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, February 12, 2011,
10 a.m. – 2 a.m. ET, 7-10 p.m. PT
TCM- Turner Classic Movie Channel
U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Gone With the Wind”
This Oscar-winning movie provides an ideas of what life and the issues were before, during and after the Civil War. Viewers follow the story of a fictional family, the O'Hara’s, one of the most prominent and wealthy families in Georgia and their plantation Tara which is often host to the region's biggest social events. Among the O'Hara children, Scarlett is the most headstrong, vain and impetuous of three daughters. She has her choice of many suitors but becomes intent on marrying Ashley Wilkes, a sensitive intellectual. When the Civil War erupts and brings devastation and poverty to the O'Hara family, Scarlett becomes the one who fights the hardest to preserve her family's beloved Tara. Through the roughest period of the Reconstruction, Scarlett struggles to maintain ownership of her estate while resisting and eventually succumbing to her most ardent suitor, Rhett Butler, who matches her in stubborn determination . TV-G
Log on http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=414427
Sunday, February 13, 2011,
9-9:30 p.m. E/P
Nickelodeon Channel
U.S. History
Elementary, Middle and High School
Nick news with Linda Ellerbee: Beyond I Have A Dream”
In 1963, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. said he had a dream of racial equality. But Dr. King had more than one dream, and his message went well beyond a plea for racial equality. In recognition of Black History Month, and in honor of the 25th year we’ve celebrated Dr. King’s birthday as a national holiday, this documentary focuses on what else the man said — and dreamed — and what it might mean to kids in this, the second decade of the 21st century. ”Kids sometimes tell us all they know, all they’re taught, is that he was the ‘I have a dream guy.’ And he was, but that’s not all he was,” said program host Linda Ellerbee. “For instance, Dr. King said, ‘Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.’ Well, there are some smart, strong kids out there planting their own apple trees. These are some of their stories.”
Each kids’ story segment begins with a related quote from Dr. King that does not come from his famous “I Have a Dream” speech:
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”
“Human progress never rolls in on the wheels of inevitability. It comes through the tireless efforts and the persistent work of dedicated individuals.”
“Life’s most urgent question is: what are you doing for others “Hate is too great a burden to bear. I have decided to love.”
Log on http://news.nick.com/02/2011/04/beyond-i-have-a-dream
Sunday, February 13, 2011,
10:30-11:30 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. History
Elementary, Middle and High School
” Digital Media: New Learners Of The 21ST Century ”
Documenting five success stories both inside and out of the classroom, this program demonstrates how digital media, games, smart phones and the Internet are fundamentally transforming the way young people communicate, collaborate, participate and learn in the 21st century. Targeted at parents, teachers and anyone concerned with education in America, the program takes viewers to the front lines of an education revolution. It examines how digital media practices can empower young people to direct their own learning and both inside and out of the classroom. TV-G
Log on http://www.pbs.org/digital-media
Monday, February 14, 2011,
7-7:30 p.m. E/P (check local listings)
ABC
Science and Technology
Elementary, Middle and High School
”Jeopardy: A Computer Named "Watson" vs. Show’s Most Successful Prior Contestants - Round One”
Watson, named after IBM founder Thomas J. Watson, was built by a team of IBM scientists who set out to accomplish a grand challenge - build a computing system that rivals a human's ability to answer questions posed in natural language with speed, accuracy and confidence. The Jeopardy format provides a challenge because the game's clues involve analyzing subtle meaning, irony, riddles, and other complexities in which humans excel and computers traditionally do not. Competing against Watson will be two of the most celebrated players ever to appear on Jeopardy. Ken Jennings broke the Jeopardy record for the most consecutive games played by winning 74 games in a row during the 2004-2005 season, resulting in winnings of more than $2.5 million. Brad Rutter won the highest cumulative amount ever by a single Jeopardy! player, earning $3,255,102. (Rounds Two and Three air in this time slot February 15 and 16, respectively)
Log on http://www.jeopardy.com/news/watson1x7ap4.php
Monday, February 14, 2011,
10-11 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
Science and Geography
Elementary, Middle and High School
” Explorer: Clash of the Americas”
It may have been one of the most cataclysmic geologic events of the last 60 million years, which shaped America as we know it today. The narrow, 400-mile-long Isthmus of Panama, once buried below the sea, rose up and connected North and South America. This new land bridge unleashed an astonishing animal encounter: Prehistoric predators and prey — each unique to their worlds — came face-to-face for the first time. An armor-plated ancestor of the armadillo. A saber-toothed marsupial. A horse-like creature with three-toed feet. Evolutionary history changed forever as animals from the continents clashed. Today, as shown in this documentary, scientists are on a quest to discover what happened and which creatures survived.
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/explorer/4831/Overview
Tuesday, February 15, 2011,
10-11 p.m. ET, 7-8 p.m. PT
CNBC
Science and Economics
Middle and High School
” 60 Minutes on CNBC: Science & Money”
This program takes viewers a step further into investigative reports, interviews, profiles, and features stories that have made "60 Minutes" important viewing. CNBC now presents updates and never before seen footage of these award winning business news stories. Included in this program :
The Cost of Dying - reports on the high cost of end-of-life care and the explosive political debate surrounding health care.
Are They Safe? Are everyday plastics dangerous to you health? 60 Minutes on CNBC investigates the questions surrounding the safety of chemicals found in plastics and their effects on humans and fetuses.
Patented - reports on the controversy over the practice of biotech companies patenting of specific human genes.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/40795923
Wednesday, February 16, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and Economics
Middle and High School
” NOVA scienceNOW ”
Where Did We Come From? Where did the very first living thing on Earth come from? Can a simple injection erase a painful memory? In this episode of NOVA scienceNOW, journey back in time to the birth of our solar system to examine whether the key to our planet's existence might have been the explosive shockwave of an ancient supernova. Meet a chemist who has yielded a new kind of "recipe" for natural processes to assemble and create the building blocks of life. And see how the head louse, a creepy critter that's been sucking our blood for millions of years, is offering clues about our evolution. Finally, meet neuroscientist André Fenton, who is looking into erasing painful memories with an injection. TV-G
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/evolution/where-did-we-come-from.html
Thursday, February 17, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
Science
Middle and High School
” Naked Science: Finding the Origin of Life”
Some scientists think life began on earth when it arrived on an extraterrestrial meteorite. Others claim it began in a warm pond on early Earth. Or could volcanoes and lightning have sparked early life? Now, research teams from Denmark to Hawaii are racing to understand how life may have begun — by creating it themselves. In this documentary watch as a scientist mixes up a batch of primordial soup and then zaps it with a bolt of electricity, a la Dr. Frankenstein. The results: amino acids, the building blocks of all life.
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/naked-science/4284/Overview
Friday, February 18, 2011,
9-10 p.m. ET, 6-7 p.m. PT
CNBC
Technology and Economics
Middle and High School
” The Selling Game"
TV advertising used to be such an easy business. They played the ads, we watched the ads. But along came hundreds of new channels, and Tivo, and the internet, and scattered audiences, and as the visionary ad man Peter Sealey tells us..."in the mid-1960s I could reach 80% of the women in the United States of America with three daytime black and white commercials... Today, it would take 97 prime time 30-second ads to get that same reach." This documentary is about how marketers not only survived the so called Panic on Madison Avenue, but rang in a new gilded age of advertising. Digital media, the internet and cable tv, have handed marketers incredibly powerful new keys to our hearts and minds, and wallets. We take you inside the Trojan Horses that dominate the business nowadays to show you the latest tricks in ad land. It's a new world of persuasion. You'll never look at ads the same way again. (This program repeats February 20, 10 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. PT)
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/naked-science/4284/Overview
Saturday, February 19, 2011,
5:30-8 p.m. ET, 3:30 – 5 p.m. PT
TCM- Turner Classic Movie Channel
U.S. and World History
Elementary, Middle and High School
” Sergeant York "
This Oscar-winning movie tells the true story of the farm boy who made the transition from religious pacifist to World War I hero. Cast: Gary Cooper, Walter Brennan, Director: Howard Hawks. On the eve of American involvement in WWII, the final scenes were being filmed at the Warner Brothers studio lot for one of the greatest war film biographies. It took many years to bring to the screen this account of America's most famous and honored war heroes, resulting in a film which would boost morale of an American public faced with the prospect of worldwide changes. TV-G
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/naked-science/4284/Overview
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Saturday, February 12, 2011
Friday, February 4, 2011
Media Menu, February 5, 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, February 5, 2011,
6-7 p.m. ET 3-4 p.m. PT
Ovation Channel
Arts and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Satchmo: Louis Armstrong”
This is a documentary about one of the 20th century's most loved jazz performers, Louis Armstrong. The program pieces together the life of Satchmo using never-before-seen homemade films, clips from stage shows, and excerpts from some of his movies including Hello, Dolly, Atlantic City, and High Society. Armstrong's songs are prominently featured, including the classics "West End Blues," "Potato Head Blues," "Weather Bird," "On the Sunny Side of the Street," and "When You're Smiling". The documentary also includes commentaries from Armstrong's contemporaries and musicians influenced by his music, including legends Dexter Gordon, Tony Bennett, and Wynton Marsalis.
Log on http://www.louisarmstronghouse.org/
Saturday, February 5, 2011,
8-10 p.m. ET , 5-7 p.m. PT
TCM- Turner Classic Movie Channel
Math and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Stand And Deliver”
This movie tells the true story of a dedicated East Los Angeles high school teacher who transforms some of his students into math scholars. Edward James Olmos delivers n Oscar-nominated performance in the role of the late Jamie Escalante, a Colombian-born engineer who left the business world to teach the youth of L.A.'s barrio slums and used unorthodox methods to inspire them to learn. Film co-stars Lou Diamond Phillips, Andy Garcia.
Log on http://www.thefutureschannel.com/jaime_escalante/jaime_escalante_math_program.php
Sunday, February 6, 2011,
10-11 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. History
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Nancy Reagan: The Role Of A Lifetime”
Loving spouse, close confidant and savvy political observer, Nancy Reagan was a powerful force behind Ronald Reagan’s political success. Criticized for taking a seemingly traditional role as first lady during an era focused on women’s rights, those within Ronald Reagan’s inner circle recognized Nancy Reagan as much more than the supportive and stylish spouse who redecorated the White House. Historians have now concluded that Nancy Reagan was one of the most influential first ladies in modern times. She had far-reaching impact on personnel and policy issues. She is credited with moving President Reagan to a more moderate position toward the Soviet Union and getting her husband to publically admit his involvement in Iran-Contra, a move that likely saved his presidency. She was, and continues to be, a formidable and influential political adviser, skills she uses as she guards her husband’s legacy and champions stem cell research. In an extended interview with Judy Woodruff, Nancy Reagan reflects on her childhood, her life as an actress, her marriage to Ronald Reagan, their lifelong romance and her role as his most trusted adviser in a political career that would take them from the back lots of Hollywood, to the California governor’s mansion and then to the White House. TV-G
Log on http://www.pbs.org/newshour/nancy-reagan/
Monday, February 7, 2011,
8-9 p.m. ET , 5-6 p.m. PT
CNBC
Science and Economics
Middle and High School
“The Facebook Obsession"
This documentary tells thestory behind the rise of the largest social-media site in the world, told through the company's founders, friends and foes. Reporter Lester Holt looks at how this Internet phenomenon, with half a billion users, is affecting society in ways most people are unaware of. From a girl who is reunited with her birth mother with the help of Facebook, to a woman who lost her job because of her online postings, The program examines how the site is fundamentally altering American life for better or worse; even the White House and many police departments have their own Facebook pages. Holt explores the intense privacy debate that Facebook has provoked, and explains the business model that has turned a dorm-room venture into a multi-billion dollar enterprise.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/39618344
Tuesday February 8, 2011,
9-11:30 p.m. ET, 6-8:30 p.m. PT
TCM – Turner Classic Movies
U.S. History
High School
“Glory”
This Oscar-winning movie dramatizes historical events during the American Civil War, including the formation of the first black regiment, the 54th Massachusetts Voluntary Infantry. It stars Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, and Morgan Freeman, and is especially memorable for its attention to physical detail. It deals with the plight of African-American troops during the War Between the States, a topic that is barely touched upon in this country's history books. Many of the narrative's key battles were fought between men who were supposed to be comrades in arms. TV-MA
Log on http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=76506&category=Articles
Wednesday, February 9, 2011,
9-11 p.m. E/P
History Channel
U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Reagan”
As a leader, he changed the course of history. As a man, he was surrounded by myth and intrigue. His popularity and his politics may have been straightforward, but presidential scholars and historians have yet to define exactly what made our 40th President “bigger than life.” This documentary brings insight to Ronald Reagan’s ascent from an impoverished childhood to the nation’s highest office. It looks at the trajectory of Reagan’s 93-years – from his nomadic youth in the mid-west, his Hollywood career, his election as Governor of California and ultimately as Commander-in-Chief, and finally, his gracious journey into the sunset of his life. The program explores the makings of a man who was both admired as a hero, and criticized. Yet whatever one thought about his policies, his resiliency communicated hope and strength to a divided America. “When a guy gets up and takes a bullet and walks away with a smile,” says David Gergen, CNN senior political analyst and former Director of Communications for Reagan, “people just think differently about him.” Rare archival footage, audio and photos help to shed new light on Reagan’s enigmatic character, as do interviews with those who knew him. Along with Gergen, they include former White House correspondent Sam Donaldson, former Secretaries of State George Shultz and Gen. Colin Powell, and CBS news correspondent Bob Schieffer, among others. Also weighing in is Secret Service agent Jerry Parr, who was with Reagan at the time of the attempted assassination, recounting the harrowing ordeal and the decision Parr made which saved the President’s life.
Log on http://www.history.com/topics/ronald-reagan
Wednesday, February 9, 2011, 10-11 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and Technology
Middle and High School
“NOVA: Smartest Machine on Earth”
This documentary investigates the world of artificial intelligence and profiles the computer that could be the “Smartest Machine on Earth.” Known as “Watson,” this IBM supercomputer is so advanced it’s pursuing the first-of-its-kind challenge of competing against “Jeopardy!” champions to prove its uncanny ability to mimic the human-thought process. Augmenting human intelligence is a lot tougher than it looks, and the promise of "Hal" from 2001: A Space Odyssey is still just a fantasy. With a brain the size of 2,400 home computers and a database of about 10 million documents, will Watson be able to compute its way to victory? Given the complexity of human language, could any computer truly understand it? It remains to be seen if this amalgam of circuits and silicon can really take us closer to the dream of a fully developed artificial intelligence, a truly "conscious" machine. Win or lose, the difficulty of mimicking the human thought process with software is showing artificial-intelligence researchers that there's more than one way to be "intelligent." TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/smartest-machine-on-earth.html
Thursday, February 10, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
Science Channel
Science
Middle and High School
“Dive to the Bottom of the World”
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has assembled a team of experienced scientists and engineers to explore the 'Challenger Deep' which lies in the Mariana Trench in the Western Pacific. At 35,000 feet, it is the deepest place on Earth. This documentary chronicles the dedication of biologists, engineers, geologists and oceanographers as they collaborate to deploy a unique, state-of-the-art deep-sea vehicle. The underwater machine is known as 'Nereus', named after the mythical Greek god with a fish tail and a man's torso and is currently the deepest-diving vehicle in operation. It is designed to function in the conditions of the Challenger Deep, the deepest point of the Earth's oceans, where the environment is harsh and intense. Its mission is to provide researchers with an eye to the bottom of the ocean floor, and retrieve invaluable biological and geological samples for further study. If it succeeds, 'Nereus' will change deep sea exploration forever. TV-PG
Friday, February 11, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
Ovation Channel
World History and Geography
Middle and High School
“Royal London”
London is a city filled with historical wonders. This is a tour of London the way the monarchs saw it. We'll tour Westminster Abbey, St. Paul's Cathedral, Greenwich Observatory, and the magnificent Kew Gardens. 'These are the sites the royals have enjoyed for ages, and much like the monarchy have proven to be unforgettable bastions of England.
Saturday, February 12, 2011,
10 a.m. – 2 a.m. ET, 7-10 p.m. PT
TCM- Turner Classic Movies
U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Gone With the Wind”
This Oscar-winning movie provides an ideas of what life and the issues were before, during and after the Civil War. Viewers follow the story of a fictional family, the O'Hara’s, one of the most prominent and wealthy families in Georgia and their plantation Tara which is often host to the region's biggest social events. Among the O'Hara children, Scarlett is the most headstrong, vain and impetuous of three daughters. She has her choice of many suitors but becomes intent on marrying Ashley Wilkes, a sensitive intellectual. When the Civil War erupts and brings devastation and poverty to the O'Hara family, Scarlett becomes the one who fights the hardest to preserve her family's beloved Tara. Through the roughest period of the Reconstruction, Scarlett struggles to maintain ownership of her estate while resisting and eventually succumbing to her most ardent suitor, Rhett Butler, who matches her in stubborn determination . TV-G
Log on http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=414427
Saturday, February 5, 2011,
6-7 p.m. ET 3-4 p.m. PT
Ovation Channel
Arts and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Satchmo: Louis Armstrong”
This is a documentary about one of the 20th century's most loved jazz performers, Louis Armstrong. The program pieces together the life of Satchmo using never-before-seen homemade films, clips from stage shows, and excerpts from some of his movies including Hello, Dolly, Atlantic City, and High Society. Armstrong's songs are prominently featured, including the classics "West End Blues," "Potato Head Blues," "Weather Bird," "On the Sunny Side of the Street," and "When You're Smiling". The documentary also includes commentaries from Armstrong's contemporaries and musicians influenced by his music, including legends Dexter Gordon, Tony Bennett, and Wynton Marsalis.
Log on http://www.louisarmstronghouse.org/
Saturday, February 5, 2011,
8-10 p.m. ET , 5-7 p.m. PT
TCM- Turner Classic Movie Channel
Math and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Stand And Deliver”
This movie tells the true story of a dedicated East Los Angeles high school teacher who transforms some of his students into math scholars. Edward James Olmos delivers n Oscar-nominated performance in the role of the late Jamie Escalante, a Colombian-born engineer who left the business world to teach the youth of L.A.'s barrio slums and used unorthodox methods to inspire them to learn. Film co-stars Lou Diamond Phillips, Andy Garcia.
Log on http://www.thefutureschannel.com/jaime_escalante/jaime_escalante_math_program.php
Sunday, February 6, 2011,
10-11 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. History
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Nancy Reagan: The Role Of A Lifetime”
Loving spouse, close confidant and savvy political observer, Nancy Reagan was a powerful force behind Ronald Reagan’s political success. Criticized for taking a seemingly traditional role as first lady during an era focused on women’s rights, those within Ronald Reagan’s inner circle recognized Nancy Reagan as much more than the supportive and stylish spouse who redecorated the White House. Historians have now concluded that Nancy Reagan was one of the most influential first ladies in modern times. She had far-reaching impact on personnel and policy issues. She is credited with moving President Reagan to a more moderate position toward the Soviet Union and getting her husband to publically admit his involvement in Iran-Contra, a move that likely saved his presidency. She was, and continues to be, a formidable and influential political adviser, skills she uses as she guards her husband’s legacy and champions stem cell research. In an extended interview with Judy Woodruff, Nancy Reagan reflects on her childhood, her life as an actress, her marriage to Ronald Reagan, their lifelong romance and her role as his most trusted adviser in a political career that would take them from the back lots of Hollywood, to the California governor’s mansion and then to the White House. TV-G
Log on http://www.pbs.org/newshour/nancy-reagan/
Monday, February 7, 2011,
8-9 p.m. ET , 5-6 p.m. PT
CNBC
Science and Economics
Middle and High School
“The Facebook Obsession"
This documentary tells thestory behind the rise of the largest social-media site in the world, told through the company's founders, friends and foes. Reporter Lester Holt looks at how this Internet phenomenon, with half a billion users, is affecting society in ways most people are unaware of. From a girl who is reunited with her birth mother with the help of Facebook, to a woman who lost her job because of her online postings, The program examines how the site is fundamentally altering American life for better or worse; even the White House and many police departments have their own Facebook pages. Holt explores the intense privacy debate that Facebook has provoked, and explains the business model that has turned a dorm-room venture into a multi-billion dollar enterprise.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/39618344
Tuesday February 8, 2011,
9-11:30 p.m. ET, 6-8:30 p.m. PT
TCM – Turner Classic Movies
U.S. History
High School
“Glory”
This Oscar-winning movie dramatizes historical events during the American Civil War, including the formation of the first black regiment, the 54th Massachusetts Voluntary Infantry. It stars Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, and Morgan Freeman, and is especially memorable for its attention to physical detail. It deals with the plight of African-American troops during the War Between the States, a topic that is barely touched upon in this country's history books. Many of the narrative's key battles were fought between men who were supposed to be comrades in arms. TV-MA
Log on http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=76506&category=Articles
Wednesday, February 9, 2011,
9-11 p.m. E/P
History Channel
U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Reagan”
As a leader, he changed the course of history. As a man, he was surrounded by myth and intrigue. His popularity and his politics may have been straightforward, but presidential scholars and historians have yet to define exactly what made our 40th President “bigger than life.” This documentary brings insight to Ronald Reagan’s ascent from an impoverished childhood to the nation’s highest office. It looks at the trajectory of Reagan’s 93-years – from his nomadic youth in the mid-west, his Hollywood career, his election as Governor of California and ultimately as Commander-in-Chief, and finally, his gracious journey into the sunset of his life. The program explores the makings of a man who was both admired as a hero, and criticized. Yet whatever one thought about his policies, his resiliency communicated hope and strength to a divided America. “When a guy gets up and takes a bullet and walks away with a smile,” says David Gergen, CNN senior political analyst and former Director of Communications for Reagan, “people just think differently about him.” Rare archival footage, audio and photos help to shed new light on Reagan’s enigmatic character, as do interviews with those who knew him. Along with Gergen, they include former White House correspondent Sam Donaldson, former Secretaries of State George Shultz and Gen. Colin Powell, and CBS news correspondent Bob Schieffer, among others. Also weighing in is Secret Service agent Jerry Parr, who was with Reagan at the time of the attempted assassination, recounting the harrowing ordeal and the decision Parr made which saved the President’s life.
Log on http://www.history.com/topics/ronald-reagan
Wednesday, February 9, 2011, 10-11 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and Technology
Middle and High School
“NOVA: Smartest Machine on Earth”
This documentary investigates the world of artificial intelligence and profiles the computer that could be the “Smartest Machine on Earth.” Known as “Watson,” this IBM supercomputer is so advanced it’s pursuing the first-of-its-kind challenge of competing against “Jeopardy!” champions to prove its uncanny ability to mimic the human-thought process. Augmenting human intelligence is a lot tougher than it looks, and the promise of "Hal" from 2001: A Space Odyssey is still just a fantasy. With a brain the size of 2,400 home computers and a database of about 10 million documents, will Watson be able to compute its way to victory? Given the complexity of human language, could any computer truly understand it? It remains to be seen if this amalgam of circuits and silicon can really take us closer to the dream of a fully developed artificial intelligence, a truly "conscious" machine. Win or lose, the difficulty of mimicking the human thought process with software is showing artificial-intelligence researchers that there's more than one way to be "intelligent." TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/smartest-machine-on-earth.html
Thursday, February 10, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
Science Channel
Science
Middle and High School
“Dive to the Bottom of the World”
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has assembled a team of experienced scientists and engineers to explore the 'Challenger Deep' which lies in the Mariana Trench in the Western Pacific. At 35,000 feet, it is the deepest place on Earth. This documentary chronicles the dedication of biologists, engineers, geologists and oceanographers as they collaborate to deploy a unique, state-of-the-art deep-sea vehicle. The underwater machine is known as 'Nereus', named after the mythical Greek god with a fish tail and a man's torso and is currently the deepest-diving vehicle in operation. It is designed to function in the conditions of the Challenger Deep, the deepest point of the Earth's oceans, where the environment is harsh and intense. Its mission is to provide researchers with an eye to the bottom of the ocean floor, and retrieve invaluable biological and geological samples for further study. If it succeeds, 'Nereus' will change deep sea exploration forever. TV-PG
Friday, February 11, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
Ovation Channel
World History and Geography
Middle and High School
“Royal London”
London is a city filled with historical wonders. This is a tour of London the way the monarchs saw it. We'll tour Westminster Abbey, St. Paul's Cathedral, Greenwich Observatory, and the magnificent Kew Gardens. 'These are the sites the royals have enjoyed for ages, and much like the monarchy have proven to be unforgettable bastions of England.
Saturday, February 12, 2011,
10 a.m. – 2 a.m. ET, 7-10 p.m. PT
TCM- Turner Classic Movies
U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Gone With the Wind”
This Oscar-winning movie provides an ideas of what life and the issues were before, during and after the Civil War. Viewers follow the story of a fictional family, the O'Hara’s, one of the most prominent and wealthy families in Georgia and their plantation Tara which is often host to the region's biggest social events. Among the O'Hara children, Scarlett is the most headstrong, vain and impetuous of three daughters. She has her choice of many suitors but becomes intent on marrying Ashley Wilkes, a sensitive intellectual. When the Civil War erupts and brings devastation and poverty to the O'Hara family, Scarlett becomes the one who fights the hardest to preserve her family's beloved Tara. Through the roughest period of the Reconstruction, Scarlett struggles to maintain ownership of her estate while resisting and eventually succumbing to her most ardent suitor, Rhett Butler, who matches her in stubborn determination . TV-G
Log on http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=414427
Friday, January 28, 2011
Media Menu, January 29, 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, January 29, 2011,
7-8 p.m. ET, 4-5 p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
Economics
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Supermarkets Inc: Inside a $500 Billion Money Machine"
The typical modern American supermarket stocks 48,000 items, each battling for precious shelf space. How do they get there? Why are they arranged the way they are? This documentary goes inside the neighborhood supermarket and explores an industry that is using every device in its arsenal to learn as much as it can about you—watching, trailing and analyzing your shopping habits in ways you never imagined. As a supermarket shopper, you are part of the largest and longest running psychological experiment in history. From the minute you enter the store, you are the target not only of old-fashioned salesmanship, but high-tech tools designed to track and entice you into buying more. Did you know that stores put milk at the end of the aisle so shoppers are forced to pass hundreds of other items on their way to get it -- or that the bakery and produce departments are often located near the entrance because they have the best aroma and are the most visually appealing? The competition is fierce and retailers are doing whatever they can to gain an edge in a cutthroat business built on razor-thin margins. The program travels to Pittsburgh to go behind-the-scenes at a new upscale Giant Eagle Market District supermarket, three times the size of a typical grocery store The store manager explains the amazing logistical ballet required to stock 65,000 products and run one American grocery store for one day.
Log on http://www. supermarketsinc.cnbc.com
Sunday, January 30, 2011,
7-8 p.m. E/P
CBS
World History and Science
Middle and High School
“60 Minutes”
In the main story in this newsmagazine, entitled “WikiLeaks”, Julian Assange, the controversial founder of WikiLeaks, speaks to Steve Kroft about the U.S. attempt to indict him on criminal charges and the torrent of criticism aimed at him for publishing classified documents. The second story, “Jaguars”, goes in search of the most elusive of all of nature’s big cats, the jaguar, and captured amazing footage of them in the Brazilian jungle. Bob Simon reports.
Log on http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/60minutes/main3415.shtml
Monday, January, 31, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and World History
Middle and High School
“AMERICAN EXPERIENCE: The Greely Expedition”
In 1881, 25 men led by Lieutenant Adolphus Greely sailed from the harbor of St. John’s, Newfoundland. Their destination was Lady Franklin Bay in the high Arctic, where they planned to collect a wealth of scientific data from a vast area of the world’s surface that had been described by a British admiral as a “sheer blank.” Three years later, only six survivors returned, with a daunting story of shipwreck, starvation, mutiny and cannibalism. This documentary, tells a harrowing tale of one of the great scientific adventures of all time. Drawing on an impressive documentary record that includes scientific accounts, diaries, photographs and letters, the film reveals the nearly unbearable pressures experienced by the members of the expedition, and shows how poor planning, personality clashes, questionable decisions and pure bad luck conspired to turn a noble scientific mission into a human tragedy. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/greely/player
Tuesday, February 1, 2011,
10-11 p.m. ET, 7-8 p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
Science and World History
Middle and High School
“60 Minutes on CNBC: Powering The Planet”
This program takes viewers a step further into investigative reports, interviews, profiles, and features stories that have made "60 Minutes" important viewing. CNBC now presents updates and never before seen footage of these award winning business news stories. Included in this broadcast: “130 Million Tons of Waste” - The U.S. burns so much coal to generate electricity, that it creates 130 million tons of waste every year. So where do these toxins end up? For some people, it’s a little too close to home. “The Oil Sands” - The oil boom in Alberta Canada, where the oil sands produce a million barrels a day, is creating big problems for the oil companies. “The Age of Warming” -Antarctica is the fastest warming place on Earth, the apparent results of global warming.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/40795923
Wednesday, February 2, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science
Elementary, Middle and High School
“NOVA scienceNOW “How Does the Brain Work?”
Can new science help us understand how the brain allows us to think, act, feel, behave and process the world around us? This episode of NOVA scienceNOW examines magic and the brain, artificial intelligence, magnetic mind control, and the work of neuroscientist and synesthesia researcher David Eagleman. Can we really believe our own eyes? Will machines one day think like us? Can magnetic wands effectively control brain functions and treat depression? Explore this and more. TV-G
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/how-does-the-brain-work.html
Wednesday, February 2, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science
Elementary, Middle and High School
“NOVA: Making Stuff - Making Stuff Cleaner”
Hosted by The New York Times technology columnist David Pogue, this is an episode of a science documentary series about the personal qualities that underlie the process of invention — the visionary talent, sheer luck and determination that turn a wild idea into a cutting-edge material. In this episode, entitled Making Stuff Cleaner”, Pogue is on a quest to clean up, using new green materials to build and power the devices of the future. Batteries grown from viruses, plastics made of sugar and solar cells that cook up hydrogen are just the beginning of a new generation of clean materials. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/making-stuff-cleaner.html
Thursday, February 3, 2011,
9-11 p.m. ET, 6-8 p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
U.S. History, Arts and Economics
Middle and High School
“Walt: The Man Behind the Myth"
This documentary traces the life of Walt Disney , one of America’s most enduring icons in arts and entertainment. Based on over 75 interviews with Walt’s friends and collaborators as well as leading historians, the program covers the stories of how Walt conceived of Mickey Mouse and created the first feature-length animated cartoon with "Snow White," the film also reveals the lesser-known saga of how the studio faced near-bankruptcy in the wake of a strike and World War II; how Walt skimped and saved, and even cashed in his family's life insurance, in order to finance the early development of Disneyland; how the Disney Studio broke the Hollywood taboo of early television; and how, in his final days, Walt was fully devoted to building a city of the future near what is today Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
Log on http://pantheontv.com/Pantheon_Studios/Walt.html
Friday, February 4, 2011,
4-6 p.m. E/P
Planet Green Channel
Science
Middle and High School
“Expedition Alaska”
This is a broadcast of both episodes of a documentary miniseries about Alaska. It is a land of great natural diversity, but it is changing at a rapid rate. These programs follow a team of some of the world's top scientists and wildlife filmmakers as they explore this remote landscape to document what impact global warming is having on Alaska. TV-PG
Log on http://www.yourdiscovery.com/web/alaska/ontv/expeditionalaska/
Saturday, February 5, 2011,
6-7 p.m. ET 3-4 p.m. PT
Ovation Channel
Arts and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Satchmo: Louis Armstrong”
This is a documentary about one of the 20th century's most loved jazz performers, Louis Armstrong. The program pieces together the life of Satchmo using never-before-seen homemade films, clips from stage shows, and excerpts from some of his movies including Hello, Dolly, Atlantic City, and High Society. Armstrong's songs are prominently featured, including the classics "West End Blues," "Potato Head Blues," "Weather Bird," "On the Sunny Side of the Street," and "When You're Smiling". The documentary also includes commentaries from Armstrong's contemporaries and musicians influenced by his music, including legends Dexter Gordon, Tony Bennett, and Wynton Marsalis.
Log on http://www.louisarmstronghouse.org/
Saturday, February 5, 2011,
8-10 p.m. ET , 5-7 p.m. PT
TCM- Turner Classic Movie Channel
Math and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Stand And Deliver”
This movie tells the true story of a dedicated East Los Angeles high school teacher who transforms some of his students into math scholars. Edward James Olmos delivers n Oscar-nominated performance in the role of the late Jamie Escalante, a Colombian-born engineer who left the business world to teach the youth of L.A.'s barrio slums and used unorthodox methods to inspire them to learn. Film co-stars Lou Diamond Phillips, Andy Garcia.
Log on http://www.thefutureschannel.com/jaime_escalante/jaime_escalante_math_program.php
and may contain links to video clips from the show or a complete streaming video version of the show.
Saturday, January 29, 2011,
7-8 p.m. ET, 4-5 p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
Economics
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Supermarkets Inc: Inside a $500 Billion Money Machine"
The typical modern American supermarket stocks 48,000 items, each battling for precious shelf space. How do they get there? Why are they arranged the way they are? This documentary goes inside the neighborhood supermarket and explores an industry that is using every device in its arsenal to learn as much as it can about you—watching, trailing and analyzing your shopping habits in ways you never imagined. As a supermarket shopper, you are part of the largest and longest running psychological experiment in history. From the minute you enter the store, you are the target not only of old-fashioned salesmanship, but high-tech tools designed to track and entice you into buying more. Did you know that stores put milk at the end of the aisle so shoppers are forced to pass hundreds of other items on their way to get it -- or that the bakery and produce departments are often located near the entrance because they have the best aroma and are the most visually appealing? The competition is fierce and retailers are doing whatever they can to gain an edge in a cutthroat business built on razor-thin margins. The program travels to Pittsburgh to go behind-the-scenes at a new upscale Giant Eagle Market District supermarket, three times the size of a typical grocery store The store manager explains the amazing logistical ballet required to stock 65,000 products and run one American grocery store for one day.
Log on http://www. supermarketsinc.cnbc.com
Sunday, January 30, 2011,
7-8 p.m. E/P
CBS
World History and Science
Middle and High School
“60 Minutes”
In the main story in this newsmagazine, entitled “WikiLeaks”, Julian Assange, the controversial founder of WikiLeaks, speaks to Steve Kroft about the U.S. attempt to indict him on criminal charges and the torrent of criticism aimed at him for publishing classified documents. The second story, “Jaguars”, goes in search of the most elusive of all of nature’s big cats, the jaguar, and captured amazing footage of them in the Brazilian jungle. Bob Simon reports.
Log on http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/60minutes/main3415.shtml
Monday, January, 31, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and World History
Middle and High School
“AMERICAN EXPERIENCE: The Greely Expedition”
In 1881, 25 men led by Lieutenant Adolphus Greely sailed from the harbor of St. John’s, Newfoundland. Their destination was Lady Franklin Bay in the high Arctic, where they planned to collect a wealth of scientific data from a vast area of the world’s surface that had been described by a British admiral as a “sheer blank.” Three years later, only six survivors returned, with a daunting story of shipwreck, starvation, mutiny and cannibalism. This documentary, tells a harrowing tale of one of the great scientific adventures of all time. Drawing on an impressive documentary record that includes scientific accounts, diaries, photographs and letters, the film reveals the nearly unbearable pressures experienced by the members of the expedition, and shows how poor planning, personality clashes, questionable decisions and pure bad luck conspired to turn a noble scientific mission into a human tragedy. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/greely/player
Tuesday, February 1, 2011,
10-11 p.m. ET, 7-8 p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
Science and World History
Middle and High School
“60 Minutes on CNBC: Powering The Planet”
This program takes viewers a step further into investigative reports, interviews, profiles, and features stories that have made "60 Minutes" important viewing. CNBC now presents updates and never before seen footage of these award winning business news stories. Included in this broadcast: “130 Million Tons of Waste” - The U.S. burns so much coal to generate electricity, that it creates 130 million tons of waste every year. So where do these toxins end up? For some people, it’s a little too close to home. “The Oil Sands” - The oil boom in Alberta Canada, where the oil sands produce a million barrels a day, is creating big problems for the oil companies. “The Age of Warming” -Antarctica is the fastest warming place on Earth, the apparent results of global warming.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/40795923
Wednesday, February 2, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science
Elementary, Middle and High School
“NOVA scienceNOW “How Does the Brain Work?”
Can new science help us understand how the brain allows us to think, act, feel, behave and process the world around us? This episode of NOVA scienceNOW examines magic and the brain, artificial intelligence, magnetic mind control, and the work of neuroscientist and synesthesia researcher David Eagleman. Can we really believe our own eyes? Will machines one day think like us? Can magnetic wands effectively control brain functions and treat depression? Explore this and more. TV-G
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/how-does-the-brain-work.html
Wednesday, February 2, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science
Elementary, Middle and High School
“NOVA: Making Stuff - Making Stuff Cleaner”
Hosted by The New York Times technology columnist David Pogue, this is an episode of a science documentary series about the personal qualities that underlie the process of invention — the visionary talent, sheer luck and determination that turn a wild idea into a cutting-edge material. In this episode, entitled Making Stuff Cleaner”, Pogue is on a quest to clean up, using new green materials to build and power the devices of the future. Batteries grown from viruses, plastics made of sugar and solar cells that cook up hydrogen are just the beginning of a new generation of clean materials. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/making-stuff-cleaner.html
Thursday, February 3, 2011,
9-11 p.m. ET, 6-8 p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
U.S. History, Arts and Economics
Middle and High School
“Walt: The Man Behind the Myth"
This documentary traces the life of Walt Disney , one of America’s most enduring icons in arts and entertainment. Based on over 75 interviews with Walt’s friends and collaborators as well as leading historians, the program covers the stories of how Walt conceived of Mickey Mouse and created the first feature-length animated cartoon with "Snow White," the film also reveals the lesser-known saga of how the studio faced near-bankruptcy in the wake of a strike and World War II; how Walt skimped and saved, and even cashed in his family's life insurance, in order to finance the early development of Disneyland; how the Disney Studio broke the Hollywood taboo of early television; and how, in his final days, Walt was fully devoted to building a city of the future near what is today Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
Log on http://pantheontv.com/Pantheon_Studios/Walt.html
Friday, February 4, 2011,
4-6 p.m. E/P
Planet Green Channel
Science
Middle and High School
“Expedition Alaska”
This is a broadcast of both episodes of a documentary miniseries about Alaska. It is a land of great natural diversity, but it is changing at a rapid rate. These programs follow a team of some of the world's top scientists and wildlife filmmakers as they explore this remote landscape to document what impact global warming is having on Alaska. TV-PG
Log on http://www.yourdiscovery.com/web/alaska/ontv/expeditionalaska/
Saturday, February 5, 2011,
6-7 p.m. ET 3-4 p.m. PT
Ovation Channel
Arts and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Satchmo: Louis Armstrong”
This is a documentary about one of the 20th century's most loved jazz performers, Louis Armstrong. The program pieces together the life of Satchmo using never-before-seen homemade films, clips from stage shows, and excerpts from some of his movies including Hello, Dolly, Atlantic City, and High Society. Armstrong's songs are prominently featured, including the classics "West End Blues," "Potato Head Blues," "Weather Bird," "On the Sunny Side of the Street," and "When You're Smiling". The documentary also includes commentaries from Armstrong's contemporaries and musicians influenced by his music, including legends Dexter Gordon, Tony Bennett, and Wynton Marsalis.
Log on http://www.louisarmstronghouse.org/
Saturday, February 5, 2011,
8-10 p.m. ET , 5-7 p.m. PT
TCM- Turner Classic Movie Channel
Math and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“Stand And Deliver”
This movie tells the true story of a dedicated East Los Angeles high school teacher who transforms some of his students into math scholars. Edward James Olmos delivers n Oscar-nominated performance in the role of the late Jamie Escalante, a Colombian-born engineer who left the business world to teach the youth of L.A.'s barrio slums and used unorthodox methods to inspire them to learn. Film co-stars Lou Diamond Phillips, Andy Garcia.
Log on http://www.thefutureschannel.com/jaime_escalante/jaime_escalante_math_program.php
Friday, January 21, 2011
Media Menu, January 22, 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, January 22, 2011,
10:15-12:30 p.m. E/P
IFC- Independent Film Channel
U.S. History and Economics
Middle and High School
“Harlan County, USA”
Director Barbara Kopple's Oscar winning documentary look at a 13-month coal miners' strike that took place between 1973 and 1974 in Harlan County, KY. It, is one of the great films about labor troubles, though not for a sense of objectivity. Kopple lived among the miners and their families off and on during the four years the entire story played out, and it's clear in every frame of the film that her sympathies lie with the miners and not their bosses at Eastover Mining, owned by Duke Power Company. Kopple's camera focuses on the desperate plight of people still living in shacks with no indoor plumbing and working dangerous jobs with little security and few safety rules. The miners are determined to join the United Mine Workers, and the company is determined to break the strike with scabs, who are even more desperate than the men with jobs. The miners eventually win a new contract, though it turns out that some of the benefits they had fought for were not included in the final deal. The filmmaker's strong identification with one side of a labor struggle doesn't make for a balanced historical record, but it did provide the right stuff for a powerfully dramatic film.
Log on http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074605
Sunday, January 23, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
Science Channel
Science and Geography
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Mutant Planet: Australia”
This is a documentary about Australia. a floating laboratory whose ancient geological past and changing climate have triggered mutations in the animals here, culminating in over 200 species of bizarre pouched marsupials, which are all equipped with astounding survival features.
Monday, January 24, 2011,
9:00-10:30 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. and World History
Middle and High School
“Panama Canal”
On August 15, 1914, the Panama Canal opened, connecting the world’s two largest oceans and signaling America’s emergence as a global superpower. American innovation had succeeded where, just a few years earlier, the French had failed disastrously. But the U.S. paid a price for victory: more than a decade of ceaseless, grinding toil, an outlay of more than $350 million — the largest single federal expenditure in history to that time — and the loss of more than 5,000 lives. Along the way, Central America witnessed the brazen overthrow of a sovereign government, a revolutionary public health campaign, the backbreaking removal of hundreds of millions of tons of earth and construction on an unprecedented scale. The story of the canal features a cast of colorful characters ranging from an indomitable president to visionary engineers to tens of thousands of workers from around the world, rigidly segregated by race. Using an extraordinary archive of photographs and footage, some remarkable interviews with canal workers and firsthand accounts of life in the Canal zone, this documentary unravels the remarkable story of one of the world’s most significant technological achievements.
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/panama
Tuesday, January 25, 2011,
9-11p.m. ET, 6-8 p.m. PT
Major broadcast networks and cable news channels
U.S. History
Elementary, Middle and High School
“The State of the Union"
This is a live broadcast of the President’s State of the Union Message
Log on http://www.whitehouse.gov
Wednesday, January 26, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science
Elementary, Middle and High School
“NOVA scienceNOW “Can We Live Forever?”
Why do our bodies fall apart over time? Is there any way to stop the process? How well can we build body parts and organs to replace ones that get damaged? Neil deGrasse Tyson hosts this episode of NOVA scienceNOW which examines whether we can slow down the aging process, looks at the latest on human hibernation, and checks in with bioengineers and a computer scientist inventing ways to keep us "going forever." TV-G
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/can-we-live-forever.html
Wednesday, January 26, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science
Elementary, Middle and High School
“NOVA: Making Stuff - Making Stuff Smaller”
Hosted by The New York Times technology columnist David Pogue, this is an episode of a science documentary series on the personal qualities that underlie the process of invention — the visionary talent, sheer luck and determination that turn a wild idea into a cutting-edge material. This episode, is entitled “Making Stuff Smaller”. Here in the information age, smaller is better: transistors, microchips and the laptops and cell phone that they power are triumphs of tiny. Pogue takes us to an even smaller world, as he profiles the latest in high-powered nano-circuits and micro-robots that may one day hold the key to saving lives and building materials from the ground up. How small can we go? Could we one day have robots taking "fantastic voyages" in our bodies to kill rogue cells? The triumphs of tiny are seen all around us in the Information Age: transistors, microchips, laptops, cell phones. David Pogue takes viewers to an even smaller world in "Making Stuff: Smaller," examining the latest in high-powered nano-circuits and micro-robots that may one day hold the key to saving lives. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/making-stuff-smaller.html
Thursday, January 27, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
Science
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Naked Science: Dinomorphosis”
This is a documentary about new dinosaur research findings. Fuzzy babies. Stay-at-home dads. Flamboyant feathers. Exactly what you think when you hear the words T-Rex, right? If not, then think again. For hundreds of years, we thought dinosaurs ruled the planet as scaly, reptilian beasts that terrorized early earth. But new scientific advances are proving us wrong and painting an entirely new picture of not only the T-Rex, but the entire dinosaur world. With the discovery of feathered dinosaurs in China and a revolutionary new method of reconstructing original color, scientists are building a new picture of what dinosaurs actually looked like, how they behaved and how they used their feathers.
Friday, January 28, 2011,
8-8:30 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S History
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Washington Week With Gwen Ifill and National Journal”
On this edition of PBS’ longest-running public affairs series, Washington’s top journalists analyze the State Of The Union address and its possible effect on the lives of all Americans. Gwen Ifill hosts.
Log on http://www.pbs.org/weta/washingtonweek
Saturday, January 27, 2011,
7-8 p.m. ET, 4-5 p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
Economics
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Supermarkets Inc: Inside a $500 Billion Money Machine"
The typical modern American supermarket stocks 48,000 items, each battling for precious shelf space. How do they get there? Why are they arranged the way they are? This documentary goes inside the neighborhood supermarket and explores an industry that is using every device in its arsenal to learn as much as it can about you—watching, trailing and analyzing your shopping habits in ways you never imagined. As a supermarket shopper, you are part of the largest and longest running psychological experiment in history. From the minute you enter the store, you are the target not only of old-fashioned salesmanship, but high-tech tools designed to track and entice you into buying more. Did you know that stores put milk at the end of the aisle so shoppers are forced to pass hundreds of other items on their way to get it -- or that the bakery and produce departments are often located near the entrance because they have the best aroma and are the most visually appealing? The competition is fierce and retailers are doing whatever they can to gain an edge in a cutthroat business built on razor-thin margins. The program travels to Pittsburgh to go behind-the-scenes at a new upscale Giant Eagle Market District supermarket, three times the size of a typical grocery store The store manager explains the amazing logistical ballet required to stock 65,000 products and run one American grocery store for one day.
Log on http://www. supermarketsinc.cnbc.com
Saturday, January 22, 2011,
10:15-12:30 p.m. E/P
IFC- Independent Film Channel
U.S. History and Economics
Middle and High School
“Harlan County, USA”
Director Barbara Kopple's Oscar winning documentary look at a 13-month coal miners' strike that took place between 1973 and 1974 in Harlan County, KY. It, is one of the great films about labor troubles, though not for a sense of objectivity. Kopple lived among the miners and their families off and on during the four years the entire story played out, and it's clear in every frame of the film that her sympathies lie with the miners and not their bosses at Eastover Mining, owned by Duke Power Company. Kopple's camera focuses on the desperate plight of people still living in shacks with no indoor plumbing and working dangerous jobs with little security and few safety rules. The miners are determined to join the United Mine Workers, and the company is determined to break the strike with scabs, who are even more desperate than the men with jobs. The miners eventually win a new contract, though it turns out that some of the benefits they had fought for were not included in the final deal. The filmmaker's strong identification with one side of a labor struggle doesn't make for a balanced historical record, but it did provide the right stuff for a powerfully dramatic film.
Log on http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074605
Sunday, January 23, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
Science Channel
Science and Geography
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Mutant Planet: Australia”
This is a documentary about Australia. a floating laboratory whose ancient geological past and changing climate have triggered mutations in the animals here, culminating in over 200 species of bizarre pouched marsupials, which are all equipped with astounding survival features.
Monday, January 24, 2011,
9:00-10:30 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. and World History
Middle and High School
“Panama Canal”
On August 15, 1914, the Panama Canal opened, connecting the world’s two largest oceans and signaling America’s emergence as a global superpower. American innovation had succeeded where, just a few years earlier, the French had failed disastrously. But the U.S. paid a price for victory: more than a decade of ceaseless, grinding toil, an outlay of more than $350 million — the largest single federal expenditure in history to that time — and the loss of more than 5,000 lives. Along the way, Central America witnessed the brazen overthrow of a sovereign government, a revolutionary public health campaign, the backbreaking removal of hundreds of millions of tons of earth and construction on an unprecedented scale. The story of the canal features a cast of colorful characters ranging from an indomitable president to visionary engineers to tens of thousands of workers from around the world, rigidly segregated by race. Using an extraordinary archive of photographs and footage, some remarkable interviews with canal workers and firsthand accounts of life in the Canal zone, this documentary unravels the remarkable story of one of the world’s most significant technological achievements.
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/panama
Tuesday, January 25, 2011,
9-11p.m. ET, 6-8 p.m. PT
Major broadcast networks and cable news channels
U.S. History
Elementary, Middle and High School
“The State of the Union"
This is a live broadcast of the President’s State of the Union Message
Log on http://www.whitehouse.gov
Wednesday, January 26, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science
Elementary, Middle and High School
“NOVA scienceNOW “Can We Live Forever?”
Why do our bodies fall apart over time? Is there any way to stop the process? How well can we build body parts and organs to replace ones that get damaged? Neil deGrasse Tyson hosts this episode of NOVA scienceNOW which examines whether we can slow down the aging process, looks at the latest on human hibernation, and checks in with bioengineers and a computer scientist inventing ways to keep us "going forever." TV-G
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/can-we-live-forever.html
Wednesday, January 26, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science
Elementary, Middle and High School
“NOVA: Making Stuff - Making Stuff Smaller”
Hosted by The New York Times technology columnist David Pogue, this is an episode of a science documentary series on the personal qualities that underlie the process of invention — the visionary talent, sheer luck and determination that turn a wild idea into a cutting-edge material. This episode, is entitled “Making Stuff Smaller”. Here in the information age, smaller is better: transistors, microchips and the laptops and cell phone that they power are triumphs of tiny. Pogue takes us to an even smaller world, as he profiles the latest in high-powered nano-circuits and micro-robots that may one day hold the key to saving lives and building materials from the ground up. How small can we go? Could we one day have robots taking "fantastic voyages" in our bodies to kill rogue cells? The triumphs of tiny are seen all around us in the Information Age: transistors, microchips, laptops, cell phones. David Pogue takes viewers to an even smaller world in "Making Stuff: Smaller," examining the latest in high-powered nano-circuits and micro-robots that may one day hold the key to saving lives. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/making-stuff-smaller.html
Thursday, January 27, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
Science
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Naked Science: Dinomorphosis”
This is a documentary about new dinosaur research findings. Fuzzy babies. Stay-at-home dads. Flamboyant feathers. Exactly what you think when you hear the words T-Rex, right? If not, then think again. For hundreds of years, we thought dinosaurs ruled the planet as scaly, reptilian beasts that terrorized early earth. But new scientific advances are proving us wrong and painting an entirely new picture of not only the T-Rex, but the entire dinosaur world. With the discovery of feathered dinosaurs in China and a revolutionary new method of reconstructing original color, scientists are building a new picture of what dinosaurs actually looked like, how they behaved and how they used their feathers.
Friday, January 28, 2011,
8-8:30 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S History
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Washington Week With Gwen Ifill and National Journal”
On this edition of PBS’ longest-running public affairs series, Washington’s top journalists analyze the State Of The Union address and its possible effect on the lives of all Americans. Gwen Ifill hosts.
Log on http://www.pbs.org/weta/washingtonweek
Saturday, January 27, 2011,
7-8 p.m. ET, 4-5 p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
Economics
Elementary, Middle and High School
“Supermarkets Inc: Inside a $500 Billion Money Machine"
The typical modern American supermarket stocks 48,000 items, each battling for precious shelf space. How do they get there? Why are they arranged the way they are? This documentary goes inside the neighborhood supermarket and explores an industry that is using every device in its arsenal to learn as much as it can about you—watching, trailing and analyzing your shopping habits in ways you never imagined. As a supermarket shopper, you are part of the largest and longest running psychological experiment in history. From the minute you enter the store, you are the target not only of old-fashioned salesmanship, but high-tech tools designed to track and entice you into buying more. Did you know that stores put milk at the end of the aisle so shoppers are forced to pass hundreds of other items on their way to get it -- or that the bakery and produce departments are often located near the entrance because they have the best aroma and are the most visually appealing? The competition is fierce and retailers are doing whatever they can to gain an edge in a cutthroat business built on razor-thin margins. The program travels to Pittsburgh to go behind-the-scenes at a new upscale Giant Eagle Market District supermarket, three times the size of a typical grocery store The store manager explains the amazing logistical ballet required to stock 65,000 products and run one American grocery store for one day.
Log on http://www. supermarketsinc.cnbc.com
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Media Menu, January 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, January 15, 2011,
8-9 p.m. ET, 5-6- p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
U.S. History and Economy
Middle and High School
“Target: Inside the Bullseye"
In this documentary Target store CEO Gregg Steinhafel, reveals how his stores became both tastemaker and discount retailer extraordinaire while continually reminding its customers to "Expect More, Pay Less." A $65 billion-dollar discount icon that changed the face of shopping, the chain rose humble beginnings as a family-owned Minneapolis department store to retail giant. Founder 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. 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.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/40588422
Sunday, January 16, 2011,
7-8- p.m. E/P
CBS
U.S. and World History
High School
“60 Minutes"
In the first story in this newsmagazine reporter Scott Pelly interviews friends and classmates and ex-Secret Service to reconstruct the pathway to mass murder Jared Loughner allegedly took in Tucson – a pattern these agents who once guarded the president could write a textbook about. In the second story Steve Kroft reports on the U.S.’s new partner in the war on terror, Yemen, a known al Qaeda hideout and recently the source of several explosive packages sent to America. .
Log on http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/60minutes/main3415.shtml?tag=hdr;snav
Monday, January 17, 2011,
10-11 p.m. E/P
PBS
World History
Middle and High School
“After The Wall: A World United”
This a documentary about the rise and fall of the Berlin Wall, also about the unification of Germany after 40 years of separation, and the peaceful end of the Cold War. It covers the events of 1990, going behind the scenes of this unparalleled diplomatic effort to examine how the relationships among world leaders determined the outcome. Interviews with George Bush, Mikhail Gorbachev and Helmut Kohl offer unusual and intimate details about the inner workings of government at the highest levels. Other major players from all sides provide insightful and often surprising perspectives, including then-Secretary of State James Baker, National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft and his aide Condoleezza Rice, and West German National Security Advisor Horst Teltschik. Hear first-hand testimony from East German leaders who oversaw the abrupt and unexpected end of their 40-year-old experiment in socialism, as well as the stories of ordinary Germans who had to re-invent their lives and make their way in a new nation. TV-PG
Tuesday, January 18, 2011,
8-10 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
World History
Elementary Middle and High School
“When Rome Ruled: Birth of Rome/ Ancient Superpower”
This is a broadcast of two documentaries about ancient Rome. In the first, “The Birth Of Rome’, viewers see that over centuries, the Romans transformed a swamp on the banks of the Tiber into a settlement, then a city of brick and ultimately the gleaming marble core of the ancient world's greatest empire. Journey through massive Roman tunnels and trace the city's architectural and engineering evolution, including tombs, temples, monuments and aqueducts. The second program, “Ancient Superpower”, explains that for centuries, Rome governed hundreds of thousands of people in an empire that covered as much as 2 million square miles. In an age when most travel was done on foot, how was this possible? Digging deep into the lives of two emperors who presided over one of the most successful periods in Roman history, the program explores how the empire owed its longevity to its ambition, innovation and genius for administration. See how Rome endured for centuries as one of the greatest bureaucracies on earth, and the far-reaching legacy she left Western civilization.
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/when-rome-ruled/all/Overview
Tuesday, January 18, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
CNBC Channel
U.S. History and Economics
High School
“60 Minutes on CNBC: Your Money”
This is an anthology of economic reports initially aired on CBC’ “60 Minutes”. Included are three stories about money: First an interview with a sitting Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke talks to 60 Minutes on CNBC about America's financial crisis and recovery. Second, What happens when a bank fails? The program’s reporters gain exclusive access to the FDIC's takeover of a Chicago bank. Third, a report about the ongoing debate over the necessity of U.S. pennies and nickels, whose metal content is worth more than their face value.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/40795923/
Tuesday, January 18, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. and World History
High School
“FRONTLINE: Are We Safer?”
In this documentary, Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post reporter Dana Priest investigates the terrorism-industrial complex that grew up in the wake of 9/11. Against a backdrop of recent mail bomb threats from Al Qaeda in Yemen and growing concerns about homegrown terrorists, Priest explores the growing reach of homeland security, fusion centers, battlefield technologies and data-collecting into the lives of ordinary Americans.
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/are-we-safer/?utm_campaign=homepage&utm_medium=proglist&utm_source=proglist
Wednesday, January 19, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and Technology
Middle and High School
“NOVA: Making Stuff”
This is the premiere of a new science documentary series hosted by The New York Times technology columnist David Pogue, The series focus is on the personal qualities that underlie the process of invention — the visionary talent, sheer luck and dogged determination that turn a wild idea into a cutting-edge material. This episode, entitled “Making Stuff Stronger”, asks what is the world’s strongest material? From steel to Kevlar and spider silk to carbon nanotubes, Pogue looks at the ways in which science and nature work to make strong stuff. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/making-stuff-stronger.html
Link to the PBS iPhone app: http://to.pbs.org/pbsiphone
Thursday, January 20, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
Science and Technology
Middle and High School
“America's Secret Weapon"
This documentary provides viewers rare access to a highly classified division of the Defense Department known as DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). It's considered to be America’s secret weapon lab, and although most civilians have never heard of it, its innovations have led to the invention of the Internet, the computer mouse and the global positioning system. We'll unlock the door to this highly classified facility for an insider's look at the latest generation of remarkable breakthroughs. We'll get a sneak peek at unmanned aerial vehicles, the Navy Seals' power swim technology and hypersonic aircraft.
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/inside/3933/Overview
Friday, January 21, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
History Channel
Science and Technology
Middle and High School
“Modern Marvels: Grease”
It makes the whole world go around...and up and down...and side to side. Without it, the wheels of industry and our modern existence would grind to a halt, along with everything else. This documentary takes a close up look at grease In our lifelong battle to fight friction, it is the unsung hero. Journey deep into places few people ever get to see, to discover the "hidden" uses of one of our most slippery products inside giant machines. We'll also investigate how it's made in a factory in New York, as well as what new advances some are working towards for grease of the future. We'll witness how grease is currently used inside a US Navy aircraft carrier, San Francisco's famous cable cars, elevators & escalators, assembly lines, huge excavators, amusement park rides, and even the Panama Canal. From pig fat to nano-particles... amazing grease keeps things rolling along.
Saturday, January 22, 2011,
10:15-12:30 p.m. E/P
IFC- Independent Film Channel
U.S. History and Economics
Middle and High School
“Harlan County, USA”
Director Barbara Kopple's Oscar winning documentary look at a 13-month coal miners' strike that took place between 1973 and 1974 in Harlan County, KY. It, is one of the great films about labor troubles, though not for a sense of objectivity. Kopple lived among the miners and their families off and on during the four years the entire story played out, and it's clear in every frame of the film that her sympathies lie with the miners and not their bosses at Eastover Mining, owned by Duke Power Company. Kopple's camera focuses on the desperate plight of people still living in shacks with no indoor plumbing and working dangerous jobs with little security and few safety rules. The miners are determined to join the United Mine Workers, and the company is determined to break the strike with scabs, who are even more desperate than the men with jobs. The miners eventually win a new contract, though it turns out that some of the benefits they had fought for were not included in the final deal. The filmmaker's strong identification with one side of a labor struggle doesn't make for a balanced historical record, but it did provide the right stuff for a powerfully dramatic film.
Log on http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074605
Saturday, January 15, 2011,
8-9 p.m. ET, 5-6- p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
U.S. History and Economy
Middle and High School
“Target: Inside the Bullseye"
In this documentary Target store CEO Gregg Steinhafel, reveals how his stores became both tastemaker and discount retailer extraordinaire while continually reminding its customers to "Expect More, Pay Less." A $65 billion-dollar discount icon that changed the face of shopping, the chain rose humble beginnings as a family-owned Minneapolis department store to retail giant. Founder 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. 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.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/40588422
Sunday, January 16, 2011,
7-8- p.m. E/P
CBS
U.S. and World History
High School
“60 Minutes"
In the first story in this newsmagazine reporter Scott Pelly interviews friends and classmates and ex-Secret Service to reconstruct the pathway to mass murder Jared Loughner allegedly took in Tucson – a pattern these agents who once guarded the president could write a textbook about. In the second story Steve Kroft reports on the U.S.’s new partner in the war on terror, Yemen, a known al Qaeda hideout and recently the source of several explosive packages sent to America. .
Log on http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/60minutes/main3415.shtml?tag=hdr;snav
Monday, January 17, 2011,
10-11 p.m. E/P
PBS
World History
Middle and High School
“After The Wall: A World United”
This a documentary about the rise and fall of the Berlin Wall, also about the unification of Germany after 40 years of separation, and the peaceful end of the Cold War. It covers the events of 1990, going behind the scenes of this unparalleled diplomatic effort to examine how the relationships among world leaders determined the outcome. Interviews with George Bush, Mikhail Gorbachev and Helmut Kohl offer unusual and intimate details about the inner workings of government at the highest levels. Other major players from all sides provide insightful and often surprising perspectives, including then-Secretary of State James Baker, National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft and his aide Condoleezza Rice, and West German National Security Advisor Horst Teltschik. Hear first-hand testimony from East German leaders who oversaw the abrupt and unexpected end of their 40-year-old experiment in socialism, as well as the stories of ordinary Germans who had to re-invent their lives and make their way in a new nation. TV-PG
Tuesday, January 18, 2011,
8-10 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
World History
Elementary Middle and High School
“When Rome Ruled: Birth of Rome/ Ancient Superpower”
This is a broadcast of two documentaries about ancient Rome. In the first, “The Birth Of Rome’, viewers see that over centuries, the Romans transformed a swamp on the banks of the Tiber into a settlement, then a city of brick and ultimately the gleaming marble core of the ancient world's greatest empire. Journey through massive Roman tunnels and trace the city's architectural and engineering evolution, including tombs, temples, monuments and aqueducts. The second program, “Ancient Superpower”, explains that for centuries, Rome governed hundreds of thousands of people in an empire that covered as much as 2 million square miles. In an age when most travel was done on foot, how was this possible? Digging deep into the lives of two emperors who presided over one of the most successful periods in Roman history, the program explores how the empire owed its longevity to its ambition, innovation and genius for administration. See how Rome endured for centuries as one of the greatest bureaucracies on earth, and the far-reaching legacy she left Western civilization.
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/when-rome-ruled/all/Overview
Tuesday, January 18, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
CNBC Channel
U.S. History and Economics
High School
“60 Minutes on CNBC: Your Money”
This is an anthology of economic reports initially aired on CBC’ “60 Minutes”. Included are three stories about money: First an interview with a sitting Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben Bernanke talks to 60 Minutes on CNBC about America's financial crisis and recovery. Second, What happens when a bank fails? The program’s reporters gain exclusive access to the FDIC's takeover of a Chicago bank. Third, a report about the ongoing debate over the necessity of U.S. pennies and nickels, whose metal content is worth more than their face value.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/40795923/
Tuesday, January 18, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. and World History
High School
“FRONTLINE: Are We Safer?”
In this documentary, Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post reporter Dana Priest investigates the terrorism-industrial complex that grew up in the wake of 9/11. Against a backdrop of recent mail bomb threats from Al Qaeda in Yemen and growing concerns about homegrown terrorists, Priest explores the growing reach of homeland security, fusion centers, battlefield technologies and data-collecting into the lives of ordinary Americans.
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/are-we-safer/?utm_campaign=homepage&utm_medium=proglist&utm_source=proglist
Wednesday, January 19, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and Technology
Middle and High School
“NOVA: Making Stuff”
This is the premiere of a new science documentary series hosted by The New York Times technology columnist David Pogue, The series focus is on the personal qualities that underlie the process of invention — the visionary talent, sheer luck and dogged determination that turn a wild idea into a cutting-edge material. This episode, entitled “Making Stuff Stronger”, asks what is the world’s strongest material? From steel to Kevlar and spider silk to carbon nanotubes, Pogue looks at the ways in which science and nature work to make strong stuff. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/making-stuff-stronger.html
Link to the PBS iPhone app: http://to.pbs.org/pbsiphone
Thursday, January 20, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
Science and Technology
Middle and High School
“America's Secret Weapon"
This documentary provides viewers rare access to a highly classified division of the Defense Department known as DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). It's considered to be America’s secret weapon lab, and although most civilians have never heard of it, its innovations have led to the invention of the Internet, the computer mouse and the global positioning system. We'll unlock the door to this highly classified facility for an insider's look at the latest generation of remarkable breakthroughs. We'll get a sneak peek at unmanned aerial vehicles, the Navy Seals' power swim technology and hypersonic aircraft.
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/inside/3933/Overview
Friday, January 21, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
History Channel
Science and Technology
Middle and High School
“Modern Marvels: Grease”
It makes the whole world go around...and up and down...and side to side. Without it, the wheels of industry and our modern existence would grind to a halt, along with everything else. This documentary takes a close up look at grease In our lifelong battle to fight friction, it is the unsung hero. Journey deep into places few people ever get to see, to discover the "hidden" uses of one of our most slippery products inside giant machines. We'll also investigate how it's made in a factory in New York, as well as what new advances some are working towards for grease of the future. We'll witness how grease is currently used inside a US Navy aircraft carrier, San Francisco's famous cable cars, elevators & escalators, assembly lines, huge excavators, amusement park rides, and even the Panama Canal. From pig fat to nano-particles... amazing grease keeps things rolling along.
Saturday, January 22, 2011,
10:15-12:30 p.m. E/P
IFC- Independent Film Channel
U.S. History and Economics
Middle and High School
“Harlan County, USA”
Director Barbara Kopple's Oscar winning documentary look at a 13-month coal miners' strike that took place between 1973 and 1974 in Harlan County, KY. It, is one of the great films about labor troubles, though not for a sense of objectivity. Kopple lived among the miners and their families off and on during the four years the entire story played out, and it's clear in every frame of the film that her sympathies lie with the miners and not their bosses at Eastover Mining, owned by Duke Power Company. Kopple's camera focuses on the desperate plight of people still living in shacks with no indoor plumbing and working dangerous jobs with little security and few safety rules. The miners are determined to join the United Mine Workers, and the company is determined to break the strike with scabs, who are even more desperate than the men with jobs. The miners eventually win a new contract, though it turns out that some of the benefits they had fought for were not included in the final deal. The filmmaker's strong identification with one side of a labor struggle doesn't make for a balanced historical record, but it did provide the right stuff for a powerfully dramatic film.
Log on http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074605
Friday, January 7, 2011
Media Menu, January 8, 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,, January 8, 2011,
3-5- p.m. E/P
Planet Green Channel
World History
Middle and High School
“Egypt's Ten Greatest Discoveries ”
In this documentary Dr Zahi Hawass, Egypt’s top archaeologist and a team of leading archaeologists have selected the ten most important discoveries in Egypt. From major battles, to mega-construction, the discoveries uncover the amazing stories of the lives of kings, queens and ordinary people.TV-PG
Log on http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/egypts-greatest-discoveries-egypt-10-great-tomb.html
Sunday, January 9, 2011,
9-9:30 p.m. E/P
Nickelodeon Channel
World History
Middle and High School
“Nick News with Linda Ellerbee: “Haiti Rising? Life in the Ruins”
This documentary shows the lives of several kids who have struggled to overcome the January 2010 Haiti earthquake’s destruction, kids like Ruben and Pierre, brothers living in Port-au-Prince in a shanty structure they built right next door to the wreckage of their old home. Their parents lost their jobs after the earthquake, and they can’t afford to go to school. With nowhere to go and nothing to do, they play in the rubble. To them, it seems like things are just getting harder. Stephanie, also from Port-au-Prince, thought she had found refuge when she first came to a “tent city.” But as time goes on, she’s no longer so sure. Food and water don’t get brought in as often anymore, and the camp is dirty and dangerous. She doesn’t know how long she’ll have to call this place home. While she’s very grateful for aid she has received, she wants to be able to help herself and the Haitian people to help themselves. Outside of Port-au-Prince there is a relocation camp, Camp Corail-Cesselesse, which is barren, without shade and removed from civilization. But for many families who lost their homes in the earthquake, it’s better than anywhere else they have to go. But as Steven points out: life here is not like a life at ‘home.’ Besides the oppressive heat in the tents and the swarming mosquitoes at night, there is simply not enough room. He lost everything in the earthquake, much from the destruction and the rest from looters. He has not gone to school since the earthquake, even though he does his best to study on his own because the only thing he thinks about now is moving forward for his own future. People of Haiti struggle to find safe locations for kids to study. One solution has come from a cell phone company that worked with engineers and designers to repurpose some of the shipping containers, turning them into schools. For Wenlee and Rafael, two boys who live in Leogane, the epicenter of the earthquake, it gives them hope that things will be better. In a place where so much does not work and is broken, any start is encouraging.
Log on http://news.nick.com/01/2011/03/one-year-after-the-earthquake
Monday, January 10, 2011,
9-10:30 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. History
Middle and High School
“AMERICAN EXPERIENCE - U.S. Grant: Warrior”
This documentary paints a revealing portrait of one of America's most paradoxical leaders, from his first days on the Ohio frontier to the darkest days of the Civil War. Few public figures have ever held such a firm grip on the American popular imagination as Ulysses S. Grant. The greatest hero of the Civil War, Ulysses S. Grant was a brilliant military strategist who rose from obscurity to a rank held previously only by George Washington, then became a leader for whom thousands of Northern soldiers were willing to fight and die, and for whom thousands did. His hard-nosed fighting style won him the nickname "Unconditional Surrender" Grant and the admiration of the Northern public. However, the strength of the Confederate resistance forced Grant into a hard war that destroyed the South and led to his being labeled a butcher. As the author of the great Union victory at Vicksburg, which etched his name in military history, he irrevocably altered the course of the war. Perhaps most memorably, he was the general who took Lee's surrender at Appomattox and the author of its generous terms. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience
Tuesday, January 11, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and Geography
Middle and High School
“NOVA: Deadliest Earthquakes”
In 2010, epic earthquakes all over the planet delivered one of the worst annual death tolls ever recorded. This documentary follows teams of scientists in Haiti and Chile after the deadly quakes in those countries as they try to gather data to aid in preventing future disasters. In 2010, epic earthquakes all over the planet delivered one of the worst annual death tolls ever recorded. The deadliest strike was in Haiti, where a quake just southwest of the capital, Port-au-Prince, killed more than 200,000, reducing homes, hospitals, schools and the presidential palace to rubble. In exclusive coverage, a PBS camera crew follows a team of U.S. geologists as they first enter Haiti in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy. It is a race against time as they hunt for crucial evidence that will help them determine exactly what happened deep underground and what the risks are of a new killer quake. Barely a month after the Haiti quake, Chile was struck by a quake 100 times more powerful, unleashing a tsunami that put the entire Pacific coast on high alert. In a coastal town devastated by the rushing wave, the programs follows a team of geologists as they battle aftershocks to measure Earthquake. Could their work, and the work of geologists at earthquake hot-spots around the U.S., lead to a breakthrough in predicting quakes before they happen? The program investigates intriguing new leads in its gripping investigation of a deadly scientific conundrum. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/earth/deadliest-earthquakes.html
Wednesday, January 12, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
Planet Green
Science and Geography
Middle and High School
“Life in the African Bush: The Akie”
The host of this documentary, Bruce Parry. Goes to live with the Akie people of Tanzania. The Akie are hunter-gatherers who live on the African plains. They hunt with small bows and poisoned arrows, forage for food and raid bees nests in huge baobab trees for highly prized honey. The Akie are one of the few Savannah-based hunter-gather groups left in Africa. Unlike their neighbors, the Masai, they own no cattle and so rely completely on their landscape for food and shelter. They are a secretive people, feared for their magic and their mystical relationship with their environment. Their story is one of survival -- their traditional hunting grounds are being taken by big game hunters and it is becoming increasingly difficult to kill enough meat for their families. Parry joins the increasingly hungry Akie as they seek to live off the land and kill a kudu. Bruce is forced to face his biggest fear and put his hand into a bees nest to gather wild honey. TV-PG
Log on http://www.bbc.co.uk/tribe/tribes/akie/index.shtml
Thursday, January 13. 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
World History
Middle and High School
“Unearthing Ancient Secrets: The Sphinx Unmasked"
French archaeologist Dr Vassil Dobrev sets out to discover the truth about the Sphinx. Does it really represent the pharaoh Khafre? Using scientific techniques, Vassil finds a different explanation. That the Sphinx was created by a by a pharaoh that history forgot: Djedefre TV-PG
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/egypt-unwrapped/3917/Overview
Thursday, January 13. 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
World History
Middle and High School
“Naked Science: Solar-Powered Flight ”
It started as a crazy dream: Could a jetliner really fly using nothing more than solar energy? This documentary goes inside the nearly 10-year journey of the engineers who created Solar Impulse HB-SIA, from the first brainstorming session until it took flight. Witness the success of the 26-hour flight — a nonstop day-night-day sequence — of the Solar Impulse plane that turned a dream into a clean energy icon.10 years ago, Bertrand Piccard had a dream: to prove to skeptics everywhere that perpetual flight in an airplane that functions uniquely with solar energy was not a utopian idea... In July 2010, with the success of the 26 hour flight - a non-stop day-night-day sequence - of the SOLAR IMPULSE plane, he made that dream come true. After years of cutting-edge research, the Solar Impulse HB-SIA, an airplane designed to fly day and night without fuel, finally made its first night flight on July 7th, 2010. The dream of famous explorers and engineers Bertrand Piccard and Andr Borschberg has become reality. Now, flying clean is possible thanks to skin-like solar panels and powerful light batteries!
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/naked-science/5034/Overview
Friday, January 14. 2011,
10-11 p.m. E/P
Discovery Channel
U.S. History and Geography
Middle and High School
“Gold Rush Alaska – Gold, Guns And Bears”
This is an episode in a documentary miniseries which follows six men who, in the face of an economic meltdown, risk everything - their families, their dignity, and in some cases, their lives - to strike it rich mining for gold in the wilds of Alaska. Inspired by his father Jack, Todd Hoffman of Sandy, Oregon, leads a group of greenhorn miners to forge a new frontier and save their families from dire straits. Gold fever is back, and the rush is on, but they have just five months to set up a gold mine and strike it rich before winter closes them down. While leasing a gold claim in Alaska, Todd and company must ward off bears, build homes for their families, and keep the operation running as they take fate into their own hands with a make or break venture that will change their lives forever. In this episode, the stakes get higher at the Porcupine Creek prospect as reality sets in about just how little time they have to get to their gold. The miners start to rebuild the mining ghost town but the bears aren't so keen on their new neighbors — and they let them know it.
Log on http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/gold-rush-alaska
Saturday,, January 15, 2011,
8-9 p.m. ET, 5-6- p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
U.S. History and Economy
Middle and High School
“Target: Inside the Bullseye"
In this documentary Target store CEO Gregg Steinhafel, reveals how his stores became both tastemaker and discount retailer extraordinaire while continually reminding its customers to "Expect More, Pay Less." A $65 billion-dollar discount icon that changed the face of shopping, the chain rose humble beginnings as a family-owned Minneapolis department store to retail giant. Founder 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. 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.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/40588422
Saturday,, January 8, 2011,
3-5- p.m. E/P
Planet Green Channel
World History
Middle and High School
“Egypt's Ten Greatest Discoveries ”
In this documentary Dr Zahi Hawass, Egypt’s top archaeologist and a team of leading archaeologists have selected the ten most important discoveries in Egypt. From major battles, to mega-construction, the discoveries uncover the amazing stories of the lives of kings, queens and ordinary people.TV-PG
Log on http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/egypts-greatest-discoveries-egypt-10-great-tomb.html
Sunday, January 9, 2011,
9-9:30 p.m. E/P
Nickelodeon Channel
World History
Middle and High School
“Nick News with Linda Ellerbee: “Haiti Rising? Life in the Ruins”
This documentary shows the lives of several kids who have struggled to overcome the January 2010 Haiti earthquake’s destruction, kids like Ruben and Pierre, brothers living in Port-au-Prince in a shanty structure they built right next door to the wreckage of their old home. Their parents lost their jobs after the earthquake, and they can’t afford to go to school. With nowhere to go and nothing to do, they play in the rubble. To them, it seems like things are just getting harder. Stephanie, also from Port-au-Prince, thought she had found refuge when she first came to a “tent city.” But as time goes on, she’s no longer so sure. Food and water don’t get brought in as often anymore, and the camp is dirty and dangerous. She doesn’t know how long she’ll have to call this place home. While she’s very grateful for aid she has received, she wants to be able to help herself and the Haitian people to help themselves. Outside of Port-au-Prince there is a relocation camp, Camp Corail-Cesselesse, which is barren, without shade and removed from civilization. But for many families who lost their homes in the earthquake, it’s better than anywhere else they have to go. But as Steven points out: life here is not like a life at ‘home.’ Besides the oppressive heat in the tents and the swarming mosquitoes at night, there is simply not enough room. He lost everything in the earthquake, much from the destruction and the rest from looters. He has not gone to school since the earthquake, even though he does his best to study on his own because the only thing he thinks about now is moving forward for his own future. People of Haiti struggle to find safe locations for kids to study. One solution has come from a cell phone company that worked with engineers and designers to repurpose some of the shipping containers, turning them into schools. For Wenlee and Rafael, two boys who live in Leogane, the epicenter of the earthquake, it gives them hope that things will be better. In a place where so much does not work and is broken, any start is encouraging.
Log on http://news.nick.com/01/2011/03/one-year-after-the-earthquake
Monday, January 10, 2011,
9-10:30 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. History
Middle and High School
“AMERICAN EXPERIENCE - U.S. Grant: Warrior”
This documentary paints a revealing portrait of one of America's most paradoxical leaders, from his first days on the Ohio frontier to the darkest days of the Civil War. Few public figures have ever held such a firm grip on the American popular imagination as Ulysses S. Grant. The greatest hero of the Civil War, Ulysses S. Grant was a brilliant military strategist who rose from obscurity to a rank held previously only by George Washington, then became a leader for whom thousands of Northern soldiers were willing to fight and die, and for whom thousands did. His hard-nosed fighting style won him the nickname "Unconditional Surrender" Grant and the admiration of the Northern public. However, the strength of the Confederate resistance forced Grant into a hard war that destroyed the South and led to his being labeled a butcher. As the author of the great Union victory at Vicksburg, which etched his name in military history, he irrevocably altered the course of the war. Perhaps most memorably, he was the general who took Lee's surrender at Appomattox and the author of its generous terms. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience
Tuesday, January 11, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science and Geography
Middle and High School
“NOVA: Deadliest Earthquakes”
In 2010, epic earthquakes all over the planet delivered one of the worst annual death tolls ever recorded. This documentary follows teams of scientists in Haiti and Chile after the deadly quakes in those countries as they try to gather data to aid in preventing future disasters. In 2010, epic earthquakes all over the planet delivered one of the worst annual death tolls ever recorded. The deadliest strike was in Haiti, where a quake just southwest of the capital, Port-au-Prince, killed more than 200,000, reducing homes, hospitals, schools and the presidential palace to rubble. In exclusive coverage, a PBS camera crew follows a team of U.S. geologists as they first enter Haiti in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy. It is a race against time as they hunt for crucial evidence that will help them determine exactly what happened deep underground and what the risks are of a new killer quake. Barely a month after the Haiti quake, Chile was struck by a quake 100 times more powerful, unleashing a tsunami that put the entire Pacific coast on high alert. In a coastal town devastated by the rushing wave, the programs follows a team of geologists as they battle aftershocks to measure Earthquake. Could their work, and the work of geologists at earthquake hot-spots around the U.S., lead to a breakthrough in predicting quakes before they happen? The program investigates intriguing new leads in its gripping investigation of a deadly scientific conundrum. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/earth/deadliest-earthquakes.html
Wednesday, January 12, 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
Planet Green
Science and Geography
Middle and High School
“Life in the African Bush: The Akie”
The host of this documentary, Bruce Parry. Goes to live with the Akie people of Tanzania. The Akie are hunter-gatherers who live on the African plains. They hunt with small bows and poisoned arrows, forage for food and raid bees nests in huge baobab trees for highly prized honey. The Akie are one of the few Savannah-based hunter-gather groups left in Africa. Unlike their neighbors, the Masai, they own no cattle and so rely completely on their landscape for food and shelter. They are a secretive people, feared for their magic and their mystical relationship with their environment. Their story is one of survival -- their traditional hunting grounds are being taken by big game hunters and it is becoming increasingly difficult to kill enough meat for their families. Parry joins the increasingly hungry Akie as they seek to live off the land and kill a kudu. Bruce is forced to face his biggest fear and put his hand into a bees nest to gather wild honey. TV-PG
Log on http://www.bbc.co.uk/tribe/tribes/akie/index.shtml
Thursday, January 13. 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
World History
Middle and High School
“Unearthing Ancient Secrets: The Sphinx Unmasked"
French archaeologist Dr Vassil Dobrev sets out to discover the truth about the Sphinx. Does it really represent the pharaoh Khafre? Using scientific techniques, Vassil finds a different explanation. That the Sphinx was created by a by a pharaoh that history forgot: Djedefre TV-PG
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/egypt-unwrapped/3917/Overview
Thursday, January 13. 2011,
8-9 p.m. E/P
National Geographic Channel
World History
Middle and High School
“Naked Science: Solar-Powered Flight ”
It started as a crazy dream: Could a jetliner really fly using nothing more than solar energy? This documentary goes inside the nearly 10-year journey of the engineers who created Solar Impulse HB-SIA, from the first brainstorming session until it took flight. Witness the success of the 26-hour flight — a nonstop day-night-day sequence — of the Solar Impulse plane that turned a dream into a clean energy icon.10 years ago, Bertrand Piccard had a dream: to prove to skeptics everywhere that perpetual flight in an airplane that functions uniquely with solar energy was not a utopian idea... In July 2010, with the success of the 26 hour flight - a non-stop day-night-day sequence - of the SOLAR IMPULSE plane, he made that dream come true. After years of cutting-edge research, the Solar Impulse HB-SIA, an airplane designed to fly day and night without fuel, finally made its first night flight on July 7th, 2010. The dream of famous explorers and engineers Bertrand Piccard and Andr Borschberg has become reality. Now, flying clean is possible thanks to skin-like solar panels and powerful light batteries!
Log on http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/series/naked-science/5034/Overview
Friday, January 14. 2011,
10-11 p.m. E/P
Discovery Channel
U.S. History and Geography
Middle and High School
“Gold Rush Alaska – Gold, Guns And Bears”
This is an episode in a documentary miniseries which follows six men who, in the face of an economic meltdown, risk everything - their families, their dignity, and in some cases, their lives - to strike it rich mining for gold in the wilds of Alaska. Inspired by his father Jack, Todd Hoffman of Sandy, Oregon, leads a group of greenhorn miners to forge a new frontier and save their families from dire straits. Gold fever is back, and the rush is on, but they have just five months to set up a gold mine and strike it rich before winter closes them down. While leasing a gold claim in Alaska, Todd and company must ward off bears, build homes for their families, and keep the operation running as they take fate into their own hands with a make or break venture that will change their lives forever. In this episode, the stakes get higher at the Porcupine Creek prospect as reality sets in about just how little time they have to get to their gold. The miners start to rebuild the mining ghost town but the bears aren't so keen on their new neighbors — and they let them know it.
Log on http://dsc.discovery.com/tv/gold-rush-alaska
Saturday,, January 15, 2011,
8-9 p.m. ET, 5-6- p.m. PT
CNBC Channel
U.S. History and Economy
Middle and High School
“Target: Inside the Bullseye"
In this documentary Target store CEO Gregg Steinhafel, reveals how his stores became both tastemaker and discount retailer extraordinaire while continually reminding its customers to "Expect More, Pay Less." A $65 billion-dollar discount icon that changed the face of shopping, the chain rose humble beginnings as a family-owned Minneapolis department store to retail giant. Founder 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. 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.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/40588422
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Media Menu, January 1, 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, January 1, 2011,
9 a.m. New Year’s Day until 3 a.m. January 2 E/P
Discovery Channel
Science and Technology
Middle and High School
“New Year’s Day Marathon: MythBusters”
This is an all-day marathon broadcast of the Emmy--nominated series that uses science to prove or disprove myths and urban legends. The programs star special effects experts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, who use their expertise to test the validity of various rumors and theories. They were recently visited on-set by President Barak Obama who praised their work of promoting the study of science. (See link below to see a video of the President’s visit. ) Hyneman and Savage often use their extensive engineering and construction expertise to construct complex devices with which to perform experiments. The tests are usually a two-step process. First, an attempt is made to recreate the myth to determine if the circumstances, as described, achieve the alleged outcome. If that fails, they attempt to expand the parameters as much as necessary – often to absurd lengths – until the desired results are duplicated. There are some myths and urban legends the MythBusters refuse to test. Paranormal concepts, such as aliens or ghosts, are not addressed because they cannot be tested by scientific methods. TV-PG
For summaries of episode contents log on . For video showing President Barak Obama’s visit with MythBusters hosts log on http://voices.washingtonpost.com/tvblog/2010/12/president-obama-visits-discove.html
Sunday, January 2, 2011,
7-8 p.m. E/P
CBS
Science and Arts
Middle and High School
“60 minutes”
The first story in this newsmagazine, “Bad Medicine”, is about drug company whistle-blower Cheryl Eckard, who tells Scott Pelley about her experience trying to fix problems at a pharmaceutical factory that made her a key figure in a federal lawsuit and a multimillionaire. The second story, “Wynton”, is about jazz missionary Wynton Marsalis who shares his love of America’s most distinctive art form by taking his Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra around the world. Morley Safer tags along as Marsalis and his musicians make the scene in London and then go to Havana for a spicy Afro-Cuban musical treat.
Log on http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/60minutes/main3415.shtml
Monday, January 3, 2011,
9-10:30 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. History
Middle and High School
“AMERICAN EXPERIENCE : Robert E. Lee”
This documentary examines the life and reputation of Robert E. Lee, whose military successes during the American Civil War made him the scourge of the Union and hero of the Confederacy and who was elevated to almost god-like status by his admirers after his death. He is celebrated by handsome equestrian statues in countless cities and towns across the American South, and by two postage stamps issued by the government he fought against during the four bloodiest years in American history. Nearly a century and a half after his death, Robert E. Lee, the leading Confederate general of the American Civil War, remains a source of fascination and, for some, veneration. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/lee
Tuesday, January 4, 2011,
10-11 p.m. ET, 7-8 p.m. PT
CNBC
U.S. History and Technology
Middle and High School
The Truth About Information Overload
This documentary explores how modern technology is rapidly changing the way we live, sometimes for the better and more often than we’d like to admit… for the worse. Devices like personal computers and smartphones have become an integral part of our lives. They keep us informed and connected, but one study says extended use increases blood pressure and stress, and can lead to depression. The report traces how the rise of these devices may be harming our relationships, our minds and our safety. We take you behind the wheel of a dangerous situation - using smartphones while driving - and its tragic results. Do you need an internet intervention? Learn the signs of addiction and the simple solutions for managing computer and cell phone use? http://bit.ly/eNUdbG
Wednesday, January 5, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science
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. In this documentary 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://www.shoppbs.org/product/index.jsp?productId=2835060
Thursday, January 6, 2011,
9-10 p.m. ET , 6-7 p.m. PT
CNBC
Technology and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“The Facebook Obsession”
This documentary tells the story behind the rise of the largest social-media site in the world, told through the company's founders, friends and foes. It provides a comprehensive look at how this Internet phenomenon, with half a billion users, is affecting society in ways most people are unaware of.
From a girl who is reunited with her birth mother with the help of Facebook, to a woman who lost her job because of her online postings, the film examines how the site is fundamentally altering American life for better or worse; even the White House and many police departments have their own Facebook pages. The report explores the intense privacy debate that Facebook has provoked, and explains the business model that has turned a dorm-room venture into a multi-billion dollar enterprise.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/39618344
Friday, January 7, 2011,
4-5- p.m. E/P
Science Channel
Technology and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“HeadRush: Disappearing Water”
In this documentary about unusual aspects of science, host Kari Byron makes water disappear, shows off origami that folds all by itself, and demonstrates how to make a vortex in a soda bottle. Also shown are why kangaroos have short front legs and what organisms make fossil fuels.
Log on http://headrush.discovery.com
Saturday,, January 8, 2011,
3-5- p.m. E/P
Planet Green Channel
World History
Middle and High School
“Egypt's Ten Greatest Discoveries ”
In this documentary Dr Zahi Hawass, Egypt’s top archaeologist and a team of leading archaeologists have selected the ten most important discoveries in Egypt. From major battles, to mega-construction, the discoveries uncover the amazing stories of the lives of kings, queens and ordinary people.TV-PG
Log on http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/egypts-greatest-discoveries-egypt-10-great-tomb.html
Saturday, January 1, 2011,
9 a.m. New Year’s Day until 3 a.m. January 2 E/P
Discovery Channel
Science and Technology
Middle and High School
“New Year’s Day Marathon: MythBusters”
This is an all-day marathon broadcast of the Emmy--nominated series that uses science to prove or disprove myths and urban legends. The programs star special effects experts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, who use their expertise to test the validity of various rumors and theories. They were recently visited on-set by President Barak Obama who praised their work of promoting the study of science. (See link below to see a video of the President’s visit. ) Hyneman and Savage often use their extensive engineering and construction expertise to construct complex devices with which to perform experiments. The tests are usually a two-step process. First, an attempt is made to recreate the myth to determine if the circumstances, as described, achieve the alleged outcome. If that fails, they attempt to expand the parameters as much as necessary – often to absurd lengths – until the desired results are duplicated. There are some myths and urban legends the MythBusters refuse to test. Paranormal concepts, such as aliens or ghosts, are not addressed because they cannot be tested by scientific methods. TV-PG
For summaries of episode contents log on . For video showing President Barak Obama’s visit with MythBusters hosts log on http://voices.washingtonpost.com/tvblog/2010/12/president-obama-visits-discove.html
Sunday, January 2, 2011,
7-8 p.m. E/P
CBS
Science and Arts
Middle and High School
“60 minutes”
The first story in this newsmagazine, “Bad Medicine”, is about drug company whistle-blower Cheryl Eckard, who tells Scott Pelley about her experience trying to fix problems at a pharmaceutical factory that made her a key figure in a federal lawsuit and a multimillionaire. The second story, “Wynton”, is about jazz missionary Wynton Marsalis who shares his love of America’s most distinctive art form by taking his Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra around the world. Morley Safer tags along as Marsalis and his musicians make the scene in London and then go to Havana for a spicy Afro-Cuban musical treat.
Log on http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/60minutes/main3415.shtml
Monday, January 3, 2011,
9-10:30 p.m. E/P
PBS
U.S. History
Middle and High School
“AMERICAN EXPERIENCE : Robert E. Lee”
This documentary examines the life and reputation of Robert E. Lee, whose military successes during the American Civil War made him the scourge of the Union and hero of the Confederacy and who was elevated to almost god-like status by his admirers after his death. He is celebrated by handsome equestrian statues in countless cities and towns across the American South, and by two postage stamps issued by the government he fought against during the four bloodiest years in American history. Nearly a century and a half after his death, Robert E. Lee, the leading Confederate general of the American Civil War, remains a source of fascination and, for some, veneration. TV-PG
Log on http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/lee
Tuesday, January 4, 2011,
10-11 p.m. ET, 7-8 p.m. PT
CNBC
U.S. History and Technology
Middle and High School
The Truth About Information Overload
This documentary explores how modern technology is rapidly changing the way we live, sometimes for the better and more often than we’d like to admit… for the worse. Devices like personal computers and smartphones have become an integral part of our lives. They keep us informed and connected, but one study says extended use increases blood pressure and stress, and can lead to depression. The report traces how the rise of these devices may be harming our relationships, our minds and our safety. We take you behind the wheel of a dangerous situation - using smartphones while driving - and its tragic results. Do you need an internet intervention? Learn the signs of addiction and the simple solutions for managing computer and cell phone use? http://bit.ly/eNUdbG
Wednesday, January 5, 2011,
9-10 p.m. E/P
PBS
Science
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. In this documentary 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://www.shoppbs.org/product/index.jsp?productId=2835060
Thursday, January 6, 2011,
9-10 p.m. ET , 6-7 p.m. PT
CNBC
Technology and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“The Facebook Obsession”
This documentary tells the story behind the rise of the largest social-media site in the world, told through the company's founders, friends and foes. It provides a comprehensive look at how this Internet phenomenon, with half a billion users, is affecting society in ways most people are unaware of.
From a girl who is reunited with her birth mother with the help of Facebook, to a woman who lost her job because of her online postings, the film examines how the site is fundamentally altering American life for better or worse; even the White House and many police departments have their own Facebook pages. The report explores the intense privacy debate that Facebook has provoked, and explains the business model that has turned a dorm-room venture into a multi-billion dollar enterprise.
Log on http://www.cnbc.com/id/39618344
Friday, January 7, 2011,
4-5- p.m. E/P
Science Channel
Technology and U.S. History
Middle and High School
“HeadRush: Disappearing Water”
In this documentary about unusual aspects of science, host Kari Byron makes water disappear, shows off origami that folds all by itself, and demonstrates how to make a vortex in a soda bottle. Also shown are why kangaroos have short front legs and what organisms make fossil fuels.
Log on http://headrush.discovery.com
Saturday,, January 8, 2011,
3-5- p.m. E/P
Planet Green Channel
World History
Middle and High School
“Egypt's Ten Greatest Discoveries ”
In this documentary Dr Zahi Hawass, Egypt’s top archaeologist and a team of leading archaeologists have selected the ten most important discoveries in Egypt. From major battles, to mega-construction, the discoveries uncover the amazing stories of the lives of kings, queens and ordinary people.TV-PG
Log on http://dsc.discovery.com/videos/egypts-greatest-discoveries-egypt-10-great-tomb.html
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