This video highlights scientific aspects of concrete, steel, wood, and nails—and the forces that impact them. Experiments done on the building site and at materials testing labs investigate the strengths of concrete, rebar, and engineered lumber; the chemical properties of Portland cement and galvanized nails; and the effects of dead load and live load, torque and shear induced by wind and earthquakes, and Bernoulli’s Principle as it relates to the effects of tornadoes on roofs. Microscope and infrared imaging plus animations give extra angles of insight. So do field trips to a concrete batch plant, a tree farm to study sylviculture, and a saw mill to see how computerized cutting and sorting are done. A Discovery Channel Production. (50 minutes)