"Annenberg Media" "¶" "CAPTIONING IS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE ANNENBERG/CPB PROJECT" "WELCOMETOAN ADVENTURE OFTHEMIND." "ITBEGINSBY LOOKINGAHEAD" "TOTHESIGHTSAND SOUNDS OFTHEMECHANICALUNIVERSE." "THERE ARE CERTAIN HUMAN ACTIVITIES" "THE MIND ASSOCIATES WITH A PARTICULAR PLACE" "BECAUSE IT'S SOMEHOW MORE ELEGANT THERE." "FOR EXAMPLE," "IF I WANTED TO GAMBLE," "I WOULDN'T PLAY POKER IN SOME SLEAZY BACK ROOM." "I WOULD GO TO MONTE CARLO" "AND PLAY ROULETTE IN THE CASINO." "IN THE SAME WAY," "WHEN I THINK OF TENNIS, I THINK OF WIMBLEDON." "FOR OPERA, IT'S LA SCALA." "FOR PHYSICS-- IF YOU WANT TO STUDY PHYSICS" "THE PLACE IS CAL TECH." "THAT'S WHY WE'RE HERE." "LET'S GET STARTED." "THERE IS A BRANCH OF SCIENCE" "COSMOLOGY, IT'S CALLED" "THAT CONCERNS ITSELF" "WITH THE PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE" "OF THE UNIVERSE AS A WHOLE." "HOW DID THAT UNIVERSE BEGIN?" "HOW HAS IT EVOLVED," "AND WHERE IS IT GOING?" "THERE IS ANOTHER BRANCH OF SCIENCE" "IN THE REALM OF PHYSICS" "WHICH IS CALLED MECHANICS." "THE SCIENCE OF MECHANICS" "CONCERNS ITSELF WITH SOMETHING NOT QUITE AS PHILOSOPHICAL," "BUT NO LESS PROFOUND." "HOW EVER IT STARTED AND WHEREVER IT'S GOING," "HOW DOES IT ALL WORK?" "FROM THE SMALLEST PARTICLE" "TO THE LARGEST CLUSTER OF GALAXIES," "WHAT KEEPS IT ALL GOING?" "WHETHER IT'S SPEEDING UP," "SLOWING DOWN," "CHANGING DIRECTION," "OR CRUISING STRAIGHT AHEAD," "WHY DOES IT ALL BEHAVE THE WAY IT DOES?" "WHETHER IT'S A SOLID," "A LIQUID," "OR A GAS," "OR AN ENIGMATIC, UNSEEN FORCE," "JUST HOW DOES IT ALL INTERACT AND WHY?" "ALL OF THESE QUESTIONS," "FROM THE SIMPLEST TO THE MOST PROFOUND," "ARE BY NO MEANS LATE ARRIVALS." "THEY'VE BEEN AROUND" "AS LONG AS THERE HAVE BEEN PEOPLE TO ASK THEM." "EVEN THE EARLIEST HUMAN INHABITANTS" "OF THIS PLANET" "MUST HAVE LOOKED UP AT THE SKY" "AND ASKED, "HOW DOES IT ALL WORK?"" "WITHOUT EVEN KNOWING IT," "THEY HAD TAKEN THE FIRST TENTATIVE STEPS" "TOWARD DISCOVERING AND UNDERSTANDING" "THE MECHANICAL UNIVERSE." "IF THERE IS A KEY" "TO UNDERSTANDING THE MECHANICAL UNIVERSE," "IT CAN BE FOUND IN THE REALM OF MATHEMATICS," "AND AMONG EARLY CIVILIZATIONS," "THERE WERE NO GREATER MATHEMATICIANS" "THAN THE ANCIENT GREEKS." "THEIR WORK ADDED IMMEASURABLY TO THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE." "IN THE AREA OF CIRCLES, FOR EXAMPLE," "THEY WORKED TO THE POINT OF EXHAUSTION," "WHICH IS WHAT IT TOOK TO FIND THE NUMBER PI." "DESPITE, OR MAYBE BECAUSE OF, SUCH BRILLIANT DISCOVERIES," "THE GREEKS FELL BEHIND." "ONCE THE GOLDEN AGE ENDED," "THEY PLACED A LOWER VALUE ON THE QUESTIONS" "THAN ON THE ANSWERS." "WITH TOO FEW QUESTIONS," "THE WORLD BOUGHT ARISTOTLE'S MECHANICS" "WITH PLATO'S IDEAS." "EVENTUALLY, PTOLEMY'S SOLAR SYSTEM," "IN WHICH THE PLANETS ORBIT THE EARTH UNIFORMLY," "WAS HELD ALOFT BY CONVENTIONAL WISDOM" "ANSWERS INSTEAD OF QUESTIONS," "THAT WENT ALMOST UNCHALLENGED WELL INTO THE RENAISSANCE." "THE INTELLECTUAL DIRECTION OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION" "FELL INTO LINE BEHIND THE ENDLESS CIRCULAR ARGUMENT" "OF THE PLATONIC IDEAL." "THE QUESTION ISN'T REALLY "WHY?"" "UNLESS IT'S "WHY TAMPER WITH PERFECTION?"" "THE QUESTION IS "HOW?"" "HOW, 1,500 YEARS AFTER PTOLEMY," "WAS THE PERFECT CIRCLE BROKEN?" "AND IN WHAT MUST SEEM" "ANOTHER CONTRADICTION OF LOGIC," "HOW DID AN ORDERLY NEW WORLD TAKE SHAPE" "IN THE CRUCIBLE OF SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION?" "IT BEGAN WHEN A CURIOUS POLISH MONK," "NICOLAUS COPERNICUS," "LOOKED TOWARD THE STARS" "AND SAW THINGS IN A DIFFERENT LIGHT." "IN THE COPERNICAN SOLAR SYSTEM," "THE EARTH ORBITS THE SUN" "RATHER THAN THE OTHER WAY AROUND." "WHY DID COPERNICUS SEE THE UNIVERSE THIS WAY?" "HOW DID SUCH A VISION" "MAKE HIM THE WORLD'S FIRST REVOLUTIONARY?" "AN INTELLECTUAL BRIDGE THAT SPANNED THOUSANDS OF YEARS" "WAVED PRECARIOUSLY IN THE WINDS OF CHANGE." "PILLARS OF AN AGE-OLD ACADEMIC COMMUNITY" "WERE BESET WITH THREATENING QUESTIONS." "NO ONE WAS BETTER EQUIPPED TO FILL THE INTELLECTUAL VOID" "THAN GALILEO GALILEI." "THOUGH ARISTOTELIAN THINKING STILL RULED THE WORLD" "OF THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE," "GALILEO WAS AN EXCEPTION TO THE RULE." "HE WAS A COPERNICAN" "WITH THE COURAGE OF HIS CONVICTIONS." "HE HAD THE RIGHT IDEA AT THE WRONG TIME." "HIS CRITICS AROSE IN DEFENSE OF THE STATUS QUO." "IF THE EARTH REALLY SPINS," "WHY DOES A BALL DROPPED FROM A TOWER" "LAND DIRECTLY BELOW?" "WHY NOT IN THE NEXT CITY-STATE?" "THE ANSWERS WERE MORE DANGEROUS THAN THE QUESTIONS." "THE CHURCH, WHICH CONSIDERED HIM A THREAT TO ROME" "AND AN AFFRONT TO COMMON SENSE," "WARNED HIM TO LEAVE THINGS IN THEIR PROPER PLACES." "NONETHELESS, GALILEO SPOKE THE TRUTH" "AND PROVED WHAT SEEMED TO BE THE IMPOSSIBLE." "WHEN ALL WAS SAID AND DONE..." "IHAVEAFEATHER ANDA HAMMER." "I'LLDROP THETWOOF THEM." "HOPEFULLY,THEY'LL HITTHEGROUND SIMULTANEOUSLY." "HOWABOUTTHAT?" "THATPROVESTHAT MR.GALILEO" "WASCORRECT INHISFINDINGS." "GALILEO'S FINDINGS COME DOWN THROUGH HISTORY" "AS AN AMAZING EXAMPLE" "OF THE SCIENTIFIC IMAGINATION AT WORK." "WITH HIS MIND SET ON EXPLAINING THE UNIVERSE" "IN SCIENTIFIC TERMS," "GALILEO'S EXPERIMENTS LED HIM TO DISCOVER" "THE LAW OF INERTIA." "WITH UNCANNY PHYSICAL INSIGHT," "HE ACCURATELY ENVISIONED" "THE PARABOLIC PATH OF PROJECTILES," "AS WELL AS THE LAW OF FALLING BODIES." "EVEN TODAY, WHEN THEY COME RIGHT DOWN TO IT," "THE QUESTIONS BEHIND THESE EXPERIMENTS" "ARE AS CHALLENGING" "AS THEY WERE THREE CENTURIES AGO." "HOW DID GALILEO CALCULATE A PROJECTILE'S PATH?" "HOW DID HE BEGIN TO PROPEL MATHEMATICS" "DEEPLY INTO THE FUTURE?" "IN THE DAYS WHEN SEEING TRULY WAS BELIEVING," "HOW DID HE DISPROVE THE OBVIOUS PERCEPTION" "ABOUT FALLING OBJECTS?" "HOW CAN A HAMMER AND A FEATHER" "LAND TOGETHER?" "AS GALILEO HIMSELF FELL FROM GRACE IN 1633," "WHY WAS THE WHOLE BUSINESS OF THE UNIVERSE" "A TRIAL TO EVERYONE CONCERNED?" "ABOUT THE SAME TIME," "EVERY DAY WAS A TRIAL TO THE WANDERING MATHEMATICIAN," "JOHANNES KEPLER." "TO A MAN IN ALMOST CONSTANT FLIGHT" "FROM A LIFE OF ILLNESS AND POVERTY," "WITCH-HUNTS, AND THE EVEN MEANER SPIRITS OF HIS ASSOCIATES," "SIMPLE EXISTENCE WAS SOMETHING OF A CHALLENGE." "SURELY NO MAN EVER SACRIFICED MORE" "TO GRASP THE SCIENTIFIC TRUTH." "ON THE OTHER HAND," "NO MAN'S DISCOVERIES EVER PROVED MORE REWARDING" "THAN KEPLER'S LAWS..." "THE LAW OF ELLIPSES..." "THE LAW OF EQUAL AREAS," "AND KEPLER'S THIRD LAW OF PLANETARY MOTION," "THE LAW OF HARMONY." "WITH HIS LAWS OF PLANETARY MOTION AS THE KEY," "KEPLER ENTERED THE SECRET CHAMBER" "OF THE COSMOS." "AND YET," "BY EXPLAINING HOW RATHER THAN WHY" "THE SOLAR SYSTEM WORKS," "HE WAS DESTINED TO REMAIN" "ON THE THRESHOLD OF THE MECHANICAL UNIVERSE." "IT WAS TIME FOR SOMEONE ELSE TO TAKE THE FINAL STEP." "ON THIS VERY PATH, WHICH LED DIRECTLY TO THE MOON," "ALONG CAME ISAAC NEWTON WITH SOME CRUCIAL QUESTIONS." "WHY DOES AN APPLE FALL?" "SINCE AN APPLE FALLS, WHY NOT THE MOON?" "IF THEY FALL FOR THE SAME REASON," "WHY DOESN'T THE MOON CRASH INTO THE EARTH?" "WITH SUCH QUESTIONS, THE QUESTIONS OF A LIFETIME," "NEWTON RATHER CALMLY SAT DOWN" "AND PIECE BY PIECE" "DESTROYED BEYOND REPAIR THE AGE-OLD MACHINERY" "OF THE ARISTOTELIAN UNIVERSE." "WITH ANSWERS THAT WERE EQUALLY ASTOUNDING," "HE CREATED SOMETHING TO TAKE ITS PLACE," "THE MECHANICAL UNIVERSE." "THE MECHANICAL UNIVERSE," "A PREDICTABLE, ORDERLY UNIVERSE" "OBEYING PRECISE, MATHEMATICAL LAWS." "AND, WITH THE LAWS OF MOTION," "THE ABILITY TO TAKE ON ALMOST ANY PHYSICAL CHALLENGE." "WITH HIS LAWS OF MOTION," "NOT UNLIKE DAVID CONFRONTING GOLIATH," "ISAAC NEWTON TOOK ON THE GREAT ISSUES OF MECHANICS." "ARMED WITH HIS KEEN MASTERY OF FORCES," "A PRECISE KNOWLEDGE OF TRAJECTORIES..." "AND THE UNIVERSAL LAW OF GRAVITATION..." "NEWTON MASTERED MORE THAN ANY HUMAN BEING BEFORE HIM." "FOR THAT, HE DESERVES SERIOUS ATTENTION" "AND CONSIDERABLE FANFARE." "NONETHELESS, IN SCIENCE, ANSWERS ARE PART OF THE PAST." "THE FUTURE BELONGS TO THE QUESTIONS" "THAT SCIENCE RAISES," "WHICH MEANS THAT EVEN NEWTON'S LAWS" "WERE ONLY A BEGINNING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION." "FOR EXAMPLE," "IN MODERN TIMES A PROJECTILE CAN BE GUIDED" "WITH MATHEMATICAL PRECISION." "HOW IS THAT DONE?" "PART OF THE ANSWER" "IS AN INSTRUMENT CALLED THE GYROSCOPE." "HOW DOES IT WORK?" "IN THE ALL-ENCOMPASSING MECHANICAL UNIVERSE," "WHY IS EVEN A BICYCLE WHEEL A KIND OF GYROSCOPE?" "ANGULAR MOMENTUM IS A KEY TO THE ANSWER." "BUT WHAT IS ANGULAR MOMENTUM?" "WHY IS IT SO VITAL THROUGHOUT THE UNIVERSE?" "FROM THE CUTTING EDGE OF THE MOST DISTANT GALAXY" "TO WHIRLPOOLS IN THE FAMILY BATH," "ANGULAR MOMENTUM MOVES IN ALL THE BEST CIRCLES." "AMONG OTHER THINGS," "MOVING IN CIRCLES IS THE KEY TO KEEPING PERFECT TIME." "FEW THINGS GOVERN AS STEADILY" "AS TODAY'S MECHANISTIC CONCERN WITH TIME." "WHILE PEOPLE HAVE MORE TIME ON THEIR HANDS," "THE PREOCCUPATION WITH IT IS HARDLY A RECENT PHENOMENON." "WHAT IS COMPARATIVELY RECENT, HOWEVER," "IS THE PHENOMENON OF ACCURATE TIME." "IT CAME ABOUT GRADUALLY," "DAY IN AND DAY OUT FOR 4,000 YEARS." "IT FINALLY ARRIVED" "WITH AN UNDERSTANDING OF HARMONIC MOTION." "WHAT IS HARMONIC MOTION?" "AND WHEN IT COMES RIGHT DOWN AND UP TO IT," "HOW DOES HARMONIC MOTION REALLY WORK?" "GOING FULL CIRCLE IN THE MECHANICAL UNIVERSE," "HOW IS IT RELATED TO CIRCULAR MOTION?" "THE ANSWER ISN'T AS MYSTERIOUS AS IT MAY SEEM." "THERE'S NO REASON TO APPROACH IT IN A ROUNDABOUT FASHION." "HOWEVER, SOMETIMES IT HELPS." "ALL IT TAKES IS A LITTLE DIFFERENTIAL CALCULUS." "WHILE ISAAC NEWTON'S CALCULUS GOES FAR AND WIDE" "THROUGHOUT THE MECHANICAL UNIVERSE," "THE SCOPE OF HIS GENEROSITY WAS CONSIDERABLY MORE NARROW." "BARON WILHELM GOTTFRIED VON LEIBNITZ" "STRODE THE EUROPEAN LANDSCAPE" "WITH A SUPREME CONFIDENCE AND GOOD REASONS FOR IT." "AS A GERMAN DIPLOMAT AND MATHEMATICIAN," "LEIBNITZ WAS SO SUCCESSFUL" "THAT VOLTAIRE CHARACTERIZED HIM AS THE EPITOME OF OPTIMISM." "WORLDLY, QUITE A FELLOW WITH THE LADIES," "LEIBNITZ HAD NOTHING IN COMMON WITH NEWTON" "EXCEPT THE DISCOVERY OF THE CALCULUS." "THERE WAS PLENTY OF ROOM ON NEWTON'S PLATE" "FOR A LITTLE KINDNESS." "AFTER ALL, HE HAD CREATED THE LAWS OF MOTION," "THE LAW OF UNIVERSAL GRAVITATION," "A THEORETICAL EXPLANATION FOR LIGHT AND COLOR." "THE MENU OF HIS UNMATCHED ACCOMPLISHMENTS" "WAS EXTENSIVE," "AND YET, DESPITE SO MUCH INTELLIGENCE," "NEWTON PERMITTED, IF NOT ENCOURAGED," "A BITTER CONTROVERSY WITH LEIBNITZ." "THIS EPISODE, ONLY ONE OF THE EMOTIONAL DRAMAS" "IN THE MECHANICAL UNIVERSE," "THREATENED ONE MAN'S REPUTATION AND THE SANITY OF ANOTHER." "IT WILL ILLUSTRATE ONE OF THE CURIOUS PARADOXES" "THAT LURK WITHIN THE HUMAN HEART OF SCIENCE." "FOR EXAMPLE, WHILE THE SCIENTIST ISN'T ALWAYS RATIONAL," "THE SCIENTIFIC ENVIRONMENT NEARLY ALWAYS IS." "A PHYSICS LABORATORY IS WHERE NATURE REVEALS HERSELF" "IN THE MOST RATIONAL TERMS." "COMPARED TO NEWTON," "WHAT DOES THE MODERN SCIENTIST REALLY DO?" "BEYOND THE TEXTBOOK DEFINITION," "WHAT'S THE METHOD OF SCIENCE?" "AND IN THE REAL WORLD," "HOW DOES THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD REALLY WORK?" "SOMETIMES IT BEGINS WITH A SMALL BEAKER OF OIL," "A STURDY IRON POT," "A DASH OF DISCIPLINE," "A MEASURE OF CREATIVITY..." "AND PERHAPS A TOUCH OF GENIUS." "SOMETIMES, ALTHOUGH VERY RARELY, THE RESULT IS AS SIGNIFICANT" "AS THE VALUE OF THE CHARGE OF THE ELECTRON." "WHO WAS THIS PHYSICIST," "AND BY WHAT PAINSTAKING MEANS DID HE BECOME" "ONE OF THE MORE FAMOUS MEN IN SCIENTIFIC HISTORY?" "PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE," "PHYSICISTS ARE FOREVER FASCINATED" "BY THE MYSTERIES OF NATURE." "FOR EXAMPLE," "THE MYSTERIOUS NATURE OF LIGHT." "LIGHT." "THE VERY IDEA HAS BEEN AS HARD TO GRASP" "AS THE ALMOST INCOMPREHENSIBLE VASTNESS OF THE UNIVERSE." "ITS SPEED HAS BEEN EVEN HARDER." "WHY DOES IT HAVE A SPECIFIC VALUE?" "WHY IS IT CALLED A FUNDAMENTAL CONSTANT?" "WHAT IS A FUNDAMENTAL CONSTANT OF NATURE?" "HENRY CAVENDISH KNEW THE ANSWER WHEN HE MEASURED" "NEWTON'S UNIVERSAL GRAVITATIONAL CONSTANT." "IN THE PROCESS OF FINDING IT," "CAVENDISH NOT ONLY WEIGHED THE EXPANDING BRITISH EMPIRE," "HE WEIGHED THE ENTIRE PLANET." "HOW DID HE DO THAT?" "NOT BY HANGING OUT IN A POOL HALL." "THESE MEN LIVE BY LAWS THAT IF NOT EXACTLY LEGAL," "ARE WELL WITHIN THE LAWS OF CLASSICAL MECHANICS." "OF COURSE, NOT EVERY MAN HERE FULLY APPRECIATES THAT FACT." "MOST WALK DOWN CHALKY'S STAIRS TO SHOOT A STICK" "OR TO PROFIT FROM THE EXPERIENCE BY SOME OTHER MEANS." "BUT ODDS ARE," "WHEN CERTAIN LAWS OF PHYSICS ARE APPLIED JUST RIGHT," "EVERY MAN HERE APPRECIATES THE EFFECTS." "THE EFFECTS DEPEND ON THE LAW OF CONSERVATION OF MOMENTUM." "LIKE BILLIARDS," "IT HAPPENED TO ORIGINATE IN FRANCE." "IN THE EARLY 17th CENTURY," "RENE DESCARTES GREW UP TO LOVE MATHEMATICS" "AS THE WORKINGS OF GOD." "AS A PHILOSOPHER," "HE SOUGHT AN EXPLANATION FOR ALL WORLDLY PHENOMENA." "IN THE PROCESS," "DESCARTES NOT ONLY CONCEIVED THE CONSERVATION OF MOMENTUM," "HE DISCOVERED ANALYTIC GEOMETRY." "WITH THAT DISCOVERY," "HE CHANGED FOREVER THE TERRAIN OF MATHEMATICS." "HOW, BY ONE VEHICLE OR ANOTHER," "DO GREAT SCIENTIFIC EXPLORERS APPROACH UNKNOWN TERRAIN?" "WHEN SOMETHING HAS BEEN DISCOVERED ALREADY," "HOW CAN SOMEONE ELSE SAIL RIGHT IN" "AND CLAIM THE CREDIT?" "WHATEVER THE SCIENCE," "FROM ELECTRICITY" "TO MECHANICS..." "CREDIT SOMETIMES GOES" "NOT TO THE FIRST TO MAKE A GREAT DISCOVERY," "BUT TO THE LAST." "THIS WAS TRUE IN THE CASE OF JAMES PRESCOTT JOULE." "HE MIGHT HAVE BEEN THE NINTH SCIENTIST" "TO COME ACROSS THE LAW OF CONSERVATION OF ENERGY," "BUT LIKE COLUMBUS, JOULE GOT CREDIT FOR DISCOVERY." "WHY?" "IN THE GREATER SCHEME OF THINGS, WHY DOES IT MATTER?" "IN THE STOREHOUSE OF THE COSMOS," "THE SHELVES ARE AS AMPLY STOCKED WITH ENERGY TODAY" "AS THEY WERE THE MORNING" "THE UNIVERSE OPENED FOR BUSINESS." "ON THE OTHER HAND," "IF ENERGY IS NEVER LOST, WHY DO MUSCLES GET TIRED?" "AND WHY DO MASSES FALL?" "MECHANICAL ENERGY, LIKE EXERCISE IN GENERAL," "HAS A LOT TO DO WITH SPEED AND POSITION." "FOR A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE ON CHANGING POSITIONS," "CATCH THE DRIFT OF THE GOOD SHIP IRISH COFFEE," "A CHALLENGE IN THE MECHANICAL UNIVERSE." "SOPHISTICATED ELECTRONICS," "STATE-OF-THE-ART TRACKING DEVICES," "PERSONNEL BEYOND COMPARE" "THESE ARE THE RESOURCES" "OF THE UNITED STATES COAST GUARD." "ALSO, BEHIND THE SCENES," "THERE ARE THE TOOLS OF VECTOR ANALYSIS." "HOW CAN VECTOR MATHEMATICS GO TO THE RESCUE?" "MANYOURBOAT." "[ALARMSOUNDS]" "¶ 37 BOTTLES OF BEER ON THE WALL ¶" "¶ 37 BOTTLES OF BEER... ¶" "IN THE SERIOUS WORLD OF SCIENCE," "VECTOR MATHEMATICS CAN ACCOMPLISH MIRACLES." "SO THE QUESTION IS NOT WHETHER IT CAN COME TO THIS RESCUE," "BUT WHETHER IT SHOULD." "IS THIS MUSIC... ¶ SHAB DOOBIE DEE DA DO... ¶" "OR IS IT MEMOREX?" "A CLASSIC MEMOREX COMMERCIAL" "ILLUSTRATES BOTH EXCELLENT REPRODUCTION" "AND THE PHYSICAL PHENOMENON OF RESONANCE." "WHAT IS RESONANCE?" "HOW ARE ITS MANY FORMS HEARD" "FROM THROUGHOUT THE MECHANICAL UNIVERSE?" "WHY DOES A MERE HUMAN VOICE," "EVEN ONE AS POWERFUL AS ELLA FITZGERALD'S," "PRODUCE SUCH SHATTERING RESULTS?" "IN THE GREATER ATMOSPHERE OF THE MECHANICAL UNIVERSE," "WHAT ARE OTHER FORMS OF SOUND AND FURY?" "THIS TRIO UNDERTOOK A JOURNEY" "THAT SURPASSED EVERY EARTHLY EXPLORER" "SINCE THE FIRST PRIMITIVE STEP INTO THE UNKNOWN." "THEIR DESTINY HAD BEEN DETERMINED" "BY ENGINEERS, SCIENTISTS, TECHNICIANS, VISIONARIES," "RESEARCHERS, AND TEST PILOTS" "BY THE BEST-LAID PLANS AND THE RIGHT STUFF." "BUT LIKE THE ROCKET ITSELF," "A STRAIGHTFORWARD QUESTION AROSE" "HOW IS IT POSSIBLE TO GET FROM HERE TO THERE?" "HISTORICALLY SPEAKING, ROCKETS DON'T GO ANYWHERE" "WITHOUT A PRETTY GOOD PLAN BEHIND THEM." "EVEN TODAY," "THEY DON'T GET VERY FAR WITHOUT CLASSICAL MECHANICS." "WHO ARE THE SPACE NAVIGATORS?" "BEYOND THE EVERYDAY WORLD, WHAT DO THEY SEEK?" "AND, OFTEN SURPRISINGLY, WHAT DO THEY FIND?" "FROM JOHANNES KEPLER ONWARD," "CELESTIAL SCIENTISTS COULD CALCULATE" "THE SOLAR SYSTEM'S MOTIONS," "BUT THE MIRACLE OF THE SPACE AGE" "IS MAKING HEAVEN PASSABLE AS WELL AS POSSIBLE." "WHILE THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN" "WHAT THE FATHER OF CLASSICAL MECHANICS DREAMED OF," "IT'S WHAT THE SPACE NAVIGATORS DO." "ALL SCIENTISTS ARE NAVIGATORS AND EXPLORERS." "THE QUEST HAS ALWAYS BEEN HUMAN DESTINY." "THE STRATEGY HAS ALWAYS HAD SOMETHING TO DO" "WITH TEACHING AND LEARNING," "WITH IMAGINATION AND LOGIC," "WITH TRIAL AND ERROR," "WITH TAKING RISKS AND GOING TO THE LIMIT." "NOT ONLY THE STRATEGY, BUT THE UNIVERSE ITSELF" "MAY TURN OUT TO BE SOME SORT OF COSMIC GAME." "OVER THE YEARS," "THE ROSTER HAS INCLUDED SOME VERY IMPRESSIVE PLAYERS." "SOME PLAYED BY THE RULES." "SOME MADE UP THEIR OWN." "ALL OF THEM SHARED A COMMON NEED" "THEY HAD TO PLAY THE GAME." "IT'S BEEN PLAYED FOR THE LONGEST TIME." "THE GAME WILL NEVER BE OVER." "I THINK OUR SUBJECT, CLASSICAL MECHANICS," "IS PART OF THE MOST IMPORTANT DISCOVERY" "IN HUMAN HISTORY." "BEFORE IT WAS MADE, OUR VIEW OF THE UNIVERSE" "WAS RECEIVED FROM THE ANCIENT GREEKS," "MAINLY IN THE WORDS OF PLATO AND ARISTOTLE." "IN THAT VIEW," "THE CRYSTAL SPHERES OF THE HEAVENS" "WERE IMMUTABLE, SERENE, ETERNAL, AND PERFECT." "ONLY DOWN HERE ON THIS LOWLY EARTH" "WAS THERE CONFUSION, DECAY, DISORDER, AND DEATH." "IT WAS A VIEW THAT WAS DESIGNED TO PUT US IN OUR PLACES." "THE EARTH WAS AT THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE." "WE COULD IMAGINE OURSELVES" "TO BE THE PURPOSE OF CREATION." "THEN ALONG CAME COPERNICUS AND KEPLER" "AND GALILEO AND NEWTON." "BY THE TIME THEY WERE DONE, WE LIVED ON A SPECK OF DUST" "IN A LOST CORNER OF THE UNIVERSE." "NEVER IN THEIR WILDEST DREAMS" "DID PLATO AND ARISTOTLE THINK OF DOING THAT TO US." "LIFE TODAY ISN'T VERY DIFFERENT" "FROM WHAT IT WAS 2,000 YEARS AGO." "IN ITS ESSENTIALS," "THE HUMAN CONDITION HASN'T CHANGED VERY MUCH," "BUT IN THAT ONE THING, IT'S CHANGED FOREVER." "WE'VE DISCOVERED OUR PLACE IN THE UNIVERSE." "THAT'S WHY THE DISCOVERY IS SO IMPORTANT." "OUR JOB IS TO FIND OUT WHAT THAT DISCOVERY WAS," "HOW IT WAS MADE, AND BY WHOM." "WE'LL BEGIN WITH A DISCOVERY BY GALILEO GALILEI" "WHEN WE MEET NEXT TIME." "CAPTIONING PERFORMED BY THE NATIONAL CAPTIONING INSTITUTE, INC." "CAPTIONS COPYRIGHT 1985 CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY," "THE CORPORATION FOR COMMUNITY COLLEGE TELEVISION, AND THE ANNENBERG/CPB PROJECT" "P PROHIBITED WITHOUT PERMISSION OF NATIONAL CAPTIONING INSTITUTE LIC PERFORMANCE OF CAPTIONS" "Annenberg Media" "¶" "For information about this and other Annenberg Media programs call 1-800-LEARNER and visit us at"