DRS_Education - 2019-01-20
"Death in the Morning" examines the standardisation of precious metal with the touchstone in the ancient world. This innovation stimulated trade from Greece to Persia, ultimately causing the construction of a huge commercial center and library at Alexandria which included Ptolemy's star tables. This wealth of astronomical knowledge aided navigators during the age of discovery 14 centuries later following the introduction of lateen sails and sternpost rudders. Mariners discovered that the compass's magnetised needle did not actually point directly north. Investigations into the nature of magnetism by Gilbert led to the discovery of electricity by way of the sulphur ball of von Guericke. Further interest in atmospheric electricity at the Ben Nevis weather station led to Wilson's cloud chamber which in turn allowed development of both Watson-Watt's radar and (by way of Rutherford's insights) nuclear weaponry.
One of the best series ever. Watched back in the 70s and remember it fondly.
This series captivated me when I first saw it as a teenager and it still remains one of the best introductions to the marriage of history and science that has ever found its way onto our screens.
@5Rounds Rapid What..? You mean you could learn real things, not aliens and supernatural crap? This brings back a vague memory...
I was absolutely captivated by this series when it first appeared. I was 15 at the time, and, like so many others, it changed the way I looked at the world and my place in it. The balance of seriousness and wit was spot on. Burke felt like a mentor to me. Brilliant.
Same for me. Wonderful show.
If you like this series — and who doesn’t? — you are going to love the Youtube channel Technology Connections.
@Benny Löfgren Yes!!! I actually discovered this series thanks to him!
This is a late 70s production. So no Internet. The research hours in making all these Connections...what a breathtaking feat.
One of the things I miss is how older books had all sorts of interesting digressions which detailed various connections to other things. One book I read about the Roman operations in Pannonia also discussed their large compendiums of "lucky" numbers and dates. A book on the Berlin Airlift had a few pages on the splitting up of Berlin's police force between East and West. Since so much of history is interconnected, those digressions add a great deal to the context and sense of complexity of the situations. What James Burke did was take those little digressions by authors and present a chain of them as a smoothly presented show.
You would have used the phone calling up a dozen academic or museum experts, then use the reference librarian for collecting the historical documentation. You could have easily put the outline of an episode together in an afternoon, and then fill in the historical details over the course of a few days. I'm more impressed by all of the video that needed to be collected and edited. Although if you watch these episodes with a critical eye, you see a lot of the video is generic, and is not an exact match to what is being discussed. But it is close enough to tell a nice story and not feel like you were cheated or lied to by Burke.
As if encyclopedias and books on the topic with references did not exist. As if colleges libraries were not there or just knowledgeable people who know a lot more than the tiny amount of info in such series.
Quantity < Quality
@goodcyrus
I wonder if many college students ever get into the book stacks any longer...
For me this is the holy grail of history, enlightenment, & entertainment. This is the stuff that makes the study of the past so much fun. Welcome to all new viewers. Try to get others interested in this series.
Watching this series at a young age led me to a degree in history.
You made that same mistake too, huh?
Nuclear power in the Navy, industrial design, wine science, and engineering and earth sciences degrees. It all makes sense to me since I got my boost from James Burke.
@Alexander Nevsky It was a mistake.
@Eric Lytle Indeed it was. If I had it all to do over again I'd be a plumber. No kidding.
@Alexander Nevsky I'd be an electrician if I could do it over.
Right now I drive a truck.
Thank you for uploading these programs. I was entranced by the programs and years later I got to meet James Burke during a lecture he gave at Webster University. An amazing person - is a shame the programs and other things he did are so difficult to find these days.
Man oh man does this bring back memories. I loved to watch James Burke's connections. Truely great shows. I wish there was something like Mr Burke's shows today. I am definitely gonna search it out now that ive discovered this one.
Based on the acknowledgments at the end, that B-29 dressed as the Enola Gay for dramatic effect (it wasn’t the Enola Gay) was provided by the Confederated Air Force, an organization that flies old planes for air shows and other events. That organization was later renamed the Commemorative Air Force. Which means that this particular B-29 is virtually certainly “FIFI”. FIFI is currently one of only two still-airworthy B29s in the world. The CAF still flies FIFI around the US and Canada. I was lucky enough to be able to take a ride on FIFI several years ago.
thanks for posting this, I thought it was probably Fifi. This was aired in 1978, the Enola Gay would have been in several pieces in a warehouse in Suitland, Maryland.
I first came to this series on public television when I was a teenager and I genuinely believe this series changed how I perceived the world. Best science television program in history, on par with Cosmos.
I absolutely loved this series as a kid and would have been about 8/9. Amazed it's never been repeated.
1978 - 42 years ago and just as relevant and thought provoking. Should be required viewing in high school history classes.
He makes me think more than I usually do and occasionally chuckle while you're enjoying the ride !
I just love James Burke. I remember being a young child and my dad and I watching this whole series together. It turned me on to science...and the "connections" lol
This program turned me on to a way of thinking that is still with me today. There is virtually nothing that isn't connected to everything else in some way. Our choices and actions have consequences, and we are responsible for them.
We are all "butterflies". (butterfly effect)
Read 'Sound of Thunder' (1952) by Ray Bradbury for the original 'butterfly effect.'
Synchronicity.
His series, "The Day the Universe Changed", is a good companion to this one, too.
We seem to be forgetting this.
You can't predict everything, like how taking a photo of a cloud experiment helped develop nuclear weapons.
Since we have to so something in our lives, it's a bit much to load yourself up with the responsibility of future happenings. Whatever we do, good or bad can come of it.
Let's face it, he is largely talking about those with the means and the interest to create something that changes the status quo. Once that change happens society mostly follows.
We really need a widespread change in attitude as to how we live our lives, and what kind of life we want for ourselves and other people.
Wow. This series seems to be the best thing I've found since Bronowski's Ascent of Man.
Connections is one of the most entertaining and informative science programs ever made. James Burke had the perfect balance of intelligence and a profound sense of wonder.
The thing most people seem to miss is that James Burke did this entire series to make a single point. He was very concerned in The late 70's that we as humans were on our way to destroying ourselves and if we didn't start to think about what we were doing, it would be too late.
it was too late the instant we evolved.
He was correct and it would be interesting if he did a new series of Connections.
I remember watching his show he did back in the early 80s about the human brain.
@Nicholas Maude Unfortunately, James Burke passed away some years ago.
@Foxonian James Burke is still alive and he'll be turning 84 on December 22.
@Nicholas Maude Well, that's good news. Not sure where I heard he had passed.
Oh my Lord. I've been looking for this for years.
This show should be required in every sociology
program
Presently I'm afraid they're all much too busy trying to figure out how many genders there are and whether or not white people eating sushi is racist.
I remember seeing this series in the early 70s in England when I was about 20. I enjoyed it. Some of the academics in the university where I worked as a technician thought Burke's connections somewhat spurious.
By Series 3 he had run out of good material and I noticed (at the time) that some of the connections were “iffy”.
@Sam I am Yea, it would be hard to keep that up I imagine. :)
James Burke , he was the ultimate presenter, he's missed.
As of 9/6/2021, he's still around (at 84) and has said he's working on a new Connections book, to be made into a series called "Connections 21"
Amazing blend of science and history ,I love the way James Burkes presenting style draws you into the story
Not seen since the series it was first aired (1978), a wholly wonderful series, that I am now binge-watching again. A series that formed and informed me - Can't imagine why it's not been watched by more people
Finally! Great quality of my all time favorite show
480p is great quality in 2019?
@J K I think he is talking about the distant past when it was often watched on copies of copies of VHS tapes (before home computers VHS was a home videotape system,which you may be too young to remember)
Alright, boneheads, we're talking quality of content. Open your ears and minds !
I watched this series when it came out. I loved how he would pick some little idea/invention back in ancient times, and trace how it led to landing on the moon today. The period clothing and items made you appreciate how much more amazing it was to accomplish it with the technologies and tools of the times.
I see your channel has the first 4 episodes, do you plan on posting the whole series?
This series should be mandatory to every human
Haven’t watched these in many years. Still brilliant. We were so lucky in the 70s and 80s with all the interesting science shows , particularly in the UK, but we had Julius Sumner Miller in Australia that was great too.
"Now this was serious. It wasn't just costing lives -- it was costing money."
I first watched this fascinating series in the mid 90s on cable. Loved it. Thanks for posting this.
I saw this the first time in first run. This is the third time I'm watching this series, but I enjoy it EVERY time.
Genius !! Great explanation & association of science.
Your comment is genius!
This series popped into my head - and I looked it up and here it is! It’s very simple fix to turn the colors and contrast into the way it originally showed - rather than looking like it’s a half a century old film!
I have never seen this series but I knew about it because of another series Mr Burke did called "The day the universe changed" which I recorded when it was broadcast back in the day and have watched it many many times. This had the same feel and covers some of the same ideas.
Easily the best TV series involving leisure suits ever made
This guy made great documentaries. "The Day the Universe Changed" is one of my favorite series of all time.
Thanks for posting, this was one of my favorite shows on TLC, back when it was The Learning Chanel, along with Desmond Morris, The Human Animal
I still have my copy of James Burke's Connections book. It was a school prize when I was a kid, and I still treasure it. It is still very relevant (more than you might think, where he predicts the impact of computers on political thinking and how computers might spread it among the population as one might spread a message about washing powder).
Great stuff. Thanks for making this accessible again to us mid 20th century Analogues. Still inspiring after all these years,...
Dear YouTube, for FINALLY bringing back a show that I loved when it was first shown all these years ago. Connections and Cosmos where two of my favorite Science/Information/History show that I could understand and never wanted to miss. I wish that the video could of been cleaned up. Even in HD there is still some detail missing. But nonetheless I am glad to see this again. Thanks.
YouTube didn’t do it - the person who owns this channel did it! It’s them you owe your thanks, not the platform. Just sayin’.
I always loved his articles in SciAm, his cancellation was one of the reasons I dropped my subscription for years. Love seeing his old series again.
A great show. Offered numerous examples of how concepts and ideas are interconnected, while also - subtly - teaching you how to become a critical thinker, as well. Highly recommended, even if much of the production and presentation seems outdated, today.
This, THIS is what real television was about. James Burke was ahead of his time. A brilliant, brilliant series.
I used to watch this!!! Fascinating stuff, presented in such a palatable way!
Loved this way back 30?yago and I still love it,this is an outstanding teaching aid!
Over 40 years ago
My parents and I watched this. We had the whole series on videotape too.
Wonderful! This was my favorite show, along with "Cosmos," with Carl Sagan. Why can't they produce this type of scientific information shows that will attract the imagination of the young and the old. Perhaps our population will become interested in Science again.
These sort of shows are hidden in the high number cable channels, and YouTube
It's so-o-o much cheaper to make 'reality TV' shows, and the advertising revenue is just as good or better.
I LOVE THIS SHOW!!! Thank you.
YES!!!! Thank you!!! I just subscribed. Absolutely love this series. Previous comments are spot on.
PLEASE POST MORE...so love this series😂
Loved this show and glad to find episodes on YouTube!
Loved this and Connections2 when they aired, wish the series was still on
I loved this show! Watched it all the time
ptronix - 2020-09-18
Back to a time when we had quality tv, unlike the modern rubbish, James Burke was always one of my favourite presenters
Iain Stewart - 2020-09-20
The Day The Universe Changed was another great series Burke did.
Fusa fab - 2020-09-20
& Carl Segan
Laceykat66 - 2020-09-20
The man could make Bubblegum Card collecting seem like the most fascinating occupation on earth.
Agent 1110 - 2020-12-29
@MichaelKingsfordGray
Or have their arseholes superglued shut... like you.
Robert DesVeaux - 2021-12-25
Precisely