Prophets of Science Fiction (2011–2012): Season 1, Episode 4 - Arthur C. Clarke - full transcript

WHO ARE WE? WHY ARE WE
HERE? WHAT IS OUR PLACE IN THE

UNIVERSE? I THINK CLARKE'S BOOKS
WERE ALMOST INSTRUCTION MANUALS.

Narrator: AN ELEVATOR TO THE STARS,
COLONIZATION OF THE COSMOS, ALIEN CONTACT.

THERE IS SOMETHING OUT THERE THAT IS, AS
FAR AS ANTS ARE COMPARED TO US, AS WE ARE TO

ANTS OR PLANTS. Narrator: SEIZE THE
EVIDENCE IN A SIGN AND HELPS CREATE IT.

EVERYTHING ABOUT COMMUNICATION
SATELLITES GOES BACK TO CLARKE.

Narrator: CLARKE DARES US TO
IMAGINE WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF HUMANITY.

TOMORROW BEGINS THE START OF
IMAGINATION. THAT FLASH OF INSIGHT THAT

ABOLISHES YESTERDAY'S
INNOVATIONS. I'M WILLIAM SCOTT.

THIS IS THE PROPHETS OF SCIENCE
FICTION. ARTHUR CLARKE WAS A PURIST IN

HIS THINKING. AND IT WAS EVOLVED.
HE FORCED US TO THINK ABOUT



EVOLUTION. HOW DO WE
GET HERE? WHO MADE US?

AND THEN WHAT IS THE REASON FOR OUR
BEING. I THINK HE WASN'T ALL TOGETHER

OF THIS WORLD.

Narrator: LONDON, GREAT BRITAIN,
1941. EIGHT DEVASTATING MONTHS OF NAZI

BOMBING RAIDS LEAVES OVER ONE
MILLION HOMES DESTROYED OR DAMAGED.

20,000 ARE DEAD. 24-YEAR-OLD ASPIRING
WRITER ARTHUR C. CLARKE ESCAPES TO THE

HILLS OUTSIDE THE CITY. STRETCHED OUT BEFORE
HIM IN THE MIDDAY'S SUN LIES A VAST FLEET.

BARRAGE BALLOONS ARE POISED TO ENSNARE
LOW-FLYING ENEMY PLANES IN THEIR METAL CABLES.

BUT CLARKE LOOKS BEHIND THE CHAOS OF WAR
INTO AN EXCITING VISION OF MANKIND'S DESTINY.

IT SEEMED THAT ALIEN SPACESHIPS
WERE POISED ABOVE THE CITY.

FOR A LONG MOMENT, WE DREAMED OF THE
DISTANCE FUTURE. Narrator: FROM ITS EARLIEST

DAYS, CLARKE WOULD USE ITS IMAGINATION TO
TRANSPORT HIMSELF FAR BEYOND THE ENGLISH FARM OF

HIS CHILDHOOD. HE WAS A VERY SHY BOY
WHEN HE WAS GROWING UP IN GREAT BRITAIN.

HE DEVELOPED THIS FANTASTIC ABILITY IN HIS
ANTS TO DEVELOP CONCEPTS AND TO STRETCH THOSE



CONCEPTS INTO ARENAS THAT VERY FEW OF US HAVE
EVER EXPLORED. Narrator: IN HIS LATE TEENS,

CLARKE JOINS THE BRITISH PLANETARY
SOCIETY, AN ORGANIZATION OF SPACE ENTHU

ENTHUSIASTS WHO SHARE A COMMON
GOAL, LEADING MANKIND INTO THE STARS.

THE BRITISH SOCIETY DID A LOT
OF WORK. IT WAS REALLY A FRENCH

ORGANIZATION IN THE BEGINNING. LUNATICS THEY
CALLED THEM IN THE PRESS BACK THEN BECAUSE THESE

YOUNG FELLOWS WERE TALKING ABTS GOING TO THE
MOON IN THE 1930s AND THEY REALLY THOUGHT THEY

WERE RATHER CRAZY. Narrator: CLARKE
AND HIS COLLEAGUES PLANNED MISSIONS TO

THE MOON. METICULOUSLY CALCULATING
THE VIABILITY OF ROCKET-BASED SPACE

FLIGHT. ARTHUR C. CLARKE
IS A DIFFERENT KIND OF SCIENCE

FICTION WRITER. HE'S BRINGING A DIFFERENT
ORDER OF UNDERSTANDING, MATHEMATICS,

THEORIES OF PHYSICS INTO THE
WORK. THIS IS A GUY WHO LOOKED TO THE

STARS AND THEN PUT HIS PEN TO PAPER, WHICH IS
A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT THAN JUST LOOKING INTO

YOUR OWN HEAD AND PUTTING IT TO
PAPER. WHEN YOU READ HIS BOOKS, THEY

ARE JUST BRIMMING WITH IDEAS, THOUGHTS ABOUT
THINGS THAT MAYBE YOU'VE NEVER HAD BEFORE.

AND HIS PURPOSE IN DOING THAT IS TO GET
YOU TO THINK. Narrator: THROUGH SCIENCE

FICTION, CLARKE POSES QUESTIONS ABOUT
THE FUTURE. HIS THOUGHT-PROVOKING THEORIES

QUESTIONS THE WORLD'S ATTENTION WITH
CHILDHOOD'S END. THE BOOK TELLS THE STORY OF

MANKIND'S FIRST ENCOUNTER WITH
AN ADVANCED EXTRATERRESTRIAL RACE.

ALL OF THE SUDDEN, GIGANTIC SPACESHIPS HOVER
OVER THE CITIES OF THE WORLD AND THEY CLEARLY

ARE OF ALIEN ORIGIN AND HUMAN BEINGS HAVE
TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO INTERACT WITH THEM.

IT WAS THE FIRST SPIRITUAL SCIENCE FICTION
BOOK THAT I HAD EVER READ, A BOOK THAT TALKED

ABOUT THE FUTURE OF THE EVOLUTION OF
HUMANITY. CLARKE BELIEVED THAT HUMAN

BEINGS ARE IN A CONSTANT STATE OF
EVOLUTION. I DON'T THINK YOU WOULD HAVE

BOTHER TO READ HIS BOOKS IF YOU DIDN'T
SEE THAT. THEY ARE ALMOST INSTRUCTION

MANUALS FOR HUMAN EVOLUTION,
IN A SENSE. Narrator: THE ALIENS,

NICKNAMED THE OVERLORDS, WIELD TECHNOLOGY SO
ADVANCED THAT IT SEEMS MAGICAL TO THE PEOPLE OF

EARTH. THEY ACTUALLY STAY HACKING
ABOVE THE EARTH WITHOUT ACTUALLY

MAKING CONTAC FOR A FEW GENERATION SO A
GENERATION OF HUMANS CAN EVOLVE THAT SEES THIS

ALIEN PRESENCE AS THE FACT OF
LIFE. AND FINALLY, THE OVERLORDS MAKE

CONTACT WHEN IT TURNS OUT TO BE SOMETHING
COMPLETELY UNEXPECTED. Narrator: THE ALIENS LOOK

DEMONIC WITH HORNS, TAILS AND LEATHERY
WINGS. THEY LOOK ENDLESSLY ABOUT THE

OVERLORD'S BIOLOGY AND WHAT IT
MIGHT INDICATE ABOUT THEIR EXTRA

TRES YAL WORLD. DR. LYNN ROTHCHILD
IS A BIOLOGIST WORKING FOR NASA.

ONE OF THE BIG THINGS THAT WOULD AFFECT
WHAT LIFE LOOKS LIKE ON ANOTHER PLANET,

PARTICULARLY IF YOU'RE STARTING TO LOOK
AT LARGE LIFE, MACROSKOPIC LIFE LIKE US, IS

WHAT THE GRAVITY IS LIKE. NOW, ON EARTH,
WE'VE ALL EVOLVED UNDER ONE GENE, ONE GRAVITY.

BUT IF WE EVOLVED ON A PLANET WITH 2 G OR 5 G,
WE WOULD HAVE TO HAVE CORRESPONDINGLY THICKER

LEGS. WE WOULD HAVE TO HAVE
MUCH STRONGER LIMBS TO HOLD UP OUR

WAGT AND MAYBE SOME POINT WE WOULD BE PUSHED
FLAT ON THE GROUND BECAUSE WE COULDN'T HOLD

UP ANY WEIGHT AT ALL. BUT CONVERSELY, IF
WE HAD EVOLVED ON A PLANET THAT SAY HAD

HALF G, MAYBE WE'D BE TALL AND THIN AND AVATAR
LIKE CREATURES AND NOT THE WAY WE ARE TODAY.

SO GRAVITY IS SOMETHING WE DON'T TEND TO
THINK ABOUT. BUT THAT REALLY IS ONE OF THE

THINGS THAT SHAPES LIFE. A NORMAL CONDITION
FOR LIFE, WHAT WE SEE, IS ALL LOVELY AND

IT'S JUST SORT OF THESE MEDIUM TEMPERATURES
AND SO ON. BUT IT'S ONLY DESCRIBED THE VERY

TINY SLICE OF WHERE LIFE CAN ACTUALLY
SURVIVE. WE NEED TO HAVE LIQUID WATER.

BUT THERE ARE ORGANISMS THAT CAN BEAT
THE ODDS. ALL LIFE ON EARTH SHARES A

UNIFYING FACTOR. WE'RE ALL BUILT ON A
FORM OF CARBON CHEMISTRY CALLED ORGANIC

CHEMISTRY. AND THIS SEEM
BE THE LANGUAGE OF LIFE.

IF YOU LOOK OUT INTO THE INTRASKEL
LAR MEDIUM, IT'S THE SAME AS ON EARTH.

Narrator: ORGANIC LIFE SOMETIMES FALLS
TO EARTH. ONE SUCH METEOR IS STORED AT THE

CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCE. THE REASON
THIS IS SO EXCITING TO SCIENTISTS IS IT'S

AS OLD AS THE SOLAR SYSTEM, AND, YET, WE FOUND
THAT IT CONTAINS THE BUILDING BLOCKS OF LIFE.

THINGS LIKE AMINO ACIDS AND OTHER SORTS OFS
CHEMICAL THAT IS WE USE TO MAKE OUR OWN BODIES.

SO WHAT IT SHOWS IS THAT THESE BUILDING BLOCKS
WERE AROUND IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM BEFORE LIFE

AROSE ON THE EARTH. Narrator:
CLARKE'S FASCINATION WITH THE CONCEPT OF

ALIEN LIFE SHAPES HIS THEORY ABOUT THE EVOLUTION
OF HUMANITY. I THINK IT'S ENTIRELY LOGICAL

THAT THERE ARE EXTRA TERRESTRIAL.
IT'S ARROGANCE TO BELIEVE THAT

WE ARE THE ONLY LIVING ORGANISM INS THIS
GALAXY. I THINK THERE'S THOUSANDS OF US,

MILLIONS OF US. WHO KNOWS WHAT
IT IS. WE'RE NOT HERE BY ACCIDENT.

FOR US TO BE SITTING HERE RIGHT NOW IS SO
ILLOGICAL, MATHEMATICALLY, IT CAN BE PROVED

TO BE IMPOSSIBLE. SO YOU HAVE TO ASK
ALONG THE WAY, WHO PUSHED AND PULLED AND

ADJUSTED TO MAKE US BE WHAT WE ARE NOW HERE
TODAY. Narrator: IN CHILDHOOD'S END,

IT'S THE OVERLORDS WHO ARE PULLING THE
STRINGS. THEIR MISSION ON EARTH PROTECTS

HUMANITY FROM ITS OWN DESTRUCTIVE
IMPULSES SO THAT WE MAY ADVANCE TO THE NEXT

EVOLUTIONARY PLATEAU. IN THE NOVEL'S
CONCLUSION, THE CHILDREN OF EARTH ASCEND FROM

THEIR BODY TO JOIN A VAST COSMIC
OVERMIND. TO TRULY PROGRESS, MANKIND

ABANDONS THE EARTH. CLARKE WAS
REALLY GOOD AT DEALING WITH THE REALLY BIG

QUESTIONS. WHO ARE
WE? WHY ARE WE HERE?

WHAT'S OUR PLACE IN THE UNIVERSE?
AND HE DIDN'T NECESSARILY ALWAYS

ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS, BUT HE EXPLORED THEM IN
A WAY THAT WAS NOT BASED IN RELIGION SO MUCH AS

IT WAS BASED IN SCIENCE AND
PHILOSOPHY. Narrator: CLARKE'S UNIQUE

BRAND OF METAPHYSICAL SCIFI WILL MAKE HIM
THE MOST FAMOUS FUTURIST IN THE WORLD AND

INSPIRE COUNTLESS SCIENTISTS. SOME OF CLARKE'S
PROPHESIES ARE SO ADVANCED AND FAR REACHING

THAT WE ARE ONLY NOW TAKING STEPS TOWARD
ACHIEVING THEM. BUT ONE OF CLARKE'S EARLIEST

PROPHESIES HAVE ALREADY BEEN
REALIZED. AN INVENTION OF SUCH PROFOUND

MAGNITUDE THAT OUR MODERN WORLD WOULD
COLLAPSE WITHOUT IT. WORLD WAR II.

A GERMAN B-2 ROCKETS RAIN DOWN ON LONDON,
27-YEAR-OLD ARTHUR C. CLARKE IS STATIONED 250 MILES

AWAY IN CORNWALL. HE MANS THE ROYAL
AIR FORCE'S TOP SECRET RADAR SYSTEM, THE

MARK 1. THIS PRECISE EQUIPMENT
ALLOWS OPERATORS ON THE GROUND TO TALK

DOWN PILOTS LANDING IN THE DARK. CLARKE REALIZES
THIS NEW TECHNOLOGY CAN DO MORE THAN LAND

PLANES. IT CAN CONNECT THE HUMAN
RACE. BUT ONLY WITH THE HELP OF A

VAST, UNTAPPED RESOURCE. I CAN RECALL
WITH SOME EMBARRASSMENT USING THE DEAR OLD

MACH 1 WAITING FOR THE ECHO THREE SECONDS
LATER. CLARKE HOPES THAT THE MOON

WILL SERVE AS A NATURAL REFLECTOR,
BOUNCING RADIO SIGNALS BACK TO ANY SPOT ON

EARTH. THE MOON IS TOO FAR
AWAY. BUT CLARKE'S IMPROMPTU

EXPERIMENT LEADS TO A REVELATION.
WHAT IF A MANMADE SATELLITE WAS

LAUNCHED INTO SPACE. ORBITING THE EARTH
MUCH CLOSER THAN THE MOON, IT COULD REFLECT

THE RADIOWAVES. SO COMMUNICATIONS
AND ASTRONAUTICS WERE ENTANGLED

WITHIN THEIR MIND WITH RULGTS THAT SEEMED
INEVITABLE. Narrator: ARTHUR C. CLARKE'S

CONCEPTS EVOLVES INTO THE MOST
SIGNIFICANT TOOL OF MODERN COMMUNICATION.

IN 1945, ARTHUR C. CLARKE
INVENTED THE COMMUNICATION SATELLITE.

ARTHUR CLARKE CAME UP WITH THE IDEA OF WHAT
HE CALLED THE GEOSYNCHRONOUS ORBIT AND WOULD

TURN WITH YOU AND ALWAYS STAY
ABOVE THE SAME SPOT OF THE EARTH.

SO YOU COULD BOUNCE SIGNALS OFF
OF IT AND USE IT FOR COMMUNICATIONS.

IF YOU COULD PUT THREE OF THEM UP EQUALLY
SPACED, YOU COULD SEND SIGNALS BETWEEN THEM THAT

WOULD REACH ANY PLACE IN THE
WORLD. Narrator: IN 1965 INTEL-SAT-1

IS LAUNCHED 22 MILES ABOVE THE EQUATOR.
AN ORBIT NOW KNOWN AS THE CLARKE

BELL. EVERYTHING ABOUT
GEOSYNCHRONOUS SATELLITES GOES

BACK TO CLARKE. EVERY TIME WE WATCH A
SATELLITE BROADCAST ON TV OR SEND A CELL

PHONE CALL OR EVERYONE READ
A NEWSPAPER, WE'RE INTERACTING

WITH THE COMMUNICATION SATELLITE.
Narrator: CLARKE CREATES THE

FUTURE HE WANTS TO LIVE IN. A WORLD WHERE
THE ENTIRE HUMAN POPULATION FROM THE LARGEST

CITIES TO THE SMALLEST ISLANDS ARE
CONNECTED. THIS IS ONE OF THE GRAND

STATIONS WHICH FORMED THE
INTELSAT NETWORK. AND HERE IS A MODEL.

THIS IS A VERY BIG THING. IT'S ABOUT 50
FEET ACROSS. THESE PICK UP THE SIGNAL FROM

THE STATION BEHIND ME AND THEN
AMPLIFY IT AND THEN BEAM IT BACK.

Narrator: THE TECHNOLOGY CLARKE ENVISIONED
IN 1945 HAS BECOME THE FOUNDATION OF OUR

ATEMPBT TO UNDERSTAND HUMANITY'S PLACE IN
THE UNIVERSE. SPACE TELESCOPES ARE SATELLITES

THAT BEAM IMAGES OF DEEP SPACE BACK TO
EARTH. NASA'S NEWEST AND MOST AMBITIOUS

SPACE TELESCOPE IS THE KEPPLER. TAKING
FLIGHT ON MARCH 6th, 2009, THE KEPPLER SPACE

TELESCOPE IS THE FIRST EVER SATELLITE SOLELY
DEVOTED TO THE HUNT FOR PLANETS OUTSIDE OUR

SOLAR SYSTEM. THE KEPPLER MISSION
IS A TELESCOPE ORBITING IN SPACE AND

IT'S OUT THERE TO FIND OUT IF EARTH'S COMMON
OR RARE. SO IT IS REALLY MANKIND'S FIRST

STEP IN EXPLORATION OF THE
GALAXY TO FIND HABITABLE PLANETS.

Narrator: WILLIAM BARUKE HAS LONG BEEN
INSPIRED BY VISIONARY PREDICTIONS OF HUMANITY'S

FUTURE. I REMEMBER WALKING TO
THE PUBLIC LIBRARY AND GETTING ALL

THE BOOKS ON SCIENCE FICTION. ANY EXPLORATION
THINGS WHERE PEOPLE ARE EXPLORING NEW THINGS

AND BOOKS BY ARTHUR C. CLARKE WHERE HE
TALKS ABOUT THE EVOLUTION OF MAN AND THE

DIFFERENT KINDS OF TECHNOLOGY THAT COULD
BE EMPLOYED. Narrator: THE KEPPLER TEAM

DESIGNED THEIR TELESCOPE TO PEER DEEP INTO
THE COSMOS. TO FIND CORNERS OF SPACE UNKNOWN

TO MAN. AT THE TOP, IT HAS A
LENS. IT'S CALL IT HAD CORRECTOR.

BELOW, IT HAS A BIG MIRROR, ABOUT
FIVE FEET. THE LIGHT COMES IN, HIT IT IS

MIRROR, COMES BACK UP AND ITS ANTENNAS TAKE
THE DATA THAT WE'VE GOT AND SEND THEM TO DEEP

SPACE NETWORK. Narrator: THE
KEPPLER SATELLITE IS ELEGANT IN ITS

SIMPLICITY. IT DETECTS PLANETS BY
MEASURING HOW MUCH LIGHT IS BLOCKED WHEN A

PLANET PASSES IN FRONT OF
THE SUN. THIS IS CALLED A TRANSIT.

ON EARTH, WE CAN USE SUCH A TRANSIT WHENEVER
OUR MOON PASSES IN FRONT OF THE SUN.

IN DEEP SPACE, FINDING AN EARTH-LIKE PLANET
TRANSITING A DISTANT STAR IS A GREATER

CHALLENGE. THE INFORMATION
BEHIND ME ARE THE LIGHT CURVES.

HOW THEIR BRIGHTNESS CHANGES WITH
TIME. THESE EACH REPRESENT SEVERAL

PIXELS FOR A PARTICULAR STAR. ALONG THESE CURVES
SHS WE SHOULD BE ABLE TO FIND TINY TRANSITS

THAT WOULD REPRESENT A PLANET AMONG
THE STARS. SO WHEN IT GOES ACROSS THE STAR

AND CHANGES THE STAR, IT'S 1% OF WHAT CHANGED
LIGHT WOULD OCCUR. IT'S A PIECE OF TRANSPARENT

FWLASZ IN FRONT OF SOME
LIGHTBULB. IT'S EXTREMELY SMALL.

SO IT'S THE MOST PRECISE SYSTEM
EVER BUILT. Narrator: TO DATE, KEPPLER

HAS CATALOGED OVER 1200 PLANET
CANDIDATES. 54 OF THOSE PLANETS ARE LOCATED

WITHIN HABITABLE ZONES AND, IN
THEORY, COULD SUPPORT HUMAN LIFE.

BUT THE NEAREST IS MANY LIGHT YEARS
AWAY AND HUMANITY HAS NO WAY TO GET THERE.

YET. YOU CAN LIKEN OUR QUEST
TO UNDERSTAND THE LIFE IN THE

UNIVERSE TO WHAT YOU SAW IN THE MIDDLE
AGES. THEY WANTED TO BUILD THESE GIANT

CATHEDRALS.
THEY KNEW THAT WHEN THEY BUILT

THE FOUNDATION, THAT IT WOULD BE THEIR
CHILDREN THAT WOULD ERECT THE WALLS.

THEIR GRANDCHILDREN THAT WOULD COVER
THE CHURCH. THEIR GREAT GRANDCHILDREN THAT

WOULD ENJOY THE INTERIOR AND ENJOY THIS WONDERFUL
STRUCTURE. GENERATION AFTER GENERATION, THE

QUEST, THE GOAL WOULD BE
CONTINUED. AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING

TODAY. Narrator: ARTHUR C. CLARKE
SEES A PLACE FOR MAN AMONGST THE

STARS AND DREAMS OF VISITING THEM
HIMSELF. TO PUSH HUMANITY FORWARD, HE

DRAWS THE BLUEPRINT FOR A NEW
SPACE AGE. AN AGE WHERE ALL IT TAKES FOR

ANYONE TO EXPLORE THE UNIVERSE
IS A ROUND TRIP TICKET. 1953.

SCIENCE FICTION AUTHOR ARTHUR C. CLARKE HAS FOUND
HIS OWN WAY TO EXPERIENCE THE COSMOS HERE ON

EARTH. HE LOVED SCUBA
DIVING. TO ARTHUR C. CLARKE, SCUBA

DIVING WAS AS CLOSE AS HE WOULD COME TO
BEING WEIGHTLESS. Narrator: CLARKE MEETS

22-YEAR-OLD MARILYN MAYFIELD. CLARKE
SPENDS THEIR HONEYMOON EDITING HIS NOVEL.

AND THE FIRST CRACKS BEGIN TO
APPEAR. THEY NEVER REALLY KNEW ONE

ANOTHER. THEY HAD SOME PROBLEMS.
APPARENTLY, SHE WANTED MORE OF

HIS TIME AND WRITERS DON'T HAVE A LOT
OF TIME THEY'RE SO INVOLVED IN THEIR STUFF.

Narrator: CLARKE AND MARILYN SEPARATE AFTER
A FEW MONTHS. THE NEXT TIME CLARKE FALLS IN

LOVE, IT'S NOT WITH A PERSON, BUT A
PLACE. THE BALMY QUATORIAL SRI LANKA.

CLARKE LEAVES HIS HOMELAND TO SETTLE PERMANENTLY
IN SRI LANKA. ISOLATED FROM THE MODERN

TECHNOLOGICAL WORLD HE HELPED INSPIRE,
CLARKE SPENDS HIS TIME WRIING OR UNDER WATER.

HE STARTED A SCUBA DIVING COMPANY IN
THE BEAUTIFUL TROPICAL WATERS OF SRI LANKA.

Narrator: FLOATING, WEIGHTLESS,
CLARKE DREAMS OF SPACE TRAVEL.

IN 1964, HE BEGINS TO PLOP HIS MOST AMBITIOUS
JOURNEY TO THE STARS, A COLLABORATION WITH

STANLEY CUBRIC. 2001, A SPACE
ODYSSEY. THEY DID A LOT OF

BRAINSTORMING, HOURS UPON HOURS UPON HOURS OF
VARIOUS PLACES AROUND MANHATTAN, ARTHUR DID LNL

ALL THE WRITING. STANLEY WOULD SAY
NO, I DON'T LIKE THAT, WHY DON'T YOU TRY

THIS, WHY DON'T YOU TRY THIS. SO HE WAS VERY
ACTIVE IN IT. AND THE TWO NAMES ARE ON THE

SCREEN PLAY. Narrator: THE FILM
REINVENTS SCIENCE FICTION AND FILM MAKING

FOREVER. I WASN'T A SCIENCE
FICTION ENTHUSIAST UNTIL I SAW 2001 A

SPACE ODYSSEY. Narrator: IN THE
FILM'S OPENING SEQUENCE, A MYSTERIOUS

ALIEN MONOLITH TRIGGERS THE EVOLUTION
OF MAN. THE INSPIRATION TO USE TOOLS

SETS OFF MILLENNIA OF TECHNOLOGICAL
PROCESS. THAT CLASSICAL SCENE OF THE

APE WITH THE BONE GOING UP IN THE AIR, I
PLAY THAT TO MYSELF OVER AND OVER AGAIN AS A

REPRESENTATION OF THE EPIPHAIES OF
THE MIND. 2001 IS A GOLD STANDARD OF

SCIENCE FICTION FILM MAKING. I FELT LIKE BEING
LET IN ON A POSSIBLE SECRET OF HOW HUMANITY

CAME ABOUT. YOU KNOW, IT'S NOT
EVERY DAY THAT YOU OPEN A BOOK AND YOU

MAYBE GET AN ANSWER TO HOW IT
ALL HAPPENED. IT'S ALMOST A RELIGIOUS

EXPERIENCE TO SKIES IN A STORY. 2001
IS VERY MYSTICAL. I THINK IT ECHOES ON THE

QUESTION OF ALL OF THIS. Narrator: IN
2001, A SPACE ODYSSEY, WORKERS ON THE MOON

UNCOVER A GIANT, BLACK MONOLITH. BEAMING
A MYSTERIOUS SIGNAL TOWARDS JUPITER.

THEY BELIEVE IT HAS BEEN BURIED BY ALIENS
MILLENNIA EARLIER. WORLD GOVERNMENTS CONVENE A

SECRET COUNCIL AT A MOON OUT
POST TO DECIDE HUMANITY'S NEXT STEP.

THE COUNCIL MEMBERS TRAVEL TO
THE MOON ON A PAN AM SPACE PLANE.

PAN AM WENT OUT OF BUSINESS IN
1991. BUT IN OCTOBER, 2011, SPACE PORT

AMERICA, THE WORLD'S FIRST PURPOSE BUILT
COMMERCIAL SPACE PORT OPENED FOR BUSINESS.

SPACE PORT AMERICA IS PART OF ARTHUR C. CLARKE'S
PROPHESY OF WHAT HAS BECOME IN HIS WRITINGS

IN 2001. WE'RE AT THE SPACE
OPERATIONS CENTER, KIND OF THE HUB, THE

HEART OF THE OPERATION OF SPACE
PORT AMERICA. Narrator: HERE, IN THE

DESERT, PRIVATE SPACE COMPANIES INTEND TO
LAUNCH COMMERCIAL SPACE PLANES INTO SUB ORBIT.

THIS IS WHERE WE'RE GOING TO PARK THE VIRGIN
MOTHER SHIP. THE PASSENGERS GET TO BE AMONG

THE SPACESHIP AND THE MOTHER
SHIP. IT LOOK LIKE SOMETHING OUT OF A

SCIENCE FICTION MOVIE. IF YOU WERE TO BUY
A TICKET, IT WOULD BE 6 PASSENGERS AND 2

PILOTS. THERE'S GOING TO BE A TRAINING
PROGRAM, GETTING PEOPLE MENTALLY

PREPARED FOR IT. PROBABLY BE ABOUT
THREE DAYS. YOU ERR GOING TO COME DOWN THIS

TAXIWAY, TAKE OFF IN THE WIND. THE MOTHER SHIP
CARRYING THE SPACESHIP IN THE CENTER AND THEN

THEY'RE GOING TO DROP YOU. THE VIRGIN
SPACESHIP BLASTS OFF AT 50,000 FEET, BY PASSING

THE LOWER ATMOSPHERE. THIS ALLOWS FOR A
LIGHTER FUSELAGE THAN GROUND LAUNCHING

SPACESHIPS. THE ROCKET SOARS TO
350,000 FEET WHERE IT FLOATS IN SUB ORBIT.

WHEN YOU'RE UP THERE, YOU WILL EXPERIENCE
WEIGHTLESSNESS. YOU'LL BE ABLE TO SEE THE

CURVETURE OF THE EARTH. AND THEN YOU'LL STRAP
YOURSELF BACK IN AND YOU COME BACK DOWN.

THE SHIP'S FEATHER SYSTEM SERVES AS A
FAIL SAFE WHEN THE CRAFT REENTERS EARTH'S

ATMOSPHERE. THIS DESIGN CREATES A
HIGH AMOUNT OF DRAG TO CONTROL SPEED

AND ALTITUDE ALLOWING FOR HANDS FREE
REENTRY. THIS UNIQUE FEATHER WING

REENTRY SYSTEM IS LIKE A BADMINTON
BIRDIE. WHEN IT CURLS UP, IT SLOWS THE

SPACECRAFT DOWN. IT ALL HAPPENS
RIGHT HERE OVER THIS AEROSPACE.

WE'RE LIVING IN THE VERY
BEGINNING OF COMMERCIAL SPACE TRAVEL.

IN THE VERY NEAR FUTURE, ALMOST ANYONE
CAN GO INTO SPACE AND HOW EXCITING IS THAT?

CLARKE ENVISIONED THAT ONCE MAN CONQUERS
SPACE TRAVEL, HUMANITY CAN POPULATE THE

COSMOS. HE PREDICTS THAT HUMAN
TECHNOLOGY WILL EVOLVE BEYOND

EVEN ROCKETRY. A FUTURE WHERE
REACHING THE STARS CAN BE AS SIMPLE AS

STEPPING INTO AN ELEVATOR.
1969. ARTHUR C. CLARKE HIKES ADAM'S

PEAK. A SRI LANKA MOUNTAIN SACRED
TO BUDDHIST, MUSLIMS AND CHRISTIANS

ALIKE. A FOUR-MILE SLIGHT OF
TWISTING STEPS BECKONS HIKERS ON A

SPIRITUAL JOURNEY TO THE SUMMIT.
ATOP THE SACRED PEAK, CLARKE HAS

AN EPIPHANY. HE IMAGINES A METHOD
FOR HUMANITY TO ASCEND AND COLONIZE

THE UNIVERSE. A CABLE STRETCHING
INTO THE INFINITE BEYOND.

CLARKE'S VISION TAKES SHAPE IN A NOVEL THAT
NETS HIM ONE OF THE HIGHEST HONORS THE SCIENCE

FICTION, THE HUGO AWARD. ARTHUR C. CLARKE
TALKED ABOUT A CABLE THAT WOULD TAKE YOU INTO

HEAVEN. LIKE JACK AND THE BEAN
STALK. WELL, BELIEVE IT OR NOT, IT IS

PHYSICALLY POSSIBLE TO BUILD A ELEVATOR INTO
OUTER SPACE. WHAT YOU DO IS YOU PUT A BIG

SPACE STATION IN A CLARKE ORBIT. THE THING
IS ORBITING AT THE SAME SPEED THAT THE EARTH

ROTATES SO THAT IT'S ALWAYS ABOVE THE SAME
SPOT ON EARTH. Narrator: THE TOP FLOOR WOULD

BE THE SATELLITE. 22,000 MILES
UP. CENTRIFUGAL FORCE ALLOWS THE

SATELLITE TO SUPPORT THE CABLE CONNECTING IT
TO THE GROUND. CLARKE THEORIZES THAT SPACE

ELEVATORS WILL BE ESSENTIAL IF
HUMANITY IS TO MIGRATE TO THE STARS.

FROM NOW ON, THERE WILL ALWAYS BE SOMEBODY
IN SPACE. AND MORE AND MORE MEN WILL

OCCUPY SPACE. EVENTUALLY, THE EARTH
WOULD BE THE HUB OF A WHEEL WITH SPOKES

GOING OUT, THE ELEVATORS AND PROBABLY MORE
PEOPLE LIVING OUTSIDE THE EARTH THAN ON IT.

CLARKE BELIEVED THAT THE ROB ET WAS TO
SPACE TRAVEL AS THE BALLOON WAS TO AVIATION.

HE THOUGHT ROCKETS WERE COMPLETELY OUT DATED
ALMOST FROM THE TIME THEY WERE INVENTED.

TAKE A POUND OF ANYTHING AROUND US TO TO
PUT IT INTO A NEARBY ORT OBJECT COSTS ABOUT

$10,000. WE MAY BE ABLE TO DROP
THAT COST TO A FACTOR OF A HUNDRED.

A SPACE ELEVATOR CAN LAUNCH DEEPER INTO
THE COSMOS. EASIER ACCESS TO THE HEAVENS

MEANS LIFTING MANKIND CLOSER TO CLARKE'S
DREAM OF INTERSTELLAR COLONIZATION.

PEOPLE WANT TO EXPLORE THE FAR, FAR,
FAR FRONTIER BEYOND OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.

I THINK CHEAP ACCESS TO SPACE
WILL ALLOW ALL OF THAT TO HAPPEN.

AS A NASA RESEARCHER, MICHAEL LANE
STUDIED THE FEASIBILITY OF SPACE ELEVATORS.

LANE WAS SO INTRIGUED BY THE CONCEPT THAT
HE HAS SPENT THE PAST DECADE INDEPENDENTLY

DESIGNING AND TESTING EQUIPMENT THAT
COULD SOME DAY POWER A REAL SPACE ELEVATOR.

I'M COMMITTED TO BUILDING AN ELEVATOR TO
SPACE BECAUSE ONCE I SAW IT, THAT WAS IT.

Narrator: TO CONSTRUCT A SPACE ELEVATOR,
ENGINEERS MUST FIRGS SOLVE TWO TECHNICAL

CHALLENGES. THE FIRST, HOW TO
POWER THE ELEVATOR CAB DURING ITS LONG

ASSENT WITHOUT HEAVY CABLES OR ON
BOARD FUEL. WE WOULD BEAM POWER FROM A

LARGE LASER ARRAY ON THE GROUND TO CELL
RECEIVERS ON THE LIFTER CLIMBING INTO SPACE.

Narrator: SECOND, THE CABLE MUST BE VERY
LIGHT YET STRONG ENOUGH THAT IT DOESN'T SNAP.

IN THE FOUNTAINS OF PARADISE, CLARKE SOLVES
THIS PROBLEM WITH AN IMAGIARY CARBON-BASED

FILAMENT MADE OF DIAMOND.
CLARKE PREDICTED A SUPER-MATERIAL.

WHAT MAKES THEM IMPORTANT IS BOTH
THEIR STRUCTURE AND THEIR STRENGTH.

NANO TUBES GROWN IN THE LAB LOOKED VERY
PROMISING BUT WE HAVE TO PASS PRODUCE THEM AT A

LEVEL THAT CAN SUPPORT A HUNDRED
THOUSAND KILOMETER ELEVATOR TO SPACE.

FOR NOW, LANE TESTS HIS THEORIES
WITH MODELS. SO THIS IS OUR MOCK.

IT'S A MOCK OF WHAT AN E VENN SHL SPACE ELEVATOR
COULD BECOME. YOU'VE GOT A TREAD SYSTEM.

SO THE TREAD WILL ACTUALLY GRIP THE RIBBON BETWEEN
THE TREADS. AND AS THE ROLLERS SPIN, YOU'LL

CLIMB. AT THIS SCALE, LANE'S
ELEVATOR CAB HAS ROOM FOR ONLY

ONE PASSENGER. THIS IS
OUR MASCOT. HIS NAME IS CLARKE.

WE NAMED HIM CLARKE FROM THE VERY
FIRST TIME IN HONOR OF ARTHUR C. CLARKE.

Narrator: LANE AND HIS TEAM ARE ABOUT
TO PUT THEIR TINY PROTOTYPE TO THE TEST.

FIVE, FOUR, THREE, TWO, ONE. IT'S A LONG
WAY FROM THE CLIMBING BOB TO AN ACTUAL SPACE

ELEVATOR. BUT LANE AIMS TO BUILD
ON THE FOUNDATION LAID BY ARTHUR C.

CLARKE AND HE'S NOT ALONE. THERE'S
MORE THAN 60 UNIVERSITIES IN THE UNITED

STATES WORKING ON THIS PROJECT. THERE'S A
VERY LARGE ACTIVE COMMUNITY GETTING THIS THING

BUILT. LANE AND OTHERS ARE
PICKING UP CLARKE'S TORCH TO ACHIEVE A

GOAL THAT FOUNTAINS OF PARADISE PORTRAYS
AS ESSENTIAL TO THE GROWTH OF HUMANITY.

CLARKE PREDICTS THAT MANKIND WON'T
BE ALONE ON OUR JOURNEY TO DEEP SPACE.

WE'LL RELY ON ARTIFICIAL
INTELLIGENCE TO GUIDE OUR TRAVELS.

BUT WHAT HAPPENS IF OUR COMPUTERIZED
COMPANION 1973, ARTHUR C. CLARKE

RECOGNIZED FOR DECADES AS A PROPHET OF SCIENCE
FICTION AND SCIENCE UNVAILED THE SECRETS TO

HIS PROPHETIC SUCCESS. THE THREE
LAWS OF PREDICTION. FIRST OF ALL, WHEN A

DISTINGUISHED VETTERBLE SCIENTIST STATES
THAT SOMETHING IS POSSIBLE, IT PROBABLY IS

POSSIBLE. BUT WHEN A DISTINGUISHED
SCIENTIST SAYS SOMETHING IS

IMPOSSIBLE, IT'S STILL PROBABLY
POSSIBLE. ARTHUR C. CLARKE'S SECOND LAW

SAYS YOU HAVE TO BUILD THE POSSIBLE
INTO THE REALM OF THE IMPOSSIBLE.

ALL THE GREAT SCIENTISTS OF THE PAST CENTURY
WENT INTO THE REALM OF THE IMPOSSIBLE IN ORDER TO

MAKE FANTASTIC DISCOVERIES. Narrator: BUT
IT IS CLARKE'S THIRD LAW THAT PROFOUNDLY

CAPTURES HIS VISION OF THE
FUTURE. ANY SUFFICIENTLY ADVANCED

TECHNOLOGY IS INDISTINGUISHABLE FROM
MAGIC. WE SEE THAT IN HUMAN HISTORY.

ONE CULTURE HAS AN ADVANCED
TECHNOLOGY. THE OTHER CAN'T REALLY EXPLAIN

IT. THINK OF OUR ANCESTORS, OUR
GRANDPARENTS IN THE YEAR 1900.

IF THEY COULD SEE US TODAY WITH OUR ROCKETS AND
OUR GPS AND OUR SATELLITES, THEY WOULD CONSIDER

US TO BE WIZARDS AND SOR SERERS. SO
LOOK AROUND. EVERYWHERE YOU LOOK YOU SEE

ARTHUR C. CLARKE'S THIRD LAW IN
ACTION. Narrator: CLARKE, HIMSELF,

ACKNOWLEDGES THE PITFALLS OF
PROPHESY. THE PROPHET FALLS.

IN HIS PREDICTION FOUND REASONABLE, YOU CAN
BE QUITE SURE THAT IN TWENTY OR AT MOST,

FIFTY YEARS, THE PROGRESS OF SCIENCE AND
TECHNOLOGY HAS MADE HIM SEEM RIDICULOUSLY

CONSERVATIVE. ON THE OTHER HAND, IF
A PROPHET COULD DESCRIBE THE FUTURE

EXACTLY AS IT WAS, HIS PREDICTIONS WOULD
SOUND SO ABSURD, SO FARFETCHED THAT

EVERYBODY WOULD LAUGH HIM
TO SCORN. Narrator: 2001, A SPACE

ODYSSEY IS PUBLISHED AT A TIME WHEN COMPUTERS
ARE LESS POWERFUL THAN A MODERN CALCULATOR.

CLARKE EVOLVES THIS PRIMITIVE
TECHNOLOGY INTO A SUPER COMPUTER.

A SYSTEM SO ADVANCED THAT IT SEEMS
TO HAVE A MIND OF ITS OWN. HOW 9000.

I KNOW I'D NEVER COMPLETELY FREED MYSELF OF
THE SUSPICION THAT THERE ARE SOME EXTREMELY

ODD THINGS ABOUT THIS MISSION. I'M SURE
YOU'LL AGREE THERE'S SOME TRUTH IN WHAT I SAY.

HOW INGENIOUS THAT THE IDEA THAT A
COMPUTER WOULD BE MORE INTELLIGENT THAN US.

YOU KNOW, THE SCARIEST THING IS WHEN WE DESIGN
THE DEFINITIVE COMPUTER, THE FIRST JOB THAT

WILL DO WILL BE TO DESIGN ANOTHER
COMPUTER. ALL THAT IS MARVELOUS.

BUT I THINK THERE'S PROBABLY A NEGATIVE SIDE
TO THAT AS WELL. IT'S ALWAYS A DICHOTOMY.

WHENEVER YOU GET ONE EVOLUTION,
THERE'S GOING TO BE A COUNTER REACTION.

ADVERSE REACTION. WE HAVEN'T GOT TO
THAT YET. BUT WHEN THAT HAPPENS, IT'S...

THAT'S GOING TO BE VERY INTERESTING.
Narrator: HOW 9000 DISPLAYS

TRADITIONAL HUMAN FACULTIES. INDEPENDENT
REASONING. LANGUAGE PROCESSING.

CRITICAL THINKING. AND NEROSIS.
HE'S BECOME A COMPUTER THAT

HE'S ABLE TO GO INSANE. THAT CAN BE A
TERRIFYING CONCEPT, PARTICULARLY IF THAT

COMPUTER IS IN CHARGE OF YOUR LIFE SUPPORT
SYSTEMS. HOW 9000 HAS INSPIRED AND

TERRIFIED TWO GENERATIONS OF COMPUTER
SCIENTISTS. I STILL GOT THE GREATEST

ENTHUSIASM AND CONFIDENCE IN THE
MISSION. Narrator: DAVID FERUCCI IS

THE MAN BEHIND IBM'S MOST FAMOUS
BREAKTHROUGH IN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE.

THE SUPER COMPUTER WATSON. WHAT I THINK
OF WATSON IS THIS INFORMATION-SEEKING TOOL.

SOMETHING THAT YOU CAN DIALOGUE WITH NATURALLY
THAT HAS SOMEWHAT OF A NEUTRAL PERSONALITY, IF YOU

WILL. NOT SO MUCH HOW. THE
HOW IS NONDIRECTIONAL WITH

PERSONALITY. Narrator: IN FEBRUARY,
2011, WATSON SQUARES OFF ON JEOPARDY

AGAINST THE QUIZ SHOW'S TWO BIGGEST RETURNING
CHAMPIONS. WATSON IS FAST, KNOWS A LOLT OF

STUFF AND CAN REALLY DOMINATE A
MATCH. Narrator: WATSON DEFEATS BOTH

MEN. WATSON, WHAT IS
CLOCK? CLOCK IS CORRECT.

AND WITH THAT YOU'RE UP TO
$23,440. I WAS JUST AMAZED BY THAT.

AND I THOUGHT THIS IS THE FUTURE.
I CAN PROGRAM A COMPUTER TO DO

ANYTHING I CAN IMAGINE. Narrator:
SOPHISTICATED ALGORITHMS ALLOW WATSON TO LEARN

HOW SEEMINGLY RANDOM WORDS MAY BE
CONNECTED. IT CAN'T CONNECT THE WORDS TO

HUMAN EXPERIENCES, BUT WHAT IT DOES IS IT
CONNECTS THE WORDS AND THE PHRASES AND THE

SENTENCES THAT IT READS TO OTHER WORDS
AND PHRASES THAT MIGHT MEAN THE SAME THING.

Narrator: FERUCCI BELIEVES IT WILL BE MANY YEARS
BEFORE WATSON BEGINS TO APPROACH THE ABILITIES

OF HOW IN 2001. IT'S STILL AN OPEN
QUESTION. Narrator: CLARKE PREDICTS A

DISASTROUS DOWNSIDE TO ADVANCED
COMPUTER. BUT IN 1984, CLARKE FALLS ILL

AND THE PC PROVES TO BE HIS BEST
FRIEND. THROUGH COMPUTERS AND THE

SATELLITES HE IMAGINED, CLARKE'S INTELLECT IS FREE
TO TRAVEL THE WORLD AND COLLABORATE WITH A NEW

GENERATION OF BRILLIANT IT'S
1986. AND 69-YEAR-OLD ARTHUR C. CLARKE

IS OFTEN CONFINED TO A
WHEELCHAIR IN HIS SRI LANKAN HOME.

DESPITE HIS LOCALE, FRIENDS STILL
TRACK HIM DOWN. HE WAS GENEROUS.

HE WAS VERY MUCH A PEOPLE PERSON.
Narrator: AMONG THE TRAVELERS

IS THE CHIEF ENGINEER OF NASA'S
GALILEO MISSION TO JUPITER. GENTRY LEE.

HE WANTED TO KNOW ALL ABOUT GALILEO, WHAT WE
WERE GOING TO DO AND HE ASKED ME IF I WOULD...

HAD ANY INTEREST WHAT SO EVER IN
COLLABORATING. Narrator: RENDEZVOUS WITH

RAMA IS THE AWARD-WINNING
1972 MASTERPIECE.

SUDDENLY, THE GIANT MASTERPIECE
ARRIVES IN OUR SOLAR SYSTEM.

AS OF THAT MOMENT, HUMAN BEINGS KNOW THAT THERE'S
SOMETHING OUT THERE THAT IS AS FAR AS ADVANCED

AS WE ARE COMPARED TO ANTS OR
PLANTS. AN ADVANCED METEOR WARNING

SYSTEM CALLED SPACE GUARD DETECTS THE ALIEN
SHIP. SPACE GUARD WAS ARTHUR'S IDEA

THAT IT WOULD SET UP HUMAN BEINGS TO MONITOR
THE SET OF STUFF THAT WAS ALL FLYING AROUND

AND HAD A CHANCE TO HIT THE
WERT. Narrator: IN 1992, NASA NAMES

IT SPACE GUARD AFTER THE ASTEROID WARNING
SYSTEM CLARKE PROPHESIES IN RENDEZVOUS WITH

RAMA. CLARKE AND GENTRY LEE
KOE WRITES THREE RAMA SEQUELS.

ARTHUR NEVER ONCE IN DEALING WITH
ME MADE HIMSELF OUT TO BE THE ORACLE.

HE WAS WARM AND HOSPITABLE ON EVERY
INTELLECTUAL LEVEL. CLARKE RETAINED HIS PASSION

FOR DISCOVERY AND WONDER UNTIL
THE VERY END. AS THE THINGS THAT HE

PREDICTED STARTED TO HAPPEN, WHAT I NOTICED
IN HIM WAS SADNESS WHEN THINGS DIDN'T

HAPPEN. SO ARTHUR WAS MAKING A
LIST, EVEN IN HIS 90s, OF THE THINGS

THAT HE PREDICTED WOULD HAPPEN THAT COULD HAVE
HAPPENED, THEY JUST HADN'T GOTTEN THERE YET.

AND WOULD PEOPLE JUST HURRY UP AND GET
THEM DONE? Narrator: IN 2008, ARTHUR C.

CLARKE DIES AT AGE 90. HE LEAVES BEHIND A
LEGACY OF FULFILLED PROPHESY AND A WEALTH

OF INSPIRATION FOR THE FUTURE. CLARKE WAS
SUCH A BROAD INSPIRATION, YOU CAN'T WRITE

PEOPLE TRAVELING IN SPACE WITHOUT THINKING OF
2001 WHERE YOU'RE LITERALLY DISCOVERING THE

INFLUENCE OF AN ALIEN RACE. THAT
IS A BIG BANG OF MODERN SCIFI CINEMA.

CLARKE'S ENTHUSIASM FOR SCIENCE AND DISCOVERY,
OPTIMISM FOR THE UNKNOWN AND LOVE FOR

HUMANITY REMAIN AS A BLUEPRINT FOR THE GREAT
MINDS THAT WILL LEAD US INTO THE FUTURE.

FUNDAMENTALS DON'T ASK ABOUT
GOD BECAUSE THEY KNOW THE ANSWER.

ATHEISTS DON'T ASK BECAUSE THEY THINK IT IS
UNANSWERABLE. BUT ARTHUR C. CLARKE WAS A MAN

OF SCIENCE.
HE WASN'T AFRAID TO