UC Davis geology professor Geerat Vermeij -- who last year won a prestigious MacArthur Foundation "genius grant" -- is one of six scientists profiled in a television program airing nationwide Tuesday, Sept. 7, during Public Broadcasting Service's "back-to-school" week. Dutch-born Vermeij, blind since childhood, has never let his disability hamper his studies of seashells. His research has led him to some provocative theories about survival -- and extinction -- in the natural world. The program, titled "1% Inspiration," is the first in a three-part series produced by Thirteen-WNET in New York called "The Next Generation: An Innovation Mini-Series." The series will air consecutive Tuesdays, Sept. 7, 14 and 21, at 10 p.m. on PBS stations (check local listings).