Origins of the Universe Final Evaluation Report

Goodman Research Group, Inc. (GRG) conducted summative evaluation of Origins of the Universe, the 4-part NOVA miniseries. The Origins series chronicled the history of the earth's formation, how the universe evolved to permit the emergence of life on earth, the likelihood that there is life beyond earth, and the tools and techniques scientists use to study the universe. In June 2007, Thomas Levenson, MIT professor and Executive Producer of the series, won the inaugural Walter P. Kistler Science Documentary Film Award for his work on Origins. An extensive outreach campaign accompanied the series and was disseminated through a national network of museums, science centers, and community organizations located at ten sites across the country. The summative evaluation sought to provide information about the influence of the Origins series and outreach on the public's awareness and knowledge related to the topic of the scientific origins of the universe. It included: 1) an assessment of how the outreach materials and resources were used by the partners, 2) an assessment of the impact of the outreach programs on child and adult audiences, and 3) a pre-post analysis of the impact of the series on viewers' knowledge of and interest in the topic. The appendix of this report includes the surveys used in the study.