There is a new one hour TV program running this fall on the Science Channel discussing C. elegans as a model organism for research, and what kinds of studies are being carried out with it.
I have not seen the program, but am told that it includes interviews with John Sulston and other workers from the MRC.
The program listing is under “Super Animals”, and other episodes so far include the cockroach and the jellyfish.
I have not seen those shows either, but the next showing of the C. elegans episode appears to be this Sunday afternoon, Oct. 7.
Did anybody catch the show? How was the content?
The show is divided into 3 equal parts. The title “Superworm” turns out to cover rather a broad range of issues, and is aimed at a general audience, not scientists.
Part 1. Ecological studies of earthworms.
Part 2. Biology of C. elegans. This includes an early film of Sydney Brenner in the lab, plus short interviews with John Sulston and Mario DeBono on how the worm is useful for biologists.
Part 3. Parasitic nematodes and the diseases they cause.
I found part 2 interesting, and was dreaming that it could have run longer. Parts 1 and 3 are also good, just covering very different topics.