MAKING STUFF COLDER

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 3 @ 6:00PM

Cold is the new hot in this brave new world. For centuries we’ve fought it, shunned it, and huddled against it. Cold has always been the enemy of life, but now it may hold the key to a new generation of science and technology that will improve our lives. In “Making Stuff Colder,” David Pogue explores the frontiers of cold science from saving the lives of severe trauma patients to ultracold physics, where bizarre new properties of matter are the norm and the basis of new technologies like levitating trains and quantum computers.

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THE MANY RIVERS TO CROSS

THE AGE OF SLAVERY (1800-1860)

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 29 @ 9:00PM

The Age of Slavery illustrates how black lives changed dramatically in the aftermath of the American Revolution. For free black people in places like Philadelphia, these years were a time of tremendous opportunity. But for most African Americans, this era represented a new nadir. The cotton industry fueled the rapid expansion of slavery into new territories, and a Second Middle Passage forcibly relocated African Americans from the Upper South into the Deep South. Yet as slavery intensified, so did resistance.

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WAR OF THE WORLDS

TUESDAY. OCTOBER 29 @ 7:00PM & 12:00AM

Shortly after 8 p.m. on the Halloween Eve, 1938, the voice of a panicked radio announcer broke in with a news bulletin reporting strange explosions taking place on the planet Mars, followed minutes later by a report that Martians had landed in the tiny town of Grovers Mill, New Jersey. Although most listeners understood that the program was a radio drama, the next day’s headlines reported that thousands of others plunged into panic, convinced that America was under a deadly Martian attack. It turned out to be H.G. Wells’ classic The War of the Worlds, performed by 23-year-old Orson Welles.

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THE GRADUATES

MONDAY, OCTOBER 26 @ 8:00PM

The Graduates/Los Graduados explores pressing issues in education today through the eyes of six Latino and Latina students from across the United States. More than a survey of contemporary policy debates, the bilingual, two-part film offers first-hand perspectives on key challenges facing Latino high school students and their families, educators, and community leaders. It is the story of the graduates who will make up America’s future.

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DOWNTON ABBEY

SERIES II, EPISODE 3

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 27 @ 11:00PM

1918

Mary’s new alliance has aroused Violet’s interest in matters of suitability and love. With Sybil in mind, the Dowager Countess declares, “war breaks down barriers and when peacetime re-erects them, it’s very easy to find oneself on the wrong side.” Indeed, among war’s greatest casualties at Downton are the prescribed roles and class boundaries. Thomas is exerting his authority over the servants with aplomb; Mrs. Patmore, Daisy and Mrs. Bird are cooking up a little something on the side; and Ethel has discovered an age-old way to support the war effort. But between Robert and Bates, faith and loyalty transcend class, offering hope when Robert needs it most. Because now, the war has threatened a far more serious casualty.

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THE PARADISE

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 27 @ 7:00PM & 11:00PM

Moray’s ambitions hit a road bump in the form of Bradley Burroughs, the barber, while Edmund’s ambitions get a boost from Katherine as she toys with Moray. As Denise executes another bold idea, Jonas graduates from prowling to a more active role in protecting Moray’s interests.

Arthur Darvill (Little Dorrit) joins Joanna Vanderham (What Maisie Knew), Emun Elliott (Game of Thrones), Sarah Lancashire (Upstairs Downstairs), Elaine Cassidy (A Room with a View), and Patrick Malahide (Game of Thrones) in Episode 4 of Bill Gallagher’s (Lark Rise to Candleford) stirring drama based on Émile Zola’s beloved classic novel, Au Bonheur des Dames.

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FORGE

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 25 @ 11:00PM

Forging is an ancient method where metal is heated and reheated, strengthened and hammered into sinuous, extravagant curves. Through this mysterious process, artists express their creativity and skill.

The craft of silversmithing in New England existed even before America’s most patriotic silversmith, Paul Revere, made his famous ride. Old Newbury Crafters in Amesbury, Massachusetts was one of the best at the time.

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WITH GWEN IFILL

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 25 @ 6:00PM & 11:00PM

THIS WEEK: HEALTHCARE.GOV TROUBLES, GOP INTRA-PARTY BATTLE & U.S. SURVEILLANCE OF FOREIGN LEADERS

The people trying to signup for health insurance coverage are not the only ones angry over the continuing problems with the HealthCare.gov website. President Obama is unhappy and taking immediate action to bring in more experts as well as tapping Jeffery Zients, incoming Director of the National Economic Council, to oversee repairs to the healthcare site. A growing number of Republicans are calling for the resignation of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. And many Democrats are concerned that if the technical problems with the Affordable Care Act website are not fixed in a timely manner it could make their 2014 reelection campaigns more difficult.

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CALL THE MIDWIFE

EPISODE 5

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 31 @ 10:00PM

Jenny finds herself for once not involved in the beginning of life, but at its end. When Nonnatus House cleaner Peggy’s brother Frank is diagnosed with cancer, Jenny and the nuns are called upon to care for him. In doing so, Jenny comes to know the siblings better, learning of their upbringing in a workhouse and the profound effect it had on their relationship.

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MAKING STUFF WILDER

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 17 @ 10:00PM

What happens when scientists open up nature’s toolbox? In “Making Stuff Wilder,” David Pogue explores bold new innovations inspired by the Earth’s greatest inventor, life itself. From robotic “mules” and “cheetahs” for the military, to fabrics born out of fish slime, host David Pogue travels the globe to find the world’s wildest new inventions and technologies. It is a journey that sees today’s microbes turned into tomorrow’s metallurgists, viruses building batteries, and ideas that change not just the stuff we make, but the way we make our stuff. As we develop our own new technologies, what can we learn from billions of years of nature’s research?

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