Tonight, PBS’s Nova tv series will broadcast part one of its four-part series on nanotechnology. I first mentioned the programme in my Jan. 7, 2011 posting where I noted that Andrew Maynard (2020 Science blog) had seen a preview and had some reservations about one item in the four-part series. (The host, David Pogue, in a bit intended to be amusing, drinks some milk from a goat that has been injected with spider genes.) I will be watching eagerly tonight (and subsequent nights) to see if the producers have made any changes after receiving some feedback about the ‘humourous’ bit. You can read more about the PBS nanotechnology series here on their Making Stuff page.
Since this seem to be my week for television, I did watch Chuck on Monday night (as per my Jan. 17, 2011 posting) and the nanotechnology part of the story was unexceptional largely because it had very little to do with the story. The nanochip everyone was chasing was a ‘McGuffin’ (from the Wikipedia essay),
A MacGuffin (sometimes McGuffin or maguffin) is “a plot element that catches the viewers’ attention or drives the plot of a work of fiction”. The defining aspect of a MacGuffin is that the major players in the story are (at least initially) willing to do and sacrifice almost anything to obtain it, regardless of what the MacGuffin actually is. In fact, the specific nature of the MacGuffin may be ambiguous, undefined, generic, left open to interpretation or otherwise completely unimportant to the plot.
And what did you think?
Watching the program, the segment with carbon nanotubes ended up worrying me more than the goats!
Hi Andrew! Nice to see you here again. Do you mean the blithe disregard for any safety measures when dealing with carbon nanotubes? That was certainly disconcerting given what I’ve read about health concerns. Overall I thought it was a lively presentation. I had the impression they were afraid that no one would be interested unless they made it entertaining and light. I was surprised by how long it took them to get to the nano part of the programme. It was almost 30 minutes before they got there. I expect I’ll post more about this tomorrow. Thanks for the comment. Cheers, Maryse
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If you’re worried about goats milk, safety, etc. I think you missed the forest for the trees. Think about every other great leap forward in man’s existence; they were all subject to criticism and fear when viewed through the eyes of history, but when looked at as opening opportunities for a better life – they’re AWESOME.
Worrying – about anything – is a waste of time.
Hi Bob! Thanks for dropping by and leaving a provocative comment. Personally, I’m betwixt and between with regard to nanotechnology. Am I worried about spidery goat milk? Not exactly. I do think crossing certain boundaries, i.e. adding a spider gene to a goat, is very, very upsetting to a lot of folks. It brings back to mind the panic over ‘frankenfoods’. Given how a lot of people responded at that time, why would anyone effectively taunt this portion of the audience? As for whether or not it’s a good idea to develop spidery goats, I didn’t hear that question being asked. Meanwhile (and I am betwixt and between), I’m no fan of the responses which suggest that we should never, ever experiment or try new things unless we can guarantee absolute safety as some civil society or activist groups seem to be suggesting. I certainly don’t want to experience life without electricity but I do need to know it’s safe to use and how to use it safely. Cheers, Maryse