One of my most cherished possessions is a copy of James Burke’s Connections. It was a favorite show my father and I watched together, the book was very hard to find but my Dad tracked it down in an airport book store. James Burke, Carl Sagan, and Jacob Brownski’s TV series were my first college courses they were my first professors.Thank you all.
When I first moved out on my own, I was scrimping every penny and got most of my entertainment from the library. It was there that I fist encountered the mesmerizing work of Dr. Bronowski and his video essays. I saw Sagan's first iteration of Cosmos when I was in school and found James Burke here on the internet. All excellent science educators. Too bad the interest for their work has fallen off so sharply.
Death in the Morning is my single favorite documentary of all time. It's a flawless examination of both the wonders of humanities struggles to build off one another towards a better future... and the unfailing certainty that we will inevitably use all of those struggles to make a bomb.
Shows like this make me reconsider the "scientific method". I don't suppose the term existed in the days of Aristotle and forward but it seems many of those who might have generally been considered scientists came up with plausible scenarios to explain what they saw, only to be proven wrong by the next guy to come along. Were they all using scientific method???? I find those who consider themselves a Generalist / Skeptic, rather than a Scientist, make some interesting observations. When I hear "the science is settled" I go back and watch this show again.
@@Bitterrootbackroads the term might not have existed, though I suspect there was a term for it in Greek. The Greeks, particularly in the region of Ionia, from the 6th through the 3rd centuries BC, developed the scientific method, that is, they had questions about things, and they ran tests to see what the answers were. I think they would have called themselves natural philosophers. Sagan had an episode about the "Ionian Explosion" as he called it, in "Cosmos". And you're absolutely right about "the science is settled". It's never settled. This episode shows how that process works. Burke's story here ends with Newton and the idea of the clockwork universe. That idea lasted till the physics of the late 19th and early 20th centuries emerged. And those ideas have been challenged, in that there are newer observation that those ideas don't quite describe. It never ends.
Science, history, geography, social studies, etc. all bound together in an engaging storytelling format. This is the way to learn. No documentaries are like James Burke's.
Quite right. A multi-disciplinary approach to cultural geography unlike any other. Just brilliant. He also did "The Secret Life of Machines", a study in the evolution of technology and it's effects on our daily lives.
This farsighted ability to assemble the big picture is uncanny educational genius. James Burke is a forgotten gift to humanity plus that dry sly wit: Priceless.
I used to watch these shows on PBS. I like how he goes to all the places where things happened and demonstrates ideas. It’s easier for me to learn that way.
One of the best science documentaries I've seen for a long while, well presented, well made, shot, edited and written. Can't wait to watch the rest of the series
Thankfully this series is preserved. It will be a valuable resource for a long time as nothing is going to change much; its basically science history, which in its own way is science. I watched this intensely, like a sponge. I had previously been into Jacob Bronowski's PBS series. Brits were sending us science and I liked it.
If it is preserved in its entirety, I'd like to know where the other 7 episodes can be found. Curiosity Stream, if anything other than a TH-cam shakedown for documentarifiles, has the same 3 episodes TH-cam has had for years. If any reader of this comment knows the access point of the balance of the series, please do share your knowledge.
James Burke taught me a way of looking at the world that helped me understand what I was seeing. I'm able to extract much more information from any given data I collect than I would have otherwise.
I own a first edition of the book. One of the best series' from a book ever made. Mostly because Mr. Burke was in charge of both. Saw him speak in Sacramento, CA too. Met him afterward. Wonderful experience.
1:48 "[On average] We're healthier, wealthier, more comfortable, better informed than ever before in history thanks to science. And each one of us has more power at our fingertips than any emperor who ever built a palace." This is very profound and very few people appreciate it.
What actors really do on the set... forget their lines, miss their marks, and knock over set pieces. To be fair, waiting for the ball to roll from dead stop would be cinematically far more boring. Good TV, bad 8th grade physics lab.
Thank you TH-cam for releasing this document series.. I was very much impressed with the child a lots of fun learning absolutely great series.. could you please bring back David Drews footsteps it would be much appreciated
Benedetti's and Galileo's experiment with the two falling objects was confirmed on Apollo 15 by David Scott, using a hammer and a feather. In the absence of any air resistance, both fell at the same observable rate.
Had these videos 📹 on vcr... Need to convert to 📀 DVD..thank you for uploading these and connections series Absolutely priceless 👌 beyond words..not enough Superlatives to describe. Bought the book used at local library for 25*cents...
I have never before seen a documentary actually give Rene Descartes credit for Cartesian Coordinates. As a mathematician, I see this as one of the greatest creations in human history. There was the geometry of the Greeks and the algebra (Al-Jabr, to solve for what is missing). They are both mathematics, but how to relate algebra and geometry. With the Cartesian plane, algebraic equations become geometric objects. This united algebra and geometry into modern mathematics.
Regarding water changing the weight of boats - if you're ever in a naval yard and happen to find yourself next to a large ship moored up, try pushing it. It's a remarkable feeling to see an entire aircraft carrier move away from the dock with the push of a single finger before being pulled back by the ropes.
28:39 I wonder if the book he was showing is an original book belonging to Galileo. He handled it roughly, causing a page to be torn off its binding right before our eyes on camera. Even if it were a replica I feel he should still demonstrate (to young viewers and prospective scientists especially) an attitude of respect and care with evidence, especially historical artifacts that we study and rely on for our own understanding and progress.
one must understand this is a TV show, props are used, that book might have not been bound, and those drawings must've been finished 'minutes' before the shoot as well.. just my 2c
This is a great series. I rank it on par with Cosmos - which is there some obvious borrowed style. This series differs in that it looks at the universe by our point of view and the transitional definitions of it. It's hard to imagine, but our current definition will deprecate some day.
@MisterNewOutlook Wrong! Cosmos (which I adore too) borrowed it's style from James Burke's 'Connections'. This is a continuation of Burke's own, invented style.
@Phil Weatherley Pretty sure he was just referring to access to information, Phil. Good comment for some deserving bastard on another comment thread, though...👍
he does the dipstick all wrong at 31:45 (he goes straight in) ..This always got me as a child when i first saw this.. he needed to put it in diagonally to the bottom edge of the barrel. "While shopping for wine for his wedding, Kepler noticed that the price of a barrel of wine (here assumed to be a cylinder) was determined solely by the length of a dipstick that was inserted DIAGONALLY through a centered hole in the top of the barrel to the edge of the base of the barrel"
Jakob Bronwski's ascent of Man is a great documentary series too. He opened my eyes to an important fact - attribution of credit for discoveries is often wrong. He mentions Russell Wallace the biologist and it soon becomes clear that he is almost as important as Darwin.
Marc Morales In his book “The Dragons of Eden” , Carl Sagan expresses admiration for Bronowski’s “Ascent of Man” book and TV series. It clearly inspires his own “Cosmos” book and series. The Cosmic Calendar is first laid out in that book as well.
Either a small keel-mounted prop motor, or a combination of slight downstream current and being initially pushed offshore. The motions of the pilot at the end of the scene looked as if he were bending down to shut off an engine.
Yes like the last commentator I never knew James was a comic, only saw him as a kid on Tomorrow’s World and the Apollo space expeditions. Dare I say our version of Dear Dr Carl Sagan.
Thank you for posting this. I love to learn about history. My real name is Michael McCluskey. My TH-cam name is a variation of the nickname I was given, I'm self taught in many things, mostly electronics, wood working and making metal things. I also do leather work making things like holsters, knife sheaths and other things.
Before I watch a video, I note when it was produced. If it was before Covid-19, then I class it to be from the innocent times. If after (say, February 2020), I recognize a camaraderie with the content maker. We are both belong to the unfortunate times we find ourselves in today.
Kepler and Newton, Co-Conspirators in the Death of GOD. Thanks Guys !! You really did the species a favour, too bad the Church keeps going with the whole Magic Shiny Guy in the Sky
Both were devout Theists. Please see rigorous arguments for Theism in text: www.amazon.com/Blackwell-Companion-Natural-Theology/dp/1444350854 Also I am a practicing scientist currently working in research and development within the fields of Physics, Material Science and Polymer Chemistry. If you want to explore serious discussion regarding the history of science, the philosophy of science, theism or the actual first hand accounts of Johanas Keplar and Isaac Newton you will be better off engaging the literature. This series frames many aspects of science history in misleading ways. It is useful for a "pop science/pop science history" in ways.
It's impossible for any science to confirm the death or absence of God. As soon as you believe in an all-powerful being, science goes out the window. That's just a result of being all-powerful. Since God is all-powerful, science matters only to man. There are a lot of great minds who claim to understand ideas like infinity, but don't get the idea of all-powerful. So, to God, a toaster and an adverb can be the same thing. Don't bother trying to make sense of that. You're not God.
One of my most cherished possessions is a copy of James Burke’s Connections. It was a favorite show my father and I watched together, the book was very hard to find but my Dad tracked it down in an airport book store. James Burke, Carl Sagan, and Jacob Brownski’s TV series were my first college courses they were my first professors.Thank you all.
When I first moved out on my own, I was scrimping every penny and got most of my entertainment from the library. It was there that I fist encountered the mesmerizing work of Dr. Bronowski and his video essays. I saw Sagan's first iteration of Cosmos when I was in school and found James Burke here on the internet. All excellent science educators. Too bad the interest for their work has fallen off so sharply.
*Bronowski
Death in the Morning is my single favorite documentary of all time. It's a flawless examination of both the wonders of humanities struggles to build off one another towards a better future... and the unfailing certainty that we will inevitably use all of those struggles to make a bomb.
James changed my outlook on life, along with Carl Sagan. I was about 10 when I watched these. Scientific method has stayed with me throughout life.
I saw *James Burke* on *_Tomorrow's World_* in the 1960s but I knew nothing of this. It's very good.
Shows like this make me reconsider the "scientific method". I don't suppose the term existed in the days of Aristotle and forward but it seems many of those who might have generally been considered scientists came up with plausible scenarios to explain what they saw, only to be proven wrong by the next guy to come along. Were they all using scientific method???? I find those who consider themselves a Generalist / Skeptic, rather than a Scientist, make some interesting observations. When I hear "the science is settled" I go back and watch this show again.
My favourite series of the eighties.
This was exactly the same for me.
@@Bitterrootbackroads the term might not have existed, though I suspect there was a term for it in Greek. The Greeks, particularly in the region of Ionia, from the 6th through the 3rd centuries BC, developed the scientific method, that is, they had questions about things, and they ran tests to see what the answers were.
I think they would have called themselves natural philosophers.
Sagan had an episode about the "Ionian Explosion" as he called it, in "Cosmos".
And you're absolutely right about "the science is settled". It's never settled. This episode shows how that process works. Burke's story here ends with Newton and the idea of the clockwork universe. That idea lasted till the physics of the late 19th and early 20th centuries emerged. And those ideas have been challenged, in that there are newer observation that those ideas don't quite describe. It never ends.
Science, history, geography, social studies, etc. all bound together in an engaging storytelling format. This is the way to learn. No documentaries are like James Burke's.
This is how my father spoke and taught me. Practical lectures and no questions until the end.
Quite right. A multi-disciplinary approach to cultural geography unlike any other. Just brilliant. He also did "The Secret Life of Machines", a study in the evolution of technology and it's effects on our daily lives.
And the amazing soundtrack
@@michaelburke5907 "The Secret Life of Machines" was done by Tim Hunkin.
Not so fast there. Carl Sagan and Neil DeGrasse Tyson are contenders.
This farsighted ability to assemble the big picture is uncanny educational genius. James Burke is a forgotten gift to humanity plus that dry sly wit: Priceless.
At long last, I get to see these outstanding learning programs again. Kids should see these programs.
we get it, you're a nerd who memorized the dictionary
I’d pay to listen to Mr. Burke read a phone book.
I watched this series in high school and it changed my whole perspective on things. I adored the whole series.
I found it as an adult being 60 it's my favorite educational series: Genius.
I met James Burke once and told him, my son claims he was educated by watching TV, his programs. I must admit, I liked to watch too.
I used to watch these shows on PBS. I like how he goes to all the places where things happened and demonstrates ideas. It’s easier for me to learn that way.
I learnt so much from this and the forerunner Connections, James Burke, has that talent and passion for making science incredibly interesting...
Yes, James Burke ought to be exorcised !
Me too also a musician composer.
@@Evolvedprimate No those dogmatic superstitions that cause so much chaos should be. Religion.
@@paxwallacejazz Now it is political correctness.
Laceykat66. Exactly. Today is PC rubbish.
One of the best science documentaries I've seen for a long while, well presented, well made, shot, edited and written. Can't wait to watch the rest of the series
I adore you and your books and videos, Mr Burke. Thank you for showing the curiosity and joy of learning.
Thankfully this series is preserved. It will be a valuable resource for a long time as nothing is going to change much; its basically science history, which in its own way is science. I watched this intensely, like a sponge. I had previously been into Jacob Bronowski's PBS series. Brits were sending us science and I liked it.
If it is preserved in its entirety, I'd like to know where the other 7 episodes can be found. Curiosity Stream, if anything other than a TH-cam shakedown for documentarifiles, has the same 3 episodes TH-cam has had for years. If any reader of this comment knows the access point of the balance of the series, please do share your knowledge.
Just in case you were wondering, this fantastic series was made in 1985
Burke has an earlier series called "Connections" that is at least as good. I found this series in my thirties and I gobbled it up.
The best things were made in 1985. Like me. 😊
THIS GUY IS AMAZING I REMEMBER WATCHING HIM IN THE 80'S. HE'S MY FAVOURITE.
ASIF VIRK. Ditto in the 1970s.
THAT'S GREAT! THANKS FOR COMMENTING, GRANDPA! HOW'S GRANDMA?
So did I 🥴
Great to see this on TH-cam. Thanks for the upload!
Well the whole series is no longer available on You Tube sadly
An absolutely BRILLIANT series!!
James Burke taught me a way of looking at the world that helped me understand what I was seeing. I'm able to extract much more information from any given data I collect than I would have otherwise.
Everything has something to do with the price of tea in China. ;D
I learned more from this series than I did in my college history course.
So beautifully made. My deepest respect.
Saw this series when it first aired on PBS in the USA, the content and masterful delivery have not aged a single day.
Nice to hear a little Brian Eno while watching one of my favorite science shows.
Eno, why does that name sound familiar? Didn't he do the David Lynch Dune soundtrack with Toto?
(Time to go down a Google and IMDB rabbit hole . .)
mdiem If that’s the case, I’ve gotta get that sound track!
I own a first edition of the book. One of the best series' from a book ever made. Mostly because Mr. Burke was in charge of both. Saw him speak in Sacramento, CA too. Met him afterward. Wonderful experience.
@MichaelKingsfordGray -- No. A first edition of *The Day the Universe Changed.*
James Burke is a treasure!
One of the first science outreach superstars (IMO)
Fantastic show! This guy's series were the best ever.
Btw... amsterdam looks so nice and peaceful without all that tourist mayhem.
1:48 "[On average] We're healthier, wealthier, more comfortable, better informed than ever before in history thanks to science. And each one of us has more power at our fingertips than any emperor who ever built a palace."
This is very profound and very few people appreciate it.
You might say, Galileo had _balls_ to do what he did.
Burke is a fabulous science broadcaster.
JB is a science history presentation legend. Connections was an awesome show.
Precious memories of watching this as a young child and getting an understanding of the universe.
A wonderful show but I doubt Galileo, like at 24:12 , gave his ball a slight push at the top of the ramp.
Yea, I caught that as well.
What actors really do on the set... forget their lines, miss their marks, and knock over set pieces. To be fair, waiting for the ball to roll from dead stop would be cinematically far more boring. Good TV, bad 8th grade physics lab.
I saw James Burke speak in Vancouver years ago, even then it was a little quaint to go and hear a public lecture, but he was amazing/
What's quaint about going to a public lecture???
I saw his lecture in Toronto. Got to meet him afterward.
Just brilliant. Happy memories of 1985.
These are a fantastic way to teach about reality and how we got here through the muddle of history.
this is great
Thank you TH-cam for releasing this document series.. I was very much impressed with the child a lots of fun learning absolutely great series.. could you please bring back David Drews footsteps it would be much appreciated
Thanks for posting. Phenomenal TV series. Just as good as the original 'Connections' series, IMO.
Benedetti's and Galileo's experiment with the two falling objects was confirmed on Apollo 15 by David Scott, using a hammer and a feather. In the absence of any air resistance, both fell at the same observable rate.
I loved that in Jr. High when I saw it. SCIENCE!
would have been funny if they had discovered Galileo was wrong ;)
WalterReime Confirmed long before that. That experiment can be done on earth.
they should have dropped one of this wigs - clearly science was created due to the wigs.
I remember seeing this series when it was first shown by the BBC in the 1980's. It's still very good and doesn't look at all dated.
i can't believe how good this is. to sort of give a big picture in his uniquely extremely gifted way
Wonderful old TV show. Love the old style.
Had these videos 📹 on vcr...
Need to convert to 📀 DVD..thank you for uploading these and connections series Absolutely priceless 👌 beyond words..not enough Superlatives to describe. Bought the book used at local library for 25*cents...
James Burke - the best science presenter ever.
Carl Sagan, COSMOS.
@@jackscratch785. Both excellent but different.
loved this series
superb.
Any video with Henry Purcell's music is awesome! (starts at 37:20)
Huge influence on my life, these personal view essays (inc. Bronowski, Sagan, Clark). Wish they'd simply re-air them.
I think this series was actually better than Connections and Connections pretty damn good
I have never before seen a documentary actually give Rene Descartes credit for Cartesian Coordinates. As a mathematician, I see this as one of the greatest creations in human history.
There was the geometry of the Greeks and the algebra (Al-Jabr, to solve for what is missing). They are both mathematics, but how to relate algebra and geometry. With the Cartesian plane, algebraic equations become geometric objects. This united algebra and geometry into modern mathematics.
is there a better teacher? how I missed this show.
Yes, there are many.
I couldn't have said it better my self.
Great job./awesome place.
Thanks.
G.
4:04 Is that Edmund Blackadder, Percy and Baldrick coming down the stairs?
Yes ma’lord 😂
Regarding water changing the weight of boats - if you're ever in a naval yard and happen to find yourself next to a large ship moored up, try pushing it. It's a remarkable feeling to see an entire aircraft carrier move away from the dock with the push of a single finger before being pulled back by the ropes.
A wonderful show that brought back good memories.
28:39 I wonder if the book he was showing is an original book belonging to Galileo. He handled it roughly, causing a page to be torn off its binding right before our eyes on camera. Even if it were a replica I feel he should still demonstrate (to young viewers and prospective scientists especially) an attitude of respect and care with evidence, especially historical artifacts that we study and rely on for our own understanding and progress.
one must understand this is a TV show, props are used, that book might have not been bound, and those drawings must've been finished 'minutes' before the shoot as well..
just my 2c
Sunrise 6:55 in Vienna it's the 11th of February 1985.
In January 1985 there was snow in Nice, France. THe winter didn't look to bad in Vienna. Innsbruck did not have much snow that late winter.
I ❤️ these shows!!!!!
James Burke. 👍
it should be required viewing. I hope it's available in other media an platforms.
Kepler was measurably, a man ahead of his time. 32:53
Good eye :)
This is a great series. I rank it on par with Cosmos - which is there some obvious borrowed style. This series differs in that it looks at the universe by our point of view and the transitional definitions of it. It's hard to imagine, but our current definition will deprecate some day.
@MisterNewOutlook Wrong! Cosmos (which I adore too) borrowed it's style from James Burke's 'Connections'.
This is a continuation of Burke's own, invented style.
Yea, cosmos was good in a different way. Still a notch down from the burke stuff.
I'm glad he mentioned Roger Joseph Boscovich. Most educators neglect his work.
24:43 dont dump the measured water. That changes rate of outfall.
I love the British sense of humor, very dry and if your not quick enough, you'll miss out
"Mars, among others, being very un-Aristotle..."
Classic Burke. :)
"I could go to a library..."
Oh boy, he'd be thrilled by what we can do now.
@Phil Weatherley Pretty sure he was just referring to access to information, Phil. Good comment for some deserving bastard on another comment thread, though...👍
SOYLENT GREEN IS PEOPLEEEEEE!!!!
Church Council member: "We need more lights, music, drama and razzmatazz!"
Pope: "Yes! Let's go bananas!"
he does the dipstick all wrong at 31:45 (he goes straight in) ..This always got me as a child when i first saw this..
he needed to put it in diagonally to the bottom edge of the barrel.
"While shopping for wine for his wedding, Kepler noticed that the price of a barrel of wine (here assumed to be a cylinder) was determined solely by the length of a dipstick that was inserted DIAGONALLY through a centered hole in the top of the barrel to the edge of the base of the barrel"
awesome doco , luved it !!
Whole thing is just sitting here on youtube now.
Cool!
The best documentary made followed by Sagan's Cosmos and then Burke's Connections.
Jakob Bronwski's ascent of Man is a great documentary series too. He opened my eyes to an important fact - attribution of credit for discoveries is often wrong. He mentions Russell Wallace the biologist and it soon becomes clear that he is almost as important as Darwin.
Marc Morales In his book “The Dragons of Eden” , Carl Sagan expresses admiration for Bronowski’s “Ascent of Man” book and TV series. It clearly inspires his own “Cosmos” book and series. The Cosmic Calendar is first laid out in that book as well.
Got the book. Slick.
Brilliant
I would never ask James Burke, so how was your day today?
OH MY ~ I am here again in ... woe if...
Where could we find the missing episodes ? 🤷
Lovely channel ❤
How do you know ?
A great man
Who else is here from reading the book?
Lex Fridmann has exceptional guests for suggesting good stuff.
Even better than Connections.
Does anyone know what is propelling that boat thru the water ar 7:05?
Either a small keel-mounted prop motor, or a combination of slight downstream current and being initially pushed offshore.
The motions of the pilot at the end of the scene looked as if he were bending down to shut off an engine.
When you realize the universe never ends, then you will be in shock, yet again.
4:51 talks about talks summit meetings about summit meetings. We can safely say nothing has changed.
The blessing of the intellect, an Irishman. James Burke
Wonder how many takes they had to do on the roller coaster?
1:19 A CASSETTE player?? :D :D
Yes like the last commentator I never knew James was a comic, only saw him as a kid on Tomorrow’s World and the Apollo space expeditions. Dare I say our version of Dear Dr Carl Sagan.
2:05
Thank you for posting this. I love to learn about history. My real name is Michael McCluskey. My TH-cam name is a variation of the nickname I was given, I'm self taught in many things, mostly electronics, wood working and making metal things. I also do leather work making things like holsters, knife sheaths and other things.
43:43 Sounds like he's been eating roddenberries again!
Ahh, the days when the illusory idea of progress seemed real... Burke was such a good storyteller. He was as good as Sagan at popularizing science.
Ya humanity is clearly no better off than before.
what is the classical music at the start?
royal observatory room at 38:16 gmt
Ah, James Burke, proof that brains do squeeze your hair out from the inside.
Before I watch a video, I note when it was produced. If it was before Covid-19, then I class it to be from the innocent times. If after (say, February 2020), I recognize a camaraderie with the content maker. We are both belong to the unfortunate times we find ourselves in today.
Never would have thunk the Universe has a day/night cycle? What is the object being circumnavigated?
Not forgotten by me. Remember the guy from the age of 10 (Apollo)
his outfits never fail to impress
The fact that they locked books away that you were not allowed to read says enough
I hate that quick dodgeball maneuver to get off camera between scenes.
Kepler and Newton, Co-Conspirators in the Death of GOD.
Thanks Guys !! You really did the species a favour, too bad the Church keeps going with the whole Magic Shiny Guy in the Sky
Both were devout Theists.
Please see rigorous arguments for Theism in text:
www.amazon.com/Blackwell-Companion-Natural-Theology/dp/1444350854
Also I am a practicing scientist currently working in research and development within the fields of Physics, Material Science and Polymer Chemistry. If you want to explore serious discussion regarding the history of science, the philosophy of science, theism or the actual first hand accounts of Johanas Keplar and Isaac Newton you will be better off engaging the literature. This series frames many aspects of science history in misleading ways. It is useful for a "pop science/pop science history" in ways.
It's impossible for any science to confirm the death or absence of God. As soon as you believe in an all-powerful being, science goes out the window. That's just a result of being all-powerful. Since God is all-powerful, science matters only to man. There are a lot of great minds who claim to understand ideas like infinity, but don't get the idea of all-powerful. So, to God, a toaster and an adverb can be the same thing. Don't bother trying to make sense of that. You're not God.