Program Highlights

Michiana's Public Television. Television worthy of your trust

WNIT Local Productions

DINNER AND A BOOK continues on Saturdays at 10:30am with repeats on Mondays at 5:30pm.
OUTDOOR ELEMENTS continues on Sundays at 9:30am
ECONOMIC OUTLOOK is seen on Fridays at 8:30pm (July 4 at 5:30pm) with repeats on Sundays at 12:30pm.
OPEN STUDIO: Living Michiana continues on Sunday at 7:30pm with repeats Thursdays at 5:30pm.
MICHIANA SPEAKS will return in the Fall
ASK AN EXPERT will return in the Fall
POLITICALLY SPEAKING will return in September

---

JULY 2008 LISTINGS

NOVA

Tuesdays, 8pm

PBS' premier science series helps viewers of all ages explore the science behind the headlines. Along the way, NOVA programs demystify science and technology and highlight the people involved in scientific pursuits.

July 1 - "Fireworks!"

NOVA explores the science and spectacular art of those who play with fire for our visual delight. Not surprisingly, there is more than meets the eye to creating the sequence of vivid colors and impressive effects that light up the night sky every Fourth of July.

July 8 - "The Perfect Corpse"

Central Ireland?s waterlogged landscape is no ordinary ground. Here, the moist earth halts decomposition, perfectly preserving stunning evidence of brutal ritualistic killings from the prehistoric Iron Age, more than 2,000 years ago. These are not skeletons or mummies, but the soft tissue and remains of people trapped in time. The perpetrators of this ancient violence are well beyond the reach of law, but there are still fascinating secrets their victims will share, if only modern science knows how to ask. NOVA is granted exclusive access to the investigation of two recently unearthed and exceedingly rare bog bodies. Viewers enter the lab with the experts as they push archaeological forensics to its limits, aiming to unravel how these people lived and how and why they died.

July 15 - "The Great Inca Rebellion"

This special goes to an impoverished suburb of Lima, Peru, where an ancient cemetery crammed with mummies is excavated by Peruvian archaeologist Guillermo Cock. In a truly startling find, he discovers corpses that differ from all the rest. They have been hastily buried and disfigured by multiple, appalling wounds and fractures. Forensic experts help to determine that these remains are victims of a battle that pitted club-wielding Inca warriors against Spanish cavalry. The forensic evidence may be a decisive clue that helps explain a long-standing mystery about the Spanish conquest of Peru. How, in 1532, did a tiny band of Spanish soldiers crush the mighty Inca Empire, then the most powerful civilization in the Americas? Were the conquistadors' obvious advantages - steel arms, gunpowder and horses - the key to their success, as is generally supposed? Or were disease and civil war more significant factors that were downplayed by the invaders? By uncovering new evidence from the Lima cemetery, NOVA and National Geographic reveal the untold final chapter of the conquest: not the Spanish walkover familiar from well-known accounts, but rather a protracted and complex war of astonishing brutality that almost led to the Spanish losing their precarious foothold in the Andes. A production of NOVA and National Geographic Television. In HD where available.

July 22 - "Mystery of the Megaflood"

It was the greatest flood of the past two million years, and it posed a giant scientific riddle. A maverick geologist became convinced that near the end of the last ice age, thousand-foot-deep floodwaters had scoured out vast areas of the American northwest. Mainstream scientists scorned his theory, while he searched patiently for answers to what could have triggered such an inconceivably violent event. Finally, a remarkable discovery silenced the skeptics: traces of an enormous ice dam half a mile high, which had blocked a valley in present-day Montana and created an enormous lake behind it. With the help of stunning, realistic animation, NOVA takes viewers back to the Ice Age to reveal what happened when the dam broke, unleashing a titanic flood that swept herds of woolly mammoth and everything else into oblivion. In HD where available.

July 29 - "Car of the Future"

How will the car of the future be powered? Will it run on hydrogen, batteries, ethanol or some as-yet undiscovered technology? Find out as NOVA takes a look at the latest and greatest in the automotive industry. Tom and Ray Magliozzi of NPR's "Car Talk" fame take viewers on a roller-coaster ride into the world of cars - examining new technologies and ideas about America's most common form of transportation. With constantly increasing prices at the pump and a growing concern about the impact of emissions on global warming, there is a keen interest in alternative fuel sources to power our cars. The hydrogen fuel cell has long been the holy grail of zero emissions energy, and countries like Iceland are trying out the technology by transforming their public transportation. Closer to home, there are attempts to create fuels like "biodiesel" - made of used vegetable oil - or ethanol from corn crops. Will these be our future fuels or just a useful intermediate? Can an all-electric sports car being developed in California change the face of driving for good? With in-depth interviews and the unique humor of the much-loved Magliozzi brothers, "Car of the Future" takes a light-hearted but knowledgeable look at the serious issue of what's to come for our transportation. In HD where available.

WIDE ANGLE

Tuesdays, 9pm

WIDE ANGLE premieres seven exclusive new films and one updated repeat as it launches its seventh season of documentaries that bring global issues to life through compelling human stories. WIDE ANGLE travels to Sudan to give an in-depth eyewitness account of what is happening on the ground in Darfur, a region closed off to the world. In China, filmmakers are embedded with high school seniors prepping for an ultra-competitive week of finals. The demanding system that determines who will succeed and who will fail in tomorrow's China makes America's college entrance process look like child's play. A special on Iran will reveal an underreported domestic story: the Islamic republic has the highest proportion of opiate addicts in the world. Through portraits of dealers, addicts and law enforcement officials, the program will explore a crisis previously unseen by American viewers. Other shows will explore such critical topics as the shifting role of Japan's military and a bold grassroots health initiative in Mozambique that has cut the maternal death rate in half.

July 1 - "Heart of Darfur"

With the Darfur Peace Agreement in shambles and fears rising that the region is headed for a new cycle of bloodletting, "Heart of Darfur" provides an eyewitness account of what the U.N. Secretary-General has called "the largest humanitarian crisis in the world." Five years into the conflict, WIDE ANGLE portrays the desperation of daily life, from a sprawling Sudanese refugee camp to volatile rebel-held areas seldom reached by western reporters. Cameras follow Gen. Martin Luther Agwai, the charismatic commander of the new combined U.N.-African Union peacekeeping force for Darfur, on a mission into hostile areas to attempt to coax reluctant rebel leaders and Arab tribes to the negotiating table.

July 8 - "Japan's About Face"

Granted unprecedented access to Japan's "West Point" - the National Defense Academy - WIDE ANGLE captures a remarkable view of the military's shifting role in post-war Japanese society. Since WWII, Japan's pacifist constitution has mandated a strictly defensive force. But the line between defense and offense has blurred, and Japan's military budget is now the fifth largest in the world. With troops in Iraq and sophisticated new fighter jets, Japan is reconsidering its rules of engagement. This program follows Academy cadets preparing for possible overseas deployment and meets a group of peace demonstrators - including atom bomb survivors - on a two-month march dedicated to keeping Japan's troops at home.

July 15 - "Birth of a Surgeon"

This inspiring profile travels to Mozambique, where a bold grassroots initiative is training midwives in advanced life-saving surgery and reducing the maternal death rate by half. The program follows student Emilia Cumbane through intensive medical classes and night shifts in the delivery ward as she learns to handle the grave complications pregnant women experience in developing countries worldwide. WIDE ANGLE is in the operating room as Cumbane performs her first caesarian section; viewers witness the beginning of one woman making a difference on the frontlines of public health in Africa. Mozambique's controversial program, the first of its kind in the world, may offer a solution to the life-threatening lack of doctors in other developing countries.

GREAT LODGES OF THE NATIONAL PARKS

Wednesday, July 2, 8pm

This two-part program is a fascinating tour of America's national parks and their charming historic lodges. The episodes take viewers to the edge of a volcano in Hawaii, to the Alaskan wilderness, to the rugged mountain peaks and pristine lakes of the Rockies, to Grand Teton, to the Olympic peninsula and to an oasis of hospitality in California's Death Valley. From familiar rustic "parkitecture" to the modern International Style, from a grand Spanish Revival resort to lumbered lake lodges and cabins in the mountains, GREAT LODGES tells the stories behind these national treasures and showcases the many ways to enjoy the awe-inspiring beauty of America's national parks.

Rocky Mountain National Park is just outside the back door of the grand and graceful Stanley Hotel, which may look familiar to fans of Stephen King's The Shining. At Jackson Lake Lodge, the magnificent views were personally selected by John D. and Laurence Rockefeller when they built this modern masterpiece at the foot of Grand Teton. Visitors can breakfast like a cowboy on an early morning mountain trail ride. Then it's on to Alaska, where rivers of ice march into the ocean and bears fish from the water's edge at Glacier Bay Lodge; North America's highest peak greets visitors each day in their cozy cabin at the wild and remote Camp Denali. In HD where available.

NOVA scienceNOW

Wednesdays, 9pm

Renowned astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson hosts the third season of this fast-paced and provocative science magazine.

July 2 - "Personal Genome" - Several companies now offer a personal genetic profile that will predict a person's chances of contracting one of several serious diseases. How do such tests work and how valid are they? Furthermore, what should people do with bad news - or good news? The hope is that one day our genomes can predict exactly who is likely to get sick and what to do to prevent it. But this new era will have to wait until scientists fully untangle the web of genetic and environmental factors that cause most human disease.

"Digital Art Authentication" - Vincent van Gogh has inspired several talented artists to turn their hands to forgery. Can computers be used to identify which works are really his? To find out, NOVA scienceNOW commissioned an expert to make a meticulous copy of a Van Gogh painting, and then challenged three different computer teams to find the imitation in a group that included five genuine Van Goghs. Can digital scans plus clever algorithms unmask the fake?

"Carbon Sequestration" - Can an eighth grader's science fair project show the way to dealing with rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere? Claire Lackner used an aquarium pump to circulate air through a solution of sodium hydroxide, capturing much of the carbon dioxide in her air sample. The simple experiment got Claire's father, Klaus, thinking: "Could such a principle be applied on a mass scale?" The elder Lackner was actually in a position to follow up, since he's a renowned scientist at Columbia University. A decade later, Klaus has helped form a company that is testing a product that may fulfill this dream. NOVA scienceNOW explores the daunting research challenges that have to be met before such technology can begin to make a dent in atmospheric carbon dioxide.

"Pardis Sabeti Profile" - By day, Pardis Sabeti is an assistant professor at Harvard University and a researcher on the genetics of malaria. By night, she and her band Thousand Days play the clubs around greater Boston. The group's EP "Headlight Waves" won Sabeti honorable mention in the Billboard World Song Competition. She has traveled to Africa to study how the malaria parasite interacts with its human hosts. One powerful new tool is the complete map of the malaria parasite's genome, which Sabeti is searching to understand how the parasite develops resistance to the drugs used to fight it. An immigrant from Iran, she was a star student at MIT and won a Rhodes scholarship to Oxford, after which she scored top honors at Harvard Medical School. Then it was a short step into research - and rock 'n' roll!

July 9 - "Hubble Repair" - NOVA scienceNOW covers the upcoming repair mission for the Hubble space telescope - one of the most famous orbiting telescopes - which has advanced our knowledge of the cosmos.

"First Primate" - If University of Florida paleontologist Jonathan Bloch is correct, we may have to downsize our image of what it means to be a primate. NOVA scienceNOW goes into the field with Bloch to search for our missing relatives from the shadowy period after the catastrophe that doomed the dinosaurs. There's a ten-million-year gap between the demise of the giant reptiles and the appearance of the first known primates, and Bloch thinks that tiny bones embedded in limestone may be the evolutionary evidence for the creatures that evolved into primates. One of the problems is extracting the bones from the limestone and cleaning them to look for telltale clues that connect them to primates, but Bloch's team manages to assemble three intriguing specimens.

"Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa" - It's been two decades since Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa jumped the border fence separating Mexico and the U.S. and established himself as a farm worker in southern California. His goal: to earn enough to feed his family. Today he's an assistant professor of neurosurgery and oncology at Johns Hopkins University, where he is in hot pursuit of a breakthrough in the treatment of brain cancer. By day, he operates on tricky brain cancer cases. By night, he researches how tumors grow and migrate. The extraordinary journey of "Dr. Q," as his patients and students know him, is straight out of a storybook - or storyboard, since Hollywood is interested in making a movie about him. NOVA scienceNOW visits this remarkable man at work and at home to see how far he has come.

"Iraqi Bacteria" - There is a new enemy on the battlefields of Iraq, but it's too small to be seen. It's a bacterium, called Acinetobacter baumannii, isolated from already sick patients in hospitals overseas and in the U.S. It has become resistant to most antibiotics. Bob Woodruff, the embedded ABC reporter whose armored vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb, couldn't escape what has become known as "Iraqibacter." NOVA scienceNOW reports on his recovery from an infection that endangered his life. But the big question remains: how has it become resistant to so many of drugs? Researchers in the U.S. are "looking under the hood" of the bacterium to understand what makes it work. Using genetic tools, they are finding that the bug has an enhanced ability to pick up nasty genes from its bacterial neighbors. Their hope is to use this information to ward off future attacks from this microscopic enemy.

"Finch Brains" - What can the songs of zebra finches tells us about the human evolution of language? A lot more than we once thought. The way a finch learns to sing is similar to the way babies learn to speak. New research is looking into the genetics behind language acquisition and uncovering fascinating leads on how we developed language - one of the key traits that makes us human.

July 16 - "Northern Lights" - The northern lights are glorious, but mysterious: What causes them? Finding the answer is not just an exercise in satisfying scientific curiosity; the dance of the northern lights masks a growing danger, since the most energetic displays are associated with violent space weather. Space weather - the energetic flow of radiation, magnetic fields and charged particles from the sun - can disable satellites or even kill astronauts who happen to be in deep space. And given our increasing reliance on space-based technologies, we need to learn to predict space weather. The pressure is on: there's a storm brewing in the next few years, which will mark the peak in the sun's 11-year cycle of activity. NOVA scienceNOW investigates efforts to improve space weather forecasting with a new fleet of NASA satellites called THEMIS.

"Yoky Matsuoka" - Growing up in Japan, Yoky Matsuoka was on her way to becoming a world-class tennis player. She even competed in qualifiers for Wimbledon. But in daily practice it was hard to find a regular partner. So Matsuoka came up with the idea of building her own: a robotic player that would never get tired. Injuries put a hold on her tennis dreams, but not on her interest in robotics. Twenty years later, Matsuoka is now a leader in the emerging field of neurobotics and is at work on creating robot technology that can help disabled people. Now an associate professor of computer science and engineering at the University of Washington, Matsuoka was recently awarded a MacArthur "genius" grant.

"Smart Bridges" - Ever since last summer's sudden collapse of the Minneapolis Interstate 35 bridge, millions are now nervous about crossing long highway spans. In a nation abounding with aging bridges, what can be done to avert the next catastrophe? One technique being investigated at the University of California San Diego probes bridge supports with ultrasonic sound waves, searching for "sour notes" that signal damaged metal. Meanwhile, researchers at the University of Michigan are using nanotechnology to create a coating that works like human skin to detect structural damage beneath its surface. But drivers should bear in mind these reflections by one engineer: "There are many different ways a bridge can fail, and no one technique, no one sensor is ever going to be the catch-all. It's going to take a suite of technologies from across the spectrum of engineering knowledge."

"Leeches" - Leeches, those innocent bloodsuckers, have been bad-mouthed to the point that they've become synonymous with obnoxious freeloaders. Even host Neil deGrasse Tyson is creeped out while wading through leech-infested waters with scientist Mark Siddall, who runs the leech lab at the American Museum of Natural History. Siddall notes that leeches are far less dangerous than mosquitoes and ticks as disease spreaders. They've recently made something of a comeback, and are today used when reattached fingers and toes become engorged with excess blood that must be drained off. Leeches are hermaphrodites and exist in countless species and ecological niches throughout nature. You'll gain new respect for these fascinating little creatures and never use their name in vain again.

July 23 - "SETI" - In 1960, a curious astronomer named Frank Drake aimed a radio telescope at a couple of nearby stars and started listening. More than 40 years later, we're still listening, and SETI - the search for extraterrestrial intelligence - has just expanded big-time to begin the systematic survey of millions of star systems for signs of advanced civilizations. NOVA scienceNOW reports on this impressive new effort, called the Allen Telescope Array. The project is underwritten primarily by billionaire philanthropist Paul G. Allen and will eventually comprise 350 giant dish antennas, all working in unison to answer the question: Are we alone?

Stem Cells" - Researchers around the world are touting a possible new way of creating embryonic-like stem cells - without the embryo. Japanese researchers were the first to discover a way to "turn back the clock" on adult skin cells to create what look like embryonic stem cells - special cells normally found in a growing embryo that have the ability to become any type of cell in the body. Building on the Japanese discovery, U.S. researchers have since been creating these stem cells from human skin cells, with the hopes of possibly using these cells to understand diseases like diabetes, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Though the new method offers a potential alternative to the ethically charged work of using human embryos to isolate these important stem cells, the technique still has a number of obstacles to overcome and has scientists warning this is certainly not the end of the debate.

Edith Widder"- Go for a deep-sea dive with a scientist who is seeing things never before recorded on the ocean floor. Edie Widder is a specialist in marine bioluminescence, the biochemical emission of light by ocean animals that can light up the murky depths to an astonishing degree. Widder is doing some lighting of her own with an innovative camera system called the "Eye in the Sea," which uses a wavelength of light invisible to sea creatures. On its first test, the "Eye" recorded a squid unknown to science. Widder's research has won her a MacArthur "genius" grant, which will help support her work at the Ocean Research and Conservation Association, of which she is a co-founder.

"Phoenix (Mars Mission)" - NOVA scienceNOW follows the upcoming NASA mission to send a lander to Mars. The lander is set to dig for water at the planet's poles in an attempt to understand the mysterious red planet's potential or past ability to support life.

July 30 - "Mammoth Mystery" - NOVA scienceNOW is on the trail of an extraordinary paleontological cold case. Forty years ago, a young paleontologist unearthed the fossilized remains of two mammoths, their tusks entwined in a fatal battle. Was it accidental death or violent murder? By looking inside the fossilized tusks, modern forensic science can read a record of the mammoths' final days that will finally put this mystery to rest.

"Judah Folkman Tribute" - With the recent passing of famed "cancer warrior" Judah Folkman, NOVA scienceNOW takes a look back at the great man's accomplishments and where his groundbreaking angiogenesis work is leading the medical field today. Long ignored and even initially rejected, angiogenesis is now widely accepted as the process by which tumors prompt the growth of blood vessels to help with their survival. Dr. Folkman spent much of his early career convincing the scientific establishment of the existence and importance of angiogenesis and then devoted his remaining years to trying to apply it to medical research. New work in the Folkman lab - based on the principles of angiogenesis - is leading to earlier detection of cancer, better drugs and even cures for diseases like macular degeneration.

A CAPITOL FOURTH (2008)

Friday, July 4, 8pm

Live from the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol, the top-rated, multi-award winning A CAPITOL FOURTH kicks off a musical and patriotic extravaganza topped by a dazzling display of fireworks over the Washington Monument. America's biggest birthday celebration will feature some of the country's best known and award-winning musical artists in performance with the National Symphony Orchestra under the direction of top pops conductor Erich Kunzel. The line-up includes Grammy winning music legends Huey Lewis & the News, "American Idol" winner Taylor Hicks, Broadway star Brian Stokes Mitchell, classical superstars Hayley Westenra and Vittorio Grigolo, and soprano Harolyn Blackwell (more talent to be announced). The spectacular concert and show bring viewers an unrivaled evening of patriotic and uplifting music presented live in high definition with Dolby 5.1 sound. The nation's premiere Independence Day celebration will conclude with a rousing rendition of Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture," complete with live cannon fire provided by the United States Army Presidential Salute Battery, an audience favorite and now A CAPITOL FOURTH tradition. The concert can also be heard live in stereo on NPR member stations nationwide and is broadcast to U.S. military personnel in more than 175 countries and aboard more than 200 U.S. Navy ships at sea by the American Forces Radio and Television Network. In HD where available.

MASTERPIECE MYSTERY!

Sundays, 9pm

For more than 35 years, MASTERPIECE has enthralled audiences with the works of the finest classic and contemporary writers interpreted by the world's foremost actors. The new MASTERPIECE schedule breaks the year into three "seasons," each with its own host, graphics and fresh take on the series' famous theme music.

• In winter and spring, MASTERPIECE CLASSIC features signature period dramas.
• In summer, MASTERPIECE MYSTERY! presents the best British mysteries.
• In fall, MASTERPIECE CONTEMPORARY will show dramas set in modern times.

MASTERPIECE MYSTERY! is hosted by Alan Cumming.

"Inspector Lewis, Series I"

Kevin Whately returns as Detective Inspector Robbie Lewis in the spin-off to the popular "Inspector Morse" series. Lewis, back in Oxford following the tragic death of his wife, is cracking cases with his sharp young sidekick, DS Hathaway (Laurence Fox, Becoming Jane). An impressive list of guest stars (Gina McKee, Anna Massey and James Wilby) joins Lewis and Hathaway this season as they take on murder mysteries that draw them into the underbelly of celebrity, ambition and the sexual politics of the Oxfordshire elite.

July 6 - "Expiation"

When an Oxford housewife is found hanged in her home, Lewis and Hathaway unearth a far darker murder case than the initial suicide verdict suggests. Hosted by Alan Cumming.

"Foyle's War, Series V"

The popular World War II whodunit called "a triumph from start to finish" by the Wall Street Journal returns with three new episodes. Far away from the glory of the front, Inspector Christopher Foyle (Michael Kitchen, "Reckless," "Oliver Twist") fights his own battle against murder, mystery and betrayal on the south coast of England.

July 13 - "Plan of Attack"

It's April 1944; Foyle has resigned as Detective Chief Superintendent of Hastings Police and his team is struggling to adjust to life without him. When his new replacement is suddenly and mysteriously killed, the station staff are at their wits' end. Will Foyle come out of retirement and once again track down the guilty perpetrators? Hosted by Alan Cumming.

July 20 - "Broken Souls"

When the colleague of an exiled war refugee is found murdered, Foyle is called upon to investigate. There's no shortage of suspects as it becomes quickly apparent that the victim was not a well-liked man. Hosted by Alan Cumming.

July 27 - "All Clear"

Victory is at hand for the British, and Hasting is preparing itself for the celebrations. But the mood darkens when a prominent American committee member is murdered. In his quest to solve his final case, Foyle must dig into one of the dirtiest secrets of the war and reveal truths the Allies would rather keep hidden. Hosted by Alan Cumming.

A ROOM NEARBY

Sunday, July 6, 10:30pm

A meditation on loneliness and being alone by animator Paul Fierlinger (STILL LIFE WITH ANIMATED DOGS), A ROOM NEARBY asks: Can loneliness make you happy? Blending intimate interviews with distinctive animation, this film gives voice to five culturally dissimilar people as they reflect on the process and unexpected revelations of loneliness.

HISTORY DETECTIVES

Mondays, 9pm

America's top gumshoes are back for a sixth season to prove once again that an object found in an attic or backyard might be anything but ordinary. Wesley Cowan, independent appraiser and auctioneer; Gwendolyn Wright, professor of architecture, Columbia University; Elyse Luray, independent appraiser and expert in art history; and Tukufu Zuberi, professor of sociology and the director of the Center for Africana Studies at the University of Pennsylvania leave no stone unturned as they travel around the country to explore the stories behind local folklore, prominent figures and family legends.

July 7 - Red Hand Flag - During her last active duty posting with the Army at Ft. Jackson, a Desert Storm veteran from South Carolina learned about a local, all-but-forgotten African-American infantry regiment in WWI. Years later, she purchased a worn red-white-red striped flag with a red felted hand sewn in the center and small U.S. flags sewn in the corner. The contributor would like to know if her flag was carried into battle by one of the few African-American infantry regiments that fought in WWI under the command of the French. These unsung heroes of the Great War exhibited extraordinary heroism in battle and were highly decorated by the French. If this particular flag has French origins, though, why is it red-white-red-striped and not blue-white-red like the tricolor French flag? HISTORY DETECTIVES host Elyse Luray heads to Columbia, South Carolina, to link this mysterious flag to the legacy of the Red Hand Division and its wartime triumphs.

Seth Eastman Painting - A Decatur, Illinois, man purchased a painting that depicts a scene of traditional Native-American life. The contributor, a longtime student of the history of the American West, says the image appealed to him because it was strangely familiar, almost iconic in its imagery. The painting bears the initials "S.E." and the seller's Web page reads "Seth Eastman, American Painting, Oil on Canvas." Could this painting be an authentic work of artist and military officer Seth Eastman - and an accurate depiction of Native-American life in the mid-1800s? HISTORY DETECTIVES host Tukufu Zuberi travels to historic Fort Snelling in Minnesota to examine how Eastman carried out government policies of Native-American removal while capturing on canvas what he believed was a doomed way of life.

Isleton Tong - The president of the historical society in Isleton, California, has inherited a two-story wooden building with tin sides that she believes once housed a Chinese Tong. In the late 1800s, Chinese immigrants risked everything to start a new life in America. But Americans who feared losing jobs to the new, cheap labor turned the land of opportunity hostile. Chinatowns burned, ethnic slurs flew and Congress prohibited Chinese laborers from entering or working in the country. For outcast Chinese, Tongs were places of protection and solidarity during this time of chaos, where they could worship, study and settle legal disputes peacefully. In the newspapers, the Tongs were secretive centers of gangland warfare, opium deals and gambling. Was there a Tong operating inside Isleton's once-booming Chinatown? If so, what happened there? HISTORY DETECTIVES host Gwen Wright heads to the Sacramento Delta and to San Francisco to unravel the mystery of the Chinese Tong.

July 14 - Japanese Balloon Bomb - The granddaughter of a World War II veteran from Austin, Texas, has a wartime memento with a note claiming it's a piece of Japanese balloon that floated across the Pacific Ocean in 1945. The alleged balloon scrap could be evidence of a unique weapon in modern warfare: the Japanese balloon bomb. More than 9,000 of these incendiary weapons were launched from Japan during the war via the jet stream with the intention of causing mass disruption and forest fires in the American West. The existence and purpose of the balloon bombs were kept secret from the American public for security reasons, until a tragic accident forced a change in policy. The balloon bombs caused the only fatalities on the U.S. mainland due to enemy action during World War II. HISTORY DETECTIVES host Tukufu Zuberi travels to Austin, Texas and to the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC, to learn whether this souvenir is a missing piece of a secret weapon.

Society Circus Program - In her school's drama closet, a young girl from Oregon finds a curious, yellowed circus program that reads "Official Program of Cobina Wright's Society Circus for the benefit of the Boy Scout Foundation, Hon. Franklin D. Roosevelt, President, Season 1933." Who was Cobina Wright and what do the Boy Scouts, FDR and Cobina's Circus - with its lengthy "who's-who" celebrity list - have in common? HISTORY DETECTIVES host Gwen Wright explores New York City's 1930s high society and illuminates a connection between FDR and the Boy Scouts that inspired one of the most popular and effective pieces of the president's New Deal program.

Camp David Letter - Maryland's Camp David has served as a presidential retreat for more than 60 years and is possibly best known for the Camp David Accords, the famous Egyptian-Israeli peace agreements signed there in 1978. A self-styled dumpster diver in San Francisco has recovered a windfall of memorabilia that reveals a story of Camp David's beginnings. The salvaged items appear to have once belonged to a three-generation Navy family headed by John H. Kevers. Among photos, dog tags and epaulets, one letter in particular caught the contributor's attention: It's from Ronald Reagan to Kevers' widow, stating "...Captain John H. Kevers gave many years of service to Presidents, starting with Franklin D. Roosevelt... Because of Captain Kevers, we have the enjoyable facility of Camp David..? In Los Angeles and San Francisco, HISTORY DETECTIVES host Wes Cowan searches presidential archives and Navy history to pinpoint Kevers' connection to the secret mountaintop hideaway that was FDR's "Shangri-La."

July 21 - China Marine Jacket - A man in Santa Monica, California, received an embroidered jacket as a gift from his son. The contributor, a former Marine, is intrigued by the jacket's stitched inscriptions, which read: "4th Marines," "Shanghai," "China," "1937-1939" and "MWD." He knows the 4th Marines were transferred from Shanghai to the Philippines in November 1941 amidst growing tensions with the Japanese. The unit was attacked by the Japanese on the same day as the Pearl Harbor bombings. Some of the men who fought in the Philippines never returned, having suffered Japanese imprisonment and the Bataan Death March. But to whom did this particular jacket belong, and what was his legacy as a Marine? HISTORY DETECTIVES host Gwen Wright travels to Washington, DC, and Los Angeles to investigate the story of the "China Marines," a regiment that worked under extreme circumstances to keep the peace and protect American interests during the perilous ramp up to World War II.

Airstream Caravan - A couple in Southern California owns a classic Airstream trailer that may lay claim to an illustrious past. The trailer's fading numbers and logo indicate that it is an early member of the elite Wally Byam Caravan Club International. In the mid-20th century, members of this adventure club followed legendary leader and Airstream founder Wally Byam all over the world: Central America, Europe, Africa and the Yucatan Peninsula. Did this particular Airstream make the journey on the historic "Cape Town to Cairo Caravan" of 1959? HISTORY DETECTIVES host Tukufu Zuberi heads to Denver and Southern California to explore one man's wanderlust at the birth of American leisure travel and, ultimately, to a spectacular 221-day, 14,307-mile trek from the tip of Southern Africa to the pyramids of Ancient Egypt.

Lincoln Forgery - A woman in Portland, Oregon, owns a bound volume of 19th-century sheet music. The book contains several "Abraham Lincoln" signatures on random pages. At the end of one of the compositions, a handwritten notarized inscription claims the music is a gift from President Lincoln's widow, Mary Todd Lincoln, to Lincoln's former coachman, William P. Brown, in 1866. Could the sheet music really be from Lincoln's personal library? HISTORY DETECTIVES host Wes Cowan travels to Chicago and Springfield, Illinois, to explore the years after Lincoln's death and to illuminate the origins of these curious documents.

July 28 - Hindenburg Artifact - A Hoboken, New Jersey, man has a palm-sized, army-green metal box that looks like an instrument panel. Beneath a shattered plastic covering is a sliding, numbered scale; knobs on each end move a lever across the scale. German writing indicates the country of origin. Might this instrument have been recovered from the crash site of the Hindenburg in Lakehurst, New Jersey? Family lore says that a distant relative was among the many bystanders plucking souvenirs from the wreckage of the terrifying disaster. Chemicals from the fire or balloon envelope gas would have evaporated 10 minutes after the explosion, but the broken plastic can be tested for age and heat distress with forensic analysis of the instrument. HISTORY DETECTIVES host Elyse Luray travels to Atlanta and the New Jersey landing site of the ill-fated zeppelin to determine if the instrument panel is in fact from the horrifying crash.

Bonus Army Stamp - A collector in Hawaii has a postage-sized stamp with an illustration of a World War I "doughboy" solider and the words "PAY THE BONUS." The contributor, whose grandfather was a World War I soldier, thinks the stamp is linked to the "Bonus Army" veterans. A bill was passed in 1924 promising WWI veterans a payment 21 years later - dubbed a "bonus" - in 1945. When the Great Depression hit, veterans organized to demand early payment of the bonus. They organized a protest march on Washington in 1932, demanding pay for their combat, and approximately 20,000 veterans camped out near the Capitol following the march. Weeks went by until Herbert Hoover ordered General Douglas McArthur to force the vets out. Two veterans were shot and killed; thousands were tear-gassed. What role did this political stamp play in the veterans' movement? HISTORY DETECTIVES host Wes Cowan heads to Hyde Park, New York, and Washington, DC, to reveal the stamp's connection to the veterans' struggle.

Dempsey Fight Bell - July 4, 1919, marks the day America found its true calling in a national obsession. Icon Jack Dempsey became the world's first boxing superstar, and he did it with the clang of a bell. Now, a contributor in Reno, Nevada, wants to know: Is the bell he's toasted many a night on the wall of his favorite bar the one that was ringside at Dempsey's legendary world heavyweight championship match? The question goes beyond a single fight. Dempsey's bout ushered in the Roaring 20s, America's fascination with celebrity and the golden age of championship sports. Tukufu Zuberi leads the HISTORY DETECTIVES to weigh in on the case in Reno, Nevada, and New York City, sorting truth from myth to determine which clues ring true.

THE WAR OF THE WORLD

Mondays, June 30-July 14, 10pm

World War II, we've been told all our lives, was our greatest triumph, the moment when the forces of light - the Western democracies - prevailed over the forces of darkness - the Nazis and the other Axis powers. It was a conflict that began in Europe in September 1939, but became global only with the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. It ended with the dropping of the atomic bomb on Japan in August 1945.

Or did it?

In this series, Harvard historian Niall Ferguson challenges nearly all our enduring assumptions about what was, without question, the most destructive conflict the planet has ever seen. THE WAR OF THE WORLD will transform the way we think about World War II.

July 7 - "A Tainted Victory"

Niall Ferguson examines the horrors of the Second World War and shows how, in order to win, the allies had to act with the same savagery as their enemies. It was, in his words, "a tainted victory" - and the true, ultimate winners were not those who were victorious in 1945.

July 14 - "The Icebox"

In the final episode, Ferguson shows how the Cold War was not a time of peace but a continuation of the war of the world; millions died in proxy wars. And the end of the Cold War did not bring about the end of history: It led to great new dangers and challenges, and presaged the rise of the East.

CLICK & CLACK'S AS THE WRENCH TURNS

Wednesdays, July 9-August 13, 8pm and 8:30pm

This animated sitcom takes off from the hit NPR show "Car Talk" and follows the on- and off-air escapades of Click and Clack, the Tappet brothers (alter-egos of "Car Talk's" Tom and Ray Magliozzi), as they try to fix cars, fend off disgruntled customers and seek out increasingly creative ways to goof off. The episodes take place primarily at Car Talk Plaza, a fictional building that houses their radio studio and their famed garage in Harvard Square in the fair city of Cambridge, Massachusetts.

July 9 - "Campaign" - Realizing that their lackluster fundraising efforts may bankrupt their radio network, Click and Clack use ex-Harvard professor Crusty's connections to save the day. The solution? Run for president! A visit from a local politician illuminates a loophole in campaign fundraising law that allows all excess monies raised, even in an unsuccessful campaign, to be legally kept. Soon, Click and Clack, with Beth and Crusty's assistance, engage the help of a well-heeled political campaign manager, declaring themselves United States presidential candidates. It looks hopeless until the night of the final debate, when Click and Clack display their mettle in the face of hypocrisy. But will they save the network?

"Outsourcing" - Taking note of the growing trend of outsourced American labor, and bored with doing their radio show themselves, Click and Clack decide to outsource themselves. A subsequent trip to India brings them in contact with a world that actually allows them to do what they've long dreamed of - absolutely nothing. But trouble ensues when their on-air Indian counterparts, Rajiv and Sanjiv, the Gupta Brothers, display such accurate automotive problem-solving genius that their radio show becomes more popular than ever. As a result, new business in their shop is more than they can handle, and their industrious producer Beth feels personally pre-empted by the flawlessly running outsourced radio show. To restore sanity and preserve their idle pursuits, Click and Clack realize they must somehow sabotage their outsourced operation. While the fictional Click and Clack seek out increasingly creative ways to goof off during the animated programs, interstitials airing between the two episodes feature the real-life Tom and Ray Magliozzi, focusing on their concerns about distracted driving habits. In HD where available.

July 16 - "Boston Blackout" - Things begin to look promising for Click and Clack when their most resourceful mechanic, Stash, comes up with the Wallet Vac - a robotic car-repair device intended to ease the staggering garage workload. However, in order to keep running, the Wallet Vac needs an excessive amount of electricity. After commandeering all the power that the garage and the neighboring Antique Roadkill Show's junction boxes have to offer, Wallet Vac's thirst for juice triggers a massive power outage across the northeastern United States. To save the day, the guys come up with an unorthodox solution to jump-start the power grid. The main component in this plan is their unsuspecting producer, Beth Totenbag. Can high-energy Beth handle this much voltage?

"Pasta War" - Click and Clack devise an alternative fuel-burning vehicle: the Fusilli 500, the first pasta-powered car on earth. The positive press propels the car into an immediate automotive sensation, as sales roll in at chart-topping proportions. The guys begin to bask in global praise until the Fusilli's unending demand for more pasta, combined with its sticky roadside macaroni emissions, results in potential geo-political conflict with Italy. Forced to make amends, the Tappet brothers reverse trend after trend until they wind up in a spot they know all too well: square one. While the fictional Click and Clack seek out increasingly creative ways to goof off during the animated programs, interstitials airing between the two episodes feature the real-life Tom and Ray Magliozzi, focusing on their concerns about distracted driving habits. In HD where available.

July 23 - "Gigantic Motors" - When Click and Clack unwittingly lose their main sponsor, they are forced to knuckle under and sign with Gigantic Motors, the only moneyed underwriter willing to take them on. Bowing to pressure to keep their crew employed, the guys find themselves saying good things about their new benefactor's line of gas-guzzling products until they find themselves seduced by the most fuel-inefficient SUV of them all, the Compensator - a gift from Gigantic Motors. As a result, the brainwashing the brothers receive is so thorough, it takes an intervention by Beth, Crusty, Fidel and Stash to bring Click and Clack back to their senses. But the question remains - did they have any sense in the first place?

"Zuzu Vs. Fidel" - A local tabloid news personality stirs things up when she showcases garage dog Zuzu's amazing ability to diagnose car problems with her sense of smell. Because diagnosing car problems by smell is Fidel's talent as well, he feels slighted and quits the garage after being insulted on live television. Now it's up to Click and Clack to somehow get Fidel to return to work and expose the mysterious "Dog Tickler" impostor, the translator of Zuzu's thoughts, as the source of the real trouble. Can Fidel's car clairvoyance help unmask this pooch's perspicacious provider? While the fictional Click and Clack seek out increasingly creative ways to goof off during the animated programs, interstitials airing between the two episodes feature the real-life Tom and Ray Magliozzi, focusing on their concerns about distracted driving habits. In HD where available.

July 30 - "Abercrombie & Wrench/Campaign"

"Abercrombie & Wrench" - Click and Clack's business takes a hit when a high-tech repair shop featuring hunky mechanics and an upscale cappuccino bar opens down the block. With help from Fidel, their style-conscious mechanic, Fidel, Click and Clack combat the situation by fighting fire with flab - offering something not even their high-end competition ever thought of. Sooner or later, substance always wins over style. In HD where available.

"Campaign" - Realizing that their lackluster fundraising efforts may bankrupt their radio network, Click and Clack use ex-Harvard professor Crusty's connections to save the day. The solution? Run for president! A visit from a local politician illuminates a loophole in campaign fundraising law that allows all excess monies raised, even in an unsuccessful campaign, to be legally kept. Soon, Click and Clack, with Beth and Crusty's assistance, engage the help of a well-heeled political campaign manager, declaring themselves United States presidential candidates. It looks hopeless until the night of the final debate, when Click and Clack display their mettle in the face of hypocrisy. But will they save the network?

AIR GROUP 16: WE CAME TO REMEMBER

Sunday, July 13, 2008, 10:30-11:00 p.m. ET

AIR GROUP 16: WE CAME TO REMEMBER tells the story of the last reunion of Air Group 16 - the pilots, radiomen and gunners who served on the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Lexington in the Pacific in World War II. The film follows the veterans and their families as they make the journey by train, plane and car to Washington, DC, for their final reunion at the dedication of the National World War II Memorial in May 2004. Through stunning archival footage, period music and dramatic first-person accounts, the film follows Air Group 16 as they tell their stories, remember their fallen comrades and accept official honors from the country they served.

CROWN OF THE CONTINENT - ALASKA'S WRANGELL-ST. ELIAS

Sunday, July 20, 10:30pm

This is one man's journey back to Alaska's Wrangell-St. Elias - a remote alpine landscape of tremendous peaks and glaciers - which his family visited when he was a child. Enamored by the writings of Jack London and the expeditions of Israel Russell, the filmmaker's father took his family to discover Alaska. The father's dream soon became his son's. The filmmaker's beautiful images bring to light the transcendent power of nature, revealing both the interconnection between the environment and nature and the relationship between father and son. In HD where available.

CHASING CHURCHILL: IN SEARCH OF MY GRANDFATHER

Mondays, July 21-August 4, 10pm

Winston Churchill's quest for his inner self took two forms: a constant thirst for exotic travel and a passion for the exuberance of painting and the beauty of words. His granddaughter Celia Sandys traveled extensively with Churchill towards the end of his life. Now, in this intimate portrait, she follows in her grandfather's footsteps. By examining his art and literature, viewers will understand his dreams and anxieties and share his innermost thoughts. Sandys travels to France, Cuba, South Africa, the United States, Egypt and Morocco.

July 21--Celia Sandys begins her pursuit of the enigmatic private life of Winston Churchill at July Sandhurst Military Academy, which he left in 1894 and began a journey in search of adventure and danger to gain the adulation he craved. After a brief visit to New York, Sandys visits the battlefields of the Cuban uprising of 1895, where Churchill nearly died, and South Africa, where, after an amazing tale of capture and escape, he finally found the fame that brought him public acclaim.

July 28--Churchill fell in love with the United States of America, the land of his mother's birth, during his first visit there in 1894. It was an unlikely match, but it endured, culminating in the special relationship between him and President Roosevelt, which was the bedrock of Allied victory during the Second World War.

During this middle period of his life, Sandys focuses on Churchill's growing gift with words and his deepening passion for painting, both of which help illustrate the inner man. Sandys travels extensively throughout the United States and to Egypt, which seemed to lure Churchill to the banks of the Nile at crucial moments in his life.

REMEMBERED EARTH: NEW MEXICO'S HIGH DESERT

Sunday, July 27, 10:30pm

New Mexico's high desert is a captivating land of hallowed mountains, red rock canyons and vast, sere plateaus. In REMEMBERED EARTH, filmmaker John Grabowska and Indian author N. Scott Momaday present a vision of hope for humankind's relationship to the natural world by interpreting the myth, beauty and power of a scarred but sacred landscape of the American West. Can we come to see land itself as a community to which we belong? In HD where available.