Probably Thomas Edison’s best-known invention is the electric light. But the familiar light bulb is only the most obvious element of Edison’s accomplishment. He also created from scratch a delivery system for his light. His invention literally changed the world, putting the power of electricity at our fingertips. In 1878, Edison said: “The electric light is the light of the future. And it will be my light.” This is the story of how he and his team raced against competitors to make good his word.

Dynamite explodes hills to bits, drills divide sheer stone walls, 400,000-pound blocks are pulled from pits by giant cranes, and men work around the clock to wrest rock out of the earth. Not diamonds or gold…rock, the raw material of civilization! Without rock, modern society wouldn't exist. Roads, sewers, dams, bridges, buildings, paint, glue, make-up, antacids, and even chewing gum need crushed stone. From ancient days to the present, we explore the evolution of quarrying techniques.

The most priceless jewels in the arsenals of a handful of countries, some nuclear submarines carry more firepower than all the bombs dropped in history. Since the 1950s, these lethal steel sharks have been a cornerstone of U.S. defense policy. The Cold War launched an underwater race for supremacy with the Soviet Union. The result: engineering miracles, which roam 70% of the earth’s surface, providing deterrence to enemies, intelligence about adversaries, and an abiding sense of dread.

Meet the Strong Men and Women who go beyond mere fitness to pursue major muscle mass–from ancient Greeks, to performers in the 1800s astounding audiences with feats of strength, to the body builders of California’s Muscle Beach! Lou Ferrigno and other stars share stories of the pursuit of muscle. Also looks at the effect of steroids.

The story of medical imaging, the technology that allows us to see inside the human body, is full of amazing stories. Learn how X-rays were discovered in 1895, completely by accident; how ultrasound was developed to locate enemy submarines, and how the CAT Scan might never have been built if it weren’t for The Beatles!

Witness some mind-blowing feats of strength starting with the world's most powerful elevators. Discover the world's strongest tire, the strongest mountain bike, the world's strongest land transport vehicle that carries the Space Shuttle & strongest home blender.

From the Stone Age, to the Space Age, we've built our world from rocks. With moon rocks located at NASA's Johnson Space Center.

Discover how military and police personnel, as well as private citizens, hone their shooting skills with one of the oldest of training techniques when we review the history of firing ranges–from a simple knot on a tree, old bottles, rusted tin cans, and highway signs to high-tech targets and advances in weaponry.

Journey inside the top-secret headquarters of NORAD–the North American Aerospace Defense Command–a binational military command composed of the United States and Canada. Established in 1958 during the height of the Cold War, NORAD’S initial mission was air defense against a bomber attack by the Soviet Union. We see how its primary mission has changed through the years, and go inside the Cheyenne Mountain Operations Center, one of history’s most ambitious underground building projects.

Carbon is the chemical basis of all known life and yet this simple element is also the foundation of modern technology. Carbon burns hotter, cuts deeper, insulates more thoroughly and absorbs more fully than any other material. See why carbon is the key both in heavy-duty industries, as well as in tools like the graphite pencil, the charcoal water filter, and the diamond saw blade.

Reviews the revolution in home improvement and glimpses the kitchen of tomorrow. Included: the development of the stove, sewing machine, refrigerated air, washing machine, vacuum cleaner, toaster, and mixer.

In antiquity, a hollow reed served as an underwater link to oxygen. As in days of old, humans still need self-contained breathing equipment for a variety of reasons–food-gathering, commercial, recreational, military, and scientific. Dive with the best as we test scuba diving’s past, and look to a future of mechanical gills.

Learn about fungal organisms that live within our bodies, grow beneath our feet, float in the air and help create some of the foods and beverages we consume.

The vehicles that transport the President of the United States aren’t your ordinary planes, trains, and automobiles. They are top-secret. And for your Average Joe, there’s only two ways to find out what they’re really like inside–either get elected or watch Presidential Movers on Modern Marvels.

A spectacular roadway nearly 120 miles long, the Overseas Highway links mainland Florida with the Florida Keys, and contains 51 bridges, including the Seven-Mile Bridge. A boat was the only mode of travel from Miami to Key West until oil tycoon Henry Flagler completed his railroad line in 1912. After a 1935 hurricane destroyed 40 miles of track, the scenic highway was built using Flagler’s bridges. A $175-million refurbishment that ended in 1982 resulted in today’s remarkable Overseas Highway.

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. From the Roman Emperor Caligula’s special barges to Carl Faberge’s impossibly intricate eggs, from plasma screen TVs to $600,000 Bentleys and Rolex watches, we examine spectacular personal possessions–paeans to the lords of a consumer culture that grows richer and technologically more sophisticated daily.

From a computerized liquor-dispensing system in modern L.A., to a ladle and a tin cup in an 1850′s mining camp, MODERN MARVELS investigates the history and technology of the American saloon.

The plane’s on the runway and revving up for our flight of power and whimsy. The panorama reveals some amazing machines–from vintage aircraft to homemade winged wonders to posh private jets. It’s a tale that merges technological progress and the fantasies of an unique type of person, who refuses to be grounded by earth’s surly bonds.

When police forces were born in the 1800s, British “bobbies” made due with a billy club. Public wariness and institutional resistance to change held back technological advances for much of the 20th century. But in the last decades, police have been swept up in a technological revolution that has transformed nearly all aspects of crime fighting.

To run faster, jump higher, and play longer–the ultimate goal of all athletes. But when training runs its course, science and technology jump in. Explore the history and technological advances in everything from athletic shoes to football gear. And leap into a future filled with radar-enhanced baseballs and virtual-reality stadiums.

San Francisco's Oakland Bay Bridge stands as an incredible feat of engineering against the nearly impossible. Once chosen as one of the seven engineering wonders of the modern world, it features an unique double suspension structure in its west end. Join us as we cross this triumph of construction, while we visit its past and look to its future.

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.

For over a century, the US steel industry was a powerful symbol of the nation's industrial might. Steel helped explode the stock market into an overnight powerhouse, and transformed a country of farmers and merchants into a nation of visionary builders. But America's domination of the market would meet new challenges in the 1970s.

Everyday 3-million passengers board the 10,000 aircraft flying at any given moment. Go behind the scenes at international airports to see the inner workings that make commercial air travel possible–from ground control in air traffic towers, the plane's cargo holds and high-tech security, and back to earth at customs.

Strong enough to survive their fiery launch into orbit, sophisticated enough to provide life-saving images or relay tens of thousands of phone calls at the same time. By monitoring weapons systems and troop movements, these "eyes in the sky" may be the difference between security and annihilation. From the futuristic visions of a British sci-fi writer to creations of a German rocket designer for the Nazi war machine to the Cold War technological race, we review the satellites that link our world.

To the people of France, and to citizens of the world, Gustav Eiffel’s 320-meter Tower is more than an unsurpassed technological and engineering wonder, conceived and built to astound the public at the 1889 Paris Exposition…it is a symbol of triumphant spirit, demonstrating how an innovative metal matrix can form a structure whose posture reinforces an aesthetic of glory.

Ride shotgun in our rollicking history of the Monster Truck, and meet the father of the mythic beast, Bob Chandler, whose EM Bigfoot /EM gave birth to the sport in a cornfield years ago! Weighing 10,000 pounds, the behemoths entertain using brute force. Thrill to breathtaking stunts in California, Indiana, and Florida, as mounted cameras demonstrate the shakes, rattles, and rolls drivers experience; and meet the men who race these mechanical mammoths in one of the world's fastest-growing motorsports.

A study of the discoveries, inventions, and technological advances that have helped us understand and predict weather accurately. From simple observations made by early humans, to early instruments such as thermometers and barometers, to Doppler radar and satellite imaging, we’ll see how man has tried to harness weather.

Examines the history of radar, focusing on its role in the Allies’ victory in WWII–from the Chain Home Network, rudimentary radar towers that ringed England’s eastern coast, to the role of Boston’s MIT in developing a smuggled English secret, the cavity of magnetron.

One of the 20th century’s greatest scientists, George Washington Carver’s influence is still felt. Rising from slavery to become one of the world’s most respected and honored men, he devoted his life to understanding nature and the many uses for the simplest of plant life. His scientific research in the late 1800s produced agricultural innovations like crop rotation and composting. Part of the “chemurgist” movement that changed the rural economy, he found ingenious applications for the peanut, soybean, and sweet potato. At Tuskegee Institute, Dr. Carver invented more than 300 uses for the peanut, while convincing poor farmers to rotate cotton crops with things that would add nutrients to the soil. A visionary, Carver shared his knowledge free of charge, happy in his Tuskegee laboratory where he could use his gifts to help others.

Meet some of the most important, yet least-recognized, warriors–the battlefield engineers who lay the groundwork for oncoming conflicts. We'll cover combat engineering from ancient Rome to modern-day Iraq, and take a look at the "Next Big Thing".

Modern Marvels explores the evolution and future of the things that hold our world together. From the blacksmith to the Home Depot, it’s the story of nails, screws, mollybolts, duct tape, and super glue. We will visit one of the oldest hardware stores in America, Placerville True Value and wander the aisles of the mega-giants like Home Depot and OSH Hardware. This program chronicles the rise of the hardware “Big Box” super stores and how the mom and pop, local hardware stores, still manage to survive.

Without it one third of us would starve. Modern Marvels: Fertilizer tours the places that harness the vital nutrients that enrich the soil...that grow the crops...that feed us.

Remember “brick” cell phones, Pac-Man, Rubik’s Cube, Sony Walkman, and the first music CDs? Remember all the new and exciting gadgets of the 1980s? Join us as we investigate the transition from Industrial to Information Age–a digital decade dedicated to ergonomics and entertainment. The microchip ushered in an era that revolutionized the way we work, play, and communicate. And we tour Silicon Valley–birthplace of some of the greatest inventions from an amazing time of change, including the modern personal computer. Steve “Woz” Wozniak tells us about the evolution of Apple computers, and we talk to Sony–makers of the Walkman, Betamax, and the first CD players. A visit to the Computer History Museum shows fun technological “artifacts”, primitive by today’s standards. At Intel, makers of the first microchips, we learn why technology moves at such a fast pace. We also take a ride in a DeLorean DMC-12 sports car–few things moved faster.

For 25 years, construction crews dug, blasted, tunneled, and bridged their way up America's West Coast along the California, Oregon, and Washington shoreline to build the Pacific Coast Highway. Historians, road and bridge engineers, and experts relate this story of perseverance, primal machines, convict labor, and engineering brilliance as we tour its scenic route. And we look at the latest technologies used to keeping it running despite floods, earthquakes, tsunamis, and landslides.

From the 19th century’s legendary cattle drives to the million-acre ranch kingdoms that sprang to life with the end of the Open Range to 21st-century techniques that include artificial insemination, embryo transplants, and genetic engineering, we review the history of cattle ranching. We’ll ride herd with modern cowboys as they twirl ropes and brand calves, and look to the cattle ranch of the future, where cloning will produce the ideal meat-producing steer with a consistently juicy, low-fat carcass.

The household garage serves as the at-home sanctuary for the modern American male. Most men consider themselves to be “handy around the house”. Fathers and husbands see it as their role to provide for and take care of the family’s home and possessions. From lawn care products to snow removal and outdoor cooking, the Garage Gadgets of Do-It-Yourselfers have evolved over decades to face the ever-changing challenges of maintaining a home.

From battle armor to bubble gum, you might be surprised by what soldiers have carried into battle–and what they'll carry in future wars. In this look at the development of weapons–from the Roman soldier's gladius to the M16 assault rifle to infrared scopes and biological weapons protection–we also discover the evolution of body armor–from knights to Kelvar-protected "Land Warriors". And we'll also find out what the "Future Warrior" will look like.

Plastics are everywhere–the home, the workplace, the car, the human body, outer space, and most conspicuously, the garbage heap and landfill. Artificially created test-tube material, plastic can’t be returned to nature. Will we drown in a sea of plastic? Join us as we review this protean substance’s past and future.

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. Then, find out how Otis Spunkmeyer creates the cookies you find at some of the biggest restaurant chains in America! From Fortune Cookies to your favorite childhood treats, Adam becomes a cookie connoisseur in this episode for all things cookies.

Skyscrapers are an extraordinary feat of human engineering: exposing millions of pounds of concrete and steel to the enemy forces of wind and gravity. Starting with the foundation and on through the support structures and concrete flooring, every piece of these superstructures has to be super-strong. Go behind the scenes with the five tools that make these buildings possible: the foundation drill rig, the tower crane, the impact wrench, the power trowel, and the total station.

The Maginot Line, a defensive string of large and small forts built during the years between World War I and World War II, was intended to forestall another invasion by aggressive Germany. Despite the Treaty of Versailles, France saw that it was only a matter of time before Germany would rise again and threaten France. News of northern neighbor Belgium’s neutrality left France with an exposed flank, which would ultimately be the Maginot Line’s weak point-the Germans were able to outflank the line almost entirely, readily conceding the Line’s impregnability while conquering the country.

The year was 1869 and America had just completed the greatest building achievement in its history–the Transcontinental Railroad. A thin ribbon of steel and wood now connected East and West. But the fledgling country now faced an even greater challenge–how to harness the awesome potential of the railroad to tame the still wide-open and wild West.

The most used room in the home is the bathroom and it's full of tech. Visit Kohler and see the new digitally controlled uber-shower, complete with steam, music and LED chromatherapy. Check out American Standard's Champion 4--the supposedly "uncloggable" toilet. Learn all about the low-flow alternatives for showers and toilets. Touch-free fixtures and a futuristic toilet from Japan ensure a more hygienic restroom experience. Finally, what is New York City's latest hi-tech solution for going on the go?

It’s Super! It’s Krazy! And it can be found in everything from carpet to computers, books to boats, shoes to the Space Shuttle. It’s even used in surgery! Without it, our material world would simply fall apart. In this episode, we’ll visit the stuck-up, tacky world of glue. Glue’s sticky trajectory spans human history and we’ll cover it all–from Neolithic cave dwellers who used animal glue to decorate ceremonial skulls to modern everyday glues and their uses, including Elmer’s glue, 3M’s masking and Scotch tape, and the super glues. Remember the Krazy Glue commercial in which a man held himself suspended from a hard hat that had just been glued to a beam? Well, that 1970s vintage ad understates the power of glue. With the help of a crane, we’re going to hoist a 6,000-pound pickup truck off the ground by a steel joint that’s been bonded with glue!

Join us for a ride through the history of car-culture commerce from the first gas station to the drive-thru funeral parlors and wedding chapels of today. We chronicle the birth of the first drive-in restaurants that paved the way for a billion-dollar fast-food dynasty, and feature many lesser-known drive-thru venues, such as dry cleaners, flu-shot clinics, liquor stands, and drug stores. And we’ll take a journey to the future to see what products might be passing through the drive-thru of tomorrow.

A salute to the tools and toys that have stood the test of time–from the Zippo lighter to the Palm Pilot, the 21st century’s first great gadget. As we focus on the technology behind familiar gadgets, we see the subtle ways they have changed our lives. Other items include the flashlight, transistor radio, safety razor, and the metronome. We also go behind the scenes at Herbst-Lazar-Bell, a cutting-edge industrial design firm, and Gadget Universe, a fledgling retailer trying to topple the Sharper Image.

Much of New York City’s history can be viewed via its bridges–all 18 that connect Manhattan Island to its neighbors. Join us for a look at these architectural masterpieces from the age of iron and steel; and, see how they have changed destinies, linking some to opportunity, others to ruin.

The world’s largest concrete dam–and the largest concrete structure in the world–lies on the Columbia River in the State of Washington. B uilt in 1931, it is also one of the largest hydroelectric power plants in the world.

To some it was a miracle. Others call it the triumph of illiteracy. Somewhere between adoration and scorn. Somewhere between the carrier pigeon and television. There was and is radio. We take radio for granted. Perhaps think of it as a second rate medium. A poor relation to our pride and joy, television. But fewer than a hundred years ago, the discovery that people could communicate over great distances without wires, galvanized the world to a degree that has been equalled.

Throughout history, the builders and engineers who paved our way out of the caves and into the modern world have also caused some of our worst disasters. What happens when their calculations prove wrong and it all comes tumbling down? From Hammurabi’s days, when the first building laws were instituted, to today’s potential nuclear or chemical disasters that can spell death for thousands, we’ll take a harrowing 2-hour tour through some of history’s greatest engineering mistakes.

In this hour, we examine a massive oil tanker explosion that killed nine; a subway tunnel cave-in that swallowed part of Hollywood Boulevard; a freighter plane crash that destroyed an 11-story apartment building; an historic molasses flash flood; and a freeway ramp collapse that buried construction workers in rubble and concrete. Investigators from NTSB, Cal/OSHA, and Boeing, structural and geo-technical engineers, and historians explain how so much could have gone wrong, costing so many lives. And aided by computer graphics, footage and photos of the disasters, and visits to the locations today, we show viewers what caused these catastrophes and what design experts have done to make sure they never happen again.

More than 2-million people die in the U.S. each year. That works out to about 5,500 burials a day, with roughly 80 percent taking the long goodbye in a casket, and the remaining 20 percent electing to be cremated or finding some alternative method of crossing eternity's threshold. We take a look at dealing with the dead throughout the centuries, and at today's $20-billion funeral industry. Any way you look at it, it's a healthy business, with new generations of customers year after year!

The Erie Canal was America’s first superhighway. It was a narrow ribbon of water carved through sheer rock and untamed wilderness. It featured an ingenious network of stone locks and aqueducts. Skeptics called it “Clinton’s Ditch,” but visionaries saw it as the gateway to a gleaming future. An engineering marvel when it was built some called it the Eighth Wonder of the World.

Adam Richman explores how a legendary long-hauler meticulously custom-builds each truck at Daimler.

Nikola Tesla's bizarre vision of the future brought him failure, but his genius electrified the world.

They brought down the forests and built up the pyramids. They're a cut above for construction, salvage, demolition - and they even make music and some have used them to torture.

Examining the technology and evolution of balls used in sports. Included: a tour of the Wilson Football Factory Ohio; the Rawlings baseball factory Costa Rica and the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. And also "juego de pelota" - the ancient Mesoamerican ball game.

Story of the development of engines and motors, with particular emphasis on the ones that have profoundly changed society. Beginning with the steam engine, we see how it was created, how it works, and how it led to the Industrial Revolution. We review the electric motor, internal combustion engine, jet engine, and rocket engine, and conclude with a look at futuristic engine technologies, including hydrogen-powered cars and microtechnology engines so small that they fit on the tip of a finger.

It is a majestic structure that rises boldly over the Mississippi river–40,000 tons of steel and concrete that create the biggest arch of its kind in the world. Nothing like it had ever been built before, nor attempted since. We’ll see how its simple and elegant form results from remarkable achievements in construction and engineering.

In this history of international airports, we focus on several airports to illustrate the developments and technology of their construction and operation, beginning with Miami’s Dinner Key and including New York City’s LaGuardia and JFK, London’s Gatwick, Dulles near Washington, D.C., Los Angeles’ LAX, Denver International, Japan’s Kansai, and Korea’s new Inchon. It all began on a farmer’s field near a flat beach–the next step may see them expand into interplanetary platforms!

From colossal devices designed to save the world to mind-expanding, world-shrinking machines, we trace the evolution of mice and menus. Learn about the world’s most powerful computer, IBM’s ASCI White, that operates at 12-trillion calculations a second. See how the first room-sized computers, such as ENIAC, changed the world. Bite into Apple’s history, the machine that made computers a household appliance. And peer through a microscope to see the molecular computers of the future.

Whether it jingles in our pockets or folds in our wallets, it flows by the billions from government factories that have mastered the art of making it.

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. From Thomas Edison’s early phonograph to today’s digital revolution, we examine this multi-billion dollar business.

Feel the earth move under your feet and dig into the fascinating history of earthmoving equipment–from invention of the simple spade to today’s powerful steam shovels. Meet the legendary giants like John Deere, Jerome Case, and the founders of Caterpillar, who helped forge America’s monolithic construction industry.

“He who would become a surgeon should join the army and follow it,” Hippocrates counseled nearly 2,500 years ago. In this history of medicine under fire, we see how a small army of medics, nurses, surgeons, stretcher-bearers, and ambulance drivers, races to keep pace with the deadly advances of war.

In the land of Mardi Gras, jambalaya, and zydeco, exists an engineering marvel called the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway that seems to go on forever. Two ribbons of concrete span the largest inland body of water in Louisiana, and at nearly 23.87 and 23.88 miles long, these two spans form the world’s longest automobile bridge. At midpoint–12 miles out–water surrounds travelers who are unable to see either shoreline. The bridge is so long, it actually transverses 1/1000th of the earth’s circumference!

Some of the most imposing structures ever built, medieval castles withstood both bloody assaults and the test of time. Designed like machines with nearly every architectural detail devoted to defense, castles represented the perfect fusion of form and function. Journey back to that unruly era as we examine the complexity of their construction and the multipurpose they served–homes to kings and nobles, economic centers, courthouses, treasuries, prisons, and torture chambers.

Bombs…the most feared and powerful weapon in any nation’s arsenal. What began as incendiary devices in the 7th century has evolved into weapons that can literally blow the human race off the face of the earth! From the use of diseased carcasses flung over castle walls to Greek Fire to today’s smart bombs, we review the evolution of bombs.

They are catastrophic failures with deadly consequences. Caused by a single spark or a massive collapse, these disasters reveal one thing–the danger inherent in our most common industries. From a massive oil spill to refinery blaze to a downed plane, find out what went wrong… and how to prevent the next engineering disaster.

Chronicles one of the most incredible engineering feats of all time: construction of the 51-mile canal that took 10 years to build and employed over 40,000 workers, 6,000 of whom died of yellow fever, malaria, and other horrors. An earlier, 9-year attempt by the French ended in failure and cost 20,000 lives.

It's full steam ahead when we drop in at Jay Leno's garage as Jay fires up two of his classic steam cars and takes viewers for a couple of rides. Jay also shows off his 11-ton steam engine built in 1860, back when pigs had to be slaughtered to keep it lubricated. In northern Nevada, fire up a coal burning boiler and get a 100-year-old steam locomotive chugging across the rugged landscape. In New Orleans, board an authentic paddlewheel steamboat. Trek to the Southern California desert where geothermal steam rushes up from the ground and drives electricity producing turbines, powering over 300,000 homes. In New York City, find out why manmade steam surges into some of the world's most famous skyscrapers. Steam clean some very dirty machines, and do a little laundry, too. And ride a steam-driven carousel and play with some strange, steam-powered robots that are part of a movement called–what else–"steampunk."

Every 15 minutes, Americans insert over 3.5 million coins into vending machines. What are they buying? How do the machines work?

Teamed with leading archeologists and experts, peel back the layers of the past--to reveal a hidden history that hasn't seen the light of day for ages.

Examining unusual World War II weapons that were in the planning or testing stages for use by the Axis powers. Included: an assault rifle that could shoot around corners; a death ray capable of boiling people; and an army in space.

In any battle, the key to victory is the ability to strike the enemy without them knowing what hit them. Within the US arsenal one such weapon can go into harm’s way, deliver 40,000 pounds of either conventional or nuclear bombs, and slip away unobserved–the B-2 Stealth Bomber. With its origins in single-wing experimentation in Germany in the 1930s, the B-2 was developed under a cloak of secrecy. But when that cloak was lifted, the world was awed by what stood before them. Able to fly over 6,000 miles without refueling, it can reach whatever target the US military wants to attack and deliver its awesome array of laser-guided weapons with pinpoint accuracy. Using state-of-the-art technology, including over 130 onboard computers, and shrouded by a mantle of stealth, it’s undetectable by any radar.

In this hour, death seeps out of the ground into a neighborhood sitting on a toxic waste dump at Love Canal in New York; soldiers die during Desert Storm in 1991 when software flaws render Patriot Missiles inaccurate; on September 11, 2001, World Trade Center Building #7 wasn’t attacked, but seven hours after the Twin Towers collapsed, it too is mysteriously reduced to a pile of rubble; a night of revelry in Boston turns the Coconut Grove nightclub into an inferno that kills over 400 people in 1942; and the science of demolition is put to the test and fails when a building in Rhode Island, the “Leaning Tower of Providence”, stands its ground.

When opened on October 25, 1931, the George Washington Bridge was the longest suspension bridge in the world. Today, standing as a main traffic artery between Manhattan and New Jersey, the bridge referred to by locals as the “GW” is the busiest in the world, carrying nearly 320,000 cars each day. We’ll examine the construction methods employed that made the bridge an anomaly, coming in both under budget and ahead of schedule, and see why the GW is distinguished in a city of great bridges.

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. One of the six simple machines and perhaps the most important invention in the history of mankind, the wheel has been essential in all aspects of life–from farming to fighting, traveling to trading. Features interviews with scientists, historians, philosophers, millers, potters, and spinners.

From the riveted blue jeans of the old ’49ers, working the gold mines of California, to the million-dollar suits astronauts wear in outer space, we see how “dressing for success” often means being able to get the job done. With the right work clothes, people have been able to go anywhere and do any job.

Half a mile below the earth’s surface, men mine for rough diamonds–a pure carbon substance. Brilliant when cut and polished, they are marketed as the most precious gem in the world. From the earliest mines of the 4th century BC to today’s technological wonders in South Africa, we explore the history and technology of the diamond mine.

For nearly 200 years, the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, has trained students in the art of war. Located 50 miles north of New York City, its 25 buildings overlook the Hudson River on a 16,000-acre government reserve. During the Revolutionary War, West Point stood guard over the river, protecting it with artillery and a 136-ton chain! From humble beginnings, the academy grew with the nation, as each war forced changes to keep pace with America’s expanding world responsibilities.

Don’t look now, but your office is a technological marvel. From the humble paper clip to the revolutionary personal computer, your desk is a museum of miracles designed to make you more productive and efficient. Then why are you still at work? Here’s everything you ever wanted to know about your workplace, but were afraid to ask!

The pentagon…The name alone conjures up an imposing image of American power and prestige. As the largest office building in the world, it serves as the headquarters of the nation’s armed forces. Every day, more than 24,000 men and women come here to work on the vital and sometimes top secret business of national defense. Beyond the pentagon’s massive size and awesome purpose looms its impenetrable mystique. We’ll take you inside this military institution, national symbol, and modern marvel.

Join us for a highly charged hour as we see why Alfred Nobel's invention of dynamite took on earthshattering dimensions as his product blasted out the natural resources that built our modern world. We also examine its impact on construction of the roads, tunnels, and dams that provide us with energy and transportation.

Offshore drilling is one of the greaest technological dances mankind has ever attempted. From the very beginning of oil discovery, the oceans and their vast reserves became the ultimate frontier. For those willing to take the risk, the oceans offer unprecedented success and unimaginable failure.

Thomas Edison registered over 1,000 patents, but his favorite invention was one of his first. Rare photographs and early recordings show how the young inventor and his team outfoxed Alexander Graham Bell.

A look at the F117 Stealth Fighter that led the pack for the Allies in Gulf Wars One and Two and virtually decimated Iraqi Air Defense. Find out how the technology allows it to approach its target without being detected by radar. Also, a look at the B2 Stealth Bomber.

A large machine turned water city, cruise ships are exciting and new.

Things get cheesy when Adam Richman visits a central Pennsylvanian cheese maker with an award-winning mozzarella they insist on making the authentic Italian way. And you don’t have to tell grocery giant Kroger that cheese is big business–we see how they slice, shred and package over 2.5-million lbs. of cheese per week. Adam learns all the history, incredible facts, and amazing processes behind one of America’s most beloved foods!

Explore the world of extreme temperatures.

Just below the surface, there's a whole different America hidden from public view. Take a revealing look at the America under our feet, from secret military installations, and experimental farms to tunnel networks and neutron lasers.

The Crossroads of the World, New York City’s Times Square is the screaming marketplace of our culture and time. It’s urban life pushed to the limit–the most electrified, visceral, crowded, and vibrant area in the world’s most dynamic city. A unique district that forever changes its face, it sank into crime and sleaze in the 1970s, only to rehabilitate in the ’90s into a dubious family entertainment paradise. Join us for a trip to America’s Town Square at the intersection of Broadway and 7th Avenue.

Since the ancient pharaohs’ time, the Isthmus of Suez has been the gateway to trade between East and West. It’s thought that the pharaohs could connect the Red Sea with the Mediterranean using a system of small canals; but the desert sands buried them. Not until mid-19th century did mankind readdress the problem. 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.

Avalanches, earthquakes, hurricanes, bombings–all mean human tragedy unless rescuers respond within a moment’s notice of disaster. Here are the latest advances in rescue technology, including: a Searchcam system that locates buried victims, and the Jaws of Life that can extricate a person from a crushed car in seconds.

We're living in a gadget revolution. New and unimagined gizmos solve problems that we didn't even know we had. They emerge from cutting edge think tanks and tinkerers basement workshops. Will they usher in a techno utopia, or enslave us to pocket size technology?

The program features the quest to drill the deepest hole ever and the scientific drill ship expected to perform the feat, and also looks at drills used to recover ice cores that will unearth thousands of years of climate history.

He was the father of the future…electric lights, power systems, motion pictures, recorded sound–even the tattoo pen. Life as we know it would be inconceivable without the prodigious output of the Wizard of Menlo Park, Thomas Alva Edison. His intense focus on his work came with a hefty personal price, but his reward was a world forever changed by his genius. Years after his death, Edison's effect is seen, heard, and felt everywhere. We follow descendants of his motion-picture camera to the tops of Earth's highest mountains, to the bottoms of its deepest oceans, and even into outer space. We track his innovations in recorded sound to CDs, iPods, sophisticated movie sound, and satellite radio. And we illuminate his world of electric light, powering the world and turning night into day. Along the way, we discover a little Edison in corners of modern life less well-known and even look at his failures. From the Internet to the stock market to pay-per-view; the Wizard is everywhere.

It’s hot, dry, deadly, and hard to ignore with close to 40% of Earth classified as desert. But in this scorching hour, the desert turns from barren wasteland into an environment rich with hope. In the Middle East, desalination of seawater now fills water needs. Americans have created booming desert communities like Las Vegas, where the Hoover Dam produces hydroelectric power and manmade Lake Mead supplies water. Native Americans farmed the desert on a small scale, but 20th-century technology begot greater opportunity. Once desolate areas of California and Mexico now grow agriculture due to irrigation, and the desert’s abundant sunshine allows solar-energy and wind-power production. And in the future, desert technology may enable colonization of planets like Mars. We also take a look at how refrigeration and air conditioning have made life in desert communities tolerable, and examine the latest in survival gear and equipment.

As camping technology develops, it provides greater access to diverse outdoor environments. The earliest camping technology was developed out of necessity. Prehistoric man fashioned rudimentary backpacks and clothing out of bark and animal hide. The explorers and pioneers pushed the boundaries of the West in covered wagons, cooking over open fires, and living off the land. When men headed off to war, they returned with new camping gear and lightweight materials, which enabled further exploration. Today’s Himalayan mountaineers depend on carefully engineered clothing, tents, and boots to reach the highest peaks in the world.

An examination of the historical development of technological tools that help science mitigate nature’s fury. It’s a survival story that begins with comprehending the force of disaster. As environmental calamities unfold, viewers witness the urgency for change that each crisis compelled and innovations designed to lower death tolls.

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. Includes rare early films from the Edison Studios.

From itchy woolen union suits to comfortable briefs and boxers learn how our undergarments have evolved over the last 100 years.

Remotely operated vehicles allow us to explore the mysteries of inner and outer space, provide firsthand glimpses of the horrors of nuclear disasters, and offer the vicarious thrill of flying planes or driving cars. From the first remote controlled vehicle, Nikola Tesla’s 1898 steam-powered boat, to underwater ROVs that locate sunken vessels and explore the ocean floor, to their use by NASA in the space program, we see how ROVs extend our range into worlds previously unreachable, unknown, or unsafe.

A trip through time on the New York Subway beginning at the beginning– October 1904. We look at New York before the subway–a world of horse carts and elevated trains. We see early impractical experiments in transportation like the pneumatic subway or the elevated cable car. The program will deal with the technology of the subway, the construction, and financing. We look at subway stations and equipment.

Join us for a buoyant trip through the history of balloon flight and a tribute to the fearless pilots and engineers brave enough to push the limits of balloon technology into the next weather front, or the next frontier. We’ll demonstrate their diversified applications and talk to pioneers who designed and flew them.

It has been said that necessity is the mother of all invention–but that is not always the case. Some strange machines are built for sheer spectacle, some a glimpse into the future or even the past, while others are just plain…Weird. Take a look at machines that specialize in high functionality and low practicality, prompting two very important questions: What is it and…how do I get one? An Alaskan navigates the Juneau waters with his homemade submarine. A California company shocks local beach bums with their fully submersible "shark boats." We'll also meet a bicep-curling robot that's built to save lives; scale a mountain with a 21st century Batman-esque rope ascender; witness an engineered, forty-foot vortex of fire known as the Flame Tornado; and hit the backcountry trails with a snowboard-motorcycle hybrid inspired by a shopping cart.

From hauling our heaviest gear to mastering the tallest mountains, they have been around for centuries, but we constantly improve upon them. Get an inside look at factories where every kind and style of Ropes & Chains are made. We'll get some lessons from a company that trains high-flying workers who depend on rope to do their jobs safely. Learn how window washers, rock climbers and even bungee jumpers safely use the ropes they depend on every day! See dockworkers who rely on ropes around the clock, and pay a visit to the head-spinning factory floors where some of the strongest ropes available are made. See how industrial chain links come to life from just a rusty steel coil and how they're used to anchor massive ships and unload cargo. From parachute cord to shipping lines, from fine jewelry to anchor chains–we'll discover the many uses of today's Ropes & Chains.

The Katana blade of the Samurai is the world's sharpest sword. We'll craft one from scratch to reveal the secret of its legendary cutting ability. We'll also visit Cutco Cutlery, where the sharpest for chopping food in your kitchen are made.

They're designed to capture and often kill, but they don't always harm their prey. Traps are devices as old as humanity itself. We'll trap 400 pounds Black Bears with West Virginia Division of Natural Resources biologists.

A look at the technology behind some of the 1960s greatest inventions. With color television, transistor radios, satellite broadcasting, touch-tone phones, lava lamps, the Ford Mustang, and toys like Etch-a-Sketch and the Super Ball.

The technology used to keep your lawn green including the lawnmower, riding movers, sod, astro turf, and sprinklers. The state of the art grass used in the University of Phoenix Stadium in Arizona. Also: how a company moves big trees, and the science of different types of grasses.

What happens when the calculations of builders and engineers prove wrong and their constructs come tumbling down? In this episode, we examine the 1987 failure of the Schoharie Creek Bridge in New York; the partial destruction by a runaway freighter of the Riverwalk Marketplace in New Orleans in 1996; the roof collapse of the Rosemont Horizon Arena in Illinois in 1979; the deadliest grain-dust explosion on record in Westwego, Louisiana, when a grain elevator exploded in 1977; and the crash of the British R101 airship in the 1920s.

The St. Lawrence Seaway is a monumental stairway in water, lifting massive ships hundreds of feet over thousands of miles. It’s the world’s longest inland waterway, a system of rivers, lakes, canals, dams, and locks that stretches 2,400 miles. And it’s one of the greatest engineering triumphs of the 20th century, pulled off against the violence of raging water and extreme winter. An essential part of the commercial infrastructure of the US and Canada, this complex system provides direct access from the Atlantic to North America’s heartland, enabling ships packed with trade to stop at any one its 65 ports–from Montreal to Duluth. From the 16th century, when French explorer Jacques Cartier searched for the legendary Northwest Passage, to the modern Seaway, built in the 1950s, we highlight the incredible engineering feats that went into creating the waterway.

Join us for a supersonic look at some of the most cutting-edge aircraft ever developed–from the X-1 that first broke the sound barrier to the X-43 Scramjet that recently flew at Mach 7. These extreme aircraft have made their mark on aeronautical history, and sometimes on political history as well. The U-2 and SR-71 spy planes played a crucial role in the Cold War, and now Lockheed Martin's top-secret "Skunkworks" division is touting the new "air dominance" fighter plane– the F/A-22 Raptor.

One of the most useful machines ever created, the crane is a simple but important combination of the pulley and the lever. Though cranes have been helping us build civilization from at least the time of the Egyptian pyramids, the modern steel-framed construction cranes are a relatively recent development. Put on your work boots as we ride through the history of cranes from ancient days to skyscraper construction sites, ocean-freighter docks, and the International Space Station.

Between 1941 and 1945, U.S. shipyards built more shipping tonnage than had been previously produced in the history of the world. American industrialists like Henry Kaiser transformed the nation’s shipyards into mass production facilities in a matter of months. Ships that had once taken years to build now only took weeks to construct. This record pace of producing ships is one of the most remarkable stories in the history of American industry. This episode utilizes rare color film obtained from the National Archives as well as principle photography taken on board World War II Liberty Ships and aircraft carriers that remain afloat today.

Though they duplicate the real world for fun and fantasy, models are not always toys and they’re not always tiny. We explore the magic of these fascinating replicas–from the Rover and Lander models for the Mars Exploration Project to ancient Egyptian ship models found in tombs to English ship models from the Age of Sail. We also look at the rage for hobby modeling, with Lionel trains leading the pack, watch models go to war with scale warplanes in WWII, and invade science fiction films.

From the earliest known lighthouses, such as the Pharos of Alexandria, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, to modern-day automated buoys and solar-powered lantern rooms, this history of lighthouses is rich with personal stories of lighthouse keepers, daring construction efforts, and ingenious optical discoveries. Today, as lighthouses are usurped by more efficient aids to navigation, these elegant structures are being converted to bed-and-breakfast inns and environmental retreats.

Join us as we take a peek at the plumbing hiding behind your walls and snaking under the floors of your house. We’ll also meet the plumbing students who undergo rigorous training programs in specialized classrooms designed to give them hands on installation experience. We’ll also check out the latest in plumbing technology from waterfall showers to water conserving toilets. This episode of Modern Marvels will examine the past, present and future of the arteries of our civilization; plumbing.

Host Ron Hazelton and two mechanics dissect a 2000 Ford Taurus to trace the evolution of the automobile’s major systems. This 2-hour nuts-and-bolt special breaks the car down into its major components (engine, body, chassis, etc.). Starting with the earliest vehicles in the 1800s, automotive historians and experts describe how cars have evolved and explain major advances. And, finally concept cars and computer animations provide a glimpse into the future.

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. From ancient Sumerians to Pony Express, from airmail to E-mail, we follow the long journey of mail.

While a civilization’s greatness is reflected in the achievements of architects and engineers, equally impressive are spectacular acts of destruction throughout history. The cycle of construction and destruction reflects the shifting values of any given era. We’ll trace the evolution of planned destruction from ancient to modern-day.

A look at the inventions that have revolutionized society as we know it. They began as behemoths which weighed over 2 tons!

From Pilgrim brew masters to early commercial ventures to today's monolithic corporations, we'll imbibe American beer's long history, focusing on the commercial brewing industry that developed in the 19th century and continues to today. We'll also taste social experiments from the past, like the Temperance Movement and Prohibition, to see how they left scars on the industry and continue to influence sobriety today.

When “poliomyelitis” swept the nation, thousands died or were disabled before American ingenuity, trial and error, and blatant acts of desperation led to one of the greatest scientific breakthroughs in history. We’ll see how polio shaped the vision of FDR, and catapulted the young unknown doctor Jonas Salk to international celebrity.

Adrenaline runs high when Adam Richman visits the factory where Yamaha makes ATVs, Waverunners and more. Then, we get an inside look at a company built to get people sky-high in paramotors, as well as amusement park Diggerland USA, a place you have to see to believe. Can mech-suits become the sport of the future? Plus, learn all about a personal submarine built for under-sea sightseeing for two.

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. Come along for a stroll through New York City’s Central Park and L.A.’s Griffith Park.

Rubber, plastic, nylon, aerosols, resins, solvents, & lubricants; none can exist without oil. If we stopped driving our cars tomorrow, America would still need 5 million barrels of oil a day.

To err is human, but when the error results in the loss of life, it's a disaster. Learn about the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald, the Buffalo Creek Dam disaster, and the explosion of a tanker in Los Angeles harbor.

It's the unsung essential of modern life. Canning is the method of a preserving and packaging food, without which civilization would never have ventured beyond the local food supply. It changed the way the world eats and revolutionized the food industry.

Where do machines go when they die? From B-52 Bombers to massive aircraft carriers, from passenger cars to Cold War cruise missiles and remnants of the Twin Towers, all that we manufacture has a lifespan. But reaching the end of their original purposes can be just the beginning.

In a battle against the ferocious Atlantic or safe passage through waters where ships wrecked and lives were lost, it was an engineering feat that many believed impossible. This is the story of the Cape Cod Canal and the men who braved the natural elements and the Great Depression by venturing into new engineering territory. In 1909 excavation began on what would become one of the greatest success stories of our time. The evolution of the Cape Cod Canal into what it is today–a major commerce and recreational route of the Intracoastal Waterway–is a tale of determination, ingenuity, and the American spirit. Through historical photographs and expert interviews, the Canal’s story unfolds, and while traveling along on an Army Corps of Engineers Patrol Boat and Coast Guard vessel we see firsthand what happens on the Canal on a daily basis. And we meet the people who make the Canal and its bridges functional and safe, keeping the legacy of the early engineers alive.

They constitute the very essence of the modern world; the cadence of our progress sounds in the measured ring of the blacksmith’s hammer. From soaring skyscrapers and sturdy bridges to jet planes and rockets, metals play a key role. Our journey begins before the Bronze Age and takes us 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 and forged a tool.

This episode of Modern Marvels examines the history and technology of chemical and biological warfare, which can be traced back at least four-thousand years, to the wars of ancient India, when soldiers used toxic fumes against their enemies.

Where can you fire a missile without scaring the neighbors? Or lift millions of pounds in pursuit of a couple of ounces of gold? On a proving ground, of course, where performance is the only thing that matters. Because in the heat of battle or head-to-head competition, no excuses can be given. We’ll visit the US military’s Cold Regions Testing Center in Alaska and desert proving grounds in Arizona, the Olympic Complex in Colorado, and the now-defunct Packard proving grounds in Michigan.

No one wants a hand-made car or gun or an airplane. We want things made by machines. Machine tools are power–driven machines–of all shapes and sizes-used to make metal parts. Machine tools built our modern world. Our life would not be possible without them. This show will take a look at these amazing machines in action. Beginning with the story of the steam engine and traveling to modern day “machining centers”–used to make incredibly complex space shuttle parts–we’ll look at the basic types of machine tools and their development. We’ll also look at some of the most modern machine tools of the future, including machines that are changing the way products of tomorrow are made.

When completed, China’s Three Gorges Dam will tower 607 feet in the air and weigh 40 Great Pyramids. Other than China’s Great Wall, it will be the only man-made object visible from the moon. Supporters see it as key to a new China, controlling floods and bringing hydroelectric power to one of its least-developed areas. Critics voice a litany of concerns–from environmental to flooding the spectacular area for which it’s named. We trace its story–from ancient flood control to current controversy.

Around the world and across the eons, gold stands as a symbol of power, wealth, and love. The quest for the yellow metal took men across oceans, into the depths of the Alaskan winter, and miles beneath South African earth. This is the story of the hunters of the precious metal and their methods for extracting it.

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.

The remarkable story of how the landmark New York City skyscraper was constructed during the depths of the Depression. Requiring 10 million bricks and 60,000 tons of steel beams and using a revolutionary technique to hold the steel girders in place–hot rivets–the world’s tallest building was completed four months ahead of schedule.

Adam's not playing around, he's working hard to find out how some toys transform into valuable collectibles and become iconic classics. Adam gets VIP access to see how Play-Doh is created, and how every can gets that amazing smell. Plus, he visits the mecca of pinball manufacturing to see how their pinball machines have outlasted the competition and even the law! Then, how have Slinkys kept springing back? And, an inside look at how Lionel trains keep chugging.

For two years, we’ve followed construction of the new California Department of Transportation headquarters in downtown LA–a massive 700,000 square-foot office building–and we use this building as a specific example to illustrate construction problems of mega-skyscrapers, from the Empire State Building to the Sears Tower to the TAIPEI 101. In hour two, the steel skeleton is up, but before the windows and walls go up, the general contractor tests the exterior wall system by building a mockup.

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. We’ll dig into the history of oil transport–from Civil War days to the critical WWII years and invention of the supertanker in the 1950s. And we examine the financial impact of modifying these steel leviathans to prevent future catastrophic environmental disasters.

Modern Marvels shines the spotlight on the array of inventions that made the epic invasion possible, telling the stories of their development and following them into combat in the greatest invasion in history. From parachuting mannequins to pole charges, amphibious DUWKS trucks to Rhino Barges, D-Day tech is a fascinating look at the hardware that helped free Europe from Hitler's grasp.

One aircraft in the U.S. arsenal best typifies the will to win. Using the latest and most sophisticated computerized technology, the F-18 Hornet is now one of the foremost fighters of the 21st Century. Once a plane that nobody wanted, today it’s the principal Navy and Marine fighter-attacker–with a flick of a switch, it transforms from bomber to fighter. Interviews with pilots and crews, combined with archive film and color reenactments, take you inside the cockpit of this multi-role aircraft.

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. From the first home bathrooms in ancient India, Roman latrines, and bizarre Victorian-era bath contraptions, to modern luxurious master bathroom suites, we trace the history of bathing, showering, and oral hygiene. And we reveal the messy truth about what was used before toilet paper–brainchild of the Scott Brothers of Philadelphia–and why astronauts wear diapers.

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. The modern world depends on these risk takers, yet their industry began less than 100 years ago. Join us for a scorching hour as we review the rich history of this “breed apart”, and look at modern heat-resistant clothing, new technology, and regulations that protect oil firefighters.

Based on the popular book, this episode explores historical building collapses–from ancient pyramids to the Cathedral at Beauvais to Kansas City’s Hyatt Regency–and demonstrates that clear warning signs often existed, but were ignored. We also examine the collapse of the Twin Towers in New York. Author Jim Chiles believes that designers and engineers must better prepare for all potential disasters–by understanding existing risks, they can prepare for the unknown, like terrorism.

The story of the birth and development of rapid fire weapons from the 14th century until the end of WWI–where on one terrible day the machine gun was responsible for mowing down nearly 60,000 men

Witness the construction of a terrorist-proof safe room. Discover how your windows might someday act as biological weapons detectors. Learn how scientists are protecting the food you eat and water you drink. In the biggest technological push since the space race, inventors are creating cutting-edge devices, gadgets, and gizmos to keep you and your family–and even your pets–safe. Find out what technology can do to protect you, and how you can use technology to protect yourself.

From ancient hunters’ camouflage to computer-generated digital pattern uniforms, we uncover the past, present, and future of deception through disguise. During an ambush exercise by US Marines, we learn that camouflage came from natural coloration and patterns of flora and fauna. The art of military camouflage took off in WWI with the use of the airplane, when the French learnt to hide from “eyes in the sky”. It’s a world of shadows and smoke, where even cities disappear through disguise.

October 7, 2001: Missiles from lethal U.S. jets rain down onto Afghanistan. One powerful and deadly plane led the majority of the assaults–the F-14 Tomcat, the world’s most complete military fighter. No other fighter jet carries the F-14′s unique combination of weapons. Its state-of-the-art system can spot an oncoming enemy plane at almost 200 miles. Its radar can detect targets as low as 50 feet and as high as 80,000 feet and does so three times faster than the radar of any other fighter jet.

From the early “egg beaters” of World War II to the “flying tanks” of Operation Desert Storm, we’ll fly aboard one of the most agile and potent weapons on the battlefield–the helicopter. 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.

From barnstormers to Blue Angels, antique aircraft to supersonic jets, each year there are an astonishing 425 air shows in America alone, entertaining over 18-million spectators. From futuristic festivals to billion-dollar expos, we explore the world of amazing aerobatics and their ever-evolving aircraft and see how aviation technology has affected air shows–and how air shows have advanced aviation. Find out why these high-flying events are second only to baseball as America’s favorite family event.

When design flaws fell projects, the cost is often exacted in lives as we see in this look at engineering disasters. Why did the Tower of Pisa begin to lean by as much as 17 feet; what caused the first nuclear accident in 1961 in Idaho; what killed three Soyuz 11 cosmonauts aboard the world's first orbiting space station; how did a winter storm destroy the Air Force's Texas Tower Radar Station, killing 28; and what errors led to NASA's loss of the Mars Climate Orbiter and the Mars Polar Lander?

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 Chesapeake Bay, the structure represents a man-made boundary between the Bay and the Atlantic. The structure includes two 2-lane highways supported mostly by trestles, four man-made and one natural island, two truss bridges, and two revolutionary sunken tube tunnels.

In an historic survey of man’s adaptation to killer environmental conditions, we travel to the desert, the Arctic, the sea, jungle, and space, charting the body’s physiological responses to extreme circumstances such as frostbite, heatstroke, and hypothermia. We talk with military survival experts and learn about the latest cutting-edge survival gear, as well as the equipment aboard the space station, and look to the future, when nano-technology will create a new type of technology.

The Apollo 13 mission was intended to be a “routine” trip to the moon. But when an oxygen tank exploded, the spacecraft was crippled and its 3-man crew placed in mortal danger. The Lunar Module, intended for deployment on the moon’s surface, instead became a lifeboat. Scientists and engineers on earth fought a race against time to save the crew. We’ll examine the mission, which nearly ended in tragedy, but instead was a resounding success, and in some ways became NASA’s finest hour.

Sign up at the ultimate survival school, where soldiers learn to kill or be killed, and learn how 21st-century warriors are training today for the battlefields of tomorrow. We follow combat training throughout history, reviewing survival skills and psychological tools–from ancient Rome to World Wars One and Two–and learn how modern training is enhanced by advanced technology and computer simulation

In 1941, penicillin was first used to save human life. But 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.

From Stonehenge to the Hubble Telescope, man has always been a species of stargazers. Unforgettable film footage and expert accounts reveal the facts of astronomy’s most mind-boggling discoveries.

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. From ancient Egypt to Central America, we visit these technological masterpieces.

More than 50 years after its construction, the Golden Gate remains one of the world’s greatest engineering marvels. It took 25-million man-hours and 80,000 miles of cable to complete. But the cost in human life proved even greater.

Modern Marvels brings the heart of the Roman Empire back to life through the rich history of this famous amphitheater. Built in 70 AD, the Roman Colosseum seated 80,000 people, boasted a retractable roof, underground staging devices, marble seating, and lavish decorations. To this day, it serves as the prototype for the modern stadium. The complexity of its construction, the beauty of its architecture, and the functionality of its original design made the Colosseum the perfect place for massive crowds to congregate for the bloody spectacles it was built to contain.

Icons of the open road, trucks form the backbone of the construction and transportation industries. The facility to handle nearly any load and the ability to deliver goods almost anywhere make trucks integral to modern life. From 18th-century steam-powered carriages to tomorrow’s computerized trucks, it’s a long haul you’ll enjoy!

We live in a highly mechanized world in which billions of products are made by machines–but there are some things that can be built only by using an even more sophisticated tool–the human hand. In New Mexico, a pilot who builds his own jet-powered glider takes to the skies–his very life depending on his handiwork. Canoe makers in Montana, and a knife maker in Washington, handcraft items so unique that customers are willing to pay significantly higher prices than if they were machine made. In the farmlands of Central California, craftsmen keep alive the ancient art of weapon making–see their gleaming suits of armor in action, as weekend warriors do battle. Ever wonder how those impressive animal skeletons in museums are constructed? The artists of Skulls International in Oklahoma City share their secrets. And in Hollywood, the Chiodo brothers reveal how handmade special effects have a charm and character that today's computer animators can't duplicate.

Need a car part or an accessory to give it personality? Since 1903, when Sears dedicated a portion of its catalog, the automotive after-market grew into a billion-dollar juggernaut. We visit Auto Zone, the retail leader, whose largest store carries 25,000 parts. At SO-CAL Speed Shop, a sedan is transformed into a hot rod. Achieving $100-billion in annual sales didn’t happen overnight, but largely on the shoulders of three entrepreneurs–cartoon characters Manny, Moe, and Jack, who were real people. In 1921, they opened their first store in Philadelphia–Pep Auto Supplies. By developing brand names, carrying key parts, and providing hands-on service, they set the standard. Finally, we look at odd products sold by auto stores, discover how Armor All transforms dull interiors into brand-new, and how a tire sealant named Slime may replace the spare tire.

Developed in 1947 as an image to symbolize urgency in the Cold War and the threat of nuclear disaster, the mission of the Doomsday Clock has expanded to include non-nuclear global security issues. Maintained by the Board of Directors of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, it’s based at the University of Chicago. In response to world events, they move the clock’s minute hand closer to or away from midnight–doomsday. In this hour, we cover the clock’s history, its effectiveness, and its critics.

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. Fire warmed the caves and primitive dwellings of mankind for centuries, yet the technology of keeping cool lagged far behind as we learn in this chronicle of heating and air conditioning that covers advancements from the home and industry to outer space and beyond!

Unruly and eclectic, Los Angeles is home to an array of engineering and construction marvels that rivals any city in the world. No single word can sum up the L.A. experience, but the five marvels we profile give a sense of the breadth and scope of the city’s achievements: the new Red Line Subway system that barrels through a mountain range; the freeway system; Los Angeles Colisseum, built in 1923; the billion-dollar Getty Center that houses the family’s artwork; and Disneyland, the first theme park.

Cannons have fired balls of iron and atomic bombs, changed the way wars are fought, and now come equipped with smart weapons. Beginning with 13th-century cannons that were designed to penetrate forts of the day, we'll see how cannons were first cast and later forged, and show how large cannons terrorized civilians and soldiers in WWI and WWII. Moving to the present, we feature the 40-ton self-propelled Crusader that launches 100-pound steel artillery shells more than 33 miles.

Fortification evolved as man tried to defend his territory from attack. From fenced-in hills to walled cities to impenetrable forts, strongholds of the past echo the history of battles for territorial control. In a 2-hour special, we examine various historical defenses, including France’s Maginot Line, a defensive string of forts with enfilading firepower; the Atlantic Wall, 3,000 miles of shore fortifications built by Germany in WWII; and the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

In 1954, Gamal Abdel Nasser, the Arab Republic of Egypt’s first prime minister, had a plan to bring his poor country into the 20th century. To pull it off, he needed to harness the flow of the world’s longest river–the Nile. The ambitious plan called for construction of a high dam in southern Egypt at Aswan. But the builders of the pyramids and the Suez Canal were no strangers to large undertakings. We’ll see how the Aswan High Dam socially, politically, culturally, and agriculturally affected Egypt.

The most opulent are wheeled luxury liners with satellite TV and hot tubs–a far cry from the first bus, an 8-passenger carriage! Watch a bus being built from the ground up, and learn the differences in the standard types (transit, school, inter-city, and specialty). Pack your bags or lunch and travel down the road of bus history.

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. We'll trace the history of bridge types, including suspension, arch, beam, truss, and cantilever designs.

The history of civilization could easily be measured in terms of our ability to make, use, and improve tools–an activity that is at least 4 million years old! At the tip of our toolmaking timeline are power tools. We’ll examine today’s power tool industry, which is booming thanks to more powerful, lighter, and quieter cordless tools.

From hollow-reed snorkels to mini-submarines equipped with video cameras, curiosity compelled inventors to conceive of innovative devices to dive ever deeper into earth’s last frontier. Explore the ocean floor using the latest in technology, and examine biological and geological discoveries culled from the sea’s depths.

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. Their technology has been in use for over two thousand years. But today these engineering marvels cost billions of dollars to build, requiring thousands of men to toil for years on end. Aqueducts have made some men famous and others fabulously wealthy. In Los Angeles one man’s vision took one hundred thousand men to complete and a great city was truly born. In Northern California the most famous conservationist of our time waged the political fight of his life in an attempt to save one of nature’s most spectacular valleys from San Francisco’s demand for more water.

Adam Richman visits the legendary factory where one of the most popular board games of all time is made: Monopoly! Then he finds out how Masters of the Universe action figures are making a comeback in a big way. Plus, see how Mattel is using the latest technology to make new models of Hot Wheels come to life.

From building cutting-edge competition venues to the latest sports science training, winter sports use more technology than ever. This episode takes you behind the scenes of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter games. Olympic organizers race against the clock to build venues, expand transportation and security, and add futuristic touches to the ultimate Olympic icon–the Olympic torch. Meanwhile, US Olympic hopefuls use high-tech training tools to gain a competitive edge. Take in breathtaking views from the world's highest unsupported gondola and rocket down a bobsled track at 80 miles per hour, as we show you winter sports like you've never seen them before.

The incredible tale of how Gutzon Borglum created the world's largest sculpture by carving the faces of four US presidents (George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln) into the Black Hills of South Dakota. The four figures carved in stone pay tribute to the first 150 years of American history. The hour chronicles the "swiveled pointer" that Borglum put in each president's "head", and how workmen hung like spiders 6,000 feet above the ground to blast away 450,000 tons of rock.

Rising almost 1,500 feet high, the Petronas Twin Towers in Malaysia were named the world’s tallest in 1996 by the Council on Tall Buildings. Connecticut architect Cesar Pelli blended traditional Islamic motifs with the modern skyscraper to create a beacon to the new Asia. Join us as we tour this gateway to the East, an engineering marvel involving experts from around the globe and the determination of Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad to transform his country into a 21st-century power.

Being starved by an OPEC embargo, America is desperate for oil, and in 1973 construction begins on a 800 mile pipeline, tapping into Alaskan oil to quench their insatiable oil hunger.

The story of Russia’s “Crown Jewels”, the finest rocket engines in the world, built under conditions of absolute secrecy to land a man on the moon. Learn how, at the height of Cold War rivalry, the engineers of the Soviet Union’s elite Design Bureau developed what have become the most admired rocket engines money can buy, and how in the current climate, driven by commerce not conflict, those engines have found their way into American rockets.

Arising from the horrible carnage, deprivation, and suffering caused by war is a countless array of everyday items–from hairbrushes to microwaves–that directly descend from wartime innovations. Wartime research and development have revolutionized communication, transportation, and medicine. From EM Spam /EM to nuclear power to hairspray and cell phones, life as we know it ironically owes a lot to war. We'll follow the day-to-day life of an ordinary woman and see the influence of war on her life.

Looks at how one man’s vision and the cooperation between the U.S. and England resulted in an instant, reliable transcontinental mode of communication in the mid-1800s. See how wealthy 33-year-old Cyrus West Field endured many failures and lost millions in his attempt to close the communication gap between the Old and New Worlds.

Sit tight and belt in because while there are over 230 million licensed drivers in America; we are going way beyond the driver's seat of your average automobile. It's time to jump behind the wheel of some of the biggest, fastest, most powerful machines on the planet. From battle tanks to blimps, helicopters to harvesters, you'll get the chance to sit in the driver's seat of some the world's most incredible vehicles for some truly Wild Rides.

Turn up the heat because it's time for Steam Power. From Jay Leno's personal steam cars and 11-ton steam engine to carousels, boats and skyscrapers fueled entirely by steam, Modern Marvels takes a deep dive into one of the oldest means of locomotion. It's high tech - 1800s style - as we travel the country in search of the most incredible vehicles, engines and even robots that run on Steam Power.

Ready to take a ride on the most thrilling helicopters in the sky? From the military's deadliest and most sophisticated choppers to homemade helicopters and million-dollar models customized with everything from bars and entertainment systems - Modern Marvels explores some of the coolest copters to ever take flight.

Buckle up as we take a rip-roaring ride through the world of extreme horsepower! From 8000 horsepower dragsters and hydroplanes with top speeds of 200 miles per hour, to a cargo ship propelled by the most powerful diesel engine on earth - a whopping 95,000 horsepower - Modern Marvels muscles through the most impressive engines ever built and how they achieve their incredible performance.

Better buckle up because one of these dangerous drives could be your last! From Bolivia's "Death Road," to California's fog-smothered Highway 99, to dodging IED's on the road to Baghdad Airport, Modern Marvels puts you in the driver's seat to experience the harrowing journey down some of the world's scariest roads.

Better roll up your windows and put it in neutral as we join the 2 million people who wash their car every single day! From one of the largest car washes in the U.S. to cleaning radioactive waste off a train to tips on getting tar, glue, egg and sludge off your priceless Porsche, Modern Marvels takes a look at all the awesome technology we use to keep our beloved vehicles sparkling clean.

The US agricultural process, from seed to shelf, is so efficient that most people don’t think much about it. But food growing and processing is ever more sophisticated, employing computer-guided, ground-shaking machinery, and sometimes controversial techniques. It’s an industry of declining family farms, diminishing returns, yet higher yields. We review the evolution of the tools used to produce food, show the steps in the cycle that bring food to the table, and look at the future of farming.

Traces the story of the U.S. Army’s legendary 10th Mountain Division. They were formed after WWII began, specifically to fight in high, rugged mountain conditions. After training in the Colorado Rockies, they were sent to Italy’s Apennines to take on well-entrenched Germans. Using a combination of mountain skills and raw courage, they drove the Germans back, and helped win the war in Italy. Later, former members of the 10th helped create many of the country’s ski resorts, including Aspen and Vail.

Traces the origins of this tasty drink from Ethiopia over 1,000 years ago to the espresso-fueled explosion of specialty coffee stores like Starbucks today. Along the way, we’ll see how American companies like Hills Brothers, Maxwell House, Folgers, and MJB grew to be giants. Discover how billions of coffee beans make their journey from coffee farms and plantations, and are processed in gigantic roasting and packaging plants before showing up in coffee cups all over the world. Details the invention and production of instant coffee, decaffeinated coffee, freeze-dried coffee, and the espresso machine. Also, we explain how coffee made shift work in factories possible, while coffeehouses provided a creative cauldron that brewed political and artistic progress in the 18th and 19th centuries. And, we also provide tips on how to make a better cup at home!

Strength...a powerful word, but what does it mean? How is it measured? Why are some things simply stronger than others. How strong is a rope, a tractor, a diamond, a tugboat or even plastic. How and why strength matter to us every day.

Mankind controls the environment in a variety of ways, whether by capturing the force of a river, harnessing the power in coal or oil, controlling a nuclear reaction, or transforming the light of the sun into electricity. From Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla to Enrico Fermi and Albert Einstein, the world's greatest minds have enabled us to acquire our light, heat, and power with a simple flip of the switch. Join us for an electrifying hour as we review the foundation for all of this–power plants.

After World War I, Russia began building its most prolific aircraft, the MiG line. MiG pilots fought with distinction in WWII, but the MiG heyday hit with the design of the MiG-15, a copy of a Nazi experimental jet. During the Korean War, MiG-15s dueled with U.S.A.F. F-86s over Korea. Later, the MiG-21 contested the skies over North Vietnam as they duked it out with American Air Force and Navy jets.

During WWII, American tank crews duked it out with Nazi Panzers in a high-explosive duel to the death. The German tanks had thicker armor and better guns than the mainstay of the U.S. armored forces, the M-4 Sherman. For many crewmen, the Sherman lived up to its nickname as a steel coffin. But what the tanks lacked in firepower and protection, the crews made up for in guts and good old-fashioned Yankee ingenuity. We’ll meet some of these armored warriors from WWII.

The machines that helped build our world have been powered by hydraulics, a compact system of valves, hoses, and pumps that transmits forces from point to point through fluid. This basic concept of powerful force transmission through fluid provides the drive for most machines today. From the ancient Roman mastery of the aqueduct to Universal Studios, a veritable hydraulic theme park, we see how hydraulics power industry, keep planes flying, and make that 3-point-turn a U-turn.

A steel giant standing 1,107 feet high on broad shoulders, this vertical city houses 1,200 people. Join us as we explore how a young architectural team from Skidmore, Owings & Merrill conceived of an innovative 100-story, multi-use tower. A construction crisis halted the project for six months, but once it resumed, it took just four years and 50 million man-hours to complete the John Hancock Center. In the heart of Chicago, the John Hancock Center rises 100 stories above the luxury shops and restaurants that line the famous Magnificent Mile. It opened on May 5, 1970 with 237,657 square feet of retailing, 812,160 square feet of offices, 703 rental apartments (converted to condominiums in 1974), 507-car parking garage, and an ice skating rink! There are 1,250 miles of wiring and 11,459 panes of glass. Nicknamed “Big John”, it cost $100-million and took 46,000 tons of steel to build.

It's an art, it's a science and it's a marriage of vapor and water. From the elite to the illegal, the banned, to the celebrated, the distillation of spirits is a 50 billion dollar a year business. Visit brandy, liqueur, moonshine, and absinthe distilleries to see how this magic is done.

In a raging war for control of Earth, occupying forces buzz and skitter, with some out to draw blood! Termites, mosquitoes, rats, mice, ants, and cockroaches have spread damage, disease, and death for millions of years. As we trace pest control from humble ancient beginnings to medieval Black Plague, from billion-dollar pesticide business to holistic Integrated Pest Management, we meet the foot soldier in the battle between man and bug–today’s high-tech and ecologically aware exterminator

Teddy Roosevelt carried a revolver. The night they each died, Abraham Lincoln carried a $5 Confederate note and nine newspaper clippings, while John Wilkes Booth carried a candle and pictures of five women, including his fianc e. Why? Most people don't even think about it anymore. We simply put what we were carrying yesterday, and the day before that, back into our pockets. Do we really need everything we carry with us? In this hour we will take a look at the items we found in peoples' pockets all across America. Not cell phones, which everybody has, but more intimate items. Personal things…both valuable and cheap. Work aids…both simple and high-tech. Even food! And we'll not only see what they must have in their possession, but how some of it is made. Why does a search and rescue fireman carry a hockey puck? We'll also discover how they make and carry a "personal escape" bailout system.

Get ready to ride the rails as we take a trip along the greatest freight transportation system in the world! From the early iron horses to today's sleek steel stallions, Modern Marvels climbs aboard the complex rail network that snakes throughs valleys, over rivers and across prairies to get America's goods from the factory to your front door.

Modern Marvels explores how the basic formula of cement, aggregate and water has changed the world. Concrete has enabled us to create everything from roads and runways to buildings and bridges. The program will explore the history as well as the future of this humble material?from the ancient Romans, who pioneered its use in their vast system of aqueducts, to modern engineers developing a bendable concrete more resistant to the destructive power of earthquakes.

Backbones of worldwide economics, for centuries banks enabled the creation of wealth, and industry leaders became icons. But modern technology revolutionized the way banks do business, and the Internet insures they must adapt or disappear. From banking's early European origins to "e-banking", this is an hour you can't afford to miss!

Look closely at those tall metal towers that span the country and you might see tiny specks climbing up the soaring steel like spiders on an enormous web. Meet the courageous linemen who erect, string, and repair 250-foot high electrical transmission towers, working with energized power lines that can carry up to 765,000 volts!

Commercial Jets traces the evolution of commercial aviation from the stumbling beginnings of the De Havilland Comet to the wide-body rocket ships of today. This is the story of a high-tech worldwide competition among a field of high stakes players. Billion dollar deals ride on cutting-edge designs to carry more passengers father, faster and safer.