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In this program a student explores biodiversity with the help of academic experts, and learns why all parts of an ecosystem are important-even the mosquitoes. Focusing on biodiversity in Australia, the video examines the negative impact of European farming techniques on the continent's fragile natural environments; it also looks at Australia's high rate of mammal extinction and prevalence of invasive species as areas of concern to environmentalists....
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Southern Africa's Namib Desert - at first glance, a barren and lifeless setting. Looking closely at the desert floor, however, we see black and multicolored patches adorning the landscape. Regions in Asia and North America present a comparable picture, and indeed, even in the Arctic and Antarctic, the Earth's frigid deserts, such deposits appear everywhere. How can these sensitive organisms survive in extremely dry and cold climates? What state would...
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This In Search of History program travels back to 1912, to the town of Piltdown, East Sussex, England, where workmen digging a gravel pit uncover a collection of bones which seem to confirm Darwin's theory of evolution and provide the "missing link" in the evolution of man. In reality, the Piltdown Man is perhaps the most famous archeological hoax of all time, confounding scientists for decades.
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Planet Earth is teeming with life. Help your students make sense of it all by starting them at the bottom of the biosphere-home to bacteria, microbes, fungi, and insects. Organization and Diversity defines key terms, classifies the kingdoms and domains of life, outlines the Linnean hierarchical system, contrasts evolutionary taxonomy with cladistic analysis, and provides powerful DNA evidence supporting the unity of life. Also, the fascinating contributions...
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Today Darwin would be surprised by the tourist mecca Galapagos has become; 200,000 visitors a year, 40,000 permanent residents. The impact on the most unique collection of endemic wildlife in the world has been heavy; too many people bringing too many of their ways (and invasive species) from the outside world threatening the future of this one-of-a-kind place. What would Darwin think of how Galapagos has evolved in the twenty-first century?
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Quickly and quietly, non-native invasive plants are making deep inroads across America, depriving entire ecosystems of the living things and natural resources they depend on to survive. This program illustrates the alarming environmental and commercial impact of non-native invasive plants; explains why they were planted and how they got out of control; introduces federal, state, and local organizations dedicated to stopping them; and describes mechanical,...
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Why are one third of amphibian species threatened by extinction? Hosted by CBC news anchor Kelly Crowe, this program summarizes the major reasons for the near-disappearance of hundreds of types of frogs, toads, and salamanders across the world. Dr. David Green, professor of biology at McGill University, and Toronto Zoo curator Bob Johnson explain one cause for the mass destruction of frogs-the chytrid fungus, which infects their skin, eventually causing...
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After direct habitat destruction, nonnative species introduced by humans to new areas pose the largest threat to global biodiversity. This program looks at how scientists and conservationists are coping with a number of these critical situations, such as on Seychelles, where rats have caused 200 years of devastation; on Scotland's Outer Hebrides, where hedgehogs were released to control garden slugs; and in New York City, where Asian longhorn beetles...
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Long before Darwin arrived in 1835, the Galapagos Islands were home to about 300,000 of the Galapagos giant tortoise, which can weigh up to 500 pounds and live for 150 years. Their numbers have now dwindled to 3,000, and the reason is: humans. This ABC News report investigates how an increase in tourism helps the economy but is endangering the islands' unique wildlife.
14) Dino Revolution
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Fuzzy babies. Stay-at-home dads. Flamboyant feathers. Exactly what you think when you hear the words Tyrannosaurus rex, right? If not, then think again. For hundreds of years, we thought dinosaurs ruled the planet as scaly, reptilian beasts that terrorized early earth. But new scientific advances are proving us wrong and painting an entirely new picture of not only the T. rex, but the entire dinosaur world. With the discovery of feathered dinosaurs...
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Why do most eukaryotes reproduce sexually and not asexually? While most people ascribe this to pleasure, science does not. At least 1.3 billion years before animals developed neurons capable of assessing pleasure, single-celled protists were already engaged in sexual practices. The leading explanation is that sexual reproduction accelerates adaptation by producing new combinations of genes, yet exactly how sex is maintained remains a mystery. British...
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What does genetic diversity mean, and what is its relationship to evolution? This video answers that intriguing question as it summarizes the theory of natural selection and describes the process of trait inheritance. Advances stemming from the Human Genome Project-an ever-deepening understanding of life on Earth, improvements in disease detection and treatment, and applications of genomics to agriculture, the environment, and forensic science-are...
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Just how far do the similarities between humans and great apes extend? Sequences from historic experiments by Allen and Beatrix Gardner, Sue Savage-Rumbaugh, and other primatologists, plus footage shot in the wild, provide compelling support for the thesis that chimps, bonobos, gorillas, and orangutans are highly evolved indeed. Demonstrations of cognition, self-awareness, memory retention, language use, social behavior, mating practices, and perhaps...
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Invasion of the Giant Tortoises explores the controversial introduction of a non-native species to the African island of Mauritius. Once home to the dodo, Mauritius was teeming with giant tortoises until the arrival of man. The introduction of predators and habitat loss doomed these majestic creatures to extinction. Now biologists have embarked on a radical plan: to replace the extinct Mauritian tortoise with a close relative: the giant tortoise from...
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"For evolutionary biologists Heather Heying and Bret Weinstein, the cause of many modern woes is clear: the world is out of sync with humans' ancient brains and bodies. The authors cut through the disputes surrounding issues like sex, gender, diet, parenting, sleep, education, and more to outline a science-based worldview that will empower the reader to live a better, wiser life. They distill more than twenty years of research and first-hand accounts...
20) The Worm Hunters
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In a Turkish headquarters the world's top earthworm scientists concoct a plan to find and name their ultimate discovery. Nothing will stop them as they travel to all corners of the world with spades, GPS worm locators, and secret worm outing fluids to unearth their prize. But love turns savage when things don't go as planned and the worm gets the upper hand. An epic adventure into an underground science and an unstoppable passion.