Engineering


UHPC Concrete 5 min.

There's a dire need to repair aging infrastructure in the U.S., and an innovative building material could be a game changer. Embedded with steel fibers, ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) is about 5 to 10 times stronger than standard concrete -- and unaffordable for most government-funded projects. In this NewsHour segment, special correspondent Cat Wise looks at the use of UHPC and how resear...

Formats: Streaming Copyright Date: 2022

High-Risk High-Rise 54 min.

Every year, hundreds of new skyscrapers are built around the globe. As nations vie for prestige, these shimmering towers are rising higher and higher. But for all their impressive engineering, are these buildings safe? Can we be sure how they will hold up in earthquakes, fires, and other potential disasters? What have—or haven’t—we learned from past tragedies?

Formats: Streaming Copyright Date: 2022

New to Our Collection! The Secret Science of Sewage 59 min.

Dr George McGavin and Dr Zoe Laughlin explore one of the UK’s biggest sewage works, a hidden world we rarely get to see. Processing one billion litres of wastewater a day – including what 1.7 million people flush down the loo – the program reveals the mind-boggling science behind how sewage is treated and what it tells us about how we live today. McGavin and Laughlin also discover a radical revolu...

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2021

NOVA: Great Electric Airplane Race 53 min.

Electric cars seem increasingly likely to replace our gas-guzzling vehicles. Could a new generation of emission-free electric planes do the same to the polluting airliners in our skies--a major step in the fight against climate change? NOVA looks at an array of new electric planes and takes a ride in some prototypes. Will the dream of super-quiet, super-efficient airliners become a reality?

Formats: Streaming Copyright Date: 2021

Building Greener Cities (Catalyst) 55 min.

Cities are one of mankind's greatest inventions, they bring us together and drive wealth; but as more people flock to live and work in cities, we need to find ways to make them greener, more sustainable, and more efficient places to live. In this program, physicist Dr. Niraj Lal explores some of the engineering solutions driving change. He visits the construction site of the largest public tran...

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2020

How to Make 174 min.

Material Scientist Zoe Laughlin takes us on a joyous journey of wonder and revelation as she challenges herself to make her version of some the most iconic and best-loved everyday items that we all use. Working at the interface of science, art and product design, each episode Zoe focuses on a specific domestic item to build, Trainers, Toothpaste and Brush, and Headphones. Zoe first dissects, layer...

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2020

How to Make Headphones 59 min.

In this episode, Zoe explores an item that is extraordinarily intimate and transports us to other worlds – Headphones. With 12 pairs sold globally every second, Zoe is on a mission to build her own, unique pair. In search of inspiration she heads to Hull University to discover an exciting new substance that can turn any surface into a speaker – from a wall to a table and even the bone of your skul...

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2020

How to Make The Toothbrush 59 min.

In this episode, Zoe explores an item so ubiquitous, most of us don’t give it a moment’s thought, The Toothbrush. With 200 million thrown away each year in the UK she’s on a mission to find a sustainable solution. In search of inspiration she heads to Sweden’s impressive low impact mega factory, Tepe where handles made from sugarcane bio-based plastic are ahead of the pack. She explores bespoke pr...

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2020

How to Make Trainers 59 min.

In this episode, Zoe takes on the trainer - a much-loved modern classic that's a marvel of engineering and design. Setting out in search of inspiration she meets some of the UK's leading trainer designers and manufacturers, as well as the young inventors working on mind-blowing sustainable creations such as material made by bacteria and self-deodorizing fabrics. She also goes behind the scenes at...

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2020

How to Bend Concrete in 108 Easy Steps 27 min.

Engineering meets art as we follow a designer in his efforts to bend industrial material into beautiful furniture. Underneath the documenting of the physical process of manifesting the sculpture, we also watch the ethos and mental process of ideation, discovery, and presentation, capturing what all content creators struggle with on every project.

Formats: DVDStreaming Copyright Date: 2020