Show Me Science - Advanced - Season 1

Almost fifty years ago the first industrial robot was "employed" in an automobile assembly plant. Robots are regularly used for hazardous, super-heavy and difficult tasks in manufacturing, agriculture, entertainment, medicine, and space exploration. Welding robots with touch sensing and seam tracking abilities increase assembly plant efficiency, while robotic surgery results in less pain, quicker recovery and shorter hospital stays. NASA's robotic rovers Spirit and Opportunity are mapping the terrain and searching for evidence of water on Mars. Honda Motor Company's humanoid robot, ASIMO, can walk, run, recognize people and identify sounds and voices.

In a gas turbine, the linear motion of gas causes rotors to spin, ultimately creating electricity. The forward rotating blades pump air under high pressure into the combustion chamber where natural gas ignites on contact with the air. At 1,500 degrees Celsius, the stream of gas rushes past the rear turbine blades, causing the entire rotor to spin. A generator transforms that rotational energy into electricity. This program shows the extreme precision required to build a turbine, how it works and how it's used.

Engineers and architects are creating bridges that combine the best of both art and design. Bridges are no longer just a tool to get from one side of the river to the other. Some bridges have the goal of being aesthetically pleasing and efficient for pedestrians. Others rely on the cantilever design to span a distance equivalent to three and a half jumbo jets. Bridges are often classified by their structure and how the forces of tension, compression, bending, torsion and shear are distributed. In this program, students will learn how designs vary depending on the function of the bridge, the environmental factors, the materials, and technology used to construct them.

The Mexican free-tailed bat is one of the most abundant mammals in North America. Outside of San Antonio, Texas there is a cave that is home to over 40 million of these bats. Roosting in large numbers in relatively few areas makes them especially vulnerable to human disturbance and habitat destruction. Documented declines at some roosts are cause for concern because there is a delicate balance in the ecosystem that depends on the bats. There is also cause for concern among other bat species that are falling victim to white nose syndrome, which is a condition named for a distinctive fungal growth around the muzzles and on the wings of affected animals. It is a cold-loving fungus that grows at temperatures below 20 °C (68 °F). It grows on bats when they are hibernating in winter. The fungus appears to disrupt the normal patterns of hibernation, causing bats to arouse too frequently from torpor and starve to death. This program goes deep into the caves where the Mexican free-tailed bats roost and shows a glimpse into their behavior, reproductive habits, diet and how they utilize echolocation.

Join the theater department of the University of California at Berkeley on an in-depth journey to the heart of William Shakespeare's plays. Simple but brilliant reenactments of plays from both cultures, featuring beautiful costumes and accessible acting make both worlds interesting and easy to understand despite the barriers of language. Shakespeare and the Spanish Connection is a must for students, teachers, and Shakespeare scholars of all ages. Experience the plays of traditional Spanish theater firsthand and see how they parallel many of Shakespeare's most famous works. See how these plays were brought to early California with the founding of the missions, and how many of these plays are still performed and remain an integral part of Spanish culture in modern-day America. See the archetypal "stock characters" of traditional Spanish theater manifest themselves in Shakespeare's plays… from the black hat villain (Don John in "Much Ado About Nothing") to the nag (Juliet's Nurse in "Romeo and Juliet") to the foolish braggart (Falstaff in "Henry IV," "Henry V" and "The Merry Wives of Windsor"). Watch scenes from these well-known characters alongside the scenes of Spanish theater from which they derive their roots. (N/P) Despite the obvious influence of Spanish theater and culture over many of Shakespeare's works, not one of his plays is actually set in Spain. "Romeo and Juliet" and "Much Ado About Nothing" are both set in Italy, while Falstaff had his adventures in Britain. But nevertheless, throughout all of Shakespeare's plays, the influence of Spanish theater and culture is evident.

This program stresses the importance of caring for our environment and provides an overview of multiple energy sources such as biomass and solar energy. It documents how some states are trying to enact laws that require local power plants to increase their power provided by renewable energy. To preserve our planet's health, scientists explore green projects involving ecologically friendly architecture and sustainable communities with solar homes and green housing developments.

With the retirement of NASA's space shuttle fleet in 2011, the role of getting people, satellites and other instruments into space falls to private companies. As of June 2011, there have been only 523 people to reach the 100 kilometer mark (considered human spaceflight), and only 24 have traveled beyond low Earth orbit. It is projected that within ten years, the number of people who will have flown into space will increase by about 600 percent due to the increasing market of suborbital spaceflight and the possibility of private citizens utilizing space flight. This program explains suborbital and orbital spaceflight and the requirements necessary for vehicles to achieve these journeys. We go behind the scenes of many of the private companies involved in taking on the tasks to travel to low Earth orbit and beyond and uncover some of the technology used to accomplish these goals.

Deep in Southern Mexico's jungle, the Villa Luz limestone caves support an ecosystem that thrives in a highly poisonous, acidic environment. This rare type of cave is found in few spots on Earth. The Villa Luz, is known for the bacteria in its thermal sulphur springs that produce hydrogen sulfide gas. When the gases form bonds with oxygen, the result is sulfuric acid. The acid eats away at the cave walls, constantly altering the patterns in the cretaceous limestone. All life forms, from microbial colonies to spiders, fish and bats, are interdependent upon the toxic soup of water, sulphur-oxide and hydrogen monoxide for survival. Surprisingly, the caves are home to spiders, bats, and a unique fish species referred to as the Cave Molly. The caves are also well known for their snottites, which are mucous-like formations that resemble stalactites. Descending into the caves is very dangerous as there are potentially lethal levels of hydrogen sulfide gas. Researchers carefully plan expeditions into the caves to better understand these rare ecosystems and must wear respirators and protective clothing as they enter the cave system in their attempt to document and understand the deadly ecosystem.

Christmas Island, discovered December 25, 1643, is just a speck of land in the Indian Ocean. The annual red crab migration at the beginning of the rainy season, however, is so massive it can be seen from the air. It has been named a wonder of the natural world. This program follows this terrestrial arthropod from its rainforest burrow, across dangerous landscape to the ocean to mate. The park offers the perfect forest ecosystem for the Christmas Island Red Crab, which is endemic to the Cocos Islands and Christmas Island, both in the Indian Ocean. The Red Crabs rely on the rainy season that comes in November or December to initiate their migratory journey from the forests to the coasts. Their timing must be precise because the breeding sequence is also linked to the phases of the moon. Although the Red Crabs live inland, they require a certain level of moisture on their gills to survive. Their journey is filled with many obstacles. The risk of dehydration, predators, and automobile traffic cut the migration short for many crabs. However, locals on Christmas Island have built fences and tunnels to corral the crabs and help funnel them safely under roads to their final breeding destinations on the coasts. After mating, the males will return to their original forest homes, while the females will remain for several weeks to spawn. A large percentage of their offspring will not survive. Sea conditions, ocean predators such as manta rays and huge whale sharks, and possible lack of rains will affect the chances that the larva will survive. However, it only takes two successful years out of every ten to keep their populations healthy.

Modern waste-management systems are integrating a variety of recycling processes. Transforming waste into energy and waste into new products is at the forefront of new technologies. For example, light is used to separate glass from minerals, while magnets and whirl-streams separate metals from non-metals. Inside the eponymous 'rotting boxes', organic waste is recycled by organic material eating micro-organisms into re-usable products. Understanding the environmental necessity of recycling and how it is changing the world in which we live, is at the core of this program. The average American produces almost 2 kilograms of garbage per day, or 13 kilograms per week and 726 kilograms per year. New technologies are finding ways to reduce these numbers and recycle many valuable raw materials that used to end up lost in everyday trash. This program demonstrates how scientists are utilizing microorganisms to minimize waste and new separation technologies to aid in recycling. Removal of specific valuable metals from appliances, computers and automobiles has become lucrative business. To help protect our environment, engineers are learning to focus on creating new products with recycling in mind at their inception.

In East Africa, the Serengeti comes alive when wildebeests journey across treacherous terrain to find the best grazing locations. Every year, approximately 1.5 million wildebeests migrate over 1,800 miles or nearly 3,000 kilometers searching for rain ripened grass. Prior to their journey toward Kenya, they graze on the grasses of the Serengeti in Tanzania before the rainy season comes. As they search for food and water, they endure crocodile-filled river crossings and open range lion attacks in what is considered the largest wildlife migration on earth. In this program, students will learn about the lifecycle of this dynamic migratory mammal.

Aeronautics is the science of flight as well as the theory and practice of aircraft navigation. Any machine that flies through the air falls into the field of aeronautics. This includes helicopters, airplanes, as well as space vehicles such as the SpaceX Dragon and the retired NASA space shuttles. Aerodynamics is a branch of physical science which deals with the motion of air and the way that it interacts with objects in motion. By studying the way air flows, engineers can define the shape of a plane. The wings, tail, and the main body - or fuselage - all affect the way air will move around the plane. Students may find it interesting that engineers consider air to behave as a fluid, like water, but they should not confuse these two states of matter. They must take into account aerodynamics, propulsion, materials, structure, stability and control.

The energy demands and rising cost of oil have encouraged scientists and engineers to develop renewable energy alternatives. Biofuels are renewable energy sources from organic materials such as plants or animals that are directly converted into liquid fuels. The two most common biofuels in use today are ethanol and biodiesel. Engineered biofuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel that are made from starches, sugars and cellulose are already in use as blending agents and additives that greatly reduce vehicle emissions. Algae as a bio-fuel has become more common because it is easy to harvest and these single celled photosynthetic organisms are known for their rapid growth and high energy content.

Chemistry has an impact on every aspect of our daily lives. The most important chemistry reference is the Periodic Table of the Elements. By providing a logical, mathematical method of organization, the table has become a critical tool for students, teachers and scientists around the globe. This program explores the discoveries that led up to the organization of the periodic table and how it is presently organized. It introduces and explores several elements (Hydrogen and Titanium) and their effect on our daily lives and the environments in which they occur.

The Periodic Table is organized with elements specified in rows, or periods, according to increasing atomic number. Metals are on the left of the periodic table, while nonmetals are located on the right. Some in the middle are called metalloids because they have characteristics of both metals and nonmetals. The periodic table is purposely arranged into vertical classifications called groups. Columns of elements help define element groups. Some of the notable groups of elements include the noble gases (column 18), the halogens (column 17), the alkali metals (column 1) and the alkaline earth metals (column 2). The transition metals are located in the center of the periodic table. They include many of the common metals, such as copper, iron, silver and gold. The two rows below the main body of the table are called the lanthanide and actinide series. They include the very heavy metallic elements, such as uranium and plutonium. This program goes in depth regarding the elements potassium (K) and magnesium (Mg) and their roles in the health of the human body. Potassium helps to control the proper balance of fluids in cells, helps with the contraction of muscles, and is involved in the transmission of chemical messages between nerve cells. Potassium aids in digestion of food, and in the proper function of the eyes. Magnesium is needed for more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body. It helps maintain normal muscle and nerve function, keeps heart rhythm steady, supports a healthy immune system, and keeps bones strong.