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‘What they should have sent was poets…’
Launched in December 1968, Apollo 8 was the first manned flight to reach the Moon, orbit it and return to Earth. The primary goal of the mission was to prepare for an eventual lunar landing, however, the flight is now best remembered for the unparalleled glimpses of Earth it provided and, in particular, the iconic photograph taken from lunar orbit that became known as ‘Earthrise’. Coinciding with the 50th anniversary of Apollo 8, this documentary from the director Emmanuel Vaughan-Lee features interviews with the crew members Frank Borman, James Lovell and William Anders, who took the famed picture. While reflecting on the life-changing experience of being the first people to view Earth from outside its orbit in the ‘inky black void’ of space, they detail how the unplanned photograph became their mission’s most lasting legacy, and gave them a newfound appreciation of their home planet.
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Computing and artificial intelligence
A scientist’s poor eyesight helped fuel a revolution in computer ‘vision’
9 minutes
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Ageing and death
Demystifying death – a palliative care specialist’s practical guide to life’s end
4 minutes
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Future of technology
Is this the future of space travel? Take a luxury ‘cruise’ across the solar system
6 minutes
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Metaphysics
Why mathematical truths exist with or without minds to consider them
8 minutes
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Stories and literature
A French Creole folktale nearly lost to time is given new, gorgeously animated life
6 minutes
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Food and drink
Is a ‘gastronomic society’ dinner the height of decadence, or an act of artistry?
11 minutes
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Computing and artificial intelligence
Struggling to learn how to do a backflip, Nikita takes on an unusual training regimen
12 minutes
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Deep time
When algae met fungi – the hidden story of life’s most successful partnership
4 minutes
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Ecology and environmental sciences
From helicopter flybys to trail cameras, there’s no one way to count a wolf
8 minutes