Big Thinkers (TV series)



Big Thinkers is a former ZDTV (later TechTV) television program. It featured a half-hour interview with a "big thinker" in science, technology, and other fields. The show was originally hosted by Mark Eddo, later replaced by John C. Dvorak. In 2001 the show changed its format, transforming from a weekly half-hour interview to a documentary-style program. This new format was initially referred to on the TechTV website as Big Thinkers 2.0.

The new incarnation of the Big Thinkers series was produced by Winton / duPont Films, a documentary film company located in the Presidio of San Francisco. Interviews were filmed in a 16:9 format and intercut with public domain material from the Prelinger Archives. This archival footage (mostly film clips from the 1940s and 1950s) was used to create visual metaphors highlighting the speaker's points.

Individuals featured on Big Thinkers 2.0

 * Scott Adams - cartoonist
 * Douglas Adams - author
 * Ralph Merkle - nanotechnology researcher
 * Jaron Lanier - virtual reality pioneer
 * Ian Wilmut - embryologist
 * David Gelernter - professor of computer science
 * Stewart Brand - founder of the Long Now Foundation
 * Lawrence Lessig - law professor
 * Neil Spiller - architect
 * Sherry Turkle - psychologist
 * James Lovelock - independent scientist
 * Robert Langer - biotechnology researcher
 * Rodney Brooks - robotics researcher
 * Jack Horner - paleontologist
 * Daniel Dennett - philosopher
 * Michio Kaku - theoretical physicist
 * Alvin Toffler - futurist
 * Tom Kelley - General Manager of IDEO
 * Steve Jones - biologist
 * Tod Machover - musician
 * Dean Kamen - inventor
 * Michael Powell - politician (former FCC Chairman)
 * Penn Fraser Jillette - entertainer