Stephen Hawking's Universe
|
List Price: Our Price: $18.55 You Save: $41.43 (69%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $13.57 (click here) Category: DVD See more DVD releases |
|---|
Canada
Movie Reviews of Stephen Hawking's Universe
Movie Review: Highly recommended..
Summary: 5 Stars
Its a great program..all the way. A must for teen-agers, it gives a great exposure to physics and astronomy. I recommend to watch 'Cosmos', a TV series by Carl Sagan before seeing this one.Movie Review: Informative and entertaining - a well produced series!
Summary: 4 Stars
I must admit that I was a bit apprehensive about the quality of this DVD collection before even seeing it. Being an owner of Carl Sagan's Cosmos series on DVD, and a great admirer of the man and his series, I must admit I had an inherent bias and felt that I would be hard-pressed finding anything else that was in the same league.I was mistaken. This DVD collection presents the main points anyone should know about the universe. I say "main" due simply to the fact that this collection does not go into great detail on several topics, as does Sagan's Cosmos. It focuses on a limited field of topics (which is understandable, since it is only three discs) and explains them thoroughly. It is not brief, yet Hawking does not waste our time with "waffle". It is concise and does not err in explaining details correctly. Being of a science-trained background, I would like to take the opportunity of adding that I did not find anything questionable or dubious in the subject matter. (It was, after all, written and edited by Stephen Hawking.)
Viewers with no physics, or even basic science education, may find this collection slightly hard to understand in certain sections. That's not to say that the episodes need a Degree in Physics to be able to understand them either! A high-school level of Physics would allow you to comfortably understand everything that is said. Nevertheless, if you have no training in this area, do not fear... you might misunderstand one or two terms or concepts, but whole episodes do not focus on just one point, so you will not find any episode completely bewildering. (I would find this as a positive. The collection then serves as an educational set and may even influence the viewer to take-on personal study or research the topic more thoroughly. This in my opinion, can never be a bad thing, and thus the set becomes a more valuable item in one's DVD collection.)
There are times during the episodes when Hawking attempts to be witty. These are effective attempts and often "soften" the show's theory-based nature. At times, one might even say Hawking takes the opportunity to "brag" about his many achievements and accomplishments, which in my opinion all adds to the enjoyment of the show. The presenter of such a show needs a bit of personality, or else, dare I say, it becomes boring.
There are SHORT role-plays and interesting interviews mainly from American intelligentsia. Do not expect long and entertaining role-plays though. The episodes consist mainly of interviews and people (or Hawking) presenting facts or their opinions. (Those of you who have seen Sagan's Cosmos will know what I mean by "entertaining role-plays".)
Perhaps I AM a little biased when it comes to this type of show. It is always in my mind to keep comparing shows of this nature to Sagan's Cosmos. In this case, if I do, it does little harm. This is a well-produced series and I would give it a high recommendation. This series is best suited to people with a keen interest in the topic, those wishing to "brush-up" on their universal knowledge, or simply those shopping for an interesting (and educational) present to give their friends or relatives.
Movie Review: Review for Steven Hawking's Universe
Summary: 4 Stars
Steven Hawking's Universe by John Boslough is about Steven Hawking's life and his scientific discoveries. Boslough most likely wrote this book because he was trying to recount the story of Hawking's improbable rise to the top of the scientific community. Hawking over came Lou Gehrig's disease to become one of the leading scientist in the world. This book is an excellent description of Hawking's theories, and scientific achievements. While reading it, one has to marvel at the incredible circumstances in which Hawking made his great discoveries which are detailed in the book. Hawking's story is one of the greatest in history. I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in science and incredible successes stories. This book does a great job of explaining Hawking's theories as well as the man behind them. It is a great mix of commentary from the author infused with quotes from Hawking himself. It is apparent that Hawking had a hand in the content of the book which makes it an accurate source of information. It is written at a level that is easy for the lay man to understand the theories being presented. This helps the reader be able to truly appreciate the work Hawking has done in advancing the study of black holes. This book was written to detail Hawking's achievements and I strongly recommend those with an interest in science to read it because Hawking's story is truly an amazing one.Movie Review: Informationally boring but definitely worth my time.
Summary: 4 Stars
Starbucks played an integral role in the success of this series with me. However, I thoroughly enjoy cosmology so I like getting the big picture delivered by this set. The series definitely provides a clear understanding of the history of cosmology as well as current theories with as much explanation as you will find on any DVD out there. After watching Hawking's other video production, "A Brief History of Hawkings and Time", I was glad to find this series focused on the science instead of Hawkings himself. I believe the more you know about cosmology the more interesting you will find this program. Some of the information in this program is not easily understood unless you already know a little. Overall I found this program very useful. This set is an effective, comprehensive learning tool, not a day at the movies. Hawkings has definitely clicked out a pretty good program here!Movie Review: The mind of Stephen Hawkings for dummies
Summary: 4 Stars
This is an excellent presentation for the weekend scholar of intergallactic theory. It might come across at first as a bit intimidating but if a viewer has had the slightest introduction to this type of thinking, it would be no challenge to comprehend. I 've watched each video several times and each time I learn more and am even more fascinated by the greatest mind of my generation. It is presented very clearly and poignantly so you will most certainly enjoy!