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06 The Next Great Quake |
100th Anniversary Conference |
No Details |
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The Day After Tomorrow |
20th Century Fox |
See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Day_After_Tomorrow |
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Home: A Stunning Visual Protrayal of Earth |
20th Century Fox |
No Details |
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Volcano |
20th Century Fox |
No Details |
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The Prehistoric Collection |
A&E History |
From dinosaurs to the dawn of man |
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How the Earth Was Made |
A&E History |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2008-2009 History Channel series explores various topics in 13 episodes on 4 disks; The San Andreas Fault, The Deepest Place on Earth, the Marianas Trench, Krakatoa, Loch Ness, New York, the Driest Place on Earth, Great Lakes, Yellowstone, Tsunami, Asteroids, Iceland, Hawaii, the Alps. Each hour is a good overview of the topic, and uses historical and new video with good history. They use different people and places to trace plate tectonics and its effects. Loch Ness for example traces the geologic history of Scotland & North America, and they give good information you did not get from Nova and their people. The Alps details the formation of that mountain range, and it is geology we do not get a lot of because it is fairly new, and not about North America. All in all, this is a worthwhile series to watch to see different slices of earth history. I learned a whole lot of new stuff, even though this series is fairly "old". |
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Land of Lost Monsters |
Animal Planet |
No Details |
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Life and Death of a Star |
Astronomy Magazine |
Infinite Cosmos Series |
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Canyon de Chelly |
Baerclaw Productions |
American History, Heritage, Tradition |
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Lignite: An Educational Tour & Mining and Reclamation |
Basin Electric Power Cooperative |
Two copies in library. 1 DVD is 38 minutes; unknown length of other. |
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Walking with Dinosaurs |
BBC |
2 copies in library |
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How the Earth Changed History |
BBC |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2010 series is a 2-disk 5-part set from the BBC. Being the BBC, the video is spectacular. Sometimes the music overwhelms the narration, but it is always spectacular to look at. And the series goes all over the planet. Professor Iain Stewart, a geologist, is the series producer and narrator, and if you like a thick Scots accent, he is the guy for you. This is a must-see for geology and history enthusiasts. "Water" explores the water cycle and how water shaped civilizations through history. There is history that has not been explored a lot, and different ways of looking at various civilizations and how they managed water. And it explores the politics of water, and how mismanagement ended empires. "Deep Earth" explores caves, volcanoes, plate tectonics & other deep-Earth phenomena. They get into mining, how the minerals were emplaced, & then exploited by man. They correlate fault lines, water, and cities. Fault lines are where the profit is, disaster notwithstanding. "Wind" explores how people have exploited the winds in sailing, but also the patterns of the winds around the planet. From the discovery of the trade winds & the age of exploration & the slave trade, to the dust bowl, wind & weather have shaped civilizations. It is as much meteorology as plain wind. "Fire" explores how man has harnessed fire for our use and civilization building as the human signature. Fuel drives civilization, and various energy crises are explored. From wood to coal to oil, man has used various carbon sources to fuel civilization. And now we have to break out of dependency on oil. "Human Planet" explores how people have changed the planet, purposely & by accident. The point is made that humans are as much a geological force on the planet as any natural force, so we need to be mindful about it. The extras go more in depth about a few aspects of the episodes in an informal manner. "Crystal Caves" goes into the gypsum caves in Mexico. They talk about the physical environment and how it impacted filming. "Walking through Fire" goes into the logistics of safety and using the suit. "Paragliding" shows the vagaries of flying that way. |
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Earth the Biography |
BBC |
The story of our world. MEMBER REVIEW: This is a BBC production, and it is as great as you would expect. It is divided into 5 segments, Volcanoes, Atmosphere, Ice, Ocean, and Rare Planet. From first glance you might not think it was a geological history, but it is that and more. They go from planetary formation to the possible future. Great CGI, solid science, and a narrator with a wonderful Scotttish accent (A Scots geologist, go figure). They go all over the planet, and do quite a bit of personal activity, caving, volcano exploring, etc. You also go to places others cannot go. Watch it twice to make sure you get it all. This one is a definite must see. |
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Blue Planet: Seasonal Seas & Coral Seas |
BBC |
No Details |
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Blue Planet: Seas of Life |
BBC |
No Details |
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Chased by Dinosaurs |
BBC |
No Details |
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Hyperspace |
BBC |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2001 BBC series in 6 parts details all sorts of interesting stuff. Being 2001, things are a bit more apocalyptic than today, so there is an emphasis on the many things that can end life on Earth. And it is pre Hubble, so the graphics are less detailed than we expect today. But it still is well worth watching. Each episode is 30 minutes, so it goes quickly. But they manage to get a lot of information in each episode. The special features are nice, a bit more in a how we made the production vein. It is colorful and exciting in an end of the world way, and well worth watching. |
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Voyage to the Planets and Beyond |
BBC |
No Details |
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Planet Earth: The Complete Series |
BBC |
No Details |
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Walking with Prehistoric Beasts |
BBC |
2 copies in library |
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Blue Planet: Frozen Seas |
BBC |
No Details |
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Prehistoric Planet |
BBC |
No Details |
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Walking with Cavemen |
BBC |
No Details |
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Life in the Freezer |
BBC Video |
David Attenborough in Antarctica |
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Just Add Water |
Bleeding Hart |
Rated R |
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Ground Rules: Mining for a Sustainable Future |
Caterpillar |
2 copies in library |
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Energized: Communities Building Minnesotas Clean Energy Future |
Clean Energy Resource Teams |
No Details |
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Hibbing Taconite Company |
Cliffs Mining |
No Details |
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Planet in Peril |
CNN |
A CNN Worldwide Investigation |
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Planet in Peril |
CNN Worldwide Investigations |
No Details |
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Minnesota A History of the Land |
College of Natural Resources, U of M |
No Details |
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2012 |
Columbia Pictures |
No Details |
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Coteau Mining Story |
Coteau Properties Co. |
No Details |
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Crude Independence |
Couple 3 Films |
Set in North Dakota |
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Oil On Ice |
Dale Djerassi/Bo Boudart |
About Arctic Wildlife Refuge |
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The Future of Food |
Deborah Koons Garcia |
No Details |
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Space Views |
Delta Entertainment |
Original, breathtaking pictures from the Space Shuttle |
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Hidden Hawaii |
Destination Cinema SlingShot Entertainment |
IMAX (2 copies in Library) |
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Great Los Angeles Earthquake |
Direct Source Special Products |
No Details |
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The Real Eve |
Discovery |
(2 copies in library) MEMBER REVIEW: This is the story of mitochondrial DNA. It traces the exodus of humanity and then tracks it back to one female in Africa through mitochondrial DNA. It was produced in 2002, so things have advanced since then, but it is still an interesting story and well worth watching. |
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Before the Dinosaurs |
Discovery |
2 copies in library |
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Valley of the T-Rex |
Discovery |
Features Jack Horner |
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Supervolcano |
Discovery |
It is under Yellowstone. And it is overdue. |
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Origins: Battle for the Planet |
Discovery |
MEMBER REVIEWS: 1) A nice introduction to the Cambrian explosion and early evolution. Starts with the Cambrian explosion, and the various creatures that had evolved. It is Vertebrates vs. Arthropods vs. Mollusks. Showing the fossils of the Burgess Shale in the Canadian Rockies, they explore how unlikely survival of piciea was to evolve into us. The arthropods-giant bugs-ruled. Then they go to the Soom Shale in South Africa, and the conodonts, descendants of piciea when the mollusks ruled. After that came snowball Earth. The arthropods came back, but reached their limits, leaving the way clear for the vertebrates to take over on land. There is lots of good evolution, and many fossils to be seen, and also lots of good animation showing all the weird creatures living in the Cambrian. It is worth watching more than once.
2) This focuses on the Cambrian Explosion over 500 million years ago, when the land was barren and everything lived in the oceans. You get to see all the weird animals and plants around at that time, and which ones evolved into humans. The CGI is well done, and looks pretty natural, for depicting things we only know directly as fossils. It is 2003, so they miss some of the most up-to-date information (all life was only slime before the Cambrian, not!), but it is still pretty good, and you find yourself wondering which will win, insects, mollusks or vertebrates. (Hint: we are vertebrates.) You go to the Burgess Shale, and other interesting places. It is worth watching, and if you want to know more, read "Wonderful Life: the Burgess Shale and the Nature of History" by Steven Jay Gould (1989). It is somewhat outdated, but still a good read. |
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Best of Discovery Volume 5 |
Discovery |
Unfolding Universe; Man vs. Wild;Deadliest Catch; Planet Earth: Filmmakers Story |
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95 Worlds and Counting |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Alien Planet |
Discovery |
No Details |
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American Tsunami: Are We Next? |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Ammolite: Birth of a Gem |
Discovery |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 45-minute 2003 video was created to sell Ammolite, a gem mined near Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. It is part of a series, Stones of Fate and Fortune. There is history and geology of fossils in Alberta. Species and location specific, the mother of pearl of ammonite shells are transformed during burial to brilliantly colored rock. Discovered in 1908, it waited until the 1960s to become worked, and 1981 to be an officially recognized gemstone. To me it looks to be a cross between labradorite and opal. This is a Canadian entrepreneurial story, with illegal collecting and poaching. It occurs in shale about 45 feet down and is a low tech smallish operation, guaranteeing scarcity. There is only one active mine in operation as of the date of the video. They cut the material, and use a quartz cap to protect it as jewelry. Other pieces are heat treated with polymers to stabilize it. This is a soft sell video, in typical Canadian style, polite and self-effacing. |
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Chased by Sea Monsters |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Cracking the Ocean Code |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Extreme Engineering: Excavators |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Extreme Engineering: Oakland Bay Bridge |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Extreme Engineering: Bering Strait |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Extreme Engineering: Hollands Barriers to the Sea |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Galapagos Beyond Darwin |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Ice Age Colombus: Who Were the First Americans? |
Discovery |
No Details |
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If We Had No Moon |
Discovery |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 1999 Discovery production, narrated by Patrick Stewart, is pretty old. Pluto is a planet, Jupiter has 16 moons, and Orpheus hits the Earth to create the Moon. The graphics are still pretty good. Even though we know now some of the details are different, for the most part they do get it right. And it is interesting to see how much we have learned in the intervening years. Milankovich cycles, Voyager's discoveries, 4.1 billion year old zircons, are some of the advances missing from this video. They also put a lot of emphasis on imminent space exploration, and we all know how that turned out. So know there is old stuff here, but it is still interesting to watch. |
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Planet Earth |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Pompeii: The Last Day |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Prehistoric America: The Wild West |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Prehistoric America: From the Ice Age to Manhattan |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Prehistoric America: The Frozen North |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Prehistoric America: The Wild West |
Discovery |
No Details |
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The Day the Earth Nearly Died |
Discovery |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2002 Discovery/BBC production is an exploration of the Permian extinction. It details the first theories, and then explores the other research and exploration that finally came up with the whole story of the entire extinction event. It is a good production, and worth watching on this fairly narrow subject. |
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The Ultimate Guide: Volcanoes |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Voyage to the Planets and Beyond |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Ice World |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Earthquake Storms |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Flood of the Millennium |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Planet Storm |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Prehistoric |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Dinosaur Planet |
Discovery |
No Details |
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When Dinosaurs Roamed America |
Discovery |
No Details |
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The Real Eve |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Dinosaurs Inside and Out |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Inside Planet Earth |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Wolves at Our Door |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Why Dogs Smile and Chimpanzees Cry |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Science of the Deep |
Discovery |
MEMBER REVIEW #1: The first part is about living in an underwater habitat for multiple day, think Sealab. It was ok but the next two parts were fascinating. Part 2 deals with jelly like creatures living somewhere between the depths and the surface of the ocean. (It varies by time of day) Part 3 deals with cold seeps and the life on them. Superheated hydrothermal vents aren't the only game in town. I wound up watching parts 2 and 3 several times. MEMBER REVIEW #2: This Discovery Classics video has 3 hour-long episodes about marine research. One details an expedition aboard an undersea research facilty in a coral reef, upper level research. The second is about a diving expedition in the mid level depths, and the last is about a deep sea submersible in a trench. These programs are professional and well done. They are more high school level science, but are worthwhile watching. |
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Journey of Life: Human Life |
Discovery |
No Details |
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Fearless Planet |
Discovery/Image Entertainment |
Extreme Adventures in Extreme Places |
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A Crude Awakening: The Oil Crash |
Docudramafilms |
Winner: Zurich Film Prize |
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Ring of Fire |
Doomsday Series |
The Unthinkable has arrived. MEMBER REVIEW: This is a 2012 miniseries event. It starts with a lake full of dead fish. Then a field of dead cows. What is happening? A big company is doing subsurface drilling for oil in a protected area in eastern Oregon, but guarantee it will be safe etc. etc. etc. And we will be free of countries that squeeze us and make gas prices go up $1.50 a gallon! (Oh the horror of it all!) The area was depressed, and the drilling is a godsend to people out of work. But CO2 is being released after seismic events, with pictures of lava and churning stuff. Sigh. The usual cast of characters, a CEO who actually cares, a PR person who is ruthless, a protester who wants to stop it all, miners who are desperate for a paycheck, a scientist who is baffled, his grad student who is hot and sassy and helpful, citizens who are baffled but trusting because they have a new park, etc. etc. etc. "Magma can be easily mistaken for oil, and they could hit magma instead of oil. They are drilling deeper than they are allowed." "They could ignite the whole caldera." Honest, they say this and it sorta characterizes the whole movie. They hit magma, the well blows and it activates the entire ring of fire, 75% of all earth's volcanoes. The rest is explosions, special effects, harrowing rescues, dead people and the usual disaster stuff. It is a global extinction event, and you have a ringside seat. They use a sonic bomb to divert the magma to the ocean, and stop the chain reaction and save the earth. It is not bad enough to be a turkey, but it is not really worth watching either. |
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Full Force Nature |
Echo Bridge Entertainment |
No Details |
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Journey to the Center of the Earth |
Echo Bridge Entertainment |
No Details |
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Category 7: The End of the World |
Echo Bridge Entertainment |
No Details |
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Sacagawea: Heroine of the Lewis and Clark Journey |
Encounter Video |
No Details |
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Our Living Earth, volume 2 |
Encyclopedia Britannica |
1. Evolution of Landscapes; 2. Aging of Lakes; 3. Life in the Grasslands; 4. The Everglades |
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Earths Underground: Minerals and Rocks |
Encyclopedia Britannica |
1. The Rock Cycle; 2. Rocks that Originate Underground; 3. Minerals and Rocks |
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H20: The Water Cycle |
Encyclopedia Britannica |
No Details |
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Our Living Earth, Volume 1 |
Encyclopedia Britannica |
MEMBER REVIEW: Remember those science films you watched in grade and high school? They were usually one subject and earnestly, if ponderously narrated. This DVD will bring you back to those days. It contains 2 of these films-one dated 1977 is about Hawaiian active volcano (hint, it is not Kilauea), and the other dated 1978 is about fossils around the US in general, and the exciting revelation that oil and coal come from ancient organisms and can be called "fossil fuels". Needless to say, there is little that is new or exciting here. They are proud of a diorama of a fossil marine reef. That is how cutting edge it is. If you are looking for something exciting, pass this DVD by. If you want nostalgia, and to see just how far geology has come in the past 40 years, this one is for you. |
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Mars: Past Present & Future |
Finley-Holiday Film Corp. |
No Details |
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Volcano Disaster |
First Look Home Entertainment |
No Details |
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Ice Twisters |
First Look Studios |
Includes bonus movie "Storm Cell" 92 minutes. MEMBER REVIEW: A cheesy B-movie combo of TWISTER and THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW, which sees Oregon plagued by an outbreak of government-created tornadoes which additionally have the power to freeze anything in their path (apart from the protagonists, of course). The resulting film is as silly as they come, made on a low budget so there is plenty of talk and not so much disaster. When the weather outbreaks do hit, we are treated to flying CGI cars and hilarious shots of people/buildings turning to ice as the tornado passes over them. I do not mind a bit of cheese like this, but the rest of the film is so poor as to make actually watching it just not worthwhile. The acting is extremely wooden, and the characters anything but true to life. Nobody seems to show any emotion and you wonder whether those involved are all Stepford creations. The thrills are nonsensical and short-lived, and the supposed technological explanations ridiculous. Sadly, this is exactly what I was expecting from a "Syfy Channel" television movie, and I got it. |
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Megalodon |
Fusion Intl |
No Details |
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California |
Globe Trekker |
No Details |
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The Twenty Mule Team of Death Valley |
Gold Creek Films |
MEMBER REVIEW: Sometimes it is fun to watch something that creates a great deal of nostalgia and this is the video for that. Twenty Mule Team Borax is an old-time washing compound, but where does Borax come from? What is Borax? California is known for gold and Nevada for silver, as mineral resources, but there are many other minerals that are useful, but a lot less glamorous. Industrial minerals make more money than precious metals, but we learn less about them. Borax is one of those minerals, and most of it comes from California and Nevada, hence this video. It is used in jewelry making, ceramics and laundry. In the 1870's several deposits of borax were found in California and Nevada, and borax mining in the US became a big industry. Before this, all borax was imported to the US, and finding a domestic source was advantageous. The companies that sprang up, their competetions and their advertising campaigns make for an entertaining video. It shows that competition and big advertising are way older than the recent half century. This video touches on a lot of topics, but the mineral borax is the center of it all. History and nostalgia abound. Borax is still mined in California by the Rio Tinto Company, so it is still an important industrial mineral. This is a fun video for the whole family. |
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Supernova |
Hallmark |
The day the world catches fire. MEMBER REVIEW: This is a 2005 apocaplytic thriller turkey from Hallmark. Just the credits, with planets instantly exploding into chunks after their sun explodes in a supernova, lets you know this will not be good. Oh no, more weird magnetic anomalies affecting birds and other animals. (Why is it always magnetic anomalies?) This time the Sun is the culprit. And another world-weary scientist with all the knowledge, that the sun is unstable and will blow up in a week. A week? Really? But only he knows. Sigh. The graphics of the sun look little like the sun on the NOAA spaceweather page, and more like a cartoon. You would think they would look at the real thing first. This was filmed in South Africa, which stood in for Australia, with a few American actors to make it feel global. They try for suspense, and end up with tedium. The sun is lots older than we thought (10+ billion years), so it will explode in a supernova. What about the Chardrasekar limit? We get absurdity upon absurdity. This is less entertaining than the Core. There are a few laughable moments, with accompaning effects. The disasters build, and you really do not care. They do destroy St. Louis, but leave the arch partially wrecked so you can tell. But like all Hallmark Productions, it ends well. Hint, the Sun does not go supernova, because of a math mistake. Really. |
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Dinotopia |
Hallmark |
No Details |
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Too Hot Not to Handle |
HBO Documentary |
No Details |
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How the Earth Was Made: The Complete Season 1 |
History |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2008-2009 History Channel series explores various topics in 13 episodes on 4 disks; The San Andreas Fault, The Deepest Place on Earth, the Marianas Trench, Krakatoa, Loch Ness, New York, the Driest Place on Earth, Great Lakes, Yellowstone, Tsunami, Asteroids, Iceland, Hawaii, the Alps. Each hour is a good overview of the topic, and uses historical and new video with good history. They use different people and places to trace plate tectonics and its effects. Loch Ness for example traces the geologic history of Scotland & North America, and they give good information you did not get from Nova and their people. The Alps details the formation of that mountain range, and it is geology we do not get a lot of because it is fairly new, and not about North America. All in all, this is a worthwhile series to watch to see different slices of earth history. I learned a whole lot of new stuff, even though this series is fairly "old". |
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Modern Marvels: Salt Mines |
History Channel |
MEMBER REVIEW: This is a History Channel Production. It has a bit of the history of salt (but nothing of ancient history - I recommend the book "Salt" by Mark Kurlansky for that. Stay away from "Neptunes Gift" - boring as hell.), and salt mining with emphasis on medieval to mostly modern salt mines. It is interesting, and shows the ways salt is mined today: in mines, and by evaporation and brining. They also detail the salt mine in Poland with the cathedral and other beautiful carvings. There are even chandeliers with salt crystals. It plays a bit like an industrial film, but for people interested in the strategic uses of salt, it is pretty good. There is very little geology, though. And lots of Cargill people talking about the wonders of salt. I was somewhat bemused by the guy who said he could stare endlessly at a pile of salt. That is dedication to his work. He works at the evaporation plant near San Francisco. A DVD worth watching, but not one I want to save and treasure. |
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The Universe: Complete Season 3 |
History Channel |
MEMBER REVIEW: This set of DVDs is less worthwhile than Season 1. Some of the episodes are just not worth watching. “Sex in Space” and “Deep Space Disasters” are two of the worst. Many of the others take an “Oh my God, we arere all gonna die!!!!!” take on astronomy, emphasizing asteroid/comet impacts with Earth, Sun exploding/swelling, magnetar stars burping and stripping the atmosphere, etc. etc. etc. You get the feeling we are all gonna die soon from something we do not even know about anyhow, so why bother. A friend described it as, “It sounds like they ran out of things to do”, and I agree. There are some interesting episodes, more about (then) recent projects in space exploration and so forth. This was done in 2009, the newest things are absent. But it does have good history and how we got to where we are in space travel and so forth. My suggestion is watch, but if the episode seems silly or contrived, do not finish it and go on to the next one. The episodes seem to me wildly varying in quality, from massively stupid, to really interesting. So try it, but be prepared to abandon a stupid one, and go on to the next one, which will be different in quality. |
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The Universe: Complete Season 1 |
History Channel |
MEMBER REVIEW: This set of DVDs is well worth viewing. It is much better than I had anticipated. It was done in 2007, so some things are dated, and there is newer stuff that is missing, but for the basics and general information it is solid, entertaining, and has very good graphics. They go through the basics, Earth and how it formed, the other planets by class, the Oort cloud and comets, asteroids etc. etc. It is a solid grounding in the basics of our solar system and the universe. They do go into the physics and chemistry aspects, but without the equations and heavy math. You get to understand the why without the mathematical how. Sometimes they get a bit silly or simplistic, but overall it is a good effort and something worth watching more than once. You can watch one at a time, or binge; either way you get a lot out of them. |
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Modern Marvels: Demolition |
History Channel |
No Details |
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Journey to 10,000 BC |
History Channel |
No Details |
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A Global Warning? |
History Channel |
No Details |
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The Universe: Complete Season 2 |
History Channel |
MEMBER REVIEW: Season 1 was very good, and Season 2 is as good or better. Great graphics, and this season is more galactically oriented - less about our solar system, though there are episodes here as well. You will see the same cast of physicists, and some strange analogies - globular clusters are like Chinatown - but it is a good watch. A digital TV really gives great resolution for the graphics, and they use more Hubble images and fewer animated approximations, which is a treat for this Hubble-lover. This is a must-see for anyone interested in astronomy and astro-physics. It is understandable, but they get quite complicated and detailed, without losing the audience. Very well-written overall. |
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How the Earth was Made, Season 2 |
History/A&E |
NOTE: Includes 2 replacement disks. MEMBER REVIEW: This 2009-2010 History Channel series explores various topics in 13 episodes on 4 disks (except our copy has 6 disks as Disk 2 was replaced by 3 separate disks of one episode each.): Grand Canyon, Vesuvius, Birth of the Earth, Sahara, Yosemite, Rockies, Ring of Fire, Everest, Death Valley, Mt. St. Helens, Earth's Deadliest Eruptions, Ice Age, America's Gold. Each hour is a good overview of the topic, and uses historical and new video with good history. They use different people and places to trace plate tectonics and its effects. Rockies ends with the Rio Grand Fault that may eventually tear North America apart - something I knew nothing about. Birth of the Earth is really nifty, and the graphics are excellent. And they show 4.2-billion-year-old banded iron formations. How cool is that? Again, this is a worthwhile series to watch to see different slices of earth history. I learned a whole lot of new stuff, even though this series is fairly 'old'. |
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Life After People |
History/A&E |
No Details |
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Rocky Mountain National Park |
Holiday Digital Video |
MEMBER REVIEW: A very pleasant overview of this beautiful park. It includes a brief description of the geology that formed the Rocky Mountains. Recommended if you plan to visit or might visit this park, or as a review after you have visited it. |
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Gesyers of Yellowstone & Other Thermal Features |
Holiday Films |
No Details |
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Explore Colorado |
Holiday National Park Series |
No Details |
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Learning from Patients: The Science of Medicine |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
No Details |
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Potent Biology: Stem Cells, Cloning, and Regeneration |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
No Details |
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Of Hearts and Hypertension: Blazing Genetic Trails |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
MEMBER REVIEW: There are four parts, the first part gives a very good (and useful to me) overview of how the heart works. The next 3 parts deals with genetic based heart disease. I found the first part well worth watching. |
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Making Your Mind: Molecules, Motion, and Memory |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
No Details |
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Scanning Lifes Matrix |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
No Details |
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Evolution: Constant Change and Common Threads |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
MEMBER REVIEW: This DVD set is produced by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. It is done in-house, but has very good technical quality. The 2 DVDs are different. All are from the 2005 Holiday Lectures on Science. The first DVD consists of 4 lectures on evolution, plus a series of interactive presentations taken from the lectures. The lectures are good presentations with introductions, video clips, and graphics. Each lecture is on a different topic, but they progress, so watch them in order. These are generally college-level presentations, and are an excellent overview of genetics and evolution. They touch on natural selection, plant and animal breeding, and modern DNA research. You need your remote to play the interactive stuff, there is interesting material there. But you can also skip the interactive stuff, as it is all in the lectures. Each lecture lasts about an hour, with talk and questions. Interestingly, they take video from all sorts of sources, commercial and educational, from Nova to Jeopardy. The second DVD has a discussion reconciling religion and science. It has interviews with 4 principals about evolution and science and the benefits from evolutionary research. The interviews seem geared toward encouraging young people to go into science. The discussion about religion and science and can they easily coexist, feature the scientists who presented the lectures, a priest, and a philosopher. Both the priest and philosopher say the Bible is not to be taken literally, so they bypass totally a main argument against evolution. They get into media bashing - the media does not represent all viewpoints - just fundamentalists vs. a scientist or two. The fear of science and evolution seems a uniquely American phenomenon. They get into Intelligent Design vs. Creationism. This whole discussion seems more germane to people in the DC area, where there is a lot more overt fundamentalism than here in Minnesota, where we have not ever tried to legislate the falsity of evolution. But it is interesting to hear some good arguments for evolution, and yet you can still believe in God (or whatever). But if you are not needing this material it is easily skipped. The courses are good, and give a real sold foundation for understanding evolution and how it works both in the greater scale and also down to the specific genes. |
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Clockwork Genes |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
No Details |
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AIDS: Evolution of an Epidemic |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
No Details |
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Viral Outbreak: The Science of Emerging Disease |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
MEMBER REVIEW: This DVD details how to detect and fight viral diseases. It is 2010 so they talk about chicken gunya, and it is OK, but very high school in level of sophistication. It is also not as engaging as the other Howard Hughes Lecture series I viewed. This is more like classroom lectures, somewhat plodding, with nuggets of interesting stuff here and there. So if you‘re interested in virology, it can be engaging, but it is not a solid great recommendation. |
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The Day the Mesozoic Died |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
MEMBER REVIEW: This DVD traces the scientific detective story of the Chixulub asteroid, and goes into the fossil evidence of how devastating it was to all life on Earth, especially microorganisms in the oceans, at the base of the food chain. It ties together various scientific disciplines to tell what happened and the disastrous outcome it brought. It is a Howard Hughes Medical Institute short film from 2012, and well done with interactive features, though you can enjoy it without accessing those. This is fun for dinosaur fans and asteroid people as well. |
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Science of Fat |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
No Details |
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Sex Determination |
Howard Hughes Medical Institute |
No Details |
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Dinosaurs Alive |
Image Entertainment |
IMAX |
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The Future is Wild |
Image Entertainment |
No Details |
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Volcanoes of the Deep Sea |
Image Entertainment |
No Details |
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Faces of Earth |
Image/Discovery |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2008 Science Channel production has 4 parts on one disk. In Building the Planet, they start with new technology showing how new information is changing what geologists know. Then they move to the formation of the Earth, and have some good video of the Soudan Mine. They gloss over a lot of earth history, but it still is a nice overview. In Shaping the Planet they explore plate tectonics and the Afar rift in Africa. They detail the Mediterranean and tectonic action around it. This is detail we do not get much, and is interesting to learn. In Assembling America they start in Seattle and move east, showing various geological features of our continent. They talk about the Chesapeake Asteroid impact, which is not covered a lot. A Human World is a primer on paleoclimate, and how man has affected it. Ice cores and lake sediments are measured and analyzed to show ancient and modern climate changes and how man has affected the world. The last two episodes have video from UMD, and their geological programs. For an older video, there is still lots here to learn. They have different people and focus from the more popular Nova productions, so it is well worth watching. |
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Minnesota: Migrating the Mississippi |
Imagestream Press |
No Details |
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The Dream Is Alive |
IMAX |
Space Shuttle; Walter Cronkite narrates. |
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Cosmic Voyage |
IMAX |
No Details |
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Whales: An Unforgettable Journey |
IMAX |
IMAX (2 copies in Library) |
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L5: First City in Space |
IMAX |
No Details |
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Space Station |
IMAX Warner Brothers |
No Details |
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Geology Series: Gold in Colorado |
Instructional Video |
MEMBER REVIEW: This is an old DVD and has a few places where it freezes. Stay with it - it clears by itself. This is an instructional video. It has a minimally basic level of production value - way below what we would expect of a TV show. It reminded me of the educational films we would get in science class in grade school. And it seems to be aimed at your average 6th grader in content. It was made in 2009. They use a lot of weird old video from a variety of sources and that may make this DVD worth watching by itself. See the old trains. Once the history is over, they get into the specific geology of the various gold districts in Colorado. They do talk about various associated minerals, and the geological processes that caused the placements to come about. It gets somewhat technical, but it is easily understandable if you are into the geology. They have a couple of placer miners explaining how their operation. Then they get into actual gold mining. All in all it is not too bad, if you can deal with the minimal production values and amateur narrator. |
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Colorado Geology Series: Complete Geology of History |
Instructional Video |
No Details |
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Dinosaur Eggs and Babies |
Janson Media |
No Details |
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Gemstone Adventure Series: Tanzanite Story |
Jewelry Television |
3 copies in library. MEMBER REVIEW: This is another JTV production. It is slickly produced, but not as good as their diamond DVD. Tanzanite was discovered in 1967, so it has a much shorter history than diamonds. Additionally, tanzanite is found in only one place, so there is not as much to discuss. This DVD runs about 25 minutes, and has a lot of footage of animals and scenery. There is the geology of the stone, and associated minerals and mining footage. However I was disappointed that there was not more - maybe exploring more about the associated minerals. So watch it, but realize it feels pretty short. Maybe if I had seen this first, it would not be such a letdown. |
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Gemstone Adventure Series: Diamond Story |
Jewelry Television |
MEMBER REVIEW: This DVD was produced by JTV - a jewelry shopping channel. However, they are pretty good about being accurate and gemnologically correct (unlike others), so this is a worthwhile DVD to watch. It details how diamonds are formed in the earth, then mined and cut for jewelry. The geology is good, as are the graphics. They spend a good amount of time on the geology and chemistry. Then the history of diamond discoveries and mining and so forth. Last is cutting and jewelry. There is lots less hype for buying than I had anticipated. You would not guess it was made by a commercial venture - it plays like a documentary you would see on Nova. All in all, it is quite good. |
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Gemstone Adventure Series: Gemstone Journey |
Jewelry Television |
No Details |
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Gasland Part II |
Josh Fox |
2 copies in library |
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Lakes, A Love Affair |
Kerry McNally Film |
2 copies in library |
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Water for This Living World |
King Motion Picture |
No Details |
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Wildfire: A Force of Nature |
King Motion Picture |
No Details |
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Crazy Horse Drilling & Blasting: The Fine Art of Mountain Carving |
Korczak Heritage |
No Details |
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Lignite Rocks! |
Lignite Energy Council |
MEMBER REVIEW: This video was made to promote coal mining in North Dakota. It is a propaganda piece, with acting that is amateurish. But it does
explain many things about power plants, and mining and dealing with the by-products of mining and power plants. It is about 10 minutes long. |
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Australia: Land Beyond Time |
Living Pictures |
IMAX |
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Our Plant Earth |
Madacy Entertainment |
Also 1 audio disc |
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Ocean Oasis |
Magic Play |
IMAX |
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Great North |
Magic Play |
IMAX - Celebrating Man, Animal, and Landscape at the Top of the Globe |
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Absolute Zero |
Marvista |
MEMBER REVIEW: Watch at your own risk. This 2006 production starts with a giant crack in the ice of Antarctica (with people falling in, of course) and moves to Miami. When the polarity of the Earth switches, it gets cold instantly. Really cold. Absolute zero. They did it in a special chamber in a scientific facility, so that proves it. Then weird weather anomalies in Antarctica wreck the base camp and research rover. Then the archaeologist discovers petroglyphs in Antarctica. "Science is a series of educated risks, and every scientist knows it." "What if the ice age started in a sudden moment?" "The poles are melting so fast that it changes the shape of the Earth. If the Earth changes shape it can cause the poles to shift." Then an iceberg floats into the Miami marina. Undetected. The ruthless head of the scientific facility wants to make money from it all. The courageous scientist keeps forging ahead. Then they discover the poles are shifting, like now. "Everything within 30 degrees north and south of the equator will freeze and go dark, and become absolute zero." More weird and extremely isolated weather anomalies occur. With snow and ice and blizzards. Then the eclipse happens, all over the earth. And all the lights go out. This is totally unbelievable, and I cannot fathom how somebody could make all this up. |
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Collisions and Impacts |
Meteor Crater Enterprises |
The role of meteors and craters in our solar system. As seen in the Meteor Crater Museum on the Rim |
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Touching the Void |
MGM |
Rated R |
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Trona |
Mill Creek Entertainment |
Alone in a Strange California Community |
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Earthlight: Special Edition |
Mill Reef Entertainment |
No Details |
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Minerals in Your World |
Mineral Information Institute |
Not a video. Includes explanations, photos, and maps of minerals |
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Bedrock and Quaternary Geologic Mapping of the Mesabi Iron Range |
Minnesota Geological Survey |
Summary of Surficial Geology |
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Makoshika: Crossroads to the Past |
Montana State Parks |
No Details |
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Really Wild Animals |
National Geographic |
Dinosaurs and Other Creature Features |
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Amazing Planet |
National Geographic |
MEMBER REVIEW: This is a 2006 National Geographic production, and so you can expect beautiful scenery. And it delivers, but they also often "enhance" it with video production techniques - so the nifty scenery lasts way shorter than you would want. And occasionally it can be vertigo creating. There are no scientists talking about their theories or discoveries, just a narrator with lots of good video and graphics. The first DVD has 2 episodes. The first is Born of Fire, about the origins of the planet and the forces that still shape it. The narration can be a bit over-the-top - lava can either be the lifeblood of the planet spewing onto the surface, or a really bad case of indigestion (really!). There are good graphics which show what we cannot see directly. They run the dance of the continents back and forth several times - which is quite fun. They go into the varieties of volcanoes and how they differ - that is something not seen elsewhere. Then come the mega-earthquakes, mega-tsunamis, and super-volcanoes. The second episode is Ocean Realm. Again we get history of the Earth, but more detailed and in chronological order: formation of the planet, continents, water, life, oxygen, snowball earth and so on. They touch on ancestral continents and the life that lives around them. The global oceanic currents are shown and explained. How these currents were changed by the formation of the isthmus of Panama is interesting. Future plate movements are shown. The second DVD has the third episode Destructive Forces that shape the planet: wind, water, fire and earth itself. It iss a nice overview of geological processes, but it never progresses past the beginner level. Still, it is a good introduction for newbies. There are many good graphic depictions of slow geological processes - watch the Grand Canyon form. The bonus feature is a 1998 program about Iceland which is better than the third episode. Not as technologically sophisticated with post-production, but it is easier to watch. Lots of great archival footage and spelunking under glaciers. This series is well worth watching. |
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Forces of Nature |
National Geographic |
No Details |
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Inside Hurricane Katrina |
National Geographic |
No Details |
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Sea Monsters |
National Geographic |
No Details |
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Prehistoric Predators |
National Geographic |
No Details |
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Prehistoric Predators: Sabertooth |
National Geographic |
No Details |
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Dawn of the Ocean |
National Geographic |
No Details |
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Six Degrees Could Change the World |
National Geographic |
No Details |
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Lewis & Clark: Great Journey West |
National Geographic |
No Details |
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Bear Island |
National Geographic |
No Details |
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Human Footprint |
National Geographic |
No Details |
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Seeing Death Valley |
National Park Service |
Plus 32 minutes of additional material. |
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Miracle Planet |
National Film Board of Canada |
MEMBER REVIEW: I was quite impressed by this series, and really cannot recommend it enough. This 2005 five-disk series is a joint production of the National Film Board of Canada and NHK Japan, so you do not see the usual cast of scientists you see on Nova and other PBS series. And that is a good thing. I like those "usual guys" but hearing from new people brings new ideas for us to learn. And it is narrated by Christopher Plummer - what is not to like? It has good geology about the formation of the Earth and the evolution of life, but there is a different emphasis than the US products. I learned a lot of interesting new stuff, and I have been reading books and watching videos about all of this for many years. Many of the sites and rocks they use to illustrate their points come from the US - meteor crater, salt beds in the desert southwest and so forth. But they use those same old rocks to make new and different points. Microbes encased in salt from the Permian that can be brought back to life. And we see rocks and life in different places as well. New insights and a different take make this series a must-see for anyone interested in how the Earth formed and life evolved. It is a great keeper companion to the PBS series and Nova shows. |
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Yellowstone |
Nature |
No Details |
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Raging Planet |
NEW16 Discovery |
Description: Take a thrilling ride right into the heart of the most amazing forces of our planet - revealing the speed of a twister, the power of a hurricane, the lethal force of a lightning bolt, the instant devastation of a flood, or the explosive punch of a volcano. Feel what it is like to be inside a house when a storm rips the roof off, when a cloud of volcanic ash overtakes you, or what a street sign picked up by a tornado would do to your car window. This is Nature at its wildest and most furious. (9 Episodes) |
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Dinosaurs In and Out |
New Dominion |
No Details |
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Gold! The History of Mans Greatest Obsession |
NEW16 History Channel |
No Details |
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Volcano: Natures Inferno |
NEW16 National Geographic |
Description: Travel around the world for a firsthand look at volcanoes - perhaps the most dazzling but destructive natural force on earth. Massive volcanic eruption can turn day into night, releasing the power of an atomic blast, spewing toxic avalanches of lava, gas, and ash. National Geographic Video transports you to some of the most notorious volcanoes on Earth, including Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines and Mount Unzen in Japan. Join volcanologists in their dangerous quest to forecast eruptions and save lives and experience the explosive excitement and human drama surrounding volcanoes. |
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Worlds Worst Natural Disasters |
NEW16 National Geographic |
Description: Through eyewitness video, historical archives, and cutting edge CGI, Worlds Worst Natural Disasters provides a comprehensive, yet intimate look at the most significant natural disasters of all time. National Geographic and a team of world experts reveal the pivotal moments that turned the "Top 10" from natural phenomenon into human catastrophe and explain why these disasters became genuine game-changers. |
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Down to the Earths Core |
NEW16 National Geographic |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 90-minute 2012 National Geographic production is entirely CGI. It is based on real video, but they digitized it and it can be weird and difficult to watch on occasion. They go down into the earth in various places to explore in reverse some of the history of the planet. They explore plate tectonics in visual detail, and show a slow-motion earthquake. They show various gemstones and minerals and how they formed. The sound of amethysts growing was strange. It is really interesting, but again all CGI. Finally they go into the mantle and you see old slabs of crust, and mantle plumes. Then they get to the core, the center of the labyrinth. (Yeah they get a bit purple in places.) Towering tornadoes of liquid metal. They detail how magnetism is driven by the core, and how it all protects the earth. Then the core inside the core-giant crystalline nickel-iron. Heat vs. Pressure. If you can deal with the CGI, it is an interesting DVD and they talk about things that are cutting edge. Definitely worth watching.
Description: Experience an earthquake inside the San Andreas Fault, blast out of a volcano, encounter bizarre cave-dwelling creatures and enter
caves full of giant crystals – all inside our planet. As we descend we piece together the extraordinary storyof our planet, layer by layer,
discovering how prehistoric forests became modern-day fuel, witnessing the dinosaurs’ cataclysmic death, and watching as stalactites form and
gold grows before our eyes. Deeper, beyond the reach of any mine, any drill, we find wonders beyond imagination: towering molten metal
tornadoes, forests of solid iron crystals, until we reach the strangest, least understood place on the planet – the core. |
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Drain the Ocean |
NEW16 National Geographic |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2009 National Geographic program uses mostly computer animation and some actual footage to explore the ocean depths. Narrated by Avery Brooks it moves a bit slwoly, but you see black smokers, the ocean ridges, spend time around Hawaii, and in the Bahamas. You end up in the deepest part of the ocean, but life is still there. It is well worth seeing. The bonus feature Into the Depths, shows a dive in the Celebes Sea, in the coral triangle, between Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia, a place of incredible biodiversity. It also was isolated from the rest of the ocean during the ice ages, and allowed species to diversify. This is all real video, colorful and beautiful. They find new species, a giant trash yard, and many interesting animals. This DVD is well worth watching more than once. Description: This is a world you have never seen before - a world normally hidden under miles of water, the ocean floor. We will remove the water using CGI animation, revealing a landscape of unimaginable scale with features more dramatic than anything on dry land. |
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The Himalayas |
NEW16 Nature |
Description: The Himalayas are defined by superlatives. They defy both description and comprehension while at the same time teaching us about the awesome power and grandeur of nature. Born during the ice ages, they form the highest mountain range in the world, and reach across Asia for two thousand miles. The mountains themselves are considered sacred, and the rivers that spring from them are worshipped as holy. Their great beauty may appear cold and forbidding, but the Himalayas are actually rich with a surprising array of plants and animals. Snow leopards, wolves, bears, remarkable monkeys, and foxes unlike any others, spiders, snakes, giant bees, and high-flying birds live here, as well as enormous goat-like creatures that may have been the source of the original golden fleece for which Jason and the Argonauts searched. These are mountains that will take your breath away! |
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Invisible Universe Revealed – 25 years of the Hubble Space Telescope |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: 25 years ago, NASA launched one of the most ambitious experiments in the history of astronomy: the Hubble Space Telescope. In honor of Hubbles landmark anniversary, NOVA tells the remarkable story of the telescope that forever changed our understanding of the cosmos and our place in it. But amazingly, when the telescope first sent images back to earth, it seemed that the entire project was a massive failure; a one-millimeter engineering blunder had turned the billion-dollar telescope into an object of ridicule. It fell to five heroic astronauts in a daring mission to return Hubble to the cutting edge of science. NOVA hears from the scientists and engineers on the front line who tell the amazing Hubble story as never before. This single telescope has helped astronomers pinpoint the age of the universe, revealed the birthplace of stars and planets, advanced our understanding of dark energy and cosmic expansion, and uncovered black holes lurking at the heart of galaxies. For more than a generation, Hubbles stunning images have brought the beauty of the heavens to millions, revealing a cosmos richer and more wondrous than we ever imagined. Join NOVA for the story of this magnificent machine and its astonishing discoveries. |
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Dawn of Humanity |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: Episodes include: Americas, Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe |
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Lifes Rocky Start |
NEW16 Nova |
MEMBER REVIEWS: 1) This is a Nova program about how rocks and life co-evolved. Rather than dividing Earth history into the usual eras and epochs, they use chemical markers and colors. Black earth - roughly the Hadean. Grey Earth when things cooled a bit, and then blue Earth when water flooded the surface. They go into the chemical precursors of life, and how it may have evolved. Then they talk about life changing the chemistry with all that oxygen. (Why is there air? Stromatolites.) This created red Earth. Then comes white Earth - snowball Earth. And finally, green Earth with the Cambrian explosion. This is a new way to look at how the Earth and life co-evolved, and it makes you think differently about a few things. It is well worth watching more than once.
2) This is a Nova program and absolutely fascinating. The premise is that without clays and other minerals, life would never have happened. Not so much the actual mineralogy, but the structural forms of clays and other rocky stuff allowed the chemical precursors of life hiding places where they could consolidate and rearrange themselves to create actual life. I give this one an unconditional thumbs up.
Description: Four and a half billion years ago, the young Earth was a hellish place--a seething chaos of meteorite impacts, volcanoes belching noxious gases, and lightning flashing through a thin, torrid atmosphere. Then, in a process that has puzzled scientists for decades, life emerged. How did it happen? NOVA joins mineralogist Robert Hazen on the rocky trail to resolve this enduring mystery. As Hazen journeys around the globe--from an ancient Moroccan market to the Australian Outback--he advances a startling and counterintuitive idea--that the rocks beneath our feet were not only essential to jump-starting life, but then, as microbes flourished and took over the biosphere, life helped give birth to hundreds of minerals we know and depend on today. This intriguing perspective of the co-evolution of Earth and life is reshaping the grand-narrative of the story of our planet. In this stunning adventure through billions of years of history, the story of life on Earth is revealed as fundamentally interwoven with the epic, unfolding story of Earth itself. |
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Earth from Space |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: Groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. Produced in extensive consultation with NASA scientists, NOVA takes data from earth-observing satellites and transforms them into dazzling visual sequences, each one exposing the intricate and surprising web of forces that sustain life on earth. Witness how dust blown from the Sahara fertilizes the Amazon; how a vast submarine "waterfall" off Antarctica helps drive ocean currents around the world; and how solar heating of the southern Atlantic gives birth to a colossally powerful hurricane. From the microscopic world of water molecules vaporizing over the ocean to the magnetic field that is bigger than Earth itself, Earth From Space reveals the astonishing beauty and complexity of our dynamic planet. |
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Mysterious Life of Caves |
NEW16 Nova |
MEMBER REVIEW: This is a Nova program, and very cutting edge in life sciences. You go into caves that are not on your vacation itinerary because they are lethal due to various noxious gases in them. You see giant calcite, snotites, and weird biology. These scientists are working on life forms you do not see every day. They live in sulfuric acid, methane, and other deadly gases and compounds. These might be the descendants of ancient extremophiles. They also explore cave formation, and it seeems some caves were created through chemical processes, not just the usual water erosion. This is cutting edge science on many levels. A must-see video. Description: It is pitch black, toxic gases bubble up from deep below, sulfuric acid drips from above, and carbon monoxide fills the air. It is not a scene from a horror movie, but the interior of a beautiful, but treacherous, cave. Explore the beauty and danger found in some of the most exotic caves of the world as NOVA explores dark recesses, off limits to all except researchers. |
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Making North America |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: Mighty, elemental forces molded North America. Fiery eruptions, titanic floods, the grinding of great ice sheets, and massive impacts from space all shaped our land. Now, for the first time, NOVA presents a bold and sweeping biography of our continent and how it came to be. This epic story unfolds in a forgotten world that existed long before our own, crossed by long-lost mountain ranges, deserts the size of Africa, and vast inland seas spanning the length of the continent. Beloved landmarks like the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and the Rockies are explored from the inside out as we witness the clash of natures creative and destructive forces--the uplifting of the earths crust and the violent eruptions, earthquakes, and impacts that destroy it. Hosted by renowned paleontologist Kirk Johnson, this spectacular road trip through the tumultuous deep past of our nation sets out to answer three fundamental questions: How was the continent built? How did life evolve here? And how has its spectacular landscape shaped human lives and destinies? Enhanced by dazzling, hyper-realistic CGI animations, immersive geological field missions, and the latest scientific research, Making North America will reveal the incredible story of a majestic continent. |
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Sinkholes: Buried Alive |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: Sinkholes have swallowed highways, apartment buildings, horses, camels, and even golfers with monster-size holes cracking the earth from Siberia to Louisiana. Filled with compelling eyewitness video of dramatic collapses, and following scientists as they explore the underlying forces behind these natural disasters, NOVA travels the globe to investigate what its like to have your world vanish beneath your feet. Rated PG. |
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Himalayan Megaquake |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: On April 25, 2015 a devastating earthquake rocked Nepal. As it ripped across the Himalayas, it wiped out villages and left thousands dead. Featuring harrowing stories of the Nepalese people who lived near the epicenter and of survivors trapped on Everest, NOVA tells the story of this crippling disaster. Through dramatic eyewitness footage, expert interviews, and stunning graphics, NOVA reveals the anatomy of this megaquake while scientists race to answer urgent questions--Is another big one just around the corner? What can we learn from the deadly combination of earthquakes and landslides? And can we rebuild to survive the next big one? |
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Killer Landslides |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: Just before 11 a.m. on March 22, 2014, an ominous rumble startled the residents of the community of Oso, Washington. It was the terrifying sound of what would become the deadliest landslide in the United States in decades. The equivalent of one million dump truck loads of earth came plummeting down the valley. In a little over two minutes, a pile of debris up to 75 feet deep slammed into the neighborhood of close to 50 homes. While a massive search and rescue effort continues at the site, geologists are tracing the geological history of Oso to explain why the site was so unstable. But all around the world, scientists have reason to fear that the worst is yet to come. Globally, landslides and other ground failures take a tremendous human and economic toll, and with climate change bringing a sharp rise in precipitation, the threat of bigger, more frequent landslides is growing. As NOVA surveys landslide danger zones, discover how and why landslides happen, and how radar monitoring technologies could help issue life-saving warnings. |
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Meteor Strike |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: On the morning of February 15, 2013, a 7,000-ton asteroid crashed into the atmosphere of the Earth, exploded, and fell to the ground across a wide swath near the Ural Mountains in Russia. A blinding flash of light streaked across the sky, followed by a shuddering blast strong enough to damage buildings and send more than 1,000 people to the hospital. According to NASA, the Siberian meteor exploded with the power of 30 Hiroshima bombs and was the largest object to burst in the atmosphere since the Tunguska event of 1908-another impact in Siberia that left few eyewitnesses or clues. This time, the event was captured by digital dashboard cameras, now common in Russian autos and trucks. Within days, NOVA crews joined impact scientists in Russia as they hunted for clues about the origin and makeup of the meteor. Is our solar system a deadly celestial shooting gallery-with Earth in the crosshairs? And what are the chances that another, more massive asteroid is heading straight for us? |
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First Peoples |
NEW16 PBS |
Description: 200,000 years ago we took our first steps in Africa. Today there are 7 billion of us living across the planet. How did our ancestors spread from continent to continent? What was the secret to their success? This is a global detective story, featuring the latest archaeological discoveries and genetic research. On each continent, we track down the earliest members of our species, Homo sapiens. Who were these First Peoples? What drove them to the ends of the earth? |
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Earth: A New Wild |
NEW16 PBS |
Description: A stunning new look at our wild planet by turning the cameras around to show the world as it really is--with humans in the picture. Dr. M. Sanjayan journeys to the frontiers of where man and animal meet to discover how our relationship with the greatest natural history events on the planet can provide a key to preserving our present and enriching our future. Episodes include:
* Home - Travel across five continents to take fresh look at how humans can live alongside big animals like pandas, chimps, and tigers.
* Plains - Uncover a vital new link between humans, predators, and the spectacular herds that roam the great plains of the world, one of the most endangered places on Earth.
* Forests - Reconsider the value of the forests of the world, from an uncharted area of the Amazon, to Canada, Sumatra, and the cork forests of Portugal.
* Oceans - Dr. Sanjayan reveals a vibrant community of scientists, engineers, and fishermen who are providing astonishing solutions that can help avert a cataclysmic future.
* Water - Sharing spectacular wildlife stories, Dr. Sanjayan discovers a key connection between most important resource of Earth and the health of a nation. |
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Earth: The Inside Story |
NEW16 PBS |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2015 production is a mini course in the history of the Earth and the geological forces that shaped the planet and
allowed life to evolve. The information is up-to-date and cutting edge. They have a different group of scientists and some different
video and emphasis from the usual Nova productions, and that is a good thing because we enjoy a few different voices. It is an
excellent view for anyone wanting to know how we all got here and what the Earth runs on to make it the place we can call home. A
must-see for geology enthusiasts. DESCRIPTION: Earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, and extreme weather. Has Earth always been this way? Featuring footage of top geologic hot spots on every continent, the film traces the scientifically-based story of the 4.5 billion-year-old Earth, from the core to the crust and up into the atmosphere. |
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Amazing Secrets of Our World |
NEW16 Readers Digest |
MEMBER REVIEW: This Readers Digest video is a lot like the magazine: three hour long videos containing material from other productions, with new writing and narration that supposedly ties it all together. It is not bad, but you would be better served watching the original materials. The hodgepodge of subjects and meandering narration sorta ties things together, but I was left wanting more in-depth about each subject. And the level is high school at best, as they are trying to reach the widest audience so it is pretty bland and generic. They do provide a wide overview, but you can get better elsewhere. DESCRIPTION: Beneath the thin skin of rocks and soil of the Earth, there is an inner world, full of surprises. Discover places you were not supposed to see and secrets that were never meant to be revealed. Marvel at hidden treasures, natural wonders, and the extraordinary ways we are mastering the underground worlds of our planet. |
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Faces of Earth |
NEW16 Science Channel |
MEMBER REVIEW: This is a 2010 Discovery Channel production. Here again we have different scientists and new looks at the Earth and time. There are lots of fine graphics, illustrating what is underground and invisible to us. These newer series assume a certain basic understanding of the science, and have no history or evolution of how it was all discovered; they just show what it is, and go from there. The emphasis is on present science, technology and new discoveries. There is a lot of emphasis on the technology of gathering data. You see a number of nifty scientific toys used to get more and better information out of the rocks, ice and other things. The first episode is a broad overview of Earth History - thumbnail sketches of the highlights - the magnetic core, life, oxygenation of the atmosphere, mass extinction events, formation of coal beds, oil and natural gas formation. The second episode is about plate tectonics. There is modeling of convergent mountain building and subduction. Sonification at CERN is the process of turning seismic data into music to help predict earthquakes. The third episode explores North America. It starts in Washington state, and moves east. The fourth episode explores how humans are shaping earth. It also goes into the long-range climate cycles, glaciation and so forth. This series is worth watching, and stands well with other similar series. You will not get everything from any one series, but watching them all, you get a good broad idea of Earth science and what is going on with our planet now and in the past. Description: Explosive volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, floods and even human beings contribute to the constant changes on the Earth surface. Uncover the deep mysteries of our planet with top geologists in Faces Of Earth. Using state-of-the-art computer animation and stunning photography, these four in-depth, compelling programs explore how these forces shape the Earth and how, in turn, the Earth has shaped human evolution. Includes: 1) Building the Planet: Witness the explosion that formed planet Earth, and travel back in time to explore the evolution of the Earth we know today. New technologies allow geoscientists to strip back the layers of Earth to see what previously could only be imagined. 2) Shaping the Planet: Earthquakes rumble, volcanoes explode, land is stretched and pulled like taffy - pushing up mountains and creating new oceans. Special effects and advanced animation techniques take viewers inside tectonic events to find out why the ground constantly shifts under our feet. 3) Assembling America: The land we see today was shaped over hundreds of millions of years. Guided by leading geoscientists, we unravel the mysteries of continent-building and the almost unimaginable span of geologic time. 4) Human World: Beginning with the dawn of agriculture, mankind has moved from simply reacting to Earth processes to shaping the planet. But are we pushing too hard and upsetting this delicate balance? |
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Cochise County, USA: Cries from the Border |
Nonfiction Films |
No Details |
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Earthquake: Science Behind the Shake |
Nova |
Description: 1) Killer Quake!: Metropolitan Los Angeles is sitting on ground zero. Slicing under the high-rises of downtown is a network of potentially deadly faults that could trigger the most devastating natural disaster of our nation. NOVA takes viewers from urban trench sites to the top of the Santa Susanna Mountains, in search of clues to where nature will strike next. Includes printable materials for educators.
2) The Great San Francisco Earthquake: In the early 1900s, San Francisco stood as a proud and flourishing symbol of Americas recent conquest of the once-wild West. But on April 18, 1906, the city experienced an awesome reminder of the uncontrollable forces lying dormant just beneath the splendors of its cosmopolitan surface. Thirty times more powerful than the temblor that decimated northern California in 1989, this earthquake measured a ground-wrenching 8.3 on the Richter scale. |
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Underwater Dream Machine |
Nova |
Description: Engineering ingenuity and the astounding determination of one man are at the center of this program, which follows American entrepreneur Peter Robbins as he embarks on a 10-year odyssey to create his own million-dollar underwater vessel from scratch and explore the sunken wrecks of German U-boats. |
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Deadliest Volcanoes |
Nova |
Description: In 2010, epic earthquakes all over the planet delivered one of the worst annual death tolls ever recorded. The deadliest strike was in Haiti, where a quake just southwest of the capital, Port-au-Prince, killed more than 200,000, reducing homes, hospitals, schools, and the presidential palace to rubble. But barely a month later, Chile was struck by a quake 100 times more powerful, unleashing a tsunami that put the entire Pacific coast on high alert. NOVA follows a team of U.S. geologists, capturing exclusive footage as they enter Haiti in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy; then NOVA visits a coastal town devastated by the Chilean tsunami, where geologists battle aftershocks to measure the displacement caused by the earthquake. Could their work, and the work of geologists at earthquake hot-spots around the U.S., one day lead to a breakthrough in predicting quakes before they happen? It is a race against time in the hunt for crucial evidence that will help determine exactly what is happening deep underground--and what the risks are of a new killer quake. |
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Doomsday Volcanoes |
Nova |
Description: In April 2010, the eruption of Eyjafjallajцkull volcano on Icfeland turned much of the northern hemisphere into an ash-strewn no-fly zone, stranding hundreds of thousands of travelers. But Eyjafjallajцkull was just the start. Now, an Icelandic volcano ten times bigger, Katla, has begun to swell and grumble. Two more giants, Hekla and Laki, could erupt without warning. Iceland is a ticking time bomb: When it blows, the consequences will be global. As CGI takes us inside these geological monsters, meet atmospheric scientists who are working to understand just how devastating an eruption could be -- not just for air travel but for the global food supply and for the climate of the Earth. Could we be plunged into years of cold and famine? What can we do to prepare for the disaster to come? |
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Australias First 4 Billion Years |
Nova |
Description: Of all continents on Earth, none preserves a more spectacular story of its origins than Australia. With help from high-energy host and geologist Richard Smith, we meet titanic dinosaurs and giant kangaroos, sea monsters and prehistoric crustaceans, disappearing mountains and deadly asteroids. Epic in scope, intimate in nature, this is the untold story of the Land Down Under, the one island continent that has got it all.
Join NOVA on the ultimate Outback road trip, an exploration of the history of the planet as seen through the mind-altering window of the Australian continent.
Episodes include: Awakening, Life Explodes, Monsters, Strange Creatures |
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Mars: The Red Planet |
Nova |
Description: This PBS Explorer Collection includes...
1) Go inside Mission Control and explore the Red Planet with rovers Spirit & Opportunity, from behind-the-scenes looks at the twin robot geologists before they were launched toward Mars at 12,000 miles per hour to the dramatic "six minutes of terror" as they prepare to land. And as the findings of the rover continue to shed light on an alien world, take a closer look at how close human travel to Mars really is.
2) Can We Make it to Mars? - A trip to Mars and back could take two to three very difficult years, and NOVA scienceNOW wonders whether humans could survive such a journey--fraught with deadly meteoroids, bone and muscle wasting, and perilous levels of radiation. So as the Mars rovers continue to demystify the Red Planet, scientists are developing new ways to keep astronauts alive for the journey: streamlined space suits and gourmet space food, to start. But will it be enough? What if a plasma rocket could cut the journey down to a couple of weeks? (Subtitles in English (SDH)
3) Is There Life on Mars? - Years after they landed on Mars, NASAs twin robot explorers, Spirit and Opportunity, have lasted 16 times longer and driven 20 times farther than expected. Today they are joined by an aerial armada of hi-tech satellites, surveying Mars from orbit to reconstruct the mysterious history of the planet. And in 2008, they also got company on the ground: NASAs Phoenix probe. Take a look at revelations from a planet, once alien, now poised to reveal provocative new clues in the tantalizing quest for signs of water--and perhaps even life.
4) Welcome to Mars - Take an astounding look at the Red Planet in an interplanetary adventure that begins with the white-knuckle landings of the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity, chronicles months of frustrating setbacks and elating discoveries, and captures the gripping drama and the breathtaking images of the most significant mission events.
5) MARS Dead or Alive - Before it sent back its first spectacular images of the Martian landscape, Spirit was just one of the two rovers conceived in the $820 million Mars Exploration Rover (MER) project, developed at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. Join NOVA for a behind-the-scenes glimpse at this compelling story of technical ingenuity, emotional drama, and triumph. |
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Mount St. Helens: Back from the Dead |
Nova |
Description: When Mount St. Helens erupted in 1980, every living thing in the blast zone was buried. However, life began to bloom again, and biologist Charlie Crisafulli has been documenting the return of plant and animal life. Also, the mountain, like the wildlife, is coming back to life. NOVA presents a pioneering look at the interplay between biology and geology that may help scientists predict future volcanic eruptions. |
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Hurricane! |
Nova |
Hurricane Gilbert - Fly into the eye of one of the worst hurricanes ever. |
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Deadliest Earthquakes: Haita & Chile |
Nova |
In 2010, epic earthquakes all over the planet delivered one of the worst annual death tolls ever recorded. The deadliest strike was in Haiti, where a quake just southwest of the capital, Port-au-Prince, killed more than 200,000, reducing homes, hospitals, schools, and the presidential palace to rubble. But barely a month later, Chile was struck by a quake 100 times more powerful, unleashing a tsunami that put the entire Pacific coast on high alert. NOVA follows a team of U.S. geologists, capturing exclusive footage as they enter Haiti in the immediate aftermath of the tragedy; then NOVA visits a coastal town devastated by the Chilean tsunami, where geologists battle aftershocks to measure the displacement caused by the earthquake. Could their work, and the work of geologists at earthquake hot-spots around the U.S., one day lead to a breakthrough in predicting quakes before they happen? It is a race against time in the hunt for crucial evidence that will help determine exactly what is happening deep underground--and what the risks are of a new killer quake.
This DVD features subtitles in English (SDH)
This program contains mature content, including graphic imagery that may not be appropriate for more sensitive viewers. Viewer discretion is advised.
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Volcano Under the City |
Nova |
No Details |
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Cracking the Code of Life |
Nova |
No Details |
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Secrets Beneath the Ice |
Nova |
No Details |
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Magnetic Storm: Earths Invisible Shield |
Nova |
MEMBER REVIEW: We start with the Earths core, and move out to the magnetosphere, Mars and more. This 2003 video is interesting, and not
as outdated as it might be. OK, we are due for a magnetic reversal of the Earths field, and because it is 2003, they totally ignore the
massive disruption to all communcations and computer systems that might cause. Still, it is a good video with solid science. We just
haven’t heard much about it in the past 10+ years. I guess they figured it out, and now are just waiting... |
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Ghosts of Machu Picchu |
Nova |
No Details |
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In the Path of a Killer Volcano |
NOVA |
The Eruption of Mount Pinatubo |
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Welcome to Mars |
NOVA |
No Details |
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Earthquake! |
Nova & American Experience |
2 copies in library. Includes 3 titles: Earthquake!, Killer Quake!, The Great San Francisco Earthquake |
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Mystery of the Megaflood |
NOVA WGBH Boston |
No Details |
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An Inconvenient Truth: A Global Warning |
Paramount Pictures |
(2 copies in library) MEMBER REVIEW: This 2003 turkey of a feature film is best watched in MST3K mode. It starts with people dropping dead, and goes downhill from there.
Then pigeons go berserk. Why? Electromagnetic pulses are causing weirdnesses. Then (gasp!) the space shuttle (which dates it) has problems landing,
and has to ditch in the LA River. OMG, what is going wrong? Seems the core of the Earth has stopped rotating, which makes the electromagnetic shield
all wonky. The science is total bullsh*t, so just yell at your TV and enjoy the ride. There are good actors whose careers were certainly not helped
by their participation in this disaster. So a renegade scientist has a magic machine that makes it possible to go down into the Earth and jump-start
the core again. He has an unobtanium capsule people can ride in. You get the idea. Enjoy the silliness. |
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The Core |
Paramount Pictures |
2 copies in library |
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Life On Fire: Wildlife On The Volcanos Edge |
PBS |
Description: Life on Fire: Wildlife on the Volcanos Edge
Volcanoes are one of the most spectacular and powerful forces on our planet, creating new land, changing landscapes, and destroying civilizations. Life on Fire offers a close-up look at volcanoes and the effects on the environment around them. From the depths of the ocean abyss to high-altitude snow-capped peaks, the series paints a detailed picture of the struggles and amazing adaptation required to survive around volcanoes. Filmed at 42 volcanoes in 20 countries, Life on Firefollows the extraordinary animals and plants that have learned to juggle with fire, and delves into the world of modern volcanology, showing how we live and react to volcanoes.
This fascinating journey includes six episodes:
Icelandic Volcanoes
Volcano Doctors
The Surprise Salmon
Phoenix Temple
Ash Runners
Pioneers of the Deep
Special Features include...
Over 45 minutes of bonus video, including
Inside the Dragons Lair
Spies in the the Sky
Beyond Human: The Deep |
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Oceans Volume One |
PBS |
Description: This Oceans Pack includes
Under the Sea with Al Giddings - Al Giddings, one of the most accomplished and renowned underwater director-producer-cinematographers draws from more than 30 years of deep sea diving experience and shares stories and scenes from a lifetime of undersea film adventures. WLIW New York President and General Manager Terrel Cass speaks one-on-one with the legend to discover the fearless genius behind his breathtaking aquatic images. (Closed Captioned; Rating: TV-G)
Visions of the Sea - Visions of the Sea is a glimpse into another world. Behold a dazzling variety of shapes and a rainbow of colors as you meet an amazing assortment of creatures. Featuring the underwater photographic artistry of Al Giddings, stunning imagery is paired with informative narration and a soundtrack that embodies the eclectic rhythms of life in the ocean. Visions of the Sea is the ultimate underwater adventure. (Closed Captioned; Rating: TV-G)
Ocean Odyssey - Healthy, functioning marine ecosystems are being damaged, altered and disappearing faster then we can fully understand how they work. In order to successfully protect and restore the ocean to a healthy state - we need to have some idea of what it once was and hopefully can be again. This film tries to capture some of the last remaining pristine marine ecosystems on Earth. (Subtitles in English (SDH); Rating: TV-G)
Treasures of the Great Barrier Reef - Swim through a day in the life of the greatest natural wonder of Australia, and view the brilliant colors and extraordinary inhabitants of the undersea world. (Closed Captioned; Rating: TV-G)
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Krakatoa |
PBS |
No Details |
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St. Helens |
Peter Davis, Michael Murphey |
Story of Harry Truman; starring Art Carney; 2 copies in Video Library |
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Managing Carbon Dioxide: The Geologic Solution |
Prairie Public Broadcasting & U. of North Dakota |
No Details |
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Iron Ore and Minnesotas Future |
Quality Information Publishers |
This quaint film is a nifty piece of Minnesota history. MEMBER REVIEW: This is a paean to Taconite. It comes from the golden age of industrial and educational films. It runs less than 30 minutes, but is a great video. They take a scene at a dining hall from the State Fair to sell the use of taconite, when taconite was still experimental. It is a fun look at the past, in so many ways. The women leave to take the kiddies to the rides, while the men stay behind to listen to the mining engineer. There are many good panoramic scenes of the mines, which are interesting for those of us who were on the Iron Range trip August 2016, as you can see many of the places we went, but a lot more new and clean than what we saw. They show Hull Rust, Soudan and other mines, as well as scenes of Hibbing, Duluth, and other northern Minnesota cities. They even make reference to cleaning the water used in plants, something which was not a big deal in 1952. This is a fun look at the past, and well worth viewing. |
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Yellowstone: The Worlds First National Park |
Questar, Inc |
No Details |
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Secrets of the Ocean Realm |
Readers Digest |
No Details |
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Food, Inc |
Robert Kenner |
No Details |
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Colorado Landscapes |
Rocky Mountain Public Broadcast |
MEMBER REVIEW: Cessna flys all over Colorado but you never know where you are in the state. *Some* good music but just scenes from the air from all over where? In Colorado. No dialog. |
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Kartchner Caverns State Park |
Sahra, University of Arizona |
No Details |
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Explorations: Oceanography |
Scripps Institution of Oceanography |
25 short features |
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Solar Max |
SlingShot NSF |
IMAX |
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Africa: The Serengeti |
SlingShot Entertainment |
IMAX |
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Ring of Fire |
SlingShot Entertainment |
IMAX |
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Wild Australia: The Edge |
SlingShot Entertainment |
No Details |
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Sedona: The Spirit of Wonder |
SlingShot Entertainment |
No Details |
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The Story of Yosemite |
Slingshot/Sunwest Media Group |
No Details |
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How the Earth Was Made |
Smithsonian |
MEMBER REVIEW: It starts with Huttons Unconformity, and alternates with the history of geology and the geological history of the planet. It is a familiar story with many of the same graphics. They do tell of the origin of diamond pipes, which is new. It is 2007, so there is less emphasis on global warming and they postulate more glaciers in the future, which is less possible now. It is a nice offering for an evening's viewing. Extra features: Inside the Volcano is a nice primer on volcanoes and an explanation of eruptions in history. Additional Scenes is material that was extra for the main program. These are definitely worth watching. |
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Impact |
Sony Pictures |
The darkest day of Earth will be the finest hour of mankind. MEMBER REVIEW: This 2009 Sony miniseries starts with the greatest meteor shower in 10,000 years, as people across Europe and North America watch. As usual, the scientists are the first to realize, there is a meteor twice the size of the one that killed the dinosaurs, and it will hit the moon. Debris from the moon will hit the earth, and bad things could come of that. Of course, all of this is televised live. The moon is now 30,000 miles closer to earth, but stable. Weird tidal changes start, and scientists are baffled. There are also weird magnetic anomalies: compasses spin, car batteries are dead, geese fly south in the spring, phones cut out unexpectedly. Then static electricity goes wild all over. Gas stations explode. Seems the meteor was a fragment of a brown dwarf, remnant of a dead star. (what?!?) The mass of the moon was altered by the brown dwarf, to twice that of the earth, and the magnetic field of the moon was boosted a lot, and it has magnetic and gravometric implications for earth. Hence all the weirdness. Scientific teams are assembled at the Pentagon to figure everything out. The orbit of the moon is more elleptical, and it is getting closer to the earth with each pass. Then gravity goes wild. "If the electromagnetic energy is strong enough it will override gravity." "We have no other choice, you cannot hide from gravity." They make a last ditch effort to fix things, but it goes wrong. Then they do a last, last ditch effort, and it turns out ok, but with casualties. To be fair, the acting is good and the non scientific stuff is pretty plausible. But the science is total garbage. At the end, the moon is in two pieces, but it is orbiting fine. Yeah sure. |
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Who Killed the Electric Car? |
Sony Pictures |
No Details |
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Megafault |
SYFY |
(2 copies in library) MEMBER REVIEW: Watch at your own risk. This 2009 Syfy production starts in West Virginia, just the place you would expect a big earthquake fault, right? It starts with routine blasting for mining, which triggers a megafault with gigantic cracks in the earth, people falling in and all sorts of bad stuff. Then the star is lecturing about earthquake preparedness and an earthquake hits DC with catastrophic damage, including the Washington Monument falling down. Reality aside (and they certainly threw reality aside), it is a standard disaster movie. The cg effects of gigantic cracks moving across the landscape are good. Not at all realistic, but good. The gas and power blow out before the buildings fall down. "We have never seen an earthquake like this before," that is a gigantic understatement. The earthquakes have spread across the Midwest. The whole world is shifting. Seems the army has developed a tectonic weapon that freezes and crystallizes the water table and creates quakes invisibly. So if they trigger a quake in just the right spot, it will stop the megaquake that was triggered by the blasting. "Stop this truck! No way, there is an earthquake on our tail!" They do stop the megaquake, but wait, Yellowstone caldera has awakened. The tectonic weapon destabilized to the mantle, and the magma from Yellowstone has invaded the aquifer. People spontaneously combust in the Yellowstone area because of the magma. So if they can create another Grand Canyon in the coal fields of Wyoming before the quake hits Yellowstone, they can stop that too. Absurdity upon absurdity. |
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Take the Boundary Waters Home with You |
Take It Home |
No Details |
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Rainbow of Stone: Grand Canyon |
Terra Productions |
A Journey through Deep Time in the Grand Canyon |
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Yellowstone: Imprints of Geologic Time |
Terra Productions |
No Details |
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Genesis: Where Are We Coming From? |
Thinkfilm |
No Details |
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Beautiful America |
Tim Janis Ensemble |
MEMBER REVIEW: Lots of New Age orchestra. Starting watching on a GSM field trip bus; gave up after 10 minutes |
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Mysteries of Space |
Timeless Media Group |
2 copies in library |
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St. Helens |
Timeless Media Group |
No Details |
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Dinosaur Discoveries |
Topic Entertainment, Inc. |
No Details |
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Bryce Canyon, Zion & Grand Canyon |
Topics Entertainment |
MEMBER REVIEW: At least one video player had audio issues when playing the DVD, but others can play it fine. If your player cannot play it properly, return the DVD to the video librarian and ask for a rental refund. DESCRIPTION: The Grand Staircase Collection; includes 3 National Parks films |
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Parks for the People |
TPT |
No Details |
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Death Valley: A Sacred Journey |
Trish Tiley |
No Details |
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Alaskas Wild Denali |
Tropics Entertainment |
No Details |
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Yellowstone: Fabric of a Dream |
Tropics Entertainment |
No Details |
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Global Energy and Carbon: Tracking Our Footprint |
Univ. of North Dakota |
No Details |
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Kilauea Volcano Eruption Update Winter 2005 |
Volcano Video |
No Details |
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Dinosaur |
Walt Disney |
No Details |
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The 11th Hour |
Warner |
No Details |
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Discovering the Earth 3D |
Websters Millenium |
Multimedia Learning Adventure (compuer program, not a video) |
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Killer Quake |
WGBH Boston Educational |
No Details |
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The Science of Evolution |
WOTM Series |
MEMBER REVIEW: This video is a political statement by the religious right; not science; a disgrace to the GSM mission. |
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Yellowstone Earthquake |
Yellowstone Publications |
The Story of the 1959 Hebgen Lake Disaster
REVIEW: On August 17, 1959 near midnight, an earthquake occurred just west of Yellowstone Park. The quake measured 7.6 on the Richter Scale. It caused a landslide into the Madison River canyon and threatened the integrity of Hebgen Lake dam. 28 people died, most of them campers.
The video uses 1959 newsreel footage and interviews with people involved. There is a brief description of the geological reasons for the quake – the Yellowstone hot spot, the intermountain earthquake belt where two plates are moving apart, seismogram records.
The picture and sound quality are poor, as are the production values, which is surprising given that the video was produced in 1997. Not recommended.
Reviewed by: R. Galkiewicz, 20 April 2013 |
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Spirit of Yosemitie, Special Edition |
Yosemite Fund |
No Details |
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Trashed |
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This is the story of garbage … American style |
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Mineral Park, Arizona Mine Photos |
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No Details |
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Home |
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No Details |
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Creation |
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No Details |
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Earths Changing Climate |
NEW16 The Great Courses |
(12 lectures - 30 minutes each) MEMBER REVIEW: This is a 2007 series of lectures on the climate of our planet, and what we may expect in the future. Being 2007 there is a great emphasis on climate change is real, really, we mean it. But that aside, there is good information about weather vs. climate and what climate change may bring. |
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The Nature of Earth: An Introduction to Geology (Disc 1 of 6) |
NEW16 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 36 lectures.) MEMBER REVIEW: This 2006 video is part of the Great Courses series. Prof. John J. Renton is a seasoned teacher, and with the help of graphics imparts a great deal of science in a relatively short time. In 6 30-minute talks, he starts with the origin of the universe, then the solar system, then moves to continental drift, plate tectonics, the formulation of minerals and the classification of minerals. He says he is not trying to make anyone a geologist, but rather to explain why things are as they are. It may seem simple and basic, but he mixes in chemistry (lots of chemistry, but painlessly), physics, and history. It is a very good overview of geology from where the elements came from (exploding stars), and how they fit together (ionic and covalent bonding), and what minerals are about. I expect the other 5 disks are of similar caliber. Even though it is supposedly only introductory, it is well worth watching. |
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The Nature of Earth: An Introduction to Geology (Disc 2 of 6) |
NEW16 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 36 lectures.) MEMBER REVIEW: See review for Disk 1. Disk 2 builds on the topic, with identifying minerals, Igneous, Sedimentary and Metamorphic rocks, and an overview of volcanoes. |
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The Nature of Earth: An Introduction to Geology (Disc 3 of 6) |
NEW16 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 36 lectures.) |
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The Nature of Earth: An Introduction to Geology (Disc 4 of 6) |
NEW16 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 36 lectures.) |
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The Nature of Earth: An Introduction to Geology (Disc 5 of 6) |
NEW16 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 36 lectures.) |
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The Nature of Earth: An Introduction to Geology (Disc 6 of 6) |
NEW16 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 36 lectures.) |
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Outdoor Idaho: Idaho Geology: A Convergence of Wonders |
NEW16 Outdoor Idaho |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2012 Idaho Public Television production is a grand tour of Idaho, with lots of interesting geological information. The program is Outdoor Idaho, so it turns into a travleogue with geological information about halfway through. But Idaho is quite diverse with mountains, mining, volcanics, loess, sand dunes, natural springs that people dive in, and much more. It is beautifully shot. There are a couple of places I shouted at my TV when they said their 2.5 billion year old rocks are among the oldest on the continent. I think not. The samples of Morton Gneiss I have in my living room are 3.4 to 3.6 billion years old. Other than that, it is a very well done video and well worth watching. Description: The evidence is everywhere. Astonishing things have happened to a place we call Idaho. We search for answers in the folds and fractures, floods and bewildering formations. Ours is definitely not a landscape for the timid. Yet this land also beckons us to explore and to enjoy. In this exploration of a geology that has inspired and frustrated every generation, we examine the forces that unite us and divide us, and bind us together as a state. |
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Deadliest Tornadoes |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: Deadliest Tornado looks at the scientists striving to understand the forces at work behind the tornado outbreak of last year. Could their work improve tornado prediction in the future? NOVA also talks to people whose lives have been upended by these extreme weather events in an effort to learn how we all can protect ourselves and our communities for the future. |
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Treasures of the Earth |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: Explore how precious gems, metals, and energy resources are forged under extraordinary circumstances deep within the Earth, and discover how their unique properties have helped lift humanity from the Stone Age to the stars. Three episodes: Power, Metal, Gems |
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Lethal Seas |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: A deadly recipe threatens the survival of countless creatures throughout the oceans: carbon dioxide. With carbon emissions sharply rising, the silent killer is entering the seas at a staggering rate--raising the acidity of the oceans. As a result, the skeletons and shells of marine creatures that form the foundation of the web of life are dissolving. Can experts crack the code of a rapidly changing ocean before it is too late? |
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Extreme Ice |
NEW16 Nova |
Description: In collaboration with National Geographic, NOVA follows the exploits of acclaimed photojournalist James Balog and a scientific team as they deploy time-lapse cameras in risky, remote locations in the Arctic, Alaska and the Alps. Their goal is to create a unique photo archive of melting glaciers that could provide a key to understanding their runaway behavior. |
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COSMOS: A Spacetime Odyssey |
NEW17 Cosmos Studio |
Description: COSMOS: A SpaceTime Odyssey continues the exploration of the remarkable mysteries of the cosmos and our place within it. Hosted by renowned astrophysicist Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson, this thrilling, 13-part adventure will transport you across the universe of space and time, bringing to life never-before-told stories of the heroic quest for knowledge and a deeper understanding of nature. With an updated Cosmic Calendar, dazzling visual effects, and the wondrous Ship of the Imagination, prepare to take an unforgettable journey to new worlds and across the universe for a vision of the cosmos on the grandest - and smallest - scale. |
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Earth Collection |
NEW17 Discovery |
MEMBER REVIEW: This is a compilation of Discovery Programs. Inside Planet Earth looks at the inner earth: crust, mantle and core. Lots of good CGI.
What Lies Below chronicles three scientists going into caves in Iceland; one in a lava tube, the rift between North America and Eurasia, and a cave
in the ice beneath a glacier. The Sun is a bit apocalyptic about solar mega flares, but you see the layers of the sun and bunch of other nifty stuff.
Fearless Planet, Earth Story chronicles the series of cataclysms that makes earth the place we know and love. From Thea to super deserts to Chuxulub
and plate tectonics it is constant destructive stuff. Sunrise Earth, Edge of the Atlantic is a series of shots of Cape Cod at sunrise, no narration,
just waves on the sand. If We Had No Moon has Orpheus hitting earth to create our moon. It is old but still interesting. Faces of Earth, Building the
Planet is an overview of the history of Earth with newer scientific methods when it was made. Generally, I would recommend Disk One, and pass by Disk
Two. Description: Disc One: Inside Planet Earth; What Lies Below; The Sun; Fearless Planet Earth Story. Disc Two: Sunrise Earth; If We Had No Moon; Faces of Earth: Building The Planet. Pairing millions of years of history with cutting-edge technology, scientists and other leading experts explore the past, present, future, and even the what-ifs of our universe. From the core of the Earth to the rays of the sun, this collection will walk through the fascinating elements of our universe and how they affect our normal daily lives. Using 3-D computer animation and the latest scientific information, the Earth collection offers a ring-side seat to the amazing story of the shaping and synergy of our world. MEMBER REVIEW: This is a compilation of Discovery Programs. "Inside Planet Earth" looks at the inner earth, crust, mantle and core. Lots of good CGI.
"What Lies Below" chronicles three scientists going into caves in Iceland, one in a lava tube, the rift between North America and Eurasia, and a cave
in the ice beneath a glacier. "The Sun" is a bit apocalyptic about solar mega-flares, but you see the layers of the sun and a bunch of other nifty
stuff. "Fearless Planet - Earth Story" chronicles the series of cataclysms that makes Earth the place we know and love. From Thea to super-deserts to
Chixulub and plate tectonics it is constant destructive stuff. "Sunrise Earth - Edge of the Atlantic" is a series of shots of Cape Cod at sunrise, no
narration, just waves on the sand. "If We Had No Moon" has Orpheus hitting Earth to create our moon. It is old but still interesting. "Faces of Earth
- Building the Planet" is an overview of the history of Earth with newer scientific methods when it was made. Generally, I would recommend Disk One,
and pass by Disk Two. |
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The Weather |
NEW17 BBC |
Description: The Weather takes you on a trip around the world with death-defying presenter Donal MacIntyre. While he takes on the worst the weather can throw at him, stunning computer graphics and rare archive footage reveal the strange and often unbelievable forces that surround us. WIND: What can wind do at its worst? Presenter Donal MacIntyre exposes himself to 100 mile-per-hour gales in a laboratory wind tunnel to understand the devestating force that powered Hurricane Andrew and created an unprecedented cluster of tornados in the midwest. Meanwhile, two balloonists entrust their lives to the fickle forces of the jet stream, and we learn how the earth-circling winds were put to deadly use by the Japanese during World War II. WET: Ride with the rain from the wettest place in Europe to the wettest place in the world, with a stop under the parched Texan skies, where farmers hope to harness the power of nature to create rain. From the first drop of a monsoon to the floods that kill millions each year, water brings life and death in equal measure. COLD: Spectacular avalanches and ice storms are only a few of the bizarre phenomena that come with winter. But what about pure cold? After half an hour in his underwear at minus 18 degrees, Donal has to be rescued or die, as his body begins to shut down. So how do the Inuit in Greenland, and the Danish sledge patrol survive at 40 below? HEAT: The energy of the sun can kill--in our own cities as well as in the hot deserts of the equator. Donal endures wet heat in the jungles of Belize, and dries out in the Sahara where it is so hot that water in the atmosphere cannot condense into rain. But the gravest danger may be the warming Earth, with its rising sea levels, angry skies, deadly droughts, and devastating storms. |
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How the Universe Works |
NEW17 Discovery |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2011 Discovery program has 8 programs on 2 disks. They start with the big bang, move to black holes, then alien
galaxies and extreme stars. Each part is well explained with great Hubble graphics and builds to the next and so on. Some of the analogies
are cheezy, but mostly they are understandable and help your mind grasp the massive forces that shape everything. And they use the subject
to expand on concepts and ideas, well beyond what the episode title would indicate. Extreme planets, supernovas, alien solar systems, and
alien moons are on the second disk. The animations and Hubble graphics are married and very well done. This is an excellent introduction
to physics and astronomy. DESCRIPTION: Engineering the Universe shows you how the cosmos is designed, built, and actually works. From the
beginning of time, Stars, Galaxies, Planets, Solar Systems, and more have been working individually and together to produce all that is
and all that we see. See as never before the inner workings of our world, and explore black holes, supernovae, neutron stars, dark energy,
and all the titanic forces that make us who we are. With a dynamic cast of experts and a new generation of CGI, Engineering the Universe
looks under the celestial hood to reveal the inner workings of outer space: the story of how it is made and how it runs. This is your
ultimate Cosmos Operators Manual. |
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How the Universe Works Season 2 |
NEW17 Discovery |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2012 Discovery program has 8 parts on 2 disks. Again this is an excellent introduction to cosmology, physics and
astronomy. Volcanoes, megastorms, planets from hell and megaflares are not about anything on Earth, but rather in the solar system and
beyond. Extreme orbits, comets, asteroids and birth of the Earth are also more cosmologically oriented. Again excellent animations and
Hubble graphics make this another must-see series. DESCRIPTION: Explaining how the universe works is a task of galactic proportions, but
this 2-disc set takes it on. Delivering almost six hours of scientific exploration, the collection covers planets, weather, energy,
magnetism, orbits, comets, and other elements that make up this space that we call home. Still, providing answers only sparks more
questions: Will chaotic weather lead us to alien life? Is Earth really the only inhabitable planet out there? Is our world a target in the
magnetic minefield of the universe? These 8 episodes will help you to understand the intricacies of the wonders of our world, as well as
what each can teach us about our own lives. |
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Journey to the Center of the Earth |
NEW17 Discovery |
Description: Jules Verne s classic adventure book was an inventive story, but the Victorian explorers discovered more than they realized. Compare the fascinating revelations of modern earth science with Verne s astounding insight. |
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Wonders of the Universe Collection |
NEW17 National Geographic |
MEMBER REVIEW: This is a compilation of videos on various celestial subjects. Disks 1-3 are separate programs, each complete in itself.
Disks 4 & 5 are several parts of a 2009 series. Disk 1 from 2007 goes to the edge of the universe in steps though the solar system,
through our galaxy, and beyond to the beginning of the universe using Hubble and other images. It is visually beautiful, but the prose is
as purple as it can get. If you can get past that, and the really intense delivery by Alec Baldwin, it is an interesting view. Disk 2 has
images of the moon from Kaguya, a Japanese HD satellite. The history of the moon landings is used to show new ideas and plans for further
exploration, and highlighted with great HD shots of the lunar surface. This one is more normal in prose and delivery, and has material we
Americans usually do not see. Disk 3 is the story of Spirit and Opportunity, two Mars rovers. Each has its own personality and adventures.
They both lasted way longer than expected, and the stories are well told. Disk 3 has a bonus feature, "Is There Life on Mars?" It takes a
somewhat humorous look at the question and how is has been depicted in film and lore. They look to the past and also present. Some present
stuff is a bit outdated, but it is still interesting. Disk 4 is part 1 of a Travelers Guide to the Planets. Saturn is first and best,
being nearest a good robotic exploration. Jupiter is next, and Mars last where they discuss the newest Mars robots, Spirit and
Opportunity. It may be 2009, but there is still a lot of good information. Disk 5 is part 2 of a Travelers Guide to the Planets. Venus and
Mercury are first. Pluto (no longer a planet) and beyond are second. Neptune and Uranus are third. These explorations are somewhat dated,
but still quite interesting. |
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Hubbles Cosmic Journey |
NEW17 National Geographic |
Description: Hubbles Cosmic Journey is a celebration of 25 years of the Hubble Space Telescope orbiting our planet. Narrated by renowned astrophysicist, Neil deGrasse Tyson, the one-hour special is the story of one of the most remarkable advances in modern technology, as told by the people who designed, built, launched, operated and repaired the legendary observatory. |
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The Mystery of Matter: Search for the Elements |
NEW17 PBS |
MEMBER REVIEW: Highly recommended. I found this series truly fascinating. It really brought out the personalities of the discoverers and drama
behind their quests. DESCRIPTION: This is an exciting PBS series about one of the great adventures in the history of science: the long (and
continuing) quest to understand what the world is made of - to identify, understand and organize the basic building blocks of matter. Episodes
introduce viewers to some of history's most extraordinary scientists: Joseph Priestley and Antoine Lavoisier, whose discovery of oxygen - and
radical interpretation of it - led to the modern science of chemistry; Humphry Davy, who made electricity a powerful new tool in the search for
elements; Dmitri Mendeleev, whose Periodic Table brought order to the growing gaggle of elements; Marie Curie, whose groundbreaking research on
radioactivity cracked open a window into the atom; Harry Moseley, whose discovery of atomic number redefined the Periodic Table; and Glenn Seaborg,
whose discovery of plutonium opened up a whole new realm of elements, still being explored today. This DVD shows us not only what these scientific
explorers discovered but also how, using Broadway-caliber actors to reveal the creative process through the scientists' own words, and conveying
their landmark discoveries through re-enactments shot with working replicas of their original lab equipment. Knitting these strands together into a
coherent, entertaining whole is host Michael Emerson, a two-time Emmy Award-winning actor. |
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Chasing Pluto |
NEW17 Nova |
DESCRIPTION: NOVA captures New Horizons historic flyby of Pluto, the culmination of the nine-year, three-billion-mile spacecraft journey to reveal
the first ever detailed images of this strange, icy world at the very edge of our solar system. |
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Wild Weather |
NEW17 PBS |
DESCRIPTION: Weather: big, beautiful - and wild. Tornados or sandstorms take simple ingredients like air, earth, and water and transform them into
something spectacular, powerful, and incredibly dangerous. Despite scientists studying it for thousands of years, we know far less about how
weather works than anyone might expect. This, however, is about to change. By teaming up with maverick experts and renowned specialists from all
around the world, a whole range of fascinating new discoveries from the cutting edge of science will be revealed. This extensive portrait of
nature's forces has it all. Furthermore, ten thousand ping-pong balls will demonstrate how a sandstorm works; a whirlwind made of fire will
illustrate the wind's movements; and the destructive force of water, liquid as well as frozen, will speak for itself. Wild Weather is a fresh and
informative documentary featuring a series of ambitious, surprising, and revealing experiments that will change the way you think about weather
forever. |
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Heart of the World: Colorado's National Parks |
NEW17 PBS Terra Mater |
DESCRIPTION: Narrated by Grammy-winning country music star Kathy Mattea, Heart of the World delves into the true wonder and beauty of nature,
taking us through the seasons and centuries of some of the most spectacular sights on earth - Colorado's National Parks. Combining stunning
photography of the parks filmed throughout the seasons with breathtaking helicopter aerials and outstanding wildlife shots - featuring bears,
bighorn sheep, moose, elk and more - these three hour-long episodes explore the geological history of each park, the forces of nature that changed
them, and the people they have inspired. |
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Aurora: Fire in the Sky |
NEW17 PBS Terra Mater |
DESCRIPTION: A ghostly iridescence - a magic light breaking the blackness of the polar night. The aurora - it has always struck people in the polar
regions with awe. This is a visual journey around the globe. A journey departing from ancient myths and legends about the aurora, to scientific
explorations of this natural spectacle. The source of the aurora is our sun - a celestial power that kindles a fire in the sky. When electrically
charged solar particles hit the earth's atmosphere, lights will flare. When the sun's activity is increasing, the results are more intensive and
more frequent northern lights. Even seasoned researchers never fail to be overwhelmed? |
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Planet Earth II |
NEW17 BBC |
DESCRIPTION: Narrator: David Attenborough. Travelling through jungles, deserts, mountains, islands, grasslands and cities, this series explores the
unique characteristics of Earth's most iconic habitats and the extraordinary ways animals survive within them. New technology has allowed
individual stories to be captured in an unparalleled level of detail. For the first time viewers are immersed in incredible landscapes, allowing
them to share the most dramatic moments in the lives of animals. Episodes: 1. "Green Worlds" In the jungle, abundant heat, light and water create
ideal conditions for life. But as a result this is the most competitive arena, home to a huge diversity of life. 2. "Dry Worlds" Water may be the
essence of life in the desert but it is also a source of great conflict. 3. "High Worlds" Only the toughest can survive in a place half way towards
outer space. 4. "Island Worlds" With little competition, an island existence may seem idyllic, but isolation comes at a price. Adapting to new ways
of life takes time. 5. "Open Worlds" On the world's vast and open grasslands, the best tactic seems to be eat and try not to get eaten. 6. "Urban
Worlds" Cities are the fastest growing habitat on Earth, but these brave new worlds offer fresh opportunities. |
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Killer Floods |
NEW18 Nova |
MEMBER REVIEW: Highly recommended. Scientists are discovering evidence of giant floods before recorded history. The size of these floods far exceeds the floods that we now experience as a result of fires, heavy rainfall, erosion, and snow melt. The Channeled Scablands in eastern Washington state show rock islands, enormous horse-shoe shaped dry falls, house-sized erratics and potholes. Scientists have traced the monster floods to Glacial Lake Missoula when its ice dam melted. Other evidence includes similar structures found on Iceland, the result of volcano-induced glacier melting. The English Channel is hypothesized to have formed when the chalk land bridge between England and France gave way, allowing the North Sea to gouge out a channel. These great disasters would have killed virtually anything in their path and transformed continents in a matter of hours. Similar forces exist today, from the influence of climate change, and communities downstream from ice dams are threatened. (A gift to the GSM from Rebecca Galkiewicz.) |
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Mass Extinction: Life At the Brink |
NEW18 PBS HHMI/ Tangled Bank Studios |
DESCRIPTION: It is a mystery on a global scale: five times in the past, life has been nearly extinguished, the vast majority of plants and animals
annihilated in a geologic instant. What triggered these dramatic events? And what might they tell us about the fate of our world? "Mass Extinction:
Life at the Brink" joins scientists around the globe as they unravel the mysteries of two of the most dramatic mass extinctions - the "K/T
Extinction" that wiped out the dinosaurs, and "The Great Dying," which obliterated nearly 90% of all species on Earth. At first glance, these two
extinctions could not look more different. A six-mile-wide asteroid spelled near-instant doom for the dinosaurs. And as new research covered in the
film reveals, massive volcanic eruptions altered the chemistry of the atmosphere and ocean to trigger "The Great Dying." As different as they seem,
these two extinctions share uncanny similarities and a message for today. Could the impact of human beings be just as devastating to the planet as a
massive asteroid strike or volcanic eruptions? |
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Time Scanners: Machu Picchu |
NEW18 PBS |
DESCRIPTION: The dense jungle of the Peruvian Andes hides a sacred city - Machu Picchu, an enchanted 500-year-old stone citadel, hidden deep in the mountains where not even the Spanish conquistadores could find it. Thanks to its location on a precarious ridge in the sacred mountains of Peru, Machu Picchu is one of the most inaccessible cities in the world; there's still much that we don't know about the city and the people who lived there. Using cutting-edge, 3D laser-scanning technology, structural engineer Steve Burrows leads his team of experts into the Peruvian jungle to scan the sacred Inca city, asking three main questions: How did the Inca build a city atop a mountain ridge? How were the terraces constructed? And how did they supply water to the city? Join the team as they turn back time and decode the past. |
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Raising The Dinosaur Giant |
NEW18 Nature |
DESCRIPTION: A few years ago in the Argentinian desert, a shepherd was searching for one of his lost sheep when he spotted the tip of a gigantic fossil bone sticking out of a rock. When the news reached paleontologists at the Museo Egidio Feruglio, a museum in Patagonia, they set up camp at the discovery site to examine it and look for more bones. The first bone turned out to be an eight-foot-long thighbone, the largest ever found. This started an investigation that would take over two years to complete. By the end of the dig they had uncovered more than 220 bones. As the program reveals, these fossils came from not just one dinosaur but seven, all belonging to a new species of giant plant-eating "titanosaur," which is yet to be given its own scientific name. Sir David Attenborough takes us through the twists and turns of this forensic investigation, in a bid to find out more about this new dinosaur. He talks to the paleontologists studying the fossils along with comparative anatomy experts and looks at what the bones reveal about the lives of these dinosaurs - each estimated to weigh an equivalent of 15 African elephants. With the help of 3D scanning, CGI visuals, and animation, the completed dinosaur giant is unveiled, the largest creature ever to roam the Earth! |
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Forces of Nature |
NEW18 PBS |
DESCRIPTION: A bold, breathtaking series that explores the immense natural forces of our world, asking simple questions to reveal epic answers? Forces of Nature combines accessible science and cutting-edge filmmaking techniques to show what makes our world so vibrant and diverse. This ambitious series takes viewers on a global tour in four themed episodes, answering the simplest questions about the complex forces that shape our planet. Why is water blue? How can a shape defy gravity? Why do bees make hexagonal honeycombs? And how do these things affect our own lives? Discover what lies beneath Earth's startling beauty as we reveal the secrets of our cosmos and the natural forces that govern everything within it. |
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58 National Parks: Collector's Edition |
NEW18 PBS |
DESCRIPTION: This three DVD set explores the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and Yosemite, featuring all that America's parks have to offer as well as other locations totalling to 58 parks. DISK 1: Grand Canyon National Park- Saguaro, Arizona; Death Valley, California; Joshua Tree, California; Great Basin, Nevada; Big Ben, Texas; Bryce Canyon, Utah; Canyonlands, Utah; Zion, Utah; Arches, Utah; Capital Reef, Utah; Black Canyon, Colorado; Petrified Forest, Arizona; Theodore Roosevelt, North Dakota; Badlands, South Dakota; Redwood, California; Shenandoah, Virginia; Sequoia & Kings Canyon California; Congaree, South Carolina. DISK 2: Yellowstone National Park- American Samoa; Virgin Islands; Biscayne, Florida; Channel Islands, California; Isle Royale, Minnesota; Voyagers, Minnesota; Crater Lake, Oregon; Acadia, Maine; Olympic, Washington; Everglades, Florida; Hot Springs, Arkansas; Mesa Verde, Colorado. DISK 3:Yosemite National Park- Lassen Volcanic, California; Haleakala, Hawaii; Hawaii Volcanoes, Hawaii; Mt. Rainer, Washington; Great Sand Dunes, Colorado; Great Smokey Mountains, Tennessee/North Carolina; North Cascades, Washington; Rocky Mountain, Colorado; Glacier, Montana; Guadalupe Mountains, Texas; Grand Teton, Wyoming; Gates of Artic, Alaska; Katmai, Alaska; Kobuk Valley, Alaska; Lake Clark, Alaska; Denali, Alaska; Glacier Bay, Alaska; Kenai Fjords, Alaska; Wrangell-St. Elias, Alaska. |
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Yosemite |
NEW18 Nature |
DESCRIPTION: "No temple made with hands can compare with Yosemite. Every rock in its walls seems to glow with life." - John Muir. Yosemite was forged by time and shaped by the power of water. Water made life possible in this "stone wilderness," carved out the iconic Yosemite Valley, and gave birth to the largest living trees on Earth. But with climate change, Yosemite is feeling the heat. Water is scarcer and the threat of wildfire is more common. Join scientists and adventurers as they explore the past, present, and future of the Sierra Nevada's (a mountain range which stretches from California into Nevada through Yosemite) most precious resource, its water. Glide over the Yosemite Valley, climb trees as tall as buildings, and see how critters both great and small - from the bighorn sheep to the American pika - survive through drought, wildfires, and mountains of snow, as we investigate one of the great wildernesses of America. |
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Mystery Beneath the Ice |
NEW18 Nova |
DESCRIPTION: They're so tiny you might not notice them if you were not looking for them. But these delicate, transparent, shrimp-like creatures are crucial to the Antarctic ecosystem and, maybe, to the future of all our oceans. The population of krill has crashed since the 1970s for reasons that continue to baffle the experts. A leading theory says that the life cycle of krill is driven by an internal body clock that responds to the waxing and waning of the Antarctic ice pack. As climate change alters the timing of the ice pack, their life cycle is disrupted - or so the theory goes. To test this theory, NOVA travels on the Polarstern, a state-of-the-art research vessel, to a place rarely, if ever, visited before: the vast ice pack that grows around Antarctica in the winter months, a frigid seasonal continent twice the size of the U.S. The Polarstern fights its way through the pack to establish camps on the ice, from which scientists dive beneath the surface in search of the ice caves in which juvenile krill shelter during the winter. The implications go well beyond the Antarctic ecosystem, for it is through similar shifts in the timing of the seasons that climate change may have its most devastating impact on the natural world across the globe. |
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Life on the Reef |
VEW18 PBS |
DESCRIPTION: The Great Barrier Reef is one of the richest and most complex natural ecosystems on earth. Home to a stunning array of animals, from microscopic plankton to 100-ton whales, it is one of the Seven Wonders of the Natural World. From the coral cays of the outer reef to the Islands of the Torres Strait, the reef's human residents work to find that critical balance between our needs and those of an ever diminishing natural world. Over the course of a year, Life on the Reef follows those who live, work, and play in one of the most extraordinary places on the planet, Australias Great Barrier Reef - where man meets wild and nature calls the shots. It is high stakes and high drama across our greatest marine wilderness. Episode One: Tourists flock to the reef to enjoy the perfect weather and the humpback whales are here to give birth. Fire destroys a luxury yacht and a critical rescue is launched. On the most protected island in Australia, 20,000 green sea turtles return to the biggest reptilian breeding colony on Earth. Episode Two: The approach of the wet season brings an explosion of life on the reef as corals spawn, sea birds nest, and turtle hatchlings erupt over the beaches in the thousands. Like a great alien spaceship the manta ray comes swooping in, a gentle plankton feeding giant up to 7m wide and weighing as much as two tonnes. Soon torrential rain and severe storms will close in, bringing change and upheaval to the delicate ecosystem. Episode Three: The human and animal residents of the reef prepare as category 5 cyclone brings destruction to the North Queensland coast. But as cyclone season finally gives way to calm seas of the dry, the reef begins to recover and thrive. From the mangroves to the coral cays reef fish populations flourish, and mysterious dwarf minke whales arrive to enjoy the warm tropical waters. |
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Earth's Natural Wonders |
NEW18 BBC Earth |
DESCRIPTION: Earth's Natural Wonders explores the most extraordinary places on the planet and how their environments shape the lives of those who live there. From Mount Everest's Khumbu Icefall to the Amazon to the Grand Canyon, visit six continents to learn how these natural wonders evolved and hear the rarely told stories about the challenges their inhabitants face. |
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Mysteries of the Driftless Area |
NEW18 Mississippi Valley Conservancy |
MEMBER REVIEW: The driftless zone is a topographical island in the middle of North America, where glaciers never came. They use somewhat gimmicky video and sound techniques, but it is beautifully shot. They explore the geology and biology of the driftless area, as well as traces of humans in the past. This video is 27 minutes long. Done in 2013 by Untamed Science and The Mississippi Valley Conservancy, it is more of a travelogue, but well worth watching. Be sure to watch the additional material; you get more interesting in depth scientific material. DESCRIPTION: A documentary about a team of explorers and scientists kayaking down deeply cut tributary valleys, flying in ultralights, and climbing rocky bluffs to reveal answers to the mysteries within the driftless area. Their journey will expose both the science and threats behind three unique features of the zone – rare plants and animals, odd geological phenomenon, and striking remnants of a Native American pilgrimage like no other. What these explorers reveal will not only give the audience a greater appreciation for the unique diversity of this “island of land” that escaped glacial scouring, but will inspire a greater appreciation for this amazing area. The goal is not to answer all the mysteries, but to document the exploratory process for the viewers. In the end, the film will ignite the curiosity of viewers to discover more about the area for themselves. |
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Journey in Amazing Caves |
NEW18 Science Museum of MN |
IMAX |
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Zion Canyon: Treasure of the Gods |
NEW18 Science Museum of MN |
IMAX |
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Seasons |
NEW18 Science Museum of MN |
IMAX |
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Kilimanjaro: To the Roof of Africa |
NEW18 Science Museum of MN |
IMAX |
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The Greatest Places |
NEW18 Science Museum of MN |
IMAX |
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design |e squared |
NEW18 PBS |
The economies of being environmentally conscious - explores the vitality of the environment through eco-friendly architecture. |
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The Origin & Evolution of Earth: From the Big Bang to the Future of Human Existence (Disc 1 of 8) |
NEW18 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 48 lectures.) MEMBER REVIEW: This is another Great Courses offering. In a nutshell, Prof. Robert M. Hazen equates mineralogy to the evolution of the
Earth, and makes time and life elements of how minerals formed. I found the instructor a bit overblown, and he really loves the
camera, but he does explain things very well. And the concept that minerals should be explained as to when they formed is new. He
talks about ur minerals, minerals that were present in the cosmos before earth formed. This inclusive view of mineralogy and geology
includes physics, chemistry, and other sciences. So you learn about all of them at the same time. It builds and is certainly
fascinating. He invented this approach, so a good amount of time is spent selling his system of categorizing minerals. Disk 1 has an
overview of chemistry and solar evolution, starts with the big bang and ends before the solar system formed. |
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The Origin & Evolution of Earth: From the Big Bang to the Future of Human Existence (Disc 2 of 8) |
NEW18 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 48 lectures.) MEMBER REVIEW: See review for Disk 1. Disk 2 includes the formation of the solar system and all the planets (not Pluto, this is post 2005) and ends with lots of meteorites. |
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The Origin & Evolution of Earth: From the Big Bang to the Future of Human Existence (Disc 3 of 8) |
NEW18 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 48 lectures.) |
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The Origin & Evolution of Earth: From the Big Bang to the Future of Human Existence (Disc 4 of 8) |
NEW18 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 48 lectures.) |
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The Origin & Evolution of Earth: From the Big Bang to the Future of Human Existence (Disc 5 of 8) |
NEW18 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 48 lectures.) |
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The Origin & Evolution of Earth: From the Big Bang to the Future of Human Existence (Disc 6 of 8) |
NEW18 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 48 lectures.) |
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The Origin & Evolution of Earth: From the Big Bang to the Future of Human Existence (Disc 7 of 8) |
NEW18 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 48 lectures.) |
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The Origin & Evolution of Earth: From the Big Bang to the Future of Human Existence (Disc 8 of 8) |
NEW18 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 48 lectures.) |
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Kilauea: Hawaii on Fire |
NEW19 Nova |
DESCRIPTION: In May 2018 the Kоlauea volcano erupted, obliterating neighborhoods with devastating force and uprooting thousands of local residents. It is Hawaii's most destructive volcanic eruption in generations. How can one of the most beautiful places on Earth suddenly transform into a roaring inferno, sputtering molten lava and bombs of volcanic rock the size of refrigerators? On the ground in the early days of the eruption, NOVA joins scientists and residents alike on a breathtaking journey to investigate Kоlauea's recent spike in activity. Along the way, some of Hawaii's biggest secrets are revealed: Why did these geologically distinctive volcanoes form in the middle of the Pacific? How did life establish itself on the remote islands? What does this tell us about the future of Hawaii? And what dangers yet lurk for the inhabitants of the island paradise? |
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Pluto and Beyond |
NEW19 Nova |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2018 Nova production tells the tale of the New Horizons spacecraft, and the discoveries it helped make. The 2015 Pluto flyby and pictures, then the discovery of Ultima Thule, the dumbbell shaped object way out in the Kuiper belt. They redirected the craft to fly by Ultima Thule. And they got good pictures and information about how the solar system formed. It is amazing how much we can do with small observational craft like New Horizon. DESCRIPTION: When the New Horizons spacecraft whizzed by Pluto in 2015, we Earthlings were dazzled by the breathtaking images it beamed home. They revealed a never-before-seen alien landscape - a world of mountains made of ice mixed with plains of frozen-solid methane and nitrogen. After more than two years of poring over the data, NASA has made remarkable new discoveries about everyone's favorite dwarf planet. But New Horizons didn't stop there. On New Year's Day 2019, the probe attempts to fly by an object known now as Ultima Thule, believed to be a primordial building block of the solar system. This will be the most distant flyby in NASA's history - 4 billion miles from Earth. If successful, it will shed light on one of the least understood regions of our solar system: the Kuiper Belt. NOVA will again be embedded with the New Horizons mission team to follow the action as they uncover in real time the secrets of what lies beyond Pluto. |
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Volatile Earth: Volcano on Fire and Volcano on the Brink |
NEW19 Nova |
DESCRIPTION: The Virunga Mountains in East Africa are home to two of the world's most dangerous, spectacular, and least understood volcanoes. In this two-part NOVA special, an intrepid team of volcano experts leads a daring expedition to reach their high-altitude craters, one of them filled with a fiery lava lake that bubbles and churns at over 1,000° F. The team deploys innovative imaging and sampling tools to seek clues to the hidden volcanic forces that are splitting East Africa apart, and to predict the next devastating eruption that could threaten millions who live in the shadow of these monsters. |
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Bigger than T. rex |
NEW19 Nova |
DESCRIPTION: Almost a century ago, paleontologists found the first tantalizing hints of a monster even bigger than Tyrannosaurus Rex, perhaps the largest predator ever to walk the Earth: spectacular fossil bones from a dinosaur dubbed Spinosaurus. But the fossils were completely destroyed during a World War II Allied bombing raid, leaving only drawings, lots of questions, and a mystery: What was Spinosaurus? Now, the discovery of new bones in a Moroccan cliff face is reopening the investigation into this epic beast. What did it feed on and how? Why did it grow so big? NOVA follows the paleontologists who are reconstructing this terrifying carnivore piece by piece, revealing a 53-foot-long behemoth with a huge dorsal sail, enormous, scimitar-like claws, and massive superjaws hosting an army of teeth. It is a painstaking puzzle, and it is missing many of its pieces. Bringing together experts in paleontology, geology, climatology, and paleobotany, this NOVA/National Geographic special brings to life the lost world over which Spinosaurus reigned more than 65 million years ago. |
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Decoding the Weather Machine |
NEW19 Nova |
DESCRIPTION: Disastrous hurricanes. Widespread droughts and wildfires. Pervasive heat. And extreme rainfall. It is hard not to conclude that something's up with the weather. And many scientists agree this trend in our weather is not just a coincidence. It is the result of the weather machine itself - our climate - changing, becoming hotter, more erratic. Climate change is arguably the defining challenge of our time, yet widespread misunderstanding and misinformation has hampered the public's ability to understand the science and address the issue. NOVA will cut through the confusion and help define the way forward. Why do scientists overwhelmingly agree that our climate is changing, and that human activity is causing it? How will it affect us through the weather we experience, and when? And what will it take to bend the trajectory of planetary warming toward more benign outcomes? Join scientists around the globe on a quest to better understand the workings of the weather and climate machine we call Earth, and discover how they are finding that we can be resilient - even thrive - in the face of enormous change. |
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Black Hole Apocalypse |
NEW19 Nova |
MEMBER REVIEW: This 2018 Nova production has great graphics and lots of scientists talking about black holes. A black hole is the remnant of the collapse of a supermassive star. Gravity is so strong that nothing can escape, not even light. In a LIGO laboratory, gravity waves are measured that proves two massive black holes have merged somewhere in the universe, a very long time ago. Explaining gravity and how it works, and how stars die and what happens with the 'corpse' is the main thrust of this video. It is a good quick course in astrophysics. It is particularly relevant now because they have gotten the first "pictures" of a black hole. The 2-hour video gets into the details and history of black holes, and how they helped make our universe. DESCRIPTION: Black holes are the most enigmatic, mysterious, and exotic objects in the universe. They're also the most powerful, with gravity so strong it can actually capture light. And they're the most destructive, swallowing dust, gas, planets, even giant stars. Anything that falls into them vanishes… Gone forever. But now, astrophysicists are realizing that black holes are essential to understanding how our universe unfolded - maybe to explaining our very existence. In this 2-hour special, astrophysicist and novelist Janna Levin takes viewers on a journey to the frontiers of black hole science. Along the way, we meet leading astronomers and physicists on the edge of finding new answers to provocative questions about these shadowy monsters: Where do they come from? What's inside them? What happens if you fall into one? And what can they tell us about the nature of space, time, and gravity? |
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Secrets of the Sun |
NEW19 Nova |
DESCRIPTION: It contains 99.9 percent of all the matter in our solar system and sheds hot plasma at nearly a million miles an hour. The temperature at its core is a staggering 27 million degrees Fahrenheit. It convulses, it blazes, it sings. You know it as the sun. Scientists know it as one of the most amazing physics laboratories in the universe. Now, with the help of new spacecraft and Earth-based telescopes, scientists are seeing the Sun as they never have before and even re-creating what happens at the very center of the Sun in labs here on Earth. Their work will help us understand aspects of the sun that have puzzled scientists for decades. But more critically, it may help us predict and track solar storms that have the power to zap our power grid, shut down telecommunications, and ground global air travel for days, weeks, or even longer. Such storms have happened before - but never in the modern era of satellite communication. Secrets of the Sun reveals a bright new dawn in our understanding of our nearest star - one that might help keep our planet from going dark. |
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Death Dive to Saturn |
NEW19 Nova |
DESCRIPTION: Almost everything we know today about the beautiful giant ringed planet comes from Cassini, the NASA mission that launched in 1997 and arrived at Saturn in 2004. Since then, the space probe has been beaming home miraculous images and scientific data, revealing countless wonders about the planet, its rings and 62 moons - including some that could harbor life. As the mission approaches its final days in 2017, it attempts one last set of daring maneuvers - diving between the innermost ring and the top of Saturn's atmosphere. Aiming to skim less than 2000 miles above the cloud tops, no spacecraft has ever gone so close to Saturn, and hopes are high for incredible observations that could solve major mysteries about the planet's core. But such a daring maneuver comes with many risks and is no slam dunk. In fact, slamming into rocks in the rings is a real possibility. Join NASA engineers for the tense and triumphant moments as they find out if their bold re-programming has worked, and discover the wonders that Cassini has revealed over the years. |
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EARTH A New Wild |
NEW19 National Geographic |
DESCRIPTION: EARTH A New Wild takes a stunning new look at our wild planet by turning the cameras around to show the world as it really is - with humans in the picture. Dr. M. Sanjayan journeys to the frontiers of where man and animal meet to discover how our relationship with the greatest natural history events on the planet can provide a key to preserving our present and enriching our future. Episodes include: Home - Travel across five continents to take fresh look at how humans can live alongside big animals like pandas, chimps, and tigers. Plains - Uncover a vital new link between humans, predators, and the spectacular herds that roam the world's great plains, one of the most endangered places on Earth. Forests - Reconsider the value of the world's forests, from an uncharted area of the Amazon, to Canada, Sumatra, and the cork forests of Portugal. Oceans - Dr. Sanjayan reveals a vibrant community of scientists, engineers, and fishermen who are providing astonishing solutions that can help avert a cataclysmic future. Water - Sharing spectacular wildlife stories, Dr. Sanjayan discovers a key connection between Earth's most important resource and the health of a nation. |
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Italy's Mystery Mountains |
NEW19 PBS |
MEMBER REVIEW: Are the northern Apenine Mountains still growing, or have they stopped? In this 2014 PBS video, they answer that question. Taking a breathtaking tour of Italy, they detail the origin of Italy and the Alps. The scenery is beautiful. The geology is complicated and active, but relatively new. The boot of Italy is only 5 to 10 million years old, and is made by processes that result from plates and platelets colliding and subducting. Partly on the African plate and partly on the European plate, with a twisting boundary, Italy is geologically complex. This video is well worth watching several times. DESCRIPTION: Italy's Mystery Mountains explores the fascinating geologic story of Italy, the land known for its fabulous art, fantastic food, opera, the dolce vita, and so much more. What's less known about Italy is the diversity and turbulence of the geology behind all of this abundance: the continuously erupting volcanoes, the violent earthquakes, the clash of mighty tectonic plates, and the rising of the mountains from which Michelangelo sourced his famous marbles. |
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Raising The Dinosaur Giant |
NEW19 Nature |
DESCRIPTION: A few years ago in the Argentinian desert, a shepherd was searching for one of his lost sheep when he spotted the tip of a gigantic fossil bone sticking out of a rock. When the news reached paleontologists at the Museo Egidio Feruglio, a museum in Patagonia, they set up camp at the discovery site to examine it and look for more bones. The first bone turned out to be an eight-foot-long thighbone, the largest ever found. This started an investigation that would take over two years to complete. By the end of the dig they had uncovered more than 220 bones. As the program reveals, these fossils came from not just one dinosaur but seven, all belonging to a new species of giant plant-eating "titanosaur," which is yet to be given its own scientific name. Sir David Attenborough takes us through the twists and turns of this forensic investigation, in a bid to find out more about this new dinosaur. He talks to the paleontologists studying the fossils along with comparative anatomy experts and looks at what the bones reveal about the lives of these dinosaurs - each estimated to weigh an equivalent of 15 African elephants. With the help of 3D scanning, CGI visuals, and animation, the completed dinosaur giant is unveiled, the largest creature ever to roam the Earth! |
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Living Volcanoes |
NEW19 Nature |
DESCRIPTION: Our planet is bursting at the seams. Around the world, up to 30 volcanoes erupt every day - and hundreds more could explode at any moment. Meet the people and wildlife that live alongside these volcanoes from Kilauea to Mount Etna, and discover how volcanoes cause destruction but also create and nurture life. At the "burning heart" of this documentary is a daring expedition of scientists and adventurers to one of the world's most dangerous volcanoes alive today, located in the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu. Take a terrifying descent into the Marum Crater with biologist Jeffrey Marlow who risks a boiling lava lake to collect and analyze rock samples for signs of life. His discoveries could lead to a better understanding of the origins of life and a picture of what life might look like outside of Earth. |
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Intro to Paleontology (Disc 1 of 4) |
NEW19 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 24 lectures.) |
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Intro to Paleontology (Disc 2 of 4) |
NEW19 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 24 lectures.) |
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Intro to Paleontology (Disc 3 of 4) |
NEW19 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 24 lectures.) |
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Intro to Paleontology (Disc 4 of 4) |
NEW19 The Great Courses |
6 lectures - 30 minutes each (Each DVD lists the topics for all 24 lectures.) |
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The Sandstone Quarry |
NEW19 Sandstone History Center |
History of the quarry in Sandstone MN |
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Test Video Title |
NEW1999 Walt Disney |
Description of Test Video version 2 |
