Sit tight and click the seat belt because while there are over 230 million licenced drivers in America, episode goes way beyond the driver's seat of an average automobile.
From Jay Leno's personal steam cars and 11-ton steam engine to carousels, boats, and skyscrapers fuelled entirely by steam, the team take a deep dive into one of the oldest means of locomotion.
Examining the military's deadliest and most sophisticated choppers, homemade helicopters and million-dollar models customized with everything from bars and entertainment systems.
Examining 8,000 horsepower dragsters and hydroplanes with top speeds of 200 miles per hour and a cargo ship propelled by one of the most powerful diesel engines on Earth.
From Bolivia's Death Road to California's fog-smothered Highway 99 to dodging IEDs on the road to Baghdad Airport, "Modern Marvels" experiences the harrowing journey down some of the world's scariest roads.
Two million people wash their car every single day; taking a look at all the technology used to keep those beloved vehicles sparkling clean.
Climbing aboard the complex rail network that snakes through valleys, over rivers and across prairies to get America's goods from the factory to front doors.
Taking a ride on the fastest and most powerful locomotives from around the globe including France's 300 MPH speed train, future trains that glide on cushions of air and mining locomotives that traverse tunnels 700 feet underground.
A fascinating journey from farm to table; the dizzying heights of California's date palm trees; the soggy Wisconsin cranberry marshes; the cavernous labyrinths of Pennsylvania's mushroom farms; picking through the most unique forms of harvesting.
Entering the mad world of Nikola Tesla's remarkable inventions; Tesla's 187-foot-high wireless network tower and lifelong rivalry with Thomas Edison; his disturbing death ray and earthquake machines.
Rediscovering some of the most beloved retro devices that built the tech-driven world of today; diving into some blasts from technology's past.
Changing the way people think about coin-operated machines; exploring the ways people spend their quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies every day.
A look at the latest and greatest in bathroom technology; how the bathroom evolved into one of the most beloved and expensive rooms in the house.
From aerobatic boats to battle-ready robots to homemade fire tornados, the crew travels the country to uncover the most mind-blowing creations ever developed.
Taking a shine to aluminum; a look at the lightweight, flexible, rust-proof wonder that's become an essential part of how people fly, drive, cook, build cities and even explore the universe.
A ride through the dazzling world of chrome; reflecting on the many ways chrome has changed the modern world.
Unearthing the many murky mysteries of the soil; plunging into the muck that paved the way for groundbreaking innovations.
Unleashing the energy behind rocks; exploring how they rock the world from the ground up; marble is mined miles underground; precious moon stones lighter than water.
Blowing the lid off the many uses of pressure, including keeping a fridge cool, and making volcanoes erupt.
Some toys transform into valuable collectibles and become iconic classics; Adam sees how Play-Doh is created, visits the mecca of pinball manufacturing, learns how Slinkys keep springing back, and gets an inside look at Lionel trains.
Adrenaline runs high when Adam Richman visits the factory where Yamaha makes ATVs, WaveRunners and more; an inside look at a company built to get people sky-high in paramotors; amusement park Diggerland USA; mech-suits; submarine built for two.
Adam learns the true meaning of heavy when he visits legendary heavy equipment manufacturer: John Deere; big machines do big jobs and he gets an inside look at how top brands like SANY and JCB are pushing the envelope on what these machines can do.
To see how people, products, and more move around America, Adam Richman explores how a legendary long-hauler meticulously custom-builds each truck at Daimler.
Adam Richman visits baking behemoth Entenmann's to see how they keep up with America's insatiable demand for delicious and dunkable chocolate chip cookies; Otis Spunkmeyer creates the cookies found at some of the biggest restaurant chains in America.
Adam Richman visits the legendary Turkey Hill Dairy to see how they make their famous frosty treat for the masses; sneak a peek into Dreyer's flavor development process.
Adam Richman visits America's oldest candy store to see how it crafts decadent chocolate treats; how Theo Chocolate produces up to 2.5-million pounds of chocolate per year.
Adam Richman gets to see how Wise produces over 50 million bags of sweet and salty snacks per month; how Jack Links is changing the jerky game.
Adam Richman travels through time; with special security clearance to a U.S. Army lab, Adam gets a glimpse into the cutting-edge food research that's taking a quantum leap into the future.
Adam Richman works the line at White Castle to discover how they grill and serve over a million sliders daily; looking for the secret behind Colonel Sanders' famous 11 herbs and spices at KFC headquarters; the first drive-thru in the U.S.
A behind-the-scenes look at how Jelly Belly creates delicious jellybeans in every flavor; then Adam Richman explores kitchen innovator Blue Apron's 495,000 square foot facility.
Episode takes the "best of" Modern Marvels and give the mega top 10 countdown; on this edition: speed; it's a pure adrenaline rush as it shows the fastest marvels featured down to the speediest of all.
Episode takes the "best of" Modern Marvels and give the mega top 10 countdown; on this edition: awe-inspiring machines, featuring the top ten mightiest, strangest, and most unique innovations from the archives.
Episode takes the "best of" Modern Marvels and give the mega top 10 countdown; on this edition: amazing weapons; they're every arsenal's best asset and every enemy's worst nightmare.
This countdown embarks on an odyssey featuring the strongest of the strong; whether they lift, pull, hold or haul, every heavy-duty titan among the top ten choices has the muscle to reshape the world.
The variety of jobs in America is endless, but some have to be seen to be believed; a countdown of the ten most fascinating occupations, from the daffy to the dangerous to the downright creepy.
A countdown of the hottest vehicles featured on "Modern Marvels," from one of Jay Leno's vintage automobiles to a battery-driven roadster.
A Michigan company designs water bottles; the makers of bubble wrap share their secrets; workers conquer the challenge of packaging the world's largest crane; America's military goods and supplies are packaged.
The hidden uses of grease inside giant machines; how grease is made in a New York factory; new advances are working towards for grease.
High-flying workers who depend on rope to do their jobs safely; how window washers, rock climbers and bungee jumpers safely use ropes; dockworkers who rely on ropes around the clock; industrial chain links.
Brad Paisley and his crew of truckers on the road between Little Rock and Tulsa; the Ford F-150 tackles a devilish test course; the world's most nimble tow truck extracts a car from the tightest parking spot imaginable; Mack truck fanatic.
A computer-managed home in Colorado showcases the high tech gadgetry destined to inhabit every wall in the future; a network of walls with cutouts and Plexiglas windows reveal how pests and creepy crawlies of all kinds can congregate.
A pilot who builds his own jet-powered glider; canoe makers in Montana; a knife maker in Washington; craftsmen keep alive the ancient art of weapon making; Skulls International in Oklahoma City; handmade special effects.
The assembly and surprising history behind the airboat; a wild ride on a big-tired swamp buggy; local delicacies that bring new meaning to acquired taste; a massive engineering project to divert the mighty Mississippi River; pythons and alligators.
Episode takes a look at the items found in peoples' pockets all across America; not cell phones, which everybody has, but more intimate items, personal things, both valuable and cheap.
Food trucks are hitting the big time; across much of America, they're changing the way people eat; from humble beginnings as chuck wagons and hot dog carts, they've taken off as ethnic eateries, gourmet specialists, and even high-tech mega trucks.
Some machines built for sheer spectacle.
Chocolate-covered bacon; red and white Starlight Mints; the key ingredient that gives Lemonheads their sour punch; the surprising substance that puts the polish on Mike and Ikes; the amount of sugar in cotton candy.
From elaborate elite training facilities to GPS-guided air drops, to revolutionary high-tech tents and fire-retardant uniforms, episode explores the science and technology of building, operating and protecting a base in a warzone.
People have spent centuries battling foul odors, including those that arise from cesspools, rotting meat, landfills, stink bombs, cow farms, and bad breath.
From the beginning of time humans worked to protect themselves against the very element that keeps them alive: water; the episode explores the fight against ferocious weather and floods with state-of-the-art roofing, wraps, tarps, boats and more.
Hundreds of years before steel and plastic, wood was the building block of America; from the historical, to the modern, to the timeless, episode explores the surprising ways people cannot live without wood.
Every detail from a convenience store has been engineered to work fast; a look behind the scenes to see how favorite innovations, like slurpees, turbo ovens, and beef jerky, are made.
Tiny weapons may not sound impressive, but small can kill, and it can also be easily concealed; from a pocket pistol used by the police to a submachine gun wielded by a bodyguard, many of today's most effective weapons are smaller than ever.
Shoes have come a long way from their humble beginnings as simple leather moccasins; Nowaday footwear is built to withstand any extreme environment where a foot can tread, from the heart of a burning building to the track of an Olympic stadium.
From brutal winters to bug-infested summers, survival in the unforgiving landscape of Alaska requires an array of technological innovations and creative solutions.
Story of the development of engines and motors, with particular emphasis on the ones that have profoundly changed society; beginning with the steam engine, a look at how it was developed, how it works, and how it led to the Industrial Revolution.
Thousands of tons of dirt transform a stadium into a Supercross course in Las Vegas; special mud helps pros grip baseballs; mud wrestling in Hawaii; adobe and rammed-earth homes; potting soil facility in California.
Each year in the U.S., 280 million hens lay 80 billion eggs, one of the world's most affordable sources of protein; charting an egg's journey from the henhouse to the breakfast table; how powdered eggs are manufactured.
The versatile and nutritious potato; the potato's mysterious origins in South America's Andes; potato knishes in New York City; farming exotic potatoes in Maine; large-scale potato production in Iowa and Pennsylvania.
The story of tuna, the most popular fish in the American diet; fishing and canning operations; a single tuna can net as much as $100,000 in the world's largest fish market in Tokyo; efforts to save the giant bluefin tuna tuna from overfishing.
The technology behind the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games, including the bobsled run, ski jump and speedskating.
Chrome hot rod; the Chrome Shop Mafia adds bling to truckers' big rigs in Missouri; Illinois' Arlington Plating Co. adds luster to auto parts; how Harley-Davidson puts chrome to work as both a decorative and protective feature of motorcycles.
Every process, from beginning to end, is a unique and incredible adventure; from the fiery birth of high tech golf clubs to the cataclysmic end of old buildings, get ready to race from start to finish.
Beans; converting soybeans into vegetable oils, flour and soy meal; Nebraska's Kelley Bean Co. cleans 80,000 pounds of dry beans daily; New England baked beans made by B&M; Italian chef Cesare Casella uses heirloom beans; hummus.
Hot and spicy items; Tabasco sauce made by McIlhenny Co. in Louisiana; McCormick & Co. spices from Baltimore; chili cook-off; capsaicin gives peppers tongue-burning heat; Michael Jordan's SolToro Tequila Grill in Connecticut.
The complex logistics behind creating feasts for huge crowds; dining aboard a U.S. Navy sub packed with enough food for a 120-day mission; cooks prepare a "Victory Meal" for 1,000 Marines; feeding 69,000 NFL fans during a Philadelphia Eagles game.
Fairgrounds fried classics such as funnel cakes and churros; frog legs; Twinkies and Coke; forging a cast iron frying pan; Kentucky's World Chicken Festival.
The history of soft drinks; the production process at Dr. Pepper, the world's third-largest soft-drink supplier; the Gatorade sports drink; energy drinks; the roots of ginger ale and root beer.
Delivering everything from pizza to packages; how UPS transported China's ancient terra cotta warriors to a museum in Los Angeles; a submersible carrier ship delivers yachts; racehorses ride a special jet; New York City bicycle messengers.
The largest, strongest and most unique ships; an oceanography research vessel that can flip a full 90 degrees; one of the world's largest cruise ships; the U.S. Navy's newest and most advanced transport ship; green tugboat; fastest car ferry.
The biggest machines and their smallest counterparts; Airbus A380 and microjet; Boss Hoss 425-horsepower bike and 18-inch tall pocket bike; world's smallest production car.
How padlocks and combination locks are made; biometric locks; cracking open a bank vault; how the government plans to keep people away from a nuclear waste site for the next 10,000 years.
Steam power; Jay Leno fires up two steam cars and an 11-ton steam tractor built in 1860; coal-burning boiler; century-old steam locomotive; paddlewheel steamboat.
Entries and exits; world's tallest doors at the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center; a company that makes blast doors and bulletproof doors; fabricating doors for homes.
Visiting the U.S. Library of Congress to explore the contents of secret vaults and see how the staff of 4,000 catalogs and preserves treasures.
It's impossible to live without them, and yet they didn't even exist a couple of decades ago; episode counts down a list of the top ten technological innovations of the last generation.
Mega stores are giant facilities engineered to keep up with America's supersized habits; they are the largest, busiest places in the country; their greatest challenge: keeping up with demand on a massive scale.
The biggest stacked burger in the world at almost 250 pounds; a plus-sized Sicilian pizza that feeds almost 75 people; a 72-ounce steak that no real cowboy can resist; the seven-pound hot dog that's too big for a bun; a giant cupcake.
The historic one-armed bandits; cutting edge, computerized slot machines; some of the wackiest vending machines; binoculars at popular tourist sites; a unique company that collects and cleans the coins thrown into fountains.
Dogs are fearless, faithful, determined, and swift, serving as hunters, soldiers, rescuers, and protectors; they are perfectly engineered marvels, combining natural instincts with complex training.
Amazing, ingenious and ultrasturdy shelters, machines, containers, and materials help to ensure the continuation of society.
A look under the feet of Americans, from secret military installations and experimental farms to tunnel networks and neutron lasers.
The world's biggest and oldest flag manufacturer; inside the last US athletic shoe factory; the strangest form of alternate transportation; a hot toy company that believes it's imperative to keep their work here at home.
Get behind the wheel and take control of the some of the largest, fastest, most powerful machines on the planet; these aren't the average vehicles and handling one of these rides is unlike anything else.
Rice is the world's most versatile grain; there are over 140,000 types - white, brown, long-grain, wild, short-grain, jasmine, Arborio, Basmati, black Thai, sweet, sticky - enough to satisfy any discerning palette.
Around the world, people consume billions of gallons of milk every day; a cow-milking parlor; pasteurization; a three-story milk evaporator; milking a yak; the world's largest butter churn; yogurt.
All life-forms and modern technology are built on a foundation of carbon; the steel industry; coal-fired power plants; graphite pencils; a charcoal water filter; diamonds.
Mechanical feats of strength by the world's most-powerful elevators, a monster mine machine, the world's strongest mountain bike, a space vehicle transporter and an unbeatable blender.
Strange weapons of the past and present include Japanese ninja claws, microwavelike rays, lasers, robots, the "pukelight," and a superslippery substance.
A large factory-fishing boat hunts down, catches and processes 300 tons of Alaskan pollock each day in the Bering Sea; the crew reveals the inner workings of one of the most sophisticated and complex vessels afloat.
Ice traps a treasure of energy on the ocean floor and confounds scientists still trying to solve why it's so slippery.
Different cultures' history, production and consumption of bread reveal its variety of forms, ranging from baguettes to pita, corn bread, and flour tortillas.
Zip through the french countryside at nearly 300 MPH on the TGV, the fastest locomotive in the world; ride on the little engines that could as they guide giant ships through the Panama Canal; watch two locomotives crash head-on.
Each flip of an electric-light switch attests to the genius of Nikola Tesla, creator of the alternating current (AC) system; the Tesla coil; energy-efficient bulbs.
The history and technology behind the ax as a weapon and tool; lumberjack competition; battle-axes; Indian tomahawks; factory; collector.
Rats are some of the most dangerous, destructive and useful animals on the planet; an exterminator comes face to face with the rodents; hundreds of thousands of rats are bred and raised in a a high-tech facility.
Pyroman the life-size mannequin is exposed to more than 1,000 degrees F; steel workers suit up to beat refinery heat; coffee makers and hair dryers malfunction at Underwriters Laboratories; a friction lab tests aircraft and race-car brakes.
The human body is host to a multitude of hidden secrets even after death; coroner; funeral home director; forensic anthropologist; engineers.
The history of ice cream ranging from the gelato of Italy and a 19th-century French process to today's frozen desserts; visiting Dreyer's, TCBY and Joy Cone Co. factories; Ben & Jerry's flavor innovations.
Bathroom technology; Kohler makes a digitally controlled shower complete with steam, music and LED chromatherapy; manufacturing sinks; "uncloggable" toilet; the engineering behind low-flow showers and toilets.
World-shaking crashes; efforts to make auto racing safer; the latest in motorcycle crash survival equipment; a sky diver survives falling 11,000 feet without a parachute; NASA's asteroid-tracking team; colliding subatomic particles.
Brief history of undergarments; the evolution from itchy woolen union suits to comfortable briefs and boxers; socks with special threads to prevent odor; fire retardant underwear; the bra industry.
Americans insert more than 3.5 million coins into vending machines every 15 minutes; how vending machines work; visiting a factory that produces high-tech vending machines; giant gumball machine.
Rubber, plastic, nylon, aerosols, resins, solvents, and lubricants, none can exist without oil; the secrets of oil and the many products it has spawned; oil refinery in California; chemical weapons suits; making asphalt; blending jet fuel; Vaseline.
How wheat feeds the world; wheat becomes everything from bread to beer; a custom harvester follows ripening wheat fields from Texas to North Dakota; exporting wheat; grinding grain into flour; Widmer Brothers Brewery; Wheatware.
Traveling some of the world's most dangerous roads, including Bolivia's "Death Road," California's fog-shrouded Highway 99, the road to Baghdad's airport and Colorado's Million Dollar Highway; highway safety; off-road drivers.
Mankind makes use of lead, a versatile but toxic metal, for 6,000 years; mining; car battery factory; specialists remove harmful lead objects from homes and businesses; lead makes crystal sparkle.
America's aging infrastructure is in danger of collapse due to corrosion, according to engineers; technology for battling corrosion; harnessing the destructive power of decomposition.
Examining how frequently experts in various disciplines can hit their targets, including archers, sharpshooters and even a billiards player; the ancient world's ballista and trebuchet weapons; knife thrower; Cirque du Soleil's daring artists.
The celebration of Halloween has become a $6 billion economic powerhouse; the annual Halloween Haunt at Knott's Berry Farm; the production of monster makeup, masks and costumes; carving pumpkins; making fake blood; haunted house.
A celebration of the horse, the animal that helped mankind change the world; the thoroughbred racing industry in Kentucky; how a Minnesota logging company uses real horsepower; a Colorado program pairs horses and prison inmates.
The turkey is the centerpiece of Thanksgiving dinners and one of the dumbest birds in the animal kingdom, but it has managed to survive since the dinosaurs; Butterball factory; turkey hunting; dining on turkey testicles and eggs.
Salt is a versatile substance with 14,000 known uses; visiting a salt mine under Lake Erie; an evaporation facility harvests ocean salt near San Francisco; a Florida restaurant offers 40 varieties of salt.
Americans visit car washes two million times per day at an annual cost of $25 billion; how car washes are built to clean, ranging from tunnel systems to in-bay automatics; visiting the biggest car wash facility in the United States.
The evolution of technology; how things now considered obsolete worked such as the typewriter, VCR, analog TV, vinyl record, film camera and brick-sized mobile phone, as well as products that superseded them.
Whether humans have the ability to possess superpowers; a man can strap on an exoskeleton and lift hundreds of pounds with little effort; Mr. Cyborg can control machines with his thoughts; flying like Superman.
How distance, time, speed, weight and temperature are measured; weighing a whale; how a speedometer works; the National Institute of Standards and Technology; measuring tapes made by Stanley Tools.
Some activities occur only when the world is dark; fishermen use lights to lure squid to their nets; finding night crawlers in Toronto; military night-vision gear; police helicopter's Spectrolab spotlight; baseball stadium.
The Wilson Sporting Goods football factory; Rawlings' Costa Rica baseball factory; the National Soccer Hall of Fame; the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
From the prairies of Saskatchewan to a Manhattan skyscraper we'll see the 21st Century's cutting-edge "green" technologies in action.
It's the unsung essential of modern life; canning is the method of preserving and packaging food, without which civilization would never have ventured beyond the local food supply.
Since 200 BC, when the Greek Philosopher Archimedes created a device for lifting water, the pump has been synonymous with transporting Earth's most precious resource.
From the unimaginable power of nuclear bombs to microscopic anthrax spores, we reveal who possesses these nightmare weapons and explore the danger posed by terrorists with deadly technologies.
The forts, weapons and technology of barbarians.
They block the force of a river, produce enough electricity to power cities, move water over hundreds of miles and irrigate fertile valleys.
The U.S. Navy's diving and salvage programs; the USS Salvor's underwater remote-operated robots; bomb-locating minisub Alvin.
It was a science first conjured amid the fiery ovens of ancient blacksmiths; today more than 50% of all U.S. products require some form of welding.
Discover how essential space travel technologies have journeyed back to Earth with surprising and indispensable commercial applications.
The sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald; the Buffalo Creek Dam disaster; the explosion of a supertanker in Los Angeles Harbor.
The 1970s were a decade of excess; dust off your mirror ball, put on your leisure suit, and rediscover the gadgets of the era; Play PONG with its inventor and learn how this simple game created a billion dollar empire.
Fertilizer--without it two thirds of the world would starve. It makes our lawns grow greener and our crops grow taller; take a tour of the places where the essential nutrients that feed the soil are harnessed.
From cheddar to brie, parmesan to blue, take a look at both ancient techniques and new technologies behind some of the world's most popular cheeses; discover how cheese is made.
Sink your teeth into the razor sharp world of saws; cut across the centuries to discover how the Egyptians arduously sawed stone as compared to modern saws that slice through limestone like butter.
A visit to a rolling mill where aluminum skins for jets are made; aluminum is used to make reflective mirrors for telescopes at NASA; the process of making aluminum foil; why aluminum baseball bats are better than wood.
Bees do it; chemists do it; even Photocopiers do it; if it's not done enough, the world will become unglued - literally; from Velcro hooks to Gecko feet, making things that stick is no easy task.
Americans eat over three and a half billion pounds of chocolate each year--that's 12 pounds per person per year with annual sales topping $13 billion.
We spend one-third of our lives in the bedroom; explore the technologies that help to ensure we wake up on the right side of the bed.
Vacuums aren't just for cleaning floors; there are giant vacuums that clean up after disasters like Hurricane Katrina and underwater vacuums that save coral reefs by suctioning up invasive algae.
Trapping black bears with West Virginia Division of Natural Resources biologists; trapping and releasing feral cats left stranded in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
Mixtures of metals and caustic chemicals that make our tech, tools and toys surge with energy; visit the world's most powerful battery in Fairbanks, Alaska--13,760 hulking cells humming with 5,000 volts, ready to help the city survive power outages.
Take a supersonic flight through a world of flying machines that are redefining our skies; pull serious G's in the U.S. military's latest fighter jet: the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
Freezer unit filled with 135 million pounds of ice cream; Alcor, where researchers keep cadavers on ice in hopes of future revival.
A look at the many uses of acid; the military harnesses acid to make explosives; at a sulfuric acid plant, acid takes the stain out of stainless steel and dissolves precious metals; the Heinz vinegar plant; acid-loving bacteria.
It's time to slice and dice; take a cutting-edge look at the most amazing blades in the world, from the legendary sword of the samurai warrior with an edge sharp enough to sever a man's arm in a single swipe.
Inventions for holding off a global warming meltdown include giant solar energy towers, a rooftop wind turbine, a car that runs on air and a kite that tows a cargo ship.
Corn is the largest agricultural crop in the world, and it is used in more than 3,000 diverse items, ranging from food to the plastic wrap for packaging it.
Some say pigs are as smart as 3-year-old humans; turning pigs into bacon, ham, ribs and sausage; boar semen collection; the use of pig organs in medicine.
Geological history from the Stone Age to the Space Age; moon rocks provide clues to how planets were formed; quarrying marble and granite; blasting at a sand-and-gravel pit.
It strikes without warning and kills in an instant; we fear its might even as we use it to save a life; explore the electric shock in its numerous forms.
They're the meat in our sandwiches and slices of American pop culture; take a look behind the deli counter to reveal the secret ingredients in boloney; watch a master sausage maker craft salami, and pile it on at Carnegie Deli.
The Koenigsegg CCR automobile; the Shanghai Maglev train; motorboat racer Ken Warby and the Spirit of Australia; the Kingda Ka roller coaster; the Holloman High Speed Test Track.
Candy production consumes 7-billion tons yearly, evolving from handmade operations to high-tech mass production; explore Hershey's cocoa processing, See's boxed chocolates, Schimpff's traditional methods, and Jelly Belly's gourmet jellybeans.
Drilling spirals through ground, rock, earth, ice, steel, and stone; explore water drilling in New Mexico desert, oil drilling in Gulf of Mexico, deepest hole quests, ice core climate recovery, tunnel boring machines, and laser precision drilling.
The 1980s transitioned from Industrial to Information Age with brick cell phones, Pac-Man, Rubik's Cube, Sony Walkman, and CDs; microchips revolutionized work, play, and communication through Silicon Valley innovations including Apple computers.
Benjamin Franklin, the oldest Founding Father, was the late 18th century's foremost scientist and greatest inventor; created Pennsylvania Stove, lightning rod, glass armonica for Mozart and Beethoven and anti-counterfeiting techniques.
Heavy metals occupy select periodic table portions and are essential to America's economic and military might, stored in National Defense Stockpile; vital metals include copper, uranium, lead, zinc, nickel, and corrosion-resistant superalloys.
Explore the world of extreme horsepower from fastest accelerating cars to massive hydroplane racing boats; discover horsepower's steam engine marketing origins, container ship diesel power, Hoover Dam water harnessing, and more.
Barbecue evolved from old-fashioned cooking into modern multi-billion dollar industry; explore famous cook-offs, established restaurants like Arthur Bryant's Kansas City, post-WWII backyard phenomenon, Weber kettle grills, and spicy sauce varieties.
Pirates terrorized high seas since before recorded history; at their 1700s power height, they influenced nations through England-Spain rivalry while bringing maritime technology innovations including modified ships for speed and power enhancement.
The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway stretches 2,500 miles from Boston to Miami through canals, land cuts, and barrier islands providing protected passage; conceived in late 18th century as America's first superhighway before road systems existed.
Big machines span NASA's world's biggest wind tunnel and flight simulator, Joy Mining's Continuous Miner underground machine, London Eye's 443-foot observation wheel, IMAX's largest film technology, and Claas Cougar world's biggest lawnmower.
Nuts range from pea-sized to bowling ball-sized as nutritional staples since time began; sustained Roman and Chinese armies, English and Spanish navies, American tribes, while today UNICEF uses peanut products to reverse child malnutrition quickly.
Egyptian mummies speak from graves through state-of-the-art CT-scanning technology; explore 2,000-year-old child mummy, 70-day mummification process, King Tut's mysterious death investigation, and nitrogen-filled conservation cases preventing decay.
Water exists in three forms at same temperature as nature's powerful landscape carver and life supporter; explore its multidimensional character from bottled water industry to nuclear reactors, irrigation systems, and artistic fountain displays.
Copper transports electricity, water, and heat while being essential for survival yet killing microbes; this versatile metal conducts electricity globally, revolutionizes electronics, forms plumbing pipes, creates beautiful roofs, and more.
Renewable energy technologies fight petroleum dependence and global warming by transforming air, water, earth, and fire into clean sources; explore solar, wind, geothermal, biofuels, and tidal power from experimental to massive scale solutions.
Freight trains transport 1.8 billion tons annually as America's economic lifeblood, carrying crops, electronics, cars, chemicals, and coal; explore Union Pacific's Bailey yard, the world's greatest freight system, from mining tramway origins.
The evolution of the assembly line, which has produced billions of products, from toys to Boeing 747s, cheaply and quickly; Americans overcome prejudices toward blacks and women in factories during World War II; a family of auto assembly workers.
Ink, invented by Chinese around 3000BC, spread religious and war messages while setting people free and spelling out rights; from squid to soybeans, ancient texts to tattoos, ink tells stories, sells products, and solves crimes everywhere.
Distillation of spirits represents art, science, and vapor-water marriage in a billion-dollar business; visit brandy, liqueur, moonshine, and absinthe distilleries including Christian Brothers, Deep South moonshine, and French Courvoisier Cognac.
Strength measurement explores why some things are stronger than others; examine rope, tractor, diamond, tugboat, and plastic strength from Spectra fiber to Lexan, discovering where, how, and why strength matters in daily life applications.
Former Tomcat pilot Terry Deitz explores F-14 fighter jet legacy through final catapult launches aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt; aviators and sailors reflect on iconic aircraft's career before retirement at Naval Air Station Oceana farewell ceremony.
Tobacco's ancient discovery and Andes cultivation leads to modern North Carolina farming and Dominican Republic Fuente cigar plantation; explore harvesting techniques, public health concerns with Surgeon General, and nicotine replacement therapies.
The supermarket has become one of the great success stories of modern retailing; bar coding and other technological advancements; the psychology of the supermarket, including the store layout, lighting, music and aromas.
Breakfast technology slices, squeezes, sorts, and cooks to keep orange juice fresh and cereals flaked; explore USS Stennis meal preparation for sailors, Tyson bacon processing, Sunkist orange squeezing, and McDonald's McGriddle pancake production.
Wine remains culturally integral as Napoleon drowned sorrows and Jefferson became obsessed; modern consumption peaks with wines from Australia, Chile, South Africa using NASA aerial imaging technology for soil analysis and vine vigor assessment.
America's orchards and farms balance hand labor with mechanization through efficient harvesting methods; explore orchard management, California's largest fruit packing house, Nebraska corn fields, Wisconsin cranberry marshes, and more.
Snow forms through nucleation in storm clouds but faces pollution threats; explore Storm Peak Laboratory cloud research, Colorado ski resort snowmaking technology, avalanche rescue innovations, and Buffalo blizzard forecasting.
Tea ranks as world's second most popular drink with ancient origins; explore Lipton's Suffolk plant producing teabags, Charleston Plantation's cultivation, Boston Tea Party history, Clipper Ships bringing Chinese tea, and modern herbal varieties.
Christmas observance by world's population incorporates trees, ornaments, lights, and treats made cheaper and safer through technology; explore Rockefeller Center preparations, Macy's holiday windows, UNICEF snowflake installation, and more.
Explore the arch, one of humanity's strongest and most versatile structures; Romans perfected what Egyptians and Greeks experimented with, Arabs incorporated into mosques, Europeans into churches, and modern builders use in dams and future space.
Earth's non-human inhabitants use tools, build structures, create traps, and farm; Egyptian vultures crack ostrich eggs with stones, chimpanzees extract termites with tool kits, prairie dogs dig subterranean homes, and ants raise aphid herds.
Giant robots work factory floors and outer space; floating fortresses house 6,000 military personnel with length matching Empire State Building's height; diesel engines produce 108,000 horsepower in audacious engineering feats worldwide.
Trace the butchering trade's evolution from corner butchers to industrial disassembly lines; tour Chicago Stockyards remains where Sinclair, Birdseye, and refrigeration changed the industry, plus modern quality controls and rural custom butchers.
George Washington Carver rose from slavery to become one of the 20th century's greatest scientists; at Tuskegee Institute, he invented over 300 peanut uses, developed crop rotation, and changed rural economy through agricultural innovations.
Close to 40% of Earth is classified as desert, but these environments offer hope through Middle East desalination, Las Vegas communities, Hoover Dam power, irrigation agriculture, solar energy, and technology enabling future Mars colonization.
Profile five deadly weapons focusing on inventors, battles, and technology: Tsar Bomba 50-megaton nuclear bomb, WWI machine guns, WWII incendiary bombs, proximity fuses for artillery detonation, and VX nerve gas chemical agent.
Examine Edwards Air Force Base's colorful history as America's premier flight test center for over 60 years; every Air Force aircraft was tested there, including current projects like the Airborne Laser designed to destroy ballistic missiles.
Explore basements from Pompeii to Pittsburgh; ancient Hittites, Phrygians, and Persians carved subterranean rooms for storage and shelter, Greeks and Romans valued them, Renaissance architects hid kitchens there, and Colonial Americans expanded use.
Glue appears in everything from carpet to Space Shuttles and surgery; explore its trajectory from Neolithic cave dwellers using animal glue on ceremonial skulls to modern Elmer's, 3M tapes, and super glues that can lift 6,000-pound trucks.
The Cape Cod Canal represents an engineering feat many believed impossible; begun in 1909 during the Great Depression, this major commerce and recreational Intracoastal Waterway route showcases determination, ingenuity, and American spirit.
Thomas Alva Edison, the Wizard of Menlo Park, created electric lights, power systems, motion pictures, recorded sound, and tattoo pens; his innovations evolved into modern CDs, iPods, satellite radio, and technologies from Internet to outer space.
Today's cowboys blend Old West traditions with modern technology; examine 19th-century cattle industry boom, Spanish-derived saddles and ropes, barbed wire revolution, and modern computer chips, DNA evidence, and artificial insemination techniques.
Electrical linemen repair 345,000-volt power lines from helicopters as part of America's nearly two-century hardwiring story; fiber optic cables transmitting light since the late 1970s remain vital infrastructure alongside wireless technology.
Beer, one of the world's oldest beverages revered by Pharaohs and brewed by America's Founding Fathers, evolved from prehistoric times through ancient Sumeria, China, and Egypt to today's multi-billion-dollar global craft brewing industry.
Leonardo da Vinci remains intriguing 500 years after death; beyond great artist, he was remarkable scientist and inventor whose notebooks contained incredible machines from weapons to submarines, robots, and analogue computers with workable plans.
Dredgers clear and deepen ports for vessels that carry megacontainers.
Soft drinks, donuts, meat snacks, popcorn, and gum represent humanity's need to feed cravings; from handmade treats of earliest civilizations to hi-tech mass production, these snackfoods evolved through history into modern manufacturing.
Walt Disney World transforms Florida swampland into 27,000-acre technological marvel with four theme parks featuring space-age centrifuges, 3,000 PSI hydraulic vehicles, and hundreds of audio animatronics powered by pneumatics and electrical systems.
The Pacific Coast Highway winds from exclusive retreats in Malibu, Calif., to the wilds of Washington state.
When a burning gusher shoots flames into the air, only a handful of men know how to snuff out the monster; fighting fire with fire, they place explosives around the flames to blow it out, or douse it with tons of water.
Qatar represents everything a modern military command post; it can be with the most sophisticated military information systems--from video-conferencing to real-time frontline satellite communication.
Towering skyscrapers buzzing with life, intricate tunnels connecting entire communities, mighty dams that tame the wildest rivers--this is construction animal style.
Arguably the most influential book ever written, the Bible provides a glimpse into the origins of ancient technology and its use to withstand the elements, build great structures, wage war, and conserve precious water.
From tub to toilet to toothpaste, here's everything you ever wanted to know about the most used and least discussed room in the house.
The transmission of forces from point to point through fluid opens the door for the Industrial Revolution.
When the most sophisticated machines fail, they do so horrifically, plunging to earth with a terrifying loss of life. From the beginning of manned flight, plane crashes have plagued the aviation industry and terrorized the public.
The Allies devise scientific and mechanical breakthroughs to thwart Hitler's Atlantic Wall and to make the D-Day invasion successful.
The story of rubber is more than tires, toys, gloves, and gum--it's imbedded in modern life, from the controversial Challenger O-rings to seals on hydrogen fuel cells; a worldwide synthetic rubber industry creates exotic elastomers.
When you tap your faucet does clean, pure water flow? Can your city supply enough water for industry, firefighting, and street cleaning? U.S. public water-supply systems serve nearly 99% of the population, yet few users know how the system works.
Nuclear research ranges from well-known applications, such as bombs and reactors, to little-known uses in medicine, food preparation, and radiation detection. It's also spawned ancillary technologies to store nuclear waste and clean up accidents.
The 1969 flight of Apollo 11, which landed two American astronauts on the Moon, as seen through the eyes of the astronauts, mission controllers, engineers, and designers who made it happen.
World War I is the first lethal combination of Industrial Age technology and war on a large scale.
The biggest moving objects ever built by man, oil tankers dominate the world's waterways, both in size and numbers; upwards of 10,000 strong, the world tanker fleet's vast number results from the modern, insatiable thirst for oil.
An underground subway system transforms the bustling metropolis of Athens, Greece, alleviating chronic traffic problems, meeting the needs of the 2004 Olympics and uncovering thousands of invaluable artifacts.
The X-1 jet breaks the sound barrier; the X-43 Scramjet flies at Mach 7; U-2 and SR-71 Cold War spy planes; flying Wing bombers; the new F/A Raptor.
Construction of the California Department of Transportation Headquarters; design; excavation; skeleton; hurricane- and earthquake-proofing; structural systems.
Join us for a high-speed look at police pursuits in an adrenaline-filled hour focused on the history and evolution of the technologies that give law enforcement the upper hand when pursuing bad guys.
Cutting, digging, picking, stripping, shaking, and raking--whatever the crop, there's a custom machine to harvest it; it all began with handpicking and today it's often one man and one machine harvesting hundreds of acres in a single day.
Construction problems of mega-skyscrapers; exterior wall system; energy-conserving glass; safety issues; aesthetics.
In hour three of our crash course on mega-skyscraper construction, we learn about the human element and development of systems that make us comfortable.
Data lines; power; plumbing; photovoltaics; conserving energy; painting; carpeting; moving furniture; lights.
Gas--it makes a balloon go up, cooks our food, and fills our lungs; this invisible state of matter does far more, and has a very visible impact on the world.
Bridges are the lifeline of Japan; since the 1930s, the island nation has dreamt of linking its many parts as a whole; WWII diverted the resources needed to accomplish this, and only since 1960 has the dream moved again, slowly, toward reality.
In the world of surveillance, Big Brother is not only watching, he's also listening, analyzing, recording, scanning, and tracking every aspect of our lives; with advanced surveillance technology, there's virtually no place to hide.
A toxic waste dump at Love Canal in Niagara Falls, N.Y.; software flaws render Patriot Missiles inaccurate; the collapse of 7 World Trade Center; the Cocoanut Grove nightclub fire in Boston.
When the men and women aboard a modern submarine hear the command to dive, they can take a measure of comfort in the fact that no US sub has been lost in nearly 40 years, though it's been said that the sea is a more hostile environment than space.
Chicago flood; Alpine tunnel fires; riverboat boiler explosion; building collapse; plane crash.
Extruders, molds, in-line conveyor belts; are these machines manufacturing adhesives, plastics, or parts for your car? No, they're making treats for your mouth--and you will see them doing their seductively tasty work in this scrumptious episode.
It comes in many deadly shapes and sizes, and the transportation of dangerous cargo is one of the most meticulously planned procedures in the shipping world.
Battered and fried or simply raw--seafood is a popular dish, no matter how you serve it; americans consume more than 5-billion pounds yearly, an order that takes more than a fishing rod to fill and worries conservationists.
Doomsday threats range from very real, nuclear arsenals, to controversial, global warming, to futuristic - nanotechnology, cyborgs, and robots.
We examine more threats--both natural and manmade--that may endanger civilization; from the far reaches of space to tiny viruses, doomsday sources are many.
A journey back to an unruly era examining the complexity of their construction and the multi-purpose they served; homes to kings and nobles, economic centers, courthouses, treasuries, prisons, and torture chambers.
The Trans-Siberian railroad provokes a war, crosses treacherous terrain, and encounters huge obstacles; it's the longest, most expensive and complicated railroad ever built; ordered by the Czar in an effort to save his empire.
All it takes to set off a booby trap is an unsuspecting victim lifting, moving, or disturbing a harmless-looking object; the history of booby traps from the ancient Egyptians, Chinese, Greek, and Romans to the Middle Eastern crisis.
A travel from British Columbia north through the Yukon Pass on their way to Fairbanks, Alaska, thanks to one two-lane roadway, the 1,522-mile long Alaska Highway.
The Mighty Mac connects the pastoral northern mainland of Michigan with the state's heavily forested Upper Peninsula and stands as a testament to the dreams, determination, and hard work of a small few who created a true masterpiece.
Trains capable of speeds of up to 190 miles per hour can be found throughout the world; scientists are looking at new alternatives to electricity, including magnetic levitation that can move passenger trains 345 miles per hour and beyond.
Made up of soldiers and civilians, scientists and specialists in an enormous variety of fields, the US Army Corps of Engineers was created over 200 years ago by Congressional mandate to respond, in peace and war, to the nation's engineering needs.
Watertight compartments and a steel-plated hull convince all that HMS Titanic would be unsinkable, but a collision with an iceberg proves the belief wrong.
A survey of torture devices employed throughout history, ranging from the ancient Greeks' Brazen Bull to the Spanish Inquisition's elaborate mechanisms.
Termites, mosquitos, rats, mice, ants and cockroaches have spread damage, disease and death for millions of years.
Hazardous-material shipment; trucks carrying classified government materials; Con-Air flight moves dangerous felons.
The controversial logging industry topples 4 billion trees annually in a world striving to protect nature while devouring it.
The development of jet technology and rocket fuel during World War II culminates in test pilot Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier on Oct. 10, 1947.
The construction of a terrorist-proof safe room, and how windows might someday act as biological weapons detectors; what technology can do to protect civilians, and how they can use technology to protect themselfs.
The military's new mission is to detect, deter, and defend America from terrorist attack; cutting-edge technology, including Smart Bombs, Tactical Ballistic-Missile Systems, Electro-Optical Systems, and the pilotless drone Predator.
Targeting the historical trajectory of bullets, ranging from their origins in the 1300s as stones and lead balls to the "safe" and "smart" bullets of today.
The journey begins before the Bronze Age and goes into the shiny future when new metal structures, engineered at a molecular level to be stronger, lighter, and cheaper, shape human progress, as they have since man first thrust copper into a fire.
The history of the Columbia, the first space shuttle to fly outer space, ranging from its inception to its deadly destruction in January 2003.
The Overseas Highway links mainland Florida with the Florida Keys, and contains 51 bridges, including the Seven-Mile Bridge; a 175-million refurbishment that ended in 1982 resulted in today's remarkable Overseas Highway.
The engineering marvel Machu Picchu sits perched on a ridge in the Peruvian Andes; originally built by the Incas, this magnificent structure remains a mystery.
Two ribbons of concrete span the largest inland body of water in Louisiana, forming the world's longest automobile bridge.
Shipyards are waterside construction sites where some of the largest tools ever built help create the biggest machines on earth; from ancient days to the 18th-century Industrial Revolution to the epic effort performed at Pearl Harbor.
A jet truck that can travel 300 mph; the Baltimore Technical Assistance Response Unit's mobile command truck; a garbage truck with an articulated arm; how SWAT, bomb squad, HAZMAT, and crime scene specialty trucks are built.
The minds of the off-kilter geniuses who thought up off-the-mark concepts; some tinkerers' musings were merely ahead of their time and deemed flops during the inventor's lifetime, but others were just plain bad.
More than 100 pyramids built as tombs for pharaohs still stand in Egypt, but many things about the ancient monuments remain obscure.
A look at five categories of boys' toys and what relationship they have had on the development of young minds; Super Soaker water gun; Lionel electric train; Erector Set; cap gun; Lincoln Logs; Matchbox Cars; G.I. Joe; LEGO bricks.
Communists erect a 103-mile-long wall through and around Berlin in order to stop the flow of refugees to the West.
From the early "egg beaters" of World War II to the "flying tanks" of Operation Desert Storm, meet the first pilot to fly a combat rescue mission in WWII and a U.S.A.F. female aviator; and view classified footage of the Apache in Iraq.
His movies are legend, his women beautiful, and his toys the best in the world; James Bond is foiling villains in space-age flying machines or eavesdropping on his enemies with ultra-sophisticated spy gear.
For millennia, luxury toys have functioned as flashy instruments of affluence, authority, and identity and driven many kingly consumers to covet, create, and purchase these status symbols; we examine the personal possessions--paeans to the lords.
A machine that converts energy into mechanical force to go over, under or through fortified or fixed defenses too strong for conventional force; engines range from man's first long-range missile weapon.
It's the place where one man's trash is truly another man's treasure; enter the mysterious world of the junkyard, where many pieces actually do add up to a whole; uncover how junkyard operators create order out of seemingly random piles of junk.
Spinning your wheels isn't just going around in circles, in fact, it's revolutionary - literally; the history of civilization has turned on the wheel and we have traveled as far as we have because of it.
Star City, the Gagarin Center for Training Cosmonauts, was established by the former Soviet Union in the 1960s as a school for the future conquerors of space.
Who could imagine life without our "man-made weather"? On cold winter nights and hot summer days, we are forever grateful to the visionaries who took two basic elements--fire and ice--and turned them into true modern marvels.
Blade implements have been a part of civilized man's arsenal since the Paleolithic Age, when sharp tools were chipped off of flint or obsidian; but with the discovery of metallurgy, people were able to forge stronger, more versatile blade implements.
Excavators; machines lug NASA rockets to the launch pad; cruise ship; machine to create a fusion reaction.
Legendary drivers lead us on a record-breaking race through a century-long search for sheer acceleration that began before World War One, when hot-rodders modified Model-T Fords to see how fast they could go.
At 5:30 a.m., July 16, 1945, scientists and dignitaries awaited the detonation of the first atomic bomb in a desolate area of the New Mexico desert aptly known as Jornada del Muerto--Journey of Death.
They are lethal tools that ensured our survival, altered our evolution, and maintained our dominion over other animals; though hunting technology is the backbone of a multi-billion dollar sports industry, current cutting-edge gear.
Traces physical fitness' role in the health of the individual and society; from ancient Greek gymnasiums, where pupils pumped up the mind as well as body, to 19th-century Muscular Christians, who saw exercise as an obligation to God.
Slap on your sun block and head to the ocean for a sizzling hour that explores the beach in a whole new way; we cover everything from Japan's Seagaia, the world's largest indoor beach, to boardwalks, dune buggies, surfboards, sunglasses, and more.
Traces the history and evolution of the world's most important fossil fuel; without gasoline, modern life would grind to a halt.
Join us for a walk on the wild side of the history of sexual enhancement and contraception--from Cleopatra's box of buzzing bees to 17th-century condoms to Internet sex and 21st-century holographic pornography.
Tugboats; roller-coasters; funicular railroads; flat-bed truck; 747.
He's everyone's favorite spy, the man with a woman in every port and a gadget in every pocket; no villain is too strong, no situation too tough for His Majesty's Secret Agent, thanks to his wits, cunning, and the best toys on the silver screen.
The art deco Chrysler Building stands out in the New York skyline.
DVD, CD, PDA, HDTV, PVR--used to be the ultimate in "gotta have it" gadgets and gizmos and "to die for" technology that populate a digital world of acronyms.
They were pure fantasy on wheels, machines designed to make the heart race; explore the world of 1950s concept cars--automotive art built to attract public attention.
The convertible transforms the driving experience.
Airport runways play a vital role as the backbone of aviation.
Take a peek into one of today's fully-automated homes that is so smart, the owner can operate everything from the home theater to the outdoor waterfall at a push of one button.
On a proving ground, you can fire a missile without scaring the neighbors or lift millions of pounds in pursuit of ounces of gold, performance is the only thing that matters and no excuses can be given in battle or competition.
After an oxygen tank explodes, scientists and engineers race against time to save the crew of crippled spacecraft Apollo 13; the mission, which nearly ended in tragedy, becomes a resounding success and exemplifies NASA's finest hour.
Named one of the seven engineering wonders of the modern age, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel connects Virginia proper with its easternmost landmass; stretching 17 miles across the historic bay, the structure includes highways and islands.
From the Pharos of Alexandria to modern automated buoys, lighthouse history features personal stories of keepers, daring construction, and optical discoveries; today these structures become inns and retreats as navigation advances.
The Pentagon, completed in 1943, serves as the five-sided nerve center for the nation's armed services and stands as the largest office building in the world, conjuring an imposing image of American military power.
From colossal devices designed to save the world to mind-expanding, world-shrinking machines, tracing the evolution of mice and menus; learning about the world's most powerful computer that operates at 12-trillion calculations a second.
Engineering disasters exact costs in lives when design flaws fell projects; examine the leaning Tower of Pisa, Idaho's first nuclear accident, Soyuz 11 deaths, Texas Tower destruction, and NASA's Mars mission losses.
Examination of chemical and biological warfare history and technology traces back 4,000 years to ancient India's toxic fumes; includes details of Soviet biological programs and interviews with former scientists Ken Alibek and Bill Patrick.
Infantry soldiers known as "Tunnel Rats" searched for and destroyed secret subterranean enemy networks in Vietnam; armed with flashlights and pistols, these volunteers faced lethal odds and uncovered arms caches, with many casualties.
American saloon history spans 1850s mining camps and Civil War tents to Prohibition speakeasies; explore elaborate carved bars, brass foot-rails, refrigerated beer supply impact, and transformational bottle cap technology.
Earthmoving equipment story spans simple spades to powerful steam shovels; meet legendary giants John Deere, Jerome Case, and Caterpillar founders who forged America's construction industry, plus specialized trucks and space equipment.
Cannons evolved from 13th-century fort-penetrating weapons to atomic bomb launchers with smart weapons; explore how cannons were cast and forged, terrorized in world wars, and advanced to today's 40-ton self-propelled Crusader.
Nuclear submarines carry more firepower than all bombs dropped in history; since the 1950s, these steel vessels became U.S. defense cornerstones, sparking Cold War underwater competition and creating engineering miracles for deterrence.
The U.S. Military Academy at West Point has trained students in warfare for nearly 200 years; located 50 miles north of New York City on 16,000 acres, it overlooks the Hudson River and evolved with America's expanding responsibilities.
Dynamite explodes hills, drills divide stone walls, and giant cranes pull 400,000-pound blocks from quarry pits; rock serves as civilization's raw material for roads, buildings, paint, glue, makeup, antacids, and chewing gum.
Half a mile below earth's surface, miners extract rough diamonds, pure carbon substances that become precious gems when cut and polished; explore diamond mining history and technology from 4th century BC to modern South Africa.
Defensive fortifications span WWI bunkers to futuristic structures; explore submarine bunkers at Lorient housing 20 subs, Churchill's Cabinet War Room, Hitler's Berlin bunker, Cold War shelters, and nuclear weapon protection bunkers.
More than two million people die in the U.S. annually, creating 5,500 daily burials with 80 percent choosing caskets and 20 percent cremation; explore dealing with death throughout centuries and today's $20-billion funeral industry.
Glass serves as one of the most versatile materials, sheathing skyscrapers, containing liquids, aiding vision, enabling high-speed communication, and providing artistic expression; heating certain rocks and minerals creates this transparent material.
A history of car-culture commerce.
The history of long-duration life in space from the first Soviet station to Skylab to Mir to the International Space Station; what it is like to live in space, as well as the monumental obstacles engineers and astronauts overcame to make it possible.
From amazing ancient Roman aqueducts and arch bridges, romantic Renaissance spans, 19th-century railroad crossovers, to monumental marvels of our time, bridges played a key role in the human quest to connect and unify.
The philosophy, architecture of today's U.S. prisons emerge from those of history.
The history of one of the world's most famous bridges, London's Tower Bridge; when it was erected in 1892, it became a postcard image of London, but the famed gothic towers of this pioneering steel structure, sheathed in stone, are purely decorative.
Technology transforms many aspects of police work.
In less than a century, the world went from dirt tracks to highways, from propeller planes to space travel, from sailboats to supertankers; in the process, a glut of traffic was created on roadways, railways, airways, and seaways.
Around the world and across the eons, gold stands as a symbol of power, wealth, and love; the story of the hunters of the precious metal and their methods for extracting it.
For centuries, banks enable the creation of wealth; a chronicle of banking, from its early European origins to e-banking; modern technology revolutionizes the way banks do business.
Begun in 1817, the Erie Canal was an engineering wonder of 363 miles of water highway linking the western frontier to the Atlantic seaboard; it took eight years to construct and thousands of hours of brutal labor.
A review of fast, high-octane vehicles shows the evolution of the sports car.
In 1954, Gamal Abdel Nasser, needed to harness the flow of the world's longest river: the Nile; how the Aswan High Dam socially, politically, culturally, and agriculturally affected Egypt.
When finally completed, China's Three Gorges Dam will tower 607 feet in the air and weigh more than forty Great Pyramids; along with China's Great Wall, it will constitute of the two man-made objects visible from the moon.
A fun-filled glimpse into the not so distant history of video games; since inception, the gaming industry has been a driving force in computer technology and video games are one of today's dominant entertainment mediums.
A 2000 Ford Taurus gets dissected to demonstrate the evolution of the automobile's major systems; automotive historians and experts describe how cars have evolved and explain major advances.
Since its completion in 1869, the Suez Canal has been a vital link in world trade and a point of controversy in geopolitics; today, more than 20,000 ships transit the canal yearly.
Combat training throughout history, reviewing survival skills and psychological tools; from ancient Rome to World Wars One and Two, and how modern training is enhanced by advanced technology and computer simulation.
Wartime research and development have revolutionized communication, transportation, and medicine; from Spam to nuclear power to hairspray and cell phones, life as we know it ironically owes a lot to war.
The world's first underground railway holds London together.
Even in ancient times, city dwellers needed a scenic break from the urban landscape; but parks play a more important role than mere relief from tension, they also keep temperatures down and supply much-needed oxygen in congested cities.
Espionage has been used for at least the last 4,000 years; the episode focus on the last 100 years of cloak and dagger technology, from early code-breaking computers to satellite reconnaissance and take a look at Bond-type gadgets of the Cold War.
Satellites and the global positioning system spark a revolution in cartography.
Advancements in rescue technology, including the Jaws of Life and a Searchcam system that locates buried victims.
Strap on a parachute and soar through the saga of jet propulsion which radically transformed the world since inception of World War II.
Digging up salt mining's history, from the "white gold" on the table to the oceanic and underground deposits whence it came; today people take salt for granted, but most life depends on it.
Exploring the ocean floor using old and new technology and examining revolutionary biological and geological discoveries.
How dynamite has been used in the construction of roads, tunnels and dams. Included: the invention of dynamite.
Offshore oil drilling is one of mankind's greatest technological feats; from the beginning of oil discovery, the oceans' vast reserves have been the ultimate frontier; see how these superstructures revolutionized the search for crude oil.
The task was monumental: build the world's largest dam in the middle of the desert, and tame the river that carved the Grand Canyon, all in seven years; when the Hoover Dam was completed in 1935, it was the largest dam in the world.
A tour of those remarkable edifices of the national pastime, baseball stadiums; from the sandlots and wooden ballparks of the 1800 and 1900s to the monolithic multipurpose stadiums of today, baseball parks have grown into technological wonders.
Much of New York City's history can be viewed via its bridges, all 18 that connect Manhattan Island to its neighbors; the episode looks at these architectural masterpieces from the age of iron and steel and show how they have changed destinies.
Delves into the little-known, hugely important, multi-billion-dollar industry of product testing, where wrinkles get ironed out and goods are stripped of marketing and hype to see if they work; meet product testers who serve as truth squads.
The idea of floating to earth from great heights dates back centuries, and from the beginning parachutes combined entertainment with life-saving utility; the parachute has also played a vital role in modern warfare since WWI.
An exploration of the Nazi construction called the Atlantic Wall - 3,000 miles of shore fortifications along occupied European coastline; the episode highlights the logistics of construction, types of fortifications.
The history of civilization could easily be measured in terms of our ability to make, use, and improve tools; episode examines power tool industry, which is booming thanks to more powerful, lighter, and quieter cordless tools.
Emergency room medicine has only been a recognized specialty since 1989; episode examines advances that led to the modern emergency room - from the Byzantine's establishment of the first hospitals around 1050 A.D. to today's telemedicine.
Fast and powerful, they come in a hundred shapes and a thousand colors; to some, motorcycles symbolize freedom; to others, they simply stand for trouble; episode race back in time and see how, for over a hundred years, motorcycles inspired riders.
Well over two million years before modern man evolved, his primitive ancestors were making tools; the ability to extend the hand and strengthen the arm is considered one of the keys to human evolution.
Throughout history the same builders and engineers that paved man's path out of the caves and into the modern world also caused some of mankind's worst disasters; often a huge calamity is traced back to a tiny cause, but triggering a domino effect.
Out of the bleakness of a vast desert arose a city built on wish fulfillment and indulgence; unencumbered by tradition or notions of good taste, for 50 years, Las Vegas has taken tourists to the height of their imaginations.
From ancient solutions to the development of modern water and sewer services, plumbing helped to make civilization possible.
A visit to the United States Mint and the Bureau of Printing and Engraving to see the secretive government facilities where the legal tender is generated; with a storied past as tantalizing as the wealth they create, these mints can spit fortunes.
In 1941, penicillin was first used to save human life; now, bacteria has emerged resistant to every known antibiotic and scientists have begun to fear that the era of the wonder drugs is near to its end.
To run faster, jump higher and play longer - the ultimate goal of all athletes; when training runs its course, science and technology jump in; explore the history and technological advances in everything from athletic shoes to football gear.
From the earliest recorded account of an amputation and subsequent prosthesis in ancient Hindu writings, to today's use of plastics and space-age materials, we chronicle the long history of prosthetic devices.
The ability to transmit sound in stereo transformed the music of life into a rich symphony of sound; for over 100 years, enthusiasts and scientists have worked to create the ideal listening experience; we examine this multi-billion dollar business.
Through rain, snow, heat, or gloom of night, we expect postmen to deliver the mail; the U.S. Post Office handles over 603-million pieces of mail daily; yet it represents only 43% of the world's total mail volume.
Visionaries enlarge, reinforce and motorize balloons and blimps, giving birth to the airship; 161 rigid airships are built before spectacular crashes, including the Hindenburg disaster, put an end to the era.
A look up at the symbol of the American Century - the skyscraper; the construction of which is a triumph of engineering and capitalism; climb to the top of the Empire State Building, Chrysler Building, Sears Tower, and World Trade Center.
Examines what happens when engineers get their calculations wrong.
Operating in space's harsh environment, these technological marvels serve as the world's most precious cargo; a journey from a British sci-fi writer's futuristic visions to a German rocket designer's wartime creations.
Once the revolutionary force that galvanized global communications without wires, radio linked the world a century ago; explore this enduring medium's long evolution from communication breakthrough to today's presence.
Features rare construction footage and interviews with architects, the program climbs to the top of the world's largest towers including Seattle's Space Needle, Canada's CN Tower, and Las Vegas's Stratosphere.
Reviews the revolution in home improvement and glimpses the kitchen of tomorrow, including the development of the stove, sewing machine, refrigerated air, washing machine, vacuum cleaner, toaster, and mixer.
Examines the history of radar, focusing on its role in the Allies' victory in World War II, from the Chain Home Network, rudimentary radar towers that ringed England's eastern coast, to the role of Boston's MIT in developing an English secret.
From Sherlock Holmes' examination of the physical evidence at a crime scene to today's DNA technology, a review of the history of crime detection through the use of forensic science.
When poliomyelitis swept the nation, thousands died or became disabled before American ingenuity and desperation led to one of history's greatest scientific breakthroughs; witness how polio shaped FDR's vision and made Jonas Salk famous.
In 1973, a desperate America, starved by an OPEC embargo, began construction on an 800 mile lifeline for its oil hunger; study the technological triumph of the Alaskan oil pipeline built over mountains and tundra, where temperatures drop below zero.
Many rivers quenched the thirst of millions in the American west and around the world; without these aqueducts, some of the earth's largest cities would turn into gigantic ghost towns.
For over a century, the U.S. steel industry is a powerful symbol of the nation's industrial might; steel transforms a country of farmers and merchants into a nation of builders, then U.S. domination of the market meets new challenges in the 1970s.
It started as an idea at a French dinner party and became the symbol of the free world; the story of France's gift to the US reveals a 20-year struggle to design and build the world's largest monument using paper-thin copper sheets.
A while back, the Harley-Davidson Motor Company teetered on the brink of bankruptcy; today, there are Harley restaurants, clothing lines, even a Harley Barbie; examine this American success story that began in 1903 in a Milwaukee shed.
Rising from a stretch of desert with nothing but remoteness to recommend it, Las Vegas became a glittering wonderland for dreamers; a look at the forces that made Las Vegas a place unlike any on earth.
During the depths of the Depression, it was FDR's greatest triumph: a massive public works project that took a 40,000 square mile, disaster-prone river basin, and turned it into a model of industrial progress.
How the Comstock Lode, discovered near Virginia City, proved to be a scientific laboratory from which vast improvements in mining technology and safety were pioneered, including innovations in drilling, ventilation, drainage, and ore processing.
The world's largest concrete dam, and the largest concrete structure in the world, lies on the Columbia River in the State of Washington; built in 1931, it is also one of the largest hydroelectric power plants in the world.
More than 50 years after its construction, the Golden Gate remains one of the world's great engineering marvels. It took 25-million man-hours and 80,000 miles of cable to complete; the cost in human life proved even greater.
During the 19th century, transcontinental railroads link California to the East.
In one of the greatest building achievements in history, East and West were joined by a thin ribbon of steel and wood.
Under the supervision of sculptor Gutzon Borglum, miners and quarrymen carve the faces of four U.S. presidents into the Black Hills of South Dakota, paying tribute to the first 150 years of American history.
With technological advances, our ancient struggle against the sea has turned into a luxurious holiday; a peek at the elegant life on these floating resorts.
The construction of the 51-mile canal that took ten years to build and employed over 40,000 workers, 6,000 of whom died of yellow fever, malaria, and other horrors; an earlier, nine-year attempt by the French ended in failure and cost 20,000 lives.
Built of stone and glass, persistence and prayer, gothic cathedrals are an epiphany of imagination and an articulation of joy; featured are such masterpieces as Chartres, Notre Dame and the National Cathedral in Washington D.C.
It was meant to be a temporary exhibit, a demonstration of French engineering acumen at the Paris World's Fair; but to Parisians, the tower, designed by the brash, young Gustave Eiffel, came to stand for much more.
The domed structure is one of the earliest forms of shelter; from African mud huts to frozen igloos to holy shrines and cathedrals; engineers have enlarged and transformed the ancient concept to build some of the world's most spectacular structures.
Tunnels, whether underwater, blasted through solid rock or negotiating the shifting strata of the Earth's unstable crust, represent a remarkable feat of engineering.
Built with the pioneering use of steel-wire support cables, the Brooklyn Bridge became an instant symbol of American pride; rare photographs and behind-the-scenes stories recall the politics, the struggles, and the tragedies that made it possible.
The history of one of Thomas Edison's first inventions, the phonograph; rare photographs and recordings document Edison's race against Alexander Graham Bell.
Thomas Edison announces plans for the central lighting of New York before an electrical system exists or electric light is invented.
The complete story of the feuds, the mistakes, ingenuity, and successes that made movies possible and kept Edison at the front of the inventor pack; rare early films from the Edison Studios.
The intense competition, the romance, the success and disappointment that led to the miracle of long distance communication.
An exploration of the world's most popular entertainment, from the boy genius who invented it to the RCA "General" who made it a reality.
In our century, the computer has evolved from a crude punch-card tabulating machine into a lightning-fast worldwide information grid.
The history of photography beginning as early as the eleventh century; the advancements by Niepce and Daguerre in the 19th century and William Henry Fox and George Eastman in the 20th century.
Standing majestically for centuries, the world's great pyramids have long inspired and mystified scholars; leading experts and historians explore the engineering genius that created some of the largest structures on the planet.
Since the turn of the 20th century, designers have competed to build them faster, taller, and steeper; as technology pushes the envelope with flips, weightlessness, and more g-force than a jet, they have to calculate how much can the human body take.
From Stonehenge to the Hubbell Telescope, mankind has always been a race of stargazers; unforgettable film footage and expert accounts reveal the facts of astronomy's most mind-boggling discoveries.
Winding 6,000 kilometers through undulating mountains, it is said to be visible with the naked eye from the moon; historians, engineers, and scientists explore one of the wonders of the ancient world.