Nova Season 38 Episodes

Episode 1

Deadliest Earthquakes

Tue, Jan 11, 2011

In 2010, several epic earthquakes delivered one of the worst annual death tolls ever recorded. The deadliest strike, in Haiti, killed more than 200,000 people and reduced homes, hospitals, schools, and the presidential palace to rubble.

Episode 2

Making Stuff: Stronger

Wed, Jan 19, 201154 mins

David Pogue hosts this examination of what makes material strong. He looks at the underlying material science behind steel, Kevlar, glass, chalk, carbon nanotubes, and spiderwebs.

Episode 3

Making Stuff: Smaller

Wed, Jan 26, 201154 mins

David Pogue hosts this examination of miniaturization. He looks at what it takes to make things smaller focusing nanotechnology and micro-robots that one day may be used to save lives.

Episode 4

Making Stuff: Cleaner

Wed, Feb 2, 201154 mins

This program looks at cleaner ways to generate power principally in our cars and electrical power plants. It reviews alternatives for all the steps in the fuel generation, storage and distribution processes with a particular emphasis on how unwanted waste products can play a significant role.

Episode 5

Smartest Machine on Earth

Wed, Feb 9, 2011

Watson, an IBM computer with a brain the size of 2,400 home computers and a database of 10 million documents, competes on the game show Jeopardy! (1984) against champions Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter. Will Watson win?

Episode 6

Making Stuff: Smarter

Wed, Feb 9, 201154 mins

Making stuff smarter isn't about artificial intelligence. It's more about engineering materials at the microscopic level to behave in specific ways. Today is it possible to create materials with clever designs or micro structures that permit control of a material's ability to self-heal, stick and release, self-clean, prevent disease, alter their shape and other properties. This program explains where several of these materials came from, how they work and how they are put to practical use.

Episode 7

Crash of Flight 447

Wed, Feb 16, 201153 mins

Forensic investigators reconstruct the final moments of the Air France disaster.

Episode 8

Venom: Nature's Killer

Wed, Feb 23, 2011

Nova and National Geographic follow researchers collecting venom from the world's most dangerous snakes, spiders, lizards and other creatures. The program explains why the researchers do it and what is known about how venom works and why some animals are especially dangerous.

Episode 9

Japan's Killer Quake

Wed, Mar 30, 2011

On March 11, 2011, a magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck Japan resulting in waves up to 130 ft. (40 m.) that devastated coastal villages and initiated meltdowns, gas explosions and the release of radioactive materials at the Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Episode 10

Power Surge

Wed, Apr 20, 2011

Episode 11

Engineering Ground Zero

Wed, Sep 7, 201154 mins

On the 10th anniversary of 9/11, NOVA presents an epic story of engineering, innovation and the perseverance of the human spirit.

Episode 12

Surviving the Tsunami

Wed, Sep 28, 2011

Episode 13

Finding Life Beyond Earth: Are We Alone?

Wed, Oct 19, 2011106 mins

Scientists are on the verge of answering one of the greatest questions in history: Are we alone? Finding Life Beyond Earth immerses audiences in the sights and sounds of alien worlds, while top astrobiologists explain how these places are changing how we think about the potential for life in our solar system.

Episode 14

Finding Life Beyond Earth: Moons and Beyond

Wed, Oct 19, 2011

Conclusion. The effort to locate life elsewhere in the universe is examined. It's a difficult task due to the many planets that could theoretically support life.

Episode 15

Iceman Murder Mystery

Wed, Oct 26, 201153 mins

He's been dead for more than 5,000 years, yet Otzi the Iceman, continues to keep many secrets. Now, a new autopsy yields fresh clues to his way of life and the mysterious circumstances of his murder. Otzi's frozen remains reveal intriguing details of his life and times in the ancient Copper Age. Join NOVA as we defrost the ultimate time capsule, the 5,000-year-old man.

Episode 16

The Fabric of the Cosmos: What is Space?

Sun, Feb 15, 202645 mins

Simple, obvious, ever-present aspects of our daily lives give scientists fits trying to understand them. One of these aspects is space which physicists are convinced is something more than nothing. This program explains the experiments that are giving scientists hints about what space is.

Episode 17

The Fabric of the Cosmos: The Illusion of Time

Sun, Feb 15, 202645 mins

This program challenges our traditional questions about time such as; does it flow in one direction or does it flow at all? Does everyone experience the same now? Is time travel possible? Will time come to an end?

Episode 18

The Fabric of the Cosmos: Quantum Leap

Wed, Nov 16, 201145 mins

This program explains some of the weirdest aspects of quantum mechanics: uncertainty and entanglement. Despite the absurdity of these behaviors they have been confirmed time and again and have never been refuted. Lastly the theory that suggests the possibility that teleportation and quantum computers may be possible are examined.

Episode 19

The Fabric of the Cosmos: Universe or Multiverse?

Sun, Feb 15, 202645 mins

Hard as it is to swallow, cutting-edge theories are suggesting that our universe may not be the only universe. Instead, it may be just one of an infinite number of worlds that make up the multiverse. In this show, Brian Greene takes us on a tour of this brave new theory at the frontier of physics, explaining why scientists believe it's true and showing what some of these alternate realities might be like.