22nd CENTURY
“World Wide Mind”
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
8:00-9:00 p.m. ET
Ever wonder what the world is going to be like in the future? Will human life spans increase to 250 years or more? Will your personal computer become smarter than you? Will machines shrink so small they can make repairs inside a human cell?*
22nd CENTURY is an innovative PBS series about technological advances taking place today that, within our lifetimes, will significantly change the way humans live and interact. Many scientists and futurists believe we are on the verge of a technological explosion so profound that life will become unrecognizable. In the next 100 years, we may experience as much technological change as has occurred over the course of human history. After all, during the past century we went from horse-drawn buggies to supersonic aircraft; by most estimates the pace of change is accelerating.
The premiere episode of 22nd CENTURY, “World Wide Mind,” airing Wednesday, January 17, 2007, 8:00-9:00 p.m. ET on PBS, explores an intriguing theory that posits that in the future, miniature computer brain implants will allow our brains to be connected to other brains much the same way today’s computers are linked together via the World Wide Web. Science fantasy or futuristic nightmare? This show lets viewers decide for themselves.
The series consists of first-person stories about people who are on the cusp of this technological revolution. In this first episode, viewers meet a young man whose injuries in a devastating automobile accident left him unable to communicate with the outside world. Surgeons implanted an electrode in his brain and he has learned to communicate just by thinking about what he wants to say.
In another segment, a leading neurophysiologist explains how he has developed bundles of wires thinner than spider webs that can be inserted into the blood vessels of human brains. While these wires have so far been tested only in animals, they prove that the worldwide mind may not be so far off. U.S. agents from the National Security Agency quickly showed up at the MIT laboratory where the wires are being developed.
The series is hosted by Robin Robinson, a Chicago television personality, who is joined by two virtual co-hosts, each with insightful and often conflicting viewpoints about the merits of this new technology.
One is an actor playing Aldous Huxley, the late author of Brave New World, who worried about the dehumanizing consequences of scientific discoveries. The other is Orlanda Bell, a time-traveling visitor from the future, who represents the best-case scenario of these technological advancements.
Is this a future that will benefit the human race? Or will we loose all sense of individuality? Find out on the premiere episode of the 22nd CENTURY.
Underwriters: Public Television Viewers and PBS. Co-producers: Towers Productions and Boston Science Communications, Inc. in collaboration with Twin Cities Public Television. Executive producer/director: Gino Del Guercio. Production executive: John Lindsay. Producers: Tresha Mabile and Scott Alexander. Composer: Charles Denler. Animation: Xvivo. Format: CC Stereo Letterbox/HD where available
– PBS –
CONTACT: Carrie Johnson, PBS, Tel.: 703/739-5129;
cjohnson@pbs.org
Reply With Quote
Originally Posted by PAF
Connect With Us