Shock and Awe: The Story of Electricity

From The Right Wiki
Jump to navigationJump to search

Shock and Awe: The Story of Electricity
File:Shock and Awe - The Story of Electricity.jpg
Title screenshot
GenreHistory of science
Presented byJim Al-Khalili
Narrated byJim Al-Khalili
Country of originUnited Kingdom
Original languageEnglish
No. of series1
No. of episodes3
Production
Running time45 minutes
Production companiesOpen University and BBC
Original release
NetworkBBC Four
Release6 October (2011-10-06) –
20 October 2011 (2011-10-20)

Shock and Awe: The Story of Electricity is a British television series outlining aspects of the history of electricity. The series was a co-production between the Open University and the BBC and aired from 6 to 20 October 2011 on BBC Four. The programs were presented by Jim Al-Khalili.

Episodes

  • Spark: How pioneers unlocked electricity's mysteries and built strange instruments to create it.
  • The Age of Invention: How harnessing the link between magnetism and electricity transformed the world.
  • Revelations and Revolutions: After centuries of experimentation, how we finally came to understand electromagnetism.

Spark

In the first episode Al-Khalili introduces the history of our understanding of electricity and the harnessing of its power.[1] He covers the achievements of these "natural philosophers" – Francis Hauksbee, Stephen Gray, Musschenbroek, Benjamin Franklin, Henry Cavendish, Galvani, Volta and Humphry Davy.[2] The programme starts with Hauksbee's invention of a static-electricity generator and its subsequent demonstration to the high-minded.[3] It covers Franklin and the resulting experiments to capture and tame lightning.[4] The narrative continues with Cavendish's investigations of the electric shock received from the torpedo fish.[5] Al-Khalili expands on the development of the electric battery following Volta's discovery that simultaneously licking a copper coin and a silver spoon would generate a tingle of electricity.[3] The programme finishes with the first breakthrough in finding a commercial use for electricity:[6] Humphry Davy demonstrating the first carbon-arc light before members of the Royal Institution.[3]

The Age of Invention

In the second episode Al-Khalili covers the scientists who discovered the links between electricity and magnetism leading to a way to generate electric power-[7] Hans Christian Oersted, Michael Faraday, William Sturgeon and Joseph Henry. The development of commercial applications started with Samuel Morse and Al-Khalili then tells the story of the 1866 transatlantic cable. He revisits the war of the currents rivalry between direct current and alternating current.[8]

Revelations and Revolutions

In the final episode Al-Khalili brings the story up to date covering the achievements of James Clerk Maxwell; Heinrich Hertz; Oliver Lodge; Jagadish Bose; William Crookes; Mataré & Welker; and William Shockley.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Gilbert, Gerard. Pick of the day The Independent 1 October 2011
  2. ↑ Hardy, Alex. Digital choice The Times 1 October 2011
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Sutcliffe, Tom. Secrets and lies are worth investigating The Independent 7 October 2011
  4. ↑ Mueller, Andrew, G2: Television. The Guardian 6 October 2011
  5. ↑ The Daily Telegraph, Digital choice 1 October 2011
  6. ↑ Gilbert, Gerard. Critic's Choice The Independent, 6 October 2011
  7. ↑ The Daily Telegraph Digital choice 8 October 2011
  8. ↑ Dugdale, John; Kinnes, Sally. Choice Sunday Times 9 October 2011

External links

Retrieved from "https://rightwiki.org/index.php?title=Shock_and_Awe:_The_Story_of_Electricity&oldid=11121305"