Nova Sotss Miraget v

Machines are everywhere. They run our factory assembly lines and make our coffee. But robots-machines with human-like capabilities-have long been the stuff of science fiction. Until now. Fueled by an ambitious DARPA challenge, the race is on to design a robot that can replace humans in disaster relief situations. Follow the robots-and the engineers that program them-as they strive to make their way out of the lab and into the real world. But how capable are they, really? How close are we to a future where humanoid robots are part of our everyday lives?

NASA launches its most ambitious hunt for traces of life on Mars, landing a car-sized rover in a rocky, ancient river delta. The rover will stow samples for possible return to Earth and test technology that may pave the way for human travel to Mars.

"This is one of NOVA's shining episodes–one of the most exciting works the venerable series has produced in recent years." – The Christian Science Monitor

If oceans continue to warm at the current pace, coral reefs could be wiped out by the end of the century. But scientists from around the globe are rushing to help corals adapt to a changing climate through assisted evolution.

When the Notre Dame cathedral caught fire in April 2019, Paris came very close to losing over 800 years of history. Now engineers are in a different race against time: to rebuild the roof and secure the medieval structure. Underneath the charred scaffolding and vaulted ceilings of the cathedral, scientists study the components of Notre Dame's iconic structure to puzzle out how best to repair it.

A bold experiment to bring rare and fierce African Wild Dogs back to Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique reveals how predators – and the fear they trigger – play a surprising and crucial role in keeping wild ecosystems healthy.

Just as handwritten records changed how societies work, the printing press transformed the spread of information, igniting the Industrial Revolution. How did technologies–from pen to paper to printing press—make it all possible?

Meet slime molds: the brainless blobs that can learn, make decisions, and navigate mazes. Who says you need brains to be smart? Extremely primitive life-forms called slime molds can navigate mazes, choose between foods, and create efficient networks—no brain required. New research on these organisms, which are neither plant nor animal, could help reveal the fundamental rules underlying all decision making.

Augmenting human intelligence is a lot tougher than it looks; the promise of HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey is still just a fantasy. But scientists are edging closer with machines like "Watson," an IBM computing system that is gearing up for a first-of-its-kind challenge: competing on the game show JEOPARDY!, taking on Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter–two of the show's most successful and celebrated contestants of all time.

Following a trail of fossils found in all the wrong places–beech trees in Antarctica, redwoods and hippo-like mammals in the Arctic–NOVA uncovers the bizarre history of the poles, from miles-thick ice sheets to warm polar forests teeming with life.