"The Private Life of Plants" information

[David Brown]

This is a posting from 1998 with reflections about "Private Lives"
==============================================+

Ian,
       The videos are well done. Only a few errors in 
content are present, for example, it makes the mistake
of interchanging pollination and fertilization. The video segments 
run all over the world to find exceptional plants.They pick them 
around themes that seem "off the wall" using themes never used 
with a plant science textbook. So the videos never really "fit".
They remain however in my opinion quality material
that you must "shoe-horn" into somewhere in your class or labs.
        Some would be offended by the anthropomophism and
perhaps teology presented. But no one could justifiabliy be
offended by incredible time lapse photography that even extends
between seasons of the year. This capture of seasons is better
presented if not only presented about plants with this video series.	
        They must have had a large budget to do this series
because they travel everywhere and stay with a particular
plant long enough to get quality footage and quality sound.
They must have dragged a lot of gear around a lot of
isolated places. 
        I have not yet seen the book about the series since
it has not come into our library yet. I have hired a better
student to make outlines of each video. The handouts
provides the students something I can require them to 
know even though the videos quickly jump from topic
to topic.
-----------------------here is the information-----------------
        The video is from PBS at the URL:
 
                http://shop.pbs.org/K6eq8O0UFF/products/A1669/

        The main text from that site is as follows:

                            THE PRIVATE LIFE OF PLANTS 

   You'll never look at your garden the same way again after you 
witness this amazing series. World-renowned naturalist David 
Attenborough hosts this dramatic and fast-paced documentary that 
reveals the many astounding ways plants deal with the challenges of 
survival and reproduction in the wild. Breathtaking stop-motion 
photography, shot in some of the world's most remote and beautiful 
locations, shows how seemingly motionless plants can travel, change 
shape and replicate themselves. Discover the ingenious methods 
plants employ to pollinate by attracting a wide variety of insects and 
animals - how they send seeds through the air, in an animal's
            
stomach, or a thousand miles across an ocean. Share Attenborough's 
sense of wonder as he witnesses a carnivorous plant in action, the 
world's largest flower, and the incredible beauty, complexity and majesty 
of the natural world of plants.

                            PRICE: $79.98
                            LENGTH: 4 hours 48 minutes on 6 videocassettes
                            ITEM CODE: A1669-WWV7
                            Closed Captioned

        A book is also available to match the video. It is:

          ISBN is 0-691-00639-3
The Private Life of Plants:   A Natural History of plant behaviour.  by
David Attenborough.  1995.  Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ

        I hope this helps your work.

--------------------your original request--------------------------------
At 03:18 PM 2/25/98 +0100, you wrote:
>
>
>25 February, 1998
>
>
>Dear David
>
>I saw your the questions you sent to Plant Education Network about "The
>Private Life of Plants" videos. I have a question for you - How does one
>get hold of the videos tapes? Who distributes them? The BBC? Do you have an
>address I can contact? How much do they cost
>
>Thank you very much in advance
>
>Yours sincerely
>
>Dr. Ian Max Møller
>Department of Plant Physiology
>Lund University
>Box 117
>S-221 00 Lund
>Sweden
>Tel. +46-46-222 7789
>Fax +46-46-222 4113
>E-mail   ian_max.moller at fysbot.lu.se

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