DiBONA: Okay, I'm tattooing now, right?
Yep. You are.
NARRATOR: What happens when we turn our lab
into a torture chamber...
Aah!
NARRATOR: ...an exotic martial-arts training center...
It's like a defensive form of Newton's laws.
NARRATOR: ...and a high-tech dance studio?
What happens?
"Time Warp."
KEARNEY: Uh-oh.
[Laughter]
NARRATOR: Take two guys whose slo-mo cameras
can stop the world in its tracks...
I'm gonna run down there and catch all the action.
-Good luck. -All right.
Matt, you ready?
All right, Greg, I reset this camera.
We're gonna take a look at your takeoff this time.
NARRATOR: ...add a high-tech laboratory,
where anything can and will happen...
...and toss in some of the world's wildest talents.
- [Electricity crackling] -Aah!
[Barking]
What happens?
I've got this one as the "pain cam,"
aimed at your face.
NARRATOR: Why is Jeff lying on this table?
Good question.
And the other one is the "ouch cam,"
aimed at your leg.
LIEBERMAN: The follicle cam.
NARRATOR: He is about to undergo torture in the name of science.
Get your hand ready to cover your eyes.
What we are about to see is not for the squeamish.
LIEBERMAN: What kind of wax do you -- Aah!
NARRATOR: Where there's pain...
Aah!
NARRATOR: ...many say there's gain.
And in this case, Jeff's oh-so-smooth skin.
Every year, thousands upon thousands of people
put themselves through torture
in order to improve their self-image.
How much pain?
And how does that pain get where it's going?
WOMAN: Ow!
NARRATOR: Ask a new expert.
LIEBERMAN: I was not ready for that.
It was actually not that bad. But you can feel it, for sure.
-And now I'm like a baby again. -Nice and smooth.
All right, let's see what pain cam had to show.
LIEBERMAN: It's totally gone.
KEARNEY: And you're still very happy.
LIEBERMAN: Whoa!
KEARNEY: For quite some time, actually.
Do people usually jump up and scream like that?
Does that happen a lot?
All the time, yeah. [Laughs]
How many frames a second are you getting this at?
KEARNEY: 500.
LIEBERMAN: Let's count it up.
KEARNEY: Okay. Go.
Maybe 50 frames.
NARRATOR: Which brings us to one of the points
of this experiment.
How long does it take the nerves
to deliver the message that something is hurting big-time?
In this case, roughly 100 milliseconds
between ripped-out roots and Jeff's primal scream.
[Screams in slow motion]
LIEBERMAN: That's what we'd expect.
Different types of pain receptors
take different amounts of time.
The further away you get from the head,
the more time you expect it to take.
NARRATOR: The proverbial plucked chicken's
got nothing on Jeff here.
-Ouch. Ouch. -So this is 10 times slower.
KEARNEY: 5,000 frames per second.
LIEBERMAN: The really surprising thing for me is the waves.
You were a good patient.
Thanks. I appreciate that.
We'll have you back for Matt next week.
Oh, boy.
NARRATOR: Matt, not surprisingly, has another idea,
something just a little more manly.
Tattoo artist Darlene DiBona
will help him to "shoulder" his elective burden.
The mysterious acronym is for Mackenzie, Sammy, and Casey --
Matt's children.
Of course, we've tried to sell him
on the shorter and less painful "T.W.,"
for "Time Warp," but the kids won out.
Maybe next season.
DiBONA: There you go.
-I think it's pretty cool. -Yeah, it's gonna be great.
-Let's get you inked. -That didn't hurt at all.
- [Laughs] -It will in a second.
So this is an electromagnetic oscillator?
DiBONA: Yes.
NARRATOR: That's Jeff-speak for "tattoo gun."
And that's -- wow -- seven needles in there?
There is seven needles in here.
But it's set up somewhat like -- more like a paintbrush.
NARRATOR: More like a pain brush.
Does Jeff seem to be enjoying this just a tad too much?
DiBONA: Okay, I'm tattooing now, right?
Yep, you are.
-You ready? -Yep.
-Here we go. - [Tattoo gun buzzing]
There it is.
You are getting a tattoo.
KEARNEY: I am.
NARRATOR: Now let's take a walk on the warped side.
-DiBONA: [Laughs] -LIEBERMAN: Oh, boy.
-That's inside now. -I do that every day.
You do that half a million times to a million times every day.
DiBONA: It's a good thing I can't see it
that slow all the time.
It's a lot more disturbing.
KEARNEY: I wouldn't show this in the lobby.
DiBONA: [Laughs]
NARRATOR: Those seven steel needles
are puncturing Matt at 70 times per second.
But how long does it take Matt to register the initial pain?
LIEBERMAN: By the time he reacts,
you've stabbed him, you know, 20 times.
DiBONA: Look at your face.
LIEBERMAN: I would say that's about 80 milliseconds delay.
Pain is a side effect of the product.
The pain is what we deal with so we can have our tattoo.
LIEBERMAN: Is it worth it?
KEARNEY: I dealt with it. Yeah, it's totally worth it.
-LIEBERMAN: You dealt with it. -KEARNEY: I did.
LIEBERMAN: You dealt with it in a manly, manly way.
DiBONA: You did deal with it. You were fine.
NARRATOR: Okay, pain from leg to brain...
Aah!
... 100 milliseconds.
From shoulder to brain, 80 milliseconds.
So, what happens when the pain is transmitted
from a site right beside the brain?
Okay.
NARRATOR: Jeff's up again,
this time to lend an ear to science
with piercer Erin Duff.
LIEBERMAN: This is gonna look cool.
DUFF: What I want you to do is just relax your body,
and you're gonna give me a big, deep breath.
At the end of the exhale, you'll feel a little pinch.
-Okay. -You ready?
My ear's pretty close to my brain,
so this should be a very small delay.
- [Inhales sharply] -All the way out.
[Exhales slowly]
There it was. [Laughs]
And you're gonna make the transfer?
DUFF: Making the transfer.
LIEBERMAN: All right.
NARRATOR: Well, that's impressive,
like Jeff's gotten some kind of Zen counseling
between the wax job...
Aah!
NARRATOR: ...and the ear thing.
So, what gives?
-And now I'm that much cooler. -DUFF: You are so cool.
LIEBERMAN: What is that? It's 40 milliseconds.
It's a pretty good delay.
Yeah, well, I knew I was cooler.
You were very, very brave.
[Chuckles] Yeah, where's the lollipop?
NARRATOR: This is where we usually recap our highlights,
but you know what?
We think Jeff and Matt have endured enough pain.
Wushu.
Not a household name --
unless you live in the right house.
This Chinese martial art
translates motion into action in some astonishing ways.
Award-winning wushu master Rick Wong
agreed to demonstrate its core defensive principles
for our "Time Warp" cameras --
defensive principles that are vital to almost any martial art.
Okay, class, watch closely.
Here, the traditional weapons of broadsword and spear
illustrate how force can be redirected.
So it seems like for every action that he makes,
you've got a reaction in the exact opposite direction
of your weapon from his.
WONG: They have to match up in order for him
to successfully execute his defense.
If his technique is too static
or doesn't accelerate at the same velocity,
that sword will push through his block.
It's like a defensive form of Newton's laws.
That's right. Right. Exactly.
NARRATOR: Okay, we see the principle
of blocking energy with weapons,
but what about hand-to-hand combat?
WONG: Well, what we'll show is how you just borrow
your opponent's intention and momentum
to use the maximum force --
basically, the concept of borrowing their aggressiveness.
LIEBERMAN: So can you first show us a beginner's reaction?
Okay, the typical beginner would just block something
and do nothing with the incoming energy, such as...
Okay. So using all of that momentum and stopping it cold.
Right. Exactly.
So at this point, what I would do is,
as that punch comes, I'm gonna let it travel towards me.
I'm going to pivot out of the way
and let that turn make him lose his balance, such as...
LIEBERMAN: Matt, did you get all that?
NARRATOR: Uh, miss anything?
Like everything?
Let's warp that down.
LIEBERMAN: So we're looking right now
at the original block of the punch.
NARRATOR: Notice the shock waves
running through both of their arms.
The force of the attack has been absorbed, dissipated,
but ultimately wasted.
Now let's apply some wushu to the same situation.
Its central principle
dictates a fighter use their opponent's energy
to their own advantage.
WONG: In this particular instance,
when we look at absorbing power, I let the arm come in.
I don't really block it.
But I'm turning and rotating with it.
If I stay static, he's gonna hit me at full velocity.
As I move with it, I stay a small distance ahead of it,
and he actually begins to decelerate
because he understands that he's overrotating.
And that's where this technique works.
NARRATOR: Watch these moves again, side by side.
On the left, force, supplied by the attacker,
manifests in dissipating shock waves.
The opposition, while blocked, still stands.
On the right, there are no shock waves.
Supplied force is smoothly redirected,
and the opponent goes down.
Now, no exotic martial art would be complete
without some kicks.
Now I'm going to borrow his energy
and just use his side-kick power
and have him go in the direction of the kick.
NARRATOR: Side-kick power? We thought that was Matt's gig.
WONG: I'm basically pulling his leg further out,
just to take him forward of his base of support.
Then when I twist and rotate, he's forced to go straight down,
do a face-plant.
NARRATOR: Face-plant.
That's a nice euphemism for this humiliating action.
-LIEBERMAN: Gracefully fall. -Gracefully fall on his face.
NARRATOR: "Gracefully fall." Okay, sounds better.
So class almost dismissed.
WONG: If his technique is too static
or doesn't accelerate at the same velocity,
that sword will push through his block.
NARRATOR: We've learned that our old friend and mascot,
Isaac Newton's principles, apply in any situation.
It's like a defensive form of Newton's laws.
That's right.
NARRATOR: Now, there are team sports
and there are team sports.
The one we just saw is a ballet of aggression.
Some things never get old.
Watching a tap dancer shuffle-ball-change
through their paces will ever, it seems,
inspire interest and fascination.
Dancers Chloe Arnold, Baakari Wilder,
and street percussionist Jermaine Carter
happily obliged "Time Warp's" request
to capture their infectious art form in high-speed.
You're making me tired.
I think we got a bunch of stuff to capture.
NARRATOR: So it's lights, camera...
Yeah, right around here.
NARRATOR: ...time warp.
KEARNEY: Nice. Nice.
What is on your shoes?
'Cause my shoes don't do that.
WILDER: It's metal.
NARRATOR: Now, you're probably aware
that tap dancers wear metal taps.
But did you know they can produce a range of frequencies?
These sounds can be high, low, and in between.
Toes and heels sound differently.
- [Click] -...is more of a treble.
- [Thud] -More of a bass.
Now, what causes that?
Lots of training and really knowing how to use your weight.
I mean, a toe can be here. It can be...
-And that's just the front. -ARNOLD: That's just the toe.
WILDER: As far as the heel is concerned,
it could be more of, like, a weight thing.
Real deep.
And then the soft.
WILDER: Yeah, yeah, so...
[Tapping rhythmically]
You know what I mean?
I was seeing your guys' calves go nuts,
you know, shaking all over the place.
I would love to get some close-ups
of how those impacts are affecting them.
-We're good. -One, two...
Hopefully, it's fine. I think it's fine.
NARRATOR: Now, here's the same ditty
shot at 300 frames per second.
LIEBERMAN: All right. Oh, that's crazy.
ARNOLD: Oh, my God.
WILDER: Ew! Ooh!
Oh, my God!
LIEBERMAN: There's a lot of impacts.
Obviously, downward is the huge ones.
Those are sending amazing shock waves
up your calves, both sides.
[Laughs]
Yeah, this is about 10 times as slow as normal,
so the fact that you're still in sync
means you're really 10 times as accurate as you think.
NARRATOR: At time-warp speed,
their stunning precision is clearly dead-on.
So we've seen it fast. We've seen it slow.
Now yet another dimension of Chloe's fast-moving feet.
LIEBERMAN: Hit it.
-Nice! -Awesome.
WILDER: Whoo! Whoo!
KEARNEY: All right, here you are suspended in midair.
-Oh, yeah. -KEARNEY: Ready?
LIEBERMAN: Here, you can really see the impact on the table.
And it's surprising to me
you don't even need to lift your foot that high off
to get that impact.
You're one inch off the ground, and it's tons.
That takes a long time to develop.
NARRATOR: And from below.
LIEBERMAN: What are you doing?
[Laughs]
ARNOLD: Really it's just a hop shuffle.
Overall, the steps that we're doing are the same.
It's just how we manipulate them, rhythmically.
NARRATOR: So Chloe gave it to us fast,
she gave it to us slow,
spun 'round and upside down.
Now we asked Chloe, for our grand finale,
"Is there any other way to see it?"
And there is --
wet and wild.
And of course this wouldn't be "Time Warp"
if we didn't take you from the sublime...
LIEBERMAN: Nice.
NARRATOR: ...to the ridiculous.
[Up-tempo percussion music plays]
And we're not done yet.
Ever wonder what happens after hours in the "Time Warp" lab?
Later. See you.
NARRATOR: All those cameras sitting around,
leftover explosives,
and things that cry out to be exploded.
Someone could easily get inspired.
Someone like, oh, Jeff, for instance.
Most people do everything they can
to avoid breaking a wine glass.
But at "Time Warp," we do just the opposite.
Today, we're gonna use a firecracker
to break the wine glass.
And as always -- eye protection.
Fire in the hole.
NARRATOR: Our cameras show that while the explosion
does lift the wine glass off the stand,
there's no breakage.
The explosive forces are able to escape
out of the top of the glass.
Let's see how much things change
just by putting some sand inside.
Fire in the hole!
NARRATOR: The explosion easily forces the sand out
and, at the same time, pushes the glass down.
The downward force compresses it like a spring
and shoots it skyward, but again without breaking.
So let's exchange the sand for a liquid.
A lot of people might be worried about a fly in the chardonnay.
But I think the firecracker's gonna be a little more extreme.
Fire in the hole!
NARRATOR: The wine makes it difficult
to radiate the energy upward...
...so it's radiated more equally in all directions.
At 100,000 frames per second,
you can see the downward force
compress the stem with such violence
that it shatters in a shock wave
of cascading internal explosions.
The art of the explosion. It's...
Well, it's, uh... [Clears throat]
What we're trying to say, uh... Oh, boy.
It's the miracle of spring forces.
NARRATOR: Bingo!
If there's anything you would like to see warped,
check us out at the Discovery Channel Website --
discovery.com/timewarp --
and the warp you see just might be your own.
LIEBERMAN: Nice!