The Nature of Things

Season 17

1976 · 8 episodes

Episodes

1. 1

   1. Noah's Park

   22 Dec 1976

   The work of a group of naturalists who are attempting to create a refuge for biblical animals by restocking a park with species inhabited land in Bible times.

2. 2

   2. The Invisible Reef

   29 Dec 1976

   Through the use of micro-photography, viewers are afforded a look at the unique way in which a reef is formed through a complex system of natural recycling.

3. 3

   3. Newborn

   5 Jan 1977

   A study of the capabilities that are innate to a newborn baby in the first week after birth.

4. 4

   4. The Mind's Eye

   12 Jan 1977

   A look at the work of scientists who are exploring regions of the brain by examining its relationship to the visual system.

5. 5

   5. Children of the Buffalo

   19 Jan 1977

   A study of the Todos tribe of India, their polyandrous marriage rituals and their unusual funeral rites. The Todos spend their lives tending the buffalo and everything they do revolves around this animal.

6. 6

   6. The Gabra

   26 Jan 1977

   The Gabra is a tribe of 24,000 people who live in the harsh terrain on both sides of the Kenya-Ethiopia border. They may be the only non-Muslim, camel raising society left in the world. Their lifestyle is cruel, filled with age-old rituals and beliefs.

7. 7

   7. When The Wind Blows

   9 Feb 1977

   A look at the uses man has made of the wind, from sailboats to windmills to modern turbines for generating electricity.

8. 8

   8. Funk Island

   16 Feb 1977

   Shows some of the species of seabirds to be found on Funk Island, situated 40 miles east of Newfoundland, which is a breeding ground of more than one million seabirds, and stresses the need for their protection against man.