Summary: Drawing astonishing connections between forces thousands of miles apart, this program shows how life on earth is being pushed to extremes by a one-degree rise in average temperature. Specific topics include animal population declines, atmospheric developments above the oceans, and the widespread appearance of a previously rare respiratory illness. Viewers learn how many scientists believe these...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2010
View online at AVOD
Summary: About a fifth of the Earth's land surface is tundra: cold, dry, treeless, and home to a diverse range of inhabitants including lichens and lemmings, sedges and snowy owls, and dwarf willow bushes and musk oxen. By viewing this program, students can develop a fundamental appreciation for the world's Arctic and Alpine tundra biomes. The plants and animals that populate tundra environments are...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: Ranging from rivers and lakes, to wetlands and intertidal zones, to coral reefs and kelp forests, aquatic ecosystems are as diverse as the life-forms that inhabit them. This program introduces students to a variety of the world's aquatic biomes. The characteristics of saltwater and freshwater environments are clearly described, as are the plants and animals that call these watery regions home....
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: As visually spectacular as it is informative, this program thoroughly surveys the world's varied climate systems. Using simple color-coded maps based on the Koppen classification system, the video identifies the characteristics of the following zones: humid tropical climates, wet-dry tropics, dry climates, subtropical and mid-latitude deserts and steppes, humid mid-latitude climates, humid...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: This Science Screen Report explores the challenges that marine plants and animals face in rocky shoreline areas, and vividly illustrates the diversity of those life forms. Examining crustaceans, gastropods, mollusks, and other shoreline creatures, the program shows how tide pools form a marine sub-habitat, and how rocky shore dwellers have evolved specific abilities to survive powerful waves...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: The prairies of the American west, the pampas of Argentina, the steppes of Russia, and the veldt of South Africa all share at least one thing in common: they are covered with miles upon miles of grass. This program can help students learn to identify the climates, life-forms, and behavioral adaptations that correspond to each type of grassland biome. Factors that threaten the survival of these...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: Have Earth's vibrant waterways-its streams, rivers, lakes, and oceans-become delivery systems for pollutants and poison? This program points to signs that toxic substances are overwhelming our planet's aquatic ecosystems. Viewers encounter many of the causes for this concern, including a radical decrease in frog populations, distressed marine mammals in estuary habitats, and disturbing changes...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2010
View online at AVOD
Summary: This Science Screen Report shows how human interests and the needs of aquatic life can be balanced. It describes the efforts of scientists, engineers, farmers, and fishermen to address shoreline habitat problems and support endangered species. Citing ways these cooperative efforts have succeeded-for example, by rehabilitating gray seal populations, redesigning dikes to aid migratory birds, and...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: This Science Screen Report studies how deserts form and how organisms adapt to these harsh environments. Defining a desert as a vast area of windy, arid land, the program identifies the Gobi and Sahara as common examples as well as regions of the Arctic and Antarctic. It demonstrates that many of these supposed wastelands contain surprisingly high levels of biodiversity, and shows how...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: Whether it's a stretch of sand dunes in equatorial Africa or a cactus-covered plain in California, any place that receives less than ten inches of rain per year is considered a desert. By comparing and contrasting arid and semi-arid regions, this program provides students with a balanced picture of the Earth's desert biomes. The program also investigates how the few plants and animals that...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: This Science Screen Report examines different ways marine species confront their environments using elaborate, specialized survival adaptations. Parallels between hunting techniques and defensive methods are described by contrasting aquatic predators with more vulnerable creatures, which rely on camouflage and sophisticated mobility. The program emphasizes that the oceans are not only the...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: Called "the rainforests of the sea," the world's coral reefs are home to millions of species. But these underwater ecosystems are in grave danger. This program travels to Chumbe Island Coral Park, Zanzibar; Mafia Island Marine Park, Tanzania; and Ras Mohammed National Park, Egypt, to study the fragile ecology and amazing biodiversity of coral reefs-and the impacts of tourism, pollution,...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: In this program, James Lovelock explains the development and evolution of his Gaia hypothesis, which considers the Earth as an intimately linked system of physical, chemical, and biological processes, interacting in a self-regulating way to maintain the conditions necessary for life. He discusses counterarguments proposed by scientists including Richard Dawkins. The Daisyworld climatic...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: At one time, lush, steaming jungles covered much of the planet's land mass. Through this program, students can expand their understanding of rainforests and how their inhabitants live. Special attention is given to the threats to these incredibly rich ecosystems, home to more than half of the different kinds of animals and plants that live on Earth.
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005