‎Understanding the World's Greatest Structures: Science and Innovation from Antiquity to Modernity - Apple TV

Available on Prime Video

Structures that have stood the test of time; experiencing the engineering genius that makes certain works possible; the stories behind the most famous structures in history; changing the way one thinks about the buildings around them.

Educational · 2011 · 34 min

Starring Stephen Ressler

EPISODE 1

Learning to See and Understand Structure

How ideas for buildings, bridges and towers transform from sketches to concrete reality; three essential qualities that make a structure great; the difference between seeing a structure and actually understanding it.

33 min · 4 Mar 2011
EPISODE 2

The Science of Structure - Forces in Balance

Exploring how two types of external forces act on structures such as the Chouteau Bridge in Kansas City; learning how the forces are related to equilibrium, the most important concept in the field of engineering mechanics.

32 min · 4 Mar 2011
EPISODE 3

Internal Forces, Stress, and Strength

Using the Simple Tension Test as a gateway to understanding the concepts of internal force, stress and strength; seeing the concepts at work in structures such as San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge and Athens's Olympic Velodrome.

31 min · 4 Mar 2011
EPISODE 4

From Wood to Steel - Properties of Materials

How materials profoundly influence the form, function and structure of great buildings, bridges and towers; using steel as a benchmark; comparing the structural properties of wood, masonry, concrete and iron; seeing the materials at work.

31 min · 4 Mar 2011
EPISODE 5

Building Up - Columns and Buckling

Building up, which is one of the most potent human aspirations supported by engineering; how it has been done from antiquity to the present day with columns; learning about buckling, a stability failure that occurs in certain columns.

32 min · 4 Mar 2011
EPISODE 6

Building Across - Beams and Bending

Why beams are central to the aspiration of building across long distances; combining tension and compression; surveying beams in the Lion Gate at Mycenae and Norway's Raftsundet Bridge; investigating scientific developments.

31 min · 4 Mar 2011

Stephen Ressler

Host