What is the science behind Netflix's 3 Body Problem? Explained

Netflix's 3 Body Problem, a new sci-fi series coming from Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss and True Blood writer Alexander Woo, is an eight-episode series based on Cixin Liu's internationally acclaimed trilogy Remembrance of Earth's Past.

The plot is set in 1960s China, where a young woman's fateful decision leads to a negative impact on humanity across space and time. Now a group of scientists, popularly known as the Oxford Five, must team up to save humanity from the danger it faces. 3 Body Problem made its debut last Thursday and has left viewers with some burning questions regarding the science on the show.

---

The science behind 3 Body Problem: What is it?

The name of the Netflix series comes from a scientific term, the Three-Body problem, which is used when the rotational force of three celestial objects (planets or stars in close proximity to each other) is disrupted because they exert force on each other due to their proximity. University of Cambridge associate physics professor Matt Kenzie has explained the problem further, saying,

“As soon as you have three bodies or more that are all exerting a force on each other at the same time, then that system breaks down. If you have three bodies or more, then the orbit becomes chaotic. Hence the San-Ti’s mass exodus from their planet.”

This problem comes into play in the Netflix series when the three-sun solar system that San-Ti's planet inhabits creates chaotic eras due to the three-body problem taking place. Netflix has further elaborated on it, saying,

"When the planet revolves around one sun, it’s a stable era. When another sun snatches the planet away, it wanders in the gravitational field between the three suns, causing a chaotic era. In a chaotic era, the living conditions can become too extreme for life to exist."

Usually, two objects exert force on each other, which makes it possible to predict rotational forces of the bodies. But when three or more bodies come to exert a force on each other at the same time, the system breaks down and the orbit becomes chaotic.

---

What are the other problems explored in the 3 Body Problem, and how scientific are they?

Apart from the main issue of disruption of the rotational forces of celestial bodies, here are some of the other mind-boggling science problems the series delves into.

---

Preservation of the human brain

In 3 Body Problem, we see Will’s brain taken out of his body and sent into space in an ice container as part of Project Staircase. But is the process of brain freezing possible? Dr. Kenzie explains that the procedure of freezing a brain is possible.

“It’s cryogenically frozen and put in a box so that it won’t rot. But then it’s just sent into space, and space is very cold anyway, so it probably preserves the brain biologically, in some sense of the word.”

However, talking about the next step of thawing the brain to put it to use, he says that currently there is no technology that will allow us to then remake a human from that brain.

---

Nanofiber technology

In the series, we see Auggie hoping to use her latest innovation of nanofiber technology to solve world problems like poverty and disease. Dr. Kenzie confirms that nanofiber technology does exist, but it is curated and grown in labs under very specific conditions. In the series, we see the horrors of nanofiber technology when it is used to slice through flesh, and Dr. Kenzie confirms that nanofiber technology is strong enough to slice through almost anything.

---

Watch 3 Body Problem on Netflix today for a mind-boggling journey in a science fiction world.