About this season
The Nature of Things is a Canadian television series of documentary programs. It debuted on CBC Television on November 6, 1960. Many of the programs document nature and the effect that humans have on it. The program was one of the first to explore environmental issues, such as clear-cut logging. The series is named after an epic poem by Roman philosopher Lucretius: "Dē Rērum Nātūrā" — On the Nature of Things.
Episodes (18)
1. Aliens of the Deep Sea
Aired 23 September 2010
The octopus is a close cousin of the oyster and snail. And yet, even by human standards the multi-limbed creature is considered highly intelligent. From Spain to Vancouver Island to Capri, Italy, scientists are testing the brain-power of the mysterious and mythic octopus.
2. Changing Your Mind
Aired 30 September 2010
Once thought to be incapable of fundamental change, our growing awareness of the adult brain's capacity for neuroplasticity is opening new doors to treatments for diseases and disorders once thought incurable.
3. For the Love of Elephants
Aired 14 October 2010
An intimate look at the bond that is formed between humans and baby orphaned elephants at the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust rehabilitation centre just outside of Nairobi, Kenya.
4. Geologic Journey 2: Tectonic Europe (July 8 1997)
Aired 21 October 2010
Traverse the Eurasian plate across Europe — from Iceland, where new land is formed - to the Alps, where old land is destroyed.
5. Geologic Journey 2: Along the African Rift (September 2, 1997)
Aired 28 October 2010
For millions of years the East African Rift has been widening at the seams, tearing the African plate in two.
6. Geologic Journey 2: The Western Pacific Rim (November 4, 1997)
Aired 4 November 2010
Focusing on the Asia-Pacific side of The Pacific Rim of Fire, which stands as a living testament to the beauty and danger that powerful geologic forces can deliver. The Pacific Rim is home to half of the world's active volcanoes and ninety percent of the world's earthquakes, yet nearly 800 million people continue to live within its violent edge.
7. Geologic Journey 2: The Pacific Rim: Americas (January 13, 1998)
Aired 18 November 2010
Nick Eyles continues to explore the Pacific Rim, this time looking at the west coast of North America.
8. Geologic Journey 2: The Collision Zone: Asia (March 17, 1998)
Aired 25 November 2010
The fiery unpredictability of Indonesia’s volcanoes at one end, the massive Himalayas at the other and millions of years of tectonic tension in between. The collision zone of the old world is about to be the hub of the new. India, the Himalayas and the island arc of Indonesia - these lands will form the centre of the world’s next supercontinent.
9. When North Goes South
Aired 2 December 2010
Learning and discussing the consequences of magnetic pole inversion.
10. Code Breakers
Aired 13 January 2011
Who were the first peoples of North America? Anthropologist Niobe Thompson embarks on a voyage of scientific discovery, using the latest in DNA analysis techniques to unlock the secrets behind humanity's earliest appearance in the Americas.
11. Tipping Point: The Age of the Oil Sands
Aired 27 January 2011
Tipping Point: The Age of the Oil Sands is a two-hour visual tour de force, taking viewers inside the David and Goliath struggle playing out within one of the most compelling environmental issues of our time
12. The Last Grizzly
Aired 3 February 2011
Filmmaker Jeff Turner documents grizzly bears in the Northern Cascades of British Columbia.
13. Return of the Prairie Bandit
Aired 10 February 2011
Revisiting the 2009 release of nearly extinct black-footed ferrets in Saskatchewan to see what happened.
14. Raccoon Nation
Aired 24 February 2011
Is your garbage can making raccoons smarter? Stunning footage shot in the deep, dark of night combines with groundbreaking research in this fascinating documentary to explore the remarkable ways that city life is changing raccoons.
15. The Real Avatar
Aired 3 March 2011
In James Cameron's film, Avatar, an alien tribe on the distant planet of Pandora fights the human invaders bent on mining their forest home. Instead of Pandora, think Peru.
16. Force of Nature: The David Suzuki Movie
Aired 13 March 2011
David Suzuki, scientist, educator, broadcaster and activist, delivers what he describes as 'a last lecture' interwoven with scenes from his life and lifetime – the major social, scientific, cultural and political events of the past 70 years.
17. Save My Lake
Aired 17 March 2011
Save My Lake is a TV documentary episode.
18. 50 Years of the Nature of Things
Aired 24 March 2011
A celebration of half a century of a landmark science and natural history series, and an unrivaled Canadian institution.