(Darwin and Wallace's ideas on the origin of species) Until the 19th century it was believed that many creatures were created spontaneously, like bluebottles in old meat. It took two men years of observation and a flash of illumination to come to the same conclusion: the theory of evolution. These two men were Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace. We also see two experiments which suggest that the building blocks of life could have been created on Earth in boiling heat or in ice.
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"An American Film Festival Award winner, this 13 volume series attempts a massive survey of science, from flint tools to the theory of relativity. The series, a co-production of the BBC and Time-Life Films was made as a science counterpart to "Civilization". It is given superb technical support, with two crews using innovative filming techniques, shooting in 27 countries. Dr. Jacob Bronowski makes for an unorthodox narrator, his non-scripted delivery ranging from hushed awe to trembling passion. He uses the crawling infant, the performing athlete, the development of the hunt and the discovery of fire to illustrate the most distinctive feature of man: imagination. His Scientific-Humanism is often spectacular, always provocative."

http://tinyurl.com/7zcpw2

Episode 1: "Lower than the Angels" (describes evolution of the head)
http://www.videosift.com/video/Ascent-of-man-episode-1-BBC-documentary
Episode 2: Harvest of the Seasons (agriculture and the first settlements)
http://www.videosift.com/video/The-Ascent-of-Man-2-Harvest-of-the-Seasons
Episode 3 : The Grain in the Stone (tools, early human migration)
http://www.videosift.com/video/The-Ascent-of-Man-3-The-Grain-in-the-Stone
Episode 4: The Hidden Structure (fire, metals and alchemy)
http://www.videosift.com/video/The-Ascent-of-Man-4-The-Hidden-Structure
Episode 5: Music of the Spheres (the language of numbers)
http://www.videosift.com/video/The-Ascent-of-Man-5-Music-of-the-Spheres
Episode 6: The Starry Messenger (Galileo's universe)
http://www.videosift.com/video/The-Ascent-of-Man-6-The-Starry-Messenger
Episode 7: The Majestic Clockwork (explores Kepler and Newton's laws)
http://www.videosift.com/video/The-Ascent-of-Man-7-The-Majestic-Clockwork
Episode 8: The Drive for Power (The Industrial Revolution)
http://www.videosift.com/video/The-Ascent-of-Man-8-The-Drive-for-Power
Episode 10: World Within World (the story of the periodic table)
http://www.videosift.com/video/The-Ascent-of-Man-10-World-Within-World
Episode 11: Knowledge or Certainty
http://www.videosift.com/video/The-Ascent-of-Man-11-Knowledge-or-Certainty
Episode 12: Generation upon Generation (genetics)
http://www.videosift.com/video/The-Ascent-of-Man-12-Generation-upon-Generation
Episode 13: The Long Childhood
http://www.videosift.com/video/The-Ascent-of-Man-13-The-Long-Childhood