22nd Century : New Pilot on PBS

Check out this new pilot from PBS. You can watch the episode next Wednesday on TV or you can see it right now right here.
If you want this program to continue show your support by watching and sending your love to the website :)
Here is their press release:

22nd Century
"World Wide Mind"
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
8:00 p.m. EST

Ever wonder what the world is going to be like in the future? Will human life spans increase to 250 years or more? Will your personal computer become smarter than you? Will machines shrink so small they can make repairs inside a human cell?

22nd Century is an innovative new PBS series about technological advances taking place today that within our lifetimes will significantly change the way humans live and interact. Many scientists and futurists believe we are on the verge of a technological explosion so profound that life will become unrecognizable. In the next 100 years, we may experience as much technological change as has occurred over the course of human history. After all, during the past century we went from horse-drawn buggies to supersonic aircraft, and by most estimates the pace of change is accelerating.

Airing Wednesday, January 17, 2007, at 8:00 p.m. EST, this premier episode explores the concept of the "World Wide Mind," an intriguing theory that posits that in the future miniature computer brain implants will allow our brains to be connected to other brains much the same way today's computers are linked together via the World Wide Web. Science fantasy or futuristic nightmare? This show lets the viewers decide for themselves.

The series consists of first-person stories about people who are on the cusp of this technological revolution. In this first episode we will meet a young man who was rendered unable to communicate with the outside world due to a devastating automobile accident. Surgeons implanted an electrode in his brain and he learned to communicate just by thinking about what he wants to say.

In another segment a leading neurophysiologist tells the story of how he has developed bundles of wires thinner than spider webs that can be inserted into the blood vessels of human brains. While these wires have so far only been tested in animals, they prove that the world wide mind may not be so far off. US agents from the National Security Agency quickly showed up at the MIT laboratory where the wires are being developed.

The series is hosted by Robin Robinson, a Chicago television personality, who is joined by two virtual co-hosts, each with insightful and often conflicting viewpoints about the merits of this new technology.

One is an actor playing Aldous Huxley, the late author of Brave New World, who worried about the dehumanizing consequences of scientific discoveries. The other is Orlanda Bell, a time-traveling visitor from the future, who represents the best-case scenario of these technological advancements.

Is this a future that will benefit the human race? Or will we loose all sense of individuality? Find out on the premier episode of the 22nd Century.

-PBS-

CONTACT: Carrie Johnson, Tel. 703-739-5129; cjohnson@pbs.org

I'll write more about the show when I have time to watch some more of the pilot (which is also available on iTunes!) - what I've seen so far looks great!

-UPDATE-

I forgot to mention the pilot is one of three vying for a single production spot:

Here's the experiment: Throughout January, PBS will broadcast three new science programs. Only one program will become a regular science series on PBS. We want you to help us decide. Watch the programs on your PBS station or, beginning January 1st, visit the companion sites below to watch each pilot show. Then tell us what you think!

* Wired Science, airs Wednesday, January 3
* Science Investigators, airs Wednesday, January 10
* 22nd Century, airs Wednesday, January 17

Here's more information