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Movie: Belle

This film is inspired by the true story of Dido Elizabeth Belle, the illegitimate mixed race daughter of Admiral Sir John Lindsay. Raised by her aristocratic great-uncle Lord Mansfield and his wife, Belle's lineage affords her certain privileges, yet her status prevents her from the traditions of noble social standing. While her cousin Elizabeth chases suitors for marriage, Belle is left on the sidelines wondering if she will ever find love. After meeting an idealistic young vicar's son bent on changing society, he and Belle help shape Lord Mansfield's role as Lord Chief Justice to end slavery in England.

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Why Is the Solar System Flat?

Why did the whirling spherical ball of gas that formed our solar system turn into the flat disc that the sun and planets occupy today?

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How Wall Street Skims Higher Education

Wall Street skim is driving up the cost of college. Students are saddled with higher tuition and student debt. Taxpayers are covering risky loans and high interest rate for institutional borrowing. And for-profit colleges are overcharging students to drive profit.

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Richard Pryor, Maya Angelou

A scene from the May 1977 Richard Pryor special with Maya Angelou, which lead to the creation of the landmark television show.

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Documentary: Citizen Koch

In this searing exposé on the state of democracy in America and the fracturing of the Republican Party, Academy Award®-nominated directors Carl Deal and Tia Lessin (Trouble the Water; co-producers of Fahrenheit 9/11 & Bowling for Columbine) follow the money behind the rise of the Tea Party. CITIZEN KOCH investigates the impact of unlimited, anonymous spending by corporations and billionaires on the electoral process, featuring stories of life-long Republicans whose loyalty is tested when their families become collateral damage in the GOP fight to take organized labor out at the knees. Alternately terrifying and funny, CITIZEN KOCH is an essential and powerful portrait of our political times.

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John Oliver: Net Neutrality

Letting cable companies set the terms for communicating over the Internet is like hiring a dingo as your babysitter. John Oliver explains the "net neutrality" controversy and lets viewers know how they can voice their displeasure to the FCC.

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Miles Davis Way

On May 24, a crowd of hundreds gathered to mark the renaming of a stretch of West 77th Street in New York City as Miles Davis Way. The remarkable jazz musician Davis, who would have been 88 this week, was a long-time resident of the block now being renamed in his honor. Here is a video of Davis performing So What? 

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Weather Versus Climate Change

Neil deGrasse Tyson breaks down the differences between weather and climate change. Next on the National Geographic series Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey (airs Mondays at 9PM).
 

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What's So Scary About Smart Girls?

A video produced by the Half the Sky Movement. As Nicholas Kristof notes, "Ultimately, the greatest threat to extremism isn't drones firing missiles, but girls reading books." Read his full article on smart girls here.

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