|
|
Greetings, TV viewers!
Some broadcast and cable programs
contain material included in the public school curriculum and on standardized
exams. Here are home-viewing suggestions for April 11-17, 2005.
The topic for this week's Media Hour is nuclear power. Is it a menace or a blessing? Watch Thursday's TV show and research what nuclear power does for your town. Some electric companies tell you how much of your power comes from nuclear power plants and other sources.
Do you rely on nuclear plants? Do you know how reliable they are? What other questions do you have about nuclear power? Research it online, and bring your questions and answers to the Media Hour.
And then there's nuclear weapons... we may also get into that topic as well.
If you've got the smarts to answer a few trivia-type questions, make sure you watch the shows and read the websites! I really want to give out clams to folks who saw the show and who help others in the room learn!!!
Remember to come to Saturday's Media Hour prepared. It's all about an open discussion, with everybody pitching in on a good topic -- remember to talk amongst yourselves while I'm down there! Explore what everyone thinks and remind us to think about what was in the shows and on the websites. The more you help others discuss things (and the more you know about the shows), the better your chances of getting on stage, or even earning clams.
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 9 a.m., Whyville Time. You'll find that
discussions are easier in the Theater, since everyone's chat bubbles overlap
a little less than in other rooms, and City Workers are able to direct people's
movement and behavior, when we need to.
|
Monday, April 11
9-10 p.m. E/P (check local listings)
|
PBS
|
Science and History
|
Middle and High School
|
|
"The Great Transatlantic
Cable "
|
|
An American visionary, Cyrus
Field, spent 12 years and the equivalent of billions of dollars trying
to stretch a copper wire from Ireland to Canada. It would be called the
Victorian equivalent of putting a man on the moon. At the time, telegraph
poles strung across America had changed the way the country did business.
Samuel Morse's invention made possible almost instantaneous communication
between cities across the continent. Communicating with Europe was another
matter. Messages to London were sent the old-fashioned way, aboard sailing
ships that could take weeks to reach their destination. The physical challenges
to laying a cable to Europe were enormous. The project would require the
production of a 2,000 mile long cable that would have to be laid three
miles beneath the surface of the Atlantic. On July 27, 1866, when the
wire was finally in place, Field sent back the first message to Europe:
"Thank God," he wrote, "the Cable is Laid." Since
that day, almost 140 years ago, nothing has broken his communications
link with Europe -- not storms, earthquakes or world wars.
|
| Log on
to http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/cable/index.html |
|
Tuesday, April 12
9-10 p.m. E/P
|
Discovery Channel
|
Science and Social Studies
|
High School
|
|
"Deadliest Catch"
|
|
This is the initial episode
of a survivor-series about the dangerous work of the fifteen hundred fishermen
who converged on Dutch Harbor, Alaska, for the Alaskan King Crab season.
Each is here to stake his claim on the 14,267,000 pounds of crab and the
chance to earn a $100,000 in just one week. It's the world's deadliest
job. The injury rate for the fleet is 100 percent. Soon after the start,
bad things happen -- the stabilizers break, forcing one of the crews to
fish with potentially deadly problems. For others, it's fish guts and
crab pots as they desperately grasp for their piece of the $80 million
king crab harvest. The series continues weekly in this time slot. (Parental
guidance recommended due to the frightening and violent conditions depicted.)
|
| Log on
to http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/deadliestcatch/about/about.html |
|
Wednesday, April 13
8:30-9 p.m. E/P (check local listings or website shown below)
|
PBS
|
Science and Technology
|
Middle and High School
|
|
"Scientific American Frontiers:
Robot Pals???
|
|
To be really useful, robots
need to behave as cooperative partners for humans rather than mindless
machines. This program shows three robots -- including a future member
of an astronaut team -- that are trying to better "understand"
us people.
|
| Log on to http://www.pbs.org/saf/index |
|
Thursday, April 14
8-10 p.m. E/P
|
Discovery Channel
|
Science and Technology |
High School
|
|
"Nuclear Menace: Stockpile"
|
|
This is a two-part program about
nuclear science. Part One is an inside look at the world of nuclear weapons
through the eyes of the American and Russian scientists who designed them.
Part Two covers current activity in the nuclear field and examine new
nuclear threats.
|
|
Friday, April 15
7:30-8 p.m. ET, 4:30-5 p.m. PT
|
Ovation Channel
|
Art Education
|
Middle and High School
|
|
"Pollock"
|
|
This program follows the
life of one of America's most famous painters, Abstract Expressionist
Jackson Pollock. Beginning with his Depression-era days working for the
U.S. Government through the artistic optimism mixed with Cold War fearfulness
of the1950s, it covers Pollock's relationships with both Ernest Hemingway
and Pablo Picasso. Archival footage, including coverage of the artist
at work, is coupled with archival photos of Pollock's time. His paintings
are interspersed throughout the documentary, to provide an understanding
of the man and his art.
|
| |
|
Saturday, April 16
8-10 p.m. E/P
|
Travel Channel
|
Geography and Natural Science
|
Elementary, Middle and High School
|
|
"Alaska's Arctic Wildlife"
and "Alaska: Wide Open???
|
|
With Alaska in the headlines
because of its natural resources, it's time to take a closer look at the
place. Listed here are two programs. The first hour shows how spring loosens
the icepack on the northwest coast of Alaska, animal life awakens. Birds,
whales and walrus begin to migrate and polar bear cubs emerge from their
dens. The second hour explains the climate in the largest state -- the
most extreme in the U.S. For centuries, people have braved the elements
in search of beauty, isolation and wealth, from finding gold to competitive
dog sled racing.
|
| |
|
Sunday, April 17
11 a.m. -7 p.m. E/P
|
History Channel
|
American History
|
Middle and High School
|
|
"The Presidents"
|
|
This is the initial episode
in an eight-part series based on the book To the Best of My Ability,
edited by James McPherson. It covers all the U.S. Presidents, from George
Washington to the present day. This marathon screening is worth taping
in its entirety for future reference or donation to a school. Part 1 covers
Constitutional Era, when the revolutionary Founding Fathers became its
first administrators. From George Washington, who defined the presidency,
to James Monroe, the last of the Revolutionary War heroes, the office
of president evolved through the United States' growing pains. Defining
moments include Washington's Whisky Rebellion, John Adams' XYZ Affair,
Thomas Jefferson's Louisiana Purchase, James Madison's War of 1812, and
the Monroe Doctrine. The series also examine the human side of the Presidents,
their strengths and weaknesses, their families and their personal accomplishments.
|
|
|
|
Sunday, April 17
8-9 p.m. E/P
|
PBS
|
Natural Science
|
Middle and High School
|
|
"Deep Jungle: New Frontiers"
|
|
This is the initial episode
of a three-part miniseries that goes deep, deep into jungles around the
world, following explorers and scientists who are doing research there.
"New Frontiers" (Part 1 of 3) presents examples of how the rainforest
acts as an engine of evolution. Animals featured include the Sumatran
tiger, recorded on film in the wild for the first time; the frenetic manakin
birds of Central America; a giant moth of Madagascar; the rainforest in
Borneo; and elephants in the Congo. Rated TV-PG. Further episodes air
on April 24 and May 1.
|
|
Log on to http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/index.html.
|
The majority of the text in these descriptions come from the television
stations and production groups that produced the shows; the MediaWiz and Numedeon,
Inc. claim no copyright over the text itself.
|
