
Celebrating ingenuity, invention and imagination on a grand scale, "Modern Marvels" tells the amazing stories of the doers, dreamers and sometime-schemers who create everyday items, technological advancements and man-made wonders. From the Statue of Liberty to distilled spirits, and canals to bridges, no subject seems out of reach. Science, technology, electronics, mechanics, engineering, architecture, industry, mass production, manufacturing, and agriculture are just some of the many topics that have been covered during the long-running series.

Cannons evolved from 13th-century fort-penetrating weapons to atomic bomb launchers with smart weapons; explore how cannons were cast and forged, terrorized in world wars, and advanced to today's 40-ton self-propelled Crusader.

When cultures develop literacy, science, and language, codes emerge spontaneously; explore the rich history of secret symbolic communication from Egyptian hieroglyphics to Caesar's encryption, wartime codebreakers, and cyberspace.

From elaborate elite training facilities to GPS-guided air drops, to revolutionary high-tech tents and fire-retardant uniforms, the episode explores the science and technology of building, operating and protecting a base in a war zone.

Experts design materials that can catch gunfire.