June 16, 2008
New Digital Videos Covering Architecture, the Environment, Foster Care, Physicians Assistants and More.
Want to learn more about a particular subject or a future career? Need a video clip to show in class or spice up a presentation? OhioLINK's Educational Films & Documentaries collection offers more than 2,200 digital, educational videos that you can stream or download from your desktop to show in class, link to from course pages and utilize for research. New videos, on a wide variety of topics, are regularly added to this growing collection.
Some of the newest digital videos include:
Battle of the Brains: The Case for Multiple Intelligences
(BBCW Production, 2007, 50 minutes)
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 scanning technology at UC Davis' M.I.N.D. Institute,
the program brings together a group of obviously bright and talented people
and presents them with trials of all shapes and sizes. The results establish
the validity of measuring not just what people know but also the equally
important ways in which they exercise their practical, creative, emotional,
and kinesthetic IQs.
Environmental Issues and Human Impact
(Cambridge Core Science Series: GeoBasics, Cambridge Educational Production, 2006, 22 minutes)
This video looks at urgent environmental concerns facing planet Earth and what people can do to repair the degradation humans have caused. Air and
water pollution, the effects of pollution on health and the environment, deforestation and loss of wetlands, ozone depletion and global warming,
and the negative impact of agriculture, construction, and recreation/tourism
are discussed. The program ends with anti-pollution initiatives like recycling
and greater energy efficiency. The key message? Individuals can make a difference!
Families First
(Films for the Humanities and Sciences, 90 minutes)
Foster care in America, which was designed as a last resort for families in trouble, has become a commonplace experience for many children today. In this program, Bill Moyers examines a growing national movement that has achieved success in keeping troubled families together through the innovative strategy of working with them in their homes. Modeled after a 1974 pioneer
project called "Homebuilders," this approach is known as "family
preservation services" (FPS). In the program, we visit with families
throughout the U.S. as they deal with personal crises that threaten them
with the loss of their children to foster care. Their stories, and the stories of the caseworkers who help them learn the skills they need to stay together,
offer a candid look at one of our society's most distressing problems, and
at a promising approach to coping with it.
Frank Gehry and Alvar Aalto: Ideas and Influences
(Films for the Humanities and Sciences, 2006, 31 minutes)
Celebrated architect Frank Gehry lives and works in Los Angeles--a
world away from Finland, where his idol, the late Alvar Aalto, created stunning
additions to the urban landscape and helped originate Scandinavian modernism.
This film studies parallels between the two creative giants, examining their
respective styles and documenting an in-depth conversation about Aalto between Gehry and architect Juhani Pallasmaa. Several works are discussed--including Aalto's Saynatsalo Town Hall and National Pension Institution, and Gehry's Walt Disney Concert Hall--while commentary from L.A. Philharmonic conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen further illuminates Gehry's ideas.
Intelligent Design vs. Evolution
(ABC News, 2005, 22 min.)
Confronting one of the most complex and potentially divisive issues on the
American cultural landscape, this ABC News program examines the intellectual
and political forces that support the teaching of intelligent design in
public schools. The video focuses on the Discovery Institute, a Seattle-based
think tank that has generated widespread enthusiasm--and criticism--for
making I.D. part of science curricula. Also featured is an in-depth debate
between George Will and Cal Thomas, two conservative commentators who differ on whether a non-testable, quasi-religious belief should be promoted in
biology courses. The result is an effective springboard for class discussion
on an extremely challenging topic.
Madeleine Albright: Fighting Genocide in Kosovo
(Women of Destiny, Lessons in Leadership series, Films for the Humanities
and Sciences, 2005, 40 minutes)
For former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, the war in Kosovo was
both political and very personal. This program focuses on how America's
first female Secretary of State built national and international consensus
against Slobodan Milosevic to derail his agenda of ethnic cleansing in the
wake of the failed Rambouillet peace negotiations. Albright also discusses
the shaping of her values through both her early years of life in the Europe
of Hitler and Stalin and her family losses to the Holocaust. Positive comments
on what it was like to be a high-ranking woman in the male-dominated world
of politics and diplomacy round out the program.
Physician Assistant
(Series: Meridian Allied Health Series II, Meridian Production, 2008, 23
minutes)
Although it requires far less time and training, the job of Physician Assistant
brings with it many of the challenges and rewards of being a doctor. This
program explores the responsibilities of the Physician Assistant, the skills
and personality traits needed to become one, and the financial and personal
advantages that most people in the position enjoy. Including interviews
with both young and veteran P.A.s, the program describes their rigorous
training and their typical duties, such as performing preliminary exams
for the supervising physician and providing diagnoses or prescriptions with
no help from a doctor. The opportunity to work in a variety of clinical
settings and help patients of all backgrounds is also emphasized. Students
are urged to get started early by taking the right high school courses and
volunteering at clinics and hospitals. A viewable/printable instructor's
guide is available online. Correlates to national and state board certification
standards.
The Power of Art: Bernini
(Simon Schama's The Power of Art series, BBCW, 2006, 52 min.)
Although rendered in stone, the sculptures of Gian Lorenzo Bernini convey
a sense of weightlessness perhaps unequalled in the history of Western art.
This program illustrates Bernini's nearly miraculous ability to turn marble
into a vessel of rapture, both spiritual and sexual. With The Ecstasy of
Saint Theresa as his principal focus, presenter Simon Schama examines numerous works by the prodigious artist—David, Apollo and Daphne, The Rape of Proserpina, Bust of Cardinal Scipione Borghese, Bust of Constanza Bonarelli, and more. Schama also addresses the failure of Bernini's bell tower at St. Peter's Basilica and recounts the fierce rivalries and amorous misadventures that shaped the sculptor's life and career.
Santiago Calatrava
(Films for the Humanities & Sciences Production, 2007, 25 minutes)
A bridge that brings to mind a harp. A transportation hub reminiscent of a dove. Winner of the IAI Gold Medal as well as the Eugene McDermott Award in the Arts, Santiago Calatrava is celebrated for harmoniously combining sculptural architectural elements with rigid principles of engineering. This program showcases some of Calatrava's most popular projects as it tracks the career of an architect/engineer who is also a skilled artist.
The Educational Films & Documentaries collection is available to all students, faculty members and staff at OhioLINK member institutions. The videos are available for viewing and downloading (for temporary storage only) from on or off campus. Free software from RealNetworks is needed to view these videos. The current version of this software, called "RealPlayer," is available.
Looking for more digital videos? Try these other OhioLINK resources:
- Foreign Language Videos (freely available to anyone worldwide)
- Encyclopedia of Physics Demonstrations