The Royal Institution Christmas Lectures
Discussion
I have watched a couple of these this year and I have decided to abandon them because of the nauseatingly patronising style of the presenter. He talks down to what he perceives as the level of his audience with "Right?" and "Fantastic!" and "You guys" peppering his already inarticulate delivery. This, with his false glottal stops and dropped aitches, makes the subject invisible behind the crass populist delivery style. Again I say, where is Eric Laithwaite when you need him?
I had to give up on them last night. I saw Mark Speak last week and he was fantastic and had high hopes for this.
He seemed to be affected by nerves. Also the topics seemed very simple. I know it is aimed for kids, but I used to sit there with my Dad, and we both used to learn so much.
The poor prestenting probably was highlighted by following on from Wonders of the Solar system. Brian is fantastic at getting across his knowledge in a way which most people can understand, without making the topic stupidly simple.
I think Brian or Simon Singh should be in the short running next year.
Nom de ploom said:
^^^^^^
I was going to post the same - WOTS is excellent and made more so by Cox's presentation and tempered but genuine enthusiasm for the subject matter.
I wonder what stargazing live will reveal in january
I hope they get clear skies.I was going to post the same - WOTS is excellent and made more so by Cox's presentation and tempered but genuine enthusiasm for the subject matter.
I wonder what stargazing live will reveal in january
I watched the lecture last night and actually enjoyed it. I wasn't THAT impressed with the presenter but they do tend to vary from year to year anyway regarding their presentation skills and style.
Overall, it's best to have some science on telly than none.
Edited by Eric Mc on Thursday 30th December 11:21
Nom de ploom said:
^^^^^^
I was going to post the same - WOTS is excellent and made more so by Cox's presentation and tempered but genuine enthusiasm for the subject matter.
I wonder what stargazing live will reveal in january
Should be good, it will be great to see Dara step into a presenting a science program. But I am looking forward to Wonders of the universe even more ;DI was going to post the same - WOTS is excellent and made more so by Cox's presentation and tempered but genuine enthusiasm for the subject matter.
I wonder what stargazing live will reveal in january
motco said:
I have watched a couple of these this year and I have decided to abandon them because of the nauseatingly patronising style of the presenter. He talks down to what he perceives as the level of his audience with "Right?" and "Fantastic!" and "You guys" peppering his already inarticulate delivery. This, with his false glottal stops and dropped aitches, makes the subject invisible behind the crass populist delivery style. Again I say, where is Eric Laithwaite when you need him?
To all of that, I was really disappointed with this year's offering.tonyvid said:
motco said:
I have watched a couple of these this year and I have decided to abandon them because of the nauseatingly patronising style of the presenter. He talks down to what he perceives as the level of his audience with "Right?" and "Fantastic!" and "You guys" peppering his already inarticulate delivery. This, with his false glottal stops and dropped aitches, makes the subject invisible behind the crass populist delivery style. Again I say, where is Eric Laithwaite when you need him?
To all of that, I was really disappointed with this year's offering.Wouldn't have happened in Eric's day, with his maglev'd steel plate. Amazing to think we have trains that regularly do this, just as he predicted.
I made it half-way through the second lecture before giving up. The style was trying way too hard to be "down with the kids" and, as pointed out, inane audience participation for the sake of it. I was often struggling to see what point he was trying to make.
Perhaps it was symptomatic of the fact that this is the first year that the RI have cut the budget for the lectures. Notice that there were only three instead of the usual five, although, in this case, that could be seen as a blessing.
Apart from the classics like Attenborough, Dawkins and Sagan, the best lectures that I have seen were by Marcus du Sautoy in 2006. If you have any interest at all in maths - and even if you don't for that matter - I heartily recommend them.
Perhaps it was symptomatic of the fact that this is the first year that the RI have cut the budget for the lectures. Notice that there were only three instead of the usual five, although, in this case, that could be seen as a blessing.
Apart from the classics like Attenborough, Dawkins and Sagan, the best lectures that I have seen were by Marcus du Sautoy in 2006. If you have any interest at all in maths - and even if you don't for that matter - I heartily recommend them.
Heads up for this years lectures - 'Meet Your Brain'
BBC 4 - 8pm - 27/28/29 December
BBC 4 - 8pm - 27/28/29 December
The Royal Institution said:
The Christmas Lectures will return to BBC Four once again this Christmas with renowned experimental psychologist Prof Bruce Hood delivering a demonstration packed, three-part series called Meet Your Brain.
The three-part series will be broadcast on BBC Four at 8.00pm on 27, 28 and 29 December
The three-part series will be broadcast on BBC Four at 8.00pm on 27, 28 and 29 December
Episode 1 Whats in Your Head said:
Why does your brain look like a giant walnut, how does it fit in enough wiring to stretch four times around the equator and why can a magnet on your head stop you in mid-sentence? In the first of this year's Christmas Lectures, Professor Bruce Hood gets inside your head to explore how your brain works. He measures the brain's nerve cells in action, reads someone's mind from 100 miles away and reveals how the brain ultimately creates its own version of reality.
Episode 2 Whos in Charge Here said:
Your brain is constantly being bombarded with information, so how does it decide what to trust and what to ignore, without you even being aware? Professor Bruce Hood leads us through the second of this year's Christmas Lectures - testing the limits of our memory, finding out how we learn, how our brain takes shortcuts and why multi-tasking can be dangerous. Bruce will make you say the wrong thing and fail to see what's right in front of you. Can you really believe your eyes? Possibly not.
Episode 3 Are You Thinking What Im Thinking said:
Have you ever seen a face in a piece of burnt toast, or given your car a name? Why do you feel pain when someone else is hurt? Why are people so obsessed with other people? In the last of this year's Christmas Lectures, Professor Bruce Hood investigates how our brains are built to read other people's minds. With a little help from a baby, a robot and a magician, Bruce uncovers what makes us truly human.
Edited by Russ35 on Monday 5th December 13:42
There was a big report not long ago, concerning the funding of various BBC channels. The conclusion I came to, was that they could happily remove BBC1, and all the soaps and "celebrity" shows, and it wouldn't impact on me at all. It would probably halve the BBC's running costs at a stroke, and leave more money for decent BBC 2/3/4 programmes.
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