The Nature of Things
{{short description|Canadian television series}}
{{About||the work by Lucretius|De rerum natura|other works|De natura rerum (disambiguation){{!}}De natura rerum}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=June 2011}}
{{Infobox television
| image =
| caption =
| genre = Documentary
| creator =
| director =
| creative_director =
| narrated = Sarika Cullis-Suzuki
Anthony Morgan
| country = Canada
| language = English
| num_series = 59
| num_episodes = 960
| list_episodes = List of The Nature of Things episodes
| executive_producer =
| producer =
| editor =
| location =
| cinematography =
| runtime = 30 minutes (1960-1979), one hour (1979-present)
| network = CBC Television
| first_aired = {{start date|1960|11|6|df=y}}
| last_aired =
| related =
}}
The Nature of Things (formerly, The Nature of Things with David Suzuki) is a Canadian television series of documentary programs. It debuted on CBC Television on 6 November 1960. Many of the programs document nature and the effect that humans have on it, although the program's overall scope includes documentaries on any aspect of science. The program "was one of the first mainstream programs to present scientific evidence on a number of environmental issues, including nuclear power and genetic engineering".{{attribution needed|date=April 2018}}MacDowell, Laurel Sefton. 2012. An environmental history of Canada. Vancouver: UBC Press. Page 248
The series is named after an epic poem by Roman philosopher Lucretius: "De rerum natura"—On the Nature of Things.
History
The first host was Donald Ivey, with Patterson Hume co-hosting many episodes.{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/episodes/50-years-of-the-nature-of-things|title=50 Years of the Nature of Things|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|date=5 January 2012|access-date=2010-02-06}} Following Ivey's departure, the second season continued with several guest hosts, including Lister Sinclair, Donald Crowdis, and John Livingston.{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/timeline.html|title=CBC-TV: The Nature of Things with David Suzuki: History|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|access-date=2010-02-06|url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100806065530/http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/timeline.html | archive-date=2010-08-06}} Since 1979, it has been hosted and narrated by David Suzuki. Suzuki has announced his retirement from the series at the end of the 2022 season;{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/david-suzuki-retires-the-nature-of-things-1.6625011|author=Bernstien, Jaela|title=David Suzuki announces retirement from The Nature of Things, says he's ready to focus more on environmentalism|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|date=2022-10-23 | access-date=2022-12-02}}{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/the-nature-of-things/this-will-be-david-suzuki-s-last-season-of-the-nature-of-things-1.6623629|title=This will be David Suzuki's last season of The Nature of Things|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|date=2022-10-24 | access-date=2022-12-02}}{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/the-nature-of-things/david-suzuki-prepares-to-bid-farewell-to-the-nature-of-things-a-letter-to-viewers-1.6629177|author=Suzuki, David|title=David Suzuki prepares to bid farewell to The Nature of Things: a letter to viewers|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|date=2022-10-25 | access-date=2022-12-02}} the CBC has announced that he will be succeeded by co-hosts Sarika Cullis-Suzuki (David's daughter) and Anthony Morgan.{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/the-nature-of-things/meet-the-new-hosts-of-the-nature-of-things-sarika-cullis-suzuki-and-anthony-morgan-1.6666750|author=Dragacevic, Nina|title=Meet the new hosts of The Nature of Things: Sarika Cullis-Suzuki and Anthony Morgan|publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|date=2022-11-30 | access-date=2022-12-02}}{{cite news|author=Ransome, Noel |url=https://www.nationalobserver.com/2022/12/01/news/sarika-cullis-suzuki-co-host-nature-things-fathers-footsteps| title=Sarika Cullis-Suzuki to co-host 'The Nature of Things' after her father retires|publisher=National Observer|date=December 1, 2022}}
The series has won many awards and Suzuki has won three Gemini Awards and one ACTRA Award as best host. Documentarian William Whitehead has also been a frequent writer for the series.
In 1979 the show was merged with David Suzuki's Science Magazine series and expanded to an hour. Suzuki reluctantly left the radio show Quirks and Quarks. He enjoyed radio as a medium because it was less restricted compared to television, but saw benefits in switching to television. He stated that television had a greater impact as it reached more people, and this was important because he wanted to make science accessible to the general public. The goal of The Nature of Things with David Suzuki was to translate the confusing and complex scientific language into concepts that the general public could understand. This would give people the information that they need in order to make informed decisions about how science and technology should be managed.Suzuki, David T. 2006. [http://www.contentreserve.com/TitleInfo.asp?ID={7B487BD5-65F3-4C8C-A86A-87DF634CDDB4}&Format=410 David Suzuki the autobiography]. Vancouver: Greystone Books
There is one new episode every week which all contribute to a scientific understanding of how the world works. They are created not only for entertainment, but also to encourage and popularize education.{{cite web |url=http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/about/ |title=About the Show |work=The Nature of Things }}
An episode in January 2018 was widely criticized by scientists and Native Americans for its uncritical presentation of the Solutrean hypothesis.{{cite web |title=Director defends documentary that claims Europeans could have been lst humans in North America |url=http://www.cbc.ca/radio/asithappens/as-it-happens-friday-edition-1.4484878/director-defends-documentary-that-claims-europeans-could-have-been-1st-humans-in-north-america-1.4484883 |publisher=CBC Radio |access-date=12 February 2018}}{{cite news |last=Brean |first=Joseph |title=CBC under fire for documentary that says first humans to colonize New World sailed from Europe |url=https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/cbc-under-fire-for-documentary-that-says-first-humans-to-colonize-new-world-sailed-from-europe |newspaper=National Post|date=12 January 2018 }}
In 2023, Suzuki announced his retirement and was succeeded as host by his daughter, Sarika Cullis-Suzuki, and Anthony Morgan in 2024.{{cite web |date=30 December 2023 |title=Welcome to the new Nature of Things! |website=CBC Documentaries |url=https://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/the-nature-of-things/welcome-to-the-new-nature-of-things-1.7066462 }}
Notable episodes
- Wild Africa, 1970 – a film shown in two parts which won the Canadian Film Award for Best DocumentaryMaria Topalovich, And the Genie Goes To ...: Celebrating 50 Years of the Canadian Film Awards. Stoddart Publishing, 2000. {{ISBN|0-7737-3238-1}}. pp. 89–91.
- "Reefer Madness 2", 15 October 1998 – on the effects of medical marijuana and people dealing with its legalization{{cite web |url= http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/show_reefer.html |title=Reefer Madness 2 |work=The Nature of Things with David Suzuki |publisher=CBC-TV |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080113181845/http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/show_reefer.html |archive-date=13 January 2008}}
- "The Investigation of Swissair 111", 2 September 2003{{cite web |url= http://rrj.ca/three-for-the-price-of-one/ |title=Three for the Price of One |work=Ryerson Review of Journalism |first=Talia |last=Maze |date=1 June 2005 |access-date=6 May 2018 }}
- Darwin's Brave New World, 1 November 2009 – a three-part miniseries on the life of Charles Darwin as he wrote The Origin of Species
- "The Downside of High", 2010 – on marijuana's negative effects towards mental illness{{cite news |url= http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/episodes/the-downside-of-high |title=The Downside of High |work=The Nature of Things with David Suzuki |publisher=CBC-TV |url-status=live |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130206120729/http://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/natureofthings/2010/downsideofhigh/ |archive-date=6 February 2013}}
- "Untangling Alzheimer's", 17 July 2014 – a medical investigation from a very personal perspective{{cite news |url= http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/episodes/untangling-alzheimers |title=Untangling Alzheimer's |date=17 July 2014 |publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180115141940/https://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/episodes/untangling-alzheimers |archive-date=15 January 2018 |url-status=dead |access-date=22 November 2019}}
- Wild Canada, 2014 – a four-part miniseries focusing on high-definition video footage of Canadian nature and wildlife
Episodes
{{Main|List of The Nature of Things episodes}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{official website|http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings}}
- {{IMDb title|id=0198190}}
{{CBC Television Shows (current and upcoming)}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nature of Things, The}}
Category:1960 Canadian television series debuts
Category:CBC Television original programming
Category:Canadian Screen Award–winning television shows
Category:Nature educational television series
Category:1960s Canadian documentary television series
Category:1970s Canadian documentary television series
Category:1980s Canadian documentary television series
Category:1990s Canadian documentary television series
Category:2000s Canadian documentary television series
Category:2010s Canadian documentary television series
Category:2020s Canadian documentary television series