Arch Bridge

This video segment adapted from Building Big illustrates the strength of the arch in bridge design and construction.

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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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Astronauts in Hard Hats

This media-rich series of interviews from the NOVA Web site explores the unique challenges faced by astronauts doing construction work in outer space.

ATE Internships and Co-ops

In this video adapted from ATETV, learn how Bristol Community College promotes internships and co-ops to prepare students for work in technology-related careers.

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The Bridge Challenge

In this interactive activity from the Building Big Web site, use your knowledge of bridge design to match the right bridge to the right location in a fictitious city.

Build a Bridge

Survey potential bridge sites, research bridge design, and select the right bridge for the right location in this interactive activity from the NOVA Web site.

Building the Channel Tunnel

How do you build a tunnel 32 miles long -- under water? This video segment adapted from Building Big, follows the construction of the Channel Tunnel (nicknamed "Chunnel"), the engineering wonder that connects England to France.

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Careers in Engineering Technologies

This interactive activity produced for Teachers’ Domain explores various career paths in engineering technologies.

Chernobyl: What Really Happened?

This text excerpted from Richard Rhodes' book, Nuclear Renewal and reprinted on the FRONTLINE Web site examines the causes of the Chernobyl accident.

Citigroup Skyscraper Design Problem

This video segment adapted from Building Big looks at the challenges faced by structural engineer William LeMessurier in designing a new skyscraper and how he very closely averted disaster.

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Clifton Suspension Bridge

This video segment from Building Big illustrates the basic design principles of the Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol, England.

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Columns: Experimenting with Paper Cups

In this video segment from ZOOM, the cast experiments to see if a bunch of paper cups covered by a piece of cardboard can support the weight of a cast member.

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Columns: Hillary's Neighborhood

In this video segment from ZOOM, Hillary, from Randolph, MA, takes us on a tour of the columns in her neighborhood.

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Construct an Aqueduct

Think like an engineer and build an aqueduct in this interactive activity from the NOVA Web site.

The Cumberland Gap Tunnel

This KET video chronicles the incredible engineering effort that built the tunnel through Cumberland Mountain as well as the challenges posed by the geological composition of the area.

The Dam Challenge

In this interactive activity from the Building Big Web site, investigate dams in distress and decide if they should be repaired, removed, or left alone.

Demolition Woman

Find out how controlled explosions are used to demolish multi-story buildings in this interview from the NOVA Web site.

Design and Construct a Road Sign Support

Students use simple materials to design, build, and test a model of a free-standing structure used to support overhead road signs.

Design: Building a House

This collection of images follows the process of building a house from cutting the trees and making the bricks to finishing construction.

Designing a Paper Bridge

In this video segment adapted from ZOOM, cast members make a bridge from a single piece of paper. Will it be strong enough to hold a hundred pennies?

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Designing the Citigroup Skyscraper

This video segment adapted from Thinking Big, Building Small shows how a structural engineer overcame the challenge of building New York's Citigroup skyscraper over a church.

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Design: The Right Tool for the Job

Which tool is the right tool for the job? This collection of images features a series of cutting tools performing the tasks for which they were designed.

The Dome Challenge

In this interactive activity from the Building Big Web site, think like an engineer and use your knowledge of dome design to match the right type of dome to the right location in a fictitious city.

Engineering Career Options

It's a profession that can take you from the depths of the ocean to the far reaches of outer space, from within the microscopic structures of the human cell to the top of the tallest skyscrapers. In this stills collage adapted from The American Society for Engineering Education, learn about some of the most popular engineering fields.

Fire Safety in High Rises

This video segment adapted from NOVA explains how the sprinkler revolutionized fire safety and also features developments in fire-safety design for high-rise buildings.

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Firth of Forth Cantilever Bridge

This video segment from Building Big: "Bridges" demonstrates the basic design of a cantilever bridge by looking at Scotland's Firth of Forth Railway Bridge.

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Forces Lab

In this interactive activity from the Building Big Web site, select one of the actions of squeezing, stretching, bending, sliding, or twisting to explore the forces of compression, tension, shear, and torsion.

Geodesic Dome

This video segment adapted from Building Big highlights the evolution of the geodesic dome, designed by legendary architect and inventor, Buckminster Fuller.

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Grass Bridge

In this video segment adapted from NOVA, watch residents of the Peruvian Andes build a suspension bridge made entirely of grass.

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The Hayward Fault: A Tectonic Timebomb

Earthquakes are part of the geologic fabric of California. In this audio report from QUEST produced by KQED, find out why one East Bay fault line has geologists particularly worried.

Hoover Dam

This video segment from Building Big: "Dams," demonstrates the basic principals at work in the Hoover Dam, a concrete gravity dam that also makes use of the properties of the arch.

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Inflatable Moon Habitat

Visit an inflatable habitat designed for astronauts to live in on the Moon in this video adapted from NASA 360.

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Investigating a Suspension Bridge

In this video segment adapted from ZOOM, the cast builds a suspension bridge from a couple of chairs, some cardboard, and rope.

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It's Cool to Be a Civil Engineer

Who decides how massive structures like skyscrapers are made? This video segment adapted from Thinking Big, Building Small showcases the job of a civil engineer.

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The Leaning Tower: Where It Stands Today

Will the Leaning Tower of Pisa give way to gravity? In this interview from the NOVA Web site, engineer John Burland relates the difficult job of saving the tower.

Lever an Obelisk

Investigate the mechanical advantage of the lever in this interactive activity from the NOVA Web site.

Loads Lab

This interactive activity from the Building Big Web site examines different types of loads and how structures might be reinforced to withstand them.

Materials Lab

This interactive activity from the Building Big Web site explores the properties of different types of building materials.

New Ways to Catch Rays

This interactive resource adapted from NOVA Online explores eight of the latest technological developments designed to harness the energy of the Sun.

Nuclear Reaction: Meltdown

What happens when a nuclear reactor overheats? This video segment adapted from FRONTLINE looks at the nuclear reactor meltdown at Chernobyl, the worst accident of its kind.

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Nuclear Reaction: Three Mile Island

This video segment adapted from AMERICAN EXPERIENCE examines the worst nuclear accident in U.S. history.

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Nuclear Waste: Yucca Mountain

What happens to nuclear waste? This video segment adapted from FRONTLINE explores the controversy surrounding the United States' first nuclear repository site.

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Pantheon Dome

This video segment adapted from Building Big: "Domes" illustrates how the design of the Pantheon Dome emerged out of another form, the arch.

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Planning Your Future Career in Advanced Technology

In this media-rich, self-paced lesson, students explore the industries that produce and rely on advanced technology and assess how their goals and interests may make them well suited for a career in this cutting-edge sector.

Rate Tornado Damage

In this interactive activity from NOVA Online, use the Fujita tornado intensity scale to assess the level of destruction left in the wake of actual tornadoes.

Reroofing Your Uncle's House

This interactive activity adapted from the Wisconsin Online Resource Center challenges you to plan, measure, and calculate the correct amount of roofing material needed to reroof a house.

Road Signs Gallery

This collection of still images depicts various types of road signs and represents one form of research an engineer might conduct to design a road sign effectively.

Shapes Lab

This interactive activity from the Building Big Web site compares the strengths of the rectangle, triangle, and arch.

Shapes That Make Structures Strong

Students explore the various shapes engineers choose to make structures strong -- in particular, triangles, arches, and domes.

The Skyscraper Challenge

In this interactive activity from the Building Big Web site, investigate hypothetical structural emergencies and figure out how to repair them.

Smart Bridges

In this video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, learn about engineering innovations that could help detect a bridge's structural weaknesses before they become dangerous.

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Tension and Compression

Students experience the forces of tension and compression by manipulating objects that are strong in each but not in both and then take what they have learned and apply it to the construction of various structures.

Three Mile Island: What Happened

This interactive activity from the AMERICAN EXPERIENCE Web site looks at the worst nuclear accident in U.S. history.

Train Truss Animation

This animated video segment from Building Big: "Bridges" demonstrates how a truss bridge is designed to balance the weight of a train as it travels over it.

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Triangles and Arches in Architecture

This collection of still images features two of the most important shapes in architecture: the triangle and the arch.

Triangles: Designing a Newspaper Chair

Watch the ZOOM cast build a chair out of newspaper by making good use of the strength of triangles.

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Triangles: Designing a Straw Bridge

In this video segment adapted from ZOOM, the cast tries to design and build a bridge made out of drinking straws that will support the weight of 200 pennies.

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Triangles: Testing the Strength of a Gumdrop Dome

Can a dome made of gumdrops and toothpicks support the weight of a stack of books? To find out, watch this video segment adapted from ZOOM.

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The Tunnel Challenge

This interactive activity, from the Building Big Web site, explores tunneling and the tools and methods used to do the job.

Welding

In this video segment adapted from Pennsylvania College of Technology and WVIA, take a closeup look at different types of welding, and hear about the high demand for new welding talent.

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