Some bacteria cause deadly diseases, but without bacteria, life as we know it could not exist.  This video introduces the two kingdoms of bacteria, Archaebacteria and Eubacteria, and explains how various bacteria in each kingdom live and reproduce.  The viewer is offered graphic representations of bacterial structure, and is also given many microscopic glimpses into the bacterial world. Conjugation and binary fission are addressed, as is Alexander Fleming's discovery of penicillin.  Learn what Gram staining tells you about bacteria, and discover the positive and negative aspects of bacteria in human society. Award Winner: Telly Awards Winner

Extraordinary footage and eloquent narration by David Attenborough highlight the BBC's remarkable wildlife series The Blue Planet: Seas of Life. "Ocean World" begins with astonishing views of a gigantic blue whale--the elusive Holy Grail of undersea photography--and the marvels continue to demonstrate the power, diversity, and profound ecological influence of Earth's oceans. "Frozen Seas" examines whales, walruses, penguins, and other creatures under the extreme conditions of the Arctic and Antarctic Circles. The next two episodes are even better. "Open Ocean" travels thousands of miles into the vast "liquid desert," where currents determine how the ocean's diverse life forms will assume their places in the food chain. More amazing, "The Deep" descends with a state-of-the-art submersible to the ocean's abyssal plain and beyond, filming such bizarre creatures as the fangtooth, bioluminescent jellies, transparent squid, the giant-mouthed gulper eel, and the never-before-seen hairy angler fish.

"Seasonal Seas" focuses on the explosion of life that accompanies every annual blooming of plankton, numbering in the countless billions and captured here with brilliant microphotography. In "Coral Seas," miles-long reefs of living coral are explored, from deep within (requiring brief computer animation) to the surrounding environs, where you'll see white-tipped sharks in a feeding frenzy while beautiful harlequin shrimp wrestle with a starfish. "Tidal Seas" explores the myriad life forms that thrive when lunar gravity pulls the oceans offshore. "Coasts" is easily the most brutal episode, but no less mesmerizing. The most unexpected, and horrifying, sequence is the orca, earning its "killer whale" nickname by capturing, killing, and tail-tossing a seal pup--a sequence so mysteriously primal that even the most seasoned marine biologist will be utterly amazed. One of the finest wildlife programs you're ever likely to see, The Blue Planet: Seas of Life provides the privilege of visiting a truly alien world teeming with the rarest wonders of nature. The series was recut into the feature-length Deep Blue in 2005.

Over its more than 4 billion year history, Earth has been home to repeated violent climactic changes, which has caused mass extinctions. And yet, life has survived. In fact, these same catastrophes that devastated life on Earth also helped bring about the evolution from the simplest microbes to the complexity and diversity that is found on the planet today. Featuring location footage, interviews with the world's foremost scientists and cutting edge computer technology, Miracle Planet is a five part series that recounts the profound and gripping story of Earth's mysterious evolution. Filmed in Hi-Definition, narrated by Christopher Plummer, this series reveals the suprising role that sheer chance has played in the development of life.

How did the human race populate the world? A group of geneticists have worked on the question for a decade, arriving at a startling conclusion: the "global family tree" can be traced to one African man who lived 60,000 years ago. Dr. Spencer Wells hosts this innovative series, featuring commentary by expert scientists, historians, archaeologists, and anthropologists.

Go on a breathtaking adventure through time and across five continents to reveal nature's most vital secret. Climb into the prickly jaws of insect-eating plants. Watch a flying fox gorge itself on a midnight snack of figs. Witness a mantis disguised as a flower petal lure its prey to doom. You'll see the alarming destruction humankind has caused to our ecosystems and find hope in recent efforts to restore the natural balance we have disturbed.

The question of whether we are alone in the universe has intrigued humanity for centuries, and journalist Timothy Ferris presents an extensive look at the quandary in this fascinating and beautifully produced program from PBS. Ferris, as an engaging and inquisitive host, begins by discussing the development of life and the theory of evolution, as what we know about life on Earth could indicate whether it's possible for life to have developed elsewhere. Showing how scientists would expect life to exist elsewhere, Ferris then devotes his attention in a section entitled "Is Anybody Listening" to explain how radio telescopes are being used in hopes of making contact with intelligent beings beyond our own solar system. Throughout this documentary Ferris finds creative ways to make fairly complicated material easily understandable, and his offbeat approach to serious science is always entertaining and often fascinating. Experts such as scientist and bestselling author Stephen Jay Gould appear briefly in interviews to offer their insights, but for the most part the presentation is astoundingly visual. Ferris wisely opts to show something rather than merely talk about it, and the DVD is filled with startling and beautiful special effects as well as gorgeous footage shot both on Earth and in space. This is an excellent documentary that also happens to be a pleasure to watch.

By getting up close and personal with Life in the Undergrowth, this extraordinary BBC series sets a new standard of excellence in wildlife cinematography. Hosted by veteran nature expert David Attenborough and utilizing the latest advances in macrophotography, the five-part series is dedicated to bugs of all shapes and sizes, from microscopic gnats to cave-dwelling millipedes so large they can capture bats in mid-flight and feast for hours thereafter! The patience involved in filming such previously unseen marvels must have been grueling (as confirmed by producer Mike Salisbury in a splendid bonus interview), but the results are nothing less than astonishing, with a parade of sequences so impressive that even insect-haters will pause in amazement. With an emphasis on reproduction and mating behaviors, each program focuses on a different, generalized group of creatures, many of them never filmed before, so that lay-persons and entomologists will be equally enlightened by discoveries made in the process of filming.

As always, Attenborough serves as an expert witness, cordial, fearless, and quintessentially British as he explains what we're seeing, from the nocturnal fluorescence of scorpions (glowing at night in ultraviolet light, they perform a mating dance playfully described as "a nuptial pas de deux") to the mysterious, 17-year life cycle of the cicada. Throughout, we see everything, both frightening and beautiful, from an intimate, bug's-eye view, in detail so vividly colorful that you'll never view the insect world in quite the same way again. (Likewise for the diverse variety of critters on view in episode 3: "The Silk Spinners," which according to Salisbury is capable of curing arachnophobes from their irrational fear of spiders.) Just when you think Life in the Undergrowth couldn't get any more fascinating, it does: episode 4, "Intimate Relations," shows how many insects symbiotically depend on other species for food, shelter, or completion of their reproductive cycles, and episode 5, "Supersocieties," focuses on the social complexities of insect colonists like ants and termites. Enough to give you the creeps for days, you say? Think again, for after seeing Life in the Undergrowth (a perfect companion piece to the Nova episode "The Unknown World"), you may find yourself in the garden, on your knees, eager for a better look at the countless millions of tiny creatures that surround us every day.

Like any IMAX movie, Coral Reef Adventure is so vivid, vast, and colorful that you can't help but be astonished by its visual splendor. But this undersea exploration has a deeper, more serious agenda as well, warning its viewers that the natural magnificence of the world's most impressive coral reefs is, in most cases, a mere 30 years away from extinction due to the devastating effects of global (and oceanic) warming. Whether or not that timeframe is accurate (and there's not enough solid science presented here to prove it either way), it's tragically obvious that we are in the process of losing entire ecosystems that cannot be replaced, and when you witness these awesome coral reefs in their still-thriving vitality, you experience a sense of urgent responsibility toward our stewardship of planet Earth. By showing us the commitment and potentially life-threatening work of reef explorers and world-class undersea cinematographers Howard and Michele Hall, the film provides an all-access pass to some of the most exotic, playful, and dangerous creatures in the ocean, presented with the kind of intense, almost three-dimensional clarity that can only be achieved in the IMAX format. And while the giant-screen awesomeness of IMAX is lost in translation to DVD, Coral Reef Adventure offers the best-to-date use (on disc 2 of this two-disc set) of High Definition DVD-ROM formatting. For PC users equipped with Windows XP and Windows Media Player 9 series (or later) software, the amazing images in Coral Reef Adventure achieve an almost life-like resolution. The ultimate conclusion remains: If we don't do something to protect these delicate, endangered wonders of nature, we will lose a part of ourselves.

MICROCOSMOS captures the fun and adventure of a spectacular hidden universe revealed in a breathtaking, close-up view unlike anything you've ever seen! Your family will marvel at a pair of stag beetles dueling like titans. The kids will stare bug-eyed as a magnificent army of worker ants race to stock their larder ... while tyring to avoid becoming a feisty pheasant's dinner. And you'll have a front-row seat to witness an amazing transformation from caterpillar to butterfly, the remarkable birth of a mosquito, and several other minute miracles of life. With its tiny cast of thousands, MICROCOSMOS leaves no doubt that "Mother Nature remains the greatest special effects wizard of all" (New York Times).

Antarctica is the wildest, coldest, most isolated continent on Earth. Encrusted in 90% of the world's ice, its 5.4 million square miles are doubled each winter by the freezing of the seas. The average temperature at the South Pole is -56, dropping to -90 and below in mid-winter. Yet this inhospitable landscape is home to a surprisingly rich variety of wildlife. Natural history guru David Attenborough and his camera team spent three years braving mountainous seas, blizzards with 100 mph winds, plummeting temperatures and glaciers the size of cathedrals to capture the majesty of Antarctica both on land and underwater. In this starkly beautiful landscape, they discover penguins by the millions, whales by the thousands, half the world's seal population and seabirds galore.

The definitive series on the most colorful, popular and perfectly adapted creatures on earth, The Life of Birds traverses the globe, covering 42 countries and examining over 300 different species. Calling upon the immense skills of many of the world's top wildlife cameramen and women, and pushing filming technology to the limits, new behavior is brought to the screen in staggering detail. Infra-red cameras find oilbirds deep in pitch black caves. Ultra slow motion film unravels the complexities of bird flight and ultraviolet cameras reveal the world from a bird's point of view.

In ten parts, the award-winning David Attenborough (2002 Emmy winner for The Blue Planet: Seas of Life; The Life of Birds) introduces us to the most diverse group of animals ever to live on Earth, from the smallest - the two-inch pygmy shrew, to the largest - the blue whale; from the slowest - the sloth, to the swiftest - the cheetah; from the least attractive - the naked mole rat, to the most irresistible - a human baby. The Life of Mammals is the story of 4,000 species that have outlived the dinosaurs and conquered the farthest places on earth. With bodies kept warm by thick coats of fur and their developing young protected and nourished within their bodies, they have managed to colonize every part of the globe, dry or wet, hot or cold. Their adaptations for finding food have also had a profound effect on the way they move, socialize, mate and breed.

Explore the mysterious Amazon through the amazing IMAX (R) experience and celebrate the beauty, vitality and wonder of this magical rain forest, which is disappearing at an alarming rate. Filmmakers overcame many difficulties to photograph this rarely seen tropical landscape and present it with all the visual power associated with IMAX. Narrated by Academy Award-winning actress Linda Hunt, this unique collaboration between an American scientist and a tribal shaman on a mission to find rare medicinal plants will amaze and astound you.

Filmed off the coast of Southern California, this fascinating film journeys to an enchanting underwater world of swaying kelp forests and glowing corals. Swim nose to nose with colorful garibaldi, starfish and sharks, play tag with sea lions, and observe the rarely-seen behavior of the creatures of the eternal undersea night.

Descend 3,000 feet to an area of the ocean floor never before seen by humankind. The mission: collect rare and unusual species for study at the Smithsonian and elsewhere--all part of a real-life exploration that will discover what is believed to be more than a dozen new species of marine life. Shot on the famed archipelago and in its surrounding waters, Galapagos follows marine biologist Dr. Carole Baldwin as she makes her initial venture into that world first chronicled for science 160 years earlier by Charles Darwin. The tools for Baldwin's team are far different from anything Darwin used, yet one thing is unchanged. The Galapagos Islands remain a stunningly abundant laboratory for exploration.

The IMAX experience has revolutionized the viewing habits of viewers, bringing some remarkably lifelike 3-D effects into movie theaters across the globe. The films themselves are often fascinating, as illustrated by this collection of wildlife presentations that originated in the format. Whether encountering a terrifying dinosaur or exploring the depths of the ocean, this educational and entertaining release is designed to provide hours of engrossing fun for viewers of all ages.

A 6 volume DVD Collector's Set that features the best of National Geographic nature. You save nearly $80 off the total price of the individual DVDs! Set includes: Tigers of the Snow, Volcano: Nature's Inferno, Super Croc, Surviving Everest, Dinosaur Hunters, and Asteroids: Deadly Impact.