Saturday, March 30, 2013
Staff report
Kent
Western Reserve PBS (WNEO 45.1/WEAO 49.1) will celebrate Earth Day — April 22 — with the following TV programs about the the natural world, environmental change and green technology.
“Nature, What Plants Talk About” (8 p.m. Wednesday): Hard-core science is combined with a lighthearted look at how plants behave, revealing a world in which plants are as busy, responsive and complex as we are.
“Lords of Nature: Life in a Land of Great Predators” (11 p.m., April 6): Scientists talk about how carnivores such as wolves and coyotes are not destructive animals, but revitalizing forces of nature.
“Play Again” (10 p.m., April 8): What are the consequences of a childhood removed from nature? What are we missing when we are behind screens, and how will this impact our children, our society and, eventually, our planet?
“Faces of the Oil Patch” (10 p.m., April 15): The story of the residents of the Williston Basin, N.D., is a story for residents of all towns trying to live with uncontrolled and dramatic growth.
“Water Pressures” (10 p.m., April 19): Water is a central element of life, yet one in eight people worldwide — 1.2 billion — lack access to safe drinking water.
“Energy at the Movies: 70 Years of Energy on the Big Screen” (10 p.m., April 22): Using film clips as a historical road map, this energetic presentation shows us how films influence the ways we think about energy and energy policy.
“The Dust Bowl: A Film by Ken Burns” (part 1: 8 p.m., April 23; part 2: 8 p.m., April 30): Survey the causes of the worst man-made ecological disaster in American history, when the frenzied wheat boom of the “Great Plow-Up,” followed by a decade-long drought during the 1930s, nearly swept away the breadbasket of the nation.
“Generations: Cuyahoga Valley National Park” (10 p.m., April 23): Western Reserve Public Media is the producer of this full-length broadcast documentary about the 37-year-old Cuyahoga Valley National Park. It showcases the park’s 33,000 acres with archival video footage, recent interviews, oral histories and memorabilia provided by park visitors.
“Wildflowers: Seeds of History” (10 p.m., April 24): Discover facts and legends behind the wildflowers that captivate us every spring. Why do we always see cattle among bluebonnets? How did Native Americans and settling pioneers use wildflowers for food, medicine and even tattoos?
“Niagara Falls” (10 p.m., April 25): The awesome Niagara Falls was the nation’s first great symbol, an emblem of a vast, untamed continent of beauty and limitless resources. The fate of that beauty and bounty is the focus of this film.
“Shattered Sky: The Battle for Energy, Economy, and Environment” (9 p.m., April 29): Thirty years ago, scientists reported a hole in the ozone layer the size of North America. The culprit was CFCs, the gas in hair spray, refrigerant and air conditioning. Eerily reminiscent of today’s complex debate on energy and climate change, this documentary tells the story of how America led the world to solve the biggest environmental crisis ever seen.
“Wilderness: The Great Debate” (10 p.m., April 29): Robert Redford joins a host of diverse voices in debating the need and purpose of wilderness in a visually stunning new documentary.