FOOD, INC.

TUESDAY, AUGUST 9 @ 7:00PM & 10:00PM

In Food, Inc., filmmaker Robert Kenner lifts the veil on our nation’s food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that’s been hidden from the American consumer with the consent of our government’s regulatory agencies, USDA and FDA. Our nation’s food supply is now controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihood of the American farmer, the safety of workers and our own environment. We have bigger-breasted chickens, the perfect pork chop, insecticide-resistant soybean seeds, even tomatoes that won’t go bad, but we also have new strains of E. coli ” the harmful bacteria that causes illness for an estimated 73,000 Americans annually. We are riddled with widespread obesity, particularly among children, and an epidemic level of diabetes among adults.

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The Big Energy Gamble

TUESDAY, APRIL 20 @ 6:00pm & 9:00pm

As he takes office on January 20, 2009, President Obama must deliver on an ambitious campaign pledge to fight global warming. He need look no farther than California, where Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is already leading the way with a dramatic and controversial program to slash carbon dioxide emissions and promote energy efficiency. In this program, NOVA explores the pros and cons of California’s bold approach, which could be adopted nationwide during the Obama administration.

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EARTH DAYS

THURSDAY, APRIL 22 @ 7:00PM & 12:00AM

It is now all the rage, but can you remember when everyone in America was not “Going Green”? AMERICAN EXPERIENCE’s Earth Days looks back to the dawn and development of the modern environmental movement through the extraordinary stories of the era’s pioneers — among them Former Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall, biologist/Population Bomb author Paul Ehrlich, Whole Earth Catalog founder Stewart Brand, Apollo Nine astronaut Rusty Schweickart, and renewable energy pioneer Hunter Lovins.

Widespread concern about the environment in America was on the rise in the early 1950s after a small group of scientists began to document the impact of our technology on the Earth’s ecosystem. Within a decade it seemed to many Americans as if the post-war dream of a better world brought about through science, technology and economic growth — the American dream — was turning into an unfathomable nightmare. The post-war economic boom had fueled industrial expansion, and the Interstate Highway program had encouraged mass migration to the suburbs, but emissions from new vehicles and production factories clogged the skies, and cities around the country experienced “smog episodes.”
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WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14 @ 6:00PM & 9:00PM

In this primetime special, Sesame Workshop presents personal stories about coping with the death of a parent. Katie Couric joins Elmo and his furry friends to model communication between adults and children. They’ll also offer thoughtful suggestions and strategies that help the whole family.

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The Ever Expanding Universe

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 5 @ 10:00PM

n this two-hour special, NOVA examines how a simple instrument, the telescope, has fundamentally changed our understanding of our place in the universe. What began as a curiosity “two spectacle lenses held a foot apart”ultimately revolutionized human thought across science, philosophy, and religion. “Hunting the Edge of Space” takes viewers on a global adventure of discovery, dramatizing the innovations in technology and the achievements in science that have marked the rich history of the telescope. This tale of human ingenuity involves some of the most colorful figures of the scientific world”Galileo, Kepler, Newton, William Herschel, George Hale, and Edwin Hubble”leading up to today’s colossal telescopes, housed in space-age cathedrals or orbiting high above the Earth. Now, at the center of an international space race, a new generation of ever-larger telescopes is poised to reveal answers to longstanding questions about our universe”and, in turn, to raise new questions.

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THE POLIO CRUSADE

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 7 @ 8:00PM & 12:00AM

Discover the story of the dreaded disease that gripped the nation in fear, leaving thousands paralyzed. The film weaves personal accounts of polio survivors with the story of the ardent crusader who tirelessly fought against it.

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400 YEARS OF THE TELESCOPE

SATURDAY, AUGUST 13 @ 8:00PM

Beautifully photographed in 4K digital cinematography, the film is a visually stunning chronicle of the history of the telescope from the time of Galileo, its profound impact upon the science of astronomy, and how both shape the way we view ourselves in the midst of an infinite universe.

The film features interviews with leading astrophysicists and cosmologists from the world’s renowned universities and observatories, who explain concepts ranging from Galileo’s act of revealing the cosmos with a simple telescope, to the latest discoveries in space, including startling new ideas about life on other planets and dark energy” a mysterious vacuum energy that is accelerating the expansion of the universe.
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THE BUDDHA

SUNDAY, AUGUST 17 @ 7:00PM & 11:00PM

This documentary for PBS by award-winning filmmaker David Grubin and narrated by Richard Gere, tells the story of the Buddha’s life, a journey especially relevant to our own bewildering times of violent change and spiritual confusion. It features the work of some of the world’s greatest artists and sculptors, who across two millennia, have depicted the Buddha’s life in art rich in beauty and complexity. Hear insights into the ancient narrative by contemporary Buddhists, including Pulitzer Prize winning poet W.S. Merwin and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Join the conversation and learn more about meditation, the history of Buddhism, and how to incorporate the Buddha’s teachings on compassion and mindfulness into daily life.

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SUNDAY, APRIL 11 @ 2:00PM

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of America’s fastest-growing religions and, relative to its size, one of the richest. Church membership, now at over 12 million and growing, sweeps the globe. But from the moment of its founding in 1830, the church has been controversial. Within a month, it had 40 converts and almost as many enemies. In the early years, Mormons were hated, ridiculed, persecuted and feared. Yet in the past several decades, the Mormon church has transformed itself from a fringe sect into a thriving religion that embraces mainstream American values; its members include prominent and powerful politicians, university presidents and corporate leaders.

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NATURE | MOMENT OF IMPACT

HUNTERS & HERDS

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 6 @ 6:00PM & 10:00PM

The natural world is filled with “moments of impact” – the split seconds when animals come into contact with each other and the world around them. Previously these moments were too fast or too hidden for us to see. But now new camera technologies reveal what’s behind these remarkable moments, and cutting edge animations illustrate the “inside story” of animal bioengineering that allows each moment of impact to take place.

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