SCIENCE IN THE CINEMA

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GENERAL INFORMATION

Science in the Cinema, a program sponsored by the staff of the Scientific Library, combines a movie with audience discussion, both involving a scientific or medical theme. During the program a feature-length movie is shown to the audience. Following the movie, a guest speaker with interest or expertise in the film's subject gives an informal talk about the movie's theme. This 15-20 minute talk usually focuses on the science that is in the movie, whether or not it is realistic, how the science may have changed since the movie was made, and other interesting facts or opinions that the speaker wishes to convey. After the speaker's short presentation, the audience is encouraged to ask questions and offer comments. An alternate schedule may also be presented, where the movie and speaker parts of the program are held on different days. This alternate schedule permits the speaker to have more time to discuss the issues presented in the film. In some instances, a documentary is shown in place of a speaker.

Attending Science in the Cinema programs will allow audience members to gain a deeper understanding of how relevant and important science is in our lives. Attendees can learn how science affects so many different facets of our lives, and have fun at the same time!

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We videotape the Science in the Cinema speakers, purchase videotapes or DVDs of the movies, package them together, and add them to the Scientific Library's circulating audiovisual collection, so that Library barcode holders may check them out to view at home.

Here is a list, alphabetized by film title, of previous Science in the Cinema programs that are in the Library and available for checking out.

• THE 11th HOUR - climate crisis
  Produced, co-written, and narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, this documentary begins by taking a look at the causes of global warming, and then explores solutions, from eating organic to building with solar power. It combines a diverse array of interviews with a dizzying variety of images, both soothing and alarming (droughts and hurricanes vs. serene sunsets and playful polar bears).
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARY: NO IMPACT MAN
  NOTE: This program was a collaboration between the Scientific Library and the NCI Green Team .
  WHAT CAN I DO? - information to help save the environment

• AIDS JAAGO - AIDS
  Under the auspices of Mirabai Films and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the AIDS JaaGO Project presents four short dramatic films by cutting-edge Indian directors who aim to dismantle myths and misconceptions about HIV/AIDS. The film titles are Migration , Blood Brothers , Positive , and Prarambha .
  SPEAKER: Dr. Stephen Hughes, Head of the Vector Design and Replication Section, Chief of the Retroviral Replication Laboratory, and Director of the HIV Drug Resistance Program at NCI-Frederick, discusses "AIDS Research Through the Years @ NCI-Frederick."
  Bibliography

• ALEX: THE LIFE OF A CHILD - cystic fibrosis
  This inspiring, 1986 made-for-TV movie starring Craig T. Nelson and Bonnie Bedelia, is based on Frank Deford's book.
  REWARDS: a Multi-Part Learning Program is co-sponsored by Occupational Health Services (OHS), the Frederick Employee Diversity Team, and the Scientific Library.
  BOOK: ALEX: THE LIFE OF A CHILD by Frank Deford; Call Number: WI 8920 .D315 (10 copies)
  SPEAKERS: Dr. Mike Dean, Chief, and Dr. Bert Gold, senior staff scientist and licensed genetic counselor, both in the Human Genetics Section, Laboratory of Genomic Diversity, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• AND THE BAND PLAYED ON - AIDS
  This 1993 movie offers a historical look at the history of AIDS, from the early days in 1978 when gay men in San Francisco began dying from a mysterious illness, to the identification of the HIV virus. The multi-star cast includes Matthew Modine, Alan Alda, Lily Tomlin, Richard Gere, Anjelica Huston, Steve Martin, Ian McKellen, and Charles Martin Smith. The movie is based on the 1987 book AND THE BAND PLAYED ON: POLITICS, PEOPLE, AND THE AIDS EPIDEMIC, written by Randy Shilts.
  SPEAKER: Dr. Larry Arthur, Head of the Retroviral Vaccine Section, Associate Director of the AIDS Vaccine Program of NCI-Frederick, and Principal Investigator of Operations and Technical Support of SAIC-Frederick, Inc.
  Bibliography

• A BEAUTIFUL MIND - schizophrenia
  Russell Crowe plays John Nash, the brilliant mathematician who suffered from schizophrenia but eventually overcame it and won a Nobel Prize. Jennifer Connelly plays Mrs. Nash in this Academy Award-winning film.
  SPEAKER: Dr. Amar Klar, Section Head, Gene Regulation & Chromosome Biology Laboratory, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• THE CARTOON MEDICINE SHOW: ANIMATED CARTOONS FROM THE COLLECTIONS OF THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF MEDICINE - medical cartoons
  This unique DVD features a rich sampling of rarely screened animated medical cartoons from the 1940s to the 1960s. From the silent era to the present, physicians, health professionals, governmental agencies, like the U.S. Public Health Service, and voluntary associations, such as the American Cancer Society, have sought to use motion pictures to advance medical science, train doctors and nurses, and educate the public. The DVD presents a variety of medical themes and genres, including dental hygiene, physical fitness, physiology, venereal disease, tuberculosis, cancer, and radiation safety, in 10 to 15 short animated medical cartoons.
  SPEAKERS: Dr. Michael Sappol and Dr. David Cantor, historians at the National Library of Medicine

• CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY - "The Science of Chocolate"
  This 1971 movie stars Gene Wilder as a very unusual candy maker, who gives a poor boy the prize of a lifetime: a tour of the most wonderful candy factory in the world.
  SPEAKERS: Dr. David A. Stuart, Director, Nutrition & Natural Products, and Dr. Debra L. Miller, Senior Nutrition Scientist, Nutrition & Natural Products. Both scientists work for The Hershey Company
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARY: AMERICAN EATS: CHOCOLATE
  ADDITIONAL MOVIE: WILLIE WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY
  Bibliography

• CHILDREN OF A LESSER GOD - deafness
  William Hurt plays a newly-hired teacher at a school for deaf children, where he meets the deaf janitor, played by Marlee Matlin. While trying to teach deaf students how to speak, Hurt also reaches out to the withdrawn, antisocial Matlin.
  REWARDS: a Multi-Part Learning Program is co-sponsored by Occupational Health Services (OHS), the Frederick Employee Diversity Team, and the Scientific Library.
  BOOK: IN THIS SIGN by Joanne Greenberg; CALL NUMBER: PS 3557.R3784 .G795 1984 (10 copies)
  SPEAKERS: Ms. Lisa Houck and Ms. Louise Hansch, Itinerant Teachers for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Frederick County Public Schools
  NOTE: No speaker video is available for this topic.
  Bibliography

• COMMON THREADS: STORIES FROM THE QUILT - AIDS
  This Academy-Award-winning film recounts the lives and deaths of various victims of AIDS who are commemorated in the AIDS quilt. The quilt is a massive cloth collecting each piece as a memorial for each victim of the disease to both show the death toll and to show the humanity of the victims.
  SPEAKER: Ethan Zohn , the 2003 winner of the television reality show SURVIVOR: AFRICA, and co-founder of GRASSROOTSOCCER (GRS), a non-profit organization that provides African youth with the knowledge, skills, and support to live HIV-free.
  Bibliography

• CONTAGION - the plague
  A young woman and her son die from a mysterious flu-like illness, but her husband seems immune. Thus begins the spread of a lethal airborne virus that kills within days. The doctors and administrators at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control must identify the type of virus in question and then find a means of combating it, a process that will likely take several months. As the contagion spreads to millions of people worldwide, societal order begins to break down as people panic.
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARY: PLAGUE

• THE CURE - children with AIDS
  An 11-year-old boy with AIDS is befriended by a neighbor boy. Together the two boys plan to build a raft and float down the Mississippi River to get to Mexico, where they have heard there is a cure for AIDS.
  SPEAKER: Dr. Katherine Luzuriaga, Professor of Pediatrics and Molecular Medicine and Chief of the Division of Pediatric Immunology, Infectious Diseases, and Rheumatology, University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS)
  NOTE: This program was a collaboration between the Scientific Library and the AIDS and Cancer Virus Program, SAIC-Frederick, Inc.
  Bibliography

• DARWIN'S SECRET NOTEBOOKS - Charles Darwin
  Though he circled the world on the "Beagle" for five years, Charles Darwin spent only five weeks on the famed Galápagos. He had no epiphany there, no Newton's apple falling from the tree. So what was it? What "certain facts" from the voyage led this young Creationist to propose a theory so radical it remains controversial (though widely accepted) 150 years later? This fascinating documentary brings passages from Darwin's writings to life, as we see the clues he saw while listening to his words, and watch in wonder as CGI animates his ideas, focusing us on critical details and revealing the lucid epiphanies of a magnificent mind.
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARIES: EVOLVE, EVOLUTION
  Bibliography

• THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW - climate crisis
  This movie takes a big-budget, special-effects-filled look at what the world would be like if the greenhouse effect and global warming continued at such levels that they resulted in worldwide catastrophe and disaster, including multiple hurricanes, tornadoes, tidal waves, floods and the beginning of the next Ice Age.
  SPEAKER: Dr. Eric Kindahl, Associate Professor of Biology at Hood College
  BONUS DOCUMENTARY: SIX DEGREES COULD CHANGE THE WORLD
  WHAT CAN I DO? - information to help save the environment

• THE DAY LINCOLN WAS SHOT- Civil War Medicine
  This 1998 made-for-TV movie, starring Rob Morrow and Lance Henriksen, is based on the book by Jim Bishop. The movie is a thrilling and detailed chronicle of the plot, murder, and manhunt that changed America forever.
  REWARDS: a Multi-Part Learning Program is co-sponsored by Occupational Health Services (OHS), the Frederick Employee Diversity Team, and the Scientific Library.
  BOOK: MANHUNT: The 12-DAY Chase For Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson; CALL NUMBER: E 457.5 .S972 2006 (10 copies)
  SPEAKER: Mr. Jason Grabill, a Civil War Surgeon re-enactor and historian, and a docent with the National Museum of Civil War Medicine, Frederick, MD
  Bibliography

• DESK SET - libraries and librarians
  Katharine Hepburn, head of the research department, or library, of a TV network, clashes with Spencer Tracey, a systems engineer who is hired to computerize the entire company, including Hepburn's library.
  SPEAKER: Ms. M. J. Tooey, Deputy Director, Health Sciences and Human Services Library at the University of Maryland, Baltimore
  Bibliography

• THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY - Locked-In Syndrome
  After a stroke, Jean-Dominique Bauby (Mathieu Amalric) can only move his left eye---and through that eye, he learns to communicate, one letter at a time. With the help of his speech therapist (Marie-Josee Croze) and a stenographer (Anne Consigny), Bauby writes the stunning memoir THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY. This is the movie version of that book. NOTE: Copies of the book are available at the Scientific Library.
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARY: LOCKED-IN SYNDROME: THE TRUE STORY OF JEAN-DOMINIQUE BAUBY

• THE DOCTOR - physician/patient relationships
  Successful surgeon Jack McKee (William Hurt), businesslike and aloof with his patients, finds his entire life changing when he is diagnosed with throat cancer. Christine Lahti plays his supporting and understanding wife.
  SPEAKER: Ms. Kathleen Higinbotham, Technology Development Administrative Specialist, Technology Transfer Branch, NCI, NIH
  Bibliography

• DOOR TO DOOR - cerebral palsy
  This inspirational movie tells the true story of Bill Porter (William H. Macy), a man who suffers from cerebral palsy. In spite of his physical limitations, Mr. Porter became a very successful door-to-door salesman, while also making a difference in the lives of his customers. Helen Mirren and Kyra Sedgwick also star.
  SPEAKER: Mr. Michael Aronin, comedian, motivational speaker, advocate for cerebral palsy patients.
  Bibliography

• DR. EHRLICH'S MAGIC BULLET - chemistry research
  Edward G. Robinson stars as Dr. Paul Ehrlich, a German scientist who developed a stain to view microscopic tubercular bacteria, advanced discoveries in immunology, discovered a chemical cure for syphilis, and gave birth to modern drug discovery while searching for "magic bullets."
  SPEAKERS: Panel Discussion - Dr. Larry Keefer, Dr. Larry Phillips, and Dr. Nadya Tarasova, all from NCI-Frederick, discuss "Chemistry Research Through the Years @ NCI-Frederick."
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARIES: CLASSIC CHEMICAL INDUSTRY FILMS, THE POWER OF THE PERIODIC TABLE
  Bibliography

• EXTRAORDINARY MEASURES - genetics
  This drama centers on the efforts of John and Aileen Crowley to find a researcher who might have a cure for their two children's rare genetic disorder known as Pompe disease. Harrison Ford plays the scientist, and Brendan Fraser and Keri Russell play the parents.
  SPEAKERS: Panel Discussion - Dr. Shyam Sharan and Dr. Amar Klar , both from NCI-Frederick, discuss "Genetics Research Through the Years @ NCI-Frederick."
  Bibliography

• FANTASTIC VOYAGE - nanotechnology
  When a brilliant scientist falls into a coma from an inoperable blood clot in the brain, a surgical team embarks on a top-secret journey to the center of the mind in a high-tech military submarine shrunk to microbial dimensions. This classic, Oscar-winning movie (for special effects) stars Stephen Boyd, Donald Pleasance, and Raquel Welch.
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARY: TINY MACHINES
  Bibliography

• FOOD, INC. - local food use
  The film examines corporate farming in the United States, concluding that agribusiness produces food that is unhealthy in a way that is environmentally harmful and abusive of both animals and employees. The film is narrated by Michael Pollan and Eric Schlosser.
  SPEAKER: Deborah Rhoades, Extension Educator for the University of Maryland Extension, Frederick County Office
  Bibliography

• GATTACA - genetics
  Vincent (Ethan Hawke) is an "In-Valid," a genetically imperfect person, who assumes the identity of a member of the genetically elite (Jude Law) to pursue his goal of traveling in space. Uma Thurman plays Vincent's love interest.
  This program was also offered as a PUBLIC Science in the Cinema, and was held at Hood College. PUBLIC Science in the Cinema programs are collaborations between the Scientific Library, the National Cancer Institute at Frederick, and Hood College.
  SPEAKER: Dr. Michael Dean, Chief, Human Genetics Section, Laboratory of Genomic Diversity, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE - "The Science of Harry Potter"
  In this movie we are introduced to the boy wizard and his amazing and magical life.
  This program was offered as a PUBLIC Science in the Cinema, and was held at Hood College. PUBLIC Science in the Cinema programs are collaborations between the Scientific Library, the National Cancer Institute at Frederick, and Hood College.
  SPEAKER: Dr. George Plitnik, Professor of Physics at Frostburg University, where he teaches a class titled"The Science of Harry Potter."

• IN THE FAMILY - breast cancer
  At 27, filmmaker Joanna Rudnick tested positive for the BRCA mutation. She now faces an impossible decision: remove her healthy breasts and ovaries or risk incredible odds of developing cancer. This documentary follows Joanna as she connects with other women trying to navigate their way around the wrenching decisions associated with predictive genetic testing.
  SPEAKER: Ms. Amy McGreevy, RN, CRNP
  Bibliography

• AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH - climate crisis
  This documentary offers a passionate and inspirational look at former United States Vice President Al Gore's fervent crusade to halt global warming's deadly progress in its tracks by exposing the myths and misconceptions that surround it. It focuses on his travels in support of efforts to educate the public about the severity of the climate crisis.
  SPEAKER: Dr. John Beutler, Staff Scientist, Molecular Targets Development Program, NCI-Frederick
  WHAT CAN I DO? - information to help save the environment

• IQ - Albert Einstein
  In this romantic comedy, a young auto mechanic (Tim Robbins) is in love with an intelligent and beautiful scientist (Meg Ryan) who is engaged to another scientist. The mechanic seeks the assistance of the young woman's uncle (Walter Matthau), who just happens to be Albert Einstein!
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARIES: EINSTEIN REVEALED, EINSTEIN'S WIFE, EINSTEIN'S BIG IDEA
  Bibliography

• IRIS - Alzheimer's disease
  The movie is a tender, emotional depiction of novelist Iris Murdoch (Judy Dench and Kate Winslet) as she struggles with Alzheimer's Disease. It covers the period from just before her marriage to intellectual John Bayley (Jim Broadbent and Hugh Bonneville) until her death.
  REWARDS: a Multi-Part Learning Program is co-sponsored by Occupational Health Services (OHS), the Frederick Employee Diversity Team, and the Scientific Library.
  BOOK: The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks; CALL NUMBER: PS 3569 .P363 .S736 2004 (10 copies)
  SPEAKER: Dr. Edward Feher, Frederick physician
  ADDITIONAL MOVIE: THE NOTEBOOK
  Bibliography

• JEWELS OF THE JUNGLE - natural products research
  This documentary follows maverick researcher Dr. Gary Strobel on an epic journey through some of the world's most beautiful forests as he searches for new natural medicines. Back in the laboratory, viewers watch as Strobel discovers what may one day become a new generation of "wonder drugs" that may cure malaria, cancer, and numerous other diseases.
  SPEAKERS: Panel Discussion - Dr. Tawnya McKee and Dr. David Newman, from NCI-Frederick, discuss "Natural Products Research Through the Years @ NCI-Frederick."
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARIES: PLANT WARS: A GLOBAL VIEW OF NATURAL MEDICINE (3 DVDs)
  Bibliography

• THE LIBRARIAN: THE CURSE OF THE JUDAS CHALICE - libraries and librarians
  Noah Wylie stars as Flynn Carson in this third entry in THE LIBRARIAN series. On a deadly mission to recover the historic Judas Chalice, Flynn is saved by -- and falls in love with -- Simone (Stana Katic), a dazzling French woman who harbors a terrifying secret that leads Flynn to a decaying New Orleans crypt...a crypt that may be holding Prince Vlad Dracul, whom the world has feared for centuries. This movie also stars Jane Curtain, Bob Newhart, and Bruce Davison.
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARY: THE HOLLYWOOD LIBRARIAN: A LOOK AT LIBRARIANS THROUGH FILM

• THE LIBRARIAN: QUEST FOR THE SPEAR - libraries and librarians
  Noah Wylie stars as Flynn Carson in this first entry in THE LIBRARIAN series. To be a librarian, you must master the Dewey Decimal System, ace internet research and, if you're new librarian Flynn Carsen, save the world! This fun, fantastical, special effects-laden adventure soars around the world from the Metropolitan Library, keeper of such top-secret treasures as Excalibur and Pandora's Box, to the Amazon jungle to the Himalayas. Carsen, as the Librarian, fights the Serpent Brotherhood, who has stolen one of three parts of the magical Spear of Destiny from the library. This movie also stars Jane Curtain, Bob Newhart, and Bruce Davison.
  COMPANION CD-ROM: MLA ROCKS!

• THE LIBRARIAN: RETURN TO KING SOLOMON'S MINES - libraries and librarians
  Noah Wylie stars as Flynn Carson in this second entry in THE LIBRARIAN series. The fate of the world is once again in Carsen's hands when a map to the legendary King Solomon's Mines is stolen from the Metropolitan Library. Carsen embarks on another fantastic global adventure, with stops in Casablanca and Kenya. He's accompanied by Emily (Gabrielle Anwar), a beautiful archaeologist who can match the much-educated Carsen degree for degree. This movie also stars Jane Curtain, Bob Newhart, and Olympia Dukakis.
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARY: THE LIBRARIAN: YOUR LIFE'S WORK

• LIFE SUPPORT - AIDS
  This unrated, award-winning HBO movie stars Queen Latifah as Ana. Ana is an HIV-positive former drug addict from Brooklyn, desperately struggling with her past and passionately trying to make things right with her involvement in an AIDS outreach group, Life Support. Inspired by a true story, this movie is a touching, poignant tale of loving, losing and letting go.
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARY: HOW TO LIVE WITH AIDS
  The Scientific Library has many HIV/AIDS-related books and audiovisual materials in the collection. You can view these materials by searching "aids" or "hiv" in the Library's online catalog, or you can drop by the Library in Building 549 and browse available materials.

• A LIGHT IN THE JUNGLE: THE ALBERT SCHWEITZER STORY - medical outreach to Africa
  Malcolm McDowell portrays the humanitarian and Nobel Peace Prize winner who established a hospital in Africa. Susan Strasberg plays Mrs. Schweitzer.
  SPEAKER: Mr. Philip G. Roessler, former Werner H. Kirsten Student Intern, NCI-Frederick, and co-founder of Outreach Kenya Development Volunteers (OKDV)
  Bibliography

• LIVING PROOF - cancer research
  Dr. Dennis Slamon (Harry Connick Jr.) has developed a new experimental drug called Herceptin, which he hopes will become a revolutionary treatment in the fight against breast cancer.
  SPEAKERS: Panel Discussion - Ms. Susan Wilson, Ms. Robin Winkler-Pickett, Dr. Lucy Anderson, Dr. Howard Young, and Dr. Andy Byrd, all from NCI-Frederick, discuss "Cancer Research Through the Years @ NCI-Frederick."
  Bibliography

• LORENZO'S OIL - adrenoleukodystrophy
  Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon play the parents of 5-year-old Lorenzo, who is diagnosed with adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD). They spend their lives searching for a cure to this usually fatal disease.
  SPEAKER: Dr. Michael Dean, Chief, Human Genetics Section, Laboratory of Genomic Diversity, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• MADAME CURIE - women in medicine
  Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon play Marie and Pierre Curie, partners in life and in their efforts to isolate the radioactive element radium.
  SPEAKER: Dr. Sally Spence, Staff Scientist, Mouse Cancer Genetics Program, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• MEDICINE MAN - natural products
  Sean Connery plays a brilliant but eccentric researcher seeking a cure for cancer among the plants of the Amazon rain forest. Lorraine Bracco plays a scientist who has come to the rain forest to be his assistant.
  SPEAKERS: Dr. Gordon Cragg and Dr. David Newman, Natural Products Branch, Developmental Therapeutics Program, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• MRS. DOUBTFIRE - "Laugh For the Health of It!"
  This 1993 comedy stars Robin Williams, Sally Field, and Pierce Brosnan. After a bitter divorce, an actor disguises himself as a female housekeeper so he can spend time with his three children.
  REWARDS: a Multi-Part Learning Program is co-sponsored by Occupational Health Services (OHS), the Frederick Employee Diversity Team, and the Scientific Library.
  BOOK: Saturday Mornings by Mark Butt; CALL NUMBER: WM 90 .B988 2006 (2 copies)
  SPEAKER: Dr. Mark Butt, Frederick scientist/columnist/humorist
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARIES: HOW SERIOUS IS THIS?, HUMOR YOUR STRESS, THE JOY OF STRESS, LIFE IS NOT A STRESS REHEARSAL
  ADDITIONAL MOVIE: YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN
  Jokes and Health Facts

• NATIONAL TREASURE - Benjamin Franklin
  In this comedy adventure movie that includes many references to Ben Franklin, Nicolas Cage plays Benjamin Franklin Gates, a modern-day adventurer who follows cryptic clues in the search for a treasure hidden long ago by the Founding Fathers.
  COMPANION DVD: BENJAMIN FRANKLIN: AN EXTRAORDINARY LIFE, AN ELECTRIC MIND
  Bibliography

• NEVER CRY WOLF - wolves and the environment
  Charles Martin Smith plays a young, inexperienced biologist who is sent to the Arctic to study wolves to determine why they are killing caribou. Brian Dennehy plays a wolf hunter who interferes with the research.
  SPEAKER: Mr. Mike Nickerson, Biologist, Laboratory of Immunobiology, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• NO IMPACT MAN - climate crisis
  In November, 2006, Colin Beavan launched a year-long project in which he, his wife, his two-year-old daughter and his four-year-old dog went off the grid and attempted to live in the middle of New York City with as little environmental impact as possible. This film documents their lives during the year of the "No Impact Project."
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARY: THE 11th HOUR
  NOTE: This program was a collaboration between the Scientific Library and the NCI Green Team .
  WHAT CAN I DO? - information to help save the environment

• THE NOTEBOOK - Alzheimer's disease
  Based on the Nicholas Sparks book, the story unfolds as an older gentleman reads a story to an older woman in a nursing home. Through flashbacks we see the development of a love story as it is being told. The connection between the old and the young becomes clear as the older woman exhibits signs of Alzheimer's Disease.
  REWARDS: a Multi-Part Learning Program is co-sponsored by Occupational Health Services (OHS), the Frederick Employee Diversity Team, and the Scientific Library.
  BOOK: The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks; CALL NUMBER: PS 3569 .P363 .S736 2004 (10 copies)
  SPEAKER: Dr. Edward Feher, Frederick physician
  ADDITIONAL MOVIE: IRIS
  Bibliography

• OUTBREAK - viruses
  Dustin Hoffman is an Army virologist trying to stave off a killer virus that is loose in California. Kevin Spacey, Rene Russo, Morgan Freeman, and Cuba Gooding Jr. also star.
  SPEAKER: Dr. David Franz, Colonel, U.S. Army Retired, Fort Detrick
  Bibliography

• PHILADELPHIA - AIDS
  Tom Hanks, a lawyer wrongfully terminated because he has AIDS, hires lawyer Denzel Washington to represent him in a lawsuit against the prestigious law firm that fired him.
  SPEAKER: Dr. John Coffin, Director, HIV Drug Resistance Program, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• THE PRESTIGE - Nikola Tesla
  In this fascinating movie, scientist and inventor Nikola Tesla, played by David Bowie, appears in a small but pivotal role. Two accomplished magicians, played by Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale, are long-time friends and partners who parted ways over a failed, and deadly, magic trick. Now, as enemies, they will stop at nothing to learn each other's secrets. Watch carefully, as nothing is as it seems! The movie also stars Michael Caine and Scarlett Johansson.
  COMPANION DVDs: NIKOLA TESLA: THE GENIUS WHO LIT THE WORLD, THE SECRET OF NIKOLA TESLA: THE MOVIE
  Bibliography

• RACE FOR THE DOUBLE HELIX - DNA structure
  This exciting movie depicts the story of James Watson and Francis Crick, the discoverers of the structure of DNA. Other scientists who were searching for the structure at the same time also appear in the movie.
  SPEAKER: Dr. Mary Carrington, Principal Investigator, Laboratory of Genomic Diversity, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• REGARDING HENRY - brain injuries
  Harrison Ford plays a ruthless lawyer whose life changes completely when he is shot in the head during a robbery. Annette Bening plays the wife who helps him recover from amnesia and physical disabilities.
  SPEAKER: Mr. Selden Cooper, Employee Assistance Coordinator, Occupational Health Services Employee Assistance Program, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• SILENT FALL - autism
  Richard Dreyfuss plays a psychiatrist who attempts to treat an autistic boy who witnessed his parents' murders. The child only communicates by imitating others.
  REWARDS: a Multi-Part Learning Program is co-sponsored by Occupational Health Services (OHS), the Frederick Employee Diversity Team, and the Scientific Library.
  BOOK: Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon; CALL NUMBER: WM 203.5 .H116 2003 (10 copies)
  SPEAKERS:
  1) Dr. Ralph McBee, Psy.D.,Co-Director of Services, Monocacy Neurodevelopmental Center, Frederick, MD
  2) Ms. Paula Mathis, Parent and Registered Nurse, Occupational Health Services, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• SIX DEGREES COULD CHANGE THE WORLD - climate crisis
  By combining stock footage with computer-generated imagery, this National Geographic documentary serves as a kind of nonfiction counterpoint to the movie THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW.
  SPEAKER: Dr. Eric Kindahl, Associate Professor of Biology at Hood College
  BONUS MOVIE: THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW
  WHAT CAN I DO? - information to help save the environment

• SOMETHING'S GOTTA GIVE - heart disorders
  An older man (Jack Nicholson) suffers a heart attack at the home of his younger girlfriend's mother (Diane Keaton). Keanu Reeves plays the cardiac doctor caring for Nicholson.
  REWARDS: a Multi-Part Learning Program is co-sponsored by Occupational Health Services (OHS), the Frederick Employee Diversity Team, and the Scientific Library.
  BOOK: Taking on Heart Disease by Larry King; CALL NUMBER: WG 200 .K5356 2004 (10 copies)
  SPEAKER: Dr. John Vitarello, Frederick cardiologist
  Bibliography

• STEEL MAGNOLIAS - diabetes
  This 1989 movie stars Julia Roberts, Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Olympia Dukakis, Shirley MacLaine, and Daryl Hannah as a close-knit group of friends who share their lives in a small town in Louisiana. One member of the group has Type 1 diabetes, a situation that affects everyone in different ways.
  REWARDS: a Multi-Part Learning Program is co-sponsored by Occupational Health Services (OHS), the Frederick Employee Diversity Team, and the Scientific Library.
  BOOK: Going To The Sun by James McManus; CALL NUMBER: PZ 4 .M167 1996 (10 copies)
  SPEAKER: Ms. Linda Hicks, Registered Nurse and Certified Diabetes Educator with the FMH Diabetes Center
  Bibliography

• THE STORY OF LOUIS PASTEUR - "Fight the Flu...and Other Germs, Too!"
  This 1936 black & white videotape biography stars Paul Muni as the French chemist Louis Pasteur. Among his many accomplishments, Dr. Pasteur helped prove the germ theory of disease and its role in the spread of infection. Dr. Pasteur also discovered the vaccines for rabies and anthrax.
  COMPANION VIDEOTAPE: INFLUENZA 1918
  Bibliography

• THE SWARM - bees
  Many human stars share the screen with thousands of bees in this campy disaster movie about killer bees. The film stars MIchael Caine, Katharine Ross, Richard Widmark, Richard Chamberlain, and many more Hollywood actors.
  COMPANION VIDEOTAPE: TALES FROM THE HIVE
  SPEAKER: Dr. David Newman, Natural Products Branch, Developmental Therapeutics Program, NCI-Frederick

• UNDER OUR SKIN - Lyme disease
  This dramatic tale of microbes, medicine and money investigates the untold story of Lyme disease, an emerging epidemic. Following the stories of patients and physicians as they battle for their lives and livelihoods, the film brings into focus a haunting picture of our health care system and its ability to cope with a silent terror under our skin.
  SPEAKER: Ms. Kathleen Nalewaik, N.P., Nurse Practitioner, Occupational Health Services, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• WARM SPRINGS - "Polio: A Scientific Success Story"
  Following a promising early political career, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was stricken with polio in 1921 at the age of 39. This film follows his struggle with paralysis, the refuge he took in an obscure and run-down Georgia health spa, and the family pressure to return to public life and politics. The movie stars Kenneth Branagh, Cynthia Nixon, and Kathy Bates.
  COMPANION DVDs: IN SEARCH OF THE POLIO VACCINE, A PARALYZING FEAR: THE STORY OF POLIO IN AMERICA
  Bibliography

• WHO KILLED THE ELECTRIC CAR? - electric cars
  In 1996, electric cars began to appear on roads all over California. They were quiet and fast, produced no exhaust and ran without gasoline. Ten years later, these futuristic cars were almost entirely gone. This documentary, narrated by Martin Sheen, explains what happened, as it investigates the birth and death of the electric car and the role of renewable energy and sustainable living in the future.
  SPEAKERS: Mr. Dave Goldstein and Mr. Charlie Garlow , President and Vice-President of the Electric Vehicle Association of Greater Washington D.C.
  WHAT CAN I DO? - information to help save the environment

• WILLIE WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY - "The Science of Chocolate"
  In this 2005 "reinterpretation," Johnny Depp stars as Willie Wonka, and Freddie Highmore as Charlie Bucket, the finder of that very special Golden Ticket.
  SPEAKERS: Dr. David A. Stuart, Director, Nutrition & Natural Products, The Hershey Company and Dr. Debra L. Miller, Senior Nutrition Scientist, Nutrition & Natural Products, The Hershey Company
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARY: AMERICAN EATS: CHOCOLATE
  ADDITIONAL MOVIE: CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY
  Bibliography

• WINGED MIGRATION - birds and avian flu
  This unique documentary depicts the migratory patterns of birds, showing the potential spread of avian flu. The film follows bird migrations flying over the seven continents: from one pole to the other, from the seas to snowcapped mountains, from the canopy of heaven to mangroves and swamps
  COMPANION DVD: H5N1 KILLER FLU
  SPEAKER:Dr. Randall Morin, Director, Environment, Health and Safety Program, NCI-Frederick

• WIT - ovarian cancer
  Emma Thompson plays a professor of English Literature who is diagnosed and treated for ovarian cancer. The movie is almost completely filmed in the hospital where the professor fights for her life.
  SPEAKER:Ms. Kathleen Nalewaik, N.P., Nurse Practitioner, Occupational Health Services, NCI-Frederick
  Bibliography

• YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN - "Laugh For the Health of It!"
  This 1974 Mel Brooks comedy stars Gene Wilder, Peter Boyle, and Marty Feldman. Dr. Frankenstein's grandson, after years of living down the family reputation, inherits granddad's castle and repeats the experiments.
  REWARDS: a Multi-Part Learning Program is co-sponsored by Occupational Health Services (OHS), the Frederick Employee Diversity Team, and the Scientific Library.
  BOOK: Saturday Mornings by Mark Butt; CALL NUMBER: WM 90 .B988 2006 (2 copies)
  SPEAKER: Dr. Mark Butt, Frederick scientist/columnist/humorist
  COMPANION DOCUMENTARIES: HOW SERIOUS IS THIS?, HUMOR YOUR STRESS, THE JOY OF STRESS, LIFE IS NOT A STRESS REHEARSAL
  ADDITIONAL MOVIE: MRS. DOUBTFIRE
  Jokes and Health Facts

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CONTACT INFORMATION

The staff of the Scientific Library encourages suggestions for movies and speakers for our Science in the Cinema programs. Movies or documentaries should be feature-length films with a science or health theme. If you have a suggestion for a movie or a speaker, or if you would like to volunteer to be a speaker for your favorite science-themed movie, please contact the Public Services Librarian.

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