New on
National Geographic this May:
Perfect Weapon
Premiere date: Monday, 12 May 2008 at 21h00
Take two grown men, an array of awesome and terrifying weapons and pit them against each other in the cause of historic investigation.
Blunt weapons, blades, gunpowder and cannons -all have played a crucial role in warfare throughout the ages.
Now, British ex-Marine Monty Halls and archaeologist Stuart Prior survive some of mankind’s most terrifying killing machines as they compete against each other to find the Perfect Weapon.
-----
Fight Masters
Premiere date: Monday, 12 May 2008 at 22h00
This three-part series puts some of the world’s strongest fighters into a custom designed lab and reveals just how much damage they really can do.
The three episodes are as follows:
Special Forces
They’re the military combat specialists whose strength and discipline puts them at the very top of their field. They’re trained to excel in ruthless situations that can become deadly without warning, but how will these formidable warriors fare when their minds and bodies are pushed to the limit? Find out as Navy SEALs, Green Berets and Israeli Commandos are put through a series of gruelling experiments.
Mixed Martial Arts
Popularised by the Ultimate Fighting Championships, mixed martial arts is one of the most ferocious combat sports around. Now, some of the sport’s best-known champions, including Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz and Bas Rutten, have their fighting abilities placed under the microscope to see just how tough they really are.
Self Defence
It doesn’t take a soldier, body builder or martial artist to take down an attacker, as this insight into real-life, street level confrontation demonstrates. How can an assailant’s strength be turned against them? Is it best to run or stay and fight? Now, with some inside information from self-defen experts, bounrs and cops, find out.
SPECIALS
Smarter Than An Ape?
Premiered: Thursday, 1 May 2008 at 21h00
They’re our closest cousins in the natural world, with DNA that has been found to be a remarkable 98.4% identical to our own - but are apes really so similar to human beings?
This film sets out to answer this question by demonstrating how much apes can do and how much they can’t. When put to the test just how big a differen does 1.6% variation in DNA make?
-----
Super Pride
On: Thursday, 15 May 2008 at 21h00
The Serengeti, in northern Tanzania, teems with big predators but none compare to the lion.
The Serengeti sustains one of the biggest lion populations in Africa: approximately 3,500 lions in 300 prides. But this pride, residing in the central Serengeti, is an exption. 22 lions in all: they are a Super Pride.
Few lion prides reach Super Pride status. This phenomenon requires the right conditions. Plentiful prey and strong pride males are key to its sucss. But keeping cubs alive to maturity is the Super Pride's ultimate goal. Sometimes the greatest threats to a lion cub's life come from other lions…
-----