The Big Picture with Kal Penn
A variety of topics are analyzed using interviews and data collection to create information maps with statistics.
- 2015-2015
- 1 season
- National Geographic
- Documentary
A variety of topics are analyzed using interviews and data collection to create information maps with statistics.
Season 1 Episode Guide
12 Episodes 2015
Episode 1
Crime, Inc
Mon, Mar 30, 2015 21 mins
The Big Picture traces the key routes and networks for illegal activities around the world. It looks at drug trade in Vermont and examines how some criminal organization out perform some of the most profitable businesses in the world. It also examines how some industries (prisons, law enforcement, and criminal justice) depend on crime for their existence visiting the Territorial Prison System in Fremont County, Colorado.
Episode 2
Treasure Hunt
Mon, Mar 30, 2015 22 mins
Hunt for real treasure, that can be found anywhere from your own home to buried deep underground if you just follow the data.
Episode 3
Sex Drive
Sat, Apr 4, 2015 22 mins
All sex is not created equal, and some places are blessed with more of it than others. As we deconstruct the data of our everyday lives, sometimes that includes surprising, intimate details from our private lives. Host Kal Penn takes a look at what's going on in bedrooms all across the world.
Episode 4
Going Viral
Mon, Apr 6, 2015 22 mins
Kal Penn goes "viral" to uncover what causes and drives pandemics around the world, and what can make them even more dangerous than you think. Go to a Chinese animal market where one of the most infamous pandemics of our age started. Visit scientists on the front lines fighting the most dangerous creatures in the world, the mosquito. See how a top-secret lab is preparing us for the scariest "what if" situations of bioterrorism in the U.S.
Episode 5
Fantasy Sports
Mon, Apr 13, 2015 22 mins
The Big Picture with Kal Penn takes to the field to seek out the ultimate fantasy sports franchise; assembling the best fans, stadiums, players, sport, and even mascot.
Episode 6
Surviving Nature's Fury
Mon, Apr 13, 2015 22 mins
Delve into the realm of natural disaster to see how some of the hardest hit places on the planet are faring against nature's worst elements.
Episode 7
Born to Be Wired
Sun, Apr 19, 2015 22 mins
Don't be fooled-the internet isn't invisible and wireless. Our data is not stored "on a cloud." Today's cyber-world is made up of real places, and those locations matter more than you might expect.
Episode 8
Eat This!
Mon, Apr 20, 2015 22 mins
The question "What's for dinner?" has very different answers around the world. The Big Picture leaves no plate unturned: grasshopper salsas, all-pizza diets and suburban moonshine are just a few things host Kal Penn breaks down to find out if we really are what we eat.
Episode 9
Cash for Trash
Mon, Apr 27, 2015 22 mins
Waste? Garbage? Yucky stuff that smells bad? Whether we're trashing it, reusing it or flushing it, the whole idea with junk is getting as far away from it as possible. Look at the numbers, though, and you'll quickly see that you're wasting some golden opportunities. All around the world there are clever people making the most of our trash and getting filthy, stinking rich.
Episode 10
Space Invasion
Mon, May 4, 2015 21 mins
Kal Penn explores the everyday ways we've made ourselves at home in outer space. From GPS to TV broadcasts, a remarkable number of our everyday activities rely on outer space. Visit the Utah desert where people with aspirations to colonize Mars simulate living on the planet to research its viability. In Kansas, hunt for 40,000-year-old meteorites. Finally, a homemade satellite is built and launched with college-age enthusiasts.
Episode 11
Body City
Mon, May 11, 2015 20 mins
The Big Picture looks inside the microscopic city 'the Humanopolis' within the human person. It examines how biohackers are attempting to fuse the human body with technology and how scientists are using 3-D printing to replace damaged human body parts.
Episode 12
Off the Map
Fri, May 22, 2015 22 mins
Mislabeled, mysterious and missing places off U.S. maps are discussed along with top-secret locations with secret maps the U.S. government collects.