Air Bag Design

Using automobile crash test footage, this video segment adapted from NOVA shows some of the challenges in designing the air bag.

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Airborne Wind Energy

The strongest and most consistent winds are found in the jet stream as high as 30,000 feet above the earth. In this video from QUEST produced by KQED, learn about the benefits and challenges of wind energy.

Air Power: Making a Hovercraft

In this video segment adapted from ZOOM, cast members make their own hovercraft and demonstrate how the air leaking out of a balloon can make a plastic plate hover above a table.

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Allison Bolinger: Spacewalk Flight Controller and Trainer

In this video from Design Squad Nation, NASA spacewalk flight controller and trainer Allison Bolinger teaches astronauts how to work outside their spacecraft.

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Ask an Engineer

Explore some of the wonders of modern engineering in this video from the Sciencenter in Ithaca, New York. Hear a diverse selection of engineers explain how things work.

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Biofuels: Beyond Ethanol

In this video from QUEST produced by KQED, find out what scientists are discovering in investigating the newest methods for converting what we grow into what makes us go.

Can a Computer Fly an Airplane?

This video excerpt from NOVA shows how the computer system on the A330 airplane can fly the plane safely without a human pilot.

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Darfur Stoves

In this video from QUEST produced by KQED, find out how researchers have engineered a stove that is helping the women of refugee camps in Darfur, Sudan.

Design for Function

In this video segment from Cyberchase, the CyberSquad designs an invention that will help them cross a swamp and also reach the top of a tall cliff.

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Drilling to Antarctica’s Rock Core

In this video adapted from ANDRILL, find out how geoscientists get through more than a dozen football fields of ice and water in order to study the rock and sediment beneath Antarctica.

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Eco Electronics

In this video adapted from DESIGN SQUAD, meet engineers who help protect the environment by recycling and using biodegradable materials.

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Erick Ordoñez: Materials Engineer

In this video from Design Squad Nation, NASA materials engineer Erick Ordoñez explains how he makes sure that the materials NASA sends into space are problem-free.

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Franklin Chang-Díaz: Rocket Scientist

This video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW profiles Franklin Chang-Díaz, a scientist who is working on plasma-powered rockets and was NASA's first Latin American astronaut.

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From Waste to Watts

A new source of energy is coming from neither the sun nor the wind but from a dairy farm. In this video from QUEST produced by KQED, learn how a new project can transform gourmet waste from restaurants into green power.

Fusion Energy Advances

In this report from the NewsHour, correspondent Spencer Michels reports on ongoing efforts to produce fusion energy to help fuel American energy independence.

Global Warming: The Hydrogen Car

Is the hydrogen car the answer to global warming? This video segment adapted from NOVA/FRONTLINE looks at the pros and cons of this developing technology.

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Green Energy

This video segment from IdahoPTV's D4K describes renewable and non-renewable energy sources and the benefits and drawbacks of each. It provides some ideas about how you can personally conserve energy.

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Hoover Dam and Hydroelectric Power

How does a dam generate electricity and what are the environmental impacts of operating these mammoth structures? Find out in this video segment adapted from Building Big.

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The Impact of Technology: Cars

This video segment adapted from A Science Odyssey looks at the invention of the automobile and the development of mass production.

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Kid Inventor: Tennis Ball Picker-Upper

Tired of bending down to pick up those runaway tennis balls? Leang can help you out with his handy invention in this video segment from ZOOM.

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Kid Inventor: Newspaper Crank

In this video segment from ZOOM, Andrew demonstrates how his invention helps him get ready for his paper route.

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Kid Inventor: The Collapsible Lacrosse Stick

In this video segment from ZOOM, Lauren explains how she invented a way to make her lacrosse stick fit in her backpack.

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Kid Inventor: The Couch Protector

Want to keep your dog off the couch? In this video segment from ZOOM, Jason demonstrates his invention that does just that: a couch protector.

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Kismet

In this video segment adapted from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, researchers in the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory working to engineer smarter robots are now building a machine that interacts socially with people.

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Macro Concerns in a Nano World

Nanotechnology is beginning to play a larger part in our lives. In this video from QUEST produced by KQED, explore how because of mounting environmental and health concerns about exposure to nanomaterials, a growing debate about their possible regulation has been sparked.

Mid-20th-Century Denim Levi's Advertising Banner

Collectibles appraiser Rudy Franchi examines a 1950s banner, silkscreened on denim fabric, promoting Levi's jeans and commemorating the history of the company, in this video from Antiques Roadshow.

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Mind-Controlled Robotic Arm

This NOVA scienceNOW video shows a quadriplegic move a robotic arm with her mind, an incredible feat in brain science.

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Next-Generation Space Suits

In this video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, MIT engineer Dava Newman is working to replace today's bulky, inflated space suits with a radical, sleek design that may one day allow astronauts to walk easily on Mars.

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The Prosthetist

In this MEDAL QUEST video, prosthetist Shane Ryley explains the care and technology needed to create high-performance artificial limbs for athletes.

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Robot Race

In this video segment adapted from NOVA, cars drive themselves. Teams of designers using different technologies compete for a two-million-dollar prize to see which unmanned vehicle will make it to the finish line first.

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Sandeep Yayathi: Robotics Engineer

In this video from Design Squad Nation, NASA robotics engineer Sandeep Yayathi explains how he designs and builds humanoid robots that can work alongside astronauts.

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Simple Solutions

Amy Smith is an engineer who designs simple and inexpensive solutions to real-world problems. This video produced for Teachers' Domain features her innovative design for testing the safety of drinking water in the developing world.

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Smart Power Grid

This video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW provides an overview of the existing United States power grid, and envisions a "smart" power grid that would prevent problems, such as blackouts, and reduce energy waste and pollution.

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Spy Technology

In this video segment from IdahoPTV's D4K meet Kevin Young, an Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory engineer, who designs robots, infrared cameras and hazmat cameras as he describes their many uses. These imaginative creations are valuable for the military, counter terrorism and law enforcement.

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Titanium Chairs and Cheetah Legs

In this MEDAL QUEST video, Paralympians share how adaptive technologies have helped them perform in a range of competitive sports.

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Transforming the Future of Flight

In this video segment adapted from NASA, learn how engineers are transforming the future of flight by designing airplanes based on principles found in nature.

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Velcro

Two children are introduced to biomimicry—design inspired by nature—through the story of Velcro, in this animated video from LOOP SCOOPS.

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Victoria Garcia: Aerospace Engineer

In this video from Design Squad Nation, NASA aerospace engineer Victoria Garcia describes how she uses virtual-reality tools to design living and work spaces for astronauts. She also talks about not allowing deafness be a barrier in her life.

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Wearable Robots

Discover how wearable robots can help firefighters and paraplegics in this video adapted from NOVA scienceNOW.

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What Is a Pulley?

How do you get a glove and a ball up to your tree house? One answer is to use a pulley. A pulley is a simple machine. In this original KET video, children learn about the workings of this basic mechanism.