He begins by testing himself in a centrifuge – a machine that can make fighter pilots and astronauts break out in a cold sweat. He wants to find out what would happen to his body when it is subjected to high forces.
As he reached 4.4 g – he passed out:
"There was no doubt that I’d clearly reached my limit. The blood was forced from my head to my feet and I passed out."
He then tries out anti-g trousers, and manages to get to 5.4 g without passing out.
Next stop is New York where James meets a group of athletes that have pushed their bodies to the limit to get extraordinary results. These elite sportsmen and women have each lost a leg – but are able to run long distances at high speed thanks to hi-tech prosthetic replacements.
They are now winning against able-bodied competitors, a success which has brought the remarkable complaint that the disabled athletes may have a competitive advantage because of their artificial limbs.
Back in the UK James is invited to watch open heart surgery - and sees a man’s heart come to a complete stop during the operation. But James’ biggest surprise came when he looked at one of the 20th century’s greatest medical breakthroughs – the discovery of DNA. He had his DNA tested: "To be honest I’m so English that I’m assuming I’m descended from a piece of fruit cake and cricket bat, but let’s see."
The results, however, were not at all what he expected.
First broadcast: Tuesday 10 Jul 2007 on BBC TWO
James May's 20th Century in more depth:
OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - About the series
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Top Gear presenter James May takes a tour of the 20th century- trying out for himself some of the most surprising and influential technological advances... Read more : OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - About the series
OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - Big City, Bright Lights
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OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - Blast Off
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OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - Body Fantastic
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James sets out to discover how far he can push his body and finds out about some of the most remarkable medical advances over the... Read more : OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - Body Fantastic
OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - Honey, I Shrunk The World
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At the beginning of the 20th Century, long distance travel was for the military-minded, the uprooted and the plain rich, but the pioneers of flight... Read more : OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - Honey, I Shrunk The World
OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - Inventing The Teenager
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In the 20th Century the teenager emerged as a separate species. But how? Was it the promise of sex? The power of pop? Or the... Read more : OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - Inventing The Teenager
OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - Take Cover
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In 'Take Cover', James looks at how warfare drives ingenuity and gets to fly in the RAF’s latest supersonic jet. It’s an experience that he... Read more : OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - Take Cover
OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - John Naughton on The Social Life of Networks
OU
John Naughton delivered his inaugural lecture on The Social Life of Networks. Listen to the lecture. Read more : OU on the BBC: James May's 20th Century - John Naughton on The Social Life of Networks
![Slice of audio-visual FMRI [Image: Steve Smith, FMRIB]](/openlearn/files/ole/imported/4401/brain_progfront.jpg)
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