SYMHC Classics: The Montgolfier Brothers

After earning her first-class degree in chemistry from Oxford, Dorothy embarked on an impressive career in the new field of X-ray crystallography. She would ultimately earn many, many accolades for her work. Research: "Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin." Encyclopedia of World Biography On ... Show More

Dorothy Hodgkin's career in X-ray crystallography impacted a lot of science in the 10th century. Part one of her story covers her early life and formative experiences that led her to her field of research. Research: "Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin." Encyclopedia of World Biography Onli ... Show More

This 2023 episode covers Sarah Bradlee Fulton, sometimes called the Mother of the Boston Tea Party. But available information about her is basically a series of anecdotes, and can’t really be corroborated.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 

At the dawn of human flight you had one option... Balloons! Balloons were all the rage in 1700s France and Aeronauts were the daredevils / entertainers at the cutting edge of this new science that made the spectacle come alive! Matt and Helen discuss this magical time with profes ... Show More

November 21, 1783. The garden at the Chateau de la Muette is full of expectant Parisians, looking up at the sky. They’re waiting to watch the first two human beings ever take free, untethered flight. After a gust of wind nearly derails the entire operation, some volunteer seamstr ... Show More

In mythology from around the world the ability to fly was reserved strictly for the gods. Stories about human beings constructing flying machines were usually punctuated with a moral about hubris. Vain attempts at flight were an easy metaphor for the limits of human ingenuity. Ev ... Show More

Orville and Wilbur Wright are famous for their developments in aeronautics. What began in Dayton, Ohio as entertainment later became a scientific passion for the brothers. The Wright Brothers risked their lives, again and again, to make their dream of human flight a reality. Lear ... Show More

<p>Approximately 100 thousand flights take off and land each and every day. A months long journey on a boat is condensed to just a few hours with the help of aircraft, and the birth of planes introduced an entirely new form of warfare.</p><br><p>Orville and Wilbur Wright, the Wri ... Show More

As long as humans have observed creatures in flight, we have dreamed of taking to the skies ourselves. But Wilbur and Orville Wright were determined to be the ones to turn the dream into reality. So what did they need to learn from the early aviation pioneers who preceded them? A ... Show More

In this invention-themed episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe explore the ancient origins of the gimbal, its connections to Chinese incense censers and its role in technological innovation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 

In this classic invention-themed episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe explore the ancient origins of the gimbal, its connections to Chinese incense censers and its role in technological innovation. (originally published 09/27/2022)See omnystudio.com/listener for pri ... Show More

More than a century since the Wright brothers made history at Kitty Hawk, aircraft still seem like a stunning, new -- and potentially terrifying -- invention. It's no wonder that flight, like so many other forms of transit, has become embedded in the the human psyche. In today's ... Show More

<p>These days hot air balloons are often thought of as anachronistic novelties -- but in the early days of aeronautics, they were considered fascinating, dangerous and deadly. In today's episode, the guys explore a strange story about a genuine riot during the dawn of ballooning, ... Show More