The Engineering History Podcast

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Where engineering and history collide! Join us for rousing, thought-provoking discussions about how what we make reflects who we are.

Anna Close and Paul Cipparone


    • Oct 27, 2024 LATEST EPISODE
    • monthly NEW EPISODES
    • 1h 14m AVG DURATION
    • 67 EPISODES


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    Latest episodes from The Engineering History Podcast

    Ep 67 - The Paris Catacombs

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 27, 2024 63:00


    Anna and Paul discuss skeletons, spooky season, lack of hygiene, the French, protesting, and cannibalism! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 66 - The Great Steel Bridge

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 13, 2024 74:32


    Anna and Paul welcome Jack Brown to the show to discuss his new book, Spanning the Gilded Age: James Eads and the Great Steel Bridge. We discuss the very first steel structure in the world, the madcap guy who came up with it, and the unlikely story of its construction and continued use to this day! For more info, and to see some great pictures, go to greatsteelbridge.com Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 65 - Howard Hughes, the Spruce Goose, the Golden Age of Hollywood, and the Descent into Madness

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 21, 2024 116:43


    Anna and Paul discuss Howard Hughes, aviation, filmmaking, the Spruce Goose, pissing in jars, Kleenex, being a shut-in, mental illness, tragedy, Romaine Street, and the dark side of glamorous lives. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 64 - How Fibonacci Built Our World

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 9, 2024 58:49


    Anna and Paul discuss math, finance, geometry, finance bros, Piza, pizza, New Yawk, the Yankees, and making things accessible to the common man. Note: We refer to the author of "Finding Fibonacci" as “Kevin Devlin.” He is actually Keith Devlin. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :) Further reading: The Man of Numbers: Fibonacci's Arithmetic Revolution By Keith Devlin Finding Fibonacci: The Quest to Rediscover the Forgotten Mathematical Genius Who Changed the World By Keith Devlin Fibonacci and the Financial Revolution By William Goetzmann  The Origins of Value: The Financial Innovations that Created Modern Capital Markets By William Goetzmann and K. Rouwenhurst   The History of Algrebra in Italy in the 14th and 15th Centuries. Some Remarks on Recent Historiography By Rafaella Franci  The Positional System and Base 10 | Mathematics for the Liberal Arts (lumenlearning.com)

    Ep 63 - Secret CIA Spy Satellites! (Pt. 2/2)

    Play Episode Listen Later May 26, 2024 38:13


    Anna and Paul discuss the Hexagon and Gambit series of satellites, on-orbit reliability, the struggle of keeping work secrets from family, big gold orbs, classification, declassification, and the mystery of modern-day earth observation. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :) Further reading: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CORONA_(satellite) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thor_(rocket_family) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RM-81_Agena https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thor-Agena https://www.thespacereview.com/article/1063/1 https://www.cia.gov/legacy/museum/exhibit/corona-americas-first-imaging-satellite-program/ https://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/kh-1.htm https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belka_and_Strelka https://www.space.com/12996-secret-spy-satellites-declassified-nro.html https://www.ctinsider.com/connecticutmagazine/news-people/article/The-story-of-the-Hexagon-a-Danbury-built-spy-17046062.php

    Ep 62 - Secret CIA Spy Satellites! (Pt. 1/2)

    Play Episode Listen Later May 12, 2024 52:54


    Anna and Paul discuss CORONA, Thor, Agena, space doggos, SAMOS, weird clips from The Ingraham Angle, the film bucket, the Dune popcorn bucket, and the Harry Potter Triwizard Tournament egg. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 61 - The Legend of the Pulaski

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 28, 2024 35:04


    Anna and Paul discuss firefighting, firebreaks, fire lines, gender reveal parties, ageism, chads vs virgins, and innovating on a classic. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 60 - Forging the Katana

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 14, 2024 53:58


    Anna and Paul discuss swords, Miyamoto Mushashi, phase diagrams, Samurai Jack, studying the blade, Ghost Dog, Guinness World Records, steel, and dueling. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 59 - The Leaning Tower of Pisa

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 31, 2024 64:32


    Anna and Paul discuss leaning architecture, Italian project management timelines, bells, Anna's angry 13-year-old-self, history of Italian city-states, the “Holy” “Roman” “Empire,” Napoleon, Galileo's cannonballs, Brother Cadfael, and thuribles. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 58 - What Made Apollo a Success?

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 17, 2024 46:57


    Anna and Paul discuss the lessons of the Apollo program, Little Joe, how to think about change and the lessons from previous projects, cruel summers, 8 Mile, and how to write the future while learning from the past. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 57 - Three MORE Wacky and Zany Engineering Stories!

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 3, 2024 44:41


    Anna and Paul discuss long eggs, being God, gaslighting, “who goes there” style lanterns, Winston Churchill, wackiness, and the true definition of zany! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 56 - Weaving the Dark Web

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 18, 2024 64:57


    Anna and Paul discuss the dark web, the deep web, the surface web, Madame Web, TCP/IP, hypertext transfer protocol, wackos, sickos, weirdos, and the nuanced use of dangerous technology. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 55 - PFAS: The Forever Chemical

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 21, 2024 64:22


    Anna and Paul discuss microplastics, the EPA, dumping into water supplies, VSauce, when you can say someone did something (legally), The Devil We Know, safe exposure levels, child labor, and how to get rid of contaminants. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 54 - Project Habakkuk: The Iceberg Aircraft Carrier

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 7, 2024 86:23


    Anna and Paul discuss icebergs, air superiority, eccentric geniuses, Winston Churchill, the Brits, golf, espionage, ice sleds, escaping prison, and the films of Taika Waititi.  Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 53 - The Statue of Liberty

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 24, 2023 65:48


    Anna and Paul discuss the Statue of Liberty, the Eiffel Tower, Assassin's Creed, the American Revolution, the French Revolution, the Banshees of Inisherin, omelet du fromage, repoussé, trusses, and the intersection of art and engineering.  Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 52 - Leonardo da Vinci: Renaissance Man

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 10, 2023 102:14


    Anna and Paul discuss the polymathic, perplexing, and preternaturally prolific painter whose engineering accomplishments were innovative, frightening, and technically sound. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 51 - Thomas Crapper and the History of the Toilet

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 26, 2023 49:56


    Anna and Paul discuss the history of the toilet, the movie Napoleon, the term "crap," the Cloaca Maxima, mansplaining, clogged plumbing, the next Silicon Valley Unicorn, and much more! Grab your plunger and drain snake and get ready to be flushed away on this fun adventure! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 50 - Henry Ford's Crazy Amazon Adventure

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 12, 2023 97:58


    Anna and Paul discuss groundbreaking industrial achievements, intractable environmental challenges, mind-boggling arrogance, disease, riches, pests, soyboys, control, Winston Churchill, freedom, and Hank the Deuce in an episode that will have you swimming through the Amazon's labyrinthine waters with us.  Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 49 - Chernobyl

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 29, 2023 103:15


    Anna and Paul discuss tragedy, sacrifice, chemistry, nuclear physics, innovative solutions, and bureaucracy. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 48 - The Gregorian Calendar

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 15, 2023 54:50


    Anna and Paul discuss the Gregorian calendar, the Roman Empire, time being an illusion, the Pareto Principle, conspiracy theories, date drifting, Romulus, Remus, and Easter. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 47 - Three Spooky and Zany Engineering Stories

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 1, 2023 58:52


    Anna and Paul discuss sandstone construction, geotechnical engineering, ghosts, demons, communicating with the spirit world, the first form of waterproof building construction, and some unorthodox building materials. Come on in for a zany mix of concrete and ethereal! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 46 - The Barcode: A Chat With Its Creator

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 17, 2023 77:27


    Anna and Paul welcome Paul McEnroe to the show to discuss his new book, The Barcode: How a Team Created One of the World's Most Ubiquitous Technologies. We discuss how he led a team at IBM to create the barcode technology that cemented the barcode's ubiquitous use worldwide, advice for young engineers, Anna's history as a grocery store cashier in the first store to ever get barcodes, Paul M's contribution to the Bay Area Rapid Transit System, and how to have a meaningful career- and life. The Barcode is now available for preorder and releases September 19. You can get it wherever you get your books. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 45 - The Great Wall of China (feat. Kelli from APHOUT)

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 3, 2023 88:32


    Anna, Paul, and special guest co-host Kelli Beard discuss the Great Wall of China, the Mongols(!!!), the movie 300, agrarian vs nomadic societies, the boy who cried wolf, fun alternate histories, and whether or not the wall really did anything at all. Kelli's podcast, A Popular History of Unpopular Things (APHOUT), is one of our favorites! It's a podcast that makes history more fun and accessible- featuring all things gory, gross, mysterious, and bloody disgusting! Check it out here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-popular-history-of-unpopular-things/id1645774647 Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 44 - Tales of the Telegraph

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 20, 2023 72:26


    Anna and Paul discuss the the telegraph, online love, t-posing on the haters, sauerkraut, chat rooms, ciphers, codes, not understanding new technology, and the Wheatstone bridge. Grab your casserole pans and join us on Telegraph Hill! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 43 - Ada Lovelace: The World's First Programmer

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 6, 2023 74:09


    Anna and Paul discuss the Matriarch of Computer Science, Ada Lovelace, as well as computers, Gary Vaynerchuk, programming structures, Gran Torino, Lord Byron, and poetry. Listen in for an unexpectedly wide-reaching convo touching literature, STEM, and innovation! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 42 - J. Robert Oppenheimer, The Manhattan Project, and the Atomic Bomb

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 23, 2023 176:07


    Anna and Paul discuss the complex, triumphant, and tragic life of the genius atomic physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer. Grab your plutonium and let's saddle up a horse to New Mexico! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 41 - Three Wacky and Fun Engineering Stories

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 9, 2023 57:06


    Anna and Paul discuss petty revenge, cat AIDS, the ASPCA, engineering ethics, living foot warmers, badly done taxidermy, and annoying Roman children in this collection of 3 zany stories from engineering history. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 40 - Alan Turing and the Enigma Machine

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 25, 2023 66:36


    Anna and Paul discuss probability theory, secret Nazi codes, Jurassic Park, tuberculosis, the first vegan, and sacrificing everything for your country in a deep podcast. Grab your code-breaking manual and let's head into the trenches of World War II! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 39 - The Saturn V

    Play Episode Listen Later May 14, 2023 70:26


    Anna and Paul discuss the world's greatest rocket, the Saturn V. Grab your fins, cryogenic stage, and command module and let's beat the commies to the moon!

    Ep 38 - Rosalind Franklin and the Mystery of DNA

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 23, 2023 110:17


    Anna and Paul discuss the tangled web surrounding the discovery of the helical structure of DNA. Grab your x-ray crystallography lab equipment and get ready to publish someone else's research cause we're going on a crazy ride from the UK to Paris! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 37 - The Battle of Alesia (feat. Kelli Beard of A Popular History of Unpopular Things)

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 16, 2023 74:01


    Anna, Paul, and special guest Kelli discuss the climactic military engagement of the Gallic Wars, which involved military engineering, battle tactics, death and destruction. Grab your legionary armor and let's ride into battle! Kelli's podcast, A Popular History of Unpopular Things (APHOUT), is one of our favorites! It's a podcast that makes history more fun and accessible- featuring all things gory, gross, mysterious, and bloody disgusting! Check it out here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-popular-history-of-unpopular-things/id1645774647 Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 36 - The Night Witches and the Polikarpov Po-2

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 26, 2023 61:38


    Anna and Paul discuss the crack coven of pilots that comprised the Soviet Union's 588th Night Bomber Regiment. Grab your witch hat and cauldron because we're bubblin', toilin', and troublin' our way to the Eastern Front! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 35 - Katherine Johnson: Calculating the Trajectory of NASA's Space Program

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 12, 2023 57:22


    Anna and Paul discuss NASA, NACA, Hidden Figures, overcoming adversity, and earning respect in a system stacked against you. Grab a notepad and check our math as we explore the insane career of NASA's most accomplished Computer! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 34 - George Washington Carver: The Black Leonardo

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 26, 2023 75:28


    Anna and Paul discuss the misunderstood agricultural genius who, despite being born into slavery, brought the American South back from the edge of ecological ruin. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 33 - Why Your Train Doesn't Crash

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 19, 2023 53:52


    Anna and Paul discuss the early days of trains, transportation innovations, struggling against an oppressive system, exploitation, and the future of motion. Grab your conductor hat and hop on this loco-motive! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 32 - Marie van Brittan Brown and Modern Home Security

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 12, 2023 52:30


    Anna and Paul discuss home security, amateur engineering turned into innovation, patents, Jamaica, Black History Month, and immigrant kids from Little Italy. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 31 - Flooding the Streets of Sacramento

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 29, 2023 60:35


    Anna and Paul discuss levees, dams, the private ownership of water infrastructure, funny names, the gold rush, and the truly massive amount of destruction that water can unleash. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 30 - The SR-71 Blackbird

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 22, 2023 79:06


    Anna and Paul discuss the legendary SR-71 Blackbird, a stealth plane with a truly mind-boggling amount of brilliant engineering behind it. Listen in as they discuss spying on the Soviet Union, radar cross-sections, the band U-2, the plane U-2, and the hazards of welding titanium! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 29 - A "Deep Dive" Into NASA's Secret Dolphin Experiments

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 15, 2023 62:50


    Anna and Paul discuss communicating with extraterrestrials, dolphin intelligence, LSD, Carl Sagan, the difference between UPenn and Penn State, and the odds of intelligent life existing in our universe. Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 28 - Engineer Tier Rankings 2022

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 8, 2023 107:23


    Anna and Paul discuss and rank the engineers, builders, inventors, artists, poets, heroes, and villains who appeared on the Engineering History Podcast in 2022. Favorites like Marie Curie, Jack Parsons, and Queen Hat all make appearances. Come with us to see which of our colorful cast of characters can claim the coveted S Tier ranking!

    Ep 27 - The Engineer Who Saved Christmas

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 25, 2022 56:01


    Anna and Paul discuss Christmas, the joys of the holiday season

    Ep 26 - How Engineers Solved London's Great Stink

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 18, 2022 123:22


    Anna and Paul discuss London's sewer system, beautiful pump stations, the beauty of egg-shaped pipes, Michael Faraday, A Tale of Two Cities, sanitation, and Charles Dickens in an action-packed episode! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 25 - The Real Jon Snow

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 11, 2022 81:15


    Anna and Paul discuss epidemiology, stubborn but incorrect scientific theories, Keanu Reeves in the movie Point Break, the song Something in the Way by Nirvana, and the man who single-handedly figured out London's 19th-century cholera outbreak.

    Ep 24 - Wood pt. 2

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 4, 2022 85:28


    Anna, Paul, and returning guest Joe discuss ancient shipbuilding, American timber framing, Gobekli Tepe, everybody's favorite composite, and the future of sustainable wood construction!

    Ep 23 - Computers & History w/ Dag Spicer

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 20, 2022 119:02


    Anna and Paul travel to Palo Alto to speak with Dag Spicer, senior curator of the Computer History Museum, the world's leading museum of computing. They discuss the early days of Silicon Valley, Alan Turing, the first commercial PC, using AI to unroll fragile scrolls, the digital dark age, the movie Airplane, Better Call Saul, and much more! Follow @computerhistory on Instagram to keep up with the Computer History Museum, and follow @engineering_history_podcast to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 22 - Who Invented Bitcoin?

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 13, 2022 149:21


    Anna and Paul discuss a caper that's gripped online sleuths for over a decade, involving networking, anarchism, cryptography, reclusive engineers, scam artists, paranoia, and monetary policy! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 21 - Wood

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 6, 2022 103:28


    Anna, Paul, and returning guest Joe discuss Alaskan prepper cabins, augurs, Roman furniture, where to go on first dates in Oakland, Egyptian pyramids, trusses, cave paintings, and much more in a comprehensive look at wood's central role in engineering! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 20 - The Curse of the Winchester Rifle

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2022 69:37


    Anna and Paul discuss ruthless businessmen, firearms, ghosts, a trick house, the Irish Republican Army, synchronized firing, the witching hour, and much more in this action-packed episode! Come listen to us celebrate spooky szn

    Ep 19 - Yale's Doctor of Mind Control

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 23, 2022 67:57


    Anna and Paul discuss the man who was using electrical engineering to control the brains of cats, dogs, and even humans in the 1950s! Too wild to be true? Listen in to find out! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 18 - Gone With a Flash

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 16, 2022 59:10


    Anna and Paul discuss the life and mysterious disappearance of the inventor of the motion picture camera. Grab your 16-lens camera, abandon your family in NYC, and come with us as we unravel this grim caper! Follow @engineering_history_podcast on Instagram to keep up with our latest updates :)

    Ep 17 - Tales of AI

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 2, 2022 68:31


    Anna and Paul discuss offensive teenagers, the Bongcloud Attack, Tesla, artificially generated poetry, Google Glass, and much more in an action-packed episode on the weird and wacky developments from the world of AI! Tune your audio receptors in to our dissection of deep learning, driving, and DALL-E.

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