Human journey.
- Frenchs Forest, NSW : BBC Active, c2009.
- 5 videodiscs (ca. 250 min.) : sound, colour ; 12 cm
Out of Africa -- Australia -- Asia -- Europe -- The Americas. Ep. 1. Ep. 2. Ep. 3. Ep. 4. Ep. 5.
Directors, producers, Ed Bazalgette, Charles Colville, David Stewart, Philip Smith, Peter Oxley; Series producer, Paul Bradshaw. Directors, producers, Ed Bazalgette, Charles Colville, David Stewart, Philip Smith, Peter Oxley; Series producer, Paul Bradshaw.
Narrator: Tessa Wojtczak.
"Where do we come from? Unravel our origins, following the journey taken by the first Homo sapiens as they set out from East Africa on a mission to populate the world, and discover how it changed us in the process. In this fascinating series five epic journeys trace the ancient routes of our early ancestors to reveal the extraordinary and brutal challenges they faced. Using the latest genetic and archaeological evidence, Human Journey shows how humans gradually adapted, culturally and physiologically, in response to their new environments. Beginning in the dusty heat of the Ethiopian desert, around the birthplace of the human race, the story tracks the journey of our ancestors across the world. The first episode tells the story of the journey to colonise Africa, then out of Africa through the Arabian peninsula. From Ethiopia to the rainforests of Central Africa and the deserts of the Kalahari, the programme discovers that the people of Africa are the most diverse within the human family... Next up is the story of how Homo sapiens eventually reached Europe and the challenges they faced, first from Neanderthals, then from the plummeting temperatures and glaciers of the Ice Age. Discover how Europeans adapted to the colder climate by developing paler skin and how other physiological changes allowed them to eat dairy produce and drink alcohol. Episode three delves into the story of the Aborigines, searching the coasts of the Indian Ocean and the Malay Peninsula for signs of the route that took humans to Australia. Find out how Aboriginals developed such a refined sense of direction and vision under the influence of their environment. Then in an exploration of the development of Chinese people, the series follows the evolutionary path from Northern India to China, via Siberia. Finally it reveals the origins of the peoples of America, finding out who the first Americans were and where they came from. Using stunning photography, Human Journey brings these stories of human endeavour and development to life. By the end, the series has trodden in footsteps spanning 70,000 years - and in doing so, reveals a myriad of extraordinary stories about who we are and where we came from. This is a story that illustrates that, whilst we are all very different, so too are we remarkably closely interrelated."--Publisher's website.