Robots In Fact And Fiction

Lord Of The Fireflies

In this final episode, Dr. Kell looks at children’s education and asks why we teach the way we teach. Are we just trying to create passable human beings who can get a job? A chance encounter with a swarm of glowing bugs leads Kell to contemplate the tyrannies of childhood. “What works for Johnny make not work for Jimmy. And nobody has any idea what to do for Jimbo.”

Exoskeletal

In 1890 Nicholas Yagn, a Russian inventor, received a patent for an assisted device to aid a user walking and running using pneumatically powered gas bags.” As Dr. Kell explains, the history of human augmentation via exoskeleton stretches further back than you might think – and the future of exoskeletons is tantalisingly close.

The Glorious History Of Bacon

Kell’s Wonderful Life: The Glorious History Of Bacon Bacon. What is it? Where does it come from? What makes it magical. Dr. Kell asks and finds out. “You would be surprised to learn that it isn’t forged by dark elves in salty subterranean bacon mines deep within the bowels of the Earth.”

The Importance of Coffee

Each and every morning, millions of people chemically augment their frail meat bodies with a black brew. But the importance of coffee extends beyond keeping people upright for the day, as the history of coffee is rich and aromatic, spanning a multitude of countries and religions.

Robots In Fact And Fiction

The area of robotics isn’t new. Humans have tried to create humanoid machines for hundreds of years. Dr. Kell traces our crude attempts, outright fakes and flights of fancy. “Undoubtedly, our imagination for sentient artificial people had long outstripped ability to fabricate them.”