Episode 1
Aired Jan 4, 2006
Containers
Containers hold everything from steel freight transported by ship, train, or truck to underground Strategic Petroleum Reserve salt domes in Texas; explore Georgia Pacific processing plants, farmer silos, and metal cans revolutionizing food industry.
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Episode 1
Aired Feb 4, 2005
Blackbird Stealth!
The SR-71 Blackbird sees action on hot and cold war fronts.
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Episode 2
Aired Apr 28, 2005
Punishment
Criminal punishment changes dramatically over the course of human history.
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Episode 2
Aired Jan 11, 2006
Fire
Fire remains untamed despite human creation and control; explore pyrotechnology from 8-story Philadelphia boilers creating steam heat to 2,000-degree biomass flames generating electricity, coal locomotives and rocket engines.
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Episode 3
Aired Feb 8, 2006
Engineering Disasters 18
Examine tragedies including 1999 Milwaukee ironworkers' 200-foot fall, China's Sunjiwan coal mine explosion, fluoroscope x-ray radiation exposure in shoe stores, California's Salton Sea drainage issues, and Soviet Aral Sea irrigation disaster.
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Episode 3
Aired Aug 24, 2005
The World's Fastest
The Koenigsegg CCR automobile; the Shanghai Maglev train; motorboat racer Ken Warby and the Spirit of Australia; the Kingda Ka roller coaster; the Holloman High Speed Test Track.
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Episode 4
Aired Sep 13, 2005
Engineering an Empire: Rome
Advances in work clothing allow people to do jobs they otherwise would be unable to do.
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Episode 4
Aired Feb 14, 2006
Candy
Candy production consumes 7-billion tons yearly, evolving from handmade operations to high-tech mass production; explore Hershey's cocoa processing, See's boxed chocolates, Schimpff's traditional methods, and Jelly Belly's gourmet jellybeans.
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Episode 5
Aired Sep 14, 2005
Cereal: History in a Bowl
Huge fields of golden grains produce the cereals that are a $10 billion global industry.
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Episode 5
Aired Feb 28, 2006
Engineering Disasters: New Orleans
Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, submerging 80% underwater due to levee and pumping system failures; investigate engineering causes behind Superdome nightmare, major escape route design flaws, and Louisiana coastline sinking issues.
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Episode 6
Aired Mar 8, 2006
Leather
Leather began at civilization's dawn when animal hides were rubbed with fat; by 5th Century BC, tanning expanded to include vegetable oils, creating versatile products enabling Roman marches and Pilgrim survival through modern exotic leathers.
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Episode 6
Aired Sep 24, 2005
German Small Arms of WWII
German small arms evolve from World War I to the end of the Second World War.
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Episode 7
Aired Mar 22, 2006
Engineering Disasters 19
Examine mysterious maritime tragedies including Edmund Fitzgerald's 1975 sinking, Boeing 737 rudder crashes in 1991 and 1994, secret 1959 government nuclear facility meltdown, 4-million gallon diesel storage tank failure, and more.
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Episode 8
Aired May 3, 2006
Shovels
Shovels evolved from prehistoric sharpened sticks to machines; explore California's P&H 4100 excavating 170-ton chunks, William Otis's 1835 steam shovel patent, NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander, and Hitachi's humanitarian landmine-clearing equipment.
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Episode 9
Aired May 10, 2006
Drilling
Drilling spirals through ground, rock, earth, ice, steel, and stone; explore water drilling in New Mexico desert, oil drilling in Gulf of Mexico, deepest hole quests, ice core climate recovery, tunnel boring machines, and laser precision drilling.
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Episode 9
Aired Jan 18, 2006
Cotton
Cotton caused a civil war and jump-started the Industrial Revolution while becoming the world's most ubiquitous fabric; a chronicle of cotton's journey from dirt to shirt.
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Episode 10
Aired May 24, 2006
'80s Tech
The 1980s transitioned from Industrial to Information Age with brick cell phones, Pac-Man, Rubik's Cube, Sony Walkman, and CDs; microchips revolutionized work, play, and communication through Silicon Valley innovations including Apple computers.
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Episode 10
Aired Jan 24, 2006
Custom Cars
History, technology and culture connect successive generations who create art from automobiles.
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Episode 11
Aired May 25, 2006
Ben Franklin Tech
Benjamin Franklin, the oldest Founding Father, was the late 18th century's foremost scientist and greatest inventor; created Pennsylvania Stove, lightning rod, glass armonica for Mozart and Beethoven and anti-counterfeiting techniques.
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Episode 12
Aired Feb 8, 2006
Weird Weapons: The Allies
The Allied secrets of World War II.
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Episode 12
Aired Jun 14, 2006
Heavy Metals
Heavy metals occupy select periodic table portions and are essential to America's economic and military might, stored in National Defense Stockpile; vital metals include copper, uranium, lead, zinc, nickel, and corrosion-resistant superalloys.
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Episode 13
Aired Jun 21, 2006
Horsepower
Explore the world of extreme horsepower from fastest accelerating cars to massive hydroplane racing boats; discover horsepower's steam engine marketing origins, container ship diesel power, Hoover Dam water harnessing, and more.
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Episode 14
Aired Jun 28, 2006
BBQ Tech
Barbecue evolved from old-fashioned cooking into modern multi-billion dollar industry; explore famous cook-offs, established restaurants like Arthur Bryant's Kansas City, post-WWII backyard phenomenon, Weber kettle grills, and spicy sauce varieties.
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Episode 14
Aired Feb 24, 2006
Nature Tech: Avalanches
An avalanche can stretch a mile wide and weigh more than a million tons.
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Episode 15
Aired Jul 9, 2006
Pirate Tech
Pirates terrorized high seas since before recorded history; at their 1700s power height, they influenced nations through England-Spain rivalry while bringing maritime technology innovations including modified ships for speed and power enhancement.
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Episode 16
Aired Jul 20, 2006
The Atlantic Intercoastal Highway
The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway stretches 2,500 miles from Boston to Miami through canals, land cuts, and barrier islands providing protected passage; conceived in late 18th century as America's first superhighway before road systems existed.
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Episode 17
Aired Jul 26, 2006
World's Biggest Machines 5
Big machines span NASA's world's biggest wind tunnel and flight simulator, Joy Mining's Continuous Miner underground machine, London Eye's 443-foot observation wheel, IMAX's largest film technology, and Claas Cougar world's biggest lawnmower.
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Episode 18
Aired Aug 2, 2006
Nuts
Nuts range from pea-sized to bowling ball-sized as nutritional staples since time began; sustained Roman and Chinese armies, English and Spanish navies, American tribes, while today UNICEF uses peanut products to reverse child malnutrition quickly.
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Episode 18
Aired Apr 26, 2006
Insulation
The past, present and future of insulation technology.
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Episode 19
Aired Aug 23, 2006
Mummy Tech
Egyptian mummies speak from graves through state-of-the-art CT-scanning technology; explore 2,000-year-old child mummy, 70-day mummification process, King Tut's mysterious death investigation, and nitrogen-filled conservation cases preventing decay.
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Episode 20
Aired Aug 30, 2006
Levees
Explore levees history from collapsing New Orleans floodwalls to European storm surge barriers; examine Sacramento's crumbling erosion evidence, Netherlands' ingenious dikes, Thames barriers, Venice construction, and Army Corps protection efforts.
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Episode 21
Aired Sep 6, 2006
Water
Water exists in three forms at same temperature as nature's powerful landscape carver and life supporter; explore its multidimensional character from bottled water industry to nuclear reactors, irrigation systems, and artistic fountain displays.
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Episode 22
Aired Sep 13, 2006
Copper
Copper transports electricity, water, and heat while being essential for survival yet killing microbes; this versatile metal conducts electricity globally, revolutionizes electronics, forms plumbing pipes, creates beautiful roofs, and more.
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Episode 23
Aired Sep 20, 2006
Renewable Energy
Renewable energy technologies fight petroleum dependence and global warming by transforming air, water, earth, and fire into clean sources; explore solar, wind, geothermal, biofuels, and tidal power from experimental to massive scale solutions.
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Episode 23
Aired Jun 12, 2006
Copper Kings
William Clark and Marcus Daly control 19th-century U.S. copper production.
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Episode 24
Aired Sep 20, 2006
Freight Trains
Freight trains transport 1.8 billion tons annually as America's economic lifeblood, carrying crops, electronics, cars, chemicals, and coal; explore Union Pacific's Bailey yard, the world's greatest freight system, from mining tramway origins.
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Episode 25
Aired Sep 23, 2006
Assembly Lines
The evolution of the assembly line, which has produced billions of products, from toys to Boeing 747s, cheaply and quickly; Americans overcome prejudices toward blacks and women in factories during World War II; a family of auto assembly workers.
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Episode 26
Aired Oct 4, 2006
Ink
Ink, invented by Chinese around 3000BC, spread religious and war messages while setting people free and spelling out rights; from squid to soybeans, ancient texts to tattoos, ink tells stories, sells products, and solves crimes everywhere.
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Episode 27
Aired Oct 11, 2006
Distilleries 2
Distillation of spirits represents art, science, and vapor-water marriage in a billion-dollar business; visit brandy, liqueur, moonshine, and absinthe distilleries including Christian Brothers, Deep South moonshine, and French Courvoisier Cognac.
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Episode 27
Aired Jul 3, 2006
High Explosives
The history of explosives.
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Episode 28
Aired Oct 18, 2006
World's Strongest
Strength measurement explores why some things are stronger than others; examine rope, tractor, diamond, tugboat, and plastic strength from Spectra fiber to Lexan, discovering where, how, and why strength matters in daily life applications.
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Episode 29
Aired Nov 1, 2006
Tomcat Sunset
Former Tomcat pilot Terry Deitz explores F-14 fighter jet legacy through final catapult launches aboard USS Theodore Roosevelt; aviators and sailors reflect on iconic aircraft's career before retirement at Naval Air Station Oceana farewell ceremony.
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Episode 30
Aired Nov 8, 2006
Tobacco
Tobacco's ancient discovery and Andes cultivation leads to modern North Carolina farming and Dominican Republic Fuente cigar plantation; explore harvesting techniques, public health concerns with Surgeon General, and nicotine replacement therapies.
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Episode 30
Aired Jul 28, 2006
Super Tools: Skyscraper
The construction of the Palms Casino in Las Vegas, the new headquarters of the New York Times in Manhattan, and the Trump International Hotel and Tower in Chicago.
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Episode 31
Aired Nov 15, 2006
The Supermarket
The supermarket has become one of the great success stories of modern retailing; bar coding and other technological advancements; the psychology of the supermarket, including the store layout, lighting, music and aromas.
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Episode 32
Aired Nov 28, 2006
Breakfast Tech
Breakfast technology slices, squeezes, sorts, and cooks to keep orange juice fresh and cereals flaked; explore USS Stennis meal preparation for sailors, Tyson bacon processing, Sunkist orange squeezing, and McDonald's McGriddle pancake production.
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Episode 33
Aired Nov 29, 2006
Wine
Wine remains culturally integral as Napoleon drowned sorrows and Jefferson became obsessed; modern consumption peaks with wines from Australia, Chile, South Africa using NASA aerial imaging technology for soil analysis and vine vigor assessment.
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Episode 34
Aired Nov 29, 2006
Harvesting 2
America's orchards and farms balance hand labor with mechanization through efficient harvesting methods; explore orchard management, California's largest fruit packing house, Nebraska corn fields, Wisconsin cranberry marshes, and more.
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Episode 35
Aired Dec 6, 2006
Engineering Disasters 20
Examine industrial disasters including BP Refinery Texas City explosions killing workers, American Airlines flight crash circumstances, Times Beach Missouri dioxin contamination, NASA Skylab problems, and Praxair gas company fire.
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Episode 36
Aired Dec 10, 2006
Snow
Snow forms through nucleation in storm clouds but faces pollution threats; explore Storm Peak Laboratory cloud research, Colorado ski resort snowmaking technology, avalanche rescue innovations, and Buffalo blizzard forecasting.
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Episode 37
Aired Sep 17, 2006
Shotguns
The shotgun takes on a variety of roles.
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Episode 37
Aired Dec 13, 2006
Tea
Tea ranks as world's second most popular drink with ancient origins; explore Lipton's Suffolk plant producing teabags, Charleston Plantation's cultivation, Boston Tea Party history, Clipper Ships bringing Chinese tea, and modern herbal varieties.
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Episode 38
Aired Dec 20, 2006
Christmas Tech
Christmas observance by world's population incorporates trees, ornaments, lights, and treats made cheaper and safer through technology; explore Rockefeller Center preparations, Macy's holiday windows, UNICEF snowflake installation, and more.
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Episode 38
Aired Sep 18, 2006
Building in the Name of God
Stories of those who believed in dreams and defied the commonplace with their extraordinary creations; covering some of the world's architectural and engineering structures, scientific inventions, and social wonders.
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Episode 41
Aired Sep 21, 2006
Cities of the Underworld
Archeologists reveal a hidden history that hasn't seen the light of day for ages.
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Episode 43
Aired Sep 27, 2006
Stealth and Beyond: Air Stealth
Stealth aircraft, ships and soldiers of the past, present and future; advances in stealth military aircraft.
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Episode 44
Aired Sep 27, 2006
Stealth & Beyond: Sea Stealth
Stories of those who believed in dreams and defied the commonplace with their extraordinary creations; covering some of the world's architectural and engineering structures, scientific inventions, and social wonders.
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Episode 58
Aired Jan 2, 2007
The Doomsday Clock
Scientists develop the Doomsday Clock as an image to symbolize urgency in the Cold War and the threat of nuclear disaster.
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