Season 15
(1988)
Cast
Episodes
Top Gun and Beyond 0.0
January 19, 1988
Today's sophisticated fighter jets can almost fly themselves, but well-trained pilots are still needed to win air battl…
How to Create a Junk Food 0.0
January 26, 1988
Julia Child introduces NOVA's behind-the-scenes look at how science aids in the creation of snack foods.
Buried in Ice 0.0
February 2, 1988
Scientists investigate the frozen remains of members of the 19th century Franklin Expedition to the Canadian Arctic and…
Why Planes Burn 0.0
February 9, 1988
Airplane fires are often deadly. NOVA looks at efforts to make fires aboard planes less likely and more survivable.
Battles in the War on Cancer: A Wonder Drug on Trial 0.0
February 23, 1988
In part one of a two-part special presentation, NOVA reports on the trials to determine whether the new drug Interleuki…
Battles in the War on Cancer: Turning the Tide 0.0
March 1, 1988
Breast cancer claims the lives of four American women every hour. Jane Pauley of NBC News hosts and narrates this NOVA …
The Mystery of the Master Builders 0.0
March 8, 1988
Princeton professor and author Robert Mark tracks down the engineering secrets of some of the beautiful buildings in th…
Whale Rescue 0.0
March 15, 1988
It was a blustery day in December 1986, and the New England Coast was in the midst of a winter storm, accompanied by st…
The Man Who Loved Numbers 0.0
March 22, 1988
NOVA explores the life of Srinivasa Ramanujan, a poor clerk from India who astounded mathematicians in the 1910s with h…
Race for the Superconductor 0.0
March 29, 1988
NOVA charts an electronics revolution in the making as Japan and the United States race to develop a material that will…
Can You Still Get Polio? 0.0
April 5, 1988
Most cases of polio in this country are caused by the vaccine designed to prevent it. NOVA examines the controvery surr…
Pioneers of Surgery: The Brutal Craft 0.0
September 6, 1988
Part one of a four-part series on the pioneers of modern surgery relives the early days, when surgery was practiced wit…
Pioneers of Surgery: Into the Heart 0.0
September 13, 1988
Once unthinkable, open-heart surgery is now an everyday miracle. NOVA looks at the brave doctors and patients who make …
Pioneers of Surgery: New Organs for Old 0.0
September 20, 1988
From kidneys to hearts, NOVA examines the daring attempts to replace diseased organs with transplanted ones.
Pioneers of Surgery: Beyond the Knife 0.0
September 27, 1988
Surgeons have always been eager to help patients, even at the risk of killing them. NOVA looks at some of the excesses …
Can the Vatican Save the Sistine Chapel? 0.0
October 4, 1988
Science meets art in the controversial effort to restore Michelangelo's famous Sistine Chapel frescoes.
Can the Next President Win the Space Race? 0.0
October 11, 1988
Thirty years after Sputnik, the United States space program is mired in uncertainty, while the Russians, Europeans, Jap…
Do Scientists Cheat? 0.0
October 18, 1988
NOVA examines the troubling question of scientific fraud: How prevalent is it? Who commits it? And what happens when th…
Who Shot President Kennedy? 0.0
November 15, 1988
Using previously unavailable technology, NOVA probes the available evidence surrounding the 1963 assassination of John …
The Light Stuff 0.0
November 22, 1988
Reliving a Greek myth takes an effort of mythic proportions, as NOVA reveals in its behind-the-scenes report of a human…
The All-American Bear 0.0
December 6, 1988
The life of the shy, intelligent black bear in the wild—foraging, mating, playing and constantly preparing for its rema…
Can We Make a Better Doctor? 0.0
December 13, 1988
NOVA embarks on a 10-year project to profile—in its entirety—the education of a doctor. In the premiere episode, we fol…