Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Available On Air Stations
Watch Live

Arts & Culture

NOVA: Family That Walks On All Fours

"NOVA's" examination of a family that walks on all fours (pictured above) raises fascinating questions about genetics, society and the evolutionary history of our species.
©BBC 2006
"NOVA's" examination of a family that walks on all fours (pictured above) raises fascinating questions about genetics, society and the evolutionary history of our species.

Airs Tuesday, October 27 at 8 p.m. on KPBS TV

An intense scientific debate has ignited around a quiet but extraordinary family living in rural Turkey – a family with five adults who walk on all fours. Since bipedality has long been considered one of the defining characteristics of modern humans, such a discovery raises fascinating questions about genetics, society and the evolutionary history of our species. Is this the anthropological find of the millennium or simply a unique medical case? "NOVA" sets out to unravel the controversy and meet the individuals who have captured the imagination of scientists around the world in this moving documentary. Watch a preview.