S. W Hawking

Along with Caltech physicist Mlodinow (The Drunkard's Walk), University of Cambridge cosmologist Hawking (A Brief History of Time) deftly mixes cutting-edge physics to answer three key questions-- Why is there something rather than nothing? Why do we exist? Why this particular set of laws and not some other?-- and explains that scientists are approaching what is called "M-theory," a collection of overlapping theories (including string theory) that...

Program 5: Discusses Hawking's specialty, black holes. With the invention of radio astronomy over 50 years ago many astronomical discoveries came to light including ultraluminous quasars, wormholes, black holes and singularities. Such discoveries seem to allow for the possibility of instant travel over millions of miles of space or even time travel and have led to SETI -- the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence -- looking for stray alien communications. Program...

Program 3: Examines what the universe is made of by utilizing particle accelerators to glimpse fragments of the explosive process believed to have generated stars and planets. This episode features the basics: fire, water, air, and gas in addition to more complex findings of elements and matter from the creation of the Periodic Table to Einstein's famous theory of relativity. Program 4: At night the stars are seen in the blackness of space. But is...