The Day the Universe Changed
Encyclopedia
The Day the Universe Changed (subtitled "A Personal View by James Burke") is a British
documentary
television series written and presented by science historian
James Burke
, originally broadcast in 1985 by the BBC
. The series' primary focus is on the effect of advances in science
and technology
on western society in its philosophical aspects.
In the United States the 10-week hour-long series was broadcast October 13–December 15, 1986, on PBS
and was rebroadcast on The Learning Channel
in 1993.
essentially only exists as you perceive it through what you know; therefore, if you change your perception of the universe with new knowledge, you have essentially changed the universe itself.
To illustrate this concept, James Burke tells the various stories of important scientific discoveries and technological advances and how they fundamentally altered how western civilization
perceives the world. The series runs in roughly chronological order, from around the beginning of the Middle Ages
to the present.
A companion book of the same title, also written by Burke, was published in 1985 (ISBN 0316117064; revised edition 1995), presenting the same general premise of the television series in expanded detail. Burke read from the book for an abridged audiocassette and compact disc set available from Macmillan Audio.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
documentary
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
television series written and presented by science historian
History of science
The history of science is the study of the historical development of human understandings of the natural world and the domains of the social sciences....
James Burke
James Burke (science historian)
James Burke is a British broadcaster, science historian, author and television producer known amongst other things for his documentary television series Connections and its more philosophical oriented companion production, The Day the Universe Changed , focusing on the history of science and...
, originally broadcast in 1985 by the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
. The series' primary focus is on the effect of advances in science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
and technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
on western society in its philosophical aspects.
In the United States the 10-week hour-long series was broadcast October 13–December 15, 1986, on PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
and was rebroadcast on The Learning Channel
TLC (TV channel)
TLC is an American cable TV specialty channel which initially focused on educational content. Since 1991 TLC has been owned by Discovery Communications, the same company that operates the Discovery Channel, Animal Planet and The Science Channel, as well as other learning-themed networks...
in 1993.
Premise
The title comes from the philosophical idea that the universeUniverse
The Universe is commonly defined as the totality of everything that exists, including all matter and energy, the planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space. Definitions and usage vary and similar terms include the cosmos, the world and nature...
essentially only exists as you perceive it through what you know; therefore, if you change your perception of the universe with new knowledge, you have essentially changed the universe itself.
To illustrate this concept, James Burke tells the various stories of important scientific discoveries and technological advances and how they fundamentally altered how western civilization
Western culture
Western culture, sometimes equated with Western civilization or European civilization, refers to cultures of European origin and is used very broadly to refer to a heritage of social norms, ethical values, traditional customs, religious beliefs, political systems, and specific artifacts and...
perceives the world. The series runs in roughly chronological order, from around the beginning of the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
to the present.
A companion book of the same title, also written by Burke, was published in 1985 (ISBN 0316117064; revised edition 1995), presenting the same general premise of the television series in expanded detail. Burke read from the book for an abridged audiocassette and compact disc set available from Macmillan Audio.
Home video releases
Licensed by the BBC, The Day the Universe Changed was released on DVD in January 2009 by Documentary-Video (ISBN 3981500437). The five-disc set is closed captioned for the hearing impaired and approximately 550 minutes in length.Episodes
- The Way We Are: It Started with the Greeks
- In the Light of the Above: Medieval Conflict - Faith & Reason
- Point of View: Scientific Imagination in the Renaissance
- A Matter of Fact: Printing Transforms Knowledge
- Infinitely Reasonable: Science Revises the Heavens
- Credit Where It's Due: The Factory & Marketplace Revolution
- What the Doctor Ordered: Social Impacts of New Medical Knowledge
- Fit to Rule: Darwin's Revolution
- Making Waves: The New Physics - Newton Revised
- Worlds Without End: Changing Knowledge, Changing Reality
Reviews and commentary
- Alfred Unger, The Christian Science MonitorThe Christian Science MonitorThe Christian Science Monitor is an international newspaper published daily online, Monday to Friday, and weekly in print. It was started in 1908 by Mary Baker Eddy, the founder of the Church of Christ, Scientist. As of 2009, the print circulation was 67,703.The CSM is a newspaper that covers...
(October 14, 1986) — The Day the Universe Changed is studded with flashes of insight amid its potpourri of intellectual revelations. Burke believes that it will encourage viewers to examine what they know, digest what he has to tell them, and come up with, possibly, a new way of looking at things. - John Corry, The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
(October 16, 1986) — Television on a grand scale. Mr. Burke is interested in ideas, and they bubble and perk throughout. Sometimes we'll get lost, but most likely we'll stay interested. This is provocative stuff. - Diana SimmondsDiana SimmondsDiana Simmonds is an Australian journalist and arts critic, currently editor of Stage Noise and Sydney Alumni Magazine.Simmonds was born in London, England in 1953 and moved with her family to Kenya. She returned to London in 1977 and wrote for various magazines including Time Out and City Limits...
, Sydney Morning Herald (August 6, 1988) — James Burke could have the answer. Maddeningly, he has the answer to most things and has had for years. This year he's being dazzling in The Day The Universe Changed (SBS). This series, in which he verbally dances through the earth-shattering events in history is, quite simply, exciting. Like an intravenous slug of ice-cold Akvavit, he provokes shivers of shock and pleasure. His mix of cleverness, egotism, fun, imagination and accessibility is similar to the television styles of Robert Hughes or J.K.Galbraith, except that Burke is also naughty — like a mischievous elf.