The BEST episodes of Modern Marvels season 13

#1 - Shovels

Season 13 - Episode 15 - Aired 5/3/2006

Man has always had a need to move large amounts of earth. In this episode, we profile the technological advances which have allowed shovels to become absolutely enormous, capable of carrying 200 tons of earth in one load today.

#2 - World's Biggest Machines 5

Season 13 - Episode 26 - Aired 7/26/2006

Join us for another look at big machines. At NASA's Ames Research Center, we visit the world's biggest wind tunnel, part of the National Full-Scale Aerodynamics Complex, and one of the biggest and most complex flight simulators, NASA's Vertical Motion Simulator, or VMS. At the Joy Mining Machinery plant in Franklin, Pennsylvania, giant machine tools form, cut, and measure the enormous individual parts that make up a Continuous Miner, the biggest underground mining machine in the world. But big machines aren't limited to science and commerce. Ride with us on the biggest observation wheel in the world, the London Eye, which stands 443 feet high and provides a 360 degree unobstructed view of London. And we take a look at IMAX technology. The film, cameras, projectors, and theater screens are the largest in the world. Finally, we take a ride on every lawn tender's dream machine--the Claas Cougar, the world's biggest lawnmower.

#3 - High Explosives

Season 13 - Episode 24 - Aired 7/3/2006

Since the creation of black powder in China centuries ago, explosives have been decisive on the battlefield. Follow their incendiary story from ancient times right up to today's plastic demolitions.

#4 - Renewable Energy

Season 13 - Episode 37 - Aired 9/20/2006

Take an in-depth look at the most proven and reliable sources: solar, wind, geothermal, biofuels, and tidal power. From the experimental to the tried-and-true, renewable energy sources are overflowing with potential... just waiting to be exploited on a massive scale.

#5 - Money

Season 13 - Episode 21 - Aired 6/19/2006

How does America make money--literally? We visit the United States Mint and the Bureau of Printing and Engraving to see the secretive government facilities where our legal tender is generated. With a storied past as tantalizing as the wealth they create, these mints can spit out fortunes in an hour and keep our economy flowing.

#6 - Hi-Tech Hitler

Season 13 - Episode 14 - Aired 5/2/2006

This is the true story of the scientific feats and failures of Hitler's Nazi Germany.

#7 - Copper Kings

Season 13 - Episode 19 - Aired 6/12/2006

More than a century ago two men controlled nearly all of U.S. copper production, transforming Butte, Montana from a washed-up gold-mining camp into a global powerhouse. William Clark, a ruthless banker known for preying on the misfortune of miners and Marcus Daly, a self-made man with a knack for knowing where to dig, created huge empires and lived like kings, while fighting a ferocious, personal, battle that lasted nearly 25 years.

#8 - Ink

Season 13 - Episode 43 - Aired 10/4/2006

Invented by the Chinese in about 3000BC, it spread the word of God and war. It set us free and spelled out our rights. It tells stories, sells products and solves crimes. It's ink and it's everywhere!

#9 - Weird Weapons: The Axis

Season 13 - Episode 8 - Aired 2/21/2006

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.

#10 - Fire

Season 13 - Episode 3 - Aired 1/11/2006

Out of control it’s a monster with a voracious appetite. Properly harnessed it’s a force that has shaped our world. We’ve learned to create and exploit it, but we’ll never truly tame it. From furnaces to flamethrowers, fire testing to fireballs, now, Fire, on Modern Marvels.

#11 - 80's Tech

Season 13 - Episode 17 - Aired 5/24/2006

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.

#12 - Engineering Disasters: New Orleans

Season 13 - Episode 10 - Aired 2/28/2006

Modern Marvels examines the destruction Hurricane Katrina caused in New Orleans.

#13 - Weird Weapons: The Allies

Season 13 - Episode 6 - Aired 2/8/2006

<I>Modern Marvels</I> takes a look at some of the strangest weapons used by Allied forces in WW II.

#14 - Boneyard: Where Machines End Their Lives

Season 13 - Episode 27 - Aired 7/26/2006

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.

#15 - Wine

Season 13 - Episode 52 - Aired 11/29/2006

A glass a day is said to keep the doctor away. A defeated Napoleon drowned his sorrows in it; Thomas Jefferson became obsessed with it. Wine is an integral part of our culture and more wine is consumed today than ever before. Supermarket shelves that once carried only box wine and jugs are now lined with wines from Australia, Chile, and South Africa. Aerial imaging and infrared photography once used by NASA to map the moon is now employed by wineries to analyze soil, vine vigor, and even disease. Paying tribute to wine's unique history we will travel the world over to explore wineries, the worlds' most historic wine cellar and the oldest restaurant in Paris.

#16 - Distilleries 2

Season 13 - Episode 45 - Aired 10/11/2006

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.

#17 - Freight Trains

Season 13 - Episode 38 - Aired 9/20/2006

Explore the history of freight transportation from its humble beginnings as tramways in mines to complex system of rails that stretches to every corner of the nation.

#18 - Building in the Name of God

Season 13 - Episode 36 - Aired 9/18/2006

The greatest religious structures are marvels of engineering, technology, and invention, representing not only the glory of God, but also the ingenuity of man.

#19 - Copper

Season 13 - Episode 35 - Aired 9/13/2006

It transports electricity, water, and heat. It brings music to our ears and beauty to our eyes. Copper--its impressive traits, long history, and how it's mined. This versatile metal’s most famous attribute is its ability to conduct electricity.

#20 - Pirate Tech

Season 13 - Episode 25 - Aired 7/9/2006

Bold, cunning, and audacious, pirates are a breed of fighting men and women who have terrorized the high seas since before recorded history. At the height of their power in the 1700's they literally influenced the fate of nations when they became embroiled in the rivalry between England and Spain. This special will visit maritime museums and shipwreck sites, utilize walk-and-talk demonstrations of fire arms, swords, and navigation instruments to help spotlight the innovations pirates brought to maritime technology. Includes a look at how many pirates modified their ships to make them faster and more powerful.

#21 - Candy

Season 13 - Episode 7 - Aired 2/14/2006

It pulls, stretches, bubbles, hardens, crunches, and melts! We eat about 7-billion tons of it yearly. We’re talking about Candy–loved by kids and savored by adults. Candy-making evolved from a handmade operation to high-tech mass production. Nowhere is that more apparent than at Hershey’s. On a tour of their newest production facility, we learn how they process the cocoa bean. At See’s Candy, we see how they make their famous boxed chocolates–on a slightly smaller scale than Hershey’s. We get a sweet history lesson at Schimpff’s Confectionery, where they still use small kettles, natural flavors, and hand-operated equipment. Then, we visit Jelly Belly, purveyors of the original gourmet jellybean. Saltwater-taffy pullers hypnotize us on our sweet-tooth tour; we gaze at extruders making miles of licorice rope; and watch as nostalgia candy bars Abba-Zaba and Big Hunk get packaged. And in this sugary hour, we digest the latest sensations–gourmet chocolates and scorpion on a stick!

#22 - Snow

Season 13 - Episode 54 - Aired 12/10/2006

It is the bane of every suburban parent and the joy to every school kid. Born in a swirling storm cloud through a process called nucleation, the characteristics of snow flakes are threatened by pollution trapped in the clouds.

#23 - Wind

Season 13 - Episode 1 - Aired 1/1/2006

#24 - Containers

Season 13 - Episode 2 - Aired 1/4/2006

They hold just about everything we need, from condiments to cargo. Made of steel, aluminum, paper and glass, they protect and preserve. They're underground and above ground, they journey around the world. They've revolutionized civilization.

#25 - Heavy Metals

Season 13 - Episode 20 - Aired 6/14/2006

They are elements that occupy a select portion of the periodic table and are so essential to America's economic and military might that they are stored in the National Defense Stockpile in case of all-out war. We plan a riveting visit. Some of the vital heavy metals that we survey include copper, uranium, lead, zinc, and nickel. We also take a look at superalloys--consisting of steel combined with chromium, cobalt, and dozens of other heavy metals--that resist corrosion and perform increasingly elaborate functions. From Earth to space, from cosmetics to vitamins, in a million different ways, heavy metals are here to stay!