Summary: Is the most exhilarating of human emotions simply nature's way of keeping our species alive and reproducing? This program studies the behavior of men and women as they experience the magical feeling of attraction; it also presents a lively look at what happens inside a love-struck brain. Commentary from renowned anthropologist Dr. Helen Fisher reveals the significance of vocal cords, sense of...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: From the womb to old age, it is believed that hormones have a powerful impact on gender and sexuality. Drawing on the research of Roger Gorski, professor of neurobiology at UCLA, and Donatella Marazzitti, of Pisa University, this program explores both the role of sex hormones and the biochemistry of love. Case studies of transgendering and a condition in which a woman's body produces an excess...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: Whether it is due to a specific time of life or a particular style of living, hormones are believed to alter moods and erode bodily health. In this program, endocrinologist Lorraine Fitzpatrick, of the Mayo Clinic; a woman who has kept a video diary charting her monthly bouts with PMS; and a cast of teens and seniors investigate how hormones affect different stages of life, such as puberty and...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: This collection of 54 video clips (1 minute to 2 minutes 30 seconds each) takes a close look at infectious diseases and medical disorders, spotlighting AIDS, ALS, Alzheimer’s disease, aneurysms, asthma, autism, avian flu, cystic fibrosis, diabetes, food allergies, heart attack, Huntington’s disease, macular degeneration, malaria, Marburg virus, muscular dystrophy, Parkinson’s disease, Spanish...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2008
View online at AVOD
Summary: A world without teenage angst, PMS, and mid-life crisis; a life without hair loss and wrinkles: are these products of wishful thinking, or genuine scientific possibilities? In this program, scientists from the University of Wisconsin and the Life Extension Institute in Palm Springs strive to answer that question through their intriguing research. Clinical studies into hormone supplements for...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: The modern city is a complex maze of choices and decisions. This program describes the brain's empirical approach to finding sense amid confusion. Subconscious methods of information gathering, including visual scanning to find goods in a supermarket and direction finding while traversing an urban environment, are analyzed. In addition, the natural human ability to learn by trial and error is...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: How well do we understand the neurology of learning? Why does the brain's ability to learn diminish as we age? Can science find a way to extend brain "fitness," even for the very old? This program addresses those questions as it describes important medical experiments and studies. Topics include the central role of nerve cell connections in learning and cognitive development; cerebral...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2009
View online at AVOD
Summary: Comatose after a car accident, Paul Nadler defied medical prognoses that he would never walk or talk again. This award-winning program illustrates his recovery from severe brain trauma and his return to a highly physical and creative lifestyle. Using the innovative visual approach Nadler developed as a television director, the film allows the artist to explain his frustrations and goals in his...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2008
View online at AVOD
Summary: Why does tolerance for alcohol differ so widely from person to person? Do genetic factors make alcoholism unavoidable in some people? Should we drink at all? This program searches for answers, following addiction expert Dr. John Marsden as he observes-and participates in-experiments that assess alcohol's neurological and physiological impact. After exploring basic chemical and evolutionary...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2010
View online at AVOD
Summary: Feared and misunderstood for centuries, epilepsy is now a completely manageable condition for many patients. This program overviews newly developed treatments that have greatly reduced, and for some people eliminated, the occurrence of epileptic seizures. It also presents case studies suggesting that the disabling prejudice which has traditionally surrounded epilepsy is fading-and that it no...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: Epilepsy is the second most common neurological disorder in the U.S. This program examines its causes, what happens in the brain during a seizure, and what should and should not be done to help someone having a seizure. The diagnosis and treatment of the condition are discussed by physicians who present up-to-date information to help families, friends, and coworkers recognize the needs and...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: The human nerve center never rests-even during sleep, it works diligently to process and build on the information gathered by our senses. Of course, healthy sleep is only one of many vital ingredients the brain needs to develop and thrive, as this film illustrates in detail. Other factors discussed in the program include ongoing contact with negative (deterring) and positive...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2003
View online at AVOD
Summary: This program looks at nerve signals and how they are transmitted. It looks at the part played by nerve messages in reflex activities and at both the chemical and electrical activities of networks of nerve cells in contact.
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: What happens in our brains when we think something is funny? Is laughter a form of self-defense? Can a joke be scientifically analyzed? This program studies the human response to humor from a physiological and psychological standpoint. Highlighting the importance of vocal cords in producing laughter, the program contrasts human and simian forms of humor and gives viewers an evolutionary...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2007
View online at AVOD
Summary: For decades, IQ tests have been the gold standard for measuring intelligence. But is one standardized test really adequate for every taker? This program advocates a different approach, creating an array of unusual challenges to assess brainpower and positing an argument for the interplay of multiple intelligences. Assisted by the insights of Harvard's Howard Gardner and experts using brain...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2007
View online at AVOD
Summary: This program opens in the emergency room of a large hospital where head injuries are an all-too-common problem. The importance of the brain is evident from the skill and technology employed in ensuring that any damage to it is minimized. Using combinations of computerized tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and advanced surgical techniques, the program shows why the brain is so...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: Recent studies of cardiac arrest survivors suggest that near-death experiences may occur at times when the brain has actually stopped functioning. Drawing conclusions from that research, The Day I Died dares to suggest that the mind is not dependent on the brain-and that NDEs may confirm it. "That the mind is located in the brain is just a hypothesis. It's never been proven," says cardiologist...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: After an introductory segment contrasting the human endocrine and nervous systems, this program addresses the complex physiology of the endocrine system. Topics include the endocrine organs and glands; the characteristics of hormones and the process of signal transduction; hormonal regulation of blood glucose and blood calcium levels; the roles of growth hormone, thyroid hormone, testosterone,...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2009
View online at AVOD
Summary: For centuries, many have labored under the false perception that epilepsy is a permanently debilitating condition, ironic given the success of such epileptics as Alexander the Great and actor Danny Glover. This program follows four people with the disease who have taken control of their lives with the help of their families, epilepsy education, and advancement in therapies. Dr. Martha Morrell,...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: The use of hypnosis in medicine has a long history. In the early days of anesthesia, surgeons often used the trance-inducing technique as a fail-safe measure-and today the concept is being revisited. This program presents a scientific investigation into the idea that hypnosis can reduce or even replace the use of anesthesia. Exploring the merits of making the procedure available to more...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2007
View online at AVOD
Summary: This program introduces the subject of multiple sclerosis, covering onset, short- and long-term physiological effects, and treatment. A pair of patients with relapsing-remitting MS describe their experiences while the late Lawrence Jacobs, a pioneer in MS research and treatment, and other MS experts emphasize the benefits of early identification and intervention in managing this autoimmune...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005
View online at AVOD
Summary: Because seeing is so important to human functioning, efforts to understand how perceptions are generated have most often focused on vision. Based on research in cognitive neuroscience, this program explores the challenge of explaining visual perception. The video includes an overview of the human visual system, illustrated with animated graphics and live action footage, and describes, using a...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2008
View online at AVOD
Summary: What is the difference between the mind and the brain? Are they separable? Are they even quantifiable? And where does the soul fit in? In this thought-provoking program, experts including Oxford mathematician Sir Roger Penrose, cognitive scientist Dr. Daniel Dennett, and cyber-age techno-visionary Jaron Lanier contemplate the social and moral impact of brain research and questions such as how...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2006
View online at AVOD
Summary: One patient cannot recognize a single face, including his own. Another cannot see anything that is moving. And a third can watch and understand a soccer game, but cannot recognize the black-and-white object they are kicking. Drawing on the experiences of people with rare forms of brain damage, this program featuring Dr. Susan Greenfield reveals the tricks and shortcuts used by the brain to...
Format: software, multimedia
Publisher / Publication Date: Films Media Group 2005