7.4/1022 votes#1 - Poison
Season 12 Episode 1 - Aired 1/5/2005
Since ancient times, man has tried to control the "devil's bounty"–deadly substances found throughout nature. Paradoxically, some of these lethal compounds are now found to possess life-giving properties. In this hour, we explore how ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans came to rely on the pernicious power of poisons and learn the physiological action of these potent killers. During the Renaissance, known as the Golden Age of Poison, the deadly practice helped shape European history–most especially that of the Catholic Church. We continue our investigation into the gas attacks of WWI and up to the 21st century, when a new and serious threat of bioterrorism plagues the globe. Finally, we peer into the future with scientists experimenting with poisons and venoms from the plant and animal kingdoms that may play an important part in healing diseases such as arthritis and even cancer.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.8/1013 votes#2 - Car Tech of the Future
Season 12 Episode 2 - Aired 1/6/2005
Engage the satellite navigation, fire-up the fuel cell, and activate the radar-guided cruise control! You’re in for the joyride of your life as we investigate what drives and will drive our vehicular destiny. In this 2-hour special, we talk to auto industry engineers, designers, historians and futurists, and meet carmakers standing at the threshold of a brave new automotive world and on the verge of technical innovations that might prove as far-reaching as the switch from horses to horsepower.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 7.4/1011 votes
#3 - The Arch
Season 12 Episode 3 - Aired 1/12/2005
Join us as we explore the vast and varied world of the arch, one of the strongest and most versatile structures made by man. Deceptively simple, an arch can support tremendous weight because its structure is compressed by pressure, and it provides a much more spacious opening than its predecessor–post and lintel construction. Although ancient Egyptians and Greeks experimented with the arch, the Romans perfected it. Medieval Arabs incorporated it into stunning mosque architecture, soon followed by Europe's great medieval churches. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the steel arch became a favorite of architects and structural engineers. Dam builders employed it horizontally, using the water behind the dam to provide the pressure to compress it. And tomorrow, the arch will continue to serve mankind in every form–from nanotechnology to domes on Mars and beyond.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- 8.2/108 votes
#4 - More Nature's Engineers
Season 12 Episode 4 - Aired 1/18/2005
Think man is unique within the animal kingdom? You might not after this hour that features an amazing collection of earth's non-human inhabitants that use tools, build intricate structures, create traps to capture prey, and perform complex procedures, including farming. From Egyptian vultures utilizing stones to crack open hard-shelled ostrich eggs to chimpanzees using a "tool kit" to extract termites from their nests, we learn that our ability to create tools is not exclusive. Other mammals create subterranean structures, including those prodigious diggers Prairie Dogs, and many animals and insects make devices to augment hunting, such as the Ogre-faced Spider that spins a small web to throw down on unsuspecting passersby. And we're not the only ones to work as a unified, multi-skilled force. Aphid-Raising Ants protect and care for herds of plant juice-sucking aphids that they "milk".
Director: N/A
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NaN/100 votes#5 - World's Biggest Machines 3
Season 12 Episode 5 - Aired 1/26/2005
Giant robots on the factory floor and in outer space. A floating fortress that's home to 6,000 military personnel, which is almost as long as the Empire State Building is tall. And a diesel engine with 108,000 horsepower. (You read that right.) These giants must be seen to be believed! In this episode, we travel over land and sea to find these and more of the biggest, baddest, most audacious feats of engineering in the world.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
5.9/1014 votes#6 - Blackbird Stealth
Season 12 Episode 6 - Aired 2/4/2005
Designed in the late 1950s by aeronautical genius Kelly Johnson at the mysterious Skunkworks, the SR-71 Blackbird was the world’s first stealthy aircraft, designed to over-fly enemy territory with impunity while photographing 100,000 square miles in an hour. While serving six American presidents, it saw action on hot and cold war fronts alike. Interviews with crews and commanders, combined with unbelievable footage, put viewers in the cockpit of this amazing spy plane, flying at speeds of 2,000 miles per hour.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votes#7 - The Butcher
Season 12 Episode 7 - Aired 2/8/2005
In a carnivorous world, a butcher is a necessary link in the food chain, carving a carcass of unsavory flesh into mouthwatering cuts. We trace the grisly trade's evolution–from yesteryear's butcher-on-every-corner to today's industrial butcher working on a "disassembly" line. We tour the infamous remains of the Chicago Stockyards, where Upton Sinclair, Clarence Birdseye, and refrigeration changed butchering forever; witness high-speed butchering; and travel to a non-stop sausage factory. And if you're still squeamish, a USDA inspector offers the lowdown on HACCP–the country's new system of checks and balances on everything from quality grading to E. coli, Salmonella, and Mad Cow Disease. Finally, we visit the last bastion of old-school butchering–the rural custom butcher, who slaughters, eviscerates, skins, and cuts to his customer's wishes.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
8.0/1015 votes#8 - George Washington Carver Tech
Season 12 Episode 8 - Aired 2/15/2005
One of the 20th century’s greatest scientists, George Washington Carver’s influence is still felt. Rising from slavery to become one of the world’s most respected and honored men, he devoted his life to understanding nature and the many uses for the simplest of plant life. His scientific research in the late 1800s produced agricultural innovations like crop rotation and composting. Part of the “chemurgist” movement that changed the rural economy, he found ingenious applications for the peanut, soybean, and sweet potato. At Tuskegee Institute, Dr. Carver invented more than 300 uses for the peanut, while convincing poor farmers to rotate cotton crops with things that would add nutrients to the soil. A visionary, Carver shared his knowledge free of charge, happy in his Tuskegee laboratory where he could use his gifts to help others.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.1/1010 votes#9 - Firefighting!: Extreme Conditions
Season 12 Episode 9 - Aired 2/15/2005
No description available
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.3/1012 votes#10 - Desert Tech
Season 12 Episode 10 - Aired 2/23/2005
It’s hot, dry, deadly, and hard to ignore with close to 40% of Earth classified as desert. But in this scorching hour, the desert turns from barren wasteland into an environment rich with hope. In the Middle East, desalination of seawater now fills water needs. Americans have created booming desert communities like Las Vegas, where the Hoover Dam produces hydroelectric power and manmade Lake Mead supplies water. Native Americans farmed the desert on a small scale, but 20th-century technology begot greater opportunity. Once desolate areas of California and Mexico now grow agriculture due to irrigation, and the desert’s abundant sunshine allows solar-energy and wind-power production. And in the future, desert technology may enable colonization of planets like Mars. We also take a look at how refrigeration and air conditioning have made life in desert communities tolerable, and examine the latest in survival gear and equipment.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.8/1019 votes#11 - Sub Zero
Season 12 Episode 11 - Aired 2/23/2005
Come in from the cold while we explore some of Earth's most frigid places and examine how man copes with sub-zero climates. With the advance of technology, our boundaries have expanded–from the North and South Poles, to the depths beneath the Arctic and Antarctic sea ice, to the Moon, Mars, and outward to Saturn. Enter these forbidding territories, guided by a special breed of experts as we inspect the new US South Pole Station, try on the latest Polartec fashions with anti-microbial fibers, ride on the newest snowmobiles and Sno-Cats, sail through glacial waters on ice-breaking ships, and fly on an LC-130 transport plane. And we'll see what NASA has on the planning board for deep-space exploration, including a beach-ball robot explorer, and learn from scientists studying fish in the waters off Antarctica to understand glycoproteins, which may keep frozen tissue healthy longer for transplantation.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.3/1022 votes#12 - The Great Bridge: 8 Miles of Steel
Season 12 Episode 12 - Aired 2/23/2005
The Oakland Bay Bridge in San Francisco boasts more superlatives than any bridge on earth. Bridge builders of the depression era defied logic and economics and succeeded in building an 8 mile long structure connecting Oakland and San Francisco. Engineer Charles Purcell built two suspension bridges side by side on the San Francisco side of the bay, then built the largest bore tunnel in the world to connect the west side with Oakland’s eastern shores. Modern Marvels shows you how this great feat was accomplished.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- NaN/100 votes
#13 - Howard Hughes Tech
Season 12 Episode 13 - Aired 2/28/2005
An in-depth look at the technology conceived or developed by America’s first billionaire. A passionate aviator, Howard Hughes built and flew planes that broke speed records, and developed war machines, spy aircraft, and commercial airliners. Despite the impressive heights reached by his technological empire, his health and mental well-being were fragile. During his last years, he wasn’t seen publicly or photographed, rarely left the hotel suites he occupied, and was terrified of germs. But when Hughes died in 1976, he left a huge legacy in aviation and technology. When we board an airliner, view TV via satellite, or marvel at America’s military might, we might do well to remember the risk-taker who flew faster than his peers and was at heart an aviator obsessively dedicated to both the art and science of flight.
Director: N/A
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NaN/100 votes#14 - Edwards Air Force Base
Season 12 Episode 14 - Aired 3/2/2005
Examine the colorful history of the premier flight test center, and America’s most important aviation facility for more than 60 years, Edwards Air Force Base in California. Every single aircraft to enter the Air Force’s inventory has been put through its paces at Edwards, along with many Navy and Army aircraft as well. With unprecedented access to several forgotten and abandoned facilities on the base, we are guided by Richard Hallion, former chief historian for the US Air Force. Today, Edwards continues to push the envelope. Among the many cutting-edge projects currently being tested is the Airborne Laser, designed to focus a basketball-sized spot of intense heat that could destroy a ballistic missile.
Director: N/A
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- NaN/100 votes
#15 - Taxidermy
Season 12 Episode 15 - Aired 3/9/2005
It began as a tool used by prehistoric man to attract animals to the hunt. Over time it became an invaluable study aid for the natural scientist and a popular hobby for hunters and fishermen. Join us for a tantalizing look at the history of taxidermy, the craft of preserving animal skins and using them to recreate a still life of the animal as it appeared in life. We also check out fiberglass reproduction, which is gaining popularity as fish and game regulations become stricter. Finally, we examine human subjects in taxidermy. Using the very latest process of plastination, the once taboo science and art of preserving and displaying human corpses, now draws crowds in Europe, Asia, and the US, proving the age-old practice continues to mesmerize us!
Director: N/A
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- NaN/100 votes
#16 - SWAT
Season 12 Episode 16 - Aired 3/9/2005
No description available
Director: N/A
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NaN/100 votes#17 - Deadliest Weapons
Season 12 Episode 17 - Aired 3/16/2005
In this fiery hour, we profile five of man's deadliest weapons, focusing on the inventors, battles, and dark technology behind their lethality. We begin with the deadliest bomb ever created, the Tsar Bomba–a 50-megaton nuclear bomb with a yield thousands of times greater than the one dropped on Hiroshima. During WWI, technological advances in weaponry led to the deaths of over 8-million, and one of the deadliest killers was the machine gun. In WWII, the use of incendiary bombs killed hundreds of thousands of people. Another deadly invention of WWII was the proximity fuse, or VT fuse, that allowed artillery to detonate within a predetermined range of an enemy target. Finally, we examine VX nerve gas, thought by many to be the deadliest chemical agent ever created and suspected to have been used by Saddam Hussein with devastating results. We'll visit Edgewood Chemical BioCenter, which plays a large role in protection and detection for our troops in Iraq.
Director: N/A
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NaN/100 votes#18 - The Doomsday Clock
Season 12 Episode 18 - Aired 4/7/2005
Developed in 1947 as an image to symbolize urgency in the Cold War and the threat of nuclear disaster, the mission of the Doomsday Clock has expanded to include non-nuclear global security issues. Maintained by the Board of Directors of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, it’s based at the University of Chicago. In response to world events, they move the clock’s minute hand closer to or away from midnight–doomsday. In this hour, we cover the clock’s history, its effectiveness, and its critics.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votes#19 - The Basement
Season 12 Episode 19 - Aired 4/26/2005
Venture down that creaky staircase to explore the most misunderstood room in the house! From Pompeii to Pittsburgh, the dark, cool, and forlorn spaces beneath our living quarters have always contained things that helped us live comfortably. Ancient Hittites, Phrygians, and Persians carved subterranean rooms for food, water, and wine storage, and for shelter from weather and marauders. For ancient Greeks and Romans, a basement greatly increased a house’s value. Ruins of homes at Pompeii reveal the importance of basements in providing both heat and storage for rich Roman families. Renaissance architects placed kitchens, servant quarters, and laundry rooms there, hidden from the eyes of their aristocratic patrons! Colonial Americans expanded the practice, and by the 20th century, the basement was a routine feature. Come along as we demystify this domestic underworld, which turns out to be an area of innovation, imagination, and creativity.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votes#20 - Paint
Season 12 Episode 20 - Aired 4/27/2005
From the Impressionist canvas to the Space Shuttle…from customized hotrods to the brilliant orange hue of the Golden Gate Bridge or tiny electronic devices–paint is one of our most ubiquitous products. And paint adds more than just pigmentation. It’s a crucial engineering element, protecting ships from water corrosion, stovetops from heat, and the Stealth Bomber from radar detection. In homes and businesses, it provides a balanced spectrum of light and protects surfaces from wear. In this colorful hour, we discover how this marvel of chemistry and engineering is made, and how it is applied. Come see what’s beneath the surface as we reveal one of man’s most ingenious methods of defeating the elements and adding spice to life!
Director: N/A
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- NaN/100 votes
#21 - Mega Movers
Season 12 Episode 21 - Aired 4/27/2005
No description available
Director: N/A
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- NaN/100 votes
#22 - Punishment
Season 12 Episode 22 - Aired 4/28/2005
No description available
Director: N/A
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NaN/100 votes#23 - Bricks
Season 12 Episode 23 - Aired 5/11/2005
The history of civilization has been built on the back of brick, and it’s been said that “architecture itself began when two bricks were put together well.” From great Egyptian temples to the Roman aqueducts, the Great Wall of China, and the dome of the Hagia Sophia, brick is one of the oldest, yet least celebrated, building materials manufactured by man. In this hard-packed episode, we explore brick’s past, highlighting defining moments, such as the Great London Fire of 1666, the zenith years of brick in the New York Hudson River Valley, and brick as an essential building block in infrastructure and industry. We’ll feature advancements through the ages as well as construction techniques, trends, and the future of brick construction. Essentially, brick is still just burnt clay…it has been around for thousands of years, but continues to serve as the backdrop of the modern age.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votes#24 - Glue
Season 12 Episode 24 - Aired 5/18/2005
It’s Super! It’s Krazy! And it can be found in everything from carpet to computers, books to boats, shoes to the Space Shuttle. It’s even used in surgery! Without it, our material world would simply fall apart. In this episode, we’ll visit the stuck-up, tacky world of glue. Glue’s sticky trajectory spans human history and we’ll cover it all–from Neolithic cave dwellers who used animal glue to decorate ceremonial skulls to modern everyday glues and their uses, including Elmer’s glue, 3M’s masking and Scotch tape, and the super glues. Remember the Krazy Glue commercial in which a man held himself suspended from a hard hat that had just been glued to a beam? Well, that 1970s vintage ad understates the power of glue. With the help of a crane, we’re going to hoist a 6,000-pound pickup truck off the ground by a steel joint that’s been bonded with glue!
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
- NaN/100 votes
#25 - F/A-22 Raptor
Season 12 Episode 25 - Aired 5/20/2005
Built around “first look, first shot, first kill” design, the F/A-22 Raptor, the most advanced aircraft of its breed, is set to become the Air Dominance Fighter of the 21st century. Deadly and undetectable at long-range, this super-jet is the latest in 5th generation fighter technology. Capable of super-cruise and packing an array of deadly missile systems, this stealth jet blends dogfighting skill with precision-strike ground attack capability and can intercept and strike any target with near impunity. In the 1980s, as Cold War tensions heightened and US defense spending increased, the Air Force decided it needed a replacement fighter for its F15 Eagle. The Advanced Tactical Fighter program was born, and the largest, most expensive program of its kind hatched the Raptor. Follow the 25-year development of America’s deadliest fighter and see how stealth, super-cruise, and integrated avionics combine to create a fighter without equal.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
The Best Episodes of Modern Marvels Season 12
Every episode of Modern Marvels Season 12 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Modern Marvels Season 12!
HISTORY’s longest-running series moves to H2. Modern Marvels celebrates the ingenuity, invention and imagination found in the world around us. From commonplace items like ink...
Genre:Documentary
Season 12 Ratings Summary
"Poison" is the best rated episode of "Modern Marvels" season 12. It scored 7.4/10 based on 22 votes. Directed by N/A and written by N/A, it aired on 1/5/2005. This episode is rated 0.4 points higher than the second-best, "Car Tech of the Future".