Some broadcast and cable programs contain material included in the public school curriculum and on standardized examinations. Here are home viewing suggestions for November 8-14, 2004.

Several programs this week are about the retail business. Got any ideas about running your own business? What would you like to sell? How would you research your decisions, like prices and products? Do any of you have first-hand experiences to go on? UPDATE: Media Hour will be held this Saturday 2:00 PM WST (remember, that's changed to PST)

What's the Media Hour? Watch the show(s)-of-the-week, jot down some ideas, then come and talk about them with me and other citizens (including other City Workers, if they're available). We get together at the Greek Theater (next to City Hall), every Saturday morning at noon, Whyville Time. You'll find that the Theater makes discussions pretty easy, since City Workers are able to direct people's movement and behavior, when we need to, and it makes everyone's chat bubbles overlap a little less than other rooms.

Monday, November 8

"Motherland: A Genetic Journey" (Science, World History, Middle and high School, Sundance Channel, 9-10:30 p.m. E/P) This documentary presents results of a study into the genetic ancestry of Britain's African-Caribbean community. The Motherland study discovered that one in four black Britons have white male ancestry in their fatherline, the probable legacy of the transatlantic slave trade. Yet even more dramatic was the study's ability to pinpoint the regional genetic origins of many African-Caribbean Britons, prompting three dramatic homecomings.

"They Made America" (Economics, American History, Middle and High School, PBS, 9-11 p.m. E/P) The first hour of this documentary series profiles two present-day tycoons who have built bridges to different communities and countries through today's dominant American exports: information and entertainment. Russell Simmons has created a multimillion-dollar empire and an international following through rap music and hip-hop culture, once the sole province of inner-city America. Ted Turner turned a lens on the world with CNN, a 24-hour news station launched in 1982. It was destined for failure, predicted most news executives at the time. The second hour highlights pioneering thinkers like John Fitch, who committed suicide before his eccentric invention, a steam-powered boat, transformed the commerce of a young nation, thanks to Robert Fulton's salesmanship and zeal. Lewis Tappan used the profits of a successful store that he and his brother ran in New York City to further the anti-slavery cause. Then, after the business went bankrupt, he used his network of abolitionist lawyers to systematically report on the credit worthiness of out-of-town retailers who wanted to buy in New York -- an enterprise that later became Dun & Bradstreet.

Tuesday, November 9

"Nova: America's Stone Age Explorers" (Science, Archaeology, Prehistory, Middle and High School, PBS, 8-9 p.m. E/P) Who were the first Americans and where did they come from? The conventional view is that ancient big-game hunters entered the Americas across the Bering land bridge -- a strip of dry land that spanned the Bering Strait between Asia and Alaska during the last Ice Age some 12,000 years ago. But recent discoveries have overturned that idea. The first Americans almost certainly came thousands of years earlier, traveling in skin boats and living off sea mammals along the edge of the ice. Some of these first canoe-borne migrants may have come not from Asia but Europe, and that they crossed the Atlantic in skin boats by following the fringes of the ice sheets.

"Frontline: The Persuaders" (Economics, Current History, High School, PBS, 9-10 p.m. E/P) This documentary takes an in-depth look at the 'persuasion industries' -- advertising and public relations. To cut through mass-media clutter and to overcome consumers' growing resistance to their pitches, marketers have developed new ways of integrating their messages deeper into the fabric of our lives, using sophisticated market research techniques to better understand consumers, and turning increasingly to the little-understood techniques of public relations to make sure their messages come from sources we trust. A documentary essay, the program also explores how the culture of marketing has come to shape the way Americans understand the world and themselves, and how the techniques of the persuasion industries have migrated to politics, shaping the way our leaders formulate policy, influence public opinion, make decisions and stay in power.

Wednesday, November 10

"The Age Of Wal-Mart: Inside America's Most Powerful Company" (Economics, High School, CNBC Channel, 7-8 p.m. E/P) This documentary looks at the most influential company in the world, examining how it company has ascended to its heights of power -- making close to $300 billion in sales this year alone -- and probing the question: can this juggernaut continue to succeed in the face of increased opposition? How did a family-owned retailer in Northwest Arkansas became the most successful retailer the world has ever seen? Viewers will get a look at an annual managers' meeting that resembles an evangelical revival, and the opening of a new store in China, where Wal-Mart is the country's 5th largest importer, following 3 countries and all of Europe combined. In addition there is an interview with the company's CEO, Lee Scott -- who, for the first time, addresses the criticisms over outsourcing, community friction, lawsuits and other challenges the mammoth company faces today.

"National Geographic Special: Arlington National Cemetery" (American History, Middle and High School, PBS, 8-9 p.m. E/P, check local listings) Broadcast in observance of Veteran's Day (tomorrow) and on the 140th anniversary of the first burial at Arlington Cemetery in May 1864, this documentary presents a portrait of one of America's most sacred places. Viewers take a privileged behind-the-scenes look at the daily rituals and activities of a military cemetery, through rare archival footage and the real-life stories of the heroes and heroines buried here. They also meet the people who make the cemetery work.. Once little more than a burial ground for the poor, Arlington Cemetery has become a national shrine and a treasury of American history. Both the famous and the obscure are buried here, from John F. Kennedy and the Unknown Soldiers to astronauts from the space shuttle Challenger, polar explorers Perry and Henson, and some 3,000 freed slaves.

"Extreme Engineering: Off-Shore Oil Platforms" (Science and Technology, Discovery Channel, 9-10 p.m. E/P) This is a documentary about oil. America runs on it. One-third of that oil gets pumped from wells drilled in the Gulf of Mexico. This program follows the construction of massive and mobile contraptions known as jack-up rigs, the.
real workhorses of America's offshore drilling industry..

Thursday, November 11

"A Day Of War" (Social Studies, World History, TLC-The Learning Channel, 9-10:30 p.m. E/P) This BBC/TLC documentary tells the story of one day in the live of people across the world - a world at war. Why do people go to war? Few people truly understand the competing ideologies, the disputed territories and the violent religious arguments that drive people to wage war against each other

Friday, November 12

"Phil of the Future: Gizmos and Gadgets" (Science and Science Fiction, Elementary, Middle and High School, Disney Channel, 5-8 p.m. E/P) This is a marathon with six episodes of the live-action comedy series, about a teenage boy and his family who is from the year 2121 but are trapped in the present day and trying to figure out how to fit in and get home. The marathon concludes with an all-new episode of "Phil of the Future" (7:30 p.m.), where Phil uses a tool from the future, called the New-Ager, to age a fruit tree that he and his friend Keely must grow for their science project. Keely's curiosity is sparked by this aging gadget so she ages herself up to a 25-year-old.

"Sears" (Economics, High School, A&E Channel, 8-9 p.m. E/P, Rated TV-PG) This is a documentary about the store that began with one man and a box of pocket watches and grew into a retail and mail order powerhouse that was part of every American's and Canadian's life. Today, Sears is struggling to keep pace with changes in consumer tastes and buying habits.

Saturday, November 13

"Ruler" (Math and Science, Elementary, Middle and High School, History Channel, 8-7 p.m. E/P) This episode of the "Toolbox" series of documentaries describes a handy measurement device -- and is worthy of taping and donating to your teacher for use in teaching math. Throughout time, man has measured with his body, his belt, and even the arm of a king. From the cubit of biblical times that helped measure Noah's ark to the 19th Century wantage rule that helped detect fraud, the ruler has been an essential tool in any toolbox. After tracing the long history of the ruler, from the strings used to measure the blocks of pyramids to today's handy tape measures, the program visits the Stanley works to see how modern tape measures are made and find out just why they are most always yellow.

Sunday, November 14

"Secret Weapons" (Natural Science and Technology, Middle and High School, National Geographic Channel, 8-9 p.m. E/P, Rated TV-G) This documentary explains how, for millions of years, a kind of arms race has been raging under our noses. Its soldiers can walk on water, defy gravity, render themselves invisible to enemy eyes and detect a heat signature several miles away. Animals and plants have survived in a harsh world by evolving an arsenal of remarkable abilities and weapons. Now the U.S. military is taking inspiration from nature. Scientists are harnessing the strength and flexibility of spider silk to develop an ultralight body armor that may increase protection from bullets and shrapnel. Others are looking to butterfly wings as they design sophisticated camouflage that will allow troops and vehicles to blend imperceptibly into a changing landscape and be undetectable to heat-seeking sensors. Even a tiny beetle has something to offer -- its natural heat-seeking ability is helping scientists develop lightweight infrared detectors that may one day change the shape of nighttime warfare.