Newton's Apple

Newton's Apple
Format	Children's television series
Created by	James Steinbach
Starring	Ira Flatow David Heil Peggy Knapp SuChin Pak Dave Huddleston Brian Hackney Eileen Galindo
Country of origin	United States
Production
Running time	30 Minutes
Broadcast
Original channel	KTCA
Audio format	Mono (1983) Stereo (1984-1998)
Original run	1983 – 1998

Newton's Apple is an educational television program distributed to PBS stations in the United States that ran for fifteen seasons from 1983 to 1998. Targeted at younger viewers, it was highly regarded. The title harkens to the apocryphal tale of Isaac Newton sitting under a tree and an apple falling near him—or, more popularly, on his head—prompting him to ponder what makes things fall, leading to the development of his theory of gravitation (an event often loosely described as him "discovering" gravity). The show was produced by Twin Cities Public Television (tpt). For most of the run, the show's theme song was Ruckzuck by Kraftwerk, later remixed by Absolute Music. Later episodes of the show featured an original song.

National Public Radio science correspondent Ira Flatow was the show's first host, later succeeded by David Heil, then assistant director of the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI). Peggy Knapp was a longtime field reporter and served as co-host in the 14th season. The last season was hosted by the team of David Heil, Dave Huddleston, Eileen Galindo, Brian Hackney and SuChin Pak, now a frequent host and pop culture reporter for MTV. An occasional short feature appeared called "Science of the Rich and Famous" in which celebrities appeared to explain a science principle; as examples, rock star Ted Nugent explained guitar feedback, Olympic Gold Medalist skater Scott Hamilton demonstrated the angular momentum of a skater's spin, and Betty White showed how cats purr.

"Newton's Apple" won numerous national awards including the A.A.A.S. Science Journalism Award, the Parent's Choice Award, and in 1989, the Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Children's Series. James W. Head III was biology consultant for the series.

A segment in the early years was entitled "Newton's Lemons" which used 1950s era newsreels of a then-futuristic device that had long since been forgotten.

Funding

• Dupont (1983-1999)
• 3M (1983-1999)
• Public Television Stations/Viewers Like You (1983-1990/1999)

External links

• Twin Cities Public Television: Newton's Apple