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The Best Episodes of NOVA Season 28

Every episode of NOVA Season 28 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of NOVA Season 28!

Binge this in 15h 35m•Peaking at 8.4/10

PBS' premier science series helps viewers of all ages explore the science behind the headlines. Along the way, NOVA demystifies science and technology, and highlights the people involved in scientific pursuits.

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    NOVA Season 28 Episode 16 - Cracking the Code of Life
    8.4/10(12 votes)

    S28:E16

    This two-hour special, hosted by ABC "Nightline" correspondent Robert Krulwich, chronicles the race to capture one of the biggest prizes in scientific history: the complete letter-by-letter sequence of genetic information that defines human life -- the human genome.

    Director:Elizabeth Arledge
    Writers:Julia Cort, Elizabeth Arledge

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  2. NOVA Season 28 Episode 3 - Hitler's Lost Sub
    8.3/10(17 votes)

    S28:E3

    The film follows a six-year odyssey by a group of divers to identify a mysterious U-boat they discovered in 1991 off the coast of New Jersey

    Director:Kirk Wolfinger
    Writer:Rushmore DeNooyer

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  3. NOVA Season 28 Episode 10 - Nazi Prison Escape
    8.0/10(13 votes)

    S28:E10

    The program documents a series of spectacular escape attempts made at Colditz Castle, the Nazi's most impregnable prison.

    Directors:Chris Durlacher, Henry Chancellor, Jeremy Llewellyn-Jones, Adam English
    Writers:Jeremy Llewellyn-Jones, Chris Durlacher

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  4. NOVA Season 28 Episode 2 - Holocaust on Trial
    7.9/10(13 votes)

    S28:E2

    The film uses a celebrated recent trial as a springboard to examine and successfully challenge the notion of Holocaust denial

    Director:Leslie Woodhead
    Writer:Leslie Woodhead

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  5. NOVA Season 28 Episode 13 - Survivor M.D.: Tattooed Doctor (1)
    7.7/10(48 votes)

    S28:E13

    In "Tattooed Doctor," the first hour of NOVA's "Survivor M.D." series, emergency-room physician Dr. Tom Tarter eloquently describes some of the challenges and rewards of emergency medicine.

    Director:Michael Barnes
    Writer:Michael Barnes

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  6. NOVA Season 28 Episode 11 - Lost King of the Maya
    7.6/10(15 votes)

    S28:E11

    The film follows the work of archeologists who are using new excavations and hieroglyphic translations to interpret the early history of Copán, a Classic Maya site in northern Honduras.

    Director:Gary Glassman
    Writer:Gary Glassman

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  7. NOVA Season 28 Episode 14 - Survivor M.D.: Second Opinions (2)
    7.6/10(14 votes)

    S28:E14

    In 1987 NOVA embarked with seven brilliant, natural-born survivors on the longest-running boot camp in higher education: the nearly decade-long process of training to be a fully qualified doctor. Now all but one of them (who switched careers) are out in the world in high-powered medical careers, trying to balance the demands of work, families, and personal lives, as NOVA reports on Survivor MD, which airs in three one-hour segments.

    Director:Michael Barnes
    Writer:Michael Barnes

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  8. NOVA Season 28 Episode 4 - Runaway Universe
    7.4/10(39 votes)

    S28:E4

    The program follows the efforts of two rival teams of astronomers as they search for exploding stars, map out gigantic cosmic patterns of galaxies, and grapple with the ultimate question: What is the fate of the universe?

    Director:Thomas Lucas
    Writers:Julia Cort, Michael Winship, Thomas Lucas

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  9. NOVA Season 28 Episode 17 - Harvest of Fear
    7.4/10(29 votes)

    S28:E17

    A gene from a jellyfish is placed in a potato plant, making it light up whenever it needs watering. Rice plants are genetically transformed to produce vitamin A, preventing millions of African children from going blind. Other plants are modified to produce plastic or pharmaceuticals. While many see these as wondrous advancements, others fear they could spawn serious new threats to human health, a loss of genetic viability in our most important crop species, and other signficant and perhaps unforeseen problems. In "Harvest of Fear," NOVA and FRONTLINE join forces to explore the growing controversy over genetically modified agriculture.

    Director:Jon Palfreman
    Writer:Jon Palfreman

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  10. NOVA Season 28 Episode 9 - Vanished!
    7.3/10(27 votes)

    S28:E9

    The program investigates the mysterious disappearance -- and, half a century later, reappearance -- of Stardust, a civilian aircraft that crashed in the Andes in 1947.

    Director:Sarah Holt
    Writer:Jonathan Renouf

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  11. NOVA Season 28 Episode 15 - Survivor M.D.: Hearts & Minds (3)
    7.2/10(10 votes)

    S28:E15

    In 1987 NOVA embarked with seven brilliant, natural-born survivors on the longest-running boot camp in higher education: the nearly decade-long process of training to be a fully qualified doctor. Now all but one of them (who switched careers) are out in the world in high-powered medical careers, trying to balance the demands of work, families, and personal lives, as NOVA reports on Survivor MD, which airs in three one-hour segments.

    Director:Michael Barnes
    Writer:Michael Barnes

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  12. NOVA Season 28 Episode 5 - Garden of Eden
    7.1/10(11 votes)

    S28:E5

    The film takes a look at the extraordinary natural history of the Seychelles, an ancient archipelago of about 100 islands scattered between India and Madagascar.

    Directors:Marti Louw, Miles Barton
    Writer:Unknown

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  13. NOVA Season 28 Episode 12 - The Cancer Warrior
    7.0/10(9 votes)

    S28:E12

    For decades Dr. Judah Folkman struggled against the grain of many in the cancer research community in his quest to pioneer a novel form of cancer treatment. In 1960, when he was a young surgical resident, Folkman discovered a startling secret about how cancer grows, which he called angiogenesis. It was a clue he would pursue for the next 40 years. "Cancer Warrior" tells the incredible saga of his personal dedication in a race to defeat one of humanity's most invincible foes.

    Director:Nancy Linde
    Writer:Nancy Linde

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  14. NOVA Season 28 Episode 1 - Lincoln's Secret Weapon
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    S28:E1

    The film chronicles an expedition to study and retrieve parts of the USS Monitor, the famous Civil War ironclad, which sank off North Carolina only months after its famous battle with the CSS Virginia.

    Director:Kirk Wolfinger
    Writer:Jonathan Wickham

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  15. NOVA Season 28 Episode 6 - Dying to Be Thin
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    S28:E6

    The film examines a disturbing increase in the prevalence of debilitating and sometimes life-threatening eating disorders, particularly anorexia and bulimia.

    Director:Larkin McPhee
    Writer:Larkin McPhee

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  16. NOVA Season 28 Episode 7 - Japan's Secret Garden
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    S28:E7

    The program chronicles a year in the life of wildlife and people around Lake Biwa, Japan, a cycle that has continued unchanged for thousands of years.

    Directors:Tetsunori Kikuchi, Shinichi Murata
    Writers:David Attenborough, Jeremy Hogarth, Satoko Saito

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  17. NOVA Season 28 Episode 8 - Sultan's Lost Treasure
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    S28:E8

    The program follows a French-led expedition to recover thousands of porcelain and other artifacts from a centuries-old Chinese shipwreck off the coast of Brunei.

    Director:Stephen Sweigart
    Writer:Stephen Sweigart

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Season 28 Ratings Summary

"Cracking the Code of Life" is the best rated episode of "NOVA" season 28. It scored 8.4/10 based on 12 votes. Directed by Elizabeth Arledge and written by Julia Cort, Elizabeth Arledge, it aired on 4/17/2001. This episode is rated 0.1 points higher than the second-best, "Hitler's Lost Sub".