From the very beginnings of Islam, the search for knowledge has been a central tenet. With the role of science and technology becoming indispensable in the current era, it is important to keep up with current advancements and understand the significance of these fields in our daily lives. Science and Technology Unleashed is an original The Ismaili TV series which premiered in 2020 and is designed to expose the wonders of science in a thought-provoking, educational, and entertaining way.

The recent innovations in fields like robotics, artificial intelligence, and neurology are groundbreaking. These have opened up a myriad of opportunities in various conventional and non-conventional departments of science. What’s intriguing is not just the learning behind it, but also the passion of people working on it, their journeys, and most importantly their inspiration in choosing that career.

Science and Technology Unleashed is a collection of informative videos on diverse concepts like neuroscience, astronomy, chemistry, and many more. Here you can watch Ismailiscientists, researchers, and industry leaders explain their fields of work, guide the youth of our Jamat in their career paths.

One of the show’s team members, Farzana Meru, an astrophysicist and a lecturer at the University of Warwick said, ‘’With the help of this series, people will get to know experts across the globe working in professions that are not very commonly known to all. It will broaden the horizon of career options for the youth today and help them pursue the jobs they are fascinated by but are often taken aback due to lack of proper guidance. So when they watch someone from their own community working at their dream job, NASA for example, it will inspire them to strive for their goals.”

The series comprises a total of 10 episodes so far, with each episode highlighting a different topic. The complex scientific terms are illustrated in a simple and straightforward style alongside vibrant animated visuals, which makes it easier to understand. In one of the videos, Dr Naznin Virji Babul, PhD in neuroscience, explained her current research on fundamental aspects of brain behaviour relationship. With the help of EEG, an equipment in the form of a cap that has electrodes on it, when put on an infant, can help look at brain signals, analyse those patterns in real time, and understand a baby's responses to emotions, actions, and intents of other people.

With the pandemic taking a toll on people’s mental health, it is necessary to understand the causes of it becoming the most crucial concerns for the current generation. To this Dr Zul Merali, neuroscientist and founding director of Brain and Mind Institute at Aga Khan University explained in one of the episodes” “Life stressors like economic stress, social isolation, and trauma are the most important factors contributing to mental illness.The virus evokes a strong biological response where the immune and inflammatory processes get activated, causing a huge internal stressor, and thus affects mental health widely.” 

Another prime concern amongst the youth is the selection of career. Most of the experts that appear on the series have one common piece of advice: choose a line of work that you are really passionate about. But most students are often confused in finding their true passion. To this, Farah Alibay, an aerospace engineer at NASA said, “If you are not sure about what you really want to pursue, go to a library and walk around the aisles, whichever section you are first driven to pick a book will guide you towards your true interest.” As a child, she was always excited about reading books on the universe and planets, and today her job is to look for signs of life in the solar system. She has worked on missions like InSight, Mars Cube One, Mars 2020, and is currently working on the mission Perseverance.

The series mirrors the idea of science as a whole, and shows how our world is shaped by emerging technologies, scientific trends, and other extraordinary advancements in this digital age. Let us all hope to continue enlightening the quest of knowledge within us every day and follow Mawlana Hazar Imam’s vision as he says,  “the amazing diversity of Creation itself can be seen as a great gift to us - not a cause for anxiety, but a source of delight.”