Engineering

Did you know that airplanes and space shuttles use the utterly low-tech gyroscope for navigation? Discover the secret behind gyroscopic motion!

By Marshall Brain & Desiree Bowie

The refining of iron ore is one of our most historically significant achievements. The element is so important that primitive societies are measured by the point at which they learn how to refine it.

By Marshall Brain & Robert Lamb

Your body is a remarkable piece of biological machinery, and your limbs are no exception. Did you ever wonder how prosthetic limbs are made and how they are controlled? And are scientists developing bionic artificial limbs?

By Isaac Perry Clements

Artificial intelligence has advanced very quickly. Some believe that it's possible that machines will eventually be able to improve themselves. But could machines ever truly achieve consciousness?

By Jonathan Strickland

Nanotechnology is one of the hot buzzwords of the 21st century. You know that it has to do with things that are very small, but just what are the implications of technology on the molecular scale, anyway?

By Jonathan Strickland

If people could create nanomachines, they might be able to help fight diseases on the molecular level. They might even be able to replicate themselves. But what happens if that process gets out of hand?

By Jonathan Strickland

It's common knowledge that Thomas Edison invented the incandescent light bulb and the phonograph, but did you know he also developed concrete furniture and a phone to communicate with the dead?

By Martha Barksdale

This nonlethal weapon doesn't cause any lasting damage, but it may cause you to pray to the porcelains gods if an officer shines one in your eyes long enough to subdue you.

By Craig Freudenrich, Ph.D.

For a process that simply bonds two pieces of metal, welding affects a lot of our world and some stuff that's out of this world, like the International Space Station. What's it like to man the torch?

By Jonathan Atteberry

Whether we're trying to save a sinking city or dig a massive tunnel, our appetite for construction knows no bounds. But if designers had known the actual cost of these 10 projects, they might have gone back to the drawing board.

By Jacob Silverman & Patrick J. Kiger

Charles Goodyear was obsessed with this stretchy material, and we are, too. It's weatherproof, shockproof and entertaining, and it's found in more products than you can shoot a rubber band at.

By Craig Freudenrich, Ph.D.

When it came to building or improving things, the ancient Romans really knew their stuff. Which cool engineering tricks did they pass along to us?

By Gallagher Flinn

Pisa without its precariously tilted landmark is like San Francisco without the Golden Gate or London without Buckingham Palace. Will the peculiarly enduring tower ever vanish from the Italian skyline?

By William Harris

Robots continue to work their way into every aspect of our lives, but these advancements aren't self-sustaining. The fields of robotics, engineering and science depend on a steady pipeline of young minds. And that's where FIRST comes in.

By Marshall Brain & Robert Lamb

Dyneema is trademarked as the world's strongest fiber. Find out how this high-strength synthetic is capable of protecting an individual (or an entire vehicle) from IEDs or even shots fired from an AK47.

By Christopher Neiger

These African American men and women were trailblazers, and in some cases, business leaders in the field of engineering.

By Kate Kershner

Underground mining has come a long way from the days of men with pickaxes and canaries. It relies much more heavily on machinery that makes it much safer than in the past. Which techniques are used in mining today?

By Julia Layton

Until 2022, the longest suspension bridge in the world was in Japan. Now, the 1915 Canakkale Bridge in Türkiye has taken the title

By Austin Henderson

Get ready to welcome your new robotic coworker. He's careful and friendly, and he's ready to learn. And he could revolutionize the manufacturing industry.

By Bernadette Johnson

Underwater tunnels are so commonplace that we rarely think of the great dangers -- and extreme construction techniques -- these modern wonders require. With the opening of the Marmaray Tunnel in October 2013, it's time to take a second look.

By Nicholas Gerbis

Is 1 mile out of 5 on U.S. interstates really supposed to be straight so that planes can land on them in an emergency? Find out the truth about this long-held urban legend.

By Cherise Threewitt

We think of robots as modern inventions, or maybe even retro creations meant to realize futuristic visions. But automata go back - way back - into history.

By Nathan Chandler

Uncover the impact of the Bessemer process, which revolutionized steel production and shaped modern society.

By Desiree Bowie

SCIFs are spy-proof, highly secure facilities designed for viewing and working with sensitive national security secrets. We talk to a former general counsel for the NSA to find out how they work.

By Patrick J. Kiger

Computer-generated artificial celebrities, created with cutting-edge technology, have become some of the hottest social media stars on the planet, selling everything from insurance to perfume.

By Patrick J. Kiger