If you like The Big Bang Theory but glaze over at all the relationship storylines, and wish there was more chatter about dark matter and string theory, Motherboard might be the show you’ve been looking for. The SBS VICELAND series looks at the types of research and technological advances that real-life scientists are involved in – from the study of viruses like Zika to the continuing effort to understand our universe by examining the behaviour of subatomic particles.
Here’s what you can expect to learn more about…
Tiny particles
Underneath the border of France and Switzerland, the Large Hardron Collider – the world’s largest machine – smashes particles into each other. Theories diverge about what might be achieved, but many hope it’ll prove the theory of supersymmetry. We won’t even try to explain what that means here, but Motherboard manages to do it very succinctly.
Part of the Large Hadron Collider in Bern, Switzerland. Source: SBS
Plastic surgery
People share everything on social media, so why not plastic surgery procedures? One American practitioner gets a million views a day by showing breast implants and tummy tucks, but is there more to it than self-aggrandisement?
Mosquitoes used to control the very virus they spread. Source: SBS
Killer epidemics
How do you control a disease that’s spread by mosquitoes? You control the insects themselves – and not with a super-sized can of spray. Find out about the genetic techniques used to keep viruses that have the potential to infect millions in check.
Bionic bodies
Prosthetics have come a long way, but have they gone so far as to now be human enhancements as opposed to just rough replacements for missing body parts? Motherboard considers the evidence and looks at cutting edge robotics that integrate fully with the human body, becoming way more than just a strap-on tool.
Brian A Anderson delves into the topic of smart guns. Source: SBS
Guns that save lives
It’s stating the obvious to say gun violence is a major problem in the US, but what if there was a way to make smart weapons that know who is holding them and only fire when it’s an approved person? Well, there is, but like anything gun-related in America, it’s not as straightforward as it could be.
How to hack
The more we rely on computers and connectivity, the more potentially vulnerable we are to attacks by hackers, who will be able to exploit our personal information and render our systems useless. But not every hacker is out to wreak havoc. Motherboard meets some “white-hat” hackers working to keep systems secure.
Motherboard premieres Wednesday 26 July at 8pm on SBS VICELAND.
