Interactive NOVA: Earth
Level I and Level III Videodisc

Produced by the Interactive Department of WGBH Educational Foundation

Closed captioned for the hearing impaired
Funded by a grant from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, with additional funding from Scholastic, Inc.

What makes the Earth a good home?

Human beings need a moderate temperature range, fresh water, the ability to grow food, an atmosphere that contains oxygen, and protection from dangerous solar radiation. Of all the worlds in the solar system, the Earth is the only one which even comes close to providing all five of these life requirements. Interactive NOVA: Earth is a multi-faceted investigation into why this is so.

Two major environmental issues, the Greenhouse Effect and ozone depletion, are treated in depth.

The package includes 90 minutes of video stories, hundreds of still images and graphics, several computer activities and games (in Level III version), and a 275-page teacher's guide with detailed lesson plans. The video stories have both English and Spanish soundtracks.

The videodiscs are hosted by former astronaut Kathryn D. Sullivan, the first American woman to walk in space, who is now Chief Scientist for NOAA. The discs feature video stories about a wide range of scientists working around the world, from the Antarctic ice sheet to boiling geysers inside a volcano. There are also exciting stories of personal danger, and portraits of people who live in extreme conditions on the Earth.

The project has a modular design and Level III includes special software which will help teachers tailor the work to their own requirements.

Interactive NOVA: Earth was produced with a grant from NASA, and with additional funding from Scholastic, Inc. It is available in Level I and Level III interactive disc versions. The Level III version requires a color Macintosh computer.

To order, call Scholastic's customer support line at 1-800-541-5513.