Modern Marvels

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  • : 851
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  • History
  • 22
  • Documentary History

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6x1
Aquariums
Episode overview
“Aquariums” looks at the popular tourist attractions and their inhabitants, and considers the morality of keeping animals in captivity. Also: innovations in tank technology; and the history of aquariums.
6x1
Airships
Episode overview
They are among the most romantic machines ever built, enormous craft held aloft by lighter-than-air gas trapped beneath their vast skins. In the 20th century, they have played a vital .. show full overview
6x2
The NYC Subway
Episode overview
New York subway system's riders, workers and street performers make it a microcosm of city life.
6x3
History of Tall Buildings
Episode overview
The construction of skyscrapers is a triumph of engineering and capitalism. Climb to the top of the Empire State Building, Chrysler Building, Sears Tower, and World Trade Center to see .. show full overview
6x4
Engineering Disasters
Episode overview
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?
6x5
City Parks
Episode overview
Parks play an even more important role than simply offering city dwellers a scenic break from the urban landscape. They provide important ecological and health benefits that help cities like New York and Los Angeles thrive.
6x19
City Parks
Episode overview
City Parks
6x6
Spy Technology
Episode overview
Tracing the evolution of the tools of espionage over the past century, from drop boxes and rudimentary codes to the tiny, high-tech devices that are already far more prevalent than most people imagine.
6x7
Battlefield Medicine
Episode overview
In this history of medicine under fire, we see how a small army of medics, nurses, surgeons, stretcher-bearers, and ambulance drivers, race to keep pace with the deadly advances of war.
6x8
Map Making
Episode overview
Charting the history of cartography--from ancient Marshall Islands' stick maps to the New York City Police Department's computerized super-map. Some are works of art, others vital tools for law enforcement, space exploration, and agriculture.
6x9
Rescue Technology
Episode overview
Check out 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.
6x10
Jet Engines
Episode overview
Strap on a parachute and soar through the saga of jet propulsion, which radically transformed our world since inception in WWII.
6x11
Bombs
Episode overview
One of the most feared and powerful weapons in any nation's arsenal. From the use of diseased carcasses flung over castle walls to Greek Fire to today's smart bombs, we review the evolution of bombs.
6x12
Salt Mines
Episode overview
Discover more about this priceless commodity essential to our very survival. It has over 14,000 uses from de-icing our roads to softening our water.
6x13
Shotguns
Episode overview
The first specialized gun, the British upper-class used it to shoot birds and small game for sport. The shotgun took on a variety of roles, used by hunter and warrior alike.
6x14
Scuba Diving & Underwater Breathing
Episode overview
Dive with the best as we test scuba diving’s past, and look to a future of mechanical gills.
6x15
Dynamite
Episode overview
Dynamite blasts out the natural resources that have built our modern world.
6x27
Dynamite
Episode overview
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 .. show full overview
6x16
Offshore Oil Drilling
Episode overview
Drilling offshore is to drilling onshore what Ginger Rodgers was to Fred Astaire, she did everything he did except she did it backwards and in high heels. Offshore drilling is one of the greaest technological dances mankind has ever attempted
6x28
Offshore Oil Drilling
Episode overview
They are virtual cities stuck in the middle of some of the most dangerous seas on earth. Life on them is hard and fraught with danger from calamitous fires and the risk of storms and .. show full overview
6x17
Hoover Dam
Episode overview
Venture into the Southwestern Desert for the complete story of one of the seven engineering wonders of the world -- Hoover Dam. From the blueprints to reality, this is the story of the .. show full overview
6x18
Baseball Parks
Episode overview
Tracing the development of the ballpark. Visit some of baseball's greatest shrines, including Wrigley Field, Yankee Stadium and Camden Yards, and see how the years have changed the way they were conceived and built.
6x19
New York Bridges
Episode overview
Visits the Brooklyn, George Washington, the Tri-Borough and the 59th Street bridges. In the stone and steel of these edifices the history of modern bridge building can be seen.
6x20
Crash Testing
Episode overview
Delve into the secretive, but hugely important, multi-billion-dollar industry of product testing where wrinkles get ironed out and goods are stripped of the marketing and hype to see if they actually work.
6x21
Parachutes
Episode overview
The history of parachutes and how there development has impacted the fields of war, firefighting, recreation, and space exploration.
6x22
Newspapers
Episode overview
Since the 15th century, man has sated his hunger for information with newspapers. The growing influence of the computer age and the widespread availability of instant information may eventually render the newspaper obsolete.
6x24
The Atlantic Wall
Episode overview
Overview of the Nazi Fortifications along the Atlantic Seaboard from Belgium to Spain. Coastal Defense of WW2 Nazi efforts to prevent Allied Forces from gaining foothold into France. War Time Film Footage of "D" Day Invasion.
6x25
Simulators
Episode overview
Simulators have made training for many professions far safer, more effective and less expensive than it would be if the students were in command of the real thing. They have developed .. show full overview
6x26
The Big Dig
Episode overview
An on-site report on the Massachusetts Central Artery-Third Harbor Tunnel project, an $11.6-billion undertaking to replace Boston's highways with roadways that run underground and .. show full overview
6x27
The Tool Bench: Power Tools
Episode overview
The history of civilization could easily be measured in terms of our ability to make, use, and improve tools. We'll examine today's power tool industry, which is booming thanks to more powerful, lighter, and quieter cordless tools.
6x28
Earth Movers 2
Episode overview
This episode has no summary.
6x42
Forts
Episode overview
Fortification evolved along with man's need to defend his territory from attack. From hills surrounded by fences to walled cities to impenetrable castles, these strongholds of the past .. show full overview
6x30
Emergency Room
Episode overview
Emergency room medicine has only been a recognized specialty since 1989, and it took close to two millennia to get to this point. Advancements that led to the modern emergency rooms are highlighted as well as emergency/trauma medicine.
6x31
Demolition
Episode overview
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 .. show full overview
6x32
Motorcycles
Episode overview
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! We race back in time and see .. show full overview
6x33
Security Systems
Episode overview
Since civilization's earliest days, man has sought protection from those who would rob him of riches, knowledge, and even life. This is the story of the evolving systems designed to .. show full overview
6x34
The Tool Bench: Hand Tools
Episode overview
Well over 2-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 .. show full overview
6x35
More Engineering Disasters
Episode overview
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 .. show full overview
6x36
Niagara Power
Episode overview
An exploration of the rich history of one of the world's greatest technological achievements--the harnessing of power from Niagara Falls. From the "War of the Currents", a battle between .. show full overview
6x37
Casino Tech
Episode overview
Place your bets and join us for an exciting spin through the history of the casino. We'll go behind the neon lights, free drinks, and 24-hour gambling to see how the gaming industry has .. show full overview
6x38
Lost Marvels
Episode overview
Some of the great artistic and engineering feats that failed due to nature, the wastes of war and indifference.
6x39
Balloons
Episode overview
Examine the many uses balloons have been put to over the years and hear from the designers and "pilots" who have dedicated their lives to riding the winds.

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