How Accurate Is The Science In Dr. Stone?

No anime is quite like Dr. Stone. The 2019 series came onto the anime scene with some fresh subject matter and a lot more brains. The show follows Senku, a high school genius who dedicates himself to rebuilding human civilization after a mysterious event transforms all humans into stone for thousands of years. When he wakes up, he finds that what few humans remain have been reduced to a Stone Age lifestyle.

This is where Dr. Stone's brains come into play. As a genius, Senku basically has enough scientific knowledge to propel the remnants of humanity from Stone Age tech to industrial era machinery in an incredibly short span. However, it's still an anime, so one would not be blamed for questioning the validity of Senku's science. Luckily, a famous scientific expert sat down and gave her take on Dr. Stone's scientific process.

Recently, ex-MythBusters star Kari Byron sat down with Crunchyroll Extras to evaluate the plausibility Dr. Stone's scientific ventures. As it turns out, the show is actually incredibly accurate aside from some hyperbolation for the sake of comedy and plot. The theory behind all of Senku's inventions, from his recipe for homemade gunpowder to his Stone Age cotton candy, is sound. It is also accurately executed upon for the most part.

"It's like anime MythBusters," said Byron. "I think that Senku would probably be the ultimate MythBuster because he sort of captures the best parts of everyone who was on my team."

For instance, during their adventures Senku and his friends stumble upon some honeycomb. Using that, they create wax molds which they use for metal casting. By the end of their experiments, the gang has a fully functioning steam engine. According to Byron, though it would be a heavy workload given their outdated tools, they could feasibly pull such a stunt off in the real world. However, the show isn't 100 percent accurate.

It's not that Dr. Stone gets things wrong necessarily. Even at its most unrealistic there's still a solid scientific base. The show simply exaggerates certain things for the sake of comedy or progressing the story. Oftentimes these exaggerations happen when Senku and others are dealing with electricity. For instance, the show plays a little bit with probability when the group constructs a lightning rod that swiftly draws a bolt of lightning directly to its exact position.

"Lightning doesn't always strike exactly where you want it to," said Byron. "Especially in nature. But, you know, this is a little creative license. I'll let it go."

The show also exaggerates how much electricity can be stored in one of Senku's homebrew batteries. When a character accidentally touches part of the batteries, he is given a massive shock — enough to send him flying in the air. While the design for this battery is accurate, Byron is adamant that it couldn't hold enough of a charge to have that effect on a person.

In general, the accuracy of Dr. Stone's science was summed up fairly well by Byron herself. "I think all of these things are better on paper than in real life." So, while the theory of Dr. Stone's science is sound, it might not have the same results should someone try and replicate it in the real world.