Spaces
Spaces
WETA "SPACES" 11/10/1982 IN 01.03.35-WETA credit/U.S. Department of Education Credit 01.03.48-Exterior window of "Eddie's Pizzeria", interior four junior high kids sitting in booth. Shot of two kids playing MS. PAC-MAN. C/S two hosts "Eric" and "Debbie" introduce show about science, technology, and kids' "futures". Much joking around about the role of science all around us [I detect a note of the coercive-yet-utopian technopolis idea]-ahah! Hosts tell us there will be info on "careers" in the sciences, through stories on a Desert ecology, a unique residential science education program, and TERMITES. 01.05.28-title sequence of program showing kids of all ethnicities being fascinated by scientific discovery. 01.06.15-Start of "ECOLOGY: The Earth Around You". Hosts and a young girl sit under tree in a park, talk about ECOSYSTEMS. At a couple of moments, the earnestness of our hosts is defeated by the presence of freeway traffic in the back of the shots. 01.07.21-Segment on Desert Ecologists, shots of one Ecologist working in a greenhouse, brushing leaves with a solution from a big beaker. Talks about learning to study the "natural pesticides" produced by some plants. Shots of CACTI and other DESERT plants. DESERT LANDSCAPES and large CACTUS. Good C/U of HONEYBEE feeding on a desert flower. V.o.-the scientist talks about how fragile the Desert ecosystem is, he thinks its important for him to get minority students interested in sciences. Shots of the Ecologist [Latino man] with black and Latino high school students in a classroom/lab. In another classroom, the Ecologist gives students a motivational slide show, shots of LABORATORY WORK and students. 01.11.38-Shot of the ecologist taking sample from skin of a cactus, v.o.-the development of GENETIC ENGINEERING will be a big breakthrough with "great benefits for mankind. 01.12.14-GOOFY intermission piece. A cartoon about CLONING identical trees to make "Supertrees" [hmmm. I guess no one thinks homogenizing the gene pool is a bad idea?]. No, apparently the forests of genetically engineered "Supertrees" will be better than ordinary forests developed through millions of years of evolution. 01.13.15-Hosts remind all you kids that you have to work and study hard in school and take all the math and science courses possible [Thanks, Department of Education!].