Thu, Jan 19, 2012
With the help of an animal expert, Harrison finds out how chameleons change colour and viewers find out if they're lion sighted in a colour blindness test. A physicist explains why there are some colours that we can't see, and viewers get a bug's eye view of the world in order to discover how bugs see things that are invisible to humans! Harrison carries out an experiment to see if kids will turn their noses up at a batch of blue scrambled eggs!
Thu, Jan 26, 2012
Harrison visits an entomologist who explains to him how insects that eat insects can replace the poison farmers use to keep bad bugs away from their crops. Harrison is joined by a biologist who puts on a fascinating show and tell with all kinds of live bugs. He then puts school kids to the test by asking them to eat everyday products that most of us don't realize contain...you guessed it...bugs! And viewers find out that a lot of household products are made using insects (everything from carpets to lipstick!). MY GREAT CHALLENGE: Harrison sets up a faceoff between Team Bee and Team Butterfly to see who the best pollinator is! IN THE FIELD: Our roving correspondent Sidney visits a food scientist and a chef who cook her up a tasty bug stir-fry!
Thu, Feb 2, 2012
Harrison investigates intriguing facts about the moon, like why people think wolves howl at the moon (they don't), whether the moon really turns people into werewolves, who the first men on the moon were and why the moon appears to follow us. Viewers at home test out their jumping skills as Harrison demonstrates where we'd be without gravity! MY GREAT CHALLENGE: Using nothing more than a light, their wits, and funny headgear, challengers must figure out why the moon is sometimes full and why at times, it disappears! IN THE FIELD: Harrison goes to...the Moon! Okay, maybe not the actual moon, but a simulated moonscape created by the Space Agency, where astronauts practice their extraterrestrial techniques and test out new equipment. There, a lunar geologist provides the answers to more kid questions, explaining how the Moon was formed and why there are craters.
Thu, Feb 16, 2012
Harrison sets off on an investigation of such sleep phenomena as yawning, snoring, and sleepwalking. Along the way he shows kids how to make other people yawn and how to make it seem like they are fast asleep (with fake snoring!). Viewers get to find out what causes nightmares and how to make bad dreams go away. My Great Challenge: The challengers must have slept in today....there is no great challenge in this episode. In the Field: Harrison explores a sleep lab where he is hooked up to an EEG machine that monitors his brainwaves.
Thu, Feb 23, 2012
Harrison gets permission from his school to build a very large volcano and with the help of a real-life volcanologist he creates a grand finale in the form of one of the largest Mentos and cola eruptions ever concocted on television! Viewers learn what to do if the earth starts shaking. My Great Challenge: Oozing lava must have swallowed up the challengers today. There is no great challenge in this episode. In the Field: Roving reporter Sidney visits an exhibition on volcanoes and earthquakes, and gets to make her own mini-earthquake. She meets an adventurer who goes down inside active volcanoes and gets a live demonstration of how his flame-proof suit works when one of his friends sprays him with liquid fire!
Thu, Mar 1, 2012
With the aid of a wind-tunnel and a four-time national radio-controlled airplane champ, Harrison takes to the school yard to discover why some things fly better than others and viewers find out what it really takes to leave the ground. My Great Challenge: Challengers take part in a paper airplane experiment to see who can make the best wing. In the Field: Harrison goes out into the field with a bird trainer to get a close up look at two of the best flyers in the animal world - an owl and a falcon.
Thu, Mar 8, 2012
Harrison is visited by a real-life television weatherman who shows us how he predicts the weather. Viewers will learn how to gauge wind strength and direction from famous storm chaser George Kourounis as Harrison talks to him live from a location in America's Tornado Alley. My Great Challenge: Harrison and the weatherman create an in-studio challenge where kids try their hand at presenting a weather forecast in front of a green screen. In the Field: Terrible storms must be in the area today...there is no In the Field segment in this episode.
Thu, Mar 15, 2012
Harrison is visited by a microbiologist who helps him take a close look at an invisible world and figure out how to stop viruses from hurting us. In the name of science, Harrison performs a top secret experiment at an elementary school to find out how quickly germs can spread. Viewers at home learn how to grow their own fungus. My Great Challenge: Harrison tests school kids by seeing who among them can get their hands the cleanest. In the Field: Roving reporter Sidney puts on a full containment suit and goes to a high-security lab where the most dangerous viruses in the world are studied. There, she discovers that not all germs are bad, and - surprise - we actually need some of them to survive!
Thu, Feb 9, 2012
Harrison is visited by a very special guest - a parrot - and he tries to figure out if he can understand what it's saying! Meanwhile, viewers get to test out their ability to communicate with dogs. Harrison also discovers why humans speak so many different languages. My Great Challenge: Kids use their hands to pantomime ideas in an effort to communicate like our distant ancestors. In the Field: Harrison sets off to the Sea Aquarium to see if dolphins can understand sign language.