Teachers' Domain; Rachel Carson's Silent Spring

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Series
Teachers' Domain
Title
Rachel Carson's Silent Spring
Producing Organization
WGBH Educational Foundation
Contributing Organization
WGBH (Boston, Massachusetts)
AAPB ID
cpb-aacip/15-mw2891200z
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Description
Description
In this video segment adapted from American Experience: "Rachel Carson's Silent Spring," learn how the lethal impact of the pesticide DDT on wildlife inspired biologist Rachel Carson to write Silent Spring.
Description
What are the benefits and risks associated with the use of DDT?Why was the broad use of DDT accepted by society in the 1950s? Who benefited from the use of DDT in large quantities? Why do you think Rachel Carson's message was not well received by some people at the time her book appeared?Poisons have three ways of entering the human body: through the lungs by breathing, through the skin by absorption, and through the digestive tract by eating. Knowing this, what is your reaction to some of the scenes you saw in the video?Discuss Rachel Carson's idea that humans have "a fundamental right to a healthy environment."
Description
This video segment adapted from American Experience: "Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring" tells the story of how biologist Rachel Carson was driven to write Silent Spring, a book that questioned the safety of pesticide use in the United States. The most famous pesticide at the time was DDT, a chemical that had saved millions of lives in World War II from insect-borne disease and was thought to be safe. But Carson found evidence that DDT was poisoning birds, and represented a real threat to humans as well. The video states that Carson was not against the use of chemicals altogether; rather, she thought the chemical industry was pushing their overuse for its economic gain, at the expense of health and the environment.
Topics
Science
Subjects
science; Human Influence on Ecology; organisms and their environments :: changes :: chemical hazards; humans :: health :: environmental effects; populations and ecosystems :: human impact; earth system :: environment :: chemical pollution; earth system :: environment :: pollution; engineering and technology :: general :: environmental impact
Rights
Rights Note:Download and Share,Rights:,Rights Credit:© 2011, © 1993 WGBH Educational Foundation. All Rights Reserved.,Rights Type:All,Rights Coverage:In Perpetuity,Rights Holder:
Rights Note:Download and Share,Rights:,Rights Credit:Adapted from American Experience: "Rachel Carson's Silent Spring." Photos of Rachel Carson courtesy of American Forests. Third party materials courtesy of ITN Source, Magnum Photos/Erich Hartmann, National Archives, Thought Equity Motion, and WPA Film Library. ,Rights Type:All,Rights Coverage:In Perpetuity,Rights Holder:
Media type
Moving Image
Duration
00:04:48
Credits
Producing Organization: WGBH Educational Foundation
Publisher: Teachers' Domain
AAPB Contributor Holdings
WGBH
Identifier: 1cab2a8a74fb12970fdc1a733d1abd0c867c90db (ArtesiaDAM UOI_ID)
Format: video/quicktime
Duration: 00:00:00
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Citations
Chicago: “Teachers' Domain; Rachel Carson's Silent Spring,” WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed May 9, 2025, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-mw2891200z.
MLA: “Teachers' Domain; Rachel Carson's Silent Spring.” WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Web. May 9, 2025. <http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-mw2891200z>.
APA: Teachers' Domain; Rachel Carson's Silent Spring. Boston, MA: WGBH, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-15-mw2891200z