Search - NOVA: Mystery of the Megaflood (2005) on DVD

Science and how it works

Science Teacher | Stockbridge, GA USA | 02/24/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As Louis Pastuer said when accepting an award from the French Academy of Science "No new idea is accepted by science without resistance". This idea of a great flood was a revolutionary idea. The resistance was based on what was known by geologists at the time. Frequently, a new idea must wait for acceptance as a mainstream belief until the old scientists are dead and the younger scientists who grew with the idea are then in charge. I will be using this video in a geology course not just for the geology but as an example of how science works and how ideas evolve."

Northwestener's Required Viewing

J. Luckey | 03/31/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I originally stumbled onto this video while routinely watching NOVA. I sat spellbound and immediately ordered our own family copy. While this geologic event may seem most meaningful to Northwestern residents, it has some ageless philosophical as well as scientific overtones. It also provides a glimpse into the extreme natural swings in climate change that happened a relatively short time ago without any influence by man. And it provides a classic historical lesson that valid scientific conclusions should not be based on a popular vote."

Truly Exciting Nonfiction

Barry Hampe | Lake Ridge, VA USA | 01/26/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"NOVA at its very best deals with a scientific investigation by telling fascinating stories with pictures. This film is a superb example. We learn that during the last ice age, an ice dam half a mile high blocked a valley in Montana, creating an enormous lake behind it. Then, for reasons explained in the film, the dam suddenly collapsed, releasing a towering wall of water that pushed along everything in its way. The theory is nicely explained with a combination of footage from actual geological sites and animation that shows how these sites probably came to be. And then we learn this happened not once, but many times, as Earth went through extreme periods of warming and cooling long before humans arrived on the scene.

Any would-be documentarian should study this film (and others like it) to learn how to get beyond tedious interviews and uninspiring B-roll footage to a truly exciting way to present nonfiction on video.
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Great for younger audiences

Rolland M. Waters | Sandpoint, ID USA | 05/12/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Once again Nova ignites the love of learning! My 7 year old loves this DVD, but then again we're locals. We live in the middle of the Purcell Trench, drive through part of the Scablands to see one set of grandparents and were just in Missoula last summer with the other set.

Nonetheless, the formation of the Scablands is such an amazingly catastrophic event that it has to be interesting to almost everybody. A flood averaging over 10 cubic miles an hour for two whole days has to excite the imagination, and the flood floor is fully visible.

For adults, there's a bit too much un-required jerking in the camera work. An accurate map of the Scablands, the ice dam, and Glacial Lake Missoula, each of which are roughly 100 miles apart would have been nice as well. These are minor flaws and are easily remedied by picking up a copy of the book "Glacial Lake Missoula" by David Alt.
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