James Burke

In the final episode of this series, Burke recaps the theme that change causes more change. Burke ties together the modern inventions in which previous episodes had culminated: telecommunications, the computer, the jet engine, plastics, rockets, television, the production line, and the atomic bomb. He ultimately points out that all of these inventions come together in the B-52 nuclear bomber, and closes out the series by ruminating on the concept...

To kick off this fascinating educational series, James Burke details the world's dependence on networks through a narritivization of the power blackout of 1965 in New York City. Then, from the first introduction of the plough in Ancient Egypt to the prevalence of oil in Kuwait, this episode shows how human society grew from tranditional patterns to advanced technologies.

Beginning with the Astrological knowlege of the ancient Greeks, this episode traces the development of alarm clocks, paying particular attention to the clock mainspring that gave rise to pendulum clocks, and eventually, more precise measurements of time. Ultimately, this led to the precise production line system developed by Frank and Lillian Moller Gilbreth.

This episode begins with plastic and plastic credit cards and traces backwards to the dukes of Burgundy, the first to develop and utilize the concept of credit. One of the many things credit was used for at this time was the purchase of better armor for the army. Burke explains how this eventually leads to the growth in the size of armies, which in turn presented a problem in the form of feeding increasingly large quantities of soldiers. This led...

The Sherlock Holmes of science, James Burke tracks through 12,000 years of history for the clues that lead us to eight great life changing inventions - the atom bomb, telecommunications, the computer, the production line, jet aircraft, plastics, rocketry, and television. Burke postulates that such changes occur in response to factors he calls "triggers," some of them seemingly unrelated. These have their own triggering effects, causing change in totally...

A look at the role of SPEED in man’s life from the dawn of time to the farthest reaches of the conceivable future, Speed introduces us to daredevils—racers, test pilots, astronauts—the people who live and breathe speed on the frontier of human capabilities. But at the heart of this film is a thoughtful, soft-spoken man, known not for the speed at which he traveled, but for his imagination. Albert Einstein enlarged the frontiers of human potential...

"Deja vu: History repeats itself, when you know how to look. Pizzaro beats the Incas, the first stock market opens. The Queen of England salutes a Mexican beetle and Hitler's plans misfire."--Container. "HIgh times: Unwrap a sandwich and you're on a path to World War II radar and Neo Impressionist painters."--Container. "Hot pickle: The connections between a cup of tea, opium dens, the London Zoo and a switch that releases bombs."--Container. "New...

Donald Baines is a successful movie director nearing death whose life was filled with fame and riches but devoid of love. Haunted by the memory of the son he abandoned and never knew, he is given the chance to see three views of his son's journey. Ultimately he is offered the opportunity to alter the outcome of his son's life in this haunting yet beautiful tale of love and redemption. --Container.

When a college professor in the remote mountains of the American West confronts two hunters she catches trespassing on her property, she's drawn into an escalating battle of wills with catastrophic consequences.

Detective Dave Robicheaux returns to center stage in an incendiary new novel by James Lee Burke. A gripping tale of racial violence, class warfare, and the sometimes cruel legacy of Southern history, Sunset Limited is a stunning achievement, confirming Burke's place as one of America's premier stylists as well as master storytellers.
The forty-year-old crucifixion of a prominent labor leader named Jack Flynn remains an unsolved atrocity...