Science Britannica Frankenstein's Monsters (Season 1, Episode 1)
TV Episode | 58 min | Documentary

Primary photo for Frankenstein's Monsters

Science Britannica

Frankenstein's Monsters (Season 1, Episode 1)

TV Episode | 58 min | Documentary

Professor Brian Cox asks why, when science has done so much for humanity, it sometimes gets such a bad press. Brian reveals that the gothic novel Frankenstein drew on Italian scientist Giovanni Aldini's public attempts to raise the dead ...See moreProfessor Brian Cox asks why, when science has done so much for humanity, it sometimes gets such a bad press. Brian reveals that the gothic novel Frankenstein drew on Italian scientist Giovanni Aldini's public attempts to raise the dead using electricity in the1800s. It's this powerful image of scientists 'playing God' that has dogged discovery ever since. Brian explains how the discovery of DNA, like nuclear fission before it, has resulted in controversy, with tales of 'Frankenfoods' fuelling the public's mistrust of science. Meeting Professor Tipi Aziz, whose pioneering work has helped thousands of Parkinson's disease sufferers, Brian reveals that - because the treatment was developed through experimentation on monkeys - it is wholly unacceptable to some. Scientific progress sometimes comes at a cost that scientists and the society they serve struggle with. However, although Aldini's work appalled his 19th-century audience, we are well served by the electronic defibrillators that routinely save lives today. Written by BBC See less

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Cast	+ Add Cast
7 cast members

Name	Known for
Brian Cox Self - Presenter (as Professor Brian Cox) Self - Presenter (as Professor Brian Cox) See fewer	Sunshine (2007)
Tipu Aziz Self - Contributor Self - Contributor See fewer	How the NHS Changed Our World (2018)
Francis Crick Self (archive footage) Self (archive footage) See fewer	Nova (1974)
Eileen Doxford Self - Contributor Self - Contributor See fewer	Science Britannica (2013)
Jonathan Jones Self - Contributor Self - Contributor See fewer	Da Ali G Show (2000)
Paul Nurse Self - Contributor Self - Contributor See fewer	The Richard Dimbleby Lecture (1972)
J. Robert Oppenheimer Self (archive footage) (uncredited) Self (archive footage) (uncredited) See fewer	Panorama (I) (1953)