Human Intelligence

Episode
Manhattan Project: John von Neumann
Broadcast Info
2025 (14 mins)
Description
Naomi Alderman dives into the amazing intellect of John von Neumann, physicist, mathematician, economist, computer scientist - a visionary who predicted the rise of artificial intelligence decades ahead of time. As a child, von Neumann could recite the telephone directory and crack jokes in Ancient Greek. He waltzed into the Manhattan Project and solved a problem that had frustrated other top scientists for months. His work on game theory underpins the modern world, from defence strategies to dating apps. But, for all his serious intellectual contributions, von Neumann was a party animal, who did his best thinking surrounded by people and noise.
Genre
History

How to cite this record

The Open University, "Human Intelligence". https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/ou/search/index.php/prog/252612 (Accessed 24 Dec 2025)