PBS Pilot Looks Promising: "The 22nd Century"

When most people think PBS, there is one word that comes to mind for the average pop-culture twit... "BOR-ING!" However PBS may have found something with their new show "The 22nd Century". Their new pilot proved to be a creative twist on their usual educational programming, and if it's any indication of what we are to expect from this show in the future, they may find a renewed interest in Public Broadcasting. It is reminiscent of the programming that used to air on Tech TV before they were bought out by G4. It combines creative flavor, intriguing visualizations, with real science fact.

"The 22nd Century" is hosted by journalist Robin Robinson and given a little flavor by two virtual co-hosts who present the pro's and con's of the human initiative to blaze the technological frontier. One can not discuss technology science-fiction/soon-to-be-fact without the voice of the techno-wary author Aldous Huxley (played by an actor), who presents the ever frightening possibilities of what can go wrong with well intended science. On the optimistic end of the spectrum is the fictional representation of time traveler, Orlanda Bell who points out the possibilities for improved social, political, moral, and medical situations brought about by the mere functions of the technologies discussed.

Despite the fictional pro vs. con panel of debaters, it is the voices of reason that really draw the mind to respond with an interest to know more. The Doctors, Scientist's, Ethicists, and other professionals are able to present the science on which the technology they are developing is based, and what they hope to accomplish with it.

For instance in this episode, Dr. Phillip Kennedy of Emory University explores the possibilities of giving back one of the most integral parts of human existence to those that have lost it... their voice. Many of the patients he works with have become immobilized to the point they are no longer even able to communicate. He is developing technology that will bring about something akin to what the paranormal crowd would call telepathy. The technology uses an electrode that directly interfaces with the brain and sends the electronic communications of the brain to a computer that simulates a voice for the person in order for them to be able to communicate needs, desires, thoughts, dreams... everything that most people do without thinking every day. The downfall to this sort of technology is that the electrodes are very invasive, however helpful they may prove to be. Also concerns might be raised about which electronic impulses the computer should translate to the computer or filter out as private thoughts. Most would agree that the sanctity of our own minds is something to be cherished and appreciated. There are some thoughts in each persons mind that are left unvoiced for the benefit of all. However one would not want to be isolated with only the thoughts in their head to keep them company either.

Next on the interview roster in this show was Michael Chorost, who in the literal sense might be defined as a living breathing cyborg (cybernetic organism). Michael is one of the first people to actually have a small computer implanted in his head. It is a cochlear device. Otherwise deaf, this device picks up audio signals and sends them directly to the auditory nerve, allowing him to hear. Michael seems to be a great beneficiary of such technological advancements, and has even written a book about his experiences.

Both of these previous subjects leave the viewer with a warm fuzzy feeling about the possibilities of mind-machine interface, despite the reservations about the intrusiveness the technology presents as to how it must be placed and the means by which it is implanted. The thought of someone actually opening your skull to insert a hunk of metal, no matter how small would be daunting to almost anyone. And so our third subject comes to hand... a technology that lacks the invasiveness that most fear, but has the desired functionality one would want in making the world a more pleasant place to look in the form of... eyeglasses? Yes... Eyeglasses. This handy little invention is a wearable computer that can do something as simple as enhance your ballgame viewing experiences by constantly keeping up to date statistics and scores in your line of vision, or it can be used to help elderly people with Alzheimer's disease, by recognizing faces and places and providing the names and information that they might otherwise forget or be left confused about. Or perhaps you're tired of all of the industrial and commercial by-products around you. What would you give to be able to see the Mona Lisa in place of the Golden Arches, or a Monet in digital quality instead of a cell phone advertisement? This snazzy little computer can learn to recognize such things and replace the imagery with whatever you tell it you wish to see instead. However would this allow us to create our own reality? Would we drift away from the real world by surrounding ourselves with the positive and blinding ourselves to the negative? The inventor Steve Mann calls this little device Eye-tap. It has obvious justifiable uses, but where is the line drawn?

The biggest trend in technology though, to make our computing experiences more efficient still leans to direct neural interface. Dr. Rodolfo Llinas is working on just such an interface, but is hoping to invent a less invasive technique than surgically implanted electrodes. Because where these electrodes may appear tiny to the naked human eye, by comparison to the neurons of the brain, they are massive, intrusive pieces of metal sticking into brain tissue. Dr. Llinas is developing a system of nano-wires, the width of 1 micron (which he states is smaller than the diameter of a blood cell) that would be fed through a catheter in the leg, up through the blood vessels in the brain, exploiting the naturally occurring gaps in the brain tissue that are there to help oxygenate the surrounding tissues. Not only does Dr. Llinas hope to accomplish machine-human interfacing with these nano-wires, but a step beyond the world wide web, into a world wide mind. Yes... I said a world wide MIND. Can you imagine being able to access the information other people have in their brains directly, directly communicating your thoughts to them or vice versa? One might have difficulty deciding if that is an intriguing or horrifying prospect.It would certainly have benefits in giving a gateway to a clearer understanding of each other, but there is also the concerns that such a conglomeration of thought and information would erode the individuality that each person possesses. Other possibilities for this type of technology is the ability to stimulate neuropathology's in the brain to correct misfires that cause anything from an irregular heart beat, to depression or other psychiatric concerns. Even beyond that, the type of neural stimulation possible here is to provide the brain with the stimulations directly say... of going to the spa for a massage without actually leaving your home. Would that make things more convenient and enjoyable, or would it cheapen the experience of the world around us. They have already successfully "wired" mice... they are working very quickly towards a human interface. Will moral and ethical questions that the possible ramifications of this sort of technology halt it, or will it come to pass before they are questioned and explored? Will we find ourselves in A Brave New World, or will we find improved socio-economic structures and medical treatments because of these sorts of technologies?

"The 22nd Century" explores a few of these questions, and leaves you with enough information to ponder, and enough desire to look for more. Other questions surface in regards to the possibilities of such technologies being used to control people. After all if we can begin to allow people to experience things just through electronic impulses given through wires or electrodes, there comes the possibility of altering their thoughts or their personalities. When would neurological and social engineering grow to the point of robbing us of the very things that make us human? There are obvious and marvelous benefits to the development of such technologies... but will they be worth the potential price we may pay for them?

Over all because of the information that is so carefully researched and given, the resources cited, and the entertaining and thought provoking way in which the information is presented, "The 22nd Century" receives two thumbs up in this review. If this is the type of programming PBS intends to air, there will be a renewed interest in educational and public broadcasting coming about. That will be a refreshing change from the usual pop-culture fare most in society subsist on.