Watch Modern Marvels: Energy

2009
1 Season

Modern Marvels: Energy is a fascinating television series that takes viewers on a journey through the history of energy production and its impact on modern society. Produced by A&E, the show explores the many different ways that humans have harnessed, produced, and consumed energy throughout history, from the earliest days of fire to the cutting-edge technologies of today.

One of the key themes of Modern Marvels: Energy is the idea that energy is an essential ingredient for human progress. Over the centuries, the development of new energy sources has allowed humans to achieve greater levels of sophistication, from the invention of the steam engine to the construction of the modern electric grid. Today, energy is the lifeblood of our economy, powering everything from our homes to our factories to our transportation systems.

Throughout its many seasons, Modern Marvels: Energy has explored a wide range of topics related to energy production and consumption. Episodes have covered everything from the history of coal mining to the development of nuclear power, from the rise of renewable energy technologies to the future of the global energy system. Along the way, the series has interviewed leading experts in the field, including scientists, engineers, policymakers, and industry leaders.

One of the key strengths of Modern Marvels: Energy is the way in which it blends scientific expertise with real-world applications. Rather than simply presenting dry technical information, the series takes viewers inside the labs and factories where new energy technologies are being developed and implemented. We see the faces of the people working to make these innovations a reality, and we learn about the political and economic forces that shape energy policy around the world.

Another highlight of Modern Marvels: Energy is its attention to detail. The series is packed with fascinating facts and statistics that bring the world of energy to life. We learn about the energy density of different fuels, the history of energy consumption in different regions of the world, and the ways in which energy consumption patterns are changing in response to new technologies and environmental concerns. Through it all, Modern Marvels: Energy makes it clear that energy is a complex and multidimensional topic that requires careful analysis and nuanced thinking.

Despite its focus on serious scientific and policy issues, Modern Marvels: Energy is an engaging and highly watchable series. Its use of cutting-edge production techniques and stunning visuals helps to bring the subject matter to life. Whether we're watching a massive solar panel farm spread out across a desert landscape or observing the intricate inner workings of a nuclear power plant, the show's visuals are always dynamic and engaging.

Overall, Modern Marvels: Energy is an incredibly insightful and valuable series. As the world continues to grapple with issues related to energy consumption and sustainability, this show provides an unparalleled window into the complex forces shaping these challenges. With its combination of fascinating facts, cutting-edge science, and engaging storytelling, Modern Marvels: Energy is a must-watch for anyone interested in the future of energy production and consumption.

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Seasons

8. Secrets of Oil

March 19, 2009

Even if we stopped driving our cars tomorrow, America would still need five million barrels of oil a day - more than all of Southern Europe combined. Imagine it: Rubber, Plastic, Nylon, Aerosols, Resins, Solvents, and Lubricants - none can exist without Oil, still hailed as Black Gold. From the shirt on your back to the waxy sheen of a beautiful apple, the first secret of Oil is that it's everywhere you look. We'll go behind-the-scenes at a Southern California Oil Refinery where the true value of Oil is first unlocked. Then follow the resulting `fractions' as they journey to the ordinary - like make-up or candles or plastic bags - to the extraordinary, including chemical weapons suits. We'll visit Vulcan Materials, where oil tanks are emptied into massive double-barrel mixers to make asphalt, and then continue to the Rolls Royce Aerospace Facility where complex Jet Fuels are blended. We'll journey back into time to see how an unemployed whale oil salesman in the 1870's turned a greasy oil-drilling by-product into a household staple: Vaseline. Then look forward into the future - where cutting edge recycling techniques breathe new life into used motor oil and a myriad of renewable fuels and technologies take aim at oil sovereignty.

7. The Alaskan Oil Pipeline

March 19, 2009

Alaska is, as they say, earth's last frontier. But in 1973, the question arose, would Alaska remain a lasting frontier? Especially for a nation desperate to feed its ravenous appetite for oil. The solution was as large as Alaska itself. An eight hundred mile long lifeline to a nation desperate for oil. It would cross over a hundred untamed rivers. Impenetrable mountain ranges, and tundra, where temperatures plunged as low as seventy-five degrees below zero. The Alaskan oil pipeline is a a story of man's struggle with nature, and of a battle to protect nature from man. It is also a triumph of technology that nevertheless raises profound questions about man's impact on a fragile planet.

6. Environmental Tech

March 19, 2009

From the prairies of Saskatchewan to a Manhattan skyscraper we'll see the 21st Century's cutting-edge "green" technologies in action. New technologies such as carbon sequestration and bioremediation take on our most daunting environmental crises, from global warming and deforestation to nuclear waste and resource scarcity. See how blue-green algae are converted into automotive biofuel and methane from decomposing garbage is turned into clean-burning natural gas. Finally, we'll see how trees and other natural environments can be used as engineering materials to control flooding and rejuvenate dying rivers.

5. Renewable Energy

March 19, 2009

Schoolhouse Rock! Earth features all-new songs and animation plus appearances by iconic characters Interplanet Janet and Mr. Morton. These fun and high-energy songs will teach a new generation of fans all about recycling, biodiversity, solar energy and more. The beloved voices that sang timeless classics such as "I'm Just a Bill" and "Conjunction Junction" are back to sing again in these all-new tunes!

4. Coal Mines

March 19, 2009

Coal is the fuel that is responsible for more than half the electricity we use on a daily basis. "Modern Marvels: Coal Mines" traces the amazing technological advances that have led to today's extremely efficient methods of mining this resource from the earth. We first go underground with the miners in a shaft mine in West Virginia to witness a huge machine rip apart a wall of coal as one miner maneuvers the machine with a remote control. In another mine in Pennsylvania, we see the most advanced method of underground coal mining at work -- longwall mining. A massive machine extracts an entire wall of coal in just seconds. Then we travel back in time to explore ancient coal mining techniques when laborers used primitive tools to pick at the coal wherever they could find it. The coal was used to warm their homes and to bake their pottery. By the 13th Century, coal started to slowly replace wood as the main source of fuel as the European forests begin to dwindle. In the next several hundred years, mining methods slowly evolved in an attempt to keep up with the growing demand for coal. First, the simplistic bell pit method was developed in which miners dug shallow narrow shafts straight down and carried the coal out.

3. The Power Grid

March 19, 2009

The largest manmade machine ever created, the electric power grid traverses the nation from California to Maine, Florida to Washington State. This huge complex of power plants, substations, and transmission lines continually supplies power to millions of customers. In an electrifying hour, we explore the grid's origin, from Edison's Pearl Street Station in New York to the post-WWII "Golden Age" to deregulation and restructuring that directly impacted California's energy crisis in the 21st century.

2. Power Plants

March 19, 2009

Mankind controls his environment in a variety of ways, whether it's capturing the force of a river, harnessing the power in coal or oil, controlling a nuclear reaction or transforming the light of the sun into electricity. From Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla to Enrico Fermi and Albert Einstein, the world's greatest minds have enabled us to acquire our light, heat, and power with a simple flip of switch. The foundation for all of this originates from one important source: Power Plants.

1. Gasoline

March 19, 2009

Traces the history and evolution of the world's most important fossil fuel. Without gasoline, modern life would grind to a halt. Americans use about 360-million gallons of gas every day. And though most of us could not function without gas, very few understand what it really is, how it is made, what all those different octane numbers really mean, and how researchers developed cleaner burning gasoline. All these questions will be answered as we look at the history of this "supreme" fuel.

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