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The Nature of Things

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Not to be confused with On the Nature of Things.

The Nature of Things
GenreDocumentary
Narrated byDavid Suzuki
Country of originCanada
Original languageEnglish
No. of series56
No. of episodes(list of episodes)
Production
Running time30 minutes and 1 hour
Original release
NetworkCBC Television
Release6 November 1960

The Nature of Things (also, The Nature of Things with David Suzuki) is a Canadian television series of documentary programs. It debuted on CBC Television on 6 November 1960. Many of the programs document nature and the effect that humans have on it, although the program's overall scope includes documentaries on any aspect of science. The program "was one of the first mainstream programs to present scientific evidence on a number of environmental issues, including nuclear power and genetic engineering".[attribution needed][1] The series is named after an epic poem by Roman philosopher Lucretius: "De rerum natura"—On the Nature of Things.

History

The first host was Donald Ivey, with Patterson Hume co-hosting many episodes.[2] Following Ivey's departure, the second season continued with several guest hosts, including Lister Sinclair, Donald Crowdis, and John Livingston.[3] Since 1979, it has been hosted by David Suzuki.[3] The series has won many awards and Suzuki has won three Gemini Awards and one ACTRA Award as best host. Documentarian William Whitehead has also been a frequent writer for the series.

When Suzuki took over as the host of the show in 1979 he reluctantly left the radio show called Quirks and Quarks. He enjoyed radio as a medium because it was less restricted when compared to television, but saw benefits in switching to television. He stated that television had a greater impact as it reached more people, and this was important because he wanted to make science accessible to the general public. The goal of The Nature of Things with David Suzuki was to translate the confusing and complex scientific language into concepts that the general public could understand. This would give people the information that they need in order to make informed decisions about how science and technology should be managed.[4] There is one new episode every week which all contributes to a scientific understanding of how the world works. They are created not only for entertainment, but also to encourage and popularize education.[5]

Notable episodes

Episodes

Main article: List of The Nature of Things episodes

References

  1. ^ MacDowell, Laurel Sefton. 2012. An environmental history of Canada. Vancouver: UBC Press. Page 248
  2. ^ "50 Years of the Nature of Things". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 5 January 2012. Retrieved 6 February 2010.
  3. ^ a b "CBC-TV: The Nature of Things with David Suzuki: History". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 6 August 2010. Retrieved 6 February 2010. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ Suzuki, David T. 2006. David Suzuki the autobiography. Vancouver: Greystone Books
  5. ^ "About the Show". The Nature of Things.
  6. ^ "Reefer Madness 2". The Nature of Things with David Suzuki. CBC-TV. Archived from the original on 13 January 2008. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ Maze, Talia (1 June 2005). "Three for the Price of One". Ryerson Review of Journalism. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  8. ^ "The Downside of High". The Nature of Things with David Suzuki. CBC-TV. Archived from the original on 6 February 2013. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ "Untangling Alzheimer's". CBC News. 17 July 2014. Retrieved 23 October 2014.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Nature_of_Things&oldid=839933163"