Sci-Trek
By Anne Louise Bannon,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Natural doom and gloom may be too frightening for kids.
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What's the Story?
SCI-TREK uses high definition images to tell stories about natural events around the globe, focusing on a different phenomenon in each installment. Many of the topics center on potential danger to humankind -- for example, the episode on volcanoes looks at all the ways that volcanoes can be deadly, only spending five minutes on the ways that eruptions actually benefit the earth.
Is It Any Good?
The show's visuals are unquestionably spectacular. But its tendency to anthropomorphize inanimate objects is ridiculous. Yes, volcanoes are dangerous, and their eruptions are often deadly and devastating. But it's just plain silly to refer to a volcano's "weapons" or suggest that one could "convict a volcano of mass murder."
Granted, nature isn't benign, and shows that present the natural world as a happy, perfectly safe place aren't realistic, either But Sci-Trek seems to go too far in the other direction, making it seem as though we're unbelievably lucky to survive from day to day.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how the show's narration compares to the images on the screen. Do you think it exaggerates how much deadly peril people are in? Why do you think the producers would choose to take that angle? Parents: Ask your kids to "do the math," so to speak. Can they figure out what the real risk is of dying in, say, a volcano erruption?
TV Details
- Premiere date: February 4, 2008
- Cast: Michio Kaku
- Network: Discovery Channel
- Genre: Educational
- Topics: Science and Nature
- TV rating: TV-G
- Last updated: December 22, 2022
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