NYT Gadget Critic David Pogue Will Host 'NOVA scienceNOW'

NOVA scienceNOW has named David Pogue, popular technology reporter for The New York Times, to host the critically acclaimed science magazine series, senior executive producer Paula S. Apsell announced today. Pogue has signed on to the series beginning this fall with the launch of Season 6, premiering in October 2012 at 10 pm ET/PT on PBS.

David Pogue is already a familiar face to audiences of the flagship NOVA series with recent stints hosting the highly watched four-hour miniseries on materials science, Making Stuff (PBS, 2011), viewed by 14 million people, and the upcoming two-hour special program, Hunting the Elements, premiering on NOVA on April 4, 2012.

Pogue is the third host tapped to helm the acclaimed series. Prior hosts include TV and radio news correspondent Robert Krulwich, who originated the role for the series’ inaugural season in January 2005, and astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, who took the reins in October 2006 and hosted seasons two through five.

“We are thrilled for David to join the NOVA scienceNOW team as host, reporting stories from the frontiers of science and technology,” said Apsell. “David’s engaging personality and tireless enthusiasm, as well as his natural curiosity as a tech journalist, all add up to a passion for storytelling and an ability to bring viewers on a fast-paced ride through some of the most intriguing stories and breakthroughs of our time.”

Featuring four stories in each themed episode, the new season of NOVA scienceNOW, which is produced by WGBH Boston, will again tackle an array of thought-provoking topics on people’s minds, such as “How Smart Can We Get?” — in which Pogue finds out how the anatomy of his brain measures up to Albert Einstein’s; “What Are Animals Thinking?” — when the tech-savvy host races against homing pigeons without the aid of his iPhone’s GPS; and “Can Science Stop Crime?” — in which Pogue tries to outsmart computerized lie detectors.

Other stories will follow Pogue as he discovers how much Neanderthal DNA he’s carrying, meets the inventors and engineers working to create mind-reading machines and thought-controlled video games, ventures into secret labs and kitchens to uncover the hidden truths behind the mouth-watering flavors and textures we take for granted each day, and much more.

Following the weekly NOVA broadcast on Wednesday nights, the NOVA scienceNOW series will create a block of primetime science programming for viewers this fall on Wednesday nights from 9-11 pm ET/PT on PBS.