S39 E1 • Do Parents Matter?

How much are children influenced by their peers? The documentary Do Parents Matter? examines a controversial concept put forth by Judy Harris, a suburban grandmother and author of the explosive book, The Nurture Assumption.

Première diffusion : 7 février 2000

S39 E2 • Humans: Who Are We? Pt 1 - The Birth of The Human Mind

The Birth of The Human Mind takes viewers on an amazing journey back in time, exploring the use of language, tools and how our distant ancestors came to walk. Contrary to long-accepted belief, scientists now believe that Homo sapiens did not evolve from Neanderthals, but shared the earth with them for thousands of years. Our ancestors, the Homo sapiens, are the youngest members on the human family tree, about 150,000 years old. Homo erectus goes back 1.8 million years and Neanderthals about 200,000 years.

Première diffusion : 13 mars 2000

S39 E3 • Humans: Who Are We? Pt 2 - The Human Invasion

Paleoanthropologists, linguists, archeologists and other scientists offer the latest interpretations of fossil findings and genetic studies and posit intriguing theories on how Homo sapiens became the only existing human species. Did we kill off our cousins, interbreed and merge with them, or did they just die out? It took five million years for an upright ape to evolve into an agile, quick-thinking and inventive human being. But once our ancestors emerged in Africa, were we destined to dominate the globe?

Première diffusion : 20 mars 2000

S39 E1 • Nuclear Dynamite

In the spring of 1960, a village in the western Arctic was chosen as the site of a huge nuclear experiment. Five atomic bombs would be used to dig an instant harbour nearby. Over the next 30 years, the Americans and the Russians set off 150 atomic blasts, developing what they called peaceful nuclear explosions.

Première diffusion : 19 octobre 2000

S39 E2 • Spare Parts

A few decades ago, you'd have been hard pressed to find many survivors of transplant surgery. Today, we have come to expect that such surgery will work. Surgeon Roy Calne is one of the pioneers who made transplant surgery a practical medical tool. He's also a painter whose works capture subjects as diverse as a tiger in the jungle and the history of these startling medical advances. When he began as a surgeon, almost all these procedures failed because of the body's refusal to accept the new organ.

Première diffusion : 19 octobre 2000

S39 E3 • Early-Onset Alzheimer's Disease

Amanda's family is a carrier for a rare early-onset gene that triggers Alzheimer. It's a disease we normally associate with the elderly. In Alzheimer's, specific proteins bind to form plaque in the brain, resulting in memory loss and physical impairment. Eventually patients die from complications. A few years ago a research team at the University of Toronto isolated the specific gene associated with early-onset Alzheimer. As well, new Alzheimer drugs like Araset, trial vaccines, and improved diagnostic techniques offer new hope for patients. However, doctors are still many years away from finding a cure. Tonight we follow Amanda's powerful story as she struggles to come to terms with her family's deadly inheritance.

Première diffusion : 10 janvier 2001

S39 E4 • Coastal Forest

Much of life here is hidden and secret, a mysterious microcosmos. On the remote coast of northern British Columbia, water links life and land together in one of the rarest ecosystems on the planet. But it's only recently that scientists have discovered how the roots of these ancient forests extend far into the Pacific Ocean. Tonight we reveal for the first time some of the rain forest's hidden secrets using time lapse, microcinematography and night viewing scopes. And we are just beginning to understand the intricate and essential connection between the salmon and the trees.

Première diffusion : 27 février 2001

S39 E7 • Maisin People In Papua New Guinea

On the northeast coast of Papua New Guinea, lives a tribe of 2,000 people, the Maisin. Unlike the more remote tribes, the Maisin were among the first to have contact with Europeans. It was Anglican missionaries who brought them the English language, Christianity, and a desire to see the world outside their villages. But recently something has changed their mind. The post-war generation that moved away to towns and cities as far away as Australia are deciding to come home, to live in a community without any of the modern conveniences... no running water, no electricity, no roads.

Première diffusion : 28 février 2001

S39 E8 • Pesticides and Human Development

The Yaqui Valley is one of the largest agricultural areas in Mexico, annually producing one and a half million tons of fruits and vegetables that are largely exported to the United States and Canada. When the valley turned to farming, pesticides were introduced and have been used ever since. No long-term studies have ever been done on the effect of low-dose exposure to pesticides on human beings, but extensive animal research already existed, a fact with which Elizabeth Guillette was very familiar. In 1990 Elizabeth Guillette's husband, Dr. Louis Guillette, made a perplexing discovery about the alligators of a lake in Florida.

Première diffusion : 14 mars 2001

S39 E9 • Hospital at the End of the Earth

The story of the Aral Sea is a modern fable that contains a dire warning about our future. Less than 40 years ago this was a sea full of fish, the air was clear, the soil rich and the climate temperate. But today the Aral Sea is one of the most tragic environmental catastrophies of the last century. The Aral Sea is dying the death of a thousand irrigation canals, silently evaporating in the desert sun. The people call the dust blowing off the former seabed the dry tears of the Aral. The new Aralkum, the new desert, covers 38,000 square kilometres. This is the legacy of the will of distant leaders to turn Central Asia into the greatest cotton producing region in the world.

Première diffusion : 21 mars 2001