Ben Harding
Director
Breakthrough: The Ideas That Changed the World (2019)
Season 1
Take a mind-blowing journey through human history, told through six iconic objects that modern people take for granted, and see how science, invention and technology built on one another to change everything.
Released April 21, 2019
Episode 60 min
14+
Genres: Documentary, History
Keywords: tmdb.telescope, tmdb.technology, tmdb.invention, tmdb.flight, tmdb.rocket, tmdb.robot, mdblist.imdb-tv-mini-series + 2 more, imdb.tv-mini-series, imdb.reenactment
Watch Providers: Spectrum On Demand, PBS Documentaries Amazon Channel
Production Companies: Bigger Bang, BBC TV
Network: BBC Four
Country: United Kingdom
Languages:
English
9.0
S1E1 - The Telescope
Meet the brilliant minds throughout history, from Galileo to Edwin Hubble, responsible for creating the telescope. Today, their invention allows humanity to reach the furthest limits of seeing 13 billion light-years out.
April 21, 2019, midnight
S1E2 - The Airplane
Take to the sky with the dreamers whose work gave humans the ability to fly. From Leonardo da Vinci's "flying machines" to the modern commercial plane, without these inventions, we may have never left the ground.
April 28, 2019, midnight
S1E3 - The Robot
Learn how robots were first conceptualized in ancient Rome and see how their use has evolved over the centuries, from the calculator to the Roomba. Then, take a sneak peek at what future robots will be able to do.
May 5, 2019, midnight
9.0
S1E4 - The Car
Go for a ride through the 9,000-year history of the car, from its roots in dogsleds to Henry Ford's affordable and assembly line-built Model T, and meet the scientists working on the next generation of self-driving automobiles.
May 12, 2019, midnight
S1E5 - The Rocket
Learn the explosive history of the rocket, from its origin in ancient China, to its use as a weapon of war, to how adding hydrogen allowed it to carry astronauts all the way to the moon.
May 19, 2019, midnight
S1E6 - The Smartphone
Dial in to the fascinating history of the smartphone, from its roots in Morse Code to 2007, when Apple unveiled the first-ever iPhone. Plus, see how the next generation of smartphones will allow us to communicate through them just by thinking.
May 26, 2019, midnight
Network: BBC Four
Episode Runtime: 60 min.
Season Runtime: 360 min.
Released: April 21, 2019
Last Air Date: May 26, 2019, midnight
Status: Ended
Certification: TV-14 / 14+
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