Modern Marvels: Season 13
Season 13 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Modern Marvels Season 12.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Episode Guide
Season 13 Progress Shield
Containers
Jan 4, 2006 · 44 min
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 j
Fire
Jan 11, 2006 · 44 min
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 ta
Cotton
Jan 18, 2006 · 44 min
Tune in as Modern Marvels looks into the history of cotton, a product used in hundreds of different products, from clothing to lipstick.
Engineering Disasters 18
Feb 8, 2006 · 44 min
Modern Marvels shows more of the world's biggest engineering disasters. We look at faults in the U.S. Army's Stryker Light Armored Vehicle, the Sunjiawan coal-mine explosion in Chi
Candy
Feb 14, 2006 · 44 min
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 ev
Weird Weapons: The Axis
Feb 21, 2006 · 44 min
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 r
Nature Tech: Avalanches
Feb 24, 2006 · 44 min
Examining unusual World War II weapons that were in the planning or testing stages for use by the Allies. Included: floating tanks; pigeon-guided missiles.
Engineering Disasters: New Orleans
Feb 28, 2006 · 44 min
Modern Marvels examines the destruction Hurricane Katrina caused in New Orleans.
Leather
Mar 8, 2006 · 44 min
Made by the tanning of animal hides, leather has proven to be a versatile and important material. Without it, the Pilgrims may not have survived the winters in Plymouth, and the Ro
Engineering Disasters 19
Mar 22, 2006 · 44 min
More engineering disasters are profiled, including the sinking of SS Edmund Fitzgerald in 1975 in Lake Superior; two Boeing 737 crashes; a diesel-fuel leak, a radiation-spilling ac
Insulation
Apr 26, 2006 · 44 min
Although quite simple in nature, insulation is a very important component in keeping our homes a comfortable temperature. In this episode, we'll find out the history of insulation
Hi-Tech Hitler
May 2, 2006 · 44 min
This is the true story of the scientific feats and failures of Hitler's Nazi Germany.
Shovels
May 3, 2006 · 44 min
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 o
Drilling
May 10, 2006 · 44 min
The program features the quest to drill the deepest hole ever and the scientific drill ship expected to perform the feat, and also looks at drills used to recover ice cores that wi
80s Tech
May 24, 2006 · 44 min
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 tr
Ben Franklin Tech
May 25, 2006 · 44 min
One of the most prodigious American inventors, Ben Franklin is credited for creating things like the lightning rod, the armonica, the Franklin stove, bifocal glasses, and the flexi
Copper Kings
Jun 12, 2006 · 44 min
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 Cla
Heavy Metals
Jun 14, 2006 · 44 min
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 Stoc
Money
Jun 19, 2006 · 44 min
Visit the United States Mint and the Bureau of Engraving and Printing for an inside look into the government facilities where U.S. legal tender is generated. Learn the history behi
BBQ Tech
Jun 28, 2006 · 44 min
An old-fashioned style of cooking, barbecue has evolved into a modern food craze and spawned a multi-billion dollar industry. We digest famous barbecue cook-offs and visit long-est
High Explosives
Jul 3, 2006 · 44 min
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 pl
Pirate Tech
Jul 12, 2006 · 44 min
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 170
Boneyard: Where Machines End Their Lives
Jul 26, 2006 · 44 min
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 man
World's Biggest Machines 5
Jul 26, 2006 · 44 min
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
Super Tools: Skyscraper
Jul 28, 2006 · 44 min
Skyscrapers are an extraordinary feat of human engineering: exposing millions of pounds of concrete and steel to the enemy forces of wind and gravity. Starting with the foundation
The AK-47
Jul 28, 2006 · 44 min
The development of the deadly Avtomat Kalashnikova, 1947, known as the AK-47, is discussed by its inventor, Mikhail Kalashnikov, who talks about working within the secretive world
Nuts
Aug 2, 2006 · 44 min
Pintsized as a pea or big as a bowling ball, nutritional, durable, and versatile, nuts have been a staple of the human diet since time began, and archaeological evidence places the
Batteries
Aug 3, 2006 · 44 min
Mixtures of metals and caustic chemicals that make our tech, tools and toys surge with energy.
Mummy Tech
Aug 23, 2006 · 44 min
After thousands of years, Egyptian mummies are speaking from the grave. With the use of state-of-the-art computer tomography scanning we explore inside a 2,000-year-old mummified b
Levees
Aug 30, 2006 · 44 min
From collapsing floodwalls in New Orleans to high-tech mechanical storm surge barriers in Europe, we'll explore the 2,500-year history of keeping rivers and tides at bay by erectin
Water
Sep 6, 2006 · 44 min
Water, the most needed substance for life, so powerful it can carve our landscape, yet so nurturing it can spawn life and support its intricate matrix.
The Cola Wars
Sep 7, 2006 · 44 min
Coke vs Pepsi for world supremacy. Each year, Americans consume more soft drinks than tap water. Available in nearly 200 countries, Coca-Cola alone sells one-billion bottles, cans,
Copper
Sep 13, 2006 · 44 min
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 meta
Shotguns
Sep 17, 2006 · 44 min
The first specialized gun, the British upper-class used it to shoot birds and small game for sport. The shotgun took on a variety of roles, used by hunter and warrior alike.
Building In The Name Of God
Sep 18, 2006 · 44 min
The greatest religious structures are marvels of engineering, technology, and invention, representing not only the glory of God, but also the ingenuity of man.
Horsepower
Sep 20, 2006 · 44 min
Buckle up for a rip-roaring ride through the world of extreme horsepower. Experience the fastest accelerating cars on earth. Find out how horsepower was first coined as a marketing
Renewable Energy
Sep 20, 2006 · 44 min
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 sou
Freight Trains
Sep 20, 2006 · 44 min
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.
Cities of the Underworld
Sep 21, 2006 · 44 min
Teamed with leading archeologists and experts, peel back the layers of the past--to reveal a hidden history that hasn't seen the light of day for ages.
Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway
Sep 26, 2006 · 44 min
The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway is comprised of a system of canals, land cuts, and a series of natural and artificial barrier islands, which provide a protected passage for low-
Stealth & Beyond: Air Stealth
Sep 27, 2006 · 44 min
They are the swarthy eagles of the sky: Past, present, and future advances in stealth military aircraft.
Stealth & Beyond: Sea Stealth
Sep 27, 2006 · 44 min
It's one thing to make a 60-foot-long jet aircraft seem invisible, but quite another to hide a 400-foot-long warship from the prying eyes of an enemy. Explore the challenging world
Ink
Oct 4, 2006 · 44 min
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
Distilleries 2
Oct 11, 2006 · 44 min
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
World's Strongest
Oct 18, 2006 · 44 min
Strength...a powerful word, but what does it mean? How is it measured? Why are some things simply stronger than others. How strong is a rope, a tractor, a diamond, a tugboat or eve
Tomcat Sunset
Nov 1, 2006 · 44 min
Hosted by Terry Deitz, a former Tomcat pilot, this special explores the legacy of one of the greatest fighter jets ever built. Witness first hand the last F-14 catapult launches an
Tobacco
Nov 8, 2006 · 44 min
Discovered around 18,000 years ago, tobacco was first cultivated in the Andes between 5000 and 3000 B.C. At a modern tobacco farm in North Carolina, a farmer will show how the crop
The Supermarket
Nov 15, 2006 · 44 min
Our basic need and desire for food has made the supermarket one of the great success stories of modern retailing. Making customers' visits to the market as efficient as possible ha
Breakfast Tech
Nov 28, 2006 · 44 min
It slices and squeezes, sorts and sizes, mixes and cooks. Every morning we count on it to keep our orange juice fresh, our eggs whole, our cereals flaked, and our McGriddle syrupy-
Wine
Nov 29, 2006 · 44 min
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
Harvesting 2
Nov 29, 2006 · 44 min
In America's orchards and farm fields, the constant struggle between hand labor and mechanization has produced dozens of efficient and sometimes bizarre harvesting methods. Learn t
Engineering Disasters 20
Dec 6, 2006 · 44 min
In March of 2005, the BP Refinery in Texas City, Texas, suffered a series of explosions that decimated a large portion of the facility and killed 15 workers. Then the unusual serie
Snow
Dec 10, 2006 · 44 min
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
Tea
Dec 13, 2006 · 44 min
After water, tea is the second most popular drink in the world. It has been around as a drink for 5000 years, and 6 billion pounds of tea are harvested annually.
Christmas Tech
Dec 20, 2006 · 44 min
Christmas is observed by many people around the world, for both religious reasons and more secular purposes. Trees, lights, ornaments, and window displays are a big part of the cel