FlashForward: science fact vs. science fiction
December 11, 2009 | 1:37 pm
The cast of ABC's TV series FlashForward. (ABC/Bob D'Amico)
In the December 3 episode of ABC’s FlashForward television drama, researchers from a fictional research organization called the National Linear Accelerator Project, purportedly located in Palo Alto, California, announced that they might have caused the worldwide blackout that killed 20 million people by conducting “proton-driven plasma-wakefield acceleration” experiments.
While this makes for enthralling TV, it’s definitely not reality TV.
Researchers at the real-life SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, located very close to Palo Alto, California, do indeed conduct electron-driven plasma-wakefield experiments—but, fortunately, there’s no chance their experiments will lead to death and destruction. Instead, plasma-wakefield experiments may lead to a less costly, more efficient means of accelerating particles to greater energies in the estimated 17,000 particle accelerators in everyday use around the world. These accelerators play a key role in basic science research, medical technologies, industrial processes, food preparation, and environmental cleanup—to name just a few applications.
To help viewers distinguish science fact from science fiction in the TV episode, SLAC has posted a Q&A on its Web site. Readers can also learn more about the science behind plasma-wakefield acceleration in October’s edition of symmetry magazine, and about the FlashForward series in three recent symmetry stories:
The science behind FlashForward
FlashForward author Robert J. Sawyer on the LHC, Higgs, and Hollywood
FlashForward: More on the science behind the story
Kelen Tuttle
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5 Comments »
December 11th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Or is this just the same hubris that the fictional physicists suffered from. “Oh, our experiment couldn’t *possibly* do that!” (j/k of course…)
December 14th, 2009 at 12:32 pm
Fiction or not, is there anything the TV networks Wouldn’t do for ratings including portraying the national science centers as Dr Strangelove’s laboratories? There is a lot of realy great science done at SLAC. It is a shame TV network writers can’t educate while entertaining. Whatever happened to the obligation to serve the public good while using the public airways?
December 14th, 2009 at 1:48 pm
I saw that episode as well and found it amusing! It is a good show but I think that they are just feeding off of the hoopla from the experiment at CERN last year. Black Holes and sudden destruction are always great topics for a TV show….
December 21st, 2009 at 1:11 pm
Um, that is the premise of the book, the show is based on. When they fire up the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, the world blacks out and sees themselves in 20 years. I wouldn’t blame the show or tv in general for this. Obviously there is no chance of this happening but when it was written, the author was trying to capitalize on the misguided angst about the project.
February 22nd, 2010 at 11:57 pm
It is a great production by ABC, but there is a very rear chance of such happening.