Media Menu for February 22, 2012

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.

Wednesday,  February 22, 2012,
PBS
Science
Middle and High School

NATURE: Ocean Giants – 3 Part miniseries

Whales and dolphins conjure a deep sense of wonder in us that’s hard to explain. From the Arctic to the Amazon, this groundbreaking three-part series goes on a global expedition with world-renowned underwater cameramen, Doug Allen (Planet Earth) and Didier Noirot (Jacques Cousteau’s cameraman), as they capture spellbinding footage of these marine mammals. Ocean Giants looks at how cetaceans hunt, mate, and communicate, and follows scientists as they strive to uncover new insights about these animals. The first hour, Giant Lives, enters the world of the great whales. In the Arctic, giant bowhead whales survive the freezing cold wrapped in fifty tons of insulating blubber two-feet thick, making them the fattest animals on the planet. But the biggest animal on the planet is the blue whale. Measuring a hundred feet long, and weighing in at 200 tons, it is double the size of the largest dinosaur. The second hour, Deep Thinkers, explores the cognitive and emotional lives of dolphins and whales. Like us, cetaceans have special brain cells, spindle cells, that are associated with communication, emotion, and heightened social sensitivity. These cells were once thought to be unique to us, but research is now showing that whales and dolphins may have up to three times more spindle cells than humans. Marine mammals’ extrasensory perceptions and communication skills are the focus of Voices of the Sea, the final hour of the series. Whales and dolphins depend on sound to function in their ocean home. They use ultrasound to see inside other creatures, clicks and whistles to speak, and echolocation to navigate and hunt in the pitch-black depths.  (“Giant Lives” 8:00-9:00 p.m., "Deep Thinkers" 9:00-10:00 p.m. ,“Voices of the Sea” 10:00-11:00 p.m.) TV-PG
Log on  http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/ocean-giants/introduction/7563/

Thursday,  February 23, 2012,
6-7 p.m.
History Channel
Technology and Science
Middle and High School

Modern Marvels: Commercial Fishing

Battered and fried or simply raw--seafood is a popular dish, no matter how you serve it. Americans consume more than 5-billion pounds yearly, an order that takes more than a fishing rod to fill and worries conservationists. This documentary follows the fish, the fishermen, and the science trying to preserve fisheries for future generations--from ancient ships on the Nile to a modern technologically sophisticated factory trawler on the Bering Sea to the University of New Hampshire's open-ocean aquaculture research project. And we witness a wide variety of fishing methods--from gillnetting and long-lining  to lobster trapping. Hop aboard and sail through time and around the globe as we explore the harsh conditions of life at sea and experience firsthand one of history's deadliest jobs. TV-PG
Log on  http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/websites/retiredsites/natdia_pdf/11parravano.pdf

Thursday,  February 23, 2012,
9-11p.m.
National Geographic  Channel
World History
Middle and High School

America Before Columbus

History books traditionally depict the pre-Columbus Americas as a pristine wilderness where small native villages lived in harmony with nature. But, as shown in this documentary, scientific evidence tells a very different story: When Columbus stepped ashore in 1492, millions of people were already living there. America wasn't exactly a "New World," but a very old one whose inhabitants had built a vast infrastructure of cities, orchards, canals and causeways.
Log on  http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/national-geographic-channel/specials-1/history-events/ngc-columbus-makes-landfall/?source=email_channel

Friday,  February 24, 2012,
9-11:30 p.m.
PBS
Arts
Middle and High School

GREAT PERFORMANCES: Memphis

Winner of the 2010 Tony Award for Best New Musical, “Memphis” turns the radio dial back to the 1950s to tell the story of a white DJ, named Huey Calhoun (Chad Kimball), whose love of music transcends race lines and airwaves. His romantic interest is Felicia Farrell (Montego Glover), a young black singer whose career is on the rise but who can’t make the break out of segregated clubs on her own. When the two collaborate, her soulful music reaches radio audiences everywhere, and the golden era of early rock ‘n’ roll takes flight. But as things heat up, whether the world is really ready for their music — or their love — is put to a test. With an original story by Joe DiPietro (I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change) and a new score with music by Bon Jovi founding member David Bryan, the production is directed by Christopher Ashley (Xanadu) and choreographed by Sergio Trujillo (Jersey Boys). TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/episodes/memphis/about-the-musical-theater-broadcast/1250/

Saturday,  February 25, 2012,
8-10:15 p.m.  ET, 5-7:15 p.m. PT
TCM- Turner Classic Movie Channel
Arts and U.S. History
Middle and High School

The Grapes Of Wrath

This movie is a rare thing: an ideologically charged version of a literary work of outrage and compassion, one that had tremendous public impact and was brought to the screen by a major Hollywood studio.  The film, like the novel, also had its detractors; some argued that the movie was occasionally sentimental in treatment with its downward spiral of despair transformed into a trajectory of hope. Still, almost everyone agreed that the movie was faithful to its original source in spirit and attitude.  The historical setting: Economic and natural disasters have turned the farmlands of the American plains into the Dust Bowl forcing thousands of families out of their homes and onto the road West to seek any means of survival in California. One such family is the Joads, a proud but destitute lot who, against all odds, make it to the "promised land" only to find no  work, no place to stay, and much prejudice, resentment, and violence against them and their fellow migrants. As they move from place to place, members of the family die off or leave, but Ma Joad struggles to hold them together with hope and determination, while her son Tom begins to perceive a new vision for humanity. TV-G
Log on http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/76817/Grapes-Of-Wrath-The

Sunday,  February 26, 2012,
9-10:30 p.m.
English
Middle and High School

MASTERPIECE CLASSIC : The Old Curiosity Shop

Viewers of this program will relive one of  Charles Dickens’ most heartrending tales as a teenage girl and her grandfather lose everything to a maniacal moneylender and flee his relentless pursuit. In this saga of Little Nell, Grandfather and their tormentor, Daniel Quilp,  Derek Jacobi (“I, Claudius”) stars as Grandfather, with Sophie Vavasseur (“Northanger Abbey”) as Nell and Toby Jones (Frost/Nixon) as Quilp. The Dickensian cast also includes Gina McKee (“The Forsyte Saga”) as the brains behind Quilp’s shady law firm. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/masterpiece/curiosityshop/index.html

Monday,  February 27, 2012,
9-10 p.m.
PBS
Arts and U.S. History
Elementary, Middle and High School

IN PERFORMANCE AT THE WHITE HOUSE: Red, White and Blues

President and Mrs. Obama host a  PBS music special in the East Room of the White House. The evening is an all-star celebration of the blues, the musical form that sprang from the Mississippi Delta and the west side of Chicago. With deep roots in Africa and slavery, the music has influenced modern American music from soul to rock ‘n’ roll. Leading popular artists’ performances trace that migratory path and pay homage to the great figures of the blues genre, from John Lee Hooker to Muddy Waters, and the songs they made famous.
Log on http://www.pbs.org/inperformanceatthewhitehouse/

Tuesday,  February 28, 2012,
8-9 p.m.
Science Channel
Science and Geography
Elementary, Middle and High School

Killer Ants

Over 8,000 species of ants cover the planet. Most are harmless, but, as shown in this documentary,  some have a violent streak. African driver ants have eaten a horse in a day and suffocated a human, and the army ants of South and Central America can wipe out entire ecosystems.  TV-G.
Log on http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6763746-killer-ants

Wednesday,  February 29, 2012,
8-9 p.m.
Science Channel
Science and Arts
Middle and High School

Prophets of Science Fiction : Jules Verne

This is a documentary about Jules Verne, the ultimate futurist,  with a legacy of sci-fi adventure stories predicting everything from fuel cell technology to viral advertising. The extraordinary voyages of Jules Verne span from the center of the Earth to the surface of the Moon. TV-PG
Log on http://www.online-literature.com/verne/

Book TV Schedule

Saturday, February 25th

8am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 11 min.
"Saddam Hussein's Ba'th Party: Inside an Authoritarian Regime"
Joseph Sassoon

9:15am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 11 min.
"Our Time: Breaking the Silence of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'"
Josh Seefried

10:30am (ET)
Approx. 29 min.
"King Larry: The Life and Ruins of a Billionaire Genius"
James Scurlock

11am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 5 min.
"Why America Failed: The Roots of Imperial Decline"
Morris Berman

12pm (ET)
Approx. 2 hr. 4 min.
"Black Americans in Congress, 1870-2007"
Matt Wasniewski

2pm (ET)
Approx. 53 min.
"A Slave in the White House: Paul Jennings and the Madisons"
Elizabeth Dowling Taylor

3pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 8 min.
"Guantanamo: An American History"
Jonathan Hansen

4:30pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 16 min.
"It Was a Long Time Ago, and It Never Happened Anyway: Russia and the Communist Past"
David Satter

6pm (ET)
Approx. 56 min.
Encore Booknotes: Herbert Block, "Herblock: A Cartoonist's Life"
Herbert Block

7pm (ET)
Approx. 2 hr. 4 min.
"Black Americans in Congress, 1870-2007"
Matt Wasniewski

9pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 5 min.
"Why America Failed: The Roots of Imperial Decline"
Morris Berman

10pm (ET)
Approx. 57 min.
After Words: Richard Thompson Ford, "Universal Rights Down to Earth," hosted by Suzanne Nossel, Amnesty International USA

11pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
Book Party for Senator Alan Simpson and Donald Hardy, "Shooting from the Lip: The Life of Senator Al Simpson"
Donald Hardy

Sunday, February 26th

12am (ET)
Approx. 59 min.
"Occupying Wall Street: The Inside Story of an Action that Changed America"
Writers for the 99%

1am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 14 min.
"Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960-2010"
Charles Murray

2:15am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 16 min.
"It Was a Long Time Ago, and It Never Happened Anyway: Russia and the Communist Past"
David Satter

3:30am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 11 min.
"Saddam Hussein's Ba'th Party: Inside an Authoritarian Regime"
Joseph Sassoon

4:45am (ET)
Approx. 53 min.
"A Slave in the White House: Paul Jennings and the Madisons"
Elizabeth Dowling Taylor

5:45am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 5 min.
"Why America Failed: The Roots of Imperial Decline"
Morris Berman

7am (ET)
Approx. 2 hr. 4 min.
"Black Americans in Congress, 1870-2007"
Matt Wasniewski

9am (ET)
Approx. 59 min.
"Occupying Wall Street: The Inside Story of an Action that Changed America"
Writers for the 99%

10am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 8 min.
"Guantanamo: An American History"
Jonathan Hansen

11:15am (ET)
Approx. 50 min.
2012 Savannah Book Festival - Greg Myre & Jennifer Griffin, "This Burning Land: Lessons From the Front Lines of the Transformed Israeli-Palestinian Conflict"
Jennifer Griffin; Greg Myre

12pm (ET)
Approx. 58 min.
After Words: Ira Shapiro, "The Last Great Senate: Courage and Statesmanship in Times of Crisis," hosted by Senator Bernie Sanders, I-VT

1pm (ET)
Approx. 25 min.
Book TV at Georgetown University: Chandra Manning, “What This Cruel War Was Over: Soldiers, Slavery, and the Civil War”
Chandra Manning

1:30pm (ET)
Approx. 16 min.
Book TV at Georgetown University: Charles Kupchan, “No One’s World: The West, The Rising Rest, and the Coming Global Turn”
Charles Kupchan

2pm (ET)
Approx. 45 min.
"While America Sleeps: A Wake-Up Call for the Post-9/11 Era"
Russ Feingold

3pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 19 min.
"The Pipes Plan: The Top Ten Ways To Dismantle And Replace Obamacare"
Sally Pipes

4:30pm (ET)
Approx. 59 min.
"Occupying Wall Street: The Inside Story of an Action that Changed America"
Writers for the 99%

5:30pm (ET)
Approx. 54 min.
"Silent Cal's Almanack: The Homespun Wit and Wisdom of Vermont's Calvin Coolidge"
David Pietrusza

6:30pm (ET)
Approx. 25 min.
Book TV at Georgetown University: Chandra Manning, “What This Cruel War Was Over: Soldiers, Slavery, and the Civil War”
Chandra Manning

7pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
Book Party for Senator Alan Simpson and Donald Hardy, "Shooting from the Lip: The Life of Senator Al Simpson"
Donald Hardy

8pm (ET)
Approx. 55 min.
2012 Savannah Book Festival - Karl Marlantes, "What It Is Like To Go To War"
Karl Marlantes

9pm (ET)
Approx. 57 min.
After Words: Richard Thompson Ford, "Universal Rights Down to Earth," hosted by Suzanne Nossel, Amnesty International USA

10pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 19 min.
"The Pipes Plan: The Top Ten Ways To Dismantle And Replace Obamacare"
Sally Pipes

11:20pm (ET)
Approx. 38 min.
"Corporations Are Not People: Why They Have More Rights Than You Do and What You Can Do About It"
Jeffrey Clements

Monday, February 27th

12am (ET)
Approx. 57 min.
After Words: Richard Thompson Ford, "Universal Rights Down to Earth," hosted by Suzanne Nossel, Amnesty International USA

1am (ET)
Approx. 25 min.
Book TV at Georgetown University: Chandra Manning, “What This Cruel War Was Over: Soldiers, Slavery, and the Civil War”
Chandra Manning

1:30am (ET)
Approx. 16 min.
Book TV at Georgetown University: Charles Kupchan, “No One’s World: The West, The Rising Rest, and the Coming Global Turn”
Charles Kupchan

1:45am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 16 min.
"It Was a Long Time Ago, and It Never Happened Anyway: Russia and the Communist Past"
David Satter

3am (ET)
Approx. 57 min.
After Words: Richard Thompson Ford, "Universal Rights Down to Earth," hosted by Suzanne Nossel, Amnesty International USA

4am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
Book Party for Senator Alan Simpson and Donald Hardy, "Shooting from the Lip: The Life of Senator Al Simpson"
Donald Hardy

5am (ET)
Approx. 46 min.
2012 Savannah Book Festival - S.C. Gwynne, "Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History"
S.C. Gwynne

5:45am (ET)
Approx. 45 min.
"While America Sleeps: A Wake-Up Call for the Post-9/11 Era"
Russ Feingold

6:45am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 19 min.
"The Pipes Plan: The Top Ten Ways To Dismantle And Replace Obamacare"
Sally Pipes