Media Menu for March 28, 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,  March  28, 2012,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science
Middle and High School

NOVA: Cracking Your Genetic Code

What will it mean when most of us can afford to have the information in our DNA—all six billion chemical letters of it—read, stored and available for analysis? This documentary   reveals that we stand on the verge of such a revolution. Meet cancer a cancer patient who appears to have cheated death and a cystic fibrosis sufferer breathing easily because scientists have been able to pinpoint and neutralize the genetic abnormalities underlying their conditions. But what are the moral dilemmas raised by this new technology? Will it help or hurt us to know the diseases that may lie in our future? What if such information falls into the hands of insurance companies, employers or prospective mates? One thing is for certain: the new era of personalized, gene-based medicine is relevant to everyone, and soon you will be choosing whether to join the ranks of the DNA generation. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/cracking-your-genetic-code.html

Thursday,  March  29, 2012,
8-10 p.m. ET, 5-7 p.m., PT
TCM – Turner Classic Movie Channel
World History and Geography
Middle and High School

Scott Of The Antarctic

This classic movie tells the true story of the British explorer Robert Falcon Scott and his ill-fated expedition to try to be the first man to discover the South Pole - only to find that the murderously cold weather and a rival team of Norwegian explorers conspire against him. The voice over narration, with actual portions of Scott's journal spoken by John Mills, is what makes this a worthwhile film. You really get drawn into what is happening to these people as they struggle to reach the South Pole first and then get back safely.  Note: The last fifteen minutes of the story, when it is obvious they will not make it, is very harrowing to watch.  TV-G
Log on  http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/21595/Scott-Of-The-Antarctic/articles.html


Friday,  March  30, 2012,
8-9 p.m. E/P
NBC
Geography and U.S. History
Middle and High School

Who Do You Think You Are?

In this genealogy and geography documentary  Rita Wilson travels to Greece and Bulgaria to learn the  history of her late father and uncovers an emotional secret she never expected.  A multi-talented actress/producer/writer and singer,  Wilson first donned a producer's cap for the record-breaking box office hit, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding." She was the driving force behind bringing Nia Vardalos' semi-autobiographical story to the screen with Vardalos as the lead. Rita was honored with the Visionary Award from the Producer's Guild of America, and the film won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Comedy, as well as Golden Globe and Oscar nominations. TV-PG
Log on  http://www.nbc.com/who-do-you-think-you-are/

Friday,  March  30, 2012,
8-9 p.m. E/P
Science Channel
Economics and Geography
Middle and High School

What's America Worth?

Ever thought how much America is worth? Imagine putting a dollar amount on everything in America -all the land, the resources under our feet, our homes, even the water we drink. In this documentary, real estate mogul Donald Trump puts a value on it all. From the loneliest wilderness to the busiest city street,  What if the entire country was put up for sale? All the resources, all the property, all the possessions.  In this age, perhaps more than any other, everything has its price. So how much is the entire USA really worth? TV-PG
Log on http://curiosityintheclassroom.com/media/pdf/WhatsAmericaWorth.pdf

Saturday,  March  31, 2012,
4-5 p.m. E/P
History Channel
Science and Economics
Middle and High School

Modern Marvels: Beans

This documentary follows the soybean from field to refinery  of CHS, Inc. as they convert billions of soybeans into vegetable oils, flour, and soy meal. These products, in turn, end up in salad dressings and margarines, baked goods, animal feed and even bio-fuel and plastics. Pay a visit to the Kelley Bean Company which cleans 80,000 pounds of dry beans per day. B & M Baked Beans stirs up some New England tradition by baking beans in steel kettles and brick ovens. Then, Italian chef and bean lover Cesare Casella whips up a few bean dishes using rare heirloom beans, some of which cost $35 per pound. For dessert, Japanese pastry makers prepare traditional bean-based confections with the azuki bean. Fry up some falafel and puree some beans into a paste called hummus with the most widely consumed legume in the world...the chickpea. Last but not least, the makers of Beano explain how it works to prevent that unfortunate bean byproduct: gas.  TV-PG
Log on http://growingbeans.org/bean-varieties

Sunday,  April 1, 2012,
8-9 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. History
Middle and High School

FINDING YOUR ROOTS WITH HENRY LOUIS GATES, JR.

This  geological documentary  unearths missing links in the family histories of media legend Barbara Walters and educational superstar Geoffrey Canada. What’s in a name? Well, a lot, at least when it comes to piecing together family history. For former slaves, choosing a last name was one of their first acts of freedom. For Jewish immigrants, it was a way to fit in in their new country. Whatever the reason for a name change, it can make the process of learning about one’s ancestors difficult, if not impossible. In this episode, Professor  Gates unearths missing links in the family histories of media legend Barbara Walters and educational superstar Geoffrey Canada. Walters did not know her father’s real last name. Canada did not know the name of his grandfather. Both had been unable to access their history until now. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wnet/finding-your-roots

Monday,  April 2, 2012,
4-5 p.m. E/P
History Channel
Science and Technology
Middle and High School

Modern Marvels: Future Tech

Shown in this documentary are a  paper-thin, wall-sized holographic television...a car that runs on processed seawater...an army of robotic military machines...outer-space luxury resorts and a cleaning droid controlled by your mind? Buckle-up for safety as we race into the near future--where fantasy becomes fact. There have always been visionaries, futurists, and dreamers predicting the world of tomorrow--flying cars, space-station colonies, and android personal assistants. But time has proven the fallacy of many of their predictions. So what future technology can we realistically expect? With the help of 3D animation, we present some  predictions and take you to various research labs to see working prototypes of these technologies in their infancy TV-PG
Log on http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0650179/
Monday,  April 2, 2012,
10-11:30  p.m. E/P
PBS
English
Middle and High School

AMERICAN MASTERS: Harper Lee: Hey, Boo

Explore the phenomenon behind the often-taught classic American novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird”  and the mysterious life of its Pulitzer Prize-winning author, including why she never published again. This documentary reveals the context and history of the novel’s Deep South setting, and the social changes it inspired after publication. One of the biggest bestsellers of all time, “To Kill a Mockingbird”  is the first and only novel by a young woman named Nelle Harper Lee, who once said that she wanted to be South Alabama’s Jane Austen. Lee won the Pulitzer Prize and became a mystery when she stopped speaking to press in 1964. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/harper-lee-hey-boo/about-the-documentary/1972/

Tuesday,  April 3, 2012,
9:30-11 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. History and Technology
Middle and High School

PANAMA CANAL: AMERICAN EXPERIENCE

As shown in this documentary, on August 15th, 1914, the Panama Canal opened, connecting the world’s two largest oceans and signaling America’s emergence as a global superpower. American ingenuity and innovation had succeeded where, just a few years earlier, the French had failed disastrously. But the U.S. paid a price for victory. TV-14
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/timeline/panama/


Wednesday, April 3, 2012,
9-11 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science Technology
Middle and High School

NOVA: Hunting the Elements

Where do nature’s building blocks, called the elements, come from? They’re the hidden ingredients of everything in our world, from the carbon in our bodies to the metals in our smartphones. To unlock their secrets, David Pogue, the lively host of NOVA’s popular "Making Stuff" series and technology correspondent of The New York Times, takes viewers through the world of weird, extreme chemistry: the strongest acids, the deadliest poisons, the universe’s most abundant elements, and the rarest of the rare—substances cooked up in atom smashers that flicker into existence for only fractions of a second.
Why are some elements like platinum or gold inert while others like phosphorus or potassium violently explosive? Why are some vital to every breath we take while others are lethal toxins that killed off their discoverers such as Marie Curie? As he digs for answers, Pogue reveals the story of the elements to be a rich stew simmering with passion, madness, and obsessive scientific rivalry. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/physics/hunting-elements.html

Book TV Schedule

Saturday, March 31st

8am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 8 min.
2012 National Book Critics Circle Awards
Multiple Authors

9:15am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 21 min.
"American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us"
David Campbell

10:45am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
2012 Tucson Festival of Books: Megan Smolenyak, "Hey, America, Your Roots Are Showing: Adventures in Discovering, News-Making Connections, Unexpected Ancestors, Long-Hidden Secrets, and Solving Historical Puzzles"
Megan Smolenyak

12pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
BOOKTV in Little Rock, Arkansas
BookTV Visits Little Rock, Arkansas

1pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 15 min.
"Debacle: Obama's War on Jobs and Growth and What We Can Do Now to Regain Our Future"
John Lott, Jr.; Grover Norquist

2:15pm (ET)
Approx. 42 min.
"Showdown: The Inside Story of How Obama Fought Back Against Boehner, Cantor, and the Tea Party"
David Corn

3pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 6 min.
"A Nation of Moochers: America's Addiction to Getting Something for Nothing"
Charles Sykes

4:15pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 31 min.
"The American Way Of Eating: Undercover at Walmart, Applebee's, Farm Fields and the Dinner Table"
Tracie McMillan

6pm (ET)
Approx. 56 min.
Encore Booknotes: Louise Barnett, "Touched by Fire: The Life, Death, and Mythic Afterlife of George Armstrong Custer"
Louise Barnett

7pm (ET)
Approx. 2 hr. 15 min.
"Space Chronicles: Facing the Ultimate Frontier"
Neil deGrasse Tyson

9:15pm (ET)
Approx. 45 min.
"The Many Faces of George Washington: Remaking a Presidential Icon"
Carla Killough McClafferty

10pm (ET)
Approx. 57 min.
After Words: Alain de Botton, "Religion for Atheists: A Non-Believer's Guide to the Uses of Religion," hosted by Chris Hedges

11pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 32 min.
"The Devil We Don't Know: The Dark Side of Revolutions in the Middle East"
Nonie Darwish

Sunday, April 1st

12:45am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
"Consent of the Networked: The Worldwide Struggle For Internet Freedom"
Rebecca MacKinnon

2am (ET)
Approx. 54 min.
"The Founding Fathers Guide to the Constitution"
Brion McClanahan

3am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 27 min.
A Discussion on War Crimes Tribunals with William Shawcross, David Scheffer, and Harold Koh
Harold Koh; David Scheffer; William Shawcross

4:30am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 8 min.
2012 National Book Critics Circle Awards
Multiple Authors

6am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 10 min.
"The Crusader: The Life and Tumultuous Times of Pat Buchanan"
Timothy Stanley

7:15am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
2012 Tucson Festival of Books: Diana Henriques, "The Wizard of Lies: Bernie Madoff and the Death of Trust"
Diana Henriques

8:30am (ET)
Approx. 2 hr. 15 min.
"Space Chronicles: Facing the Ultimate Frontier"
Neil deGrasse Tyson

11am (ET)
Approx. 58 min.
After Words: Craig Timberg & Daniel Halperin, "Tinderbox: How the West Sparked the AIDS Epidemic and How the World Can Finally Overcome It," hosted by Scott Evertz, Former Office of National AIDS Policy Director

LIVE 12pm (ET)
Approx. 3 hr.
In Depth: Richard Brookhiser
Send questions for the author to Book TV

3pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 8 min.
2012 National Book Critics Circle Awards
Multiple Authors

4:30pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 21 min.
"American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us"
David Campbell

6pm (ET)
Approx. 55 min.
"An Honorable Defeat: The Last Days of the Confederate Government"
William Davis

7pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 6 min.
"A Nation of Moochers: America's Addiction to Getting Something for Nothing"
Charles Sykes

8:15pm (ET)
Approx. 42 min.
"Showdown: The Inside Story of How Obama Fought Back Against Boehner, Cantor, and the Tea Party"
David Corn

9pm (ET)
Approx. 57 min.
After Words: Alain de Botton, "Religion for Atheists: A Non-Believer's Guide to the Uses of Religion," hosted by Chris Hedges

10pm (ET)
Approx. 1 hr.
"Consent of the Networked: The Worldwide Struggle For Internet Freedom"
Rebecca MacKinnon

11:15pm (ET)
Approx. 45 min.
"The Many Faces of George Washington: Remaking a Presidential Icon"
Carla Killough McClafferty

Monday, April 2nd

12am (ET)
Approx. 3 hr.
In Depth: Richard Brookhiser

3am (ET)
Approx. 57 min.
After Words: Alain de Botton, "Religion for Atheists: A Non-Believer's Guide to the Uses of Religion," hosted by Chris Hedges

4am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 31 min.
"The American Way Of Eating: Undercover at Walmart, Applebee's, Farm Fields and the Dinner Table"
Tracie McMillan

5:45am (ET)
Approx. 1 hr. 32 min.
"The Devil We Don't Know: The Dark Side of Revolutions in the Middle East"
Nonie Darwish

7:30am (ET)
Approx. 29 min.
"King Larry: The Life and Ruins of a Billionaire Genius"
James Scurlock