The Ultimate Guide - Season 1

First aired: 4/21/1996 23 episodes

Episodes

1. T-Rex

Aired: 4/21/1996

Sixty-five million years ago, a world that belonged to the dinosaurs suffered a cosmic catastrophe, obliterating the kingdom of Tyrannosaurus rex. For the sixty-five million years folllowing, the bones of the last king of the dinosaurs lay hidden. Then, at the turn of the 20th Century, scientists began to coax the first fragments from the badlands of western North America. They found a super-carnivore that stood eighteen feet tall and was forty feet from head to tail. Today, the bones of Tyrannosaurus rex allow us to encounter the greatest meat-eating machine of the prehistoric world, and T. rex has become the most famous of all the dinosaurs, an ultimate expression of savagery and power.

2. Sharks

Aired: 8/11/1996

Documentary combining wildlife cinematography and 3-D graphics to explore the evolutionary history, survival skills and mating habits of several shark species, as well as the animals' consequential role in marine life and ocean ecosystems.

3. Snakes

Aired: 3/16/1996

Documentary explores the natural habitats of snakes, providing a unique perspective. Computer graphics are used to illustrate how serpents have evolved and how their unique bodies allow them to thrive around the world.

4. Elephants

Aired: 4/6/1997

Documentary explores the wildlife behavior of elephants, using cutting-edge computer animation to examine the evolution of the largest land animal.

5. Dogs

Aired: 5/25/1997

At times, dogs appear to move and react like wild animals. Yet they are, by definition, domesticated. In perhaps only fourteen thousand years, humans have modified and manipulated a single species to create more than four hundred breeds. But for all their variety of appearance, all dogs are simply mutations of their closest ancestral relative... the wolf. How did the dog come to be so successfully domesticated from its wild ancestors? Dr. Rodney Honeycutt discusses the genetics of domestication and some of the special qualities of the dog, such as its phenomenal senses of hearing, smell, and taste. A survey of strange and wonderful breeds of dogs is presented, from dogs that whistle to dogs that sing, and the vulpines (foxes) which can climb trees. Also, some of the unique jobs of dogs are explored, from sniffing out termites, to herding goats and finding missing persons.

6. Great Apes

Aired: 7/13/1997

The great apes - ingenious, clever, perceptive - are the closest thing humans have to living relatives. These thoughtful and creative tool users continue to surprise researchers with their exhibitions of self-awareness and an apparent ability to reach into the minds of others. Explore the striking physical features, evolution, social structure, habitat, and communication skills of the great apes. Computer graphics, 3-D animation, and spectacular wildlife film footage give a detailed look at the lives of these endangered mammals. Scientists discuss the genealogy and evolution of the apes, as well as providing facts and stories about the unique qualities of these creatures who so closely resemble humans.

7. Big Cats

Aired: 9/14/1997

This documentary from the Discovery Channel drops the viewer into the feline world of the big cats of the jungle and the domain that they rule. Part of the 'Ultimate Guide', this episode is a look at everything furry and ferocious beneath the green and brown of the underbrush. Follow in the tracks of the explosive cheetah, a man-eating tiger and the king of the jungle, the African lion. Travel with roaming hunters as they stalk their prey, with such weaponry as night-vision and enhanced hearing capability. Added bonus segment includes the mystery behind the legend of the infamous saber-toothed tiger.

8. Whales

Aired: 11/16/1997

Documentary providing a reference guide to whales. Includes background on their evolutionary past and their scientific development into the complex species that exist today.

9. Bears

Aired: 1/18/1998

Documentary compares and contrasts the similarities and differences among all eight species of bears, including the grizzly, polar, panda, black, spectacled, sloth, moon and sun bears.

10. Birds of Prey

Aired: 4/5/1998

Documentary special about birds of prey, including golden eagles, turkey vultures and barn owls. Examines what makes each species special, as well as the traits they all share. Includes interviews with scientists and animated segments.

11. Octopus

Aired: 9/20/1998

Eight legs, three hearts, and a wealth of suction cups - the octopus is one of nature's most curious creations. Color-blind, it still can mimic multicolored backgrounds, and even use color to communicate. Shy and retiring, these cephalopods are hard to find and study, but Ultimate Guide: Octopus reveals their secrets, with amazing, up-close footage of a creature that prefers not to be seen.

12. Horses

Aired: 11/30/1998

The Ultimate Guide: Horses is part of the Discovery Channel's nature series. Exploring the life of the powerful and majestic horse, the program features beautiful footage of horses in running packs, horses being born, horses gently grazing, and more. Expert commentary provides an educational overview of the dynamic creature, its life cycle and daily habits.

13. Crocodiles

Aired: 3/22/1999

They can live for a century, wait a year between meals, and deliver 16 tons of crushing force with their jaws. Is it any wonder the ancient Egyptians revered the crocodile? Examine the unique talents — including infrasonic communication and suspended animation — that make the world's largest reptile such a tenacious predator and survivor.

14. Ants

Aired: 4/5/1999

Documentary that reveals the life of ants through graphics, natural history footage and interviews with entomologists.

15. Dolphins

Aired: 7/19/1999

Almost everybody loves dolphins. Some people think of them as being cooperative, intelligent and caring. Others even view them as being highly evolved versions of ourselves. Now the latest research has shed new light on these fascinating creatures, and some of it is surprising. In this Ultimate Guide volume, experience the beauty and wonder of dolphins and their underwater realm. Marvel at their spectacular - and seemingly impossible - acrobatics. Dive with them to depths of six hundred feet. Learn about their complex social skills, and discover the fantastically diverse membership of this far-flung family - including the mysterious freshwater dolphins of China, India and South America

16. House Cats

Aired: 11/29/1999

Covering the domestic cat in great detail, The Ultimate Guide: House Cats is both informative and humourous. Illustrated in detail are how man and cats have become companions over the last 4,000 years and how the cat has never really been domesticated even though we think they've been. The familiar Ultimate Guide techniques are used to demonstrate why they can see in the dark, why they can jump so high and why they land on their feet. Also, explore a house with a 150 foot cat path that runs through the entire house, hanging from the ceiling.

17. Human Body

Aired: 3/20/2000

A tour through the human body, from skeleton to skin, from the senses to organs and cells. Utilizes microscopic and endoscopic filming, extreme close-ups, computer-generated graphics and animation, slow motion and time-lapse macro photography, and MRI scans of brain activity

18. Planes

Aired: 5/22/2000

Documentary examining the science, safety and history of aviation. Traces the evolution of planes through one century and two world wars. Uses graphics and animation to explain basics of flight, from the components most planes share to the physics that makes planes defy gravity.

19. Extreme Weather

Aired: 8/28/2000

Sun, wind, and rain are basic to life, but sometimes the weather is more than just that. Sometimes it's stronger, violent. The wind becomes a tornado, the rain a hurricane. The Earth's atmosphere, for a moment, makes it uninhabitable. And there's nothing we can do about extreme weather but try to predict it, prepare for it and hope that it never happens here. This DVD from the Discovery Channel looks at the innermost workings of a storm system to reveal the visible and invisible forces that drive our weather. Using the latest satellite imagery and 3D graphic animation, trade-winds, tornadoes, lightning, monsoon, and hurricanes are examined in detail. From the aurora borealis to the bizarre downpouring of fish and frogs, we learn that the earth's atmosphere is a delicate and ever-changing environment. Finally we delve into the past to discover how earth's volcanic origins helped create weather as we know it.

20. Mummies

Aired: 10/30/2000

Documentary that unwraps the mystery of mummification, a practice that has permeated almost every age and culture. Using computer graphics and animation, archival images and reconstruction, the program takes viewers back 5000 years into the embalming tents of the ancient Egyptians, where royal brains were removed, liquefied and then poured out in order to achieve successful mummification. The program also travels back to the Iron Age peat bogs of England, where acidic, super-saturated conditions left a preserved man. Finally, viewers are transported into the future of digital immortality; through a complex system of photographing and scanning each slice of the body of an executed death-row inmate, scientists are able to produce the most complete, detailed set of information that has ever existed of the insides of the human body-- the first virtual mummy.

21. Submarines

Aired: 2/5/2001

Modern submarines, enormous ships that are self-contained wonders of technology, are able to produce oxygen and water for their occupants. They are equipped with their own power plants, and feature sophisticated food service, entertainment facilities, firefighting stations, and a place for worship. Ultimate Guide: Submarines demonstrates how the submarine has developed since its first appearance in the Revolutionary War. In addition, scientists are harnessing the power of submarine-like vehicles to investigate the depths of the oceans.

22. Pyramids

Aired: 5/7/2001

Documentary that goes inside the framework of pyramids to show how these structures have changed over time, starting as flat-roofed houses and evolving into temples and grave sites. The program recontructs how these fabled pyramids and their cities must have looked at the peak of their civilizations.

23. Spiders

Aired: 7/9/2001

Documentary about spiders, showing how arachnids jump, spin webs and poison and digest their prey. Covered by only a thin skin, their tiny bodies are extremely delicate, yet their venom can be lethal. The Sydney Funnel Web weighs just four-hundredths of an ounce, but it has half-inch fangs, sharp enough to pierce a toenail, and the most toxic spider venom known to man.