Media Menu for August 13, 2011

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, August 13, 2011,
9-11 p.m. E/P
Planet Green Channel
World History and Geography
Middle and High School

Mekong: Soul of a River : Mothers of Waters/Laos & Thailand/ Source of Life/Burma & China

Here are two episode in a documentary miniseries about the Mekong River in Asia. In the first episode, scientists in Laos have discovered rich habitat for tigers, clouded leopards, fishing cats, civets, and Asiatic black bears. Thailand is taking steps to recover its forests. Together, they are truly wildlife gems. In the second hour a Tibetan monk takes us to the very source of the Mekong, the sacred spring he calls, "water of stone." This is a sacred pilgrimage to the source of life. TV-PG
Log on http://www.mrcmekong.org/about_mekong/about_mekong.htm

Sunday, August 13, 2011,
7-8 p.m. E/P
ABC
Science and Technology
Middle and High School

i.am FIRST: Science Is Rock and Roll

The Black Eyed Peas front man/entrepreneur/tech wizard, will.i.am pairs up with inventor/FIRST founder Dean Kamen for this one-hour special promoting education, science and technology. The special takes an inside, up close look at the 20th Annual FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Championship, a worldwide science and robotics K-12 competition that celebrates technology and features live performances by The Black Eyed Peas and Willow Smith, as well as special appearances from a host of high profile celebrities speaking out to support STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) education. Aneesh Chopra, Assistant to the President and Chief Technology Officer of the U.S., along with 30,000 students, fans, families, educators and industry leaders came together at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis, MO to celebrate the engineering prowess of talented students from around the world. Watch for special appearances by such celebrities as Justin Bieber, Jack Black, Bono, Miranda Cosgrove, Miley Cyrus, Josh Duhamel, Willow Smith, Britney Spears, Snoop Dogg, Justin Timberlake and Steven Tyler. The program documents the challenges that the country's best and brightest students faced in the FIRST Regional Competitions leading up to and culminating in the international Championship. TV-PG
Log on http://abc.go.com/shows/iam-first-science-is-rock-and-roll

Sunday , August 14, 2011,
11:30 p.m. -2 a.m. ET,
8:30 -11 p.m. PT
TCM – Turner Classic Movie Channel (also available on DVD)
U.S. History
Elementary,
Middle and High School

Sunrise At Campobello

Before Franklin D. Roosevelt could lead the nation in the Depression and WWII, he had to overcome one of the greatest of personal challenges any would be president ever had to overcome. This Oscar-nominated movie, based on a Tony Award winning Broadway play, is the story of Roosevelt’ battle to regain the use of his legs at the age of 39 after contracting polio. He was at his family summer house on Campobello Island, New Brunswick, Canada when he contracted the disease with no known cure. By that time he already had a long history of public service and had run for Vice President on the Democratic ticket in 1920. He and those around him realized that any political ambitions he may have had would be dashed if he was unable to regain at least the partial use of his legs. When he's asked to nominate Al Smith at the Democratic convention in 1924 he realized he would have to walk 10 paces to the podium and then stand for 45 minutes. It marked his return to public life. The film is recommended especially for younger viewers who want to get a glimpse of incipient presidential greatness. TV-G
Log on http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/16110/Sunrise-at-Campobello/full-synopsis.html

Monday, August 15, 2011,
7-8 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
World History and Science
Middle and High School

National Geographic Explorer: 24 Hours After Hiroshima

This documentary tells the second-by-second story of a moment that changed the world forever: the dropping of the atomic bomb on August 6, 1945. Through the eyes of those in the air and on the ground, including the last interview with the weapons test officer who armed the bomb, viewers will experience the events as they unfolded that tragic day.
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/explorer/4826/Overview

Tuesday, August 16, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
Science Channel
Science and Geography
Elementary, Middle and High School

When Earth Erupts Pacific Rim

The western Pacific Rim is among the most dangerous places on earth. In New Zealand residents live in fear of earthquakes causing total devastation. In Japan 128 million people prepare for the next inevitable disaster and look to technology to save them. TV-G
Log on http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/11_13/b4221022522328.htm

Wednesday, August 17, 2011,
9-11 p.m. E/P
History Channel
U.S. History and Geography
Elementary, Middle and High School

You Don’t Know Dixie

The concept that history is written by the victors is perhaps nowhere truer than in the aftermath of America’s Civil War. The Union's defeat of the Confederacy brought the southern states back into the American fold, but in many ways, the two regions would remain divided, with the North inheriting the credit for its impact on history. What many people don't know is that the South is responsible for shaping American history and culture. Our first permanent English settlement was in Jamestown, Virginia. Our most treasured founding documents, the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, were written by Southerners. Built on a pioneering spirit of self-reliance and grit, the South developed a distinct culture that set it apart. This documentary travels to the U.S. South for a look at its influence on American culture. How did the South get its twang? Is the Southern accent really the nearest surviving relative of the American colonial accent? And what, exactly, are grits? Some of today's best known Southerners, including Trace Adkins, Al Bell, Bobby Bowden, James Carville, Jeff Foxworthy, Ty Pennington, Ricky Skaggs, Herschel Walker and Michael Waltrip, offer their insight on Southern culture. Along the way, uncover hidden and surprising truths about how the South shaped America.

Wednesday, August 17, 2011,
10-11 p.m. E/P
Animal Planet Channel
Science and Technology
Middle and High School

Bedbug Apocalypse

In 2010, bedbugs plagued the United States, ravaging entire regions, cities and towns. They infiltrated businesses, hid in movie theaters, infested homes and disgusted hotel guests. This documentary transports viewers to the front lines of a war against these near-microscopic demons and investigates the ways they tormented and baffled a nation. With their vampire-like ability to penetrate skin and zombie-esque ability to rise from the dead, bedbugs became public health enemy number one. With first-hand accounts from entomologists, pest management technicians and victims of these predatory pests, this one-hour special sheds light on the grim reality of the bedbug situation then and now and discusses how infestation is reaching near-pandemic heights. TV-PG

Thursday, August 18, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and Geography
Elementary, Middle and High School

Masters Of The Arctic Ice

The Arctic is the largest expanse of frozen water on the planet. All creatures that make their home there are masters of survival, superbly adapted to the Arctic ice. But climate change has begun to eat away at the ice on which these creatures depend. Two teams of researchers are racing to find out how global warming is rocking the Arctic world - before there's nothing left but water. TV-G
Log on http://video.pbs.org/video/2074612743/

Friday, August 19, 2011,
7-8 p.m. E/P
History Channel
Science
Middle and High School

Modern Marvels: Mold & Fungus

Viewers of this documentary will learn about various fungal organisms that live in the human body, grow from the ground, float in the air, and help create some foods and beverages. Follow professional remediators as they battle millions of growing invaders, all within the walls of mold-infested homes. We see how Phillips Mushroom Farms, America's largest producer of specialty mushrooms, carefully grows over 35 million pounds of various colorful fungi every year. We'll get sick with deadly mushrooms, and get well with penicillin: all fungi. We visit scientists, looking for ways to use fungi to fuel our car and clean up hazardous waste. Yes, the lowly fungi may be the salvation of mankind. TV-PG
Log on http://shop.history.com/modern-marvels-mold-fungus-dvd/detail.php?p=108101#tabs

Saturday, August 20, 2011,
6-7 p.m. E/P
Planet Green Channel
Science
Middle and High School

Giant Squid Caught On Camera

This follows the 2006 mission to find the giant squid wherever in the world it might be. This species lives so far down in the ocean- 3,000 feet and below – that it never sees light. It’s as long as a sperm whale and a fierce predator. It’s never been filmed in its natural habitat.
Log on http://www.squid-world.com/giant_squid_caught_on_camera.html