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Horizon · S25 · E20

The Hope of Progress

  • TV-PG
  • May 16, 1988
  • 60 min

Horizon interviews the scientist and Nobel prize winner, Peter Medawar.

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About this episode

Horizon interviews the scientist and Nobel prize winner, Peter Medawar.

Season 25

25 episodes
  1. 1The Transpanted Brain

    60 minJan 4, 1988

    This episode of Horizon looks at a new approach that holds hope for the treatment of Parkinson's Disease.

  2. 2Death of a Star

    60 minJan 11, 1988

    Horizon documents the first sighting of a star in supernova at its initial stages. The study of the spacial event provides fascinating insight into the life of our own universe.

  3. 3Playing With Madness

    60 minJan 18, 1988

    In the report by Horizon, they looks at manic depression and how is now known that it has a strong genetic component.

  4. 4The Canal in the Jungle

    60 minJan 25, 1988

    This episode of the Horizon explores the Panama Canal, now a billion dollar commercial sea crossroad between continents. The future of the canal is in danger because of damage to rain forests.

  5. 5Death of the Working Classes

    60 minFeb 1, 1988

    Horizon investigates how those who are born into a working class family are at greater risk of dying early than if born a child of the professional classes.

  6. 6The Greenhouse Effect

    60 minFeb 8, 1988

    This documentary report by Horizon examines the devastating effects of the Greenhouse Effect (earth's temperature rising) and how man is causing it.

  7. 7Struggling for Control

    60 minFeb 15, 1988

    This is a Horizon report on Britain's air traffic control capabilities and the use of outdated and unreliable equipment.

  8. 8Thinking

    60 minFeb 22, 1988

    Explores the limits of digital computers and artificial intelligence. Includes the views of John Searle, a philosopher at the University of California who refutes the claims for 'thinking' machines.

  9. 9Patients on Trial

    60 minFeb 29, 1988

    Horizon looks at the experimental treatment of four cancer patients in the USA who have volunteered to try the LAK/Interleuken 2 treatment.

  10. 10Purple Warrior - Rules of Engagement

    60 minMar 7, 1988

    This is part one of a two-part series by Horizon reporting on a military exercise code named Purple Warrior which is designed to test lessons learned during the Falklands war.

  11. 11Purple Warrior - Limited War

    60 minMar 14, 1988

    This is part two of a two-part series by Horizon reporting on a military exercise code named Purple Warrior which is designed to test lessons learned during the Falklands war.

  12. 12The Heart of Another

    60 minMar 28, 1988

    Horizon looks at the progress of two heart disease patients at Montreal's Royal Victoria Hospital in Britain.

  13. 13Easter Islands - The Secret

    60 minApr 11, 1988

    This is part one of a two-part Horizon series about the mystery of Easter Island, the stone statues, and the civilization that erected them.

  14. 14Easter Islands - The Story

    60 minApr 18, 1988

    This is part two of a two-part Horizon series about the mystery of Easter Island, the stone statues, and the civilization that erected them.

  15. 15Doctors to Be - Trial by Interview

    60 minApr 23, 1988

    Horizon presents part one of a three-part series on the education of doctors in Britain. In this episode, we look at the ordeal of an interview faced by two potential students applying to St. Mary's Medical School.

  16. 16Doctors to Be - The Knowledge

    60 minApr 24, 1988

    Horizon presents part two of a three-part series on the education of doctors in Britain. In this episode, we examine the first two years of education at St. Mary's Medical School and at the exams that have to be passed.

  17. 17Doctors to Be - Welcome to the Real World

    60 minApr 25, 1988

    Horizon presents part three of a three-part series on the education of doctors in Britain. In this episode, a group of medical students are followed from the beginning of their third year of medical education up to the point where they meet patients for the first time.

  18. 18Cancer at Bay

    60 minMay 2, 1988

    Horizon investigates if changes in lifestyle could reduce the risks of cancer.

  19. 19Traces of Murder

    60 minMay 9, 1988

    In this documentary, Horizon explores how to solve murder cases with the help of new technology.

  20. 20The Hope of Progress

    60 minMay 16, 1988Now viewing

    Horizon interviews the scientist and Nobel prize winner, Peter Medawar.

  21. 21A Newsday Revolution

    60 minMay 23, 1988

    This report by Horizon covers how the electronic revolution in television news affects the way it is gathered, edited, and presented.

  22. 22A Good Test?

    60 minJun 6, 1988

    Horizon investigates the use of psychological techniques in job recruitment and career development.

  23. 23Superconductor - The Race for the Prize

    60 minJun 13, 1988

    This Horizon episode presents the breakthroughs in superconductivity research in several countries.

  24. 24Believe Me

    60 minJun 27, 1988

    Horizon brings you a report on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis which is a neurological disease that has been puzzling doctors for more than 30 years.

  25. 25The Quest for Tannu Tuva

    60 minJul 4, 1988

    Richard Feynman was not only an iconoclastic and influential theoretical physicist and Nobel laureate but also an explorer at heart. Feynman through video recordings and comments from his friend and drumming partner Ralph Leighton tell the extraordinary story of their enchantment with Tuva, a strange and distant land in the centre of Asia. While few Westerners knew about Tuva, Feynman discovered its existence from the unique postage stamps issued there in the early 20th century. He was intrigued by the unusual name of its capital, Kyzyl, and resolved to travel to the remote, mountainous land. However, the Soviets, who controlled access, were mistrustful, unconvinced that he was interested only in the scenery. They obstructed his plans throughout 13 years. The majority of the scenes are extended narratives by Feynman. There is included a delightful extended discussion and demonstration of Feyman's bongo playing. Feynman explains how he used a phrase book of the Tuva language to write and express an interest in visiting there. The proposed trip took years to arrange. The programme never does get to show Feyman in Tuva; he died of abdominal cancer a few days after the recorded interview, at age 69 in February 1988. The story is interspersed with earlier recorded conversations by Feynman that add his perspectives on the nature of physics. So, this is not a travel documentary at all; rather it is another fascinating insight into the exciting personality of Richard Feynman. "You have no responsibility to live up to what other people think you ought to accomplish." - Richard Feynman (1918-1988).