Search on for next Da Vinci on Big Brain Theory in September

STEVENSON RANCH; CALIFORNIA; NOVEMBER 02 2012: Both projects from Big Brain Theory’s two teams of engineers explode during the test. Each team built an apparatus that they hoped would limit the G-force applied to explosives on the back of two pick-up trucks as they collides at approximately 35 mph, avoiding an explosion.

Premiering Friday, September 13 at 9:00 p.m., THE BIG BRAIN THEORY: PURE GENIUS is looking for the next great innovator who could possibly change the future.

While there are countless shows searching for the next extraordinary singer, dancer and chef, there is nothing quite like THE BIG BRAIN THEORY: PURE GENIUS where 10 ‘regular’ people – who happen to be the brightest young minds – put their mind-blowing intelligent quotients (IQ) to the ultimate test in a host of seemingly impossible geeky engineering challenges.

With judges Mark Fuller, inventor and CEO of WET, and Dr. Christine Gulbranson, nanotechnologist and renewable energy innovator, as well as guest judges, Buzz Aldrin, Adam Steltzner, Bobak Ferdowsi, Carl Edwards, Michael James Massimino, Burt Dalton and more. The winner will walk away with the title of the next great technological prodigy, USD$50,000 and a coveted job with WET, the industry leader behind some of the world’s most innovative water-based designed environments and experiences.

An eight-part series, THE BIG BRAIN THEORY: PURE GENIUS gels the drama of competition with science, technology, engineering and education to inspire viewers to think and innovate. Competitors have just 30 minutes to come up with a solution using their own intellect to complete the challenge.

Crunch time begins right from the start as the first of this eight-part series throws contestants with the knotty task of developing a solution to stop explosives from detonating – but not without a mind-stretching catch as the explosives are strapped to the back of two pick-up trucks heading in a high-speed, head-on collision.

The expert panel of judges will then determine the two strongest engineering concepts based on logic and design, and the two competitors with the best plans will become captains and each select a team to execute their visions in only three days. The cameras will not only capture the tension and pressure in the design workshop, but will also go inside the living quarters where all the competitors must reside – dealing with each other’s quirks and habits.

Challenges in THE BIG BRAIN THEORY: PURE GENIUS include – creating a machine that can cook and arrange a meal for a group of famished tourists; building a portable bunker that can be deployed in five minutes and is able to withstand fire, pressurized water and high-speed winds from a jet engine; and constructing a robot capable of competing in three different athletic events.

The team that successfully completes these challenges remains safe, but the losers will face the judges, who will determine which contestant will be eliminated at the end of each round, until the last whiz kid with the most skyrocketing inventions stands. So will their concepts actually work – or will they just look good on paper? THE BIG BRAIN THEORY: PURE GENIUS encores every Monday at 2:00 p.m., Saturday at 2:00 p.m., Sunday at 11:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.

Episode Descriptions

The Next Great Innovator

On the season premiere, ten competitors must engineer a way to stop a package from exploding in a head-on collision. Turmoil erupts in the shop as one team fails to finish their design and the first contestant is eliminated.

Seek And Destroy

The contestants face their toughest challenge yet: to stop a missile with a missile. When Dan storms out of the shop after a heated fight and the opposing team struggles to complete an improbable design, will either team complete their build?

Three Little Pigs

After Joe and Joel are eliminated, the contestants now face a real-world challenge: how to keep firefighters and rescue workers safe from extreme wind, water, and fire. With just three days to design and build a portable shelter, the pressure is on.

Triathlabots

Competitors take on an Olympian challenge: design a robot that can tackle three athletic events. The threat of failure looms when one leader fails to manage his team’s talents and later, a shocking elimination leaves one competitor in distress.

Waterfall

The competitors must harness the power of a waterfall to build an elevator. While one team works together to get their idea off the ground, the other falls apart when tension between Gui, Amy and Dan reach an all-time high.