Sarah Holt
Director
NOVA (1974)
Season 6
PBS' premier science series helps viewers of all ages explore the science behind the headlines. Along the way, NOVA demystifies science and technology, and highlights the people involved in scientific pursuits.
Released March 3, 1974
Episode 55 min
10+
Genres: Documentary
Keywords: tmdb.nature, imdb.scene-during-end-credits, imdb.science-and-technology-documentary, imdb.science, imdb.scientist, awards.emmy-award-winner, awards.emmy-award-nominated + 7 more, tmdb.candid, tmdb.inspirational, tmdb.factual, tmdb.dramatic, tmdb.informative, tmdb.instructive, imdb.nature-documentary
Watch Providers: PBS, PBS, Hoopla, Spectrum On Demand, PBS America Amazon Channel + 2 more, PBS Documentaries Amazon Channel, YouTube TV
Production Companies: WGBH Boston
Network: PBS
Country: United States
Languages:
English
S6E1 - Black Tide
On the morning of March 16, 1978, the US owned, Liberian registered supertanker, the Amoco Cadiz, went aground off the coast of Brittany. Over the following days and weeks its entire 68 million gallons of oil drained into the sea. A NOVA production team began filmming at the scene shortly after the disaster, the biggest oil spill in history, and recorded clean-up efforts, effects of the spill on the crucial tourism and fishing industries, and the attempts of US and French marine biologists to trace the passage of the oil through the environment.
Jan. 4, 1979, midnight
S6E2 - Long Walk Of Fred Young
As a child, Fred Young hunted birds and wild animals with primitive weapons, spoke only the Indian languages Ute and Navajo, went to a medicine man when he was sick, and slept under the stars. NOVA profiles Dr. Frederick Young, now a nuclear physicist working on the laser fusion project at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory in New Mexico.
Jan. 11, 1979, midnight
S6E3 - A World Of Difference
In 1945, B.F. Skinner shocked the world by putting his 13 month-old daughter, Deborah, into a "box." The box was actually a climate-controlled crib designed for comfort and protection, and the young psychologist was merely testing his theory that environment controls behavior. NOVA portrays the life of this famous behavioral psychologist now in his 70's and living quietly in Cambridge as Emeritus Professor of Psychology at Harvard University.
Jan. 18, 1979, midnight
S6E4 - Cashing In On The Ocean
The bed of the northeast Pacific Ocean is covered with a "carpet" estimated to be worth a staggering ten million dollars. These manganese nodules—the bumpy carpet—are rich not only in manganese but in the key strategic minerals: copper, nickel and cobalt. NOVA examines the debate about who owns them and who has the right to exploit their use.
Feb. 1, 1979, midnight
S6E5 - Patterns From The Past
Below the snow-capped peaks of the Peruvian Andes, the Q'eros Indians live a life patterned on that of their ancestors thousands of years ago. NOVA takes a look at the unchanging world of these isolated mountain people.
Feb. 8, 1979, midnight
S6E6 - The Invisible Flame
Some day hydrogen may replace the gasoline that we are now using up so rapidly. NOVA looks at the potential of hydrogen as a zero-pollution fuel.
Feb. 22, 1979, midnight
S6E7 - The End Of The Rainbow
Is nuclear fusion the solution to the energy crisis? NOVA examines the promise—and problems—of fusion as a future energy source.
March 1, 1979, midnight
S6E8 - The Beersheva Experiment
Health care is the third largest industry in the US. As a result of billions of dollars spent for medical education in the 1960s, there are now too many specialists and too few primary care physicians, especially in underserved areas. NOVA tells the story of one medical school in Israel that is training a new kind of family doctor.
March 8, 1979, midnight
S6E9 - Einstein
One hundred years after his birth, Albert Einstein remains an enigma to most Americans. NOVA presents an insightful portrait of the man and his mind through rarely viewed film footage.
March 15, 1979, midnight
S6E10 - The Keys Of Paradise
Some powerful and complex painkilling drugs have just been discovered—in a place where you would least expect to find them. Endorphins and their component enkephalins are manufactured in the brain, and perform the same painkilling function as analgesics like morphine. NOVA explores some physiological mysteries, such as why acupuncture works, and how placebos can relieve symptoms, and shows how endorphins could revolutionize the treatment of pain, depression, and even schizophrenia.
March 29, 1979, midnight
S6E11 - A Plague on our Children
Is the chemical industry a boom to modern civilization, or a major threat to our health and that of future generations? NOVA examines how toxic heribicides, Pesticides, and other chemicals may cause cancer, Miscarriages and Birth defects in humans.
Oct. 2, 1979, midnight
S6E12 - Life on a Silken Thread
Sinister, sometimes even deadly, spiders have little popular appeal; yet their silken webs are among nature's loveliest creations. NOVA takes a close-look in slow motion, as spiders reveal a delicate grace and beauty, and an amazing array of lifestyles.
Oct. 9, 1979, midnight
S6E13 - Sweet Solutions
NOVA views the history of sugar—from its scientific, religious and political history to its medical controversy.
Oct. 16, 1979, midnight
S6E14 - Race for the Gold
At the 1976 Olympics, East German athletes walked off with 40 of the coveted gold medals, though their country is only the size of New Jersey. NOVA investigates whether a drug is responsible for their incredible success—or is American athletic training and commitment falling behind that of the Communist world?
Oct. 30, 1979, midnight
S6E15 - All Part of the Game
Thousands of amateur athletes are hurt every year, and many professional athletes suffer injuries that may mean the end of a career. NOVA looks at a new medical specialty—sports medicine—that promises to prevent and cure many sports related problems.
Nov. 6, 1979, midnight
S6E16 - India: Machinery of Hope
Most of India lives by the same rhythm, the same tools, as in centuries past. But there is another India—with thriving commercial centers, spotless research laboratories and large-scale industry. NOVA looks at how the gap between these two extremes is shrinking because of a policy of "appropriate" technology that uses the resources of both to meet the greatest needs of all.
Nov. 20, 1979, midnight
S6E17 - The Bridge that Spanned the World
The Iron Bridge across the River Severn in Telford, England is two centuries old this year. It remains a monument to the Shropshire iron masters who built it, and a symbol of the Industrial Revolution that was born in the area where the bridge stands. NOVA traces the development of ironmaking and its far-reaching effects on society and the world economy.
Dec. 4, 1979, midnight
S6E18 - Termites to Telescopes
Dr. Philip Morrison, Institute Professor and professor of Physics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, presents this thoughtful and provocative commentary on the nature of civilization.
Dec. 11, 1979, midnight
S6E19 - Blindness: Five Points of Views
For many people the idea of life without vision is as fearful as death. NOVA looks at five people struggling to save their threatened vision using drugs, surgery, counseling and determination.
Dec. 18, 1979, midnight
Network: PBS
Episode Runtime: 55 min.
Season Runtime: 55715 min.
Released: March 3, 1974
Last Air Date: Nov. 12, 2025, midnight
Next Air Date: Jan. 21, 2026, midnight
Status: Returning Series
Certification: TV-PG
Common sense age: 10+
Rate this show
Add {Movie} to static lists