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About the Project | |||||||||
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Project Overview | Series Overview | Series Credits | About the Book | Critical Acclaim | Local Listings |
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Evolution Project Overview | ||
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Evolution plays a critical role in our daily lives, yet it is one of the most overlooked principles of life. It is the mechanism that determines who lives, who dies, and who gets the opportunity to pass traits on to the next generation, and the next, and the next ...
The Evolution project is a seven-part, eight-hour television broadcast series, an extensive Web site, a far-reaching educational outreach initiative, and a HarperCollins companion book by acclaimed science writer Carl Zimmer. Evolution, which premiered on PBS September 24 - 27, 2001, travels around the world to examine evolutionary science and the profound effect it has had on society and culture. From the genius and torment of Charles Darwin to the vast changes that spawned the tree of life, from the role of mass extinctions in the survival of species to the power of sex to drive evolutionary change, Evolution is fascinating and far-reaching in scope. The series also explores the emergence of consciousness, the success of humans, and the perceived conflict between science and religion in understanding human life. The Evolution project's goals are to heighten understanding of evolution and how it works, to dispel common misunderstandings, to illuminate why it is relevant to our lives, to improve its teaching, to encourage a national dialogue, and to prompt participation in all aspects of the project. Episode titles Darwin's Dangerous Idea (two hours) Great Transformations (one hour) Extinction! (one hour) The Evolutionary Arms Race (one hour) Why Sex? (one hour) The Mind's Big Bang (one hour) What About God? (one hour) What makes this series different? "It's Masterpiece Theatre meets NOVA." --Richard Hutton, Series Executive Producer The first episode of Evolution, "Darwin's Dangerous Idea," is an accessible and unusual entrée into a science series. It combines drama and documentary to examine the science of evolution and the effect it has had on society. The drama tracks Darwin's personal and professional conflict throughout the 20 years after his Beagle voyage and before he published the theory that would topple the prevailing worldview. Each of the five dramatic acts ends with an epiphany or core evolutionary theory that launches a short documentary on the subject. The following are the subjects of each act: Act I: Common Ancestor Act II: Natural Selection Act III: Complexity Act IV: God Act V: Man The entire broadcast series is narrated by Liam Neeson. Television series executive producer Richard Hutton Produced for PBS Evolution is a co-production of the WGBH/NOVA Science Unit and Clear Blue Sky Productions. Project components Web Site Accessibility The Evolution series is closed captioned for deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers by The Caption Center at WGBH Boston. Overall Spokesperson Dr. Jane Goodall, CBE (primatologist and conservationist) Science Spokespeople Dr. Kenneth Miller (evolutionary biologist) Dr. Stephen Jay Gould (paleontologist and evolutionary biologist) Education Spokesperson Dr. Eugenie Scott (Executive Director of the National Center for Science Education) Religious Spokespeople Reverend Canon Dr. Arthur Peacocke (physical biochemist and Anglican priest) Reverend Dr. Arnold Thomas (minister) Color photos available on request. Press Contacts Anne Zeiser WGBH Boston 617-300-5333 anne_zeiser@wgbh.org Jason J. Hunke Clear Blue Sky Productions 206-342-2277 jasonh@vulcan.com |
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![]() Jane Goodall, an advisor to the Evolution project, describes its significance. View in QuickTime or RealPlayer
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