NOTE: We are listing both EST/Pacific Time and individual television ratings. All rated [G] or [PG] unless noted. [NR] = Not Rated, news-related program.Wednesday, March 1, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - FBI's Crime Lab. To spearhead its fight against crime and terrorism in the 21st century, the FBI is relying on its $150 million-plus building, the new Crime Lab at Quantico. Here, nearly 700 highly trained scientists and technicians utilize cutting-edge forensic technology to unearth identities of perpetrators. We review the lab's history, from humble start in a lounge in 1932 to today's state-of-the-art complex, and see how 9/11 and the FBI's new mandate to fight international terrorism changed the lab forever. 8-9pm -- Modern Marvels - Glue. It's Super! It's Krazy! And it can be found in everything from carpet to computers, books to boats, shoes to the Space Shuttle. It's even used in surgery! Without it, our material world would simply fall apart. In this episode, we'll visit the stuck-up, tacky world of glue. Glue's sticky trajectory spans human history and we'll cover it all--from Neolithic cave dwellers who used animal glue to decorate ceremonial skulls to modern everyday glues and their uses, including Elmer's glue, 3M's masking and Scotch tape, and the super glues. Remember the Krazy Glue commercial in which a man held himself suspended from a hard hat that had just been glued to a beam? Well, that 1970s vintage ad understates the power of glue. With the help of a crane, we're going to hoist a 6,000-pound pickup truck off the ground by a steel joint that's been bonded with glue! 9-10pm -- Modern Marvels - Sewers. A simple flush and it's forgotten. But haven't you secretly wondered where it all goes when we go? Join us as we explore this less-than-polite topic, and examine the network of underground pipes and tunnels that carries human waste and excess storm water away. From ancient Rome's pristine sewage-conveying systems, through the disease-spreading, out-the-window system of Europe in the Middle Ages, and into the progressive sanitation engineering of the 19th and 20th centuries, we go with the flow of sewage history. And we sift through the flotsam and jetsam of our cities' sewer systems and delve into the sewers of Paris, Boston, and Los Angeles to study waste management's evolution. We meet a sewer diver (and his robotic counterpart) who inspects and ensures the efficient operation of the conduits; decipher the myths about "treasures" and creatures found in the murky depths; and find out exactly where it goes, how it gets there, and how we've learned to use it to our benefit. 10-11pm -- Modern Marvels - Bathroom Tech. From tub to toilet to toothpaste, here's everything you ever wanted to know about the most used and least discussed room in the house. From the first home bathrooms in ancient India, Roman latrines, and bizarre Victorian-era bath contraptions, to modern luxurious master bathroom suites, we trace the history of bathing, showering, and oral hygiene. And we reveal the messy truth about what was used before toilet paper--brainchild of the Scott Brothers of Philadelphia--and why astronauts wear diapers. ____________________________________________________ Thursday, March 2, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Forensic Science: The Crime Fighter's Weapon. From Sherlock Holmes' examination of the physical evidence at a crime scene to today's DNA technology, we review the history of crime detection through the use of forensic science. 8-9pm -- Ancient Marvels - Cities of the Underworld, see Sunday 3-5-06 below, for description 9-10pm -- Decoding The Past - Secrets of the Koran, Part 1. The Koran--one of the most influential religious books of all time. Muslims worldwide believe the Koran is God's guidance, a sourcebook to help believers follow the right path. But much of the non-Muslim world sees the Koran as a text shrouded in mystery...and controversy. We'll attempt to demystify and explain the text: where it came from, what it says, and what it means. Like any holy scripture, the Koran can't be separated from its historical context. We'll examine the history of the verses and also their implications for modern times, as well as the striking similarities and differences between the Koran and the Bible--and the ways in which Muslims believe the Koran corrects some of the Jewish and Christian scriptures. The program will get at the heart of one of the world's holiest books, capturing its majesty and mystery and illuminating for the audience the very foundation of Islam. Major Religions 10-11pm -- Declassified - Ayatollah Khomeini. Before the world heard of Osama bin Laden, there was Ayatollah Khomeini--at the time, the most radical Muslim leader of the 20th century, who challenged the world's "infidels" in the name of Allah. With the takeover of the US Embassy in Tehran, Iran and the capture of 52 hostages, Khomeini and his followers launched a murderous Islamic revolution. In time, his inspiration would lead to coups, terrorist bombings, hijackings, and assaults against a demonized West. For some faithful Muslims, his rise became the inspiration for political rebirth. ____________________________________________________ Friday, March 3, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Gangster Guns. During the 1920s and '30s in big cities and small towns alike, they earned a fierce reputation in a blaze of bullets. They were the best friends of criminals such as John Dillinger, Pretty Boy Floyd, Baby Face Nelson, Al Capone, and Bonnie and Clyde. Handle their Colt 45s and 38s, Tommy guns, Whippets, and Browning automatic rifles as we uncover the stories of gangster guns. 8-10pm -- Rome: Engineering an Empire - For more than 500 years, Rome was the most powerful and advanced civilization the world had ever known, ruled by visionaries and tyrants whose accomplishments ranged from awe-inspiring to deplorable. One characteristic linked them all--ambition--and the thirst for power that all Roman emperors shared fueled an unprecedented mastery of engineering and labor. This documentary special chronicles the spectacular and sordid history of the Roman Empire from the rise of Julius Caesar in 55 BC to its eventual fall around 537 AD, detailing the remarkable engineering feats that set Rome apart from the rest of the ancient world. Featuring extensive state-of-the-art CGI animation, and exclusive never-before-seen footage shot on a diving expedition in the water channels underneath the Colosseum. 10-12am -- Roman Vice - The flowering of the Roman Empire saw incomparable power and civilization - and at the same time corruption, cruelty and depravity on an unparalleled scale. Emperors from Augustus to Tiberius and Nero built the biggest empire the world had ever seen, while presiding over a way of life riddled with violence, deviancy and excess. This special visits the archaeological sites of ancient Rome, talks to leading historians world-wide and uses stylish reconstructions to describe and explain how good and evil went side by side. ____________________________________________________ Saturday, March 4, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Engineering Disasters: New Orleans. One of the deadliest natural disasters experienced by US, Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans--submerging it under a torrent of floodwater. We investigate why the levees and water-pumping system failed and join "Geological Detectives" as they sift through the rubble to uncover how 80% of the city was left underwater; expose how the levee system was a disaster in the making; and delve deep into the 100-year-old pump system to unearth why it failed and took weeks to drain the city. We learn the engineering cause behind the nightmare suffered by victims seeking shelter in the Superdome. And our investigators discover the design flaws on one of the major escape routes of the city. How can New Orleans stop this from ever happening again and should it be rebuilt at all? Using satellite global positioning, we determine New Orleans and the entire Louisiana wetland coastline is actually sinking and may become a modern-day "Atlantis" in less then a century. 8-10pm -- Time Machine - In a 2-hour special, we scrutinize ancient writings that didn't "make the cut" in the battle to create a Christian Bible in the new religion's first few centuries. Biblical archaeologists and scholars examine why they were left out and if others might yet be found. Beginning with the little-known Life of Adam and Eve, we also peruse the Book of Jubilees, the Book of Enoch, the Gospel of Thomas, the Protevangelium of James, the Gospel of Mary, the Gospel of Nicodemus, and the Apocalypse of Peter. 10-11pm -- Sodom & Gomorrah - Did the sinful biblical cities Sodom and Gomorrah exist or was the story of their destruction crafted for other purposes? Near the Dead Sea, archaeologists uncovered the ruins of two ancient cities, Bab-edh-dhra and Numeira, that show evidence of fire and collapse and an inscription on a sanctuary near a cave calling it a shrine to Lot. Is this the cave where Lot and his daughters sought refuge after the demise of the evil cities? We examine the many theories. ____________________________________________________ Sunday, March 5, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Cities of the Underworld - Istanbul is undoubtedly one of the most dynamic and exotic cities in the world. Once the capital city of three of the world's most powerful empires--The Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman--its strategic location made it the perfect spot for empires to rise, fall...and rise again. Today Istanbul's residents are walking on top of remnants of these fallen civilizations...literally. Taxis drive over parts of Constantine's Lost Great Palace; children play on cobblestone streets concealing a massive Byzantine dungeon; a high school sits on a 3rd century wall leading to the bowels of a 100,000 seat ancient Roman Hippodrome; and basement's of old Ottoman homes lead to subterranean tunnels and secret cisterns. Join host Eric Geller as he leaves the buzz of the city streets behind and follows the pull of the past. Teamed with leading archeologists and experts, Eric peels back the layers of the past--to reveal a hidden history that hasn't seen the light of day for ages. 8-10pm -- Hell: The Devil's Domain - Our in-depth history of Hades begins with the story of a negative near-death experience, in which a man thinks he went to Hell after being declared clinically dead and before resuscitation. Following Lucifer's trail from cave paintings in France circa 6,000 BC to current portrayals in popular culture, our 2-hour exploration shows how Hell and the Devil remain powerful forces--at a church in Texas, where souls are delivered from Satan's grip; in talks with a survivor of the 1980s recovered memory craze, who "recalled" attending Witches' Sabbaths that practiced cannibalism; and at the modern Church of Satan. We review literary landmarks that expanded our ideas of the Underworld, from Dante's Inferno and Milton's Paradise Lost to Mark Twain's anti-hero, and trace development of Christian, Moslem, Jewish, and Buddhist conceptions of the afterlife. Major Religions 10-11pm -- The Antichrist - Part 1. How would you recognize the most evil person on Earth? According to many historical texts, you should look for a brilliant, enigmatic public figure who transforms the world for good--for a while. Basically, the last person you'd tap as Satan's human emissary. While many believe the Antichrist has come and gone, just as many believe he will soon arrive, if he's not already in our midst. Join us for harrowing look at an evil so obscure that he answers only to Satan. Real? Our group of prophecy believers and historical experts help sort it out. We follow the emergence of the Antichrist from pre-Judaic texts, through the Book of Daniel and Revelation, into Christian writings of the Middle Ages, and other religious traditions as well. Aided by interviewees both religious and secular, comprised of eminent clergy, scholars, historians, psychologists, and culture makers, we'll examine the evil enigma from every conceivable angle. The Omen ____________________________________________________ Monday, March 6, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Overseas Highway. A spectacular roadway nearly 120 miles long, the Overseas Highway links mainland Florida with the Florida Keys, and contains 51 bridges, including the Seven-Mile Bridge. A boat was the only mode of travel from Miami to Key West until oil tycoon Henry Flagler completed his railroad line in 1912. After a 1935 hurricane destroyed 40 miles of track, the scenic highway was built using Flagler's bridges. A $175-million refurbishment that ended in 1982 resulted in today's remarkable Overseas Highway. 8-9pm -- UFO Files - Canada's Roswell. Roswell conjures up the most famous UFO case in US history, luring believers on an unending search for a "smoking gun" locked away in some secret government vault. Could Canada have the real thing--a UFO case with a certifiable paper trail? In Nova Scotia, on the night of October 4, 1967, in the remote town of Shag Harbour, dozens of eyewitnesses--airline pilots, fishermen, teenagers, and police officers--see what appears to be an extraterrestrial craft hovering above the water's surface. Some claim to have seen and heard the UFO plunge into the waters off the shoreline. Canadian authorities dispatched the Navy, Coast Guard, and police, and after a full government inquiry, claimed not a trace of anything suspicious. But does the government know more than it's telling? Lingering questions lead two UFO researchers to launch an investigation--and they uncovered documents that make it clear that the case should never have been closed. 9-10pm -- Digging for the Truth - City of the Gods. There was only one ancient city in the Americas that ever truly rivaled the size, scale, and power of its Old World counterparts--Teotihuacán, the City of the Gods. And today, it's the largest ghost town in the world. Still home to the world's third largest pyramid, this mysterious city was once a metropolis many times larger and more populous than the biggest Mayan and Aztecan cities ever built. Now, Josh Bernstein heads to central Mexico to check it out. He'll soar above the ancient city, explore its obsidian mines, make prehistoric tools, and try to decode its impressive murals in a quest to understand who built the City of the Gods, how it became so powerful, and, most mysterious of all, why it was abandoned. 10-11pm -- Deep Sea Detectives - Train Wreck in Lake Michigan. Railroad car ferries were thought to be some of the safest vessels on the Great Lakes, built to withstand ice and waves year round. But on October 22nd, 1929, the SS Milwaukee sailed into a Force-9 Gale and disappeared. Was it foolishness on the part of the ship's captain, Robert "Heavy Weather" McKay? Or was he ordered to sail by the railroad company? Was there a design flaw with the ship itself? Or was there a conspiracy to cover up unsafe business practices? Our hosts, veteran divers John Chatterton and Richie Kohler, using cutting-edge technology, fascinating underwater footage, and expert interviews, compare the official post-accident investigation with the wreck itself, and possibly rewrite history. ____________________________________________________ Tuesday, March 7, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Paving America. The story of the construction of our grand national highway system, from its beginnings in 1912 (it was conceived by auto and headlight tycoons) to its completion in 1984 (when the last stoplight was removed--and buried). 8-9:30pm -- Mail Call - VJ Special. R. Lee Ermey relives the war that America waged across the Pacific in World War Two, culminating with the Japanese surrender and US celebration of VJ Day on August 14th, 1945. We'll go aboard the USS Missouri, where General Douglas MacArthur accepted the surrender of Japan, and cover all the highlights of America's historic island hopping campaign--from the tragedy of Pearl Harbor to the pivotal battle of Midway and storming of the bloody beaches of Iwo Jima. As the Gunny tours the Missouri, viewers find out about the gear and the guys who made it all happen and how our navy became the most lethal force on the high seas. In this 90-minute special, we celebrate the ingenuity and fighting spirit that defeated the seemingly invincible Japanese Empire and finally brought an end to World War Two. 9:30-10pm -- Modern Marvels - Bullets. From "safe" bullets that stop hijackers but leave aircraft unscathed to bullets that chain-saw through steel and "smart" bullets computer-programmed to hit a target, this explosive hour examines the evolution of bullets from origin in the 1300s--stones and round lead balls shot from iron and bamboo tubes. Lead balls ruled until 1841 when a conical-shaped bullet changed ammo forever. We learn how to construct a modern cartridge, and at pistol and rifle ranges view demonstrations of modern firepower. 10-11pm -- Modern Marvels - Harvesting. Cutting, digging, picking, stripping, shaking, and raking--whatever the crop, there's a custom machine to harvest it. It all began with handpicking and today it's often one man and one machine harvesting hundreds of acres in a single day. The farmer may even get a little help from satellites. Far above the earth, high-resolution photography is giving the grower more opportunities to cut costs and maximize the harvest. From the debut of the sickle in ancient Egypt to McCormick's famous Reaper to the field of ergonomics that assists human harvesters, we'll dig into the past and future of the harvest. ____________________________________________________ Wednesday, March 8, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - George Washington Bridge. When opened on October 25, 1931, the George Washington Bridge was the longest suspension bridge in the world. Today, standing as a main traffic artery between Manhattan and New Jersey, the bridge referred to by locals as the "GW" is the busiest in the world, carrying nearly 320,000 cars each day. We'll examine the construction methods employed that made the bridge an anomaly, coming in both under budget and ahead of schedule, and see why the GW is distinguished in a city of great bridges. 8-9pm -- Modern Marvels - The Butcher. In a carnivorous world, a butcher is a necessary link in the food chain, carving a carcass of unsavory flesh into mouthwatering cuts. We trace the grisly trade's evolution--from yesteryear's butcher-on-every-corner to today's industrial butcher working on a "disassembly" line. We tour the infamous remains of the Chicago Stockyards, where Upton Sinclair, Clarence Birdseye, and refrigeration changed butchering forever; witness high-speed butchering; and travel to a non-stop sausage factory. And if you're still squeamish, a USDA inspector offers the lowdown on HACCP--the country's new system of checks and balances on everything from quality grading to E.coli, Salmonella, and Mad Cow Disease. Finally, we visit the last bastion of old-school butchering--the rural custom butcher, who slaughters, eviscerates, skins, and cuts to his customer's wishes. 9-10pm -- Modern Marvels - Taxidermy. It began as a tool used by prehistoric man to attract animals to the hunt. Over time it became an invaluable study aid for the natural scientist and a popular hobby for hunters and fishermen. Join us for a tantalizing look at the history of taxidermy, the craft of preserving animal skins and using them to recreate a still life of the animal as it appeared in life. We also check out fiberglass reproduction, which is gaining popularity as fish and game regulations become stricter. Finally, we examine human subjects in taxidermy. Using the very latest process of plastination, the once taboo science and art of preserving and displaying human corpses, now draws crowds in Europe, Asia, and the US, proving the age-old practice continues to mesmerize us! 10-11pm -- Modern Marvels - Leather. Sometime at the dawn of civilization, animal hides were rubbed down with animal fat, making them more flexible, durable, and malleable. By the 5th Century BC, this "tanning" process expanded to include vegetable and tree oil washes, creating what's now known as "leather"--one of man's most reliable and versatile products. Without advances in leather shoes, the Romans could never have marched to the Tigris; nor could the Pilgrims have survived winters in Plymouth. Today, leather is a staple of our daily lives. Modern tanners have devised techniques to make leather more versatile, colorful, and luxurious than ever. We visit modern tanneries of conventional cowhide leather, and explore the more exotic leathers made from alligator, snakes, and even sting-ray. And we'll examine the race of modern science to create synthetic leathers that are supposedly more convenient in today's fast-paced life. We'll see how leather binds us to the past in an unparalleled way. ____________________________________________________ Thursday, March 9, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Chesapeake Bay Bridge & Tunnel. Named one of the seven engineering wonders of the modern age, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel connects Virginia proper with its easternmost landmass. Stretching 17 miles across the historic Chesapeake Bay, the structure represents a man-made boundary between the Bay and the Atlantic. The structure includes two 2-lane highways supported mostly by trestles, four man-made and one natural island, two truss bridges, and two revolutionary sunken tube tunnels. 8-9pm -- Ancient Discoveries - Machines II. How did the ancients harness power? Did Archimedes use solar power to defeat the Romans? Was he the first to concentrate the power of the sun? Early historical accounts of the battle of Syracuse in 212 BC claim that Archimedes used polished shields to focus light onto the sails of the invading Roman ships and set them ablaze. We investigate this and other intriguing and incredible objects. An earthenware jar about the size of a man's fist sits in the National Museum of Iraq. Its existence could require history books throughout the world to be rewritten. The jar appears to be an electric battery pre-dating Christ. Did the ancient world master electricity nearly two millennia before the modern world? A recent discovery of a flour mill in Barbegal in southern France contained 16 waterwheels that operated the mill. Is this one of the first examples of Roman industrial-revolution technology--1,800 years before our own? 9-10pm -- Decoding The Past - Secrets of the Koran, Part 2. In this hour, we explore what role the Koran has played throughout Islamic history. From the 500-year Golden Age of Islam, to the legendary clashes of Muslim and Christian forces during the times of the Crusades, we'll identify what influence the Koran had on the individuals living out those momentous events. We also look at the use of the word jihad, its meaning within the Koran, and how the concept has been used by others including modern-day Islamic radicals. The messages in Islam's holy book have been used to launch some of the world's greatest civilizations, and at times its interpretations have been used as justification for acts of violence. We'll attempt to get at the heart of one of the world's holiest books, capturing its majesty and mystery, and illuminating for the audience the very foundation of Islam. 10-11pm -- Declassified - The Tet Offensive. It began with a suicide attack on the US Embassy Compound, and by the time it was over there were 80,000 casualties. The United States had won the battle, an American President had been toppled, and the outcome of the Vietnam War had been decided--in favor of the North Vietnamese. The year is 1968 and this decisive military action came to be known as the Tet Offensive. Newly uncovered materials, including long-ignored CIA warnings of a sneak attack, help to reveal the story of the Vietcong surprise attack that broke the stalemate in Southeast Asia. ____________________________________________________ Friday, March 10, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - The Cape Cod Canal. In a battle against the ferocious Atlantic or safe passage through waters where ships wrecked and lives were lost, it was an engineering feat that many believed impossible. This is the story of the Cape Cod Canal and the men who braved the natural elements and the Great Depression by venturing into new engineering territory. In 1909 excavation began on what would become one of the greatest success stories of our time. The evolution of the Cape Cod Canal into what it is today--a major commerce and recreational route of the Intracoastal Waterway--is a tale of determination, ingenuity, and the American spirit. Through historical photographs and expert interviews, the Canal's story unfolds, and while traveling along on an Army Corps of Engineers Patrol Boat and Coast Guard vessel we see firsthand what happens on the Canal on a daily basis. And we meet the people who make the Canal and its bridges functional and safe, keeping the legacy of the early engineers alive. 8-10pm -- Warrior Queen Boudica - Wife, mother, queen...and leader of one of the most violent rebellions against Roman domination in British history. This we know about Boudica, Queen of the Iceni. Her story and her tribe's have been recorded by Roman historians, pondered by scholars, and examined by archaeologists who continue to dig for clues about this warrior whose army set fear in the hearts of Romans. When King Prasutagus died, the Iceni tribe, which once lived in peace with Rome, were brutally set upon by Romans--they beat Queen Boudica and raped her daughters. Seething with revenge, Boudica's forces attacked Roman settlements including London, a thriving Roman merchant center, which was destroyed. Here, we uncover the remarkable story of Boudica, who led her tribe in a revolt never seen before or since in British history. Her struggle--to free Briton's tribes from Roman domination; at stake--the freedom and independence of all Briton's tribes and their unique Celtic culture. 10-11pm -- Heroes Under Fire - Shadow Warriors. Afghanistan, 1981. The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979, threatening to expand its huge hold of territory and edge closer to the rich oilfields of the Middle East. President Reagan decided to send CIA officers in to train Afghan rebels to fight against the Soviets. But he didn't want to tip America's hand, so he sent in a small team of undercover officers from the CIA's Islamabad station in Pakistan. Working in dark alleys and traveling on Pakistani military helicopters, Milt Bearden and his team of CIA officers gradually built a network to funnel arms and cash into Afghanistan and train the rebels to fight. Dodging bullets and risking their lives, the CIA officers became secret warriors fighting America's last battle of the Cold War. ____________________________________________________ Saturday, March 11, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 6-8pm -- The Kennedy Assassination: Beyond Conspiracy - No other murder in history has produced as much speculation as the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Forty years after he was fatally shot, more than 70 percent of polled Americans believe there was a conspiracy and that Lee Harvey Oswald did not act alone. In this 2-hour special, ABC News Anchor Peter Jennings takes a fresh look at the assassination, the evidence, the various and many theories, and an exact computer simulation of the famous Abraham Zapruder film that offers surprising results. 8-12am -- Reel To Real - JFK. (movie) Oliver Stone's masterpiece details the actions of New Orleans' District Attorney Jim Garrison (Kevin Costner), who takes it upon himself to investigate the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas, Texas in 1963. Garrison, extremely suspicious of the official story presented by the FBI and what he already knows and subsequently learns, reopens the official files. Fact or fiction? You decide. The film stars, among others, Tommy Lee Jones, Kevin Bacon, Laurie Metcalf, Gary Oldman, Sissy Spacek, Jack Lemmon, Joe Pesci, Edward Asner, Donald Sutherland, Vincent D'Onofrio, and many, many more. (1991) ____________________________________________________ Sunday, March 12, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 6-8pm -- Star Wars: Empire of Dreams. - A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, George Lucas launched the most successful movie franchise ever created. We look at how the Star Wars trilogy changed movie-making, catapulted Harrison Ford to stardom, and made director George Lucas a legend. For Lucas, what began as a quest for creative freedom became a philosophy, a cultural phenomenon, and an empire of dreams. Features film clips, screen tests, and interviews with Lucas, Ford, Steven Spielberg, Mark Hamill, and Carrie Fisher. 8-10pm -- How William Shatner Changed the World - You've got a cell phone at one ear, an iPod at the other. You know that Blackberry is now a verb and Spam is not only canned meat. But just how did we get here? Blame William Shatner--yes, that William Shatner--Captain Kirk. We'll boldly go where few have gone before to reveal how scientists, inspired by the series, would revolutionize medicine and are surpassing the far-out vision of the future foreshadowed in Star Trek in the 1960s. From cell phones to computers to even leading-edge medical advancements, this 2-hour special explores how those sci-fi inventions have now permeated everyday life as we know it. Hosted and narrated by Shatner and based on his book, I'm Working on That, we'll meet the brightest minds of Silicon Valley and the Trek-inspired inventions that have help change the world. In his current TV-series, Shatner's cell-phone has a familiar sound when he opens it as a nod to S.T. 10-12am -- Modern Marvels - Walt Disney World. Journey underground and backstage at the technological marvel that is Walt Disney World. Enter a make-believe world spanning some 27,000 acres, brought to life by cutting-edge technology. What was once Florida swampland now boasts the world's largest theme park. The ride technology ranges from space-age centrifuges to enhanced motion vehicles powered by 3,000 PSI of hydraulic pressure. And hundreds of audio animatronics brought to life through the power of pneumatics, hydraulics, and electrical systems. Walt Disney World is made up of four separate theme parks, each with its own innovations: the 107-acre Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney-MGM Studios, and Disney's Animal Kingdom. The four parks are all part of a megaplex of a resort. Twice the size of Manhattan, it was the final vision and crowning achievement of a man who spent more than 40 years pushing the limits of technology to create entertainment magic: Walt Disney. ____________________________________________________ Monday, March 13, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Tunnels of Vietnam. Here is the heroic story of a intrepid band of infantry soldiers, the "Tunnel Rats", charged with a daring mission--to search for, find, and destroy a secret subterranean network of enemy tunnels in Vietnam. Armed with only a flashlight, valor, and a .45, they faced a determined foe and overcame lethal odds, uncovering secret enemy arms and intelligence caches. Tragically, many of these volunteers died and others were seriously wounded on this terrifying suicide mission. 8-10pm -- Comets: Prophets of Doom - Comets--these celestial travelers have forever filled us with fear and wonder. Lurking in the furthest reaches of our solar system, they come close to Earth as they orbit our Sun. Could something as destructive as comets hold the key to life? Are the building blocks of carbon-based life forms frozen inside? Might they contain information about the creation of our solar system? At the conclusion of two spectacular NASA missions that sent spaceships to rendezvous with these mysterious objects, we examine the scientific and historical record of comets, including man's reaction to them. Did a comet lead the Wise Men to Bethlehem? Did they foretell the death of kings, the destruction of civilizations? How did Halley's Comet provide Isaac Newton with the clues for his theories of gravity? Finally, what comprises this "dirty snowball" and how can we protect ourselves if headed on a collision-course with one? 10-11pm -- Deep Sea Detectives - Mystery of the Channel Collision. On a stormy night in March 1899, two ships head toward each other in the English Channel. The Duke of Buccleugh, a 380-foot iron steamer is bound for India, with a mixed cargo of china, glassware, and industrial goods. The Vandalia, a wooden sailing ship loaded with barrels of petroleum is hurrying to reach London. Shortly after 1pm the two ships collide with deadly, but surprising results. The iron Duke sinks quickly, with her entire crew of 47; the badly damaged wooden Vandalia limps ashore. The surviving captain reports his sailing ship was operating properly when suddenly rammed by the iron steamer, and for a hundred years, his claim goes unchallenged. But now, evidence on the wreck suggests a different story. Did the Duke of Buccleugh ram the Vandalia or was it the other way round? And just how does wood sink iron? Join our intrepid divers, John Chatterton and Richie Kohler as the set out to discover the answers. ____________________________________________________ Tuesday, March 14, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Edison Tech. He was the father of the future...electric lights, power systems, motion pictures, recorded sound--even the tattoo pen. Life as we know it would be inconceivable without the prodigious output of the Wizard of Menlo Park, Thomas Alva Edison. His intense focus on his work came with a hefty personal price, but his reward was a world forever changed by his genius. Years after his death, Edison's effect is seen, heard, and felt everywhere. We follow descendants of his motion-picture camera to the tops of Earth's highest mountains, to the bottoms of its deepest oceans, and even into outer space. We track his innovations in recorded sound to CDs, iPods, sophisticated movie sound, and satellite radio. And we illuminate his world of electric light, powering the world and turning night into day. Along the way, we discover a little Edison in corners of modern life less well-known and even look at his failures. From the Internet to the stock market to pay-per-view; the Wizard is everywhere. 8-10pm -- An Alien History of Planet Earth - Nick Cook, a British aerospace journalist with a 20-year history of "getting below the surface" of some of the strangest military aircraft to take to the skies, applies his expert, investigative skills to a world of mystery and deceit--a fantastical place full of UFOs, strange encounters, and alien abductions. Much of his time has been spent at the respected journal, Jane's Defence Weekly. His job is to investigate secret programs--the shadow defense industry, worth billions of dollars, but hidden from public view. Now, with more people than ever believing in UFOs, Cook wants to know what really has been flying through our air space. He traces the phenomenon from early sightings of UFOs during WWII to the mass reports of alien abductions that swept America in the 1980s and `90s. Entering the world of bluff and double-bluff, he investigates such landmark cases as the Roswell Incident and the Zamora Sighting to try to answer the question: Are UFOs real? Is there real fire in the sky? 10-11pm -- Digging for the Truth - The Real Queen of Sheba. According to the Bible, the Queen of Sheba came to Solomon's Palace bearing fabulous gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. She is mentioned only briefly in the Bible before she and her entourage disappear back into the desert from which they came. Was this Queen real? If so, who was she? Host Josh Bernstein digs deep in Ethiopia, legendary home of the Queen, follows the ancient incense trail, and ends up in Yemen, while attempting to discover her mystery and legacy. ____________________________________________________ Wednesday, March 15, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Bunkers. From the earliest bunkers of WWI through the ultra-futuristic ones of tomorrow's wars, we trace the story of defensive fortifications. In the constant struggle to hold off ever more potent forms of attack, bunkers function in a variety of forms. Three mammoth block structures comprise a submarine bunker at Lorient, France, able to house 20 subs. We visit Churchill's Cabinet War Room and Hitler's Berlin bunker, as well as backyard Cold War bunkers and those that protect nuclear weapons themselves. 8-10pm -- Meteors: Fire in the Sky - Meteors, comets, and asteroids cross the solar system to offer clues about our planet and universe. Can they destroy civilizations? Did they wipe out the dinosaurs? Have they brought life to our planet? And when will the next one hit? Aided by elaborate animation and live-action footage, we learn what these mysterious space rocks really are and imagine what likely happened 65-million years ago, when an object plowed into the Yucatan Peninsula. We see how certain spectacular meteor falls advanced our understanding of what they are and the danger that they pose. We talk to leading experts--astronomers and geologists including David Levy and Carolyn Shoemaker, co-discoverers of the Shoemaker-Levy comet that fell into Jupiter in 1994. And we talk to NASA scientists about recent missions to asteroids and comets and speculate on ways to move Earth-threatening asteroids and comets out of our way. Because it isn't a question of if but when the next deadly impact will take place. 10-11pm -- Modern Marvels - Snackfood Tech. Extruders, molds, in-line conveyor belts. Are these machines manufacturing adhesives, plastics, or parts for your car? No, they're making treats for your mouth--and you will see them doing their seductively tasty work in this scrumptious episode. First, we visit Utz Quality Foods in Hanover, Pennsylvania, that produces more than one million pounds of chips per week, and Snyder's of Hanover, the leading US pretzel manufacturer. Next, we focus on the world's largest candy manufacturer, Masterfoods USA, which makes Milky Way, Snickers, Mars, and M&Ms, and take a lick at the world's largest lollipop producer, Tootsie Roll Industries. And at Flower Foods' Crossville, Tennessee plant, an army of cupcakes rolls down a conveyer belt. The final stop is Dreyer's Bakersfield, California plant, where 20,000 ice cream bars and 9,600 drumsticks roll off the line in an hour. ____________________________________________________ Thursday, March 16, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - The Chunnel. The job of joining Britain and France via a tunnel under the English Channel was a challenge. Geologists tracked the only safe route with satellite technology, and French and British teams drilled towards each other using two of the largest Tunnel Boring Machines ever made. We'll explore the greatest underwater land-link of all time. 8-10pm -- How William Shatner Changed the World - You've got a cell phone at one ear, an iPod at the other. You know that Blackberry is now a verb and Spam is not only canned meat. But just how did we get here? Blame William Shatner--yes, that William Shatner--Captain Kirk. We'll boldly go where few have gone before to reveal how scientists, inspired by the series, would revolutionize medicine and are surpassing the far-out vision of the future foreshadowed in Star Trek in the 1960s. From cell phones to computers to even leading-edge medical advancements, this 2-hour special explores how those sci-fi inventions have now permeated everyday life as we know it. Hosted and narrated by Shatner and based on his book, I'm Working on That, we'll meet the brightest minds of Silicon Valley and the Trek-inspired inventions that have help change the world. 10-11pm -- Declassified - John Lennon. From approximately 1956-1971, thousands of American residents and US citizens, from John Lennon to John Kerry to Martin Luther King Jr., were the subjects of COINTELPRO (Counter Intelligence Program), the FBI's secret operation to target people and organizations viewed as un-American. Decades later, historians and the subjects of the spying themselves have begun to use the Freedom of Information Act to piece together the story of COINTELPRO. In this episode, we focus on the case of John Lennon and uncover the effects of the FBI's domestic spymasters on this pop-culture icon and the myriad of people who loved him. ____________________________________________________ Friday, March 17, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- The History of Saint Patrick's Day - In Ireland, March 17th is a feast day honoring the bishop who Christianized the island; but in America it's a boisterous celebration of Irish heritage. We'll march up New York City's Fifth Avenue with over 150,000 celebrants at the largest and oldest parade on the day all Americans are Irish. With Andrew Greeley and Frank McCourt. 8-10pm -- Paddy Whacked: The Irish Mob - Long before the Mafia, Murder Inc., and the African-American gangster, "Paddy" was plundering and pilfering the stars and stripes. Once called the "National Scourge", "The Shame of the Cities", and "The White Man's Burden", the Irish rose from hellish beginnings riddled with disease, vice, and death. The Potato Famine or "Ireland's Genocide" had wiped out a third of their population--America offered hope. They arrived in swarms, starving and destitute, with their notorious Celtic stubbornness and toughness. In a land where man had to fight for his piece of the pie and fight harder to keep it, "Paddy" was almost unbeatable. From the 19th century gang wars to the 20th century wars with the Italians, "Paddy" whacked their way to a mythical status. We trace the legacy of the Irish Mob, deeply rooted in the diabolical power trio of "Gangster, Politician, and Lawman" feeding and festering off one another. 10-12am -- Rumrunners, Moonshiners... - Heroes who fight tax collectors and moral crusaders, or just common criminals? Like it or not, America was built by rumrunners, moonshiners, and bootleggers--even founding father John Hancock was a smuggler. In the 1920s, Prohibition turned fishermen into rumrunners and two-bit gangsters into millionaires, and moonshine haulers in their souped-up cars helped create NASCAR. Rare archival footage and photos help weave the compelling tale of our nation's love-hate relationship with illegal alcohol. ____________________________________________________ Saturday, March 18, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Nature Tech: Hurricanes. They're nature on a rampage. The size and intensity of hurricanes make them the most feared and destructive of all storms. Explore how hurricanes start, how scientists track them, and how if at all possible they can be stopped. Take a ride on a hurricane "chaser" plane as it flies directly into the eye of hurricane Wilma, collecting important barometric pressure and wind velocity readings. In this hour we'll also track the historical highlights of hurricanes, and the history and development of such important hurricane research tools as radar and weather satellites. We'll delve into the construction of buildings that weather hurricanes better than traditional structures and examine how modern skyscrapers are built to stand up to hurricane force winds. 8-10pm -- Decoding The Past - Mysteries of the Bermuda Triangle. Since the 15th century, the Bermuda Triangle has mysteriously vanished an untold number of ships, planes and lives with three more known incidents in 2004. Using today's scientific knowledge and investigative techniques, we study the riddle of the Bermuda Triangle. Through computer graphics, highly stylized recreations, and underwater cameras, we will dramatically visualize the accidents as well as investigate the possible causes and explanations. On-camera interviews with both skeptics and believers will help lay out the facts and opinions of the cases. Can the latest science available today finally lay to rest the mysteries of the Triangle? 10-11pm -- Alaska's Bermuda Triangle - Alaska's Bermuda Triangle. There's something about Alaska that the tourist bureau doesn't want you to know. In Alaska, people, planes, and ships disappear. Suddenly, inexplicably, and permanently! Natives say that shape-shifting spirits kidnap lost travelers. Scientists tell of giant crevasses that swallow the unwary. Others tell of conspiracies to wreck aircraft. We take a detailed look at the 1972 incident that confounded the US military, when an airplane carrying two Congressmen vanished between Anchorage and Juneau. ____________________________________________________ Sunday, March 19, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Digging for the Truth - City of the Gods. There was only one ancient city in the Americas that ever truly rivaled the size, scale, and power of its Old World counterparts--Teotihuacán, the City of the Gods. And today, it's the largest ghost town in the world. Still home to the world's third largest pyramid, this mysterious city was once a metropolis many times larger and more populous than the biggest Mayan and Aztecan cities ever built. Now, Josh Bernstein heads to central Mexico to check it out. He'll soar above the ancient city, explore its obsidian mines, make prehistoric tools, and try to decode its impressive murals in a quest to understand who built the City of the Gods, how it became so powerful, and, most mysterious of all, why it was abandoned. 8-9pm -- Super Tools - Skyscraper. Skyscrapers are an extraordinary feat of human engineering: exposing millions of pounds of concrete and steel to the enemy forces of wind and gravity. Starting with the foundation and on through the support structures and concrete flooring, every piece of these superstructures has to be super-strong. We'll soar high to spotlight the construction of three new buildings: a 30-story hotel tower for the Palms Casino in Las Vegas; a 52-story office building in Manhattan, the new headquarters of The New York Times; and a 92-story residential and commercial building in Chicago, the Trump International Hotel and Tower. Along the way, we go behind the scenes with the five tools that make these buildings possible: the foundation drill rig, the tower crane, the impact wrench, the power trowel, and the total station. Each of these tools has evolved over the 100-plus year history of the skyscraper era. 9-10pm -- Super Tools - Tunnel. In this episode, we dig deep into the workings, history, and technology of the superstar tools that enable us to burrow beneath the earth. Tunnels--underground, through mountains, beneath oceans and rivers--are among engineering's great achievements. Workers must create a seamless and waterproof space where only unforgiving rock existed before. We'll visit one of America's biggest tunnel projects, Atlanta's CSO (Combined Sewage Overflow). To help manage waste water during torrential rains, two four and a half mile long tunnels are being constructed under the city to channel storm water overflow to a pumping station. We'll watch the action of the five superstar tools of tunnel construction--the rock drill, explosives, the tunnel boring machine, the gas detector, and the shotcrete gun. What began as backbreaking labor with a simple hammer and chisel is today a state-of-the-art hi-tech industry thanks to the ever-improving technology of these five essential tools. 10-11pm -- Super Tools - Ship. A modern-day aircraft carrier is like a floating city: with 5,000 crewmembers, 80 aircraft, and a four-and-a-half acre big flight deck. It's nearly as long as the Empire State Building is tall, and has its very own 20-story skyscraper balanced on top of it. Constructing one of these is as much a marvel as the ship itself. We take viewers to the Newport News Shipyard in Virginia, where the George H. W. Bush--the latest Nimitz-class aircraft carrier--is inching closer to completion. Gone are the hammers, nails, and even rivets of the old shipyards, replaced with plasma, lasers, and robots that are pressed into service building the largest warship afloat. We go deep inside the guts of this warship-in-the-making to get up close to the tools that rule the shipbuilding world: the plasma beveling cutter, robotic welder, shafting lathe, laser tracker, and pneumatic drill. ____________________________________________________ Monday, March 20, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Engines. Story of the development of engines and motors, with particular emphasis on the ones that have profoundly changed society. Beginning with the steam engine, we see how it was created, how it works, and how it led to the Industrial Revolution. We review the electric motor, internal combustion engine, jet engine, and rocket engine, and conclude with a look at futuristic engine technologies, including hydrogen-powered cars and microtechnology engines so small that they fit on the tip of a finger. 8-9pm -- UFO Files - Texas' Roswell. In April 1897--50 years before the alleged UFO crash in Roswell, New Mexico--a mysterious airship crash rocked the small town of Aurora, Texas...or at least, that's how the legend goes! The tale includes the wreckage from the ship, a funeral for the dead "alien" pilot, and thousands of witnesses from across the country. And the Aurora crash allegedly took place five years before the Wright Brothers flew at Kitty Hawk, so whatever was in the air was not manmade. Eyewitness accounts of the crash, mysterious metal found at the site, and the hunt for the only known alien graveyard are all combined into a story that has even the most adamant debunkers baffled. Is this the case that finally proves that UFOs are real? Join us as we separate fact from fiction. 9-10pm -- Digging for the Truth - Troy: Of Gods and Warriors. The Iliad is one of the most famous literary works of the Western world. It's an epic tale of Greek gods, earthly soldiers, and a decade-long fight over the most beautiful woman in the world. Could The Iliad actually be based on fact? Could the Trojan War really have happened? Josh Bernstein travels to Greece and Turkey in search of ancient Troy. Along the way, he'll learn what it took to live and fight on the coasts of the Aegean in the late Bronze Age. He'll test the tools of the Trojan warriors, and he'll uncover a city in northern Turkey that just might prove The Iliad was far more than a simple work of fiction. 10-11pm -- Deep Sea Detectives - Blackbeard's Mystery Ship. In 1718, the infamous pirate Blackbeard and his flagship, the Queen Anne's Revenge, wreaked havoc raiding British supply routes to and from their American colonies. Then, the British offered a pardon to all pirates who would give up their dastardly ways. Blackbeard decided to accept, but as he moved toward the coast of North Carolina, his flagship ran aground in what is now known as Beaufort Inlet. Eventually Blackbeard abandoned the Queen Anne's Revenge, leaving her to succumb to the elements...or so the story goes. In 2001, underwater archaeologists found the remains of a ship in the inlet. Join our veteran divers John Chatterton and Richie Kohler as they embark on a journey to solve the mystery of the ship's identity. Could this be the final resting place of Blackbeard's ship? And did the famed master seaman really run aground, or was that all part of another notorious Blackbeard scheme? ____________________________________________________ Tuesday, March 21, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Rubber. The story of rubber is more than tires, toys, gloves, and gum--it's imbedded in modern life, from the controversial Challenger O-rings to seals on hydrogen fuel cells. A gigantic worldwide synthetic rubber industry creates exotic elastomers for high-tech applications, while China's rapid industrialization plays havoc with the world's natural rubber supply. From the ancient Olmecs of Yucatán, who knew the secret of vulcanization, to modern processing plants, we trace rubber's history and future. 8-9pm -- Shootout - WWII: Storming France. D-Day was hell, but it was just the beginning. For five months, in the villages and fields of France, American GIs fought and died for every yard of turf, as Hitler tried to push them back into the sea. Don Malarkey, of the famous "Band of Brothers", brings us into the trenches for Easy Company's daring attack on a German gun battery. Paratrooper John Hinchliff puts us behind his machine gun as he tries to hold off a German assault. Three vets of the 379th Regimental Combat Scouts recount a harrowing dance with death when their cover is blown. Bryan Bell, an infantry platoon leader in Patton's Third Army, leads his men on a charge up a hillside where death comes much easier than glory. Computer graphics and battle reenactments show you how these soldiers fought and why they won. 9-10pm -- Six Degrees of Francis Bacon - Like the popular game 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon, our show is also based on the premise that all human endeavors are connected. Today we give a historical nod to Francis Bacon (Father of Modern Science), and show how significant movements in history are as likely the result of seemingly insignificant, unrelated events as of a single spark of genius. 10-11pm -- Modern Marvels - The F-14. October 7, 2001: Missiles from lethal US jets rain down onto Afghanistan. One powerful and deadly plane led the majority of the assaults--the F-14 Tomcat, the world's most complete military fighter. No other fighter jet carries the F-14's unique combination of weapons. Its state-of-the-art system can spot an oncoming enemy plane at almost 200 miles. Its radar can detect targets as low as 50 feet and as high as 80,000 feet and does so three times faster than the radar of any other fighter jet. ____________________________________________________ Wednesday, March 22, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Oil Tankers. The biggest moving objects ever built by man, oil tankers dominate the world's waterways, both in size and numbers. Upwards of 10,000 strong, the world tanker fleet's vast number results from the modern, insatiable thirst for oil. We'll dig into the history of oil transport--from Civil War days to the critical WWII years and invention of the supertanker in the 1950s. And we examine the financial impact of modifying these steel leviathans to prevent future catastrophic environmental disasters. 8-9pm -- Modern Marvels - Trucks. Icons of the open road, trucks form the backbone of the construction and transportation industries. The facility to handle nearly any load and the ability to deliver goods almost anywhere make trucks integral to modern life. From 18th-century steam-powered carriages to tomorrow's computerized trucks, it's a long haul you'll enjoy! 9-10pm -- One Time Only - Failed Inventions. Join us for a salute to the dreamers and schemers who brought the world an odd assortment of flawed ideas--like flying, swimming, and jet-powered automobiles, flying rocket belts, and radium-filled clothes that promised to inflate the owner's sagging love life! And we explore the minds of the off-kilter geniuses who thought up these off-the-mark concepts. Some tinkerers' musings were merely ahead of their time and deemed flops during the inventor's lifetime, but others were just plain bad! 10-11pm -- Modern Marvels - Engineering Disasters 19. We'll examine one of the most mysterious maritime tragedies, when the sturdy Edmund Fitzgerald suddenly sank on a stormy night in November 1975, and unlock the mysteries of the rudder problems behind two Boeing 737 crashes: a 1991 United flight and a 1994 US Air flight. Then, we take viewers inside one of the most dangerous but least known nuclear disasters in US history--a meltdown at a secret government facility in 1959. We also travel to an oil storage facility where nearly 4-million gallons of diesel fuel suddenly flowed out as the storage tank cracked and catastrophically unzipped from top to bottom. Finally, we take a "close look" at microscopic structures causing gigantic problems in the electronics industry--tin whiskers, as they are known by researchers, which spontaneously grow from the pure tin coatings on electronic boards and microchips. ____________________________________________________ Thursday, March 23, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Harvesting. Cutting, digging, picking, stripping, shaking, and raking--whatever the crop, there's a custom machine to harvest it. It all began with handpicking and today it's often one man and one machine harvesting hundreds of acres in a single day. The farmer may even get a little help from satellites. Far above the earth, high-resolution photography is giving the grower more opportunities to cut costs and maximize the harvest. From the debut of the sickle in ancient Egypt to McCormick's famous Reaper to the field of ergonomics that assists human harvesters, we'll dig into the past and future of the harvest. 8-9pm -- Ancient Discoveries - Machines II. How did the ancients harness power? Did Archimedes use solar power to defeat the Romans? Was he the first to concentrate the power of the sun? Early historical accounts of the battle of Syracuse in 212 BC claim that Archimedes used polished shields to focus light onto the sails of the invading Roman ships and set them ablaze. We investigate this and other intriguing and incredible objects. An earthenware jar about the size of a man's fist sits in the National Museum of Iraq. Its existence could require history books throughout the world to be rewritten. The jar appears to be an electric battery pre-dating Christ. Did the ancient world master electricity nearly two millennia before the modern world? A recent discovery of a flour mill in Barbegal in southern France contained 16 waterwheels that operated the mill. Is this one of the first examples of Roman industrial-revolution technology--1,800 years before our own? 9-10pm -- Decoding The Past - Secret Brotherhood of Freemasons. Join us as we divulge the true nature of the secret and mystical organization known as freemasons. We reveal the initiation ceremony, when candidates swear on pain of death to uphold the order's secrets. In ancient Egypt, we uncover the murderous legend that inspired their rituals, and we also study the society's influence on our democracy. 10-11pm -- Declassified - Godfathers of Havana. If Castro and his Cuban communist compadres had not thrown the corrupt Batista government and US Mafia out of Havana in 1958, the Mob wouldn't have needed to develop Las Vegas as the ultimate City of Sin. Havana, just 40 miles south of Miami, was a tropical paradise fueled by rum, rhumba, and gangsters. Join us as we expose a network of extraordinary corruption and the formation of a brutal criminal state on America's doorstep. Visited by the most celebrated Hollywood stars, top Mafia bosses, presidents, and politicians, this was a city of glitzy casinos, luxurious clubs, exotic dancing girls, and endless nights. Havana was at the crossroads of the Mafia-controlled narcotic super-highway before the Cuban Revolution took down the corrupt, Batista government. ____________________________________________________ Friday, March 24, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Offshore Oil Drilling. Offshore oil drilling is one of mankind's greatest technological feats. From the beginning of oil discovery, the oceans' vast reserves have been the ultimate frontier. See how these superstructures, both floating and fixed, revolutionized the search for crude oil, and the environmental price we pay for their prolific production. 8-10pm -- Titanic's Final Moments: Missing Pieces - In August 2005, John Chatterton and Richie Kohler, hosts of Deep Sea Detectives, led an expedition to the wreck of RMS Titanic. Diving 2½ miles down in Russian submersibles, they searched outside the known debris field for new evidence. On their final dive they made an extraordinary find: two large intact sections of the bottom hull of the Titanic in pristine condition with the red bottom paint still on them. For four months, a team of historians, marine architects, and engineers has been conducting a forensic analysis of this find. All agree that it's the most significant new discovery since the wreck was located in 1985. Analysis is ongoing, but preliminary indications are that these bottom sections will change our understanding of how the ship broke apart, and rewrite the story of the final moments of the Titanic. 10-11pm -- Caligula: Reign of Madness - Caligula ruled the Roman Empire fewer than four years, and was only 28 when assassinated by officers of his guard in 41 AD. His reign was a legendary frenzy of lunacy, murder, and lust. Between executions, he staged spectacular orgies, made love to his sister, and declared himself a living god. Join us for a look at this devoted son, murderer, pervert, and loving father whose anguished life was far more bizarre than the myth that surrounds him. ____________________________________________________ Saturday, March 25, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Leather. Sometime at the dawn of civilization, animal hides were rubbed down with animal fat, making them more flexible, durable, and malleable. By the 5th Century BC, this "tanning" process expanded to include vegetable and tree oil washes, creating what's now known as "leather"--one of man's most reliable and versatile products. Without advances in leather shoes, the Romans could never have marched to the Tigris; nor could the Pilgrims have survived winters in Plymouth. Today, leather is a staple of our daily lives. Modern tanners have devised techniques to make leather more versatile, colorful, and luxurious than ever. We visit modern tanneries of conventional cowhide leather, and explore the more exotic leathers made from alligator, snakes, and even sting-ray. And we'll examine the race of modern science to create synthetic leathers that are supposedly more convenient in today's fast-paced life. We'll see how leather binds us to the past in an unparalleled way. 8-9pm -- Save Our History - Alaska's Bloodiest Battle. Historian Steve Thomas travels through the Aleutians to Attu Island, where he walks in the footsteps of the soldiers engaged in a little-known but crucial conflict of WWII. Along the way, Steve touches down on other islands involved in those war efforts, where he discovers a variety of military structures now being documented, preserved, and restored. The show ends with Steve on the beach where the troops landed, describing the Battle of Attu as a wake-up call to America--showing us that the war would not be easily won and the cost would be high. Other points of interest visited during Steve's journey include: Kodiak Island, Unalaska Island, Anchorage, and Washington State. 9-11pm -- Alaska: Big America - Alaska--a land of extremes. Its size is staggering--nearly 600,000 square miles, or more than twice the size of Texas. Its vast distances, extreme weather, imposing landscape--all helped shape its history and the lives of those who come under its spell. Our 2-hour special heads to far-flung corners of the 49th State to hear compelling stories of life in the bush--from Russian expeditions in the 1700s to building of the Alcan Highway to the WWII Battle for the Aleutian Islands and 1959 statehood. ____________________________________________________ Sunday, March 26, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Digging for the Truth - Cleopatra: The Last Pharaoh. She ruled over men, bedding the likes of Julius Caesar and Marc Anthony, and led one of the world's greatest civilizations. Her name has been immortalized in myth and legend. So, how did Cleopatra become the last of the pharaohs? In the shadow of the pyramids, Josh Bernstein joins Zahi Hawass on a hunt for mummies from the time of Cleopatra. He'll come face to face with Cleopatra's killer, the Egyptian cobra, and sail down the Nile River searching for clues to her true history. In Alexandria, Josh will descend into the cisterns below the modern city to look for evidence of Cleopatra's reign. Finally he'll dive into the harbor of Alexandria, where a beautiful palace lies--possibly the last vestige of Cleopatra's legendary wealth--the only testament to a woman who was perhaps the wisest and most cunning of all of Egypt's pharaohs. 8-9pm -- Auschwitz: The Forgotten Evidence - When an Allied photo reconnaissance plane flew over southern Poland in the summer of 1944, it took horrifying images of the Nazi's most evil extermination camp--Auschwitz. The gas chambers and the crematoria in which 12,000 people were being murdered daily are clearly visible. But the photos were not analyzed at the time--simply filed away. Using these photos as a unique starting point, we take a new look at the Holocaust and ask what the Allies knew about the extermination camp and when they found out. When Churchill heard about Auschwitz, he implored the RAF to bomb it or the railway lines leading to it. But this was not done. We explore all the arguments around the practical difficulties of bombing Auschwitz, but the question remains whether the Allies should not have done something to stop the killing. Includes interviews with Auschwitz survivors and expert historians. 9-10pm -- Standing Tall at Auschwitz - They were the largest family of dwarfs in recorded history. In the 1930s and 1940s, seven Jewish siblings toured Transylvania and neighboring lands enchanting enthusiastic crowds with their unique musical performances. Imprisoned at Auschwitz, they became endlessly appealing to Dr. Josef Mengele, who tormented them in the name of genetic research. In inescapable irony, the Nazi doctor of death became their protector--and only hope for survival. We follow the Ovitz family from their beginnings in Transylvania and incarceration at Auschwitz, to their liberation from the camp and eventual settling in Israel. This story of survival unfolds through firsthand accounts from residents of Rozavlea in Transylvania (now Romania), where the Ovitz family grew up, and from fellow Auschwitz survivors that remember them from the camp. Highlights include an interview with Perla, the youngest Ovitz, taped before her death in 2001. 10-11pm -- The Nazi Expeditions - A ship sailing under the Swastika flag glides through the Antarctic Ocean in search of stone and ice samples to support the "global ice theory", according to which a comet crashed to Earth in prehistoric times and scattered the "original Aryans" worldwide. In Tibet, an expedition hunted for new findings relating to early Germanic history. The Nazis believed in a Nordic master race that survived the demise of Atlantis. These expeditions within and beyond the German Reich were planned in direct collusion with Reichsführer Heinrich Himmler. They were funded to produce proof of the superiority of the German race and reinforce the Nazi claim to world supremacy. Featuring previously unpublished library material and statements by witnesses, expedition members, historians, and scientists, we shed light on these bizarre operations. Unpublished film shots, propaganda films, and photos from public and private archives provide incredible testimony. ____________________________________________________ Monday, March 27, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Proving Grounds. Where can you fire a missile without scaring the neighbors? Or lift millions of pounds in pursuit of a couple of ounces of gold? On a proving ground, of course, where performance is the only thing that matters. Because in the heat of battle or head-to-head competition, no excuses can be given. We'll visit the US military's Cold Regions Testing Center in Alaska and desert proving grounds in Arizona, the Olympic Complex in Colorado, and the now-defunct Packard proving grounds in Michigan. 8-9pm -- UFO Files - Beyond The War of the Worlds. In print worldwide for over a century, The War of the Worlds is H.G. Wells at his best. Beginning with its literary origins, we trace the path of this amazing story from riveting magazine serial through the panic broadcast of 1938, and then to major motion pictures. We uncover the long-forgotten 1968 broadcast that again drove thousands into the streets of Buffalo, New York; and gain exclusive access to a new animated feature film. Loaded with state-of-the-art special effects and stunning reenactments, we revisit not only the famous but the obscure, including the radio broadcast in Ecuador that cost 20 people their lives. Filled with vintage film clips and previously unseen interpretations of the Martians, this is one you won't want to miss! 9-10pm -- Digging for the Truth - The Da Vinci Code: Bloodlines. Josh Bernstein searches for solid evidence behind the controversial theory laid out in Dan Brown's book The Da Vinci Code. Brown's theory claims that Jesus married Mary Magdalene and that she conceived a child. It also suggests that the bloodline continues--unbroken--to this day. Josh shows what's true and what's clearly make-believe in Dan Brown's bestseller. From musty libraries to ancient churches, Josh's unique quest leads him to seek the DNA evidence that might prove or disprove one of the most sensational claims in modern history. Most remarkably, he'll try to find a genetic link between a long-sheltered pocket of ancient Aramaic Assyrians in Turkey and a man who claims to be of the bloodline of Jesus himself! 10-11pm -- Deep Sea Detectives - Great Lakes Ghost Ship. The 1870s were a time of boom and bust on the Great Lakes, with more than a thousand ships competing for business. On November 27th, 1875, the Cornelia B. Windiate--a canal schooner--is sent on one last, late-season run from Milwaukee to Buffalo. It's a bet against Mother Nature that few ship owners or crewmen will take...and this time they lose. The weather takes a drastic turn for the worse and the Windiate disappears. For more than 100 years, it's assumed that the ship was lost in Lake Michigan. But when she's found, it's in another lake altogether! There's not a mark on her. No crew. No sign of what caused her to sink. Our hosts and veteran divers, John Chatterton and Richie Kohler, dive to examine one of the world's most pristine shipwrecks and help develop a new solution to one the strangest mysteries of the Great Lakes. ____________________________________________________ Tuesday, March 28, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Nature's Engineers. Towering skyscrapers buzzing with life, intricate tunnels connecting entire communities, mighty dams that tame the wildest rivers--this is construction animal style! Take a walk on the wild side as we investigate common creatures seemingly designed to alter their habitat and remake the world. Our ability to learn and capacity for abstract thought may separate us from beavers, honeybees, birds, termites, and spiders, but these engineers of nature remind us that we're merely the latest in a long line. 8-9pm -- Cannibals #2 - Cannibalism evokes an image of uncivilized people roasting enemies over a fire. But the reality is that even the most civilized humans have resorted to cannibalism. And there's new evidence that some of Europe's first humans had a taste for their own kind of flesh. Usually cannibalism occurs as a last resort--people being pushed to do the unthinkable in order to survive. And while there's little doubt that it occurred, survivors struggle to conceal the truth or simply deny it happened. Was it a practice accepted by societies long ago? We also investigate the recent discovery of Neolithic bones in England that show signs of cannibalism--a discovery that shocked experts and horrified many since some bones belonged to newborns. Our three tales of cannibalism suggest that those who ate human meat are far from alone. Secrecy, denial, even pride, are emotions that accompany the act of eating human flesh. But how do we handle the truth behind the act? 9-10pm -- The ArchiTECHS - With the unprecedented cooperation of the US Army, it's a military-makeover as a high-tech think tank of engineers, designers, writers, and visionaries strives to rework the Humvee into the four-wheeled workhorse of the future. For two high-pressure days on a remote Army base, they will immerse themselves in every aspect of the Humvee, both under the hood and in the field, culminating with a dramatic presentation for General Paul Kern, a retired four-star general. He will bring their ideas back to the Pentagon--but only if they're good enough. We'll follow every aspect of their design process, from off-the-wall brainstorming to hard-core computer modeling, through long days and nights of outside-the-box thinking as they push the limits of the possible. 10-11pm -- Modern Marvels - Death Devices. The hangman, guillotine, gas chamber, firing squad, and electric chair are just a few of the ways in which societies have rid themselves of those who committed capital crimes. And throughout history, a select few have developed the devices that have carried out the mandate of the people. This is the dark story of those inventors and the macabre history of execution mechanics--from the first "stone" of antiquity, the dungeons of the Inquisition, and Nazi death camps to today's sterile injection chambers--with a peek at the future of death technology. ____________________________________________________ Wednesday, March 29, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Howard Hughes Tech. An in-depth look at the technology conceived or developed by America's first billionaire. A passionate aviator, Howard Hughes built and flew planes that broke speed records, and developed war machines, spy aircraft, and commercial airliners. Despite the impressive heights reached by his technological empire, his health and mental well-being were fragile. During his last years, he wasn't seen publicly or photographed, rarely left the hotel suites he occupied, and was terrified of germs. But when Hughes died in 1976, he left a huge legacy in aviation and technology. When we board an airliner, view TV via satellite, or marvel at America's military might, we might do well to remember the risk-taker who flew faster than his peers and was at heart an aviator obsessively dedicated to both the art and science of flight. 8-9pm -- Hitler and Stalin: Roots of Evil - An examination of the minds of two of the 20th century's most brutal dictators and mass murderers--Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin. Based on recent psychological and medical studies, the program explores the personalities of these ruthless leaders, who were directly responsible for millions of deaths--their paranoia, suspiciousness, cold-bloodedness, sadism, and lack of human feeling. Includes interviews with Martin Bormann's son and Hitler's butler. 9-10pm -- Modern Marvels - The World's Biggest Machines. Join us for a look at the biggest, heaviest, tallest, longest, meanest machines on the planet! We'll see what these monsters do and how they operate, and how they're designed and assembled. Machines investigated include the largest draglines, excavators used in mining; the biggest dump truck; a front-end loader with an 80-ton bucket and the largest tires of any vehicle; the cruise ship, the Voyager of the Seas; a 240-foot tall wind generator; and a fusion reaction machine the size of a football field. 10-11pm -- Modern Marvels - Icebreakers. They are the toughest ships in the water, plowing headlong into one of nature's hardest obstacles. Modern icebreakers can smash through 10-foot thick ice sheets without stopping, allowing scientists and commercial shipping access to some of Earth's most inhospitable spots. Join our blustery journey as we patrol the Great Lakes on the USCG Cutter Mackinaw and traverse the infamous Northwest Passage on the maiden voyage of the USCG Healy, the newest Polar Class Icebreaker in the US Fleet. ____________________________________________________ Thursday, March 30, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - Camouflage. From ancient hunters' camouflage to computer-generated digital pattern uniforms, we uncover the past, present, and future of deception through disguise. During an ambush exercise by US Marines, we learn that camouflage came from natural coloration and patterns of flora and fauna. The art of military camouflage took off in WWI with the use of the airplane, when the French learnt to hide from "eyes in the sky". It's a world of shadows and smoke, where even cities disappear through disguise. 8-10pm -- Time Machine - Osama bin Laden. Featuring former and current CIA agents, Special Forces soldiers, Washington insiders, and best-selling authors such as Mark Bowden (Black Hawk Down), Steve Coll (Ghost Wars), Phillip Smucker (Al Qaeda's Great Escape), and Simon Reeve (The New Jackals), we take a 2-hour groundbreaking look at the hunt for the world's #1 archenemy. Filmed in 10 countries around the world, we trace bin Laden's rise through the Jihad against the Soviets in Afghanistan to his present incarnation. 10-11pm -- Declassified - Chairman Mao. Mao was the 20th Century's answer to Napoleon: a brilliant tactician, a political and economic theorist, and a statesman who ruled a billion people for three decades. In death, he has become divine, worshiped as a god in a godless country. Considering who and what he ruled, Mao, with his Little Red Book, might just be the single most powerful human being who ever lived. We mine formerly guarded vaults and archives to reveal untold stories in a relentless search for the truth behind the legend. ____________________________________________________ Friday, March 31, 2006 ____________________________________________________ 7-8pm -- Modern Marvels - More Dangerous Cargo. It comes in many deadly shapes and sizes, and the transportation of dangerous cargo is one of the most meticulously planned procedures in the shipping world. We hitch a ride on a "dynamite run" from explosives factory to construction site; learn how liquid natural gas is shipped, a fuel that could vaporize entire city blocks if ignited; accompany a Drug Enforcement Administration truck as it transports confiscated illegal drugs to an incinerator site for destruction; fly with Air Net as it moves radioactive pharmaceuticals from factory to hospital; and tag along with two tigers, part of a breeding program for endangered species, as they travel from Texas to Ohio. As each story progresses, we explore the history of the transport of that particular form of Dangerous Cargo. 8-10pm -- Saddam and the Third Reich - Few people realize that the Baath party was actually formed upon the principles and organizational structure of the Nazi party. Iraq, because of its oil and hatred of Jews, was an important battleground between the Axis and Allied powers in World War II. Nazi propaganda was broadcast throughout Baghdad, and Iraqis often went on rampages against Jews throughout the war. One of the most ardent Nazi supporters during WWII was named Khairallah Talfah. Talfah was Saddam's uncle. After the war, many of the key Iraqi Nazi supporters, all of whom evaded prosecution, wound up involved in Saddam's rise to power. This special examines the key individuals of the Iraqi-Nazi connection, the little-known battle for Iraq in WWII, and the strange link to Saddam Hussein. 10-11:30pm -- Sink the Tirpitz - The Tirpitz was the Third Reich's ultimate weapon. Sister to the Bismarck, she was the most successful WWII German battleship and the pride of Hitler's Navy. Secretly built off the Baltic coast in 1939, the warship spent the next five years terrorizing the Allies in the Atlantic and Artic seaways, leaving entire convoys annihilated in her wake. With the odds against them, heroic Allied servicemen threw everything into sinking the warship: manned torpedoes, magnetic mines, miniature submarines, and even dive bombers. But with the latest in radar technology and anti-aircraft systems, the Tirpitz was almost impervious to these attacks. All that changed in 1944 with development of a new technology: the earthquake bomb, an Allied weapon that spelled doom for the terrorizing warship. This is the story of the epic bravery and technological wizardry that finally destroyed this war machine, a feat that took over five years and 36 attempts.
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* Congressman Gary Condit (D), who reportedly told police he'd had an affair with Levy, is no longer considered to be a suspect in the case. Condit lost his bid for re-election in the Democratic Primary of 2002.
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