Group items tagged

* Released April 2007 * Running time: Eleven 50 minute episodes * According to multiple reviews, this is THE best nature and wildlife series ever made. The film covers the world's different habitats in 50 minute pieces, including mountains, caves, and desserts, ending with a three-part discussion of sustainability and the current environmental threats that our world faces. This series is not to be missed by anyone interested in natural resources, the environment, sustainability, and the future of our planet.

Thanks to technological advances, in the past few years, vast amounts of natural gas -- particularly shale gas -- have become economically viable. This development is an unmitigated boon for consumers interested in affordable energy and for governments hoping to reduce their countries' dependency on foreign oil.

* Released January 2007 * Running time: 56 minutes * The Global Banquet examines the ethical questions at the heart of the globalization debate including how food security and social development are related and how factory farming can lead to degradation of the natural environment.

* Running Time: 5:35 * Description: This gives a short report about genetically modified salmon and some of the concerns related to natural stocks of salmon. * Rating: Very Good * 7-Revolutions: Technology, Resources

* Released 1998 * Running time: 106 minutes * In this science fiction film, being genetically engineered is an asset while those naturally born are considered flawed. It is part thriller, part futuristic drama and cautionary tale.

* Aired: February 2009 * Running time: 24:00 * Description: Michael Pollan is Professor of Science and Environmental Journalism at University of California at Berkeley and author of several bestselling books such as The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals. He discusses a new way of thinking about how we subsidize agriculture and suggests ways of changing food policies. * Rating: Excellent * 7-Revolutions Sections: Resources (food)

* Released February 2007 * Running time: 240 minutes * Description: China from the Inside is a series of four documentaries that survey China through Chinese eyes to see how history has shaped them and where the present is taking them. Episodes include Power and the People which deals with the governance of China, The Women which talks about the past and future for Chinese women, Shifting Nature, a look at China's environmental challenges, and Freedom, an exploration of China's conflict between personal freedom and governance. Produced in 2006 with 240 minutes on one DVD. Description from web site at http://www.shoppbs.org/ Video available for $30. * Rating: very good * Used outside class as optional learning activity; related to several revolutions

Summary: Clean-energy technology is expensive and the United States is spending far too little on developing it. The U.S. government must do more to promote cross-border innovation and protect intellectual property rights.

Summary: With one billion people already going hungry and the world's population rising, global food production must urgently be increased. The countries that managed such surges in the past -- Brazil, China, India, the United States -- cannot do so again. But Africa can -- if it finally uses the seeds, fertilizers, and irrigation methods common everywhere else.

From the Middle East to Madagascar, high prices are spawning land grabs and ousting dictators. Welcome to the 21st-century food wars.

I mentioned this at our meeting in October, but it highlights some growing research on how we have evolved as a species using genomics...including rare variants that have not had enough time to be weeded out through natural selection.