Obama adds power to 'Mythbusters'

This cult show - which conducts science or engineering experiments to debunk or prove various theories - recently got an offer it couldn't refuse. President Barack Obama asked if hosts Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage could prove that Archimedes of Syracuse - ancient Greece, not upstate New York - did, in fact, create a solar-powered heat ray with hundreds of hand-held mirrors that burned and destroyed an invading Roman fleet a few thousand years ago. In a brief appearance, Obama - who declares himself and his daughters big fans of "Mythbusters" - tells the hosts to find out if this experiment works, "then report back to me."

MY SAY Light-hearted with tongue permanently attached to cheek, "Mythbusters" has always been something of a Trojan horse at Discovery. It sneaks up on you with jokes, puns, gimmicks, shtick and seemingly silly and serendipitous experiments, and before viewers know it, they've actually learned something.

Tonight's experiment touches on grade-school math, physics, geometry and optics. When the president tells Jamie and Adam that "nothing is more important" than getting kids excited about math and science, you suspect - OK, you know - he's more interested in supporting the show's educational mission than inventing a solar-powered death ray. As a fan, does the president really watch "Mythbusters" every Wednesday at 9 with his daughters? There's a certain charm in the notion, but if so, you then you have to ask yourself: What else is the president a closet fan of? "SpongeBob Squarepants"?

In fact, this most TV-savvy of presidents plays along with Hyneman and Savage, and they play along, too. Will they discover a new super-weapon? Will the president get another Nobel Prize if they do? Watch and find out. You may just learn something.

BOTTOM LINE Harmless fun, and interesting, too. Archimedes would be intrigued or appalled - but never bored.

GRADE B