• Air date: 17 Jan '84 20 episodes
      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.
  • List of Episodes (20)
    • 1. The Case of ESP

      17 Jan '84
      NOVA looks at the "blue revolution"—modern advances in the ancient art of raising aquatic animals and plants—in the United States, Japan, Scotland and other countries.
    • 2. Antarctica: Earth's Last Frontier

      31 Jan '84
      NOVA's sequel to "A Normal Face" examines the merging of technology and art in modern reconstruction and cosmetic surgical techniques.
    • 3. China's Only Child

      14 Feb '84
      They have been part of the United States' space program for more than 20 years. Who are these talented, courageous women? NOVA looks at astronaut Sally Ride and her colleagues, how they are trained and their role in NASA's future.
    • 4. Will I Walk Again?

      28 Feb '84
      Acclaimed underwater cameraman Al Giddings takes NOVA viewers beneath the waves to explore the fact and fiction surrounding the Great White Shark.
    • 5. Visions of the Deep: The Underwater World of Al Giddings

      06 Mar '84
      The debate over acid rain continues to grow. NOVA travels to West Germany, the mid-Atlantic states and New England to examine the controversy surrounding this phenomenon.
    • 6. Down on the Farm

      20 Mar '84
      What do dinosaurs, a panda's thumb and a peacock's tail have in common? Dr. Stephen Jay Gould, the internationally renowned palentologist and evolutionary theorist, provides some surprising answers in this NOVA profile.
    • 7. Make My People Live: The Crisis in Indian Health Care

      27 Mar '84
      In this docudrama presentation, NOVA looks at the life, times and work of Gregor Mendel, the 19th cenutry Augustinian friar whose revolutionary scientific experiments in selective breeding have made him the "Father of Genetics."
    • 8. The World According to Weisskopf

      03 Apr '84
      Victor Weisskoff: physicist, lover of music and citizen of the world. NOVA profiles the international statesman of science and learns that one of the giants of 20th century physics is also one of the country's greatest humanists.
    • 9. Space Bridge to Moscow

      02 Oct '84
      NOVA explores the fascinating world of Dr. Harold Edgerton, electronics wizard and inventor extraordinaire, whose invention of the electronic strobe, a "magic lamp," has enabled the human eye to see the unseen.
    • 10. The National Science Test I

      16 Oct '84
      NOVA presents an in-depth look at India's attempt to use satellite technology to leapfrog into the era of space-age communication and whether it brings benefit or blight to India's villages and rural areas.
    • 11. Fountains of Paradise

      23 Oct '84
      NOVA examines the complex world of parasites, parasitic diseases and the exciting work currently being done by a new breed of medical researchers as they meet the challenge of conquering the world's number one medical problem.
    • 12. The Mystery of Yellow Rain

      30 Oct '84
      A rare look at the beautiful and desolate Wrangel Island-a Soviet possession 300 miles off the coast of Alaska-as seen through the eyes of Soviet Filmmaker and naturalist Yuri Ledin. Wrangel Island is not only the home to Siberian snow geese, polar foxes and walruses, but serves as the world's largest denning area for polar bears.
    • 13. The Nomads of the Rain Forest

      06 Nov '84
      Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, or AIDS, is a deadly disease that has struck down some 2,000 people in the four years since its discovery. NOVA examines how modern science has been unraveling the mystery of this baffling ailment.
    • 14. Farmers of the Sea

      13 Nov '84
      Sea shells, crystals, honeycombs, eggs and seeds: They are shaped the way they are for a reason. NOVA takes viewers on a unique journey of discovery to find out why things are shaped the way they are and why they work so well.
    • 15. Frontiers of Plastic Surgery

      20 Nov '84
      It's a mystery just how children acquire language. Does the process begin in the womb? And which comes first, language or thought? NOVA explores the fascinating world of baby talk and reveals the latest theories on this remarkable achievement.
    • 16. Space Women

      27 Nov '84
      Imagine a bottle with no inside or a number bigger than infinity or parallel lines that meet. Welcome to the world of pure mathematics. NOVA offers a look into a wholly abstract, quirky world of mathematics.
    • 17. Jaws: The True Story

      04 Dec '84
      What do Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the painter Raphael and chess champion Bobby Fischer have in common? They were all child prodigies. NOVA explores the current efforts to learn more about the nature of giftedness.
    • 18. Acid Rain: New Bad News

      11 Dec '84
      NOVA explores the breeding, migration and survival patterns of the Rocky Mountain elk in a unique film, made totally under natural conditions. Telephoto lenses were used so as not to disturb the animals; filmmakers spent 18 months tracking the elk through the breathtaking Wyoming Rockies.
    • 19. Stephen Jay Gould: This View of Life

      18 Dec '84
      In NOVA's special sequel to1984's National Science Test, viewers can match wits with celebrity panelists David Attenborough, Michelle Johnson, Edwin Newman and Alvin Poussaint and a live studio audience. Art Fleming hosts.
    • 20. The Garden of Inheritance

      08 Jan '85
      NOVA examines worldwide efforts of scientists who employ aggressive agricultual technologies to ensure food for the future.