When mankind eventually leaves the cradle of Earth and ventures forth into the uncharted territories of the cosmos, where, and what form, will our new homes take?

It sounds like a Hollywood blockbuster: a deadly asteroid is on a collision course with Earth. But in reality, it's only a matter of time before a giant space rock threatens to wipe out civilization. An asteroid took out the dinosaurs sixty-five million years ago. Are we next? This episode analyzes the threat and explores the many ways--from a nuclear bomb to ingenious new technology--that experts are proposing to stop Armageddon

Low Earth Orbit, 120 miles above sea level, is where the majority of space exploration has occurred. This 1,100 mile band around Earth is where--for a cool $20 million--any private citizen can take the vacation of his or her life on the International Space Station. Commercial prospects for LEO are huge; but dangers lurk for any individual willing to travel here--radiation, cosmic rays, and space debris numbering in the thousands threaten any spacecraft travelling in orbit. It's the new frontier, or the final frontier...and the possibilities are endless if you are willing to travel to the edge of space exploration.

Could nuclear fusion hold the answers to the energy crisis? It is the process that has forged all matter in the universe. It lights the stars and it is what transformed the lighter atoms that formed in the Big Bang into heavier atoms. In Can We Make a Star on Earth?, Brian Cox peers beyond the glare of our Sun to reveal the hidden forces that provide its power. He discovers how this fusion energy has kept our closest star burning for five billion years. Brian believes humanity must build a star on Earth to ensure survival. Will scientists be able to harness fusion power and achieve abundant, cheap, clean energy?

Filmmaker Robert Kenner lifts the veil on our nation's food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that's been hidden from the American consumer with the consent of our government's regulatory agencies, USDA and FDA. Our nation's food supply is now controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihood of the American farmer, the safety of workers and our own environment. We have bigger-breasted chickens, the perfect pork chop, insecticide-resistant soybean seeds, even tomatoes that won't go bad, but we also have new strains of e coli--the harmful bacteria that cause illness for an estimated 73,000 Americans annually. We are riddled with widespread obesity, particularly among children, and an epidemic level of diabetes among adults Featuring interviews with such experts as Eric Schlosser (Fast Food Nation), Michael Pollan (The Omnivore's Dilemma) along with forward thinking social entrepreneurs like Stonyfield Farms' Gary Hirschberg and Polyface Farms' Joe Salatin, the film reveals surprising--and often shocking truths--about what we eat, how it's produced, who we have become as a nation and where we are going from here.

Werner Boote presents an up-close and personal view of the controversial and fascinating material that has found its way into every facet of our daily lives: plastic. He takes us on a journey around the globe, showing that plastics have become a threat for both environment and human health.