All language subtitles for PBS.Genius.By.Stephen.Hawking.4of6.Where.Did.the.Universe.Come.From.720p.HDTV.x264.AAC.MVGroup.org.eng

HAWKING: WE ALL HAVE QUESTIONS.

BIG QUESTIONS.

MAN: DID THE UNIVERSE
HAVE A BEGINNING?

HAWKING: IT'S PART
OF WHAT IT MEANS TO BE HUMAN.

WOMAN: WHERE WAS THE BIG BANG?

AND IT'S JUST MIND-BLOWING.

HAWKING: MY NAME IS
STEPHEN HAWKING,

AND I BELIEVE THAT ANYONE
CAN ANSWER BIG QUESTIONS

FOR THEMSELVES.

[TIRES SQUEALING]

SO WITH THE HELP
OF SOME ORDINARY PEOPLE...

WOMAN: PAUL, YOU'RE NOT
EVEN CLOSE.

I'M SORRY. HEH HEH.

HAWKING:
AND A TEAM OF EXPERTS...

MAN: WE COULD UNDERSTAND
THE ORIGIN OF EVERYTHING.

HAWKING: WE ARE GOING
ON THE ULTIMATE VOYAGE,

A QUEST TO ANSWER
THE GREATEST MYSTERIES

OF THE UNIVERSE...

HUH.

USING THE POWER
OF THE HUMAN MIND.

BRILLIANT!

BECAUSE ANYONE CAN THINK

LIKE A GENIUS.

ANNOUNCER: "GENIUS BY
STEPHEN HAWKING"

WAS MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY

CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS
STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU.

THANK YOU.

VOICES: WHERE DID
THE UNIVERSE COME FROM?

HAWKING: HAVE YOU EVER LOOKED
UP AT THE NIGHT SKY

AND WONDERED
WHERE IT ALL CAME FROM?

IT IS HARD TO THINK
OF A BIGGER QUESTION.

[RUMBLING]

THE ANSWER, AS MOST PEOPLE
CAN TELL YOU,

IS THE BIG BANG.

[BANG]

EVERYTHING IN EXISTENCE

EXPANDING EXPONENTIALLY
IN EVERY DIRECTION

FROM AN INFINITELY SMALL,
INFINITELY HOT,

AND INFINITELY DENSE POINT...

CREATING A COSMOS FILLED
WITH ENERGY AND MATTER.

BUT WHAT DOES THAT REALLY MEAN

AND WHERE DID IT ALL BEGIN?

I THINK THAT WITH A LITTLE HELP
ANYONE CAN WORK IT OUT,

SO LET'S SEE IF I'M RIGHT.

I HAVE ASKED 3 CURIOUS MINDS

TO JOIN ME ON A JOURNEY
OF DISCOVERY.

A SERIES OF FUN CHALLENGES
AWAITS THEM.

[TIRES SQUEALING]

THEY WILL BE GIVEN TOOLS
AND EQUIPMENT.

CAN THEY FOLLOW
THE GREATEST THINKERS IN HISTORY

AND DISCOVER THE ORIGIN
OF THE UNIVERSE?

WOW!

WHAT A QUESTION.
HA HA HA!

WHERE DO YOU EVEN
START WITH THAT?

I THINK THE UNIVERSE
BEGAN IN SPACE AT SOME POINT.

ALEJANDRO, VOICE-OVER: I THINK
IT'S CALLED THE BIG BANG

BECAUSE IT WAS A BANG
AND IT WAS BIG.

IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S
ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE

TO GET YOUR HEAD AROUND.

HAWKING: MY VOLUNTEERS'
FIRST CHALLENGE

IS TO GRASP THE ENORMITY
OF THE UNIVERSE

BY CALCULATING
THE TOTAL NUMBER OF GALAXIES

VISIBLE FROM EARTH.

SO I'VE BROUGHT THEM SOMEWHERE
WITH PLENTY OF SPACE

AND GIVEN THEM THIS IMAGE.

MARCIA: IT LOOKS LIKE,
UH, STARS.

A PICTURE
OF THE UNIVERSE.

YEAH. ALL RIGHT.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER:
THERE APPEARS TO BE STARS,

BUT CLEARLY UNDERNEATH,
IT SAYS, "10,000 GALAXIES."

LOOK AT ALL
THE DIFFERENT
SHAPES AND COLORS.

PAUL: I KNOW.

EVERY SPECK
OF LIGHT HERE--

IS A SEPARATE GALAXY.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER: IT SURPRISED
ME THAT 10,000 OF ANYTHING

COULD FIT IN A SQUARE FOOT,
LET ALONE PICTURES OF GALAXIES.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER:
IT'S A BEAUTIFUL PICTURE.

CLEARLY, IT'S
A SCIENTIFIC PICTURE.

IT'S A VIEW THAT YOU WOULD
NEVER SEE WITH YOUR OWN EYES.

HAWKING: THE PHOTO IS
A FAMOUS ONE CALLED

THE ULTRA-DEEP FIELD IMAGE.

IT'S A PART OF THE NIGHT SKY
LIKE ANY OTHER,

TAKEN BY
THE HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE.

IT REVEALS NEARLY
10,000 GALAXIES,

SOME OVER 13 BILLION
LIGHT YEARS AWAY,

YET BECAUSE THIS IMAGE COVERS
ONLY A FRACTION OF THE SKY,

IT SHOWS JUST A SMALL NUMBER
OF THE GALAXIES OUT THERE.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: TO SOMEHOW
COME UP WITH A NUMBER

OF HOW MANY GALAXIES
THERE ARE IN OUR UNIVERSE,

THAT WE CAN SEE, UH,
WHERE TO START--

WHERE TO START
WITH THAT ONE?

LET'S ASSUME THIS
IS PLANET EARTH...
MARCIA: RIGHT.

AND THEN WE JUST
HAVE TO SEE

HOW MANY OF THESE
TILES WE NEED

TO COVER THE WHOLE--
RIGHT.

AND OBVIOUSLY,
THIS IS JUST
ONE POINT,

BUT THE SKY--
OR SPACE, UNIVERSE

IS ALL AROUND
THE SPHERE.

WE STARTED COMING UP
WITH IDEAS,

AND WE SAID, "OK. HOLD ON.

"THIS IS JUST A PIECE
OF THE SKY.

COULD WE JUST REPLICATE
THIS PICTURE?"

HAWKING: MY VOLUNTEERS
HAVE FIGURED OUT

THEY NEED TO IMAGINE
THE NIGHT SKY AS A SPHERE

SURROUNDING OUR PLANET.

IF THEY CAN WORK OUT
HOW MANY PATCHES OF SKY

THE SIZE OF THEIR HUBBLE IMAGE
IT WOULD TAKE

TO COVER THIS SPHERE,

THEN THEY WILL BE ABLE
TO CALCULATE

HOW MANY GALAXIES THERE ARE
VISIBLE FROM EARTH.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER:
THE SCALE WAS--WAS CLEARLY

THE, UM--THE CRUX
OF THIS MATTER.

WE HAD TO FIGURE OUT
HOW MUCH OF THE SKY

THAT PICTURE COVERED.

HOW MANY ARE WE
GONNA NEED...

TO COVER THE WHOLE--
TO COVER
THE ENTIRE SKY

AND OF COURSE WHAT'S
BELOW OUR FEET?

FROM HERE,

WE'RE GONNA TALK
ABOUT, I DON'T KNOW,
WHAT, 600?

YEAH.
AND THAT'S AT
OUR ARMS' LENGTH.

IMAGINE--IMAGINE
I'M ALL THE WAY
BACK HERE.

ALEJANDRO: YEAH.
IT JUST GROWS
EXPONENTIALLY.

NOW HOW MANY IS IT?
YEAH.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER:
IT QUICKLY BECAME EVIDENT

THAT WE NEEDED SOME
REFERENCE POINTS HERE.

WE COULDN'T JUST GUESS
AS TO HOW FAR AWAY
WE NEEDED TO BE.

EXCELLENT.

HAWKING: I HAVE GIVEN THEM
THE CRUCIAL PIECE

OF EQUIPMENT THEY'LL NEED.

OOH! TELESCOPE.
OH, WOW. OK.

NICE!
OH, WOW.

HAWKING:
THIS TELESCOPE REPRESENTS

THE HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE.

IT SEES EXACTLY
THE SAME AMOUNT OF SKY,

SO IF MY VOLUNTEERS CAN
PRECISELY FIT THE IMAGE

I'VE GIVEN THEM INTO
THE TELESCOPE'S FIELD OF VIEW,

THAT WILL HELP THEM WORK OUT
HOW MUCH OF THE SKY IT COVERS.

WE COULD TAKE
THIS IMAGE AWAY
FROM THE TELESCOPE

UNTIL IT FILLS
THE VIEWFINDER,

AND THEN WE'LL
MEASURE THE DISTANCE

BETWEEN THE IMAGE
AND THE TELESCOPE

THAT ACTUALLY
MADE THE IMAGE.

YEAH, YEAH.

HAWKING: HOW FAR AWAY WILL THEY
NEED TO TAKE THE IMAGE?

PAUL: YOU READY?
YEAH.

OK. LET'S DO IT.

HAWKING: WILL 300 FEET
BE FAR ENOUGH?

PAUL, YOU'RE NOT
EVEN CLOSE. I'M SORRY.

HA HA HA!

PAUL: OK. WE'LL KEEP
GOING BACK.

YOU'RE LOOKING
SO SMALL.

[BOTH LAUGHING]

HAWKING: THIS TIME, THEY'RE
TRYING 600 FEET.

PAUL: OK, MARCIA.
HOW WE DOING?

DO WE NEED TO GO
FURTHER?

YEAH, A LOT FURTHER.
SORRY, PAUL.

THAT'S OK.
I'LL KEEP GOING.

ALEJANDRO: LET'S GO.

WELL, I'VE JUST
STARTED THINKING
ABOUT HOW LITTLE

AREA OF SKY
WE'VE GOT HERE
ON THIS THING.

HAWKING: MY VOLUNTEERS AREN'T
THE FIRST TO UNDERESTIMATE

THE SIZE OF THE UNIVERSE.

MAN: IN THE EARLY 20th CENTURY,
PEOPLE REALLY DIDN'T KNOW

WHAT WAS BEYOND OUR GALAXY.

THEY KNEW THERE WERE LOTS
OF STARS IN THE SKY,

BUT FOR ALL THEY KNEW,
THERE WAS ONE GALAXY,

UH, WHICH WE LIVED IN,
AND BEYOND THERE,

THERE WAS JUST NOTHING.

HAWKING: THEN CAME
REVOLUTIONARY MIND EDWIN HUBBLE.

HE USED THE WORLD'S
MOST POWER TELESCOPE

ON TOP OF MOUNT WILSON
TO STUDY SMUDGES OF LIGHT

CALLED NEBULAE,

THOUGHT TO BE JUST GAS AND DUST.

WHAT HE SAW CHANGED EVERYTHING.

TUROK: IT TOOK THE CONSTRUCTION
OF MOUNT WILSON IN 1926

TO SHOW THAT THE NEBULAE,
THESE LITTLE CLOUDS OF GAS

THAT THEY'D SEEN,
WERE ACTUALLY FULL OF STARS.

AND SO FROM THAT POINT ON,
IT WAS CLEAR

THAT THE UNIVERSE
WAS FULL OF GALAXIES.

THE DISCOVERY SUDDENLY CHANGED

OUR PICTURE
OF THE UNIVERSE COMPLETELY.

HAWKING: ALMOST A CENTURY LATER,
THE SPACE TELESCOPE

THAT BEARS HUBBLE'S NAME

GIVES US OUR MOST
UP-TO-DATE ESTIMATE

OF THE NUMBER OF OBSERVABLE
GALAXIES IN THE UNIVERSE...

WHICH IS WHAT MY VOLUNTEERS
ARE TRYING TO WORK OUT

ON THEIR OWN.

OH! SOMEONE'S LEGS.

PAUL: PROBABLY
MY LEGS.

I'M STARTING
TO COME DOWN.

YES!

OH! I SEE WHITE BOARD.

HEY, HEY!

OK. NOW IF YOU CAN MOVE
IT TO THE RIGHT NOW.

PERFECT.

YEAH! WE GOT IT!

HA HA HA!

HEY, HEY!

HAWKING: NOW THEY HAVE FRAMED
THEIR HUBBLE IMAGE

WITHIN THEIR TELESCOPE'S
VIEWFINDER,

THEY'RE READY TO MEASURE
THE DISTANCE BACK

TO THE TELESCOPE.

SO THAT DISTANCE IS CRUCIAL

BECAUSE THAT DISTANCE
WILL THEN GIVE US

THAT RADIUS THAT WE NEED
IN ORDER TO CALCULATE

JUST HOW MANY IMAGES
WE WOULD NEED

TO FILL THE WHOLE SPHERE,
IF YOU LIKE.

OK, MARCIA.
WE'VE GOT
OUR DISTANCE,

SO, UM, WE'RE GONNA
START MEASURING
BACK TO YOU NOW.

EXCELLENT.

PAUL: LOOKING BACK
AT THE TELESCOPE,

IT'S TRULY ASTONISHING
AT HOW SMALL IT MUST LOOK

FROM HER END

AND HOW SMALL
A PIECE OF SKY

WE HAVE A PHOTOGRAPH OF.

MARCIA: IT WAS SURPRISING
TO SEE HOW FAR WE HAD TO WALK

BEFORE THE IMAGE
CAME IN VIEW.

OH, WOW.
EXCELLENT.

WE MADE IT.

WHAT HAVE
WE GOT THEN?

OK. SO THE TERRAIN
WASN'T COMPLETELY FLAT,

AND WE JUST GOT
OVER 1,000 FEET DISTANCE,

SO I THINK FOR THE PURPOSE
OF THE EXERCISES,

WOULD YOU AGREE TO ROUND IT
TO 1,000 FEET?

OK.
1,000. YEAH.

I THINK I AM, AS WELL.

OK.
OK.

HAWKING: MY VOLUNTEERS
WILL NEED TO USE

THE FORMULA FOR CALCULATING
THE SURFACE AREA OF A SPHERE.

THEY HAVE MEASURED
THE RADIUS,

THE DISTANCE
FROM THE TELESCOPE TO THE IMAGE.

NOW THEY'LL NEED TO SQUARE IT,

MULTIPLY IT BY 4,

AND THEN BY PI, 3.14.

SO WE HAVE
THE 1,000-FEET RADIUS.

RIGHT.
SQUARED.

MULTIPLY THAT BY PI
AND TIMES 4. THAT'S...

12 MILLION...

ALL: 560,000.

SQUARE FEET.

HAWKING: THAT'S THE ANSWER,

AND THIS IMAGE
IS ONE SQUARE FOOT,

SO NOW THEY CAN WORK OUT
THE NUMBER OF GALAXIES

WE CAN SEE IN OUR UNIVERSE.

AND THIS TILE IS
ONE SQUARE FOOT.

OK.
SO WHAT THAT IS
SAYING IS

WE WILL NEED
12,560,000
OF THESE ONES

TO COVER--TO TILE
THE WHOLE SKY.

TO TILE
THE WHOLE SKY.

AND EACH ONE
OF THOSE HAS
10,000 GALAXIES,

SO IF WE GOT
THAT 12,560,000
TIMES 10,000,

THAT SHOULD GIVE
US THE NUMBER
OF GALAXIES.

125,600,000,000
GALAXIES.

HA HA HA! WOW!

HAWKING: BY USING A DETAILED
IMAGE FROM THE HUBBLE TELESCOPE

AND A LITTLE MATHEMATICS,
MY VOLUNTEERS HAVE ESTIMATED

THE ASTONISHING NUMBER
OF GALAXIES

THAT SCIENTISTS HAVE OBSERVED
IN OUR UNIVERSE.

WITH MORE ADVANCED TELESCOPES,
WE MAY ONE DAY BE ABLE

TO SEE 200 BILLION GALAXIES
OUT THERE.

PAUL: IT'S JUST MIND-BLOWING
BECAUSE THIS ISN'T PLANETS,

THIS ISN'T STARS.

THIS IS GALAXIES
WITHIN OUR UNIVERSE.

IT MADE ME FEEL SO SMALL
AND INSIGNIFICANT,

COMPLETELY INSIGNIFICANT.

HAWKING: MY BUDDING GENIUSES
HAVE SO FAR GRASPED

THE REMARKABLE SCALE
OF OUR UNIVERSE,

BUT CAN THEY TAKE
THE NEXT STEP

AND BEGIN TO FIGURE OUT
WHERE I ALL CAME FROM?

THE SEARCH FOR WHERE
THE UNIVERSE BEGAN

IS A RELATIVELY RECENT QUEST.

UNTIL 1929, EDWIN HUBBLE,
ALBERT EINSTEIN,

AND MANY OTHER GREAT MINDS
HAD A FIXED VIEW

OF WHAT THE UNIVERSE WAS LIKE.

TUROK: EINSTEIN HAD HIMSELF
PUBLISHED A PAPER

ACCORDING TO WHICH
THE UNIVERSE WAS STATIC.

EINSTEIN THOUGHT PHILOSOPHICALLY
THAT THE UNIVERSE

HAS ALWAYS BEEN HERE,
WILL ALWAYS BE HERE,

IS UNCHANGING,
AND HE THOUGHT THAT WAS

A SENSIBLE
PHILOSOPHICAL PICTURE.

HAWKING: BUT THEN IN 1929,
HUBBLE DISCOVERED SOMETHING

THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING.

I WANT TO SEE IF
THE VOLUNTEERS CAN UNDERSTAND

WHAT HUBBLE FOUND...

SO THEY'VE COME HERE...

TO A QUARTER-MILE DRAG STRIP...

[TIRES SQUEALING]

AND A VERY SPECIAL VEHICLE.

OH, MY GOODNESS!
IT'S A BUG!

YEAH, YEAH.
IT'S A BEETLE.

IT'S A BUG!

A REALLY
FAST-LOOKING BUG.

IT'S UNLIKE ANYTHING
I'VE EVER SEEN.

IT'S ELECTRIC.

HAWKING: THIS IS THE WORLD'S
QUICKEST ACCELERATING

ELECTRIC DRAG RACER--

FAST BUT VERY QUIET,

AN ADVANTAGE FOR WHAT
I HAVE IN STORE.

SO WHAT'S THIS?

LOOKS LIKE A S--
LIKE A SIREN
OR SOMETHING.

IT IS A SIREN
I THINK.

WHAT'S THIS FOR?

[SIREN]

OOH!
HA HA HA!

THAT'S COOL.

HAWKING: THERE IS CHALLENGE
TO USE THE SOUND

OF THIS SIREN TO DETERMINE
THE SPEED AND DIRECTION

OF THE CAR.

MARCIA: OH, NO.
HA HA HA!

HAWKING: I HAVE ALSO GIVEN
THEM A LAPTOP AND MICROPHONE

TO RECORD THE SIREN'S
SOUND WAVES.

WHAT DO--WHAT DO
YOU THINK WE'RE
DOING HERE, OK?

YESTER--
HA HA HA!

SO WHAT...

HAWKING: WILL THEY
WORK OUT HOW?

WE'VE GOT SOUND.

SOUND IS IMPORTANT.

SO SOUND GIVES
YOU A HINT.

HAWKING: THEY SEEM TO BE
ON TO SOMETHING,

BUT THERE'S ONLY ONE WAY
TO FIND OUT.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER:
IMMEDIATELY, I'M THINKING,

"OH, WE'RE ALL GOING TO
END UP RACING."

WHEW.

HAWKING: LET'S BURN SOME RUBBER.

MARCIA: OH, WOW.

HA HA HA!

ALEJANDRO:
AND OFF HE GOES.

HA HA HA!

[SIREN]

[TIRES SQUEALING]

WHOO HOO HOO HOO!

THAT THING FLIES.

HA HA HA!
IT WAS HALFWAY
DOWN THE TRACK

BY THE TIME
I TURNED MY HEAD.

HA HA HA!

OH, THERE HE IS.
THERE HE IS.

HA HA HA!

HOW WAS IT?

[ALL LAUGHING]

IT WAS AMAZING.

WELL DONE.
OH, MY GOODNESS.

[WHOOSH]

WE GOT--WE GOT SOME
INTERESTING DATA
HERE, AS WELL.

IS THAT MY SIREN?

THAT'S THE SIREN,
SO RIGHT AROUND HERE

IS WHERE YOU STARTED,

AND THEN YOU'RE MOVING
AWAY FROM US,

MOVING AWAY FROM US,
MOVING AWAY FROM US,
MOVING AWAY FROM US.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER:
WE OBSERVED THE SOUND WAVES

MOVING BY A SHIFT IN TONE.

[SIREN,
TIRES SQUEALING]

ALEJANDRO, VOICE-OVER:
THERE IS CLEARLY A CHANGE

IN THE FREQUENCY,

AND THAT STARTED
GIVING US AN IDEA.

OK. WE CAN USE THE WAVES
OF SOUND TO DETERMINATE,
UM, DIRECTION.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER:
AND WE FIGURED OUT

THAT WE WERE PROBABLY GOING
TO BE DOING SOMETHING

WITH THE DOPPLER EFFECT.

HAWKING: MY VOLUNTEERS HAVE
GRASPED A CRITICAL CONCEPT,

AN EFFECT NAMED AFTER
THE 19th CENTURY
AUSTRIAN PHYSICIST

WHO FIRST PROPOSED IT--
CHRISTIAN DOPPLER.

IT'S ALL ABOUT THE WAY
WAVES TRAVEL

FROM A MOVING OBJECT.

SOUND THROWS OFF
A REGULAR PATTERN OF WAVES.

AS THE SOURCE MOVES,
EACH SUCCESSIVE WAVE

IS REDUCED CLOSER
TO THE OBSERVER,

WHO HEARS
THE INCREASED FREQUENCY

AS A HIGHER PITCHED SOUND.

AFTER THE SOUND PASSES,
THE WAVE FREQUENCY DECREASES,

AND THE OBSERVER HEARS
A LOWER PITCHED SOUND.

CAN MY VOLUNTEERS FIGURE OUT
HOW THIS PRINCIPLE HELPED

SCIENTISTS DISCOVER
WHERE THE UNIVERSE CAME FROM?

ALEJANDRO: I THINK
WE SHOULD TRY

THE SECOND RUN
REPOSITIONING
THE MICROPHONE.

HAWKING: MY VOLUNTEERS
REALIZED THERE'S A BETTER PLACE

TO EXPERIENCE
THE DOPPLER EFFECT IN FULL.

...FAST
IN THIS DIRECTION.

WE'RE GONNA PUT THE MICROPHONE
HALFWAY THROUGH THE TRACK

AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS.

COOL.
LET'S DO IT.

ALEJANDRO, VOICE-OVER:
MARCIA'S GONNA GO IN THE CAR.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER: I'M REALLY
EXCITED ABOUT--HEH HEH--

WHAT'S GONNA GO DOWN.

HAWKING: FROM HALFWAY
DOWN THE TRACK,

THEY CAN RECORD DATA
OF BOTH THE CAR

COMING TOWARDS THEM
AND GOING AWAY FROM THEM

WITHOUT SO MUCH INTERFERENCE
FROM SCREECHING TIRES.

ALEJANDRO: OK.
WE--WE RECORDING?

YEAH. RECORDING.
YEAH. EVERYTHING'S GOOD.

OK, MARCIA.
WE'RE READY WHEN--
WHENEVER YOU ARE.

[TIRES SQUEALING]

I'M STRAPPED UP,
AND EVERYTHING'S
REALLY, REALLY TIGHT...

AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN...

[SIREN]

HA HA HA!

YOU GOT IT?

I GOT IT.
EXCELLENT.

THAT WAS
REALLY FAST.

AS THE SIREN ON TOP
OF THE CAR APPROACHES
THE MICROPHONE,

THE TONE IS SLIGHTLY HIGHER,

AND THEN AS IT MOVES
AWAY FROM THE MICROPHONE,

IT GETS SLIGHTLY LOWER.

IT'S LIKE VRRROOOOMMM!

KIND OF JUST THE SOUND CHANGES.

MARCIA, ARE YOU
ALL RIGHT?

MARCIA: I START CURSING
BECAUSE I'M MOVING,

AND MY BODY--HA HA HA--

MY BODY IS--IS STILL
AT THE STARTING LINE.

IT WAS EXHILARATING.

HAWKING:
MY VOLUNTEERS HAVE HEARD

THE FULL DOPPLER EFFECT
CONNECTION

AND THE MADE THE LINK
BETWEEN THE PITCH OF SOUND

THEY HEAR IN THEIR
VEHICLE'S DIRECTION

RELATIVE TO THEM.

HELLO.
HEY, MARCIA.

HI.
HOW WAS THAT?

OH, MY GOD.
HOW WAS IT?

HAWKING: WE CAN SEE
WHAT MY TRACKSIDE
VOLUNTEERS EXPERIENCED.

THEY RECORDED
A HIGH-PITCHED SOUND

AS THE DRAGSTER APPROACHED
BECAUSE THE SOUND WAVES

REACHED THEM
WITH A HIGHER FREQUENCY.

THE CHANGE
TO A LOW-PITCHED SOUND

WAS BECAUSE THEY EXPERIENCED
WAVES A LOWER FREQUENCY

AS THE DRAGSTER SPED AWAY.

HA HA HA!

I MEAN, WE CERTAINLY
HEARD IT.

AS YOU CAME TOWARD US,
YOU WERE LIKE, "NNNRRRR!"

IT JUST GOES, LIKE--

THAT DROP IN SOUND.

HAWKING: NOW USING
SPECIAL AUDIO SOFTWARE

WHICH MEASURES THE DROP
IN FREQUENCY

AS THE DRAGSTER RACES BY,

MY VOLUNTEERS CAN CALCULATE
THE SPEED OF THEIR VEHICLE.

A BREATHTAKING 138 MILES AN HOUR

REACHED IN JUST
UNDER 10 SECONDS.

MARCIA: I DIDN'T ACTUALLY THINK
THAT A BUG COULD GO SO FAST.

VERY, VERY FAST.
I DIDN'T EXPECT THE CAR

TO MOVE THAT--THAT FAST.

HAWKING: WILL MY VOLUNTEERS
BE ABLE TO FIGURE OUT

THE CONNECTION
BETWEEN THE DOPPLER EFFECT

AND WHAT SCIENTISTS
HAVE OBSERVED IN OUR UNIVERSE?

IN 1929, SCIENTISTS
DISCOVERED SOMETHING

THAT TURNED THE ACCEPTED MODEL
OF THE UNIVERSE ON ITS HEAD.

EDWIN HUBBLE FOUND THAT
ALMOST ALL THE GALAXIES

BEYOND OUR MILKY WAY
ARE MOVING AWAY FROM US.

THE UNIVERSE MUST BE EXPANDING.

SO HOW DID HUBBLE
GO ABOUT DETECTING

THE SPEED AND DIRECTION
OF GALAXIES

BILLIONS OF LIGHT YEARS AWAY.

THAT'S WHAT THE VOLUNTEERS
ARE TRYING TO UNDERSTAND.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER: INITIALLY,
I THOUGHT WE'RE MEASURING SOUND,

BUT, YOU KNOW, GALAXIES
DON'T MAKE A SOUND.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: SO CLEARLY,
WERE NOT GONNA BE USING SOUND

TO LISTEN TO THE SOUND
COMING FROM GALAXIES,

BUT, UM, SOUND IS A WAVE,

UM, JUST LIKE LIGHT
TRAVELS IN WAVES, AS WELL,

SO WHEN THE SOURCE IS MOVING,

IT CHANGES THE FREQUENCY.

IT WIDENS THE FREQUENCY
AS IT'S MOVING AWAY.

SO WHEN IT COMES TO GALAXIES,
WE DON'T LOOK FOR SOUND,

BUT WE KIND OF MEASURE
THE WAVES OF THE LIGHT.

[TIRES SQUEALING]

HAWKING: THAT'S RIGHT.

SO WILL MY VOLUNTEERS GRASP
THE BEAUTIFULLY SIMPLE WAY

TO DETECT A CHANGE
IN THE FREQUENCY OF LIGHT?

PAUL: WE SORT OF FIGURED OUT
THAT WHEN WE GET A RAINBOW

LIGHT HITS WATER AND IT SPLITS
INTO DIFFERENT COLORS.

WE ALSO GET
DIFFERENT FREQUENCIES,

AND COLOR AND FREQUENCY ARE
LINKED WHEN IT COMES TO LIGHT,

SO WE'RE SORT OF WONDERING
WHETHER PERHAPS

THE--THE COLOR OF GALAXIES
MIGHT GIVE US A CLUE

AS TO WHICH WAY
THEY'RE MOVING--

TOWARDS US OR AWAY FROM US,

AND MAYBE THAT'S THE WAY
THAT WE CAN MEASURE

WHICH DIRECTION
GALAXIES ARE MOVING,

BY STUDYING THE COLOR
OF THE LIGHT FROM THEM.

HAWKING: THEY'VE GOT IT.

HIGH-FREQUENCY LIGHT
APPEARS BLUE.

LOW-FREQUENCY LIGHT
APPEARS RED.

MY VOLUNTEERS HAVE REALIZED
THE SPEED AND DIRECTION

A GALAXY IS TRAVELING
CAN BE DEDUCED SIMPLY

BY OBSERVING ITS COLOR...

AND IN 1929,
THAT'S PRECISELY HOW

EDWIN HUBBLE OBSERVED GALAXIES
WERE MOVING AWAY FROM US.

TUROK: HUBBLE WAS LOOKING
AT THE MOST DISTANT OBJECTS
HE COULD FIND.

THAT'S WHAT YOU DO WITH
THE BIGGEST TELESCOPE YOU HAVE.

IF YOU SEE A STAR LIKE THE SUN

AND YOU PUT IT
AT A MUCH GREATER DISTANCE,

OBVIOUSLY IT WOULD APPEAR
MUCH DIMMER,

AND SO HE USES THAT FACT
TO TELL HIM

THE DISTANCE OF THE GALAXIES.

WHAT HE NOTICES IS THAT
THE GALAXIES WHICH ARE DIMMER

AND THEREFORE FURTHER AWAY
ARE REDDER,

AND THE INTERPRETATION
OF THIS REDDENING

IS SOMETHING CALLED
THE DOPPLER SHIFT,

WHICH IS THAT IF SOMETHING
IS MOVING AWAY FROM YOU

THE LIGHT WE RECEIVE
IS SHIFTED INTO THE RED.

IT WAS A VERY RADICAL IDEA
THAT THE UNIVERSE WAS EXPANDING

BECAUSE IF YOU
TOOK IT SERIOUSLY,

IT IMPLIED THERE WAS
A BEGINNING...

THAT YOU COULD EXTRAPOLATE
THE EXPANSION BACKWARDS IN TIME,

AND IT WOULD HAVE IMPLIED
THAT EVERYTHING IN THE UNIVERSE

EMERGED FROM WHAT WE NOW
CALL A SINGULARITY.

WITH HUBBLE'S DISCOVERY,
IT BECAME CLEAR

VERY DRAMATICALLY
THAT POTENTIALLY

WE COULD UNDERSTAND
THE ORIGIN OF EVERYTHING.

HUBBLE'S DISCOVERY
WAS RECOGNIZED

AS VERY IMPORTANT AT THE TIME,

BUT THE NOTION THAT WE COULD
ACTUALLY UNDERSTAND THE BIG BANG

AT THAT TIME SEEMED
A STEP TOO FAR.

YOU KNOW, HOW WOULD WE
EVER ANSWER QUESTIONS

THAT GRANDIOSE?

HAWKING: IF SCIENTISTS WERE
TO BELIEVE THAT

THE BIG BANG THEORY SOLVED
THE PROBLEM

OF WHERE THE UNIVERSE CAME FROM,

THEY'D NEED EVIDENCE
IT HAPPENED

PRECISELY AS
THE THEORY DESCRIBED.

SCIENTISTS PREDICTED
THE BIG BANG'S

INITIAL BURST OF LIGHT
FROM JUST AFTER THE BIG BANG

WOULD BE DETECTABLE
TODAY AS MICROWAVE RADIATION.

THE RACE WAS ON TO FIND IT...

AND THE FIRST LEAD CAME
FROM AN UNLIKELY SOURCE,

AMERICAN RADIO ASTRONOMERS
ARNO PENZIAS AND ROBERT WILSON.

WOMAN: PENZIAS AND WILSON
WERE INTERESTED

IN STUDYING OUR GALAXY.

THEY WERE USING NEW TECHNOLOGY,
NEW RADIO TELESCOPES

TO LOOK AT RADIO WAVES,

BUT WHEREVER THEY LOOKED
IN THE SKY

AND HOWEVER THEY TUNED
THEIR TELESCOPE,

THEY KEPT PICKING UP
THIS VERY FAINT SIGNAL OF LIGHT.

NOW FOR A WHILE,
THEY WERE CONVINCED

THAT IT MUST BE SOMETHING
THAT WAS GETTING

INTO THE TELESCOPE
THAT WASN'T REAL,

THAT WAS EITHER SOME PROBLEM
WITH THEIR TELESCOPE ITSELF

OR SOMETHING
INSIDE THE TELESCOPE ITSELF,

BUT THERE WAS NO EXPLANATION
FOR THIS FAINT LIGHT

THAT APPEARED
TO BE COMING FROM SPACE

AND EVERYWHERE IN SPACE,

AND QUITE QUICKLY,
IT BECAME COMPLETELY OBVIOUS

THAT WHAT PENZIAS AND WILSON
WERE SEEING WITH THEIR DISH

POINTING AT DIFFERENT PARTS
OF THE SKY

WAS EXACTLY
THIS BIG BANG SIGNAL.

HAWKING:
IT WAS A HISTORIC MOMENT.

WE SAW ALMOST BACK
TO THE BIG BANG ITSELF,

AND SCIENTISTS HAD THE EVIDENCE
THEY HAD BEEN SEARCHING FOR.

DUNKLEY: SO THIS SIGNAL
WAS HUGELY IMPORTANT

FOR CONVINCING PEOPLE THAT
THE BIG BANG HAD HAPPENED,

AND SO QUITE QUICKLY,
PEOPLE WHO HADN'T

PREVIOUSLY BEEN CONVINCED
BY THE BIG BANG,

THEIR MINDS WERE CHANGED.

HAWKING: BUT WE DON'T HAVE TO
TAKE THEIR WORD FOR IT.

WHAT'S REMARKABLE IS
THE ECHO OF THE BIG BANG

IS SOMETHING WE CAN
ALL LISTEN TO.

DUNKLEY, VOICE-OVER: SO ONE
OF THE REMARKABLE THINGS

ABOUT THE COSMIC MICROWAVE
BACKGROUND RADIATION IS

YOU CAN ACTUALLY PICK IT UP
AND HEAR IT WITH A RADIO.

THIS LIGHT IS HITTING US
ALL THE TIME,

AND ITS WAVELENGTH IS
THE RIGHT KIND OF WAVELENGTH

THAT A RADIO CAN ACTUALLY
TURN IT INTO A SIGNAL

YOU CAN HEAR,

AND WHEN YOU TURN
BETWEEN CHANNELS

ON AN OLD-FASHIONED
ANALOGUE RADIO,

YOU CAN HEAR THAT HISS,

THAT LITTLE FUZZY NOISE
THAT COMES

BETWEEN RADIO STATIONS.

IT IS ACTUALLY LIGHT
FROM THE BIG BANG,

AND YOU CAN ACTUALLY
HEAR IT ON A RADIO,

AND THAT'S EXTRAORDINARY.

HAWKING: BUT THIS IS ONLY
PART OF THE STORY.

WHAT'S CRUCIAL TO UNDERSTANDING
THE BEGINNING OF EVERYTHING

IS NOT SIMPLY THAT
THE UNIVERSE IS EXPANDING

BUT THE UNEXPECTED WAY
IN WHICH IT DOES EXPAND

BECAUSE EDWIN HUBBLE'S DATA
FROM HIS OBSERVATION

OF MOVING GALAXIES
CONTAINS A FURTHER SECRET,

ONE THAT I HOPE
MY VOLUNTEERS WILL GRASP

IN THEIR NEXT CHALLENGE.

TO SEE IF MY VOLUNTEERS
CAN WORK OUT

WHERE THE UNIVERSE CAME FROM,

I HAVE BROUGHT THEM
SOMEWHERE THEY CAN EXERCISE

MORE THAN JUST THEIR MINDS.

MARCIA: TRACK AND FIELD.
VERY COOL.

ALEJANDRO: INDOOR ARENA.
OK.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: WE'RE
IN AN INDOOR RUNNING TRACK.

WHAT'S THIS GOT TO DO
WITH THE UNIVERSE?

MORNING, GUYS,
MORNING.

ALL RIGHT.
RIGHT.

SO WE HAVE SOME SIGNS.

HAWKING: MY VOLUNTEERS HAVE
THE EQUIPMENT THEY NEED

TO ORGANIZE A SPECIAL RACE...

SAFETY PINS.
SAFETY PINS.

HAWKING: MIMICKING THE MOVEMENT
OF GALAXIES IN SPACE.

WILL THEY FIGURE IT OUT?

OH, SO THESE ARE
DIFFERENT GALAXIES

AND THEIR, UH,
DISTANCE FROM EARTH.

OH, WAIT.
GUYS, LOOK.

THEY HAVE, LIKE,
LITTLE GALAXIES ON THEM.

PAUL: OH, THEY DO.

LOOK AT THAT.
HA HA HA!

THIS IS PERFECT.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER: I NOTICED
THAT ALL OF THE T-SHIRTS

HAVE GALAXIES ON THEM,
SO I'M ASSUMING THAT

EACH OF THESE RUNNERS
WILL REPRESENT A GALAXY.

YOU KNOW WHAT
THESE LOOK
LIKE TO ME?

THESE LOOK LIKE
RACE NUMBERS.

RACE NUMBERS.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER:
EACH OF THE RACE BIBS CONTAINS

NAME OF THE GALAXY AND HOW FAR
THE GALAXY IS IN LIGHT YEARS

AWAY FROM EARTH.

I THINK WE JUST PUT
THESE ON

OUR LOVELY VOLUNTEERS.
OK.

AND THEN WE CAN
HAVE A RACE.

SOUNDS LIKE
A GOOD IDEA. YEP.

LET'S HAVE A RACE.
LET'S HAVE A RACE.

HAWKING: TO HELP THEM UNCOVER
THE SECRET IN HUBBLE'S DATA,

MY VOLUNTEERS WILL NEED
TO SET UP

THE STARTING POINT
OF THEIR RACE CAREFULLY.

MARCIA: ALL RIGHT.
SO WE GOT ALL OUR GALAXIES.

ALEJANDRO: YEAH.

WE HAVE TO DO EVERYTHING
TO SCALE, RIGHT?

FIRST OF ALL, WE HAVE
TO ESTABLISH OUR EARTH.

WHICH IS GONNA BE
OUR START LINE.

THESE STARTING BLOCKS
ARE NOT IN LINE.

THEY'RE ALL AT
DIFFERENT DISTANCES

FROM OUR
STARTING POINT.

BECAUSE THE DISTANCES
THEY HAVE

IS LIGHT YEARS
FROM EARTH.

SO I'M THINKING
WE NEED TO--
WE NEED TO

GET THESE GUYS
IN THE RIGHT ORDER.

IN ORDER. OK.

THE COGS START TURNING.
"HANG ON A MINUTE.

"PERHAPS WE NEED TO BE
MATCHING UP THESE NUMBERS

WITH THE STARTING POSITIONS
FOR THESE RUNNERS."

HAWKING: GOOD WORK.

THEY'RE CORRECTLY REPLICATING
THE LAYOUT OF OUR UNIVERSE

AS WE SEE IT FROM PLANET EARTH.

SHE'S RIGHT HERE.

THEN IT'S 210 BILLION.

HAWKING:
AND EACH RUNNER IS STANDING

AT THE CORRECT DISTANCE
FROM EARTH

OF THE GALAXY THEY REPRESENT.

PAUL: 12.8 BILLION.

AND 13 BILLION
THIS WAY.

YOU GET THE BIGGEST
HEAD START.

ALEJANDRO: COOL!

MARCIA: SO WE'VE GOT
OUR GALAXIES ALIGNED.

ALEJANDRO: ALIGNED.

PAUL: LET'S RUN IT.
LET'S RUN IT.

LET'S SEE
WHAT HAPPENS.

OK.
ALL RIGHT.

HAWKING: BUT THIS IS
NO ORDINARY RACE,

AND THERE MAY BE
SOME SURPRISES IN STORE.

WILL THEY WORK OUT
WHAT IT MEANS?

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER:
I'M EXPECTING THAT
WHEN I PULL THE TRIGGER

EVERYONE WILL FLY FORWARD.

GALAXIES READY.

[BANG]

PAUL: WOW.
HEY. YOU KNOW WHAT?

THEY'RE RUNNING
AT DIFFERENT SPEEDS.

HAWKING: WELL, I DID SAY THAT
THIS IS NO ORDINARY RACE.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER:
SOME OF THEM JOG,

SOME OF THEM WALK.

ALEJANDRO, VOICE-OVER: IT TOOK
ME A WHILE TO REALIZE

WHAT WAS HAPPENING.

THERE'S NO COMPETITION.

IT'S JUST--IT'S JUST
HOW IT'S MOVING.

I WASN'T
EXPECTING THAT.

SO DID I.

THERE SHOULD BE
A CLUE IN THAT.

THERE'S A CLUE
IN THAT.
RIGHT.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: SO CLEARLY,
THE RACE ISN'T

ABOUT THE PHYSICAL PROWESS
OF EACH INDIVIDUAL ATHLETE.

IT'S GONNA BE MORE DETERMINED
BY THE NUMBERS

THAT WE'VE ASSIGNED TO THEM.

SO SO FAR,
WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED?

13 BILLION.

13 BILLION IS FLYING.

YEAH. SHE'S
SUPERFAST.

800,000 IS WALKING.
OK.

THE CLOSER YOU WERE
TO THE START LINE...

THE START, YEAH.

UM, THE SLOWER YOU MOVE.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: THE SECRET
THAT WE DISCOVERED

WAS THAT GALAXIES THAT ARE
THE FURTHEST AWAY FROM EARTH

ARE ALSO THE ONES TRAVELING
THE FASTEST AWAY FROM EARTH.

MARCIA: THE FURTHER
THEY GET FROM EARTH,

THE FASTER THEY TRAVEL.

HAWKING: MY VOLUNTEERS HAVE
DISCOVERED A VITAL CLUE

IN HUBBLE'S DATA.

NOT ONLY DID HUBBLE'S
OBSERVATION

OF A DOPPLER RED SHIFT
REVEAL GALAXIES

WERE MOVING AWAY...

IT REVEALED THE MOST DISTANT
GALAXIES GLOWED

A DEEPER SHADE OF RED.

THEY WERE RECEDING FASTER
INTO THE DEPTHS OF THE UNIVERSE,

SOME AT SEEMINGLY
REMARKABLE SPEEDS.

TUROK: THESE WERE ABSOLUTELY
REVOLUTIONARY IDEAS,

AND IN THE MID-1920s,
THIS DEBATE

ABOUT THE NATURE OF THE WORLD,
THE NATURE OF REALITY

WAS AT ITS MOST, UH, DRAMATIC.

HAWKING: THIS EXTRAORDINARY
CLUE IN HUBBLE'S DATA

WAS A KEY TURNING POINT
OF DISCOVERING

WHERE THE UNIVERSE CAME FROM.

CAN MY VOLUNTEERS
TAKE THE NEXT STEP

TO FIGURE OUT WHAT'S MAKING
GALAXIES MOVE THE WAY THEY DO?

SO...
ALEJANDRO: OK.

QUITE CLEARLY, WE'RE
IN AN ICE RINK.

OH, YEAH.
OH, MY GOODNESS.

HAWKING: TO REVEAL
THE EXTRAORDINARY TRUTH

BEHIND HOW THE UNIVERSE EXPANDS,

MY VOLUNTEERS WILL NEED
TO BRAVE THE ICE.

WE'RE GONNA PLAY
ICE HOCKEY?

NO.

WE'VE GOT OUR
GALAXY JERSEYS AGAIN.

OH, YEAH. THE GALAXIES
ARE ON JERSEYS.

WE'RE GONNA BE
THE GALAXIES TODAY.

WE REALIZED THAT THERE IS SOME
ICE SKATING EQUIPMENT,

SO IT DOESN'T TAKE
A GENIUS TO FIGURE OUT

THAT WE ARE GOING
IN THE ICE RINK WITH THEM,

SO THAT WAS QUITE--
QUITE SCARY.

SO LET'S--SO, UM,
I GUESS WE'RE
PUTTING SOME KIT ON.

HAWKING: THEIR CHALLENGE IS TO
REPLICATE THE BIG BANG ON ICE

TO WORK OUT WHY GALAXIES
THAT ARE FARTHEST FROM EARTH

MOVE FASTEST.

FIRST, THEY'LL NEED TO GET
THEIR SKATES ON...

BUT I'VE MADE AN UNUSUAL
ADDITION TO THEIR SKATING GEAR.

MARCIA: ON THE TABLE,
THERE ARE LEAF BLOWERS

WITH BALLOONS ON THEM,
WHICH IS VERY ODD.

SHALL WE DO IT?
YEAH.

LET'S GIVE IT A GO.

OH. OH, WOW!

HAWKING: WILL MY VOLUNTEERS
WORK OUT WHAT IS MAKING

GALAXIES MOVE THIS WAY?

I THINK WE SHOULD
BE ON THE ICE.

YEAH. LET'S GO
ON THE ICE.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: WE FIGURED
THAT IF HEAD TO THE CENTER

OF THE ICE THAT WOULD BE
A GOOD PLACE TO START

IN ORDER TO FIND OUT
HOW WE'RE ACTUALLY

GONNA REENACT THIS BIG BANG.

I CAN HARDLY DO THIS...
I KNOW.

WITH A LEAF BLOWER.

I KNOW. IT'S SO HARD
TO DO WITH A LEAF BLOWER.

AAH!
OH!

I'M GETTING
THE HANG OF THIS.
OKEY-DOKEY.

ALEJANDRO, VOICE-OVER:
WE NEED TO FIND A WAY

TO USE THESE BALLOONS
AND THESE LEAF BLOWERS

TO RE-CREATE HOW
THE GALAXIES ARE MOVING.

IT'S AN EXPLOSION
ESSENTIALLY, ISN'T IT?

RIGHT.

WE'RE THINKING THAT
WE NEED TO CAUSE
SOME SORT OF EXPLOSION.

WHAT DO WE HAVE
THAT IS EXPANDING?

OBVIOUSLY,
THESE BALLOONS.

DO WE PUT
THESE BALLOONS
TOGETHER MAYBE

AND THEN THAT
IS THE CAUSE
OF THE EXPANSION?

SO IF WE EXPAND THEM
AGAINST EACH OTHER,
WE GO BACKWARDS?

SEE IF WE GO BACKWARDS.
OH, I LIKE IT.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER: WE DIRECT
ALL OF OUR BLOWERS

TOWARD EACH OTHER.

1...
1...

2, 3.
2, 3.

WHOA!
HA HA HA!

HA HA HA!

MAYBE WE HAVE TO
HAVE IT A LITTLE
BIT HIGHER.

AGREED. OK.
OH, MY GOSH.

ALL RIGHT, GUYS.

1, 2, 3.

OH! HA HA!

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: UNFORTUNATELY,
THE THING THAT LETS US DOWN

IS OUR ABILITY ON THE ICE.

HAWKING: MY VOLUNTEERS MAY
NEED A DIFFERENT STRATEGY.

WE NEED SOME HELP.
YEAH.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER:
WE ENLISTED THE PRO TEAM.

PAUL: WE WERE WONDERING
IF YOU COULD STEP IN
AS OUR STUNTMEN.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER:
SO WE APPROACHED THESE GUYS

AND ASKED FOR 3 VOLUNTEERS
TO TAKE OUR PLACE ON THE ICE.

PAUL: YOU WANT TO
COME WITH ME?

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: WE SQUEEZED
THEM IN TOGETHER,

POSITIONED THE BALLOONS
WHERE WE WANTED THEM,

AND ON THE COUNT OF 3
ASKED THEM TO SWITCH THEM ON.

PAUL: OK. 3, 2, 1, ACTION.

YEAH.
THANKS.

THAT WAS GREAT, GUYS.
THANK YOU.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: IT WAS CLEAR
THAT WE HAD A PRINCIPLE

THAT WAS WORKING,

BUT IT WASN'T QUITE
THE BIG BANG

THAT WE WERE LOOKING FOR.

YOU WANT TO
SCALE IT UP?

ALEJANDRO: BRING
MORE PLAYERS?

GET MORE PLAYERS IN?

MORE BALLOONS,
MORE PLAYERS? MAYBE.

LET'S BRING
EVERYBODY IN.

HAWKING: NOW MY VOLUNTEERS
ARE BEGINNING TO GRASP

HOW AN EXPANDING UNIVERSE
COULD WORK.

WOULD YOU GUYS GIVE
US A HAND?

HAWKING: WILL THEIR SCALED-UP
SIMULATION BRING THEM CLOSER

TO FINDING OUT
WHERE THE UNIVERSE BEGAN?

PAUL: LET'S HAVE
SOME FUN.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: WE'LL START
WITH OUR 3 GUYS THAT WE DID,

BUT THEN WE'LL CREATE A LINE,
A QUEUE, IF YOU LIKE,

IN BEHIND EACH
OF THE 3 GUYS IN THE MIDDLE.

ALEJANDRO: HOW MANY
YOU HAVE THERE?

PAUL: I HAVE 5.

ALEJANDRO: OK.
ARE YOU READY GUYS?

PLAYERS: YEAH!

ALL RIGHT.
IN 3, 2, 1, ACTION!

SO THE BALLOONS
IN THE CENTER INFLATE.

AS THE BALLOONS WERE EXPANDING,

THE FURTHER BACK YOU WERE
FROM THE CENTER,

THE MORE SPEED YOU HAD,
THE MORE DISTANCE YOU TRAVELED.

WHAT DO YOU THINK
THIS IS--

ALEJANDRO: I THINK THIS
EXPLAINS WHY THE GALAXIES

THAT WERE FURTHER WAY
WERE MOVING...

MOVING FASTER.
FASTER.

FASTER THAN THE ONES
WHO WERE...

AH. THAT MAKES
SENSE.
AT THE BEGINNING.

WE DISCOVERED THAT
THOSE GALAXIES

ARE ALL MOVING AWAY
FROM EACH OTHER,

UM, AND THE FURTHER AWAY
THEY ARE FROM EACH OTHER,

THE FASTER
THEY'RE MOVING AWAY.

THAT WAS VERY INTERESTING
TO SEE.

HAWKING: SO WHAT DOES
THIS MEAN FOR THE WAY

THE UNIVERSE IS EXPANDING?

MARCIA: WE STARTED TO THINK
ABOUT WHAT IS ACTUALLY

CAUSING THE PLAYERS TO MOVE.

IF THE GALAXIES ARE ALL MOVING
AWAY FROM EACH OTHER,

WHAT IS IT ABOUT THE BALLOON
THAT MAKES THAT HAPPEN?

THE GALAXIES THEMSELVES
AREN'T MOVING

OR ACCELERATING,
CONTROLLING ITS SPEED.

IT'S JUST THE SPACE
BETWEEN THEM...

THE SPACE BETWEEN THEM.
RIGHT.

THAT'S--THAT'S EXPANDING.

RIGHT.
YEAH.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER: WHAT'S
EXPANDING IS OBVIOUSLY

NOT THE PLAYERS.

THE PLAYERS ARE
REMAINING THE SAME,

AND IF THE PLAYERS
REPRESENT GALAXIES,

THEN THE GALAXIES AREN'T
REALLY EXPANDING.

PAUL: THE BALLOONS INFLATE,
SO SPACE IS INFLATING.

RIGHT. SO
THE GALAXIES ARE

KIND OF COMPLETELY
IRRELEVANT
THEMSELVES.

WE HAVE TO FOCUS ON
THE SPACE BETWEEN
THE GALAXIES.

ALEJANDRO, VOICE-OVER:
IT IS AN EYE-OPENING MOMENT

WHEN WE REALIZE IT IS THE SPACE
WHAT IS EXPANDING,

AND THAT WAS VERY EASY
TO SEE TODAY

BECAUSE WE WERE ABLE
TO SEE THE BALLOONS

PUSHING EACH PLAYER.

PAUL: I'M COMING
TO REALIZATIONS

THAT THINGS AREN'T
THE WAY I THOUGHT THEY WERE,

UH, AND THAT'S--THAT'S
WHAT'S REALLY EXCITING HERE.

HAWKING: THEY'VE GRASPED IT,

A CONCEPT SCIENTISTS CALL
THE UNIFORM EXPANSION OF SPACE.

WHEN THE UNIVERSE EXPANDS,

NOT EVERYTHING IN IT
EXPANDS, TOO.

SO YOU SHOULD THINK
OF SPACE EXPANDING,

BUT THE OBJECTS INSIDE SPACE,
LIKE GALAXIES AND STARS,

ARE NOT EXPANDING.

THEY'RE STANDING THE SAME SIZE.

IT'S JUST AS IF YOU TOOK SPACE
AND STRETCHED IT UNIFORMLY.

SO IF GIVEN TWO POINTS
WILL BE MOVING AWAY

AT SOME SPEED,

THEN IF YOU TAKE
TWO POINTS SEPARATED

BY TWICE THE DISTANCE,

THEY'RE MOVING AWAY
AT TWICE THE SPEED,

AND THAT'S HUBBLE'S LAW.

HUBBLE'S LAW, THE OBSERVATION
OF AN EXPANDING UNIVERSE,

WAS A REVELATION,

BUT IT WASN'T
A COMPLETE SURPRISE

BECAUSE BELGIAN COSMOLOGIST
AND PRIEST GEORGES LEMAITRE

HAD ALREADY WORKED
ON THE THEORY BEHIND IT.

DUNKLEY: LEMAITRE STARTED OFF
WITH THIS WONDERFUL THEORY

THAT WAS AROUND AT THIS POINT,

WHICH WAS EINSTEIN'S NEW
THEORY OF GENERAL RELATIVITY.

THIS BEAUTIFUL SET OF EQUATIONS
WERE KIND OF RIPE

FOR STUDYING FURTHER
AND TO APPLYING

TO OUR ENTIRE UNIVERSE,

AND THIS IS WHAT HE WANTED
TO TRY AND UNDERSTAND

WAS HE COULD HE TAKE
THIS NEW THEORY OF GRAVITY

THAT EINSTEIN HAD COME UP WITH

AND APPLY IT
TO THE WHOLE OF SPACE?

EINSTEIN'S EQUATIONS TELL US
THAT SPACE ITSELF

GETS DISTORTED BY THE STUFF
THAT LIVES IN SPACE.

MATTER BENDS SPACE,

AND SPACE TELLS MATTER
HOW TO MOVE IN THAT SPACE.

AND SO LEMAITRE
SIMPLIFIED THE UNIVERSE,

APPLIED EINSTEIN'S THEORY TO IT,

AND HE DISCOVERED THAT
IF YOU FILL SPACE WITH STUFF--

UH, AS WE KNOW IT TO BE,
THE UNIVERSE ISN'T
COMPLETELY EMPTY--

UM, IT SHOULD CHANGE,
IT SHOULD GROW.

HAWKING: LEMAITRE'S THEORY
THAT THE UNIVERSE WAS CHANGING

WAS PUBLISHED IN 1927.

IT MARKED THE BIRTH
OF THE BIG BANG THEORY

AND THE REVOLUTION IN HOW
WE UNDERSTAND OUR UNIVERSE.

NOW TO PIECE TOGETHER
WHERE THE UNIVERSE CAME FROM,

MY VOLUNTEERS WILL NEED
TO GO OVER

WHAT THEY'VE LEARNED SO FAR.

THEY HAVE GRASPED
THE ENORMITY OF THE UNIVERSE'S

200 BILLION GALAXIES.

MARCIA: IT MADE ME FEEL
SO SMALL AND INSIGNIFICANT.

[TIRES SQUEAL]

THEY HAVE DISCOVERED THAT
THE UNIVERSE IS EXPANDING...

WHOO HOO HOO HOO!

AS DISTANT GALAXIES
ARE MOVING AWAY FROM US...

THAT THING FLIES!

AND THAT THOSE GALAXIES
FARTHEST FROM EARTH

MOVE FASTER THAN
THOSE NEARBY...

ACTION!

BECAUSE SPACE ITSELF IS
UNIFORMLY EXPANDING,

PUSHING GALAXIES
FURTHER APART.

PAUL: THE GALAXIES
THEMSELVES AREN'T MOVING.

IT'S JUST THE SPACE
BETWEEN THEM THAT'S EXPANDING.

RIGHT.

HAWKING: BUT THERE'S SOMETHING
ABOUT THIS UNIFORM

EXPANSION OF SPACE THAT HAS

EXTRAORDINARY
AND UNEXPECTED CONSEQUENCES

THAT CAN TELL US WHERE
THE UNIVERSE CAME FROM...

SOMETHING I HOPE
MY VOLUNTEERS WILL UNCOVER

IN THEIR FINAL CHALLENGE.

OK.

"MIDDLE OF THE UNIVERSE
MACHINE."

"1 BILLION YEARS AGO."

WELL, THAT IS A CLUE
BECAUSE THAT'S

WHAT WE'VE BEEN
TRYING TO FIND OUT,

WHERE--WHERE EVERYTHING BEGAN.

PAUL: I GUESS THESE
REPRESENT GALAXIES.

AND THAT'S HOW
THE UNIVERSE
LOOKED THEN.

WHAT DO WE HAVE
ON THE OTHER SCREEN?

ON THE OTHER SCREEN,
WE HAVE "NOW."

"NOW."

THE OTHER SCREEN
SAYS, "NOW."

THEY LOOK
PRETTY MUCH THE SAME.

THEY ALMOST LOOK
IDENTICAL.

BUT WE'RE NOT LIT.

BUT WE'RE NOT LIT UP.

I THINK WE SHOULD
TURN THESE ON.

ALEJANDRO: ALL RIGHT.
LET'S SEE.

HAWKING: THE SCREENS REPRESENT
MAPS OF A SMALL PART

OF OUR UNIVERSE,

AND THE LIGHTS
REPRESENT GALAXIES.

THINK OF THEM AS TWO SNAPSHOTS
OF THE SAME AREA OF SPACE

TAKEN 1 BILLION YEARS APART.

PAUL: SO HOW ABOUT WE PUT
OUR MACHINE TOGETHER?

ALEJANDRO: OVERLAP
THE SCREENS? OK.

MARCIA: ALL RIGHT, GUYS.
GET TO IT.

I'LL DIRECT YOU.

ALEJANDRO, VOICE-OVER: MARCIA--
VERY CLEVER--LET THE BOYS

CARRY THE SCREEN.

HA HA HA! I WASN'T GONNA DO
ANY OF THE HEAVY LIFTING.

ALEJANDRO, VOICE-OVER:
AND WE PUT THE TWO SCREENS

OVERLAPPING EACH OTHER.

PAUL: YOU'RE IN?
IS IT IN?

YES, IT'S IN NOW.
YEAH.

BRILLIANT. OK.

OK.

OK.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: WE STEP BACK
AND HAVE A LOOK,

AND IT'S CLEAR THAT
THEY'RE NOT THE SAME.

HA HA HA!

THEY'RE NOT
THE SAME.

THEY ARE NOT
THE SAME.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: IT LOOKS
LIKE EVERYTHING

IS RADIATING OUT FROM A POINT.

SO IT LOOKS FROM A BILLION YEARS
AGO TO--TO TODAY

EVERYTHING HAS
MOVED AWAY SLIGHTLY.

SAME EXACT PATTERNS.

SAME PATTERNS,

BUT THEY HAVE MOVED.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER:
IT LOOKED REALLY GOOD.

IT LOOKED AMAZING.

IT WAS LIKE JUMPING
TO WARP SPEED

AND YOU GET THAT--PSSHEEW--
STARBURST SORT OF EFFECT, YEAH.

MARCIA: AND WE FIGURED OUT
THAT THAT IS SUPPOSED TO

REPRESENT THE EXPANSION OF SPACE
THAT WE HAD SEEN

IN OUR--OUR PREVIOUS EXPERIMENT.

SO NOW WE'VE GOT THESE GALAXIES.

THEY'RE ALL POINTING TO SOME
BLACK SPOT IN SPACE

AS--AS PROBABLY WHERE THEY'VE
ALL ORIGINATED FROM.

THE MIDDLE IS WHERE
THE UNIVERSE BEGAN

BECAUSE EVERYTHING
IS--IS MOVING AWAY

FROM A SINGLE POINT.

SO THE SIGNIFICANCE
OF FINDING THE MIDDLE

IS TO ANSWER THE BIG QUESTION--

WHERE--WHERE DID
THE BIG BANG HAPPEN?

HAWKING: THAT'S THE IDEA.

SO WILL MY VOLUNTEERS
WORK OUT HOW TO TAKE

THE NEXT LOGICAL STEP TO FIND
WHERE THE UNIVERSE BEGAN?

MAYBE WE CAN MOVE THIS--

MOVE THE SCREEN?

YEAH. WE CAN MOVE
THE SCREEN.

SO WE'RE GONNA TRY
TO MOVE IT TO ALIGN IT.

ALEJANDRO, IF WE
GET ON THE HANDLES

AND, MARCIA, YOU
TELL US WHERE
YOU WANT IT--

OK.
BRILLIANT. OK.

WHERE DO YOU WANT
US TO MOVE IT FOR?

TO THE LEFT.

LEFT. OK--OH.
A LITTLE BIT TO THE RIGHT,

THEN DOWN
A LITTLE BIT MORE.

HAWKING: I THINK THEY'LL BE
IN FOR A SURPRISE.

MARCIA: IT REALLY IS
STRAIGHT DOWN.

DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN.

HUH. OK, GUYS.

ONE GALAXY IN THE MIDDLE
IS ALIGNED.

OK. AND THE REST?

AND THE REST OF THEM
ARE JUST SLIGHTLY OFF.

SLIGHTLY OFF.

IN A UNIFORM MANNER.

I'M TRYING TO EXPLAIN THIS
TO YOU GUYS

SO THAT YOU UNDERSTAND--

BECAUSE YOU C--
YOU CAN'T SEE IT.

PAUL: WELL, WHY DON'T
YOU COME AND HOLD THIS?

LET ME HAVE A LOOK.
YEAH, YEAH. PERFECT.

AND THEN I CAN MAYBE--
PERFECT, PERFECT.

HAWKING: IT LOOKS LIKE
MY VOLUNTEERS

ARE ABOUT TO UNCOVER

WHAT THE UNIFORM EXPANSION
OF SPACE MEANS

FOR WHERE THE UNIVERSE
CAME FROM.

PAUL: OH, WOW.

HAWKING: THE TEAM HAS FIGURED
OUT ALIGNING THEIR GALAXIES

IS NOT AS SIMPLE
AS IT SEEMS.

PAUL: I SO SEE
WHAT YOU MEAN NOW.

I SEE WHAT YOU MEAN NOW.

HAWKING: THEY CAN ONLY
LINE UP ONE GALAXY

WITH ITS BILLION-YEAR-OLDER
COUNTERPART AT A TIME.

HOW WILL THEY FIGURE OUT
WHAT THIS COULD MEAN?

PAUL, VOICE-OVER:
SO WE STARTED TO THINK

ABOUT HOW VIEWPOINT
MADE A DIFFERENCE

AS TO WHAT IT WAS WE WOULD SEE.

SO WE CAME UP WITH THE IDEA OF
PERHAPS CHANGING OUR VIEWPOINT.

SO NOW I'M GONNA PICK
ANOTHER GALAXY BUT ON THIS SIDE.

I'M GONNA PICK
THIS GALAXY NOW,

AND I'M GONNA ALIGN IT UP

WITH ITS BILLION-YEAR-OLD
PARTNER BEHIND, OK?

WE'LL GO TO MARCIA.

KEEP GOING.
KEEP GOING.

KEEP GOING, KEEP GOING.

WE PICKED A GALAXY,
UM, AND LINED IT UP

WITH THE ONE BEHIND.

KEEP GOING. STOP.

PERFECT.

HA HA!

SO NOW I'VE MADE THAT
THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE,

EVERYTHING ELSE IS MOVING
OUT FROM THAT POINT.

HA HA! AND THAT WAS A--
NOT A LIGHT BULB MOMENT,

BUT THAT WAS LIKE
A "STAR TREK" MOMENT.

THIS IS VISUALLY INCREDIBLE.

MARCIA: IT'S--IT'S COOL.
IT REALLY IS.

IT'S REALLY COOL.

IT WAS--IT JUST CHANGED.

THE WHOLE PICTURE
JUST CHANGED.

SUDDENLY, THE MIDDLE
OF THE UNIVERSE

SEEMED TO CHANGE.

SO EVERYTHING WAS RADIATING
FROM THE GALAXY I'D CHOSEN.

ALEJANDRO, YOU HAVE TO HAVE
A GO AT THIS.

OK. I'M COMING.
LET'S--LET'S
DO THIS.

LET ME ALIGN TWO.
YOU HAVE TO SEE IT.

ALL RIGHT.

SO HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO FIND

THE MIDDLE OF THE UNIVERSE

IF EVERY TIME WE MOVE IT
IT CHANGES?

I'M GONNA CHOOSE
THIS GALAXY,

AND I'M GONNA ALIGN
THAT ONE NOW.

OK.

HAWKING: NOW MY VOLUNTEERS
ARE REALLY ON TO SOMETHING.

ALEJANDRO: A LITTLE BIT
TO THE LEFT.

BRILLIANT. FROM THAT
POINT OF VIEW,

NOW I CAN SEE ALL
OF THE GALAXIES

MOVING AWAY FROM THAT,

AND I THINK I'M
ON TO SOMETHING HERE.

RIGHT.

SO SEEMINGLY BEING ABLE
TO MAKE ANY POINT

AT THE CENTER
OF THE UNIVERSE,

WE START TO SLOWLY
REJECT THE IDEA

THAT WE'RE GONNA FIND
A POINT IN SPACE

THAT IS THE CENTER
OF THE UNIVERSE.

ALEJANDRO, VOICE-OVER:
AND THAT'S WHEN I START THINKING

ANY SINGLE POINT
COULD BE THE CENTER.

I--I BELIEVE THAT
THIS MACHINE IS TELLING US

THAT THE MIDDLE
OF THE UNIVERSE

IS A MATTER
OF OUR PERSPECTIVE.

YEP.
RIGHT?

IT'S WHEREVER
YOU'RE LOOKING FROM.

WHEREVER YOU'RE
LOOKING FROM.

HAWKING:
MY VOLUNTEERS HAVE MADE

AN EXTRAORDINARY CONNECTION.

PAUL, VOICE-OVER: EVERYWHERE
IS THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE

BECAUSE IT ALL CAME
INTO EXISTENCE AT THE SAME TIME,

AND IT'S ALL MOVING AWAY
FROM EVERYWHERE

AT THE SAME TIME.

HAWKING: SPACE DIDN'T EXIST
BEFORE THE BIG BANG.

NOW SPACE IS EXPANDING
IN ALL DIRECTIONS,

AND THESE SIMPLE FACTS MEAN
WHEREVER YOU ARE

IN THE UNIVERSE,
IT'S THE CENTER,

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN.

ALEJANDRO:
SO WE DID IT.

WE SOLVED
THE QUESTION.

WE KNOW WHERE
THE UNIVERSE BEGAN.

WE DO.
HERE.

HEH. RIGHT HERE.

WELL DONE, TEAM.

BRILLIANT.
IT WAS HERE ALL ALONG.

UNDER OUR NOSE.

IT WAS HERE
ALL ALONG.

RIGHT UNDER
OUR NOSE.

THAT'S WHERE
IT BEGAN.

IT WAS RIGHT UNDER
OUR NOSE ALL ALONG, YEAH.

MARCIA, VOICE-OVER: TO SAY
THAT THE UNIVERSE STARTED

AT THE TIP OF MY NOSE,
I'M JUST WALKING AROUND,

LIKE--HA HA HA--THIS IS
THE COOLEST THING EVER,

BUT OBVIOUSLY, IF IT STARTED
AT THE TIP OF MY NOSE,

IT COULD HAVE STARTED
AT THE TIP OF EVERYBODY'S NOSE.

HAWKING: THEY'VE GOT IT

BECAUSE AT THE BIG BANG
THE TIP OF EVERYONE'S NOSE,

IN FACT ALL MATTER
IN THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE,

WAS ONE INFINITELY SMALL POINT.

MY VOLUNTEERS HAVE DECIPHERED
THE VAST AND COMPLEX NATURE

OF THE UNIVERSE,

AND OUR JOURNEY
HAS CERTAINLY THROWN UP

SOME PRETTY BIG THOUGHTS.

I'VE LEARNT SOMETHING
MOST PEOPLE DON'T KNOW.

I'VE--I'VE LEARNT
WHERE THE UNIVERSE BEGAN.

ALEJANDRO, VOICE-OVER: I'M HAPPY
WE CAME TO THAT ANSWER

BECAUSE IT MAKES
PERFECT SENSE

AND MAKES ME LOOK
AT THE UNIVERSE, THE EARTH,

AND IN GENERAL MY LIFE
FROM A COMPLETELY
DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE.

MARCIA: I'M COMFORTABLE
WITH BEING UNCOMFORTABLE,

AND I LIKE IT
WHEN THINGS EXPAND MY MIND.

HAWKING: THE EXPANSION
OF THE UNIVERSE DESCRIBED

BY THE BIG BANG THEORY
IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT

INTELLECTUAL DISCOVERIES
OF THE 20th CENTURY.

IT TELLS US WHERE
EVERYTHING CAME FROM

AND WHERE WE'RE GOING.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

I BELIEVE THE UNIVERSE WILL
CONTINUE TO EXPAND FOREVER...

BUT AT LEAST WE ALL KNOW
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN--

RIGHT AT THE TIP OF YOUR NOSE.

¶

Hawking: Have you ever wondered
what you really are?

My name is Stephen Hawking.

I believe that anyone can answer
big questions for themselves.

Volunteer: It's just amazing.

Hawking: Follow the greatest
thinkers in history.

Think like a genius.

¶