Superquark - Season 14 (2007)

Superquark begins this year with an exploration of Planet Earth, the first of a beautiful series of documentaries made by the BBC in the most hidden and fascinating corners of the planet. In this episode, the journey from one pole to the other in the observation of the main ingredients that have shaped our earth as it is: salt, water, atmosphere, inclination of the earth's axis, etc. Alberto Angela and Michelangelo Pepe will accompany us in the exploration of one of the largest catacombs of Roman times, those of Peter and Marcellinus on the Via Casilina, which extend for a few dozen kilometers and preserve spectacular traces of wall paintings. A strange disorder, prosopagnosia, that is, the difficulty in recognizing faces, cited by the famous neurologist Oliver Sacks, in the case of an English girl told by Marco Visalberghi. Radar and sonar derived from the observation of bats and dolphins, hang gliders from the study of the remiges of condors and so on.

In this episode of Superquark, the documentary from the BBC Planet Earth series focuses on fresh water, our most precious resource, which constitutes only 3% of the planet's water. The directions in which it falls or flows determine the distribution of life forms on Earth. The cameras will follow the course of rivers, from their sources to the sea, exploring waterfalls, canyons, lakes and swamps, with their fauna and incredible landscapes, shaped and brought to life by water. Incinerators, regasification plants, TAV... The planet of protest and protest against major works (the so-called NIMBY, "Not in my back yard") which, at least in theory, should promote the development of the country, in the report by Lorenzo Pinna and Vanessa Strizzi. Alberto Angela and Michelangelo Pepe will accompany us in the exploration of Castel dell'Ovo in Naples. It only seems like an ancient fortress, but in reality it holds 2700 years of history.

In this episode of Superquark, the documentary from the BBC Planet Earth series deals with mountains. When a man reaches the top of a mountain, he is pleased to have conquered it, but mankind can only visit this hostile world. Planet Earth presents the ‘real’ inhabitants of the mountains and reveals the secrets of their survival on the highest peaks of the planet, in an extreme environment made of rocks, ice and snow, a vertical life as impervious to man as the surface of another planet. What links a rich tomb of Ancient Rome with an expedition to the seabed of Puglia? Stories of tombs, sarcophagi and shipwrecks in the report by Alberto Angela and Michelangelo Pepe. Today many types of drugs circulate in the world. However, one, despite being different from the others, generates a similar addiction and similar consequences: gambling. In the report by Marco Visalberghi. Thanks to the oil extracted from the seabed, Brazil manages to be energy self-sufficient.

In this episode of Superquark, the documentary from the BBC series Planet Earth deals with Caves. Caves are one of the few habitats not directly influenced by sunlight, but this does not prevent life. The cameras venture into the darkness to reveal an underground world made of caves, caverns and tunnels that very few humans have seen, such as the Grotta delle Rondini in Mexico, a 400-meter cliff deep enough to swallow the Empire State Building. For some it is the drug of the rich, for others it is the dust of success. In reality, Cocaine is no longer the vice of a privileged few, and much less does it represent a shortcut to obtaining easy successes in professional life. It is just a drug, today among the most widespread, but also among the most devastating. The biochemical mechanisms of this addiction in the report by Marco Visalberghi. Two important wrecks have been found in the Ligurian Sea.

In this episode we will continue our journey to discover planet Earth. This time we will go underwater to discover things never seen before. Then we will see: the Transmilenio, Bogota's public transport system. Among the wrecks at the bottom of the Mediterranean, a ship of the sky, the B-17 bomber. A masterpiece that was thought to be lost discovered by new technologies. Can winds and computers find a common language? Music from garbage: playing Mozart with recycled materials. The great plague epidemics of the past, a tragedy but also an opportunity for growth. Two generations compared: how Italian homes have changed in the last fifty years. What is inside the thousands of beauty products that women spread on their bodies every day? A journey into the minds of animals: dogs and monkeys, two intelligences compared.