Professor Michael Baressi of Smith College joins us for an introduction as part of Science on Screen®, presenting creative pairings of current, classic, cult, and documentary films with lively introductions by notable figures from the world of science, technology, and medicine.

A security guard (Bruce Willis), having been the sole survivor of a high-fatality train crash, finds himself at the centre of a mysterious theory that explains his consistent physical good fortune.

When news of his survival is made public, a comic book collector (Samuel L. Jackson), whose own body is excessively weak, tracks him down in an attempt to explain his unique unbreakable nature.

Topic: The Science of Superheros—lessons on breaking the body to build a super body.
This talk will provide great insights into how the human body is built by imagining the changes that might occur to make it super. Director M. Night Shyamalan’s superhero thriller trilogy—UNBREAKABLE, SPLIT and MR. GLASS—presents a fantastic opportunity to explore the science underlying these characters’ strengths and weakness. Sometimes fiction can be closer to reality than one might think.

Speaker: Michael J. Barresi
Dr. Michael J. Barresi is a full professor in the departments of biological sciences and neuroscience at Smith College, and he specializes in how the early embryonic brain is built. Dr. Barresi is lead author of the number one textbook in the field of Developmental Biology, and he was recently awarded the Victor Hamburger Prize for outstanding educator by the Society for Developmental Biology.  One of his many college courses includes a first year seminar on “The science of superheros.” This course has provided great insight into how the human body is built by imagining the changes that might occur to make it super. The Unbreakable, Split, and Mr. Glass series by M.Night Shyamalan presents a fantastic opportunity to explore the science underlying these character’s strengths and weakness.  Sometimes fiction can be closer to reality than one might think. 

Science on Screen is an initiative of the Coolidge Corner Theatre with major support from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

Science on Screen is presented with support from HilltownFamilies.org.