すべてのエピソード

Poly Canyon, at Cal Poly, is an experimental architecture laborator. And it's open to the public:

The Parkes Radio Telescope, Murriyang, part of CSIRO, is one of the most famous telescopes in the world: and it's got a unique way of getting equipment up and down from the central section.

At Velocity Valley in Rotorua, New Zealand, there's the Shweeb: a pedal-powered monorail. It's a fun ride: but in 2010. Google gave it a million dollars as a potential "future of transit".

C1 Espresso, in Christchurch, New Zealand, has a set of pneumatic tubes. But that's not enough on its own to keep a business running.

Wellington, in New Zealand, has more than a hundred private cable cars. I found out why.

Nishivama Onsen Keiunkan is not just the world's oldest hotel, but the world's oldest still-operating business. Or at least, that's one way of looking at it. But things are changing here, just like they always have.

The DMV, or Dual Mode Vehicle, on the Asa Coast Railway in Shikoku, Japan, is a hybrid bus and train. And I rode it.

I thought maglev trains were a dead-end technology: but it looks like I was wrong. At JR Central's Yamanashi Maglev Test Track, I rode Japan's new maglev.

Meiringen Air Base, in Switzerland, has an unusual feature: two public roads that go straight over the runway. How do they keep it safe? And, as a side note, just how loud is it when you're standing next to a fighter jet?

At CEA-Leti, in Grenoble, there's a "funicular" that not many people get to ride: because it's between two clean rooms, and getting to it requires quite a lot of preparation.

I went inside the former hotel where, for science (and money), people are volunteering to get colds, flu, and RSV.

At the University of California San Diego, there's the Shake Table: an earthquake simulator with the heaviest payload capacity in the world.

The Catesby Tunnel, in the UK, is an old Victorian railway tunnel that has a new use: a secretive car testing facility, like a wind tunnel but in reverse. So rather than just show it to the world, I thought I'd answer a question: if you stick a camera on the outside of your car, how much does the drag cost you?

The first few moments of an explosion can't be simulated yet. But there's a team at the University of Sheffield working on it.

In an old mill in a remote corner of Italy, sits the Bathysphere Project at Explorandia: a submarine simulator that explores an actual, small pond. It might be the best homemade project I've ever seen.

Through the mountains of Slovenia, there are manual cable cars: some historic, some more modern. There aren't many left. I was able to try one, and to talk to the person who still maintains it.

Well before the first climbing frame was patented as "jungle gym", mathematician Charles Hinton thought they might be able to teach kids four-dimensional thinking.

Near San Diego, California, there's a rotating house: and somehow, all the utilities, the electricity, gas and water, work even on the rotating part. How's that possible?

In Switzerland, there's a new cryonics company: and they invited me to have a look around. I had questions: legal, practical, and ethical, and I want to be clear: this is not an endorsement. I just wasn't going to turn down that invitation.

Zermatt, in Switzerland, bans all private cars and all gasoline cars. But if you run a business, you might be able to buy one of the special, tiny ones that are built right there.

The Honiton Hot Pennies ceremony is the result of 800 ears of tradition: from when rich people would entertain themselves by throwing scalding-hot pennies onto the poor people below. These days, it's a bit less dangerous... but only a bit.

The Bata Skyscraper, in Zlin, Czechia, is a landmark of architecture. And the office of Jan Antonin Bata...is an elevator.

The Bolwoningen, in Den Bosch, in the Netherlands, are experimental architecture: the surprising part is that people still live there.

At the New Town Hall, the Neues Rathaus, in Hanover, there's a strange lift where the track curves unevenly. For years, people from Germany have been emailing me about it: well, I finally visited.

At Port Itawa in Poland, pilots and captains of massive ships train on 1-to-24 scale ship models: and I got to drive one.

Nio is a Chinese auto maker that offers an alternative to charging: just swapping out the whole battery whenever you need it. I borrowed one of their cars.