SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2026
E VO LU T I O N TRACING THE HISTORY OF LIFE ITSELF
Evolution, a new five-part series from NOVA, traces the epic journey of life — from a single ancient cell to the exceptional variety of extant species. This landmark series, which features passionate scientists, gorgeous photography, and stunning animation of long-lost ancestors, reveals how all species that exist now sprang from organisms that were completely dissimilar to those of the present era.
travel back three billion years to trace the evolutionary story of the dolphin, one of earth’s smartest animals.
“Every animal alive today is connected by a single thread of ancestry stretching back billions of years, and yet the creatures that gave rise to modern life would be almost unrecognizable to us today,” said NOVA Co-Executive Producer Julia Cort. “This series gives viewers a frontrow seat to extraordinary chains of events — mutations, adaptations, and evolutionary leaps — that ultimately produced the astonishing diversity of life on our planet.” Starting with the first episode “Brain Power,” viewers will discover how the smallest mutations — repeated and inherited across countless generations — ultimately reshape life itself. “Brain Power” explores what’s probably the most complex structure on this planet. How did evolution build brains? To find out, viewers
You’ll learn how the first light-sensing cells led to eyes that helped wire bodies to think, how a fluke viral infection supercharged the speed of thought, and how the neocortex emerged as early mammals re-wired their brains to attune to the night. Together, these breakthroughs reveal how evolution transformed simple perception into arguably the most remarkable organ on earth — a structure capable of thought, communication, and compassion. “Brain Power” and the four other episodes of Evolution are full of surprises. Did a prehistoric feeding frenzy spark a mass extinction? How did the unlikely journey of bones from our ancestors’ jaws give us the incredible gift of hearing? How did evolution craft a dazzling variety of adaptive traits? — from an elephant’s trunk to a hummingbird’s long thin beak. You won’t want to miss any of the amazing and little-known stories of life on earth, so be sure to include Evolution on your watch list this fall. Airs Wednesday, October 14 at 9 p.m. on VPM PBS
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