Engines & Equipment

Engines and construction equipment are all complex machines. How do some of these engines work, and how do they help us construct buildings and structures?

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Diesel locomotives are some of the coolest modes of transport out there. Giant machines like these are just full of technological treats. Explore a hybrid-diesel locomotive - from engine to engineer controls.

By Karim Nice & Talon Homer

At first glance, it looks like a high-tech scooter. But people who have tried out the Segway claim that it is much, much more. Find out what's going on inside the Segway and what makes it so unique.

By Tom Harris

What does it take to build an ATV? We visited the Suzuki Manufacturing of America Corporation ATV factory in Rome, Georgia, to find out.

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We may fantasize about soaring through the sky, but humans aren't aerodynamic creatures. Could human flight be possible with personal jet packs?

By Ed Grabianowski

We humans are mobile. Long before flight, FusionMan or even your average automobile arrived on the scene, trains were transporting us all over civilization. How did we get from horse-drawn carts to high-speed trains?

By Craig Freudenrich, Ph.D.

Ever gaze in wonder at the huge cranes, bulldozers, backhoes, loaders, shovels and fork lifts on a construction site? Find out all about hydraulic machines, from backyard log splitters to big construction equipment.

By Marshall Brain

A fascinating article that describes how a block and tackle (as well as levers and gears) works!

By Marshall Brain

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One of the key pieces of infrastructure that we could really use in the U.S. is a high speed, efficient, and effective train system.

By Derek Markham, Planet Green

In January 2004, the citizens of Milan, Italy, were preparing for a strike that would shut down all public transportation. Since an estimated 28 percent of greater Milan's 3 million populace relied heavily on public transit, the strike meant gridlock for most of the city.

By Jonathan Atteberry

Forklifts are a necessary tool in most warehouses, shipping depots and manufacturing facilities. In fact, without forklifts, we wouldn't be able to move manufactured goods nearly as efficiently as we do today.

By Christopher Neiger

Antique steam shovels can still be found rusting away at old mining sites or painstakingly restored and on display in museums the world over. How much do you know about these mammoth-sized digging tools?

By Akweli Parker

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Electric-propelled boats, which are much quieter and more environmentally friendly than gas-powered motorboats, are finally beginning to hit the waves and find their market.

By Patrick J. Kiger

Train crashes are in the news lately, but are our fears justified?

By Stell Simonton

Few are unfamiliar with the mixer trucks that transport concrete from the factory to the construction site. How do they keep that stuff from hardening while they move?

By Eric Baxter

In 2015, the U.S. population numbered 320 million, but less than 10 percent of those people rode the rails. So who does?

By Julia Layton

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Imagine whipping through the sky at thousands of miles per hour. This special type of jet engine can do exactly that.

By Nicholas Gerbis

Ready for a fifth mode of transportation? Elon Musk is. He's sketched out a proposal for a nearly supersonic transportation system that could shoot you from San Francisco to Los Angeles faster than you can watch an episode of "Game of Thrones."

By John Perritano