Media Menu, December 11, 2010

Here are home viewing suggestions for the week, selected from online advanced TV program listings and aligned with the state and national K-12 academic standards available online. Please consult local listings also, since actual broadcast times may vary. The Websites cited in the “Log on“ box below the tv listing provide further details about the show’s topic and may contain links to video clips from the show or a complete streaming video version of the show.

Saturday, December 11, 2010,
8-9 p.m. E/P
Science Channel
Science
High School

“Speed Science”

Mastering speed means understanding the science behind it. This documentary follows Fall-Line Motorsports' three Grand-Am race cars as they use physics, engineering, chemistry and a perfect partnership of man and machine to probe the limits of speed.
Log on http://www.school-for-champions.com/science/motion.htm

Sunday, December 12, 2010,
7-8 p.m. E/P
CBS
U.S. and World History
Middle and High School

“60 Minutes”

The first report in this newsmagazine is: “The Next Speaker” - Rep. John Boehner will become the speaker of the House next month, but few know this Ohio republican beyond his life in Washington. Lesley Stahl profiles the man whose new role will place him at the top of the Republican Party and third in line for the presidency. The second story is “Brazil” - As the U.S. and most of the world’s countries limp along after the crippling recession, Brazil is off and running with jobs, industry, and resources. The economic juggernaut is poised to become the fifth largest economy in the world. Steve Kroft reports.
Log on http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/1998/07/08/60minutes/main13502.shtml?tag=hdr;cnav

Monday, December 13, 2010,
5-6 p.m. E/P
Animal Planet Channel
U.S. History and Geography
Middle and High School

“Last American Cowboy : Renewal"

In this documentary the epic tradition of the American West comes alive when the cowboys drive their cattle to the open range. Horses, dogs, trucks, lassos and helicopters all come into play as the cowboys ride, rope and rustle their way to nature's bounty. TV-14
Log on http://animal.discovery.com/tv/last-american-cowboy

Tuesday, December 14, 2010,
8-9 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and Math
Middle and High School

“NOVA: Hunting The Hidden Dimension"

A revolutionary new branch of math called fractals has changed the way we see the world and opened up a vast new territory to scientific analysis and understanding. What do movie special effects, the stock market, heart attacks and the rings of Saturn have in common? This documentary explains that and tells the story of a group of pioneering mathematicians who developed fractals from a curiosity that few took seriously to an approach that is touching nearly every branch of understanding — including what happened after the Big Bang and the ultimate fate of our universe. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/physics/hunting-hidden-dimension.html

Wednesday, December 15, 2010,
9-10 p.m. E/P
CNBC Channel
U.S. History and Economics
Middle and High School

“CNBC’S Behind The Counter: The Untold Story Of Franchising"

This documentary takes an inside look at franchising and reveals the surprising realities –good and bad-- of joining a chain. We’ll peel back the curtain on Five Guys’ amazing success and see how it’s filtered down the supply chain to the one businessman, Rick Miles, who supplies all the potatoes that go into its famous fries. We will meet pet lovers who want a piece of the $35 billion pet care business and hope that Heidi Ganahl, founder of the Camp Bow Wow doggie day care model, will show them the way. We will explore why Proctor & Gamble is dipping its giant toes into franchising waters and hoping that a new chain of TIDE-branded dry cleaners will increase its $79 billion annual revenues. And we’ll look at how franchisees build up some muscle of their own, whether it’s through franchisee organizations or strong immigrant alliances. In the Midwest region 90% of the Dunkin’ Donuts owners are of Southeast Asian descent. In the MidAtlantic it is similarly high. We'll take a look at how Dunkin' Donuts helped this immigrant group follow its American Dream. In the franchise business, there’s no doubt that dreams can also become nightmares. We’ll talk to Don Sniegowski of Blue MauMau, the foremost franchise journalist in the country, who says that many franchise buyers don't realize that when they buy into the business they can lose more than their initial investment. Finally, we will talk to the FTC to find out why they aren't doing more to protect the unfortunate people who get taken for a ride into franchise hell.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/15837856

Wednesday, December 15, 2010,
9-11 p.m. E/P
PBS
World History and Arts
Middle and High School

“Paris: the Luminous Years“

In the early decades of the 20th century, a storm of modernism swept through the art worlds of the West, uprooting centuries of tradition in the visual arts, music, literature, dance, theater and beyond. The epicenter of this storm was Paris, France. This documentary tells the story of Paris from an unprecedented point of view, not as the familiar, glamorous backdrop for the revolutions that exploded there, but as active protagonist, catalyst and midwife to modernity. The film spotlights now-famous key figures in the art world’s first international avant-garde, including Pablo Picasso, Marc Chagall, Igor Stravinsky, Ernest Hemingway, Serge Diaghilev, Jean Cocteau, Gertrude Stein, Aaron Copland, Josephine Baker, Marcel Duchamp, Langston Hughes, Sylvia Beach, Janet Flanner and many more, as they recount their individual stories of why they came to Paris, whom they met, what they made there, and how being in Paris transformed them and their work. Directed by Perry Miller Adato.TV-PG
Log on http://www.shemadeit.org/meet/biography.aspx?m=160

Thursday, December 16, 2010,
5:45-6:30 p.m. E/P
Sundance Channel
U.S. History
Middle and High School

“The Return Of The War Room“

Revealing and irreverent, Chris Hegedus and D A Pennebaker's 1993 Oscar®-nominated documentary THE WAR ROOM exposed the inner workings of presidential campaign politics like no film before. Sixteen years later, Hegedus and Pennebaker reconnect with many of the leading players in the earlier film - including James Carville, George Stephanopolous, Paul Begala and Dee Dee Myers - for a thought-provoking look at how the political and media landscapes have changed since the Clinton election. A Sundance Channel original documentary production. TV-PG
Log on http://www.arp.tv/production.html?production=warroomreturn

Thursday, December 16, 2010,
10-11 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
Science and Geography
Elementary, Middle and High School

“Naked Science: Great Lakes"

They are the world's largest freshwater lake system and one of science's greatest geological mysteries. Were the Great Lakes formed by the grinding powers of a giant glacier or a result of a comet exploding onto the Earth? This documentary follows a team of experts as they explore the theories behind the formation of lakes Erie, Huron, Michigan, Ontario and Superior. Scientists piece together mysterious geological clues and baffling evidence as they reveal new insight into the Great Lakes' watery history. Then, viewers take an inside look into the future of their changing landscape. From the imminent erosion of Niagara Falls one of the world's most iconic natural wonders to new evidence of an ancient underwater forest, the future of the lakes could reshape North America as we know it.
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/naked-science/3837/Overview

Friday, December 17, 2010,
9-10 p.m. E/P
History Channel
U.S. History and Economics
Middle and High School

“Modern Marvels: Made in the USA"

Since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, the United States has stamped, carved, cut, built and assembled its way into becoming the super power of product production. However, in the last 20 years, the "Made in America" tag began to fade, as the manufacturing landscape of industry went overseas. So what is still Made in the USA? This documentary visits the world's biggest and oldest flag manufacturer, which has made some of the most famous flags in history. Go inside the factories that produce the last athletic shoe made in the US. See the strangest form of alternate transportation known to man--completely assembled in 30 minutes. Check out a hot toy company that believes it's imperative to keep their work here at home. Top it all off with some great food--some American success stories that may seem foreign at first glance. It's not just a label. It's a proud and important tradition. TV-PG
Log on http://www.history.com/shows/modern-marvels

Saturday, December 18, 2010,
8-10 p.m. E/P
History Channel
U.S. History and Government
Middle and High School

“The Naturalized“

Weaving together the lives of different people from different countries who all share a quest for citizenship by choice, not birthright, this documentary travels from a citizenship class in San Jose to a naturalization ceremony in Iraq. Along the way, there's unprecedented access to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service, revealing the complex process up-close, including a marriage interview and the one-on-one Citizenship Exam. How many amendments are in the Constitution? To become an American, not knowing is not an option. Contemporary stories of struggle and success are combined with insightful interviews from notable naturalized citizens like Fareed Zakaria, Alan Cumming, David Rakoff and Isabel Allende. “Of the greatest values that America has,” says Vartan Gregorian, president of the Carnegie Corporation, “the concept citizenship is the most important.”A deported Nigerian leaves behind his family in Minnesota while a Moroccan cook wins the green card lottery. An Uzbeki concert pianist settles in Kansas, as a Nicaraguan refugee votes for the first time. From the gritty streets of Queens to the lakes of Minnesota to the suburban sprawl of California, every year nearly one million immigrants choose to become American in hopes of realizing the American dream.TV-PG
Log on http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1481577/