Media Menu October 15, 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, October 15,  2011,
7-8- p.m. E/P
Science Channel
Science and Technology
Elementary, Middle and High  School

What the Ancients Knew :The Romans

This  documentary  travels back in time to understand the motivations behind early solutions and inventions.
More than 2,000 years ago, the Roman army swept across Europe, northern Africa, and the Middle East. Backed by the legions, their military, and engineering skills, the Romans built one of the largest empires in history, dominating as many as 36 modern nations. Technology helped shape the ancient world and reverberates in our Western lifestyle and amenities today. But the Roman legacy is less about invention itself than about the spreading of the ancient technology. Rather than invent most of what they became famous for, the Romans adopted, perfected, and spread their enemies' inventions throughout their empire. TV-G
Log on http://science.discovery.com/videos/what-the-ancients-knew-i-roman-aqueducts.html
 
Sunday, October 16,  2011,
9-10 p.m. ET, 6-7 p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
Economics
Elementary, Middle and High  School

Target: Inside The Bullseye

Target—or Tar-zhay to its devotees—is a true American original. George Draper Dayton and his sons took a small Minneapolis department store and changed the face of retail forever, consistently donating 5% of its revenue to charitable causes. Walking the fine line between value and luxury, Target mimics the prices of a big box discounter while retaining the cache of an urban boutique. Because of this unique dichotomy the company has managed to avoid many of the problems of its competitors, promoting the idea that a walk down its aisles is not a chore, but an adventure. With keen insight from CEO Gregg Steinhafel, this documentary reveals how Target became both tastemaker and discount retailer extraordinaire while continually reminding its customers to "Expect More, Pay Less."
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/40588422
 
Monday, October 17,  2011,
5-6- p.m. E/P
History Channel
Science and Technology
Middle and High  School

Mega Disasters: Oil Apocalypse

The oil that our world runs on won't last forever. This documentary is about the gap between supply and demand that is ever increasing. Will alternative energy save us or is it already too late? What would happen to the world as we know it when our oil dependent industries come to a grinding halt?  TV-PG
Log on http://oilandglory.foreignpolicy.com/
 
Tuesday, October 18,  2011,
10-11 p.m. E/P
PBS
World History
Middle and High  School

Women, War & Peace: Pray The Devil Back  To Hell

This documentary tells the story of the Liberian women, including Nobel Laureates Ellen Johnson Sirleaf  and  Lehymah Gobowee , who took on the warlords and regime of dictator Charles Taylor in the midst of a brutal civil war and won a once unimaginable peace for their shattered country in 2003. In the capital city of Monrovia, thousands of women — mothers, grandmothers, aunts and daughters, both Christian and Muslim — formed a thin but unshakeable line between the opposing forces, literally facing down the killers who had turned Liberia into hell on earth. Their demonstrations culminated in Taylor’s exile and the rise of Africa’s first female head of state.
Log on http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2011   and http://www.pbs.org/wnet/women-war-and-peace/features/pray-the-devil-back-to-hell/
 
Wednesday, October 19,  2011,
9-11 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and Technology
Elementary, Middle and High  School

NOVA: Finding Life Beyond Earth

Combining the latest telescope images with  computer graphics, this documentary  immerses audiences in the sights and sounds of alien worlds, while top astrobiologists explain how these places are changing how we think about the potential for life in our solar system. We used to think our neighboring planets and moons were fairly boring — mostly cold, dead rocks where life could never take hold. Today, however, the solar system looks wilder than we ever imagined. Powerful telescopes and unmanned space missions have revealed a wide range of dynamic environments — atmospheres thick with organic molecules, active volcanoes and vast saltwater oceans. This ongoing revolution is forcing scientists to expand their ideas about what kinds of worlds could support life. If we do find primitive life forms elsewhere in the solar system, it may well be that life is common in the universe — the rule, and not the exception.
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/space/finding-life-beyond-earth.html

Thursday, October  20,  2011,
7-8 p.m. E/P
History Channel
Science and Technology
Elementary, Middle and High  School

Modern Marvels: Wheat

Viewers of this documentary will ride along with a custom harvester traveling from Texas to North Dakota and discover the ripening wheat fields. See how the harvesting crews brave months on the road, cutting thousands of acres each season. Tour a pasta plant to see how a special kind of wheat becomes everything from spaghetti to rigatoni. Watch as the grain is mashed into a thirst-quenching brew. Finally visit a company that transforms wheat into plastic-like products, such as eating utensils, hair combs, drumsticks, and yo-yos.
 
Friday, October  21,  2011,
9-11:30  p.m. E/P
PBS
Arts
Middle and High  School

PBS ARTS FROM SEATTLE: AMERICAN MASTERS - Pearl Jam Twenty

In honor of Pearl Jam’s 20th anniversary, award-winning director and music journalist Cameron Crowe creates a definitive documentary  portrait of the seminal band carved from over 1,200 hours of rarely and never-before-seen footage, plus 24 hours of recently shot concert and interview footage. Hosted by director Taylor Hackford, “Pearl Jam Twenty” chronicles the years leading up to the band’s formation, the chaos that ensued soon after their rise to mega-stardom, their step back from center stage and the creation of a work culture that would sustain them. Part concert film, part insider hang, part testimonial to the power of music and uncompromising artists, the film celebrates the freedom that allowed Pearl Jam a way to make music without losing sight of what mattered most to them — their fans and the music fans that they themselves had always been. “Pearl Jam Twenty” features interviews with original band members Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready and Eddie Vedder, drummer Matt Cameron, and friend and Soundgarden singer/guitarist Chris Cornell, as well as archival performance and interview footage of Mother Love Bone, Pearl Jam, Temple of the Dog, Kurt Cobain and Neil Young. TV-14
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/pearl-jam-twenty/about-the-documentary-film/1860/
 
Saturday, October  22,  2011,
9-11:30  p.m. E/P
TCM-Turner Classic Movie Channel
Arts
Middle and High  School

An American in Paris
 
If you choose to watch only one  example ever of the  American art form  known  as the movie musical, this is it. Winner of 6 Oscars including Best Picture, it’s the story of an American artist who finds love in Paris but almost loses it to conflicting loyalties. The dance sequences ( with Gene Kelly) are among the best ever filmed. TV-PG
Log on http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/67241/An-American-in-Paris/articles.html
 



Book TV Schedule

Saturday, October 15th

8am (ET)
Approx. 55 min.
"Manufacturing Hysteria: A History of Scapegoating, Surveilance, and Secrecy in Modern America" 
Jay Feldman

9am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 1 min.
"Tropic of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence" 
Christian Parenti

10am (ET)
Approx. 52 min.
"Sex on the Moon: The Amazing Story Behind the Most Audacious Heist in History" 
Ben Mezrich

11am (ET)
Approx. 44 min.
"Newspaper Titan: The Infamous Life and Monumental Times of Cissy Patterson" 
Amanda Smith

11:45am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 5 min.
"The New Deal: A Modern History" 
Michael Hiltzik

1pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 1 min.
David Crockett: The Lion of the West 
Michael Wallis

2pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 6 min.
"Elizabeth and Hazel: Two Women of Little Rock" 
David Margolick

3:15pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 30 min.
"Time for Outrage" 
Stephane Hessel

5pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 1 min.
"Counterstrike: The Untold Story of America’s Secret Campaign Against Al Qaeda" 
Eric Schmitt; Thom Shanker

6pm (ET)
Approx. 56 min.
Encore Booknotes: Neil Postman, "Technopoly: The Surrender of Culture to Technology" 
Neil Postman

7pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 20 min.
"Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy" 
Michael Beschloss; Richard Donahue; Caroline Kennedy; Ted Widmer

8:30pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 6 min.
"Elizabeth and Hazel: Two Women of Little Rock" 
David Margolick

10pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
After Words: Daniel Yergin, "The Quest: Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World," hosted by Dina Cappiello, Associated Press

11pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 11 min.
"Mighty Be Our Powers: How Sisterhood, Prayer, and Sex Changed a Nation at War" 
Leymah Gbowee

Sunday, October 16th

12:30am (ET)
Approx. 24 min.
2011 National Book Festival: Interview and Call-in with Sarah Vowell, "Unfamiliar Fishes" 
Sarah Vowell

1am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 1 min.
"Counterstrike: The Untold Story of America’s Secret Campaign Against Al Qaeda" 
Eric Schmitt; Thom Shanker

2am (ET)
Approx. 55 min.
"Manufacturing Hysteria: A History of Scapegoating, Surveilance, and Secrecy in Modern America" 
Jay Feldman

3am (ET)
Approx. 39 min.
"The Secrets of the FBI" 
Ronald Kessler

4am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 1 min.
"Counterstrike: The Untold Story of America’s Secret Campaign Against Al Qaeda" 
Eric Schmitt; Thom Shanker

5am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 9 min.
2011 Young America's Foundation National Conservative Student Conference: Panel on Conservative Books 
Kathyrn Lopez; Christopher Maligisi; Roger Ream

6:15am (ET)
Approx. 44 min.
2011 National Book Festival: Eric Foner, "The Fiery Trial: Abraham Lincoln and American Slavery" 
Eric Foner

7am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 11 min.
"Mighty Be Our Powers: How Sisterhood, Prayer, and Sex Changed a Nation at War" 
Leymah Gbowee

8:15am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 6 min.
"Elizabeth and Hazel: Two Women of Little Rock" 
David Margolick

9:30am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 21 min.
"'Islam' Means Peace: Understanding the Muslim Principle of Nonviolence Today" 
Amitabh Pal

11am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 1 min.
"Counterstrike: The Untold Story of America’s Secret Campaign Against Al Qaeda" 
Eric Schmitt; Thom Shanker

12pm (ET)
Approx. 58 min.
After Words: Susan Herman, "Taking Liberties: The War on Terror and the Erosion of American Democracy," hosted by Viet Dinh, Georgetown Law

1pm (ET)
Approx. 17 min.
George Mason University Interviews: Meredith Lair, "Armed with Abundance: Consumerism and Soldiering in the Vietnam War" 
Meredith Lair

1:20pm (ET)
Approx. 27 min.
George Mason University Interviews: Rosemarie Zagarri, "The Politics of Size: Representation in the United States, 1776-1850" 
Rosemarie Zagarri

1:45pm (ET)
Approx. 15 min.
George Mason University Interviews: Thomas Hazlett, "The Fallacy of Net Neutrality" 
Thomas Hazlett

2pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 20 min.
"Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy" 
Michael Beschloss; Richard Donahue; Caroline Kennedy; Ted Widmer

3:30pm (ET)
Approx. 55 min.
"Manufacturing Hysteria: A History of Scapegoating, Surveilance, and Secrecy in Modern America" 
Jay Feldman

4:30pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 8 min.
"A New Voice for Israel: Fighting for the Survival of the Jewish Nation" 
Jeremy Ben-Ami

6pm (ET)
Approx. 58 min.
"The Perils of Peace: America's Struggle for Survival After Yorktown" 
Thomas Fleming

7pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 6 min.
"Elizabeth and Hazel: Two Women of Little Rock" 
David Margolick

8:15pm (ET)
Approx. 45 min.
2011 National Book Festival: Adam Goodheart, "1861: The Civil War Awakening" 
Adam Goodheart

9pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
After Words: Daniel Yergin, "The Quest: Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World," hosted by Dina Cappiello, Associated Press

10pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 5 min.
"The New Deal: A Modern History" 
Michael Hiltzik

11:15pm (ET)
Approx. 44 min.
"Newspaper Titan: The Infamous Life and Monumental Times of Cissy Patterson" 
Amanda Smith

Monday, October 17th

12am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
After Words: Daniel Yergin, "The Quest: Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World," hosted by Dina Cappiello, Associated Press

1am (ET)
Approx. 17 min.
George Mason University Interviews: Meredith Lair, "Armed with Abundance: Consumerism and Soldiering in the Vietnam War" 
Meredith Lair

1:20am (ET)
Approx. 27 min.
George Mason University Interviews: Rosemarie Zagarri, "The Politics of Size: Representation in the United States, 1776-1850" 
Rosemarie Zagarri

1:45am (ET)
Approx. 15 min.
George Mason University Interviews: Thomas Hazlett, "The Fallacy of Net Neutrality" 
Thomas Hazlett

2am (ET)
Approx. 46 min.
"Why Do We Kill?: The Pathology of Murder in Baltimore" 
Stephen Janis; Kelvin Sewell

3am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
After Words: Daniel Yergin, "The Quest: Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World," hosted by Dina Cappiello, Associated Press

4am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 21 min.
"'Islam' Means Peace: Understanding the Muslim Principle of Nonviolence Today" 
Amitabh Pal

5:30am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 5 min.
"The New Deal: A Modern History" 
Michael Hiltzik

6:40am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 20 min.
"Jacqueline Kennedy: Historic Conversations on Life with John F. Kennedy" 
Michael Beschloss; Richard Donahue; Caroline Kennedy; Ted Widmer