The Rise and Fall of the Boeing 747
Introduced in 1968, the Boeing 747 totally revolutionized commercial air transportation. It was more than twice the size of the next closest passenger plane, and it brought air travel to a much wider ...
23 Juli 202214min
Hyman Rickover and the Nuclear Navy
At the end of the second world war, a Captain in the United States Navy had a radical idea about the future of the American fleet. He felt that the largest American naval vessels, especially submarin...
22 Juli 202213min
The History of the Compass
One of the most important inventions of early humans was the compass. The compass has aided human navigation around the Earth for centuries. Despite being a critical technology in the development of ...
21 Juli 202213min
The Tragic Flight of Vladimir Komarov and Soyuz 1
Traveling to space is an inherently dangerous thing to do. In the first years of the space race, both the Soviet Union and the United States were fortunate in that none of their missions resulted in a...
20 Juli 202213min
The Past, Present, and Future of Coal
Ancient people around the world all made a rather similar discovery. In certain places, they could find a black stone in the ground which could burn. For the most part, this combustible black rock too...
19 Juli 202215min
The Colosseum
In the year 70, the Roman Emperor Vespasian commissioned what would become the world’s largest amphitheater. Approximately ten years later, it opened to great fanfare and 100 days of games. No great...
18 Juli 202213min
The Murder of Thomas Becket
On December 29, 1170, the Archbishop of Canterbury was brutally murdered on the floor of the Canterbury Cathedral by four armed knights while preparing for his evening prayers. The ramifications of t...
17 Juli 202216min
The Travels of Ibn Battuta (Encore)
Prior to the modern era, very few people traveled anywhere. It was rare for anyone to travel more than about 20 miles from where they were born. However, there were a few people who managed to travel...
16 Juli 202211min
