED MY BET," "AND KIP THORNE STARTED TO RECEIVE PENTHOUSE MAGAZINE," "GREATLY TO THE DISGUST OF HIS LIBERATED WIFE." "Narrator:" "IN THE PASSING OF ONE MYSTERY" "COMES THE ANSWER TO ANOTHER." "COULD BLACK HOLES POWER THE BRIGHTEST BEACONS IN SPACE?" "Filippenko:" "QUASARS APPEAR" "TO BE DENIZENS OF THE EARLY UNIVERSE," "THEY JUST DON'T EXIST NOWADAYS." "YET, IF THEY ARE POWERED BY MATERIAL" "FALLING INTO A BLACK HOLE LONG AGO," "BACK WHEN THE UNIVERSE WAS YOUNG," "THEN IT SEEMS REASONABLE THAT THEIR REMAINS" "EXIST HERE TODAY IN THE CENTERS" "OF NORMAL-LOOKING GALAXIES." "SO THAT WITH THE PASSAGE OF TIME," "THE QUASAR'S CENTER GRADUALLY USED UP" "ALL THE GAS AND OTHER MATERIAL IN ITS VICINITY." "IT STOPPED EATING THIS MATERIAL, AND HENCE IT FADED WITH TIME," "BECAUSE THE QUASAR GLOWS" "ONLY WHILE IT'S SWALLOWING MATERIAL." "SO A NATURAL CONCLUSION WAS" "THAT NEARBY NORMAL-LOOKING GALAXIES" "MIGHT HAVE VERY MASSIVE CENTERS," "WHICH DO NOT APPEAR ACTIVE ANYMORE" "SIMPLY BECAUSE THERE'S NO MATERIAL FOR THEM TO SWALLOW." "ASTRONOMERS HAVE FOUND" "EVIDENCE OF STARS MOVING AROUND VERY RAPIDLY" "IN THE CENTRAL REGION OF WHAT APPEARS TO BE" "A COMPLETELY BORING AND INACTIVE GALAXY " "WHERE MATERIAL SEEMS TO BE GOING AROUND SO QUICKLY" "IN SUCH A SMALL SPACE THAT NO THEORIST" "HAS DREAMED UP ANYTHING ELSE OTHER THAN A BLACK HOLE" "THAT COULD BE HIDDEN INSIDE" "THE CENTRAL REGION OF THIS GALAXY." "SO BLACK HOLES APPEAR TO FORM IN THE CENTERS OF GALAXIES." "AND IN PARTICULAR, LARGE GALAXIES" "APPEAR TO PREFERENTIALLY HARBOR BLACK HOLES AT THEIR CENTERS." "Benford:" "THE DISC REVOLVED ABOUT A WHITE-HOT BALL," "SIZZLING WITH BLISTERING ENERGY." ""WHY IS EVERYTHING SO HOT?"" ""FRICTION " " ALL THAT STUFF" ""ORBITING TIGHTER AND TIGHTER AROUND THE HOLE " ""IT RUBS UP AGAINST OTHER STUFF," ""GAS, DUST, AND WHATNOT " "HEATS UP."" "THERE'S SO MUCH OF IT." "WHOLE STARS ARE BEING GROUND DOWN" "INTO GAS AND DUST," "AND THEY CHURN AGAINST EACH OTHER," "THEY HEAT UP, THE ENTIRE DISC BECOMES LIT UP." "IT'S BRIGHTEST AT THE CENTER" "WHERE THE VELOCITIES ARE HIGHEST," "BECAUSE THE VELOCITY GETS HIGHER AND HIGHER AND HIGHER" "THE CLOSER YOU GET TO THE BLACK HOLE." "THIS BIG SHINING DISC, NOT A COMPACT DISC," "A COSMIC DISC," "IS VISIBLE AT IMMENSE DISTANCES," "BECAUSE IT SHINES PARTICULARLY OUT" "IN THE DIRECTIONS PERPENDICULAR" "TO THE DISC OF THE GALAXY ACROSS THE WHOLE UNIVERSE." "THAT'S WHAT WE BELIEVE QUASARS ARE." "THE DISCS AND THEIR SURROUNDING ENVIRONMENT," "WHICH ALSO GETS HEATED UP BY ALL THIS RADIATION" "SHINING OUT TOWARD US FROM THE FAR PAST," "BECAUSE THE QUASARS WE SEE ARE ALL DEAD NOW." "THEY DON'T LAST A LONG TIME." "THEY'RE BURNING UP THEIR ENERGY SO QUICKLY." "SO WE'RE LOOKING MILLIONS AND BILLIONS OF YEARS" "INTO THE PAST, AND SEEING GALAXIES" "BURNING THEIR INHERITANCE PROLIFICATELY," "SO THAT THEY MAY SEND US THIS MOMENTARY SIGNAL." "AND THEN THEY TURN INTO CINDERS EVENTUALLY," "THEY GO OUT." "OUR CENTER OF OUR GALAXY WAS NEVER IN THAT LEAGUE." "IT WAS NEVER A BILLION STELLAR MASSES," "IT WAS MAYBE A MILLION," "BUT ONCE IT SHONE MORE BRIGHTLY THAN IT DOES NOW." "IT WOULD HAVE BEEN DANGEROUS TO LIVE RIGHT NEXT TO, THEN." "Hawking:" "WE MAY NOW UNDERSTAND" "HOW BLACK HOLES AND QUASARS ARE RELATED," "BUT THERE IS PLENTY OF MYSTERY LEFT." "STRANGE AS IT MAY SOUND," "I HAVE FOUND THAT THINGS CAN GET OUT OF BLACK HOLES." "ON A MICROSCOPIC SCALE," "THERE IS ALWAYS A BIT OF UNCERTAINTY" "IN THE SPEED OF A PARTICLE." "THIS MEANS THAT PARTICLES CAN TRAVEL FASTER THAN LIGHT" "AND CAN ESCAPE FROM A BLACK HOLE." "OTHER PEOPLE CALL THIS HAWKING RADIATION," "BUT I DON'T FEEL I CAN USE THE TERM." "MANY PHYSICISTS BELIEVE THAT THIS RADIATION" "WILL BE COMPLETELY DETERMINED" "BY WHAT FELL INTO THE BLACK HOLE," "BUT I THINK THE RADIATION WILL BE RANDOM" "AND WILL NOT CARRY ANY INFORMATION" "ABOUT WHAT FELL IN." "I THEREFORE HAVE ANOTHER BET WITH KIP THORNE ON IT," "BUT THIS TIME HE AND I ARE ON THE SAME SIDE." "WE BET AGAINST ANOTHER PHYSICIST, JOHN FRISCIL," "THAT INFORMATION IS LOST IN BLACK HOLES." "THE LOSER WILL BUY THE WINNER AN ENCYCLOPEDIA" "FROM WHICH INFORMATION CAN EASILY BE RETRIEVED." "Narrator:" "THE CONFIRMATION OF BLACK HOLES" "HAS TAUGHT SCIENTISTS IT'S UNWISE" "TO RESIST UNLIKELY IDEAS." "SETH SHOSTAK OF SETI" "SEES IMPLICATIONS FOR HIS OWN WORK." "Shostak:" "IN MANY WAYS, THE BLACK HOLE STORY" "IS SOMEWHAT ANALOGOUS TO WHAT WE'RE DOING," "BECAUSE BLACK HOLES, IN FACT, WERE FOUND ON BLACKBOARDS," "ACTUALLY, BEFORE THEY WERE FOUND IN THE SKY." "THAT'S NOT THE NORMAL WAY THINGS WORK IN ASTRONOMY." "NORMALLY, IN ASTRONOMY, YOU GO TO THE TELESCOPE," "YOU FIND SOMETHING YOU HADN'T EXPECTED," "AND THEN YOU TRY AND EXPLAIN IT." "BUT BLACK HOLES, THEY WERE FOUND BY THEORETICIANS" "YEARS BEFORE ANYBODY HAD ANY HOPE" "OF FINDING THEM WITH A TELESCOPE." "WELL, HERE WE HAVE THE SAME THING IN SETI." "WE EXPECT" "THAT THE GALAXY IS RIFE WITH CIVILIZATIONS," "WITH TECHNOLOGICAL CIVILIZATIONS." "THAT'S WHAT WE EXPECT, THAT'S OUR BELIEF," "AND IT'S BASED ON, I THINK, REASONABLE ASSUMPTION." "NOW WE'RE USING THE TELESCOPE," "THE RADIO TELESCOPE IN THIS CASE," "TO GO OUT AND SEE, WELL, IS IT ACTUALLY THERE?" "CAN WE ACTUALLY HEAR E.T.?" "Narrator:" "BUT THERE'S ONE CRUCIAL DIFFERENCE" "BETWEEN THE DISCOVERY OF BLACK HOLES" "AND THE SEARCH FOR E.T." "Shostak:" "SO FAR, IN 36 YEARS OF LISTENING," "WE HAVE NOT HEARD A SINGLE, CONFIRMED PEEP FROM THE COSMOS." "I MEAN, THAT'S A FACT, THAT'S THE BOTTOM LINE." "Narrator:" "STILL, SETI ENTHUSIASTS ARE PATIENT." "THE QUESTION IS," "WILL THEIR COSMIC COUNTERPARTS BE, AS WELL?" "Shostak:" "WE DON'T BROADCAST IN SETI." "WE DON'T SEND SIGNALS OUT." "THE REASON WE DON'T DO THAT" "IS BECAUSE THE DISTANCES ARE QUITE LARGE." "IF THE NEAREST CIVILIZATION IS 100 LIGHT YEARS AWAY," "YOU SEND AN INQUIRY, IT TAKES 100 YEARS TO GET THERE." "IF THEY DEIGN TO REPLY, IT TAKES ANOTHER 100 YEARS" "FOR THEIR ANSWER TO COME BACK," "THAT'S 200 YEARS BY THAT POINT." "YOU'VE LOST INTEREST," "AND YOUR FUNDING HAS PROBABLY GONE AWAY, TOO." "Narrator:" "WHILE WE AWAIT SOME FAINT MURMUR FROM FAR AWAY," "OUR IMAGINATIONS ARE CARRYING US" "TO THE VERY BRINK OF THE UNIVERSE." "TODAY, THEORISTS TALK SERIOUSLY OF TIME TRAVEL" "AND WHAT THEY CALL "WORM HOLES,"" "ELUSIVE TUNNELS IN SPACE AND TIME," "THROUGH WHICH WE COULD ESCAPE OUR UNIVERSE" "AND SLIP INTO ANOTHER." "MATHEMATICALLY, IT'S ALL POSSIBLE." "Shostak:" "BLACK HOLE PHYSICS" "GETS DOWN TO THE REAL NITTY GRITTY," "THE EDGES OF WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT PHYSICS." "AND OF COURSE, THAT'S WHY IT ATTRACTS" "THE TOP THEORETICIANS," "BECAUSE IT'S A CHANCE TO MAKE THAT BREAKTHROUGH." "YOU'RE GOING TO UNKNOWN TERRITORY." "THERE ARE SUGGESTIONS THAT THIS SPEED LIMIT" "ON COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT, THE SPEED OF LIGHT," "YOU CAN'T GO FASTER THAN THE SPEED OF LIGHT," "AND YOU CAN'T SEND INFORMATION FASTER THAN THE SPEED OF LIGHT." "BUT THE PHYSICS OF BLACK HOLES SUGGEST," "ALTHOUGH IT'S STILL UNCERTAIN," "THAT THERE MAY BE OTHER WAYS TO SEND INFORMATION" "USING THE PHYSICS OF BLACK HOLES," "OR USING BLACK HOLES THEMSELVES." "THAT MIGHT IMPLY THERE'S SOME PRACTICAL WAY" "TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THAT." "AND IF YOU HAVE TRULY ADVANCED CIVILIZATIONS IN THE GALAXY," "AND YOU MIGHT, REMEMBER," "WE'RE THE NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK," "THE EARTH HAS BEEN HERE FOUR OR FIVE BILLION YEARS," "BUT THE GALAXY HAS BEEN HERE AT LEAST TWICE THAT LONG," "SO THERE MAY BE SOME CIVILIZATIONS" "THAT ARE VERY, VERY MUCH MORE ADVANCED THAN WE ARE." "THEY MAY BE TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THAT," "AND IT MAY BE THAT WE'RE SITTING AROUND" "WITH OUR RADIO RECEIVERS HOPING TO GET SIGNALS," "AND ALL THE REALLY INTERESTING TRAFFIC" "IS BEING COMMUNICATED IN A WAY THAT WE'RE NOT YET AWARE OF." "BUT IT ALSO HAS LED" "TO PREDICTIONS THAT ARE SO STRANGE" "AS TO BE HELD IN -- WELL, THEY'RE OBVIOUSLY SUSPECT." "I MEAN, THE IDEA OF TIME TRAVEL," "THE IDEA THAT YOU CAN SOMEHOW DROP INTO A WORM HOLE" "AND COME OUT IN POSSIBLY EVEN ANOTHER UNIVERSE " "THAT IS SUCH A BIZARRE IDEA, AND YET IT'S THIS," "THESE PROBINGS ON THE FRONTIER" "THAT SOMETIMES PRESENT YOU WITH A COMPLETELY NEW WAY" "OF LOOKING AT THINGS THAT MAKE THE BIGGEST PROGRESS." "SO, OF COURSE, EVERYBODY WILL PAY LIP SERVICE TO THE FACT THAT" "YES, THESE BIZARRE PREDICTIONS" "COMING OUT OF BLACK HOLE RESEARCH " "YES, WELL I'M NOT SURE I BELIEVE IN TIME TRAVEL," "OR BEING ABLE TO DROP INTO A BLACK HOLE" "AND GO TO ANOTHER UNIVERSE " "THAT DOESN'T SOUND RIGHT TO ME." "BUT THEY DO IT WITH GREAT CAUTION," "BECAUSE THEY'VE LEARNED THE LESSON" "THAT WHAT IS TODAY'S UNTHINKABLE IS TOMORROW'S CONVENTION." "Hawking:" "BLACK HOLES ARE A REMARKABLE PREDICTION" "OF EINSTEIN'S THEORY THAT SEEMS TO BE" "BORNE OUT BY OUR OBSERVATIONS." "BUT THE THEORY MAY ALLOW" "EVEN MORE EXTRAORDINARY POSSIBILITIES," "LIKE RAPID INTERGALACTIC TRANSIT OR TIME TRAVEL." "IF IT DOES, WHY HAVEN'T WE BEEN VISITED" "BY ALIENS OR TOURISTS FROM THE FUTURE?" "OF COURSE, SOME PEOPLE WOULD CLAIM" "WE HAVE BEEN VISITED, AND THAT'S WHAT UFOs ARE." "BUT I THINK ANY SUCH CONTACTS WOULD BE MUCH MORE OBVIOUS" "AND PROBABLY VERY NASTY." "TO LEARN MORE ABOUT "STEPHEN HAWKING'S UNIVERSE,"" "VISIT PBS ONLINE AT THE INTERNET ADDRESS" "ON YOUR SCREEN." "" " Captions by VITAC -- Burbank, Pittsburgh, Tampa, and Washington, D.C." ""STEPHEN HAWKING'S UNIVERSE" WAS MADE POSSIBLE" "BY ALFRED P. SLOAN FOUNDATION TO ENHANCE PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING" "OF THE ROLE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY," "THE ARTHUR VINING DAVIS FOUNDATIONS," "THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING," "AND VIEWERS LIKE YOU." "CORPORATE FUNDING IS PROVIDED BY AMGEN," "UNLOCKING THE SECRETS OF LIFE THROUGH BIOTECHNOLOGY." "AT AMGEN, WE PRODUCE MEDICINES" "THAT IMPROVE PEOPLE'S LIVES TODAY" "AND BRING HOPE FOR TOMORROW." ""STEPHEN HAWKING'S UNIVERSE" IS MADE POSSIBLE" "BY ALFRED P. SLOAN FOUNDATION TO ENHANCE PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING" "OF THE ROLE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY," "THE ARTHUR VINING DAVIS FOUNDATIONS," "THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING," "AND VIEWERS LIKE YOU." "CORPORATE FUNDING IS PROVIDED BY AMGEN," "UNLOCKING THE SECRETS OF LIFE THROUGH BIOTECHNOLOGY." "AT AMGEN, WE PRODUCE MEDICINES" "THAT IMPROVE PEOPLE'S LIVES TODAY" "AND BRING HOPE FOR TOMORROW." "Stephen Hawking:" "IN THE LAST HUNDRED YEARS," "OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE UNIVERSE" "HAS ADVANCED FAR FARTHER THAN IN PREVIOUS CENTURIES." "WE HAVE DISCOVERED THAT THE UNIVERSE AND TIME ITSELF" "HAD A BEGINNING 15 BILLION YEARS AGO." "THERE WAS A COSMIC EXPLOSION OF ENERGY" "CALLED THE BIG BANG." "THE ENERGY PRODUCED" "ALL OF THE MATTER IN THE UNIVERSE," "FROM STARS AND GALAXIES TO OUR OWN PLANET" "AND EVEN OURSELVES." "YET ONE QUESTION STILL NEEDS AN ANSWER." "HOW DID THE BIG BANG BEGIN?" "WE NEED TO KNOW THE LAWS" "THAT HELD AT THE MOMENT OF CREATION" "WHEN THE UNIVERSE SPRANG INTO EXISTENCE." "ARE THESE INITIAL LAWS OVER AND ABOVE THE LAWS" "THAT TELL US HOW THE UNIVERSE EVOLVES?" "OR IS THERE A THEORY OF EVERYTHING" "THAT GOVERNS THE UNIVERSE AT ALL TIMES" "AND DETERMINES HOW IT BEGINS AND DEVELOPS?" "Narrator: "I SHALL NEVER BELIEVE," SAID EINSTEIN," ""THAT GOD PLAYS DICE WITH THE WORLD,"" "WORDS THAT MIGHT BRING GLOOM" "TO THE GAMBLING CAPITAL OF THE EAST." "ATLANTIC CITY HAS TWO SIDES " "ONE THAT'S FLUSH WITH BIG CASINOS," "ONE OLD AND SIMPLE AS A SMALL TOWN." "TODAY, PHYSICISTS ARE GRAPPLING" "WITH A DUAL UNIVERSE " "ONE GREAT AS ALL THE COSMOS, ONE INFINITESIMALLY SMALL," "BOTH A PUZZLE TO SYDNEY COLEMAN." "Coleman:" "PHYSICS STARTS OUT BY TRYING TO EXPLAIN" "THE SORT OF PHENOMENA THAT OCCUR IN EVERYDAY LIFE " "BALLS BOUNCING AND PLANETS ROUND AND ROUND THE SUN," "AND ALL THAT STUFF." "AND THAT'S ALSO PRETTY MUCH THE SORT OF STUFF" "THAT YOU ENCOUNTER IN EVERYDAY LIFE," "AND YOUR TACIT ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT THOSE THINGS" "AND HOW THEY BEHAVE ARE DEEPLY EMBEDDED" "IN THE LANGUAGE OF EVERYDAY SPEECH." "THAT'S HOW THE LANGUAGE OF EVERYDAY SPEECH DEVELOPED." "Narrator:" "BUT PHYSICS HAS NOW GONE BEYOND THE FAMILIAR." "THEORISTS LIKE COLEMAN SPEND THEIR DAYS" "MAKING IMAGINARY JOURNEYS INTO STRANGE NEW WORLDS," "FAR REMOVED FROM EVERYDAY LIFE." "AS PHYSICS DEVELOPS" "AND PHYSICISTS WANT TO FIND OUT MORE AND MORE," "THEY TRY AND UNDERSTAND PHYSICS" "WHICH REVEALS ITSELF ONLY UNDER EXTREME CONDITIONS " "ON THE INSIDE OF AN ATOM, IN A HIGH-ENERGY ACCELERATOR," "IN A QUASAR, DURING THE BEGINNING OF THE UNIVERSE." "NOW IT WOULD BE REALLY REMARKABLE IF THE CONCEPTS" "OF EVERYDAY SPEECH CONTINUED TO BE VALID" "WHEN WE EXTEND THE UNIVERSE OF STUDY SO ENORMOUSLY." "IT'S ONLY NATURAL THAT," "AS WE GET FARTHER AND FARTHER FROM EVERYDAY EXPERIENCE," "THE THEORIES WE HAVE TO DESCRIBE ALL THIS NEW STUFF" "IN ADDITION TO EVERYDAY EXPERIENCE," "SHOULD LOOK LESS AND LESS INTUITIVE." "WHY SHOULD YOUR INTUITIONS HAVE DEVELOPED" "TO BE GOOD INSIDE A QUASAR?" "YOUR ANCESTORS DID NOT SPEND ANY TIME INSIDE QUASARS." "SO THINGS SEEM TO GET," "FROM OUR VIEWPOINT, OUR EARTH-BOUND VIEWPOINT," "STRANGER AND STRANGER." "Narrator:" "THAT THE UNIVERSE IS VAST AND EXPANDING" "IS ACCEPTED WISDOM." "THAT IT BEGAN AT A TINY POINT" "IS ACCEPTED AS WELL." "EACH EXTREME HAS ITS OWN THEORY TO DESCRIBE IT." "Coleman:" "WHEN YOU TRACE THE EVOLUTION OF THE UNIVERSE" "BACKWARDS IN TIME, YOU INEVITABLY FIND YOURSELF" "BEING PUSHED TOWARDS THE PHYSICS OF THE VERY SMALL." "Narrator:" "THE WORLD OF THE MINUTE" "HAS ITS OWN PECULIAR LAWS." "AND IT WAS AT THIS SCALE," "MILLIONS OF TIMES SMALLER THAN A SINGLE ATOM," "THAT THE UNIVERSE BEGAN." "THE STUDY OF THE SUBATOMIC REALM" "IS CALLED QUANTUM MECHANICS." "Woman:" "TWO FOUNDATION STONES, REALLY," "ON WHICH WE'VE BUILT CURRENT MODERN PICTURE" "OF THE UNIVERSE AND THE MATTER IN IT" "ARE QUANTUM MECHANICS AND GENERAL RELATIVITY." "EINSTEIN WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN BOTH OF THOSE THEORIES." "HE WAS A FOUNDER OF QUANTUM THEORY" "AND THE SOLE INVENTOR OF GENERAL RELATIVITY." "AND THE PICTURE THAT THEY GIVE US OF THE UNIVERSE" "IS A VERY GOOD ONE IN THE SENSE," "WE CAN MAKE A LOT OF PREDICTIONS" "AND EXPLAIN A LOT OF PHENOMENA." "BUT THE PICTURE IS REALLY ONLY PARTIAL IN MANY WAYS." "AND ONE OF THE PROBLEMS IS THAT THE TWO THEORIES," "IN FACT DON'T FIT TOGETHER" "Narrator:" "EINSTEIN DESCRIBED" "THE LARGE-SCALE UNIVERSE," "A REALM WHERE GRAVITY" "IS THE DOMINANT FORCE." "QUANTUM MECHANICS CONCERNS" "THE BEHAVIOR OF ATOMIC PARTICLES," "GOVERNED BY FORCES WHOLLY DIFFERENT." "BUT A COMPLETE THEORY OF THE UNIVERSE" "HAS TO EMBRACE EVERYTHING," "FROM THE TINIEST TRACES TO THE LARGEST GALAXY." "Dowker:" "EINSTEIN BELIEVED" "THAT HE COULD FIND A WAY TO MAKE THEM FIT," "BECAUSE THE METHODS THAT HE HAD APPLIED" "TO PROBLEMS IN PHYSICS BEFORE HAD ALWAYS WORKED." "HE'D BEEN VERY SUCCESSFUL IN UNIFYING THINGS." "HE TRUSTED HIS INSTINCTS." "SO HIS INSTINCT WAS THAT THERE SHOULD BE A THEORY" "WHICH DESCRIBED THE TWO THEORIES TOGETHER." "Narrator:" "IN HIS TWILIGHT YEARS," "EINSTEIN PURSUED A QUEST HE ALONE BELIEVED IN." "HE WENT HIS OWN WAY," "DREAMING OF A SINGLE THEORY OF EVERYTHING." "Dowker:" "HE SPENT DECADES ON THIS WORK." "HE WORKED BASICALLY ALONE." "I THINK THAT NO ONE ELSE SHARED HIS VIEW" "THAT THIS WAS THE WAY TO GO IN UNIFICATION." "SO HE WAS VERY SOLITARY," "AND HE WAS WORKING BY HIMSELF" "UP UNTIL THE DAY HE DIED." "Narrator:" "PAGES OF HIS NOTES WERE FOUND AT HIS BEDSIDE," "BUT HIS UNIFYING THEORY WAS UNFINISHED." "HE HAD FAILED TO REALIZE HIS DREAM." "BUT EINSTEIN, AS ALWAYS, WAS AHEAD OF HIS TIME." "FOUR DECADES LATER," "HIS QUEST IS BEING PURSUED BY OTHERS." "THEORISTS ARE RALLYING TO FIND A SINGLE EQUATION" "THAT CAN RESOLVE THE OLD CONTRADICTION" "BETWEEN QUANTUM MECHANICS AND RELATIVITY." "THEY, TOO, ARE LOOKING FOR A THEORY OF EVERYTHING." "Hawking:" "AT THE BEGINNING, THE UNIVERSE IS A SINGLE POINT." "THE NEXT INSTANT, IT IS ENORMOUS." "TO UNDERSTAND THIS PROPERLY, WE NEED A THEORY OF EVERYTHING," "WHICH IS STILL JUST BEYOND OUR GRASP." "HOWEVER, WE ALREADY" "HAVE SOME IDEAS WHY THE EXPANSION" "OF THE EARLY UNIVERSE WAS PRECISELY WHAT IT WAS." "Narrator:" "IN THEIR EFFORT TO UNCOVER THE ULTIMATE MYSTERY," "SCIENTISTS HAVE INTUITION AND INTELLECT TO GUIDE THEM." "YET SLOWLY THEIR SEARCH IS BEING REWARDED," "ONE FLEDGLING THEORY AT A TIME," "FOR THEY DO HAVE ONE MORE RESOURCE AT THEIR DISPOSAL." "WITH NEW TECHNOLOGY COMES NEW INSIGHT." "OBSERVATION OFFERS INSPIRATION." "GIANT PARTICLE ACCELERATORS, SUCH AS SLAC," "IN PALO ALTO, CALIFORNIA," "SMASH ATOMS INTO EACH OTHER." "THESE COLLISIONS CREATE MINIATURE EXPLOSIONS" "PRODUCING ENERGIES, TEMPERATURES," "AND PRESSURES THAT MIMIC" "THE VERY CONDITIONS OF THE BIG BANG." "IN THE 1970s, A STRIKING PORTRAIT" "OF THE EARLY UNIVERSE EMERGED " "ONE POISED ON A COSMIC KNIFE EDGE." "Man:" "WHAT WAS ALWAYS NEEDED," "AND NOBODY HAD REALLY POINTED THIS OUT," "WAS THAT YOU HAD TO ASSUME" "THAT THE EXPANSION RATE OF THE EARLY UNIVERSE" "WAS TUNED ALMOST EXACTLY RIGHT " "THAT IS, ALMOST EXACTLY THE RIGHT EXPANSION RATE" "SO THAT THE UNIVERSE WOULD BE JUST ON THE VERGE" "OF ETERNAL EXPANSION VERSUS EVENTUAL COLLAPSE." "IF ONE TALKS ABOUT THE UNIVERSE" "AT A TIME OF ABOUT ONE SECOND AFTER THE BIG BANG," "THIS TUNING, THIS PRECISE FIXING OF THE EXPANSION RATE," "HAD TO BE DONE TO AN ACCURACY OF ABOUT 15 DECIMAL PLACES." "IF THE UNIVERSE JUST EXPANDED" "ONE PART IN THE 15th DECIMAL PLACE" "FASTER THAN WE THOUGHT IT HAD," "IT WOULD FLY APART" "WITHOUT GALAXIES EVER HAVING A CHANCE TO FORM." "IF THE UNIVERSE AT ONE SECOND AFTER THE BIG BANG" "WERE EXPANDING WITH ONE NUMBER LESS" "IN THE 15th DECIMAL PLACE THAN WHAT WE THOUGHT," "THEN THE UNIVERSE WOULD COLLAPSE" "BEFORE GALAXIES HAD EVER HAD A CHANCE TO FORM." "TO MAKE THE UNIVERSE WORK," "THE UNIVERSE HAD TO BE PERCHED JUST ON THIS BORDERLINE." "Narrator:" "FOR 15 BILLION YEARS," "EXPANSION HAS RUN ITS COURSE IN PERFECT MEASURE." "WHAT FLUKE OF PHYSICAL LAW" "MANAGED TO STRIKE THIS UNCANNY BALANCE?" "ALAN GUTH WAS PONDERING EQUATIONS OF IMMENSE COMPLEXITY." "YET THE QUESTIONS HE WAS GRAPPLING WITH" "WERE SO SIMPLE," "THEY WERE THE KIND POSED BY A CHILD." "Man:" "WHEN I WAS STILL A KID," "I ASKED MYSELF A QUESTION " "WELL, HOW COULD IT HAPPEN" "THAT IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE UNIVERSE EXPANSION" "STARTED SIMULTANEOUSLY?" "WHO GAVE THE SIGNAL?" "HOW CAN I UNDERSTAND IT?" "AND THEN I THOUGHT THAT MAYBE WHEN I WOULD GROW OLDER" "I WILL OPEN THE BOOKS" "WHICH ARE WRITTEN BY CLEVER PROFESSORS," "AND I WILL FIND OUT THE ANSWER." "WHEN I GREW OLDER," "I FOUND THAT PEOPLE DID NOT KNOW THAT THE QUESTION EXISTS." "Narrator:" "A PROBING MIND IS A RESTLESS ONE." "ANDREI LINDE, A RUSSIAN," "HAS UNLOCKED A SECRET OF CREATION." "Linde:" "DURING THE LAST 15 YEARS," "WE'VE LEARNED THAT THE QUESTION CAN BE ANSWERED." "Narrator:" "LINDE, LIKE GUTH, NOW LIVES IN THE UNITED STATES." "BUT IN THE '70s," "THEY WERE ON OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE WORLD," "UNBEKNOWNST TO EACH OTHER, SIMULTANEOUSLY WORKING" "ON THE SAME REMARKABLE THEORY CALLED "INFLATION."" "SO, WOULD YOU GIVE ME A GLASS OF WATER?" "SURE." "Narrator:" "LINDE AND GUTH FOUND A MODEL" "FOR THE EARLY UNIVERSE IN THE SIMPLEST OF PHENOMENA." "IF ENERGY HAD SOMEHOW" "BEEN TRAPPED IN A VACUUM THEN RELEASED," "SPACE AND TIME COULD HAVE EXPANDED," "LIKE SO MANY BUBBLES." "PERHAPS THESE BUBBLES HAD COLLIDED, UNITED," "THEN RAPIDLY EXPANDED AS ONE VAST BUBBLE," "A SYMMETRICAL UNIVERSE, GROWING SMOOTHLY, QUICKLY," "AND EVENLY IN ALL DIRECTIONS." "LINDE IN MOSCOW AND GUTH IN CALIFORNIA" "WERE KINDRED SPIRITS." "BOTH NEEDED TO DO DETAILED CALCULATIONS" "TO SEE IF THE IDEA COULD WORK." "ONE WINTER'S EVENING IN 1979," "GUTH OPENED A NOTEBOOK AND BEGAN TO WRITE." "Guth:" "I HAD NOT YET CALCULATED EVERYTHING THROUGH, THAT NIGHT," "ENOUGH TO CONVINCE MYSELF THAT IT WAS A FASCINATING IDEA" "AND THAT IT WOULD PROBABLY WORK." "THE NEXT MORNING" "I RACED BACK TO SLAC, AND ACTUALLY I KEPT TRACK" "OF MY PERSONAL BIKING RECORDS TO SLAC," "AND I SET A NEW RECORD THAT MORNING." "ONCE I GOT THERE, I WHIPPED OUT MY NOTEBOOK" "AND STARTED CONTINUING THE CALCULATIONS," "AND BY, I GUESS, THE END OF THE MORNING," "I CONVINCED MYSELF THAT IT DID FIT TOGETHER." "Narrator:" "LINDE WAS ALSO MAKING HEADWAY." "BUT IT WASN'T LONG BEFORE HIS PROVERBIAL BUBBLE BURST." "THE NUMBERS SIMPLY WEREN'T ADDING UP." "ACROSS THE GLOBE, AT THE SAME TIME," "INFLATION WAS TURNING OUT TO BE DEFLATING." "Guth:" "AS I CONTINUED TO WORK ON INFLATION," "I DID HOWEVER DISCOVER THAT THERE WAS A SERIOUS PROBLEM" "IN THE WAY THAT INFLATION FINALLY ENDED." "IT HAPPENED JUST LIKE WATER BOILS." "A BUBBLE WOULD FORM HERE, A BUBBLE WOULD FORM THERE," "THE BUBBLES WOULD GROW AND COLLIDE" "AND FORM AN INCREDIBLE MORASS OF MATTER" "WITH TREMENDOUS NON-UNIFORMITIES IN IT." "WOULD LOOK, IN FACT, NOTHING WHATEVER" "LIKE OUR UNIVERSE LOOKS LIKE." "THIS WAS A SERIOUS PROBLEM THAT CLEARLY REQUIRED A MODIFICATION." "THANK YOU." "YOU'RE WELCOME, SIR." "Narrator:" "STILL, GUTH WENT AHEAD AND PUBLISHED HIS WORK." "DESPITE ITS FLAWS, THE THEORY" "CAUSED A SENSATION." "Guth:" "ALL OF A SUDDEN" "MY CAREER HAD JUST CHANGED OVERNIGHT DRAMATICALLY," "AND IT WAS AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE THAT EVERY SCIENTIST" "SHOULD HAVE A CHANCE TO HAVE ONCE IN HIS LIFE." "Narrator:" "IN RUSSIA, IT'S AGAINST SCIENTIFIC TRADITION" "TO PUBLISH AN IDEA WITHOUT" "ALL THE DETAILS WORKED OUT." "LINDE HAD LABORED LONG AND HARD," "ONLY TO BE OUTDONE BY HIS OWN PRINCIPLES." "WORSE, HE FEARED HIS PRECIOUS THEORY" "MIGHT BE COMPROMISED BY ITS PREMATURE UNVEILING." "TODAY, AT LONG LAST," "COMES A RARE MEETING OF THE MINDS." "Linde:" "I DON'T KNOW WHETHER YOU KNOW OR NOT," "BUT I HAD AN ULCER" "WHICH WAS INDUCED BY YOUR WORK," "IN SOME SENSE," "BECAUSE WHEN I HEARD ABOUT ALL THESE IDEAS," "I WAS REALLY, LITERALLY, THINKING IN THESE TERMS " "THAT GOD COULD NOT BE SO STUPID" "TO LOSE THIS OPPORTUNITY" "TO MAKE THE WORLD IN SUCH A ECONOMICAL WAY." "AND WHEN I FOUND A SOLUTION," "THE ULCER IS GONE." "WELL, SO SOMETIMES PHYSICS HELPS." "Narrator:" "LINDE HAD A NEW IDEA." "WHAT IF JUST ONE BUBBLE OF ENERGY HAD INFLATED" "AND BECOME OUR UNIVERSE?" "Linde:" "IT WAS ABOUT 11:00 AT NIGHT," "AND I COULD NOT KEEP MYSELF FROM, WELL," "THIS FEELING OF HAPPINESS." "AND I CAME TO MY WIFE AND EVENTUALLY WAKED HER UP," "AND I TOLD HER, "LOOK, IT SEEMS THAT I KNOW" "HOW THE UNIVERSE COULD HAVE EMERGED."" "I FIRST ANNOUNCED A NEW INFLATIONARY SCENARIO" "IN THE MEETING OF QUANTUM GRAVITY IN MOSCOW," "WHICH OCCURRED IN OCTOBER '81." "AND AT THAT TIME, MANY VERY GOOD PHYSICISTS IN MOSCOW," "AND THE STAR OF THE MEETING WAS STEVE HAWKING." "Hawking:" "I GAVE A SEMINAR" "WITH ANDREI TRANSLATING." "WHEN I SAID THERE WAS A DIFFICULTY" "WITH GUTH'S IDEA OF BUBBLES IN COLLISION," "ANDREI SAID THAT THE WHOLE UNIVERSE" "COULD BE A SINGLE BUBBLE." "I OBJECTED," "BECAUSE THE BUBBLE WOULD HAVE BEEN BIGGER" "THAN THE UNIVERSE AT THE TIME." "Linde:" "IN THE MIDDLE OF HIS TALK," "HE TOLD THAT THERE WAS A VERY INTERESTING IDEA" "OF ANDREI LINDE RECENTLY." "THIS WAS JUST MY TALK THE PREVIOUS DAY," "AND I WAS, OH, MY HEAVEN, HE'S TRANSLATING IT." "AND THEN HE SAYS" "BUT THIS MODEL, THIS IDEA DOES NOT WORK," "AND LET ME EXPLAIN WHY." "AND HE STARTS TALKING AND TALKING," "AND I'M TRANSLATING IT," "AND FOR A HALF AN HOUR," "IN THE FACE OF ALL THE INSTITUTE," "I WAS EXPLAINING TO THEM WHY HE KNEW INFLATION" "JUST SIMPLY CANNOT WORK." "Narrator:" "HUMILIATION CAME IN DOUBLE DOSES TO ANDREI LINDE." "IN FRONT OF RESPECTED COLLEAGUES," "HE SAW HIS THEORY DEMOLISHED." "Linde:" "AND THEN I TOLD STEVE," ""WOULD YOU LIKE TO ACTUALLY UNDERSTAND THE DETAILS OF THIS?"" "AND HE TOLD ME, "SURE."" "AND THEN WE DISAPPEARED FOR TWO HOURS." "ALL THE INSTITUTE WAS TRYING TO CATCH STEVE EVERYWHERE," "AND THE FAMOUS PHYSICIST DISAPPEARED." "THE WHOLE INSTITUTE WAS IN PANIC." "Hawking:" "LINDE AND GUTH HAD GIVEN US AN IMPORTANT IDEA." "INFLATION ACCOUNTS SO NEATLY" "FOR THE WAY THE UNIVERSE HAS TO EXPAND," "I'M SURE IT MUST BE PART OF THE FINAL PICTURE." "BUT INFLATION BY ITSELF" "DOES NOT EXPLAIN THE START OF THE UNIVERSE." "WE STILL NEED A THEORY OF EVERYTHING FOR THAT." "AND APPLYING THE THEORY" "TO THE BEGINNING OF THE UNIVERSE WOULD BE DIFFICULT," "BECAUSE MY OWN WORK HAD SHOWN" "THAT THE EQUATIONS WOULD BREAK DOWN" "AT THE BIG BANG." "Coleman:" "YOU CAN TAKE" "EINSTEIN'S EQUATIONS AND RUN THEM BACKWARDS IN TIME," "NOT FOR A REAL UNIVERSE," "WHICH IS COMPLICATED, FULL OF" "LUMPS AND IRREGULARITIES," "BUT FOR A SIMPLIFIED MODEL OF THE UNIVERSE," "WHERE MATTER IS DISTRIBUTED SMOOTHLY AND UNIFORMLY" "THROUGHOUT THE UNIVERSE." "AND WHEN YOU DID RUN IT BACKWARDS IN TIME," "YOU FOUND, EVENTUALLY, THERE WAS A POINT IN WHICH" "EVERYTHING CAME TOGETHER AT A SINGLE POINT," "WHERE GRAVITATIONAL FIELDS BECAME INFINITELY STRONG," "ENERGY DENSITIES BECAME INFINITELY HIGH." "TECHNICALLY WE CALL IT A SINGULARITY." "Narrator:" "IT IS THE NETHERWORLD OF PHYSICAL LAW." "A SINGULARITY LIKE THE BIG BANG IS A REALM BEYOND COMPREHENSION," "WHERE LOGIC IS REPLACED BY CHANCE..." "WHERE MATTER IS RULED BY MERE PROBABILITY," "AND SCIENTISTS MUST RESORT TO SUMMING UP" "THE ROLLS OF THE DICE." "Coleman:" "PHYSICISTS LIKE TO SOLVE EQUATIONS." "THEY LIKE TO SAY," "IF THIS IS THE WAY THINGS ARE NOW," "THIS IS THE WAY THEY'LL BE A YEAR FROM NOW." "ONCE YOU HIT A SINGULARITY, YOU CAN'T DO THAT." "THE EQUATIONS BLOW UP," "AND YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH IT." "THIS IS DISTURBING." "PEOPLE DON'T LIKE SINGULARITIES." "Narrator:" "THE BEST BET" "FOR SOLVING THE MYSTERIES OF SINGULARITIES" "IS QUANTUM MECHANICS." "Coleman:" "QUANTUM MECHANICS IS PROBABLY THE STRANGEST THING" "HUMAN MINDS HAVE EVER THOUGHT UP." "I THINK IF 1,000 PHILOSOPHERS WERE TO WORK FOR A 1,000 YEARS," "TRYING TO THINK UP SOMETHING OF MAXIMUM STRANGENESS," "THEY WOULDN'T HAVE THOUGHT UP" "ANYTHING AS STRANGE AS QUANTUM MECHANICS." "Narrator:" "THINK OF IT AS A GAME OF CHANCE." "QUANTUM MECHANICS IS BASED ON WERNER HEISENBERG'S" ""UNCERTAINTY PRINCIPLE."" "A SUBATOMIC PARTICLE" "IS TOO SMALL TO ACTUALLY SEE DIRECTLY." "WE CAN NEVER KNOW WITH PRECISION" "WHERE ANYTHING THAT SMALL REALLY IS." "BUT AS IT MOVES," "IT TRACES A PATH WE CAN TRY TO PREDICT." "WE CAN VENTURE A BET OF ITS PROBABLE POSITION." "AS IT TURNS OUT, THE UNCERTAINTIES" "TAKEN TOGETHER ADD UP TO REVELATIONS ALTOGETHER CERTAIN." "Coleman:" "STRANGE AS IT IS, IT IS APPARENTLY" "THE WAY THE UNIVERSE WORKS" "THAT ENABLES US TO MAKE PREDICTIONS" "ABOUT ALL SORTS OF PROCESSES INVOLVING ATOMS" "OR ELEMENTARY PARTICLES COLLIDING," "THAT ARE VERIFIED BY EXPERIMENT TO AMAZING DEGREES OF ACCURACY." "Narrator:" "THE PROBLEM IS THE LAWS OF UNCERTAINTY" "ONLY MAKE SENSE FOR THE UNIVERSE" "AS A WHOLE AT ITS MOMENT OF CREATION." "THEY CAN'T BE APPLIED TO THE UNIVERSE TODAY," "TO THE STARS AND PLANETS GOVERNED BY GRAVITY," "AND WITH MOTIONS DESCRIBED BY RELATIVITY." "Coleman:" "A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE BEEN TRYING TO COMBINE" "QUANTUM MECHANICS WITH GRAVITY OVER THE YEARS," "A QUANTUM MECHANICAL REPLACEMENT" "FOR EINSTEIN'S GENERAL RELATIVITY." "Hawking:" "I WANTED TO RESOLVE THE PROBLEM OF THE SINGULARITY." "AFTER ALL, I WAS LARGELY RESPONSIBLE" "FOR RAISING IT IN THE FIRST PLACE." "MAYBE ONE COULD CHOOSE A PATH AROUND IT." "Coleman:" "HAWKING SAW THAT THE UNCERTAINTY" "THAT CAME WHEN YOU TRIED" "TO COMBINE QUANTUM MECHANICS AND GRAVITY" "WAS IN FACT AN ESCAPE ROUTE," "AND COULD BE USED TO GET AWAY FROM THIS " "AVOID THE SINGULARITY PROBLEM," "WHICH HE HIMSELF HAD DONE SO MUCH TO RAISE." "IN A REMARKABLE PAPER" "DONE IN COLLABORATION WITH JAMES HARTLE," "HAWKING WAS ABLE TO SOLVE" "A VERY, VERY SIMPLIFIED MODEL OF THE UNIVERSE." "Hawking:" "JIM HARTLE AND I SHOWED" "HOW A UNIVERSE LIKE OUR OWN" "COULD BE BORN WITHOUT THE TROUBLESOME SINGULARITY." "IT INVOLVED THE USE OF WHAT IS CALLED IMAGINARY TIME." "THIS MAY SOUND LIKE SCIENCE FICTION," "BUT IT IS A WELL-DEFINED SCIENTIFIC CONCEPT" "THAT SCIENCE FICTION BORROWED." "THE IDEA WAS THAT IN IMAGINARY TIME" "THE UNIVERSE HAS NO BOUNDARY," "NO BEGINNING OR END." "IT JUST CURLS ROUND ON ITSELF LIKE THE SURFACE OF THE EARTH." "Coleman:" "IT WAS A COMPLETE QUANTUM MECHANICAL DESCRIPTION" "OF EVERYTHING THAT COULD BE SAID" "ABOUT THIS SIMPLIFIED MODEL OF THE UNIVERSE," "AND IT HAD NO SINGULARITIES." "IT'S POSSIBLE THAT QUANTUM MECHANICS" "IS THE ANSWER TO THE PROBLEM OF THE SINGULARITY." "Hawking:" "I HAVE TO MAKE IT CLEAR" "THAT THE NO-BOUNDARY UNIVERSE IS JUST A PROPOSAL," "BUT IT HAS SOME INTERESTING IMPLICATIONS." "WITHOUT BOUNDARIES," "THE UNIVERSE HAS NO BEGINNING AND NO END." "WE DON'T HAVE TO EXPLAIN ITS CREATION." "THE UNIVERSE SIMPLY EXISTS." "BUT THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE NO-BOUNDARY PROPOSAL" "CANNOT BE WORKED OUT FULLY" "WITHOUT A COMPLETE QUANTUM THEORY OF GRAVITY" "THAT WILL UNITE GENERAL RELATIVITY" "AND QUANTUM MECHANICS." "WE ARE BACK TO THE SEARCH FOR A THEORY OF EVERYTHING." "Narrator:" "WHILE OTHERS TURN TO THE HEAVENS FOR THEIR MODELS," "COSMOLOGIST LEE SMOLIN LOOKS A LITTLE CLOSER TO HOME." "THE ANSWER TO HIS UNIVERSE IS NOT CONTAINED" "IN ANY MATHEMATICAL EQUATION." "Smolin:" "THE HOPE WAS THAT THERE WOULD BE ONE SIMPLE LAW" "WHICH WOULD HAVE A UNIQUE SOLUTION," "WHICH WOULD EXPLAIN" "HOW THE UNIVERSE IS," "THE HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSE, AND SO FORTH." "AND THAT HOPE THAT ALL THE QUESTIONS" "WOULD BE ANSWERED IN A SINGLE LAW" "IS WHAT HAS NOT HAPPENED." "SO I WONDERED ABOUT THIS A GREAT DEAL." "AND I WAS THINKING ABOUT THIS" "AT THE SAME TIME THAT I WAS READING ABOUT BIOLOGY." "THAT LED ME TO BEGIN TO WONDER" "WHETHER THE ANSWERS TO SOME OF THE QUESTIONS" "IN ELEMENTARY PARTICLE PHYSICS" "DID NOT REST IN A SINGLE UNIQUE THEORY," "BUT MAYBE WOULD BE A RESULT OF HISTORICAL ACCIDENT," "AND MAYBE THERE COULD BE A PROCESS BY WHICH," "THROUGH A SERIES OF DEVELOPMENTS" "IN THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSE," "SOMEHOW THE UNIVERSE CHOSE WHAT ITS PARAMETERS WERE." "THE WONDERFUL THING ABOUT THE BIOLOGICAL WORLD" "IS THAT IT'S SO COMPLICATED." "THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENT SPECIES," "THEY'RE SO BEAUTIFUL IN SO MANY DIFFERENT WAYS," "AND ONE WOULD THINK THAT ONE COULD NOT POSSIBLY EXPLAIN THIS," "WHICH IS OF COURSE WHAT PEOPLE THOUGHT BEFORE DARWIN." "WHAT DARWIN DISCOVERED" "IS THAT THERE IS A RATIONAL WAY TO UNDERSTAND" "HOW SUCH ENORMOUS VARIETY AND COMPLEXITY" "CAN COME TO BE IN THE NATURAL WORLD," "WITHOUT BEING PUT THERE IN THE FIRST PLACE." "AND THE BASIC IDEA IS THAT YOU HAVE SOME POPULATION" "WHICH CAN REPRODUCE ITSELF," "THAT WHEN IT DOES SO," "THERE ARE SMALL, RANDOM CHANGES IN THE CHARACTERISTICS," "AND THAT THESE CHARACTERISTICS LEAD TO DIFFERENCES" "IN HOW WELL THE CREATURES SURVIVE." "Narrator:" "SMOLIN'S THEORY OF EVERYTHING" "HAS A FAMILIAR RING." "IT'S INSPIRED BY DARWIN'S IDEA OF NATURAL SELECTION." "Smolin:" "THE UNIVERSE, LIKE THE BIOLOGICAL WORLD," "SEEMS TO HAVE DISCOVERED ALL SORTS OF WAYS" "TO KEEP ITSELF OUT OF EQUILIBRIUM AND TO KEEP" "AN ENORMOUS VARIETY OF THINGS GOING ON." "AND THE UNIVERSE ALSO INVENTS LIFE," "WHICH IS VERY IMPRESSIVE," "AND MANY COSMOLOGISTS HAVE WONDERED," "HOW COULD IT BE THAT ALL OF THIS" "IMPROBABLE STRUCTURE AND ORGANIZATION COMES TO BE," "OUT OF THE WORLD THAT EVOLVES OUT OF THE BIG BANG." "Narrator:" "IMAGINE THE UNIVERSE AS A PRODUCT" "OF THE SAME EVOLUTIONARY PROCESSES" "THAT LATER GAVE RISE TO US." "Smolin:" "IF ONE STUDIES ASTRONOMY" "ON SCALES MUCH, MUCH LARGER THAN THE EARTH " "FOR EXAMPLE, THE DISC OF A SPIRAL GALAXY " "ONE DISCOVERS IT'S A COMPLEX, SELF-ORGANIZED SYSTEM," "SOMEWHAT AKIN TO BIOLOGY ON A MUCH SIMPLER LEVEL." "IT TURNS OUT THAT" "THE IDEAS BY WHICH WE UNDERSTAND THE PATTERNS ON SEA SHELLS" "OR THE STRIPES ON AN ANIMAL'S COAT" "ARE VERY CLOSE TO THE IDEAS BY WHICH WE UNDERSTAND" "HOW THE GALAXIES GET" "THEIR BEAUTIFUL SPIRAL STRUCTURES." "WHAT OCCURRED TO ME WAS MAYBE THE EXPLANATION" "FOR WHY THE PARAMETERS OF THE LAWS OF PHYSICS" "ARE RIGHT TO PRODUCE ALL THIS COMPLEXITY" "IS LIKE THE EXPLANATION OF BIOLOGY." "THE NEW POSSIBILITY WHICH DARWIN GAVE US" "IS THAT A SYSTEM CAN HAVE ALL THE BEAUTY" "AND VARIETY AND COMPLEXITY OF OUR WORLD" "AND BE ASSEMBLED FROM ITSELF," "THAT IT CAN ORGANIZE ITSELF OVER TIME." "WHAT 20th-CENTURY SCIENCE" "IS LEADING TO IS, IN MY VIEW " "AND OF COURSE, COULD BE WRONG " "THE CULMINATION OF THIS VIEW OF THE UNIVERSE" "AS SOMETHING WHICH DOES CREATE ITSELF AND ASSEMBLE ITSELF." "OF COURSE, IT'S A NEW IDEA," "AND IT'S VERY, VERY FAR FROM BEING DEMONSTRATED," "ALTHOUGH I MUST SAY THAT I'M VERY STRUCK BY THE FACT" "THAT IT WASN'T PROVED WRONG YET." "BUT THE IDEA THAT MAYBE THE UNIVERSE AS A WHOLE" "ORGANIZED ITSELF BY SOME NATURAL PROCESS" "MAKES ONE FEEL MORE AT HOME." "Narrator:" "WHAT PRECEDED CREATION?" "THE THEORISTS WHO ARE EXPLORING THE QUESTION" "ARE PIONEERS, STANDING ALONE AT THE FRONTIERS" "OF AN IMPENETRABLE WILDERNESS." "FOR ANDREI LINDE, THIS LONELY PURSUIT" "WAS TAKING ITS TOLL." "'85 WAS THE FIRST YEAR OF PERESTROIKA," "SO THE FIRST YEAR OF PERESTROIKA," "GORBACHEV JUST CAME TO POWER," "AND THEY STARTED RECONSTRUCTING EVERYTHING," "WHICH IS A TRANSLATION OF THE WORD PERESTROIKA," "THE RECONSTRUCTION." "AND AS A FIRST STEP," "THEY'D COMPLETELY FORBIDDEN US TO SEND OUR PAPERS ABROAD," "SO I HAD A FEELING THAT I AM LIVING WITH MY MOUTH SHUT." "I CANNOT TELL OTHERS WHAT I AM DOING," "AND THIS WAS PRETTY DEPRESSING." "SO I BECAME SO MUCH DEPRESSED" "THAT I ACTUALLY BECAME SIMPLY ILL," "AND NOW I WAS LYING IN THE BED" "FOR ABOUT A MONTH AND A HALF, AND THEN, ALL OF A SUDDEN," "THERE WAS A CALL FROM ACADEMY OF SCIENCES." "THEY TOLD ME THAT I MUST GO TO ITALY" "TO GIVE SOME POPULAR LECTURES ON ASTRONOMY." "AND I TOLD THEM, "I AM ILL, I CANNOT GO."" "Narrator:" "HE'D SUFFERED YEARS OF FRUSTRATION" "AND MONTHS OF REPRESSION." "NOW LINDE WAS SUDDENLY FREE TO SAY WHAT HE LIKED." "HE HAD 24 HOURS TO FIND SOMETHING WORTH SAYING." "Linde:" "AFTER THIS YEAR WITH THE MOUTH SHUT," "THEY ARE SUGGESTING TO ME THAT IF I DO SOMETHING," "THEN TOMORROW IT WILL BE SENT THERE" "BY DIPLOMATIC MAIL WITHOUT ANY APPROVEMENT," "WITHOUT ANY SIGNATURES," "WITHOUT ANY OF THIS BUREAUCRATIC WORK." "TOMORROW IT WILL BE IN ITALY." "ON THE OTHER HAND, IT MUST BE DONE JUST IMMEDIATELY," "AND I AM REALLY SICK." "I JUST CANNOT." "I TOOK MY HEAD LIKE THAT, AND I STARTED THINKING," ""WHAT CAN I INVENT WITHIN HALF AN HOUR OR SO?" ""I WILL WRITE IT TODAY IN THE EVENING," ""AND TOMORROW I'LL SEND IT TO ITALY." "WHAT CAN I DO WITHIN HALF AN HOUR?"" "AND WITHIN HALF AN HOUR," "I HAVE GOT A THEORY OF SELF-REPRODUCING UNIVERSE." "Narrator:" "IN LINDE'S NEW THEORY," "INFLATION MUST HAVE PRODUCED A MULTITUDE OF UNIVERSES." "INSTEAD OF JUST ONE GROWING, THERE HAD TO BE MANY " "EACH UNIVERSE DIFFERENT," "EACH THE PRODUCT OF ITS OWN BIG BANG." "IN TIME, THEY WILL SEED OTHER UNIVERSES" "SO THE PROCESS GOES ON FOREVER." "LINDE HAD EXPERIENCED HIS OWN CONCEPTUAL BIG BANG." "OUT OF DEPRESSION HAD COME PURE INSPIRATION." "Linde:" "WHEN I WAS REALLY GOING TO ITALY," "I HAD FOUR PAPERS WRITTEN" "ON THE THEORY OF SELF-REPRODUCING UNIVERSE." "I SMUGGLED THEM TO ITALY WITHOUT ANY PERMISSION," "AND I CAME TO ROME, AND I GAVE LECTURES IN ROME." "I CAME TO TORINO, I GAVE LECTURES IN TORINO." "I CAME TO TRIESTE, AND I GAVE THE LECTURES," "AND THEN THEY DELIVERED MY BODY TO THE RAILWAY STATION" "AND PUT ME INTO A LUXURIOUS sleeping WAGON," "AND I LOOKED INTO MYSELF IN THE MIRROR " "THIS WAS '86, WHERE I WAS 38 YEARS OLD." "I LOOKED IN THE MIRROR" "AND I HAVE SEEN THE BODY OF AN OLD PERSON," "SLOWLY MOVING FROM TRIESTE INTO THE DIRECTION OF ROME." "AND THEN, AFTER A WHILE, I BECAME HEALTHY AGAIN." "AND SINCE THAT TIME I DID NOT HAVE SUCH A DEPRESSION," "WHICH IN A CERTAIN SENSE MAY BE UNFORTUNATE." "Hawking:" "SMOLIN AND LINDE'S EVOLUTIONARY THEORIES" "HAVE FAILED TO CATCH ON." "MOST COSMOLOGISTS, LIKE ME," "STILL WANT TO FIND A SINGLE EXPLANATION" "OF A SINGLE UNIVERSE." "Narrator:" "IN 1985, A PROMISING NEW THEORY EMERGED," "RAISING HOPES THE SEARCH WOULD SOON BE OVER." "YOU'RE TUNED TO WBAI, 99.5 FM ON YOUR DIAL." "COMING UP NEXT, "EXPLORATIONS" WITH DR. MICHIO KAKU." "WELCOME." "THIS IS "EXPLORATION."" "THIS IS DR. MICHIO KAKU," "PROFESSOR OF THEORETICAL PHYSICS," "AND THIS IS A PROGRAM DEVOTED TO SCIENCE" "AND THE FANTASTIC DISCOVERIES AS WE EXPLORE THE UNIVERSE," "AND OF COURSE, SUPER STRING THEORY," "THE THEORY THAT WILL PERHAPS" "GIVE US AN EXPLANATION FOR THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE." "SOME PEOPLE SAY THE INSTANT OF THE BIG BANG," "THE UNIVERSE WAS A DOT." "THE NEW PICTURE IS THAT IT'S LIKE A BOWL OF NOODLES," "A BOWL OF NOODLES WHERE WE HAVE" "THOUSANDS AND MILLIONS OF LITTLE STRINGS," "VIBRATING AT THE INSTANT OF TIME," "THAT EXPLODED, CREATING" "THE ENORMOUS DIVERSITY OF MATTER AND ENERGY" "THAT WE SEE AROUND US." "SUPER STRING THEORY IS SO BIZARRE, SO STRANGE," "THAT WE WERE NOT DESTINED TO SEE THIS THEORY" "IN THE 20th CENTURY." "MANY OF US BELIEVE THAT IT'S REALLY 21st-CENTURY PHYSICS" "THAT FELL ACCIDENTALLY" "INTO THE 20th CENTURY." "Narrator:" "BUBBLES HAVE THEIR PROPONENTS," "UNCERTAINTY HAS ITS ADHERENTS," "BUT STRINGS ARE THE STUFF OF ZEALOTS." "IT'S BASED ON A RAREFIED BRANCH OF MATHEMATICS," "AND IT'S AN IDEA SO AHEAD OF ITS TIME" "THAT ITS TIME MAY NOT YET HAVE COME." "Kaku:" "EINSTEIN SPENT THE LAST 30 YEARS OF HIS LIFE" "TRYING TO CREATE A THEORY OF EVERYTHING," "A THEORY OF BLACK HOLES, OF GALAXIES," "AND A THEORY OF ATOMS, OF LIGHT, OF FORCE." "SO WE HAVE TWO GREAT THEORIES OF PHYSICS " "THE THEORY OF THE VERY BIG, EINSTEIN'S THEORY OF RELATIVITY," "AND THE THEORY OF THE VERY SMALL," "THE QUANTUM THEORY." "AND THESE TWO THEORIES !" "THEY ARE INCOMPATIBLE." "ONE IS SMOOTH, BEAUTIFUL, LIKE MARBLE," "AND THE OTHER ONE IS COARSE AND GRAINY LIKE WOOD." "AND TO GET THEM TO MEET TOGETHER HAS BEEN THE OBJECT" "OF THE LAST 50 YEARS OF INTENSE INVESTIGATION." "TODAY, WE THINK WE HAVE IT." "WE THINK WE HAVE THE SUPER STRING THEORY," "WHICH IS PERHAPS THE MOST FANTASTIC," "THE MOST MARVELOUS THEORY EVER PROPOSED" "IN THE HISTORY OF SCIENCE." "Narrator:" "STRING THEORY BORDERS ON MYSTICISM." "IT CONTEMPLATES A UNIVERSE" "STREWN WITH MINUTE STRANDS OF SPACE-TIME." "Kaku:" "STRINGS ARE EXTREMELY TINY," "LIKE 100 BILLION BILLION TIMES SMALLER THAN A PROTON," "SO LET ME EXPLAIN." "TAKE AN ATOM, AND EXPAND IT TO THE SIZE OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM." "IF THE ATOM WERE THE SIZE OF OUR SOLAR SYSTEM," "THEN A STRING IS MUCH SMALLER THAN THAT." "A STRING IS THE SIZE OF AN ATOM." "THAT IS HOW INCREDIBLY TINY THIS ALL IS." "WE ALSO THINK THAT ONCE UPON A TIME" "THE UNIVERSE WAS THE SIZE OF A STRING." "WHEN STRINGS MOVE, THEY VIBRATE." "AND WHEN THEY VIBRATE," "EACH NOTE OF THIS VIBRATING STRING" "CORRESPONDS TO A PARTICLE." "SO IF I HAD A MICROSCOPE" "THAT COULD PEER INTO AN ELECTRON OR PROTON," "I'D SEE A VIBRATING STRING." "MY OWN BODY IS ESSENTIALLY A SYMPHONY OF VIBRATING STRINGS." "BUT WHEN STRINGS MOVE, THEY FORCE THE SPACE AROUND IT" "TO CURL UP, TO BEND," "EXACTLY AS EINSTEIN HAD PREDICTED." "Narrator:" "STRINGS ARE THE THEORIST'S DARLING." "THEY ARE A STRUCTURE HATCHED SPECIFICALLY TO CATER" "TO THE DISCREPANCIES" "IN THE DIVERGENT THEORIES OF PHYSICS." "TRUE, THEY ARE WHOLLY ABSTRACT, AND HAVE LITTLE BASIS" "IN REALITY SO FAR," "BUT AT LEAST THEY MAY" "PROVIDE THE TIES THAT BIND" "THE TWO GREAT SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT." "WE PHYSICISTS HAVE BEEN PUZZLED BY THE FACT" "THAT WE HAVE MATTER, LIKE ATOMS," "AND WE HAVE FORCES, LIKE GRAVITY," "THAT ATTRACT ATOMS." "NOW WE REALIZE THAT THIS DICHOTOMY" "BETWEEN FORCE AND MATTER" "IS REALLY NOT A DICHOTOMY AT ALL." "THESE ARE NOTHING BUT VIBRATIONS OF THE SAME STRING." "ONE STRING THAT VIBRATES COULD BE A QUARK." "ANOTHER STRING THAT VIBRATES COULD BE AN ELECTRON." "BUT YET ANOTHER STRING THAT VIBRATES" "COULD BE LIGHT, A PHOTON, OR EINSTEIN'S THEORY OF GRAVITY." "Narrator:" "STRING THEORY, AT ITS HEART," "IS A SEARCH FOR PERFECTION," "TO CONJURE A VISION OF CREATION" "OF CONSUMMATE ORDER AND PURITY OF FORM." "Kaku:" "NOW, IF YOU LOOK AT CLOUDS OR ROCKS OR MOUNTAINS," "WE DON'T SEE SYMMETRY AT ALL." "BUT AS WE GO BACKWARDS IN TIME," "AS WE GET CLOSER AND CLOSER TO THE BIG BANG," "WE REALIZE THAT THERE'S A BEAUTIFUL," "GORGEOUS, MAGNIFICENT SYMMETRY" "THAT WE BEGIN TO SEE EMERGING AS WE GO BACKWARDS IN TIME." "NOW, WE BELIEVE" "THAT AT THE INSTANT OF THE BIG BANG" "THERE WAS PERFECT SYMMETRY." "THE ONLY THEORY WHICH GIVES US THIS PERFECT SYMMETRY" "IS THE SUPER STRING THEORY." "Narrator:" "THEORISTS TODAY ARE WALKING A FINE LINE" "BETWEEN MODELS OF THE UNIVERSE BASED ON IMAGES" "WE CAN MAKE CONCRETE," "AND CONCEPTS THAT SEEM, FOR NOW, BEYOND THE IMAGINATION." "Kaku:" "THESE EQUATIONS ARE WELL-DEFINED," "THEY'RE WELL-KNOWN," "BUT SOME PEOPLE THINK THAT PERHAPS WE HUMANS" "ARE NOT SMART ENOUGH TO SOLVE THEM." "THINK OF A DUCK OR A MONKEY." "WHY SHOULD A DUCK OR A MONKEY UNDERSTAND CALCULUS" "OR ELECTRIC FIELDS OR BLACK HOLES?" "AND WHY IS IT THAT WE HAVE THE POWER" "TO UNDERSTAND THE BIG BANG AND THE BLACK HOLES?" "AND THEN THE QUESTION IS," "ARE WE SMART ENOUGH TO UNDERSTAND" "THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING?" "AT THE PRESENT TIME, NO." "Hawking:" "BY THE END OF THE '80s," "I AND A NUMBER OF OTHER PHYSICISTS" "WERE BEGINNING TO WONDER IF STRING THEORY" "REALLY WAS THE ULTIMATE THEORY OF THE UNIVERSE." "Narrator:" "IN FACT, STRING THEORY IS NO THEORY AT ALL," "FOR A THEORY, BY DEFINITION, MUST VENTURE SOME PREDICTIONS" "THAT WILL ULTIMATELY BE PUT TO THE TEST OF REALITY." "SUBLIME AND CONCEPTUALLY PERFECT AS STRING THEORY IS," "IT NEEDS SOMEONE TO COME TO ITS RESCUE." "Kaku:" "IN THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS," "WE'VE BEEN IN THE WILDERNESS." "THE MATHEMATICS HAS PROVEN TOO DIFFICULT" "TO SOLVE SUPER STRING THEORY." "THE THEORY IS SMARTER THAN WE ARE." "THE CREATIVE ENGINE BEHIND SUPER STRING THEORY" "IS ED WITTEN OF PRINCETON." "IN FACT, SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN ONCE SAID THAT ED WITTEN IS" ""THE SMARTEST MAN ON EARTH."" "AND IF ANYONE IS SMART ENOUGH TO SOLVE SUPER STRING THEORY," "IT'S PROBABLY GOING TO BE ED WITTEN." "Witten:" "STRING THEORY IS A MATHEMATICAL STRUCTURE" "OF A RICHNESS AND SUBTLETY WE DON'T UNDERSTAND WELL." "THERE ARE MANY PIECES OF IT THAT WE'VE COME TO UNDERSTAND," "AND THEY, BY THEMSELVES," "ARE QUITE ELABORATE STORIES IN THEIR OWN RIGHT." "WE DON'T YET HAVE" "A COMPLETE OVERVIEW OF THE WHOLE SUBJECT." "IT SEEMED PRETTY CLEAR THAT IF THERE WAS A CHANCE" "TO GO WAY BEYOND OUR FAMILIAR UNDERSTANDING OF PHYSICS," "STRING THEORY WAS THE MOST AMBITIOUS PROSPECT." "IT ALSO WAS CLEAR THEN, AS IT IS NOW," "THAT IT IS A VERY LONG-TERM PROPOSITION." "Narrator:" "ED WITTEN HAS TAKEN ON THE CHALLENGE" "OF TACKLING SOME OF THE MOST DIFFICULT MATHEMATICS" "IN THE SCIENTIFIC WORLD." "Witten:" "I WASN'T ORIGINALLY INTERESTED IN MATHS." "I WAS INTERESTED IN DOING PHYSICS." "AND I REMEMBER VERY WELL" "HAVING SOME RETICENCE" "FOR QUITE SOME TIME ABOUT" "MAKING THE 100% COMMITMENT," "OF REALLY DECIDING THAT WAS GOING TO BE MY LIFE." "Narrator:" "WITTEN'S QUEST IS TO TURN OUT" "COUNTLESS CONSUMING MATHEMATICAL CONSTRUCTIONS." "ONE, HE HOPES, WILL SOMEDAY GET STRINGS" "TO ACTUALLY DESCRIBE THE WORLD." "Witten:" "THE QUESTION WAS," "HOW REALISTIC WAS IT AS A THEORY OF NATURE?" "MY MAIN INTEREST WAS TO MAKE IT MORE REALISTIC." "FOR A FEW YEARS THERE WERE VERY EXCITING DEVELOPMENTS," "AND THEN WE WENT THROUGH A PERIOD" "WHERE THE PROGRESS WAS SLOWER AND MORE SUBTLE." "WE WERE DOTTING I's AND CROSSING T's" "AND UNDERSTANDING DETAILS." "WE WERE DISCOVERING THINGS THAT WERE STRANGE AND BEAUTIFUL," "BUT PERHAPS NOT OF SUCH WIDE RAMIFICATIONS" "AS THE THINGS DONE IN THE MID-'80s." "SO THINGS WERE SLOW" "AND THE DEVELOPMENTS, I GUESS, WERE MORE MATHEMATICAL." "STRING THEORY, AS IT HAD DEVELOPED BY THE MID-'80s," "WAS CHARACTERIZED BY THE FACT" "THAT THERE WERE FIVE THEORIES WE KNEW ABOUT." "AND THAT RAISED THE RATHER CURIOUS QUESTION" "WHICH WAS ALWAYS A LITTLE BIT EMBARRASSING." "IF ONE OF THOSE THEORIES DESCRIBES OUR UNIVERSE," "THEN WHO LIVES IN OTHER FOUR UNIVERSES?" "WE'VE COME TO UNDERSTAND" "THAT THOSE FIVE THEORIES WE'VE BEEN STUDYING" "ARE ALL LIMITING CASES OF ONE BIGGER PICTURE." "IN THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS, THE PICTURE HAS REALLY CHANGED" "THROUGH SOMETHING WHICH IS CALLED DUALITY." "DUALITY IS A RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TWO DIFFERENT THEORIES," "WHICH ISN'T OBVIOUS." "IF IT'S OBVIOUS, YOU DON'T DIGNIFY IT" "BY THE NAME "DUALITY."" "SO WE HAVE DIFFERENT PICTURES." "AND IT'S NOT THAT ONE IS CORRECT" "AND THE OTHER ONE ISN'T CORRECT." "ONE OF THEM IS MORE USEFUL" "FOR ANSWERING ONE SET OF QUESTIONS." "THE OTHER IS MORE USEFUL" "FOR ANSWERING ANOTHER SET OF QUESTIONS." "AND THE POWER OF THE THEORY" "COMES LARGELY FROM UNDERSTANDING" "THAT THESE DIFFERENT POINTS OF VIEW" "WHICH SOUND LIKE THEY'RE" "ABOUT DIFFERENT UNIVERSES" "ACTUALLY WORK TOGETHER IN DESCRIBING ONE MODEL." "AND I MIGHT SAY THAT 10 YEARS AGO" "IT JUST LOOKED IMPOSSIBLE THAT THOSE THEORIES" "WOULD TURN OUT TO ALL BE ONE," "SO IT'S A BIG CONCEPTUAL UPHEAVAL" "TO UNDERSTAND THAT THERE'S ONLY ONE THEORY" "WHICH IS OUR CANDIDATE FOR NATURE." "TO MAKE AN ANALOGY" "WITH THE BLIND MEN AND THE ELEPHANT," "THERE IS THE GUY WHO DISCOVERED THE TRUNK," "AND THERE'S THE GUY WHO DISCOVERED THE TAIL," "AND THERE'S THE GUY WHO DISCOVERED THE EAR." "AND IN THE PAST WE THOUGHT" "THEY WERE FIVE DIFFERENT THINGS." "NOW WE KNOW THERE IS ONE ELEPHANT." "WE STILL DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT ELEPHANT TOO WELL." "Narrator:" "WITTEN REMAINS CONVINCED" "STRING THEORY CAN BE BORNE OUT." "HIS CONVICTION HAS ITS PRICE." "THE NEW WORLD HE'S CHARTING IS A LONELY ONE." "IT IS POPULATED ONLY BY STRANGE AND ABSTRACT IDEAS," "BY MANY DIMENSIONS," "RATHER THAN THE THREE THE REST OF US KNOW." "A LOT OF PEOPLE, EVEN PROFESSIONAL PHYSICISTS," "IN MY OPINION, DON'T FULLY GRASP THE SCOPE AND RICHNESS" "OF THE STRUCTURE INVOLVED." "PEOPLE MAY TEND TO BE TOO IMPATIENT FOR QUICK RESULTS" "IN SOME CASES." "I THINK THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF REASONS" "TO THINK THAT A STRUCTURE" "WHICH IS SO RICH AND SO PHYSICAL" "AND WHICH HAS BEEN THE SOURCE," "THE CONTINUED SOURCE OF SO MANY BEAUTIFUL DISCOVERIES," "MUST BE ON THE RIGHT TRACK." "Narrator:" "WITTEN IS WIDELY REGARDED" "AS THE HEIR APPARENT TO EINSTEIN." "ON HE STRUGGLES, WITH LITTLE ASSURANCE" "HIS WORK CAN BE COMPLETED IN HIS LIFETIME." "Witten:" "WHEN YOU ARE DOING A CALCULATION," "IT'S USUALLY ON SOME VERY SPECIFIC DETAIL." "THAT'S A TINY, TINY PIECE OF THE BIG PICTURE." "AND YOU'RE HOPING THAT THAT PIECE WILL SHED LIGHT" "ON THE BIG PICTURE." "SOMETIMES IT DOES, BUT USUALLY IT DOESN'T." "OFTENTIMES YOU COME HOME" "AT THE END OF THE DAY," "AND YOU KNOW EXACTLY THE AMOUNT YOU KNEW" "AT THE BEGINNING OF THE DAY." "BUT SOMETIMES YOU KNOW A LITTLE BIT MORE." "I THINK THAT THIS INVESTIGATION" "IS THE RICHEST THING THAT PHYSICISTS CAN TACKLE NOW." "HOW FAR WE'LL GET IN OUR LIFETIMES," "THERE'S NO WAY TO KNOW." "WE MIGHT GET THE ANSWERS WE DREAM OF GETTING." "WE MIGHT FALL WELL SHORT." "BUT I THINK WE CAN ACCOMPLISH SOMETHING," "A FAITH WHICH I'D SAY IS WELL-VINDICATED" "BY THE DUALITY REVOLUTION OF THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS." "I THINK WE CAN ACCOMPLISH MORE IN THE FUTURE," "AND GETTING AS FAR AS WE CAN IS THE BEST WE CAN DO." "Hawking: 20 YEARS AGO," "I SAID THERE WAS A 50/50 CHANCE" "WE WOULD HAVE A COMPLETE PICTURE OF THE UNIVERSE" "IN THE NEXT 20 YEARS." "THAT IS STILL MY ESTIMATE TODAY, BUT THE 20 YEARS STARTS NOW." "IT'S VERY HARD TO BUILD" "A FULLY CONSISTENT QUANTUM THEORY OF GRAVITY." "THE STRING THEORISTS THINK THEY HAVE ONE." "THEY MAY OR MAY NOT BE RIGHT." "THEY HAVEN'T YET PUSHED THEIR THEORY FAR ENOUGH" "SO YOU CAN COMPARE" "THE CONSEQUENCES OF STRING THEORY TO EXPERIMENT," "AND THAT'S WHAT YOU ULTIMATELY NEED." "Narrator:" "WHILE THEORISTS AROUND THE WORLD" "PURSUE THEIR LONE PREDICTIONS," "MANY ARE PINNING THEIR HOPES" "ON A SINGULAR MISSION." "NEIL TUROK IS PREPARING FOR A JOURNEY INTO THE UNKNOWN." "HE'S ABOUT TO EXPLORE A PLACE CALLED THE PAST." "WHEN HE GETS THERE," "HE'LL TELL US WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE." "Turok:" "IMAGINE YOU WERE TRYING TO NAVIGATE ACROSS A CONTINENT," "AND YOU HAD A MAP WHICH ONLY SHOWED FEATURES" "GREATER THAN 100 MILES ACROSS." "IT WOULDN'T BE MUCH USE IN FINDING YOUR WAY" "ALONG A PARTICULAR ROUTE." "BUT IF YOU HAVE A MAP THAT HAS A RESOLUTION OF A MILE," "THEN THAT BECOMES MUCH MORE USEFUL." "Narrator:" "TUROK IS SETTING OUT" "TO MAKE THE MAP OF ALL MAPS WITH A SATELLITE" "HE PLANS TO HELP LAUNCH EARLY IN THE 21st CENTURY." "IT'S CALLED THE PLANCK EXPLORER." "Turok:" "WHAT WE'LL DO IS LOOK OUT," "MAP THE WHOLE SKY AT A VERY HIGH RESOLUTION." "BASICALLY, THIS IS EQUIVALENT TO MAKING A MAP OF THE EARTH" "WHERE YOU SHOW ALL THE RIVERS AND THE MOUNTAINS" "AND THE VALLEYS IN EXQUISITE DETAIL." "AND THIS MAP WILL CONTAIN A VAST AMOUNT OF INFORMATION." "IT WILL GIVE US" "THE BEST PICTURE WE HAVE OF THE UNIVERSE." "Narrator:" "THE PLANCK EXPLORER" "WILL BE ABLE TO DETECT ENERGY THAT WAS EMITTED" "BILLIONS OF YEARS AGO AT THE DAWN OF THE UNIVERSE." "FOR A STUDY THAT HAS TOO LONG" "SEARCHED FOR ANSWERS IN THE MIND'S EYE," "IT MIGHT PROVIDE A VISION OF SHEER CLARITY." "Turok:" "IT IS A MAP OF THE UNIVERSE" "AT VERY EARLY TIMES." "WE'RE NOT SURE QUITE WHEN THE RADIATION" "FROM THE BIG BANG WAS EMITTED FROM THE PLASMA" "IN THE EARLY UNIVERSE," "BUT WHEN WE LOOK OUT AND WE SEE THE SKY," "WE'RE LOOKING DIRECTLY" "AT DIFFERENT PATCHES OF HOT PLASMA," "AND THEY ARE GOING TO BE" "AT SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT TEMPERATURE," "AND SO THIS WILL BE A MAP" "OF THE TEMPERATURE VARIATIONS ON THE SKY." "Narrator:" "IN THOSE SUBTLE VESTIGES OF THE BIG BANG" "ARE THE SECRETS OF ITS INCEPTION." "THEY WILL BEAR THE SIGNATURE OF CREATION," "AND WITH ANY LUCK," "THE REVELATION THAT WILL CLINCH WHICH THEORY WINS THE DAY." "THE TIME MAY SOON BE AT HAND TO KNOW THE ULTIMATE TRUTH." "I THINK PEOPLE ARE USUALLY" "EXCESSIVELY CONFIDENT ABOUT THE THEORIES," "BECAUSE THERE HAS BEEN AN ABSENCE OF DATA," "AND THAT'S ALLOWED PEOPLE" "TO BE CONFIDENT ABOUT THE THEORIES." "THE CURRENT THEORIES THERE ARE, ARE ALL BASED" "ON VERY CLEVER IDEAS AND VERY IMAGINATIVE IDEAS," "BUT WHAT'S REALLY GOOD ABOUT THEM IS" "THEY DO GIVE YOU A WELL-DEFINED FRAMEWORK" "WITHIN WHICH YOU CAN MAKE PREDICTIONS." "Narrator:" "WE'VE ALREADY GLIMPSED THE TEMPERATURE FLUCTUATIONS" "OF THE BIG BANG, BUT NEVER IN SUFFICIENT DETAIL." "EACH THEORY OF EVERYTHING PREDICTS A DIFFERENT OUTCOME" "TO TUROK'S EXPERIMENT." "PERHAPS HE WILL AT LAST SETTLE THE QUESTION," "OR PERHAPS HE'LL ONLY RAISE MORE." "Turok:" "WE'RE IN THE WONDERFUL SITUATION NOW" "WHERE OVER THE NEXT 5 OR 10 YEARS," "THE THEORY IS GOING TO BE BEATEN TO DEATH," "OR THEORIES THAT WE HAVE WILL BE BEATEN TO DEATH" "IN TERMS OF MAKING PREDICTIONS." "THAT WILL ALL BE SETTLED," "AND THEY'LL ALL SAY EXACTLY" "WHAT THEY EXPECT TO FIND ON THE SKY." "AND THEN THIS SATELLITE WILL FLY" "AND WILL MAP THE SKY TO VERY HIGH PRECISION," "AND WE'LL SEE WHAT HAPPENS." "IT'S A VERY EXCITING TIME TO BE INVOLVED." "IT'S A UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY IN SCIENCE WHERE YOU'RE TOLD," "WITHIN 10 YEARS WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THE DATA" "THAT WILL PROVE OR DISPROVE" "ANY THEORY OF HOW STRUCTURE FORMED IN THE UNIVERSE." "AND YOU'VE GOT 10 YEARS," "SO WE'LL SEE IF ANYONE GETS IT RIGHT." "Hawking:" "IT COULD BE THAT IN A FEW YEARS" "WE WILL HAVE A COMPLETE THEORY THAT IS CONFIRMED BY EXPERIMENT." "IT WOULD BE A REMARKABLE ACHIEVEMENT," "PERHAPS THE ULTIMATE TRIUMPH OF SCIENCE." "BUT KNOWING HOW THE UNIVERSE WORKS" "IS NOT ENOUGH TO TELL US WHY IT EXISTS." "TO FIND THE ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION" "WOULD BE TO KNOW THE MIND OF GOD." "TO LEARN MORE ABOUT "STEPHEN HAWKING'S UNIVERSE,"" "VISIT PBS ONLINE AT THE INTERNET ADDRESS" "ON YOUR SCREEN." 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