Mythbusters:- Educational or nonsense

sjastro · #1 10-12-2009, 12:03 PM

I must admit even though Mythbusters is not the most scientifically rigorous program around is does provide entertainment.

Some of the investigations however are just plain stupid, particularly viewer requests based on "Hollywood" science.

An example is the attempt to curve a bullet in flight by waving a pistol around before firing it. Any reasonably intelligent 8 year old would probably know the answer without requiring a demonstration.

Do people take Mythbusters seriously or like me turn their brains off and have a good laugh at the sometimes unintentional pseudoscience.

My inspiration was Professor Julius Sumner Miller. His program help develop my interests in Maths and physics as a child.

Now there was a program that was educational.

Steven

multiweb (Marc) · #2 10-12-2009, 12:06 PM

It's all good fun. I don't look too much into it. I like when they "blow or destroy stuff" . You know what's coming but you still want to see it

Sometime learnt a thing or two. Light entertainment to me.

renormalised (Carl) · #3 10-12-2009, 12:08 PM

"Why is it so"

Yes, good program...lousy chocolate ad

I watch Mythbusters for the entertainment value, nothing else.

supernova1965 (Warren) · #4 10-12-2009, 12:17 PM

Hey even serious minded people need fun it is the comedy for people who like to think. The world would be the poorer if these guys hadn't started their show and lets face it a good explosion is good for the soul as long as no one gets hurt except for buster of course so I think it is Educational and fun but not nonsense I think they do use science and present it in an entertaining way.

I still remember Adam saying am I missing and eyebrow CLASSIC

sjastro · #5 10-12-2009, 12:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by renormalised

Yes, good program...lousy chocolate ad

Yes but can you drive a drinking straw through a 200g full cream dairy milk block of Cadbury chocolate.

iceman (Mike) · #6 10-12-2009, 12:29 PM

Entertainment for nerds and non-nerds alike.

Enjoy it for what it is

gmbfilter (Geoff) · #7 10-12-2009, 12:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iceman

Entertainment for nerds and non-nerds alike.

Enjoy it for what it is

Nerds. What nerds!
Love it when they shoot stuff, blowing up is cool too

The science (ballistics) is accurate

What more can they do!!!

Terry B · #8 10-12-2009, 01:03 PM

Great show.
They always find an excuse to blow something up.!!

multiweb (Marc) · #9 10-12-2009, 01:31 PM

They're huge all over Europe too. When I went to vist my family couple of years ago I switch on the TV and there they were. Like I'd never left..."Push ze button here et... le boum! voila! " Was real funny to see the voices they dubbed them with.

Omaroo (Chris Malikoff) · #10 10-12-2009, 01:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sjastro

My inspiration was Professor Julius Sumner Miller. His program help develop my interests in Maths and physics as a child.

Now there was a program that was educational.

Actually - not necessarily so and sorry to burst your bubble. My older brother knew the producer of this program, and he was told by her in no uncertain terms that the Prof did NOT like to be upstaged by clever students, so he told the producers to go our and find students who simply weren't capable of answering back or questioning the physics. Go figure.. so to speak. He too was good entertainment, and at least the physics stood for itself even if he didn't.

I do like Mythbusters for the entertainment. I like to see things blown up - what can i say. As far as "proof" that a "myth" is either busted or confirmed, their method is usually by no means rigorous enough.

troypiggo (Troy) · #11 10-12-2009, 01:40 PM

I like it. My understanding was that the original 2 guys - Adam and Jamie? - come from a movie prop/special effects background. They're not scientists. Those younger guys and gal seem to have some more physicist/engineering background perhaps. But they're busting urban myths, not proving scientific theory.

And hey, it's way better than that British show where they just blow up caravans every week, have scantily clad assistants, and get drunk at the pub occasionally - forget what it's called. The host from Top Gear is on it. That's much more deceptive, pretending to be scientific, but in reality it's further from it than MythBusters.

renormalised (Carl) · #12 10-12-2009, 01:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sjastro

Yes but can you drive a drinking straw through a 200g full cream dairy milk block of Cadbury chocolate.

Let's see if we can!!!!

sjastro · #13 10-12-2009, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by renormalised

Let's see if we can!!!!

Julius has a lot to answer for.

In the 1970's there was a sharp increase in drinking staw related stabbings, robberies committed by people armed with drinking straws etc.

Steven

Kal (Andrew) · #14 10-12-2009, 03:07 PM

I think I'd weight up my viewing as 90% entertainment, 10% educational

I learn a thing or two from the show, but even if the result is obvious I still enjoy watching it.

sjastro · #15 10-12-2009, 03:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Omaroo

Actually - not necessarily so and sorry to burst your bubble. My older brother knew the producer of this program, and he was told by her in no uncertain terms that the Prof did NOT like to be upstaged by clever students, so he told the producers to go our and find students who simply weren't capable of answering back or questioning the physics. Go figure.. so to speak. He too was good entertainment, and at least the physics stood for itself even if he didn't.

That's very interesting. The questions were based around the Millergram books that have been around for years. I don't recall any criticism of the books with regards to any dubious explanation of the physics from the good Professor.

Steven

freespace · #16 10-12-2009, 03:22 PM

Mythbusters teaches an essential principle of science: testing your hypothesis.

It doesn't matter that it might be "obvious to an 8 year old" that you can curve a bullet by swing your arms - obviousness is not a measure of correctness. Unless you have tested it you can't be sure.

Experimentation is king.

I enjoy watching mythbusters to see the outcome of their experiments, and see whether my own predictions are correct. I hope kids watch mythbusters take away the fact that the seemingly obvious can be wrong, and what appears to be fake is in fact real, that the only sure way to differentiate between plausible and busted is to try it

Omaroo (Chris Malikoff) · #17 10-12-2009, 03:24 PM

That wasn't my point Steven

The students brought in for the show were chosen so that they could not pose questions to Sumner Miller that he could not immediately answer - i.e. the brightest and best weren't always encouraged to be on the show. I hope no-one here was.... LOL!

seanliddelow (Sean) · #18 10-12-2009, 04:01 PM

In school last week we did a mini test on Mythbusters and the controlled, independent and dependent varaiables of their experiments. Then write down the conclusion. A bit of a phopar

sjastro · #19 10-12-2009, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by freespace

It doesn't matter that it might be "obvious to an 8 year old" that you can curve a bullet by swing your arms - obviousness is not a measure of correctness. Unless you have tested it you can't be sure.

Actually you can't curve the bullet in the same plane as your arms.
What makes it obvious is that a slingshot or an olympic hammer throw can be used to demonstrate the same principle. When you let go the trajectory is a tangent or straight line to the curve.
People have known that since the Stone Age.

Similiarly the trajectory of the bullet fired is a tangent to the direction of the movement of the arm.

It's like reinventing the wheel for experimentation.

renormalised (Carl) · #20 10-12-2009, 04:20 PM

Maybe the bullets had tiny retrothrusters