The new series, to be called Stephen Hawking's Universe will use a mix of archival and new live action footage and CGI to illustrate Hawking's theories about the origins and rules of the universe, according to Discovery Channel president John Ford:

You got the greatest living mind on the universe, and we're taking his knowledge and presenting it to people with fabulous computer graphics... We start at beginning of time, then go into whether time travel is possible, whether we are alone and some of the great questions, done with spectacular special effects.

If this - and the show's name - sound somewhat similar to the History Channel series Universe, then Ford's smack talking suggests that that may not be entirely unintentional:

'Universe' is a good show, but it's a weekly series on a weekly series budget... We're doing a multimillion investment.

Are you going to take that lying down, History Channel? Come on! Get historically-accurately medieval on their asses! Meanwhile, I'm waiting for PBS to chime in, seeing as that they've already made a series called Stephen Hawking's Universe.

Stephen Hawking's Universe is planned to debut next year.

Discovery exploring 'Universe' [Hollywood Reporter]

Over on the Sci-Fi Channel's message board, it's a struggle of fact versus conspiracy theory. Poster Knight1024 is working in the fact-based arena:

During the week of the pilot's first airing, it received a 0.9 household rating. I'm not sure how that translates to amount of viewers, but Sci Fi usually cancels any show that gets below a 1.0 in the household ratings on average! The following week's ratings were also posted and the second airing of the pilot wasn't even in Sci Fi's top 10 (it must have gotten below a 0.9 rating for that week) . So, the chances of Sci Fi going ahead with the series MAY be slim!!

I have a feeling the government made sci-fi cancel the show (just a theory). Sci-fi would probably never admit to this... even if they really were threatened to do so.

The last show I saw was where a patient was put into a hypnotic state and revealed A LOT of information about what happened when he was abducted. As we know, hypnotism helps to reveal what is bothering a patient in their sub-conscious which is true. This is probably why the government felt threatened by the ufo hunters team on sci-fi.

I've been watching ufo hunters on the history channel. But they all probably work for the government and that's why they never reveal any conclusive evidence which is why they are still showing it because they have nothing to lose.

UFO Hunters [SciFi.com]

The special asks what would happen to the planet once humans are gone, and manages to answer in a way that's both informative and visually compelling, blending interviews with experts, CGI animation, and haunting shots of already-human-free locations like Chernobyl.

The show opens with humankind having already vanished from the planet, and we have no idea where everyone went. Sadly, we've left behind all of our domesticated pets, and there are several scenes of an abandoned puppy wondering where everyone has gone to tug at our heartstrings. However, one of the experts tells us that the cute and tiny breeds of dogs will die off very quickly, and that packs of large feral dogs will roam as scavengers. Sorry about that, you Yorkie owners out there.

Another fascinating element of Life After People is a segment about how buildings would break down without the presence of humans. You wouldn't think that skyscrapers rely on humans to keep them together, but once the power goes out, that turns off the climate controls. That would cause the metal window frames to expand with heat, then fuse shut. And then it's just a matter of time until the glass breaks from its frame. Without windows, air pressure changes within the entire structure, and it becomes a lightning attractor. One strike, and you've got The Towering Inferno, sans OJ Simpson.

We also learn how quickly power sources would die out over the years, with the longest continual power most likely coming from Hoover Dam. Of course, it too would be doomed once mollusks choke the coolant pipes and the generators auto-shutdown. That means no more lights or the steady bleep-bloop of slot machines trying to attract your attention in Vegas.

The special starts from Day One without people, and goes all the way to 10,000 years later. So, who ends up coming out on top when we leave the planet? The cockroaches, of course. Oh, and Mount Rushmore, which experts think may still be standing after 100,000 years. Zoinks. Life After People will be shown several more times on The History Channel over the next few weeks. Catch it if you're still around.