0:00:03 > 0:00:07'Every day, our lives collide with thousands of things.
0:00:09 > 0:00:11'Some seem rather simple.
0:00:11 > 0:00:13'Others, we take for granted.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18'But the trappings of modern life and the materials they're made from
0:00:18 > 0:00:21'have transformed the way we live,
0:00:21 > 0:00:24'giving us comfort, pleasure,
0:00:24 > 0:00:25'and power.
0:00:25 > 0:00:29'Behind them is a story of hidden transformations,
0:00:29 > 0:00:32'proof that we live in an age of miracles...'
0:00:32 > 0:00:34This is nothing less than levitation!
0:00:35 > 0:00:40'..where the weak and fragile can become the super-strong.
0:00:41 > 0:00:45'Where parts of the human body can be built by machine.'
0:00:45 > 0:00:48I mean, that feels like science fiction.
0:00:48 > 0:00:51'These are the innovations that have transformed our world.'
0:00:51 > 0:00:54I mean it's just so audacious!
0:00:54 > 0:00:56I can't believe they actually did it.
0:00:56 > 0:00:59'The materials that have allowed us to create a world we enjoy.'
0:00:59 > 0:01:01It's already feeling comfy.
0:01:03 > 0:01:05'The visionaries who made it happen
0:01:05 > 0:01:09'turned new materials into miracles of mass-production...'
0:01:09 > 0:01:11Look, baby seals!
0:01:11 > 0:01:13'..that define the modern world.'
0:01:13 > 0:01:15Look at that, weow-weow-weow!
0:01:15 > 0:01:19'I'll be recreating their genius in the lab, and investigating
0:01:19 > 0:01:22'the properties of the remarkable things they created,
0:01:22 > 0:01:25'the everyday miracles that have transformed our homes,
0:01:25 > 0:01:28'our world, and ourselves.'
0:01:43 > 0:01:46I'm going to start by looking at how inventors
0:01:46 > 0:01:49and designers have transformed our homes.
0:01:49 > 0:01:53How their genius has elevated the mundane to the miraculous.
0:01:53 > 0:01:56You're probably watching this on your television,
0:01:56 > 0:01:59sitting on a comfy sofa, or on a computer sitting in bed.
0:01:59 > 0:02:03Either way, your home is full of carpet, and furniture,
0:02:03 > 0:02:06and all the accoutrements of modern life.
0:02:06 > 0:02:09What that means is that you've collected a vast array
0:02:09 > 0:02:14of metals, ceramics, glasses, liquid crystals, LEDs,
0:02:14 > 0:02:16and a huge panoply of plastics,
0:02:16 > 0:02:19and that collection is very impressive indeed.
0:02:21 > 0:02:24All the more impressive when you consider that,
0:02:24 > 0:02:27just a few generations ago, almost none of that stuff existed.
0:02:29 > 0:02:33To get a real sense of that, I've travelled back in time
0:02:33 > 0:02:36to visit a house in Britain at the turn of the 20th century.
0:02:38 > 0:02:41This is the living room from a house around 1900.
0:02:41 > 0:02:45Two adults, six or seven children would've inhabited this space,
0:02:45 > 0:02:48and I mean inhabited. I mean, this was their living room,
0:02:48 > 0:02:49their kitchen, their bathroom.
0:02:49 > 0:02:52They had a bedroom upstairs where they all slept,
0:02:52 > 0:02:54but the rest of the time they were here, and it's incredibly small,
0:02:54 > 0:02:56and incredibly spartan.
0:02:58 > 0:03:02The house looks so different because of what's in it,
0:03:02 > 0:03:04and what's NOT in it.
0:03:05 > 0:03:08Nearly everything has been painstakingly made by artisans
0:03:08 > 0:03:12and craftsmen from the same wood, metals and fabrics
0:03:12 > 0:03:15that had been available for hundreds of years.
0:03:16 > 0:03:18And, in comparison to our modern lives,
0:03:18 > 0:03:21the number and variety of possessions is tiny.
0:03:23 > 0:03:27They speak of a life, for most people, of hard graft,
0:03:27 > 0:03:29with little comfort or colour.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35We've come a long way since 1900. Our homes have been transformed,
0:03:35 > 0:03:38and, for me, that transformation hasn't come about
0:03:38 > 0:03:42because of benign government, or advanced philosophical thinking,
0:03:42 > 0:03:43but because of our mastery of stuff.
0:03:49 > 0:03:53Our homes are now bright, hi tech pleasure palaces.
0:03:53 > 0:03:55Gone is the drab austerity.
0:03:56 > 0:04:00And the reason they're such a pleasure to spend our lives in
0:04:00 > 0:04:02is due to our first everyday miracle.
0:04:05 > 0:04:09It's a material straight out of the lab, and since it was discovered
0:04:09 > 0:04:13by mistake in Germany in the early decades of the 20th century,
0:04:13 > 0:04:15it's touched every area of our lives,
0:04:15 > 0:04:19and caressed every part of our bodies.
0:04:21 > 0:04:25In the 1930s, the Germans were pre-eminent in the world
0:04:25 > 0:04:26in chemicals and plastics,
0:04:26 > 0:04:29and this guy called Otto Bayer, he invented a new one.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34He mixed two chemicals, polyol and isocyanate.
0:04:36 > 0:04:38That should do it.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40Now, mix them together.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43There's a reaction between these two liquids
0:04:43 > 0:04:46and they form a solid plastic,
0:04:46 > 0:04:48and he'd invented polyurethane.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52So in a matter of minutes that's turned into a hard plastic.
0:04:53 > 0:04:55It's quite a beautiful one.
0:04:55 > 0:04:58Even at the time, it was semi-interesting,
0:04:58 > 0:05:02a new plastic, but occasionally there was some sort of mistake
0:05:02 > 0:05:06in the formulation and something quite different came out,
0:05:06 > 0:05:09something marvellous, and I'm going to try and recreate that.
0:05:09 > 0:05:11I'm going to put the polyol in,
0:05:11 > 0:05:15but not as much as before because you'll see in a minute why.
0:05:19 > 0:05:25And about 36g of the di-isocyanate.
0:05:25 > 0:05:30OK, so far, so good. What Bayer didn't know
0:05:30 > 0:05:33is that his chemicals were sometimes contaminated with water
0:05:33 > 0:05:35so I'm going to add a little bit of water to this.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45So, at first it's the same, then,
0:05:45 > 0:05:50after a while you realise that there's some fizzing going on.
0:05:50 > 0:05:54By introducing water to the chemicals in the reaction,
0:05:54 > 0:05:56carbon dioxide gas is produced.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02A bit like in a fizzy drink, this produces bubbles
0:06:02 > 0:06:06but, because the polyurethane solidifies, the fizz is permanent.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10What Bayer had inadvertently created was what
0:06:10 > 0:06:13we would eventually call foam rubber.
0:06:13 > 0:06:16As a result of this accident, we've got two different materials.
0:06:16 > 0:06:19They're chemically almost identical but one is a hard solid,
0:06:19 > 0:06:22and the other one's a light, foamy material
0:06:22 > 0:06:26with completely different material properties.
0:06:28 > 0:06:31Having cast the two materials into a piece of tubing,
0:06:31 > 0:06:34I can show you what a difference the simple addition of water makes,
0:06:34 > 0:06:37using a standard materials science test.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43It's called the tomato test.
0:06:47 > 0:06:52As you'd expect, the hard resin makes light work of the tomato,
0:06:52 > 0:06:54but when I do the same thing with the second baton
0:06:54 > 0:06:56the result is very different.
0:06:59 > 0:07:02By changing the chemical reaction, the plastic
0:07:02 > 0:07:04has become soft and light,
0:07:04 > 0:07:06and the tomato easily resists my attack.
0:07:07 > 0:07:10Perhaps the oddest thing about Bayer's discovery...
0:07:11 > 0:07:15..was that for a good ten years nobody had any idea what to do
0:07:15 > 0:07:17with this squidgy new material.
0:07:17 > 0:07:21But, today, like it or not, all our lives are inextricably linked
0:07:21 > 0:07:26to foam rubber, and hardly any of it is used to attack fruit.
0:07:27 > 0:07:31If you're sitting down watching this programme, you're sitting on foam,
0:07:31 > 0:07:35almost certainly, because foam is responsible for all the comfy stuff
0:07:35 > 0:07:38in your home, whether it's your sofa, your chair, even your bed.
0:07:40 > 0:07:44Comfortable sofas and chairs no longer depend on expensive
0:07:44 > 0:07:48and labour intensive horsehair, feathers, flock and springs.
0:07:52 > 0:07:56Nowadays, comfort can be delivered with this one single material.
0:08:02 > 0:08:07And the real beauty of foam is that it is easily mass-produced
0:08:07 > 0:08:09so we can all enjoy the comfort it provides.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15This factory alone produces a fresh,
0:08:15 > 0:08:18individually moulded piece of foam every 30 seconds.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22So you can mould a whole piece of furniture
0:08:22 > 0:08:24in one go with this process.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27That's the backbone of the chair, it's a steel frame,
0:08:27 > 0:08:32that goes into the mould, and then the mould will be closed over,
0:08:32 > 0:08:34and then the polyurethane mixture will go in
0:08:34 > 0:08:38and that will foam around the whole frame and create an integrated
0:08:38 > 0:08:41piece of furniture that's both stiff and comfortable.
0:08:41 > 0:08:45The mould's heated from the outside so that the skin cures faster
0:08:45 > 0:08:49than the interior, so you get a nice, smooth outer surface.
0:08:49 > 0:08:53Another piece of furniture is gestating in the womb
0:08:53 > 0:08:56of this mould and will soon become a fully formed,
0:08:56 > 0:09:00comfy seat...for human kind.
0:09:16 > 0:09:20It's already feeling comfy, it's nice and warm actually.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23No chair is complete without the seat, of course.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32And there we are, simple as that!
0:09:32 > 0:09:35The versatility of foam doesn't stop there.
0:09:35 > 0:09:38Changing the initial mixture affects the eventual density
0:09:38 > 0:09:40and squidginess,
0:09:40 > 0:09:44so foam can be used to create a dazzling array of padded products.
0:09:46 > 0:09:48So, not only can you make comfy seats out of this stuff,
0:09:48 > 0:09:50but you can do all manner of things.
0:09:50 > 0:09:54Have a look at this - squidgy, plasticky foam can withstand
0:09:54 > 0:09:59temperatures up to 200 degrees, used in engines to absorb sound.
0:09:59 > 0:10:01Or this.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04I mean this is an armrest, and yet it feels very hard,
0:10:04 > 0:10:08it feels like that can't possibly be a foam, but it is.
0:10:10 > 0:10:13How about this? This is a tray for an aeroplane meal,
0:10:13 > 0:10:15you've had these a million times, there's the cup holder,
0:10:15 > 0:10:17the whole thing's a piece of foam.
0:10:18 > 0:10:20There's no end to it.
0:10:20 > 0:10:22Here's a headrest for a fighter pilot's seat.
0:10:22 > 0:10:25And here's the nice bit - this is hard in the middle
0:10:25 > 0:10:27but soft on the outside so you can change its properties
0:10:27 > 0:10:31all round the seat cover, and yet super light for a plane.
0:10:31 > 0:10:35And if you're not satisfied with that, you can have foam that
0:10:35 > 0:10:38squidges and remembers where you squidged it.
0:10:38 > 0:10:40It's called memory foam.
0:10:40 > 0:10:44And all of this, all of this due to a mistake by Otto Bayer.
0:10:44 > 0:10:48And to think at the time they had no idea what to do with the stuff,
0:10:48 > 0:10:52and the answer was, well, pretty much everything.
0:10:53 > 0:10:55You can probably find foam,
0:10:55 > 0:10:57sometimes in several different incarnations,
0:10:57 > 0:10:59in every room of your home.
0:10:59 > 0:11:03But there are many more everyday miracles when you start to look.
0:11:03 > 0:11:08Even - maybe especially - where you don't expect to find them.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12One of the greatest examples of this is something I first
0:11:12 > 0:11:16encountered in rather a painful way when I was just 15 years old.
0:11:19 > 0:11:24I was on my way home from school, a Tube journey I made every day.
0:11:26 > 0:11:29As I was waiting for my train, a guy in an anorak came right close
0:11:29 > 0:11:31up to me and said, "Give me your wallet."
0:11:33 > 0:11:35I didn't really know what to say.
0:11:36 > 0:11:40I had 23 pence on me and wasn't inclined to give it up.
0:11:40 > 0:11:43It had already been allocated to future purchases.
0:11:46 > 0:11:49"I've got a knife," he said, and I looked down to his pocket
0:11:49 > 0:11:51and there was definitely something pointy in there
0:11:51 > 0:11:53but I thought it's probably a pen or his finger.
0:11:53 > 0:11:55It definitely wasn't a knife.
0:11:57 > 0:12:02It was then that my Tube arrived and I devised my brilliant escape plan.
0:12:03 > 0:12:06I would simply run past him before the doors closed.
0:12:09 > 0:12:11But as I did he stabbed me.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17He cut through five layers of clothing and two layers of skin,
0:12:17 > 0:12:21leaving me with a 13 centimetre gash on my back.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27As it turned out, I was right - he didn't have a knife,
0:12:27 > 0:12:28he'd used a razor blade.
0:12:31 > 0:12:33And that revelation that something so small
0:12:33 > 0:12:35could do so much damage
0:12:35 > 0:12:39shocked me more than the idea that my life had been threatened.
0:12:39 > 0:12:43What a piece of material that is. What a sliver of metal.
0:12:44 > 0:12:48Springy, elastic, and, yet,
0:12:48 > 0:12:52strong, and hard, and ultra sharp.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57I mean, don't get me wrong, I wasn't enjoying being stabbed
0:12:57 > 0:13:00and having blood gushing down my back,
0:13:00 > 0:13:03but the whole experience did make me realise just quite how important
0:13:03 > 0:13:07materials are and how that they are at the heart of civilisation,
0:13:07 > 0:13:10that our ability to turn rock into stuff like this
0:13:10 > 0:13:12IS who we are.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15The razor blade is our next everyday miracle.
0:13:17 > 0:13:20It was born in the United States in 1901,
0:13:20 > 0:13:24a nation clearly in desperate need of a shave.
0:13:24 > 0:13:26It was the brainchild of one man,
0:13:26 > 0:13:31a man who gloried in the name of King Camp Gillette.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34That actually was his real name.
0:13:34 > 0:13:36Gillette had identified a problem.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39He realised that shaving was a complicated
0:13:39 > 0:13:41and time-consuming business.
0:13:41 > 0:13:43Cut-throat razors were expensive,
0:13:43 > 0:13:46and needed sharpening every time you used them,
0:13:46 > 0:13:49and that's where Gillette saw his opportunity.
0:13:49 > 0:13:50He would make a cheap,
0:13:50 > 0:13:54disposable blade from as little steel as possible.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57His challenge was to make it hard enough to hold
0:13:57 > 0:13:59an ultra sharp edge needed for shaving.
0:14:02 > 0:14:04I've got a thin bit of steel here,
0:14:04 > 0:14:07and if I wanted to turn it into a razor blade so I could shave
0:14:07 > 0:14:10my face with it, well, I've got a bit of a problem
0:14:10 > 0:14:12because it's a bit bendy,
0:14:12 > 0:14:14it's not particularly strong,
0:14:14 > 0:14:16and it's certainly not very sharp.
0:14:16 > 0:14:20So, how can I transform that into something that is all of those
0:14:20 > 0:14:24things - strong, hard and sharp? And I can do that using something
0:14:24 > 0:14:28called a heat treatment, and I'm going to show you what I mean. So...
0:14:30 > 0:14:32..turn on this blowtorch.
0:14:38 > 0:14:41I'm going to heat it up to red-hot.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45And now I'm going to quench it.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49Now let's see what we've done to this piece of steel.
0:14:53 > 0:14:54Oh, yeah - brittle.
0:14:55 > 0:15:00But that brittleness is because the steel has become incredibly hard,
0:15:00 > 0:15:03and that's the hardness you need to make a sharp edge.
0:15:04 > 0:15:06Gillette's next challenge was that
0:15:06 > 0:15:09hardening and tempering steel, so that it can be sharpened,
0:15:09 > 0:15:12was traditionally done in forges by blacksmiths.
0:15:13 > 0:15:17Gillette's tiny slivers of metal couldn't be produced that way.
0:15:20 > 0:15:24So he invented a brand-new manufacturing process.
0:15:25 > 0:15:31Each individual blade starts life on a roll of medium carbon steel.
0:15:31 > 0:15:33They're first stamped into shape.
0:15:34 > 0:15:37Then fed through three ovens and freezers
0:15:37 > 0:15:39to reach just the right hardness.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42Still on the roll, the blades are sharpened
0:15:42 > 0:15:46three times before being separated, packaged and boxed.
0:15:49 > 0:15:54Not only could men now shave at home in relative safety, the blades
0:15:54 > 0:15:58contained so little metal they were cheap and, crucially, disposable.
0:15:59 > 0:16:01And because he threw blades away,
0:16:01 > 0:16:04the customer would have to keep coming back.
0:16:04 > 0:16:06It was a brilliant business model.
0:16:06 > 0:16:11Gillette was ultimately selling time, and time is money.
0:16:11 > 0:16:14He boasted that his razors could save the US economy
0:16:14 > 0:16:17450 million a year.
0:16:17 > 0:16:20This sliver of metal is a minor miracle.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23It's changed the way we live our lives,
0:16:23 > 0:16:26and that's the challenge to all materials -
0:16:26 > 0:16:29they have to meet a human desire or need to become part
0:16:29 > 0:16:34of our everyday lives, otherwise their impact will always be limited.
0:16:38 > 0:16:41And perhaps the perfect example
0:16:41 > 0:16:44of that kind of perfect everyday miracle
0:16:44 > 0:16:46first became part of our everyday lives
0:16:46 > 0:16:51here in Northumberland, at this far-from-ordinary stately home.
0:16:51 > 0:16:53The man who lived in this house
0:16:53 > 0:16:55made his money making guns - naval guns, field guns
0:16:55 > 0:16:58and all sorts of weaponry sold to the British government.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01But it was here rather than on the battlefield that he introduced
0:17:01 > 0:17:05a new technology that soon everybody in the world would want.
0:17:09 > 0:17:13His name was William Armstrong, and this place,
0:17:13 > 0:17:15Cragside, was his pride and joy.
0:17:17 > 0:17:19Armstrong filled it with the most up-to-date gadgets
0:17:19 > 0:17:21the Victorian Age could muster.
0:17:24 > 0:17:29In the kitchen, there were hydro-powered rotisseries,
0:17:29 > 0:17:31and a rudimentary dishwasher.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35Servants were summoned not by bells but given precise orders
0:17:35 > 0:17:38over the state-of-the-art internal telephone system.
0:17:42 > 0:17:47Visitors to Cragside dubbed it the palace of the modern magician.
0:17:51 > 0:17:54Armstrong was an industrialist and a self-made man,
0:17:54 > 0:17:57and he designed and built Cragside in just ten years.
0:17:58 > 0:18:02In terms of heritage, it's a fake,
0:18:02 > 0:18:05but not coming from a long line of aristocrats
0:18:05 > 0:18:06does have some advantages.
0:18:06 > 0:18:09You're much less likely to be hamstrung by tradition
0:18:09 > 0:18:12and the conventional ways of doing things.
0:18:12 > 0:18:15And Armstrong was anything but a slave to convention.
0:18:17 > 0:18:20Had he lived today, Armstrong might well have prided himself
0:18:20 > 0:18:23on thinking outside the box.
0:18:23 > 0:18:27He was keen to update the costly, labour intensive oil lamps
0:18:27 > 0:18:30and candles which were the only source of night-time light.
0:18:32 > 0:18:34He wanted to go electric.
0:18:34 > 0:18:39In 1878, Armstrong added to his repertoire of everyday miracles
0:18:39 > 0:18:42and installed an arc light at the gallery at Cragside.
0:18:44 > 0:18:46And while it was a great idea,
0:18:46 > 0:18:49there was a big problem with his electric light.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52I can show you why by building one of my own.
0:18:52 > 0:18:56It's actually dead easy to make light from electricity using
0:18:56 > 0:18:58some pretty simple apparatus.
0:18:58 > 0:19:01Two clamps, a generator,
0:19:01 > 0:19:07some carbon electrodes, which have been coated in copper just to get
0:19:07 > 0:19:10the electrical conductivity a bit higher.
0:19:10 > 0:19:12Some safety screens.
0:19:14 > 0:19:16Connect the electrodes.
0:19:22 > 0:19:23That looks about right.
0:19:23 > 0:19:26Goggles, of course,
0:19:26 > 0:19:28and gloves.
0:19:30 > 0:19:32OK, ready to create some light.
0:19:34 > 0:19:35Just got to get the gap right.
0:19:44 > 0:19:46There we go.
0:19:47 > 0:19:50The temperature inside there is about 3,000 degrees,
0:19:50 > 0:19:54maybe more. An intense white light.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58You can see there's a couple of problems, one of which is
0:19:58 > 0:20:01that there's too much light and not the right sort.
0:20:01 > 0:20:04So, it's lovely white light, but there's also a hell of a lot
0:20:04 > 0:20:07of UV light, which is why we're wearing these goggles.
0:20:07 > 0:20:10A lot of smoke as well and of course, the noise.
0:20:10 > 0:20:14And that really just means that it's not at all practical for the home.
0:20:19 > 0:20:23What was needed was a less severe and safer alternative.
0:20:23 > 0:20:26Attempts were made to produce light using thin carbon filaments
0:20:26 > 0:20:31that glowed when electricity passed through them.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35But producing a carbon filament that worked proved elusive.
0:20:35 > 0:20:39It was a challenge taken up by two men.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43One was the American Thomas Edison and the other was British.
0:20:43 > 0:20:45His name was Joseph Swan.
0:20:47 > 0:20:51In the US, Edison tried carbonising over 2,000 natural products,
0:20:51 > 0:20:54from bamboo to beard hair.
0:20:54 > 0:20:58While simultaneously in the UK, Joseph Swan, a man with a ready
0:20:58 > 0:21:04supply of beard hair, struck gold with a carbonised cotton filament.
0:21:04 > 0:21:05The carbon filaments worked,
0:21:05 > 0:21:08but they had many problems associated with them.
0:21:08 > 0:21:12They were mechanically fragile and very sensitive to oxygen.
0:21:12 > 0:21:17This creates a significant problem, which I can easily demonstrate.
0:21:18 > 0:21:22Not having a beard to carbonise, and to make things easier,
0:21:22 > 0:21:26I'm using wire as a filament, but the problem's the same.
0:21:27 > 0:21:33I'm going to put it in between these two electrodes.
0:21:33 > 0:21:35Connect up a power supply.
0:21:40 > 0:21:43Turn the voltage up.
0:21:43 > 0:21:45Oop. A little bit of smoke. Ah, yeah!
0:21:45 > 0:21:47Here we go.
0:21:47 > 0:21:49Beautiful.
0:21:49 > 0:21:52See if I can get some white light.
0:21:52 > 0:21:54I can.
0:21:54 > 0:21:55Ah.
0:21:57 > 0:22:01While a fine filament creates a much better light, it very quickly fails.
0:22:03 > 0:22:07Because the glow is generated by heat, as the filament gets
0:22:07 > 0:22:10hotter, it reacts with oxygen in the air, causing it to burn.
0:22:11 > 0:22:15But there is a solution.
0:22:15 > 0:22:18So, we've got a glass to cover the filament and some argon gas,
0:22:18 > 0:22:22which, if we pump into the glass with a new filament,
0:22:22 > 0:22:26then should be able to displace the oxygen and that will protect
0:22:26 > 0:22:32my filament from getting oxidised put the glass over the top.
0:22:32 > 0:22:33Like that.
0:22:36 > 0:22:40Attach the argon.
0:22:40 > 0:22:42Turn it on.
0:22:43 > 0:22:47So, as it flows in there, it's displacing the oxygen out.
0:22:50 > 0:22:54Now, in theory, there shouldn't be hardly any oxygen in there,
0:22:54 > 0:22:57so when I turn on the voltage this time,
0:22:57 > 0:23:00we ought to be able to get light that lasts.
0:23:07 > 0:23:09Here we go.
0:23:11 > 0:23:13There we are.
0:23:13 > 0:23:17Bright white light and it'll stay bright for thousands of hours.
0:23:19 > 0:23:22The light bulb was born.
0:23:22 > 0:23:24A filament that will glow white hot
0:23:24 > 0:23:27when electricity is passed through it,
0:23:27 > 0:23:29encased in such a way that oxygen is removed,
0:23:29 > 0:23:33allowing it to shine brighter for longer and not to burn out.
0:23:36 > 0:23:38In solving this problem,
0:23:38 > 0:23:41Joseph Swan had not only successfully made
0:23:41 > 0:23:44an incandescent light bulb, but he'd also acquired a great
0:23:44 > 0:23:48friend in William, now Lord, Armstrong.
0:23:48 > 0:23:54In December 1880, 37 of Swan's bulbs were installed in Cragside.
0:23:54 > 0:23:58And before long, that number climbed to nearly 100.
0:23:58 > 0:24:02Another everyday miracle was on the march.
0:24:02 > 0:24:04And this is one of the original fittings.
0:24:04 > 0:24:08And it consists of a vase and incandescent light.
0:24:08 > 0:24:10Now, this has been modernised,
0:24:10 > 0:24:13but the original switching mechanism was to take the whole vase
0:24:13 > 0:24:17and place it in a bowl of mercury, which completed the connection
0:24:17 > 0:24:18and put the light on.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21Ten out of ten for style, I think you'll agree,
0:24:21 > 0:24:25and this was the first time a whole house had been lit in this way.
0:24:25 > 0:24:26And it was revolutionary.
0:24:30 > 0:24:34Today, we think nothing at all of switching on a light.
0:24:34 > 0:24:38It'd be easy to think that electric lighting arrived
0:24:38 > 0:24:41because of the spread of mains electricity
0:24:41 > 0:24:43but, actually, it was the other way round.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49It was the incandescent light bulb and its use here at Cragside
0:24:49 > 0:24:54that showed that safe indoor electric lighting was possible.
0:24:54 > 0:24:56And it was this, and the light it brought,
0:24:56 > 0:25:00that drove electricity into homes across the world.
0:25:02 > 0:25:06So, the light bulb incandesced and was mass-produced and lit our homes.
0:25:06 > 0:25:09But that wasn't quite the end of the story.
0:25:09 > 0:25:13Rather, the light bulb was the start of a chain reaction of invention.
0:25:16 > 0:25:20The light bulb lit up the night, bringing the 24-hour society,
0:25:20 > 0:25:24but it also led to some of the most important
0:25:24 > 0:25:29inventions of the electronic age, including a replacement for itself.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33In the early 20th century, light bulb technology was used in valves,
0:25:33 > 0:25:37electronic components that allowed radio and television to develop.
0:25:39 > 0:25:42But valves were fragile and unreliable,
0:25:42 > 0:25:45and in 1948, transistors arrived that could do the same
0:25:45 > 0:25:49job as valves, but without all the glass and all the glowing.
0:25:49 > 0:25:53Next came silicon, a semiconductor onto which could be etched
0:25:53 > 0:25:56millions of microscopic transistors.
0:25:58 > 0:26:02But silicon chips did more than deliver the computer age.
0:26:02 > 0:26:06Semiconductors can also be made to release photons,
0:26:06 > 0:26:09as a pulse of light and, depending on what they're made from,
0:26:09 > 0:26:13you get different colours, say red, blue or green.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16These are called light-emitting diodes, LEDs.
0:26:21 > 0:26:25You get them in TV screens, computer displays and, more recently,
0:26:25 > 0:26:27light bulbs.
0:26:27 > 0:26:30And that is how the incandescent light bulb provided
0:26:30 > 0:26:33and eco-friendly replacement for itself.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44It's odd to think that experiments with glowing beard hair have
0:26:44 > 0:26:49impacted on almost all aspects of our modern domestic life.
0:26:49 > 0:26:50But they have.
0:26:50 > 0:26:54Light on tap and the countless hi tech electronic devices
0:26:54 > 0:26:57that fill our homes means that today, we can be permanently
0:26:57 > 0:27:00entertained without ever having to leave the house.
0:27:03 > 0:27:06But it's not just how we furnish our homes or the fuel
0:27:06 > 0:27:09we use to power them or the gadgets we love.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12The homes themselves have radically changed.
0:27:18 > 0:27:21Radical change is not usually the first thought that
0:27:21 > 0:27:24enters your head when you find yourself here, in Oxford.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31This is where I applied to study as an undergraduate,
0:27:31 > 0:27:34among the dreaming spires and the Cotswold stone buildings.
0:27:40 > 0:27:44So, imagine my surprise when I first came to see my college
0:27:44 > 0:27:46and discovered it looked like this.
0:27:49 > 0:27:52This is St Catherine's College, Oxford,
0:27:52 > 0:27:55and it was designed by an architect called Arne Jacobsen.
0:27:55 > 0:27:57He was Danish.
0:27:57 > 0:28:00And it's a Modernist take on the Oxford College,
0:28:00 > 0:28:03so it has all the features you'd expect - it has a quad,
0:28:03 > 0:28:07with a circular lawn, it has a combination all round
0:28:07 > 0:28:11the outside, it has a library and a dining hall.
0:28:11 > 0:28:14But in every other respect, it's radically different.
0:28:14 > 0:28:19These buildings are incarnations of a theory of architecture
0:28:19 > 0:28:24dreamt up by French artist and sculptor Charles Edouard Jeanneret.
0:28:24 > 0:28:27He called himself Le Corbusier.
0:28:27 > 0:28:31He was a man whose ideas would have remained ideas, had it not been
0:28:31 > 0:28:37for a new material, another everyday miracle, that gave them life.
0:28:37 > 0:28:40Le Corbusier's notion was that buildings should suit our needs,
0:28:40 > 0:28:45rather than being just places to shelter from the elements.
0:28:45 > 0:28:49He wanted huge windows, to make our homes light and airy,
0:28:49 > 0:28:50walls where they were useful,
0:28:50 > 0:28:54not just where they were because they had to hold the house up.
0:28:54 > 0:28:57He even wanted to raise houses off the ground
0:28:57 > 0:28:59and have a garden on the roof.
0:28:59 > 0:29:03All laudable aims, but pie in the sky, surely?
0:29:03 > 0:29:06Here in England, it all sounded like the ramblings of a madman.
0:29:06 > 0:29:09I mean, what does he mean - walls anywhere you wanted?
0:29:09 > 0:29:11They had to hold up the roof.
0:29:11 > 0:29:14And huge swathes of glass? The building would just fall down.
0:29:16 > 0:29:19Le Corbusier's ideas sounded so crazy
0:29:19 > 0:29:22because for thousands of years his buildings really would have
0:29:22 > 0:29:28fallen down, but Le Corbusier was in the right place at the right time.
0:29:28 > 0:29:31His buildings stayed standing because he built them,
0:29:31 > 0:29:32using concrete.
0:29:32 > 0:29:36Not just any old concrete, but a new concrete,
0:29:36 > 0:29:40one that would open up new possibilities for architecture.
0:29:40 > 0:29:43To demonstrate what I mean, I'm going
0:29:43 > 0:29:46to show you the problem with traditional concrete.
0:29:47 > 0:29:52Concrete has been used as a building material for over 4,000 years.
0:29:52 > 0:29:56And how it's made has changed little in that time.
0:30:00 > 0:30:04It's just basically cement, sand and an aggregate -
0:30:04 > 0:30:07in this case gravel, mixed with water.
0:30:10 > 0:30:14The cement reacts with the water and hardens, binding the sand
0:30:14 > 0:30:17and the gravel into a kind of artificial rock.
0:30:19 > 0:30:21Well, that's the concrete mixed.
0:30:21 > 0:30:26And, as usual, it reminds you why concrete mixers are so great!
0:30:26 > 0:30:28It's pretty hard work!
0:30:28 > 0:30:31So, now, the next thing is to put it into the mould.
0:30:31 > 0:30:35The brilliance of concrete is that it can be moulded into almost
0:30:35 > 0:30:37any shape.
0:30:37 > 0:30:42But its use as a building material is limited by one major weakness.
0:30:43 > 0:30:47When you get it out of the mould, it looks like this
0:30:47 > 0:30:50and it seems pretty strong.
0:30:50 > 0:30:52But look what happens when I stand on it.
0:30:57 > 0:30:59Oh!
0:31:01 > 0:31:05When you put weight on a beam like this, the beam bends slightly,
0:31:05 > 0:31:07compressing the material on the top of the beam
0:31:07 > 0:31:10and pulling it apart on the bottom.
0:31:10 > 0:31:13Concrete is very strong in compression, but very weak
0:31:13 > 0:31:16when it's pulled apart, under tension, as it's called.
0:31:21 > 0:31:24Slowed down, you can see a crack start at the bottom of the beam
0:31:24 > 0:31:28and spread upwards, breaking the beam in two.
0:31:28 > 0:31:30There is a way to do something about it.
0:31:30 > 0:31:33This is a concrete block made in pretty much the same
0:31:33 > 0:31:37way as the other one, except for it's got one extra ingredient.
0:31:37 > 0:31:39Now, look at this.
0:31:39 > 0:31:43Takes my weight. I can bounce up and down on it. I can even...
0:31:50 > 0:31:52..hit it with a sledgehammer.
0:31:56 > 0:32:00A few cracks, but it's survived. Let's have another go.
0:32:02 > 0:32:05Wow! Even with a pretty big blow, it's doing all right.
0:32:06 > 0:32:08Still takes my weight.
0:32:08 > 0:32:12You've got to admit, that's pretty impressive.
0:32:12 > 0:32:15Now, the magic ingredient is actually visible,
0:32:15 > 0:32:18if you have a close look.
0:32:18 > 0:32:19It's that thing there, at the end.
0:32:19 > 0:32:23It maybe just looks like a bit of aggregate, but actually,
0:32:23 > 0:32:26that's the end of a steel rod that runs all the way through this bar.
0:32:26 > 0:32:31It's called rebar, it's a piece of steel. This is what it looks like.
0:32:31 > 0:32:33It's got an unmistakable form
0:32:33 > 0:32:36because if you've ever been past any kind of construction site,
0:32:36 > 0:32:40you'll have seen this stuff sticking out of concrete and this is
0:32:40 > 0:32:44what stops the cracks that form at the bottom under tension
0:32:44 > 0:32:46from destroying the whole structure.
0:32:46 > 0:32:51Steel is unbelievably strong in tension and so,
0:32:51 > 0:32:55when those tension forces build up, it's the steel that takes them
0:32:55 > 0:32:58and it relieves the tension on the concrete and the concrete is
0:32:58 > 0:33:02left to take the compression forces, which it's brilliant at.
0:33:02 > 0:33:04So, you take the best of two materials,
0:33:04 > 0:33:08combine it into one, and create the ultimate building material.
0:33:20 > 0:33:23Reinforced concrete was exactly what Le Corbusier needed to
0:33:23 > 0:33:26turn his ideas into reality.
0:33:26 > 0:33:30It allowed him to build huge multistorey apartment blocks,
0:33:30 > 0:33:33so-called cities in the sky, complete with restaurants,
0:33:33 > 0:33:36shops, living spaces, all in one building,
0:33:36 > 0:33:41parks and playgrounds lifted from the ground and put on the roof.
0:33:41 > 0:33:46For many, Modernist buildings and the concrete they're made from can
0:33:46 > 0:33:51be difficult to love, but done well, and what you get is transformative.
0:33:51 > 0:33:55Light and space and a better quality of life.
0:33:57 > 0:34:02And this is what you get at my old college, St Catherine's.
0:34:12 > 0:34:17In the construction of the college, its architect, Arne Jacobsen,
0:34:17 > 0:34:20put reinforced concrete at the heart of every building.
0:34:23 > 0:34:25Cast into huge pillars and beams,
0:34:25 > 0:34:30it provides a framework onto which the rest of the building is hung.
0:34:30 > 0:34:34Combined with extensive use of metal and glass, Jacobsen's
0:34:34 > 0:34:38choice of materials come together to create something spectacular.
0:34:40 > 0:34:44From the outside, the concrete is less in evidence.
0:34:44 > 0:34:48It's hidden behind the decorative walls and the huge swathes of glass.
0:34:48 > 0:34:51It's inside that the impact of Jacobsen's
0:34:51 > 0:34:54use of concrete can be most clearly seen.
0:34:58 > 0:35:02This is the Great Hall. And it is great!
0:35:02 > 0:35:05I mean, there is something really thrilling about this space.
0:35:05 > 0:35:09You come in here and the sheer size of it is just really special.
0:35:09 > 0:35:14The roof is hung from these concrete beams, which are smooth and sleek.
0:35:14 > 0:35:17Sublime! And these pillars, they hold those up.
0:35:17 > 0:35:20And everything else is superfluous, structurally.
0:35:20 > 0:35:23Everything else is just there to protect you from the wind
0:35:23 > 0:35:24and the rain.
0:35:31 > 0:35:36By using reinforced concrete pillars and beams, Jacobsen has created
0:35:36 > 0:35:40a cavernous dining space, large enough to seat the entire college.
0:35:43 > 0:35:46And because the reinforced concrete carries
0:35:46 > 0:35:49the weight of the building, the spaces between the beams
0:35:49 > 0:35:52and along the top of the pillars can be fitted with windows,
0:35:52 > 0:35:54flooding the hall with natural light.
0:35:59 > 0:36:01Not everyone likes it.
0:36:01 > 0:36:04One former student described his time here
0:36:04 > 0:36:06as spending three years at borstal.
0:36:06 > 0:36:10For some, this place is an unwanted reminder of the provincial
0:36:10 > 0:36:12post-war civic architecture.
0:36:12 > 0:36:16But I disagree. I think this is different.
0:36:16 > 0:36:19This is concrete in the hands of a genius.
0:36:29 > 0:36:32It helps that Arne Jacobsen delivered the whole package here,
0:36:32 > 0:36:37a stunning bespoke interior to set off the concrete exoskeleton.
0:36:37 > 0:36:41Chairs, tables, even cutlery, are all part of the scheme.
0:36:44 > 0:36:47These days, the building continues to divide opinion.
0:36:47 > 0:36:50It's recently received a Grade I listing,
0:36:50 > 0:36:54which ruffled some feathers, but not mine.
0:36:56 > 0:37:00I like this building, I remember my feelings for this building.
0:37:00 > 0:37:02I liked living here.
0:37:02 > 0:37:05I'm just trying to work out how Jacobsen pulled that off
0:37:05 > 0:37:08because it's a Modernist building, there is stark,
0:37:08 > 0:37:12strong concrete and there's big bits of glass and, you know,
0:37:12 > 0:37:16you think, how affectionate can you really be to those kind of things?
0:37:16 > 0:37:19The answer to that question lies partly in another
0:37:19 > 0:37:23material that he was particularly adept at working with.
0:37:23 > 0:37:26In fact, another everyday miracle.
0:37:26 > 0:37:29The sharp straight lines of this concrete
0:37:29 > 0:37:33and the glass are really softened by the wood. He's used wood everywhere.
0:37:33 > 0:37:36He's used it in the dining room, in the senior common room,
0:37:36 > 0:37:39he's used wood in the rooms, and here, in this meeting room.
0:37:39 > 0:37:41And it isn't just any type of wood.
0:37:41 > 0:37:44This wood has got these curves, they're sensuous,
0:37:44 > 0:37:46they're delicate, they're intimate.
0:37:46 > 0:37:49And the only way he could have done that is to use a special
0:37:49 > 0:37:51type of wood, called plywood.
0:37:54 > 0:37:57Plywood is another everyday miracle.
0:37:57 > 0:38:00An extraordinary material story.
0:38:00 > 0:38:04Plywood is the culmination of one of our longest relationships
0:38:04 > 0:38:06with a material, wood.
0:38:08 > 0:38:12And its emergence has revolutionised design within the home.
0:38:16 > 0:38:19Traditionally, furniture was made from solid wood
0:38:19 > 0:38:22and making it was the preserve of craftsmen.
0:38:22 > 0:38:27Ornate and intricate pieces were skilfully carved and assembled.
0:38:29 > 0:38:32But the properties of wood mean that the design
0:38:32 > 0:38:34and shape of objects made with it are limited.
0:38:40 > 0:38:45Plywood transforms ordinary wood into something utterly different.
0:38:45 > 0:38:48In an almost ludicrously simple process,
0:38:48 > 0:38:52it removes the limitations of wood completely.
0:38:55 > 0:38:58To see how plywood revolutionised the possibilities for furniture
0:38:58 > 0:39:02designers, I've come to Hackney in East London,
0:39:02 > 0:39:06home to one of the UK's oldest plywood furniture manufacturers...
0:39:08 > 0:39:14..where original 1930s designs are still made from cut wood veneers.
0:39:14 > 0:39:19So, is this basically just a big plank of wood that's been cut up?
0:39:19 > 0:39:21How do you make that?
0:39:21 > 0:39:26Effectively, it's a tree that has been sliced against a knife
0:39:26 > 0:39:29and in this particular case, it's 1.5mm.
0:39:29 > 0:39:32There's no loss of material and it's all put back
0:39:32 > 0:39:37together in the same order and this constitutes a whole tree.
0:39:37 > 0:39:41We're sticking it back together in the order in which it was
0:39:41 > 0:39:46sliced from the tree and producing laminated sections. Um...
0:39:49 > 0:39:57In this particular case, we have 1.5mm birch veneer and in a normal
0:39:57 > 0:40:02solid timber of this thickness, you would not be able to bend that.
0:40:02 > 0:40:10But because they're individually glued, put together in a stack,
0:40:10 > 0:40:13they will bend.
0:40:13 > 0:40:15- Ah.- And they'll even rotate.
0:40:15 > 0:40:19- Yeah, there's something very beautiful about that.- You can twist.
0:40:19 > 0:40:21And it's all reliant on the glue.
0:40:21 > 0:40:26As the glue sets, it's a rigid glue, so it holds it in that way.
0:40:26 > 0:40:29I can see that if you don't get the glue right,
0:40:29 > 0:40:32- then this whole thing will just unspring itself.- Yeah.
0:40:32 > 0:40:35Cos you're holding a tension, you're holding it in.
0:40:35 > 0:40:39If you use a rubbery glue that does not set glass hard,
0:40:39 > 0:40:42this will eventually just come out
0:40:42 > 0:40:47and be an embarrassing collection of loose parts of veneer.
0:40:49 > 0:40:52The glue is the key to creating plywood.
0:40:52 > 0:40:56Making curved furniture would be impossible without it.
0:40:56 > 0:40:59Each individual layer of veneer is coated with glue,
0:40:59 > 0:41:03before being placed one on top of another.
0:41:03 > 0:41:06The whole stack is then put into a mould,
0:41:06 > 0:41:09where it's bent into shape and left to set.
0:41:09 > 0:41:13The glue sets so hard that once the veneers are removed,
0:41:13 > 0:41:15they're locked into shape.
0:41:15 > 0:41:19And all that's left to do is to cut and finish the final piece.
0:41:23 > 0:41:28The furniture that plywood made possible was curved and contorted.
0:41:28 > 0:41:33When it was introduced in the 1930s, the use of wood in this way
0:41:33 > 0:41:37was considered controversial and its appearance shocking.
0:41:38 > 0:41:43Since then, plywood furniture has redefined the boundaries of what is
0:41:43 > 0:41:48possible with wood and it's become a common feature of modern homes.
0:41:48 > 0:41:51Plywood is not just useful cos it's flexible and mouldable,
0:41:51 > 0:41:54it has another very useful property.
0:41:54 > 0:41:58Take a look at just a normal plank of wood, like this.
0:41:58 > 0:42:01If I put it between these two tables,
0:42:01 > 0:42:04and get a 4kg weight and drop it...
0:42:06 > 0:42:09..it doesn't withstand that impact, and why is that?
0:42:09 > 0:42:13Well, because a plank of wood has a grain,
0:42:13 > 0:42:16so the grain was aligned along the direction of this gap
0:42:16 > 0:42:19and so when the weight hit it, it split along the grain.
0:42:19 > 0:42:23So wood is strong in one direction, and weak in another.
0:42:23 > 0:42:25Plywood is little bits of ply.
0:42:25 > 0:42:30Each one has a grain and each one is actually very weak indeed.
0:42:30 > 0:42:34But, if you crisscross the grains, and glue them together,
0:42:34 > 0:42:38like this, then actually what you build up is a piece of wood
0:42:38 > 0:42:41that's strong in all directions.
0:42:41 > 0:42:46Using seven of these thing sheets, I've made my own piece of plywood.
0:42:46 > 0:42:50Each sheet has been glued together, alternating the grain direction
0:42:50 > 0:42:55each time, before being put into these clamps and being left to set.
0:42:55 > 0:42:58The result is a piece of plywood that is the same
0:42:58 > 0:43:02thickness as my original piece of solid wood.
0:43:02 > 0:43:05OK, so this is the ply, this is crisscross, glued together.
0:43:05 > 0:43:07Now, we'll do the same test on that.
0:43:14 > 0:43:17No problem at all.
0:43:17 > 0:43:21The glue bonds with the wood fibres and sets hard.
0:43:21 > 0:43:25And because the grain of each veneer runs perpendicular to the next,
0:43:25 > 0:43:26the weakness is removed.
0:43:29 > 0:43:33It's this that makes plywood incredibly strong
0:43:33 > 0:43:37and incredibly light, when compared to natural wood.
0:43:37 > 0:43:40It's plywood's strength, flexibility and mouldability that's
0:43:40 > 0:43:43allowed it to have such a big impact on the world.
0:43:43 > 0:43:45And nothing encapsulates that more than this.
0:43:50 > 0:43:53When it entered service during the Second World War,
0:43:53 > 0:43:56the Mosquito was the fastest aircraft in the world.
0:44:00 > 0:44:05And the secret to its success was it was made almost entirely of plywood.
0:44:07 > 0:44:11By using plywood, the precisely shaped aerodynamic
0:44:11 > 0:44:15wing could be made in one single piece.
0:44:15 > 0:44:20What's more, the plywood stressed skin gave the wing enormous
0:44:20 > 0:44:23strength, reducing the need for heavily internal bracing
0:44:23 > 0:44:25and making it incredibly light.
0:44:29 > 0:44:33The fuselage was moulded in two halves, and the whole thing
0:44:33 > 0:44:37was then assembled and glued together, like a model aircraft.
0:44:37 > 0:44:41The result was an aeroplane that was cheap and easy to produce,
0:44:41 > 0:44:43but with a top speed of over 400mph.
0:44:45 > 0:44:49And all because of the remarkable properties of plywood.
0:45:00 > 0:45:03Materials have transformed the way we live,
0:45:03 > 0:45:06extending our day and saving us time.
0:45:09 > 0:45:12They've changed the spaces we choose to live in, allowing us
0:45:12 > 0:45:16to construct homes in bigger, higher and brighter buildings.
0:45:19 > 0:45:23Adapted old stuff and brand-new stuff gives designers and makers
0:45:23 > 0:45:26a huge array of materials from which to produce the modern world.
0:45:31 > 0:45:34But there's one material that defines our age like no other.
0:45:34 > 0:45:38It's versatile, strong and scalable.
0:45:38 > 0:45:41It can be any colour, shape or texture.
0:45:41 > 0:45:45And can be produced to display a dazzling variety of properties.
0:45:47 > 0:45:51It's the rubber in foam rubber and the glue in plywood.
0:45:53 > 0:45:56It's an everyday miracle in its own right
0:45:56 > 0:46:00and has spawned countless more everyday miracles.
0:46:00 > 0:46:05It has many different formulations, but we know it simply as plastic.
0:46:12 > 0:46:16Since the 1930s, plastic has become utterly ubiquitous.
0:46:16 > 0:46:22This factory alone uses over 25,000 tonnes of the stuff every year
0:46:22 > 0:46:26and produces over 10 million toy parts every day.
0:46:39 > 0:46:42The only way these toys can be made in such enormous quantities
0:46:42 > 0:46:46is by using injection moulding machines like these.
0:46:53 > 0:46:55This is a mould from the machine.
0:46:55 > 0:46:58You can see it comes in two halves and they fit together
0:46:58 > 0:47:01and create a cavity on the inside and in this case,
0:47:01 > 0:47:03it looks like that produces a castle.
0:47:03 > 0:47:06I can show you how it works over here cos with a smaller one,
0:47:06 > 0:47:09you can really get into the detail.
0:47:09 > 0:47:13So, it's quite an intricate mechanism. It's a bit like a lock.
0:47:13 > 0:47:16Here, inside, is one half of the mould.
0:47:16 > 0:47:19And as it's closed together, you can
0:47:19 > 0:47:22see that bits of the mould fall into place.
0:47:22 > 0:47:27And as this comes across here and in, there's a cavity created here.
0:47:27 > 0:47:32And then, you get cooling water in here, hot plastic in here,
0:47:32 > 0:47:37and then at the end of that process, out it comes, the piece is made.
0:47:37 > 0:47:41It's there.
0:47:41 > 0:47:47And then, some pins jut forward and they push out the part.
0:47:47 > 0:47:51And there you have a fine bit of injection moulding.
0:47:51 > 0:47:55And this thing that you may be wondering what it is, is a ghost.
0:47:55 > 0:47:58Not a ghost of the machine, but a ghost out of the machine.
0:48:05 > 0:48:08Because you can melt and re-solidify plastics like these,
0:48:08 > 0:48:11they're massively scalable.
0:48:11 > 0:48:14Any size, any shape, it's not a problem.
0:48:16 > 0:48:18Look! Baby seals!
0:48:18 > 0:48:25Tiny little baby seals. This is... I think it's a baby T-Rex's arm.
0:48:25 > 0:48:29And this is a monkey tail.
0:48:29 > 0:48:32So, you can make anything - any size, any shape,
0:48:32 > 0:48:36any colour you want it, they can make it.
0:48:38 > 0:48:41Plastic is the ultimate manufacturing material.
0:48:41 > 0:48:44You can make it into any shape you like.
0:48:44 > 0:48:49A toy, a pen, a computer keyboard, a car bumper, or a boat.
0:48:49 > 0:48:54Tough and durable, or soft and bendy. From airliners to clingfilm.
0:48:54 > 0:48:55It's a designer's dream.
0:48:57 > 0:49:00I mean, look at this thing. It's so intricate. It's got hair.
0:49:00 > 0:49:03Several different materials all made in the same machine at once,
0:49:03 > 0:49:05with moving parts.
0:49:05 > 0:49:09It's sort of an incredible miracle of modern engineering
0:49:09 > 0:49:13and here it is being produced at the rate of 3.2 per second.
0:49:13 > 0:49:16I mean, that's a lot better than the human race is doing.
0:49:16 > 0:49:18We're doing 2.6 children per second.
0:49:26 > 0:49:31In the last 100 years, plastics have come to dominate the material world.
0:49:31 > 0:49:34It seems there really is a plastic for everything.
0:49:37 > 0:49:39They're so common, in fact,
0:49:39 > 0:49:43it's easy to forget that we're often even clothed in plastics.
0:49:48 > 0:49:51In the 1940s, a group of plastic fibres was introduced that
0:49:51 > 0:49:54would change the world of fashion for ever.
0:49:54 > 0:49:59I'm going to attempt to make some plastic fibre
0:49:59 > 0:50:01out of these two chemicals.
0:50:01 > 0:50:03Now, one is a sebacoyl chloride solution
0:50:03 > 0:50:06and the other one is a diaminohexane solution.
0:50:06 > 0:50:10In a minute, you'll see how they react together.
0:50:11 > 0:50:13And I'm pouring it very carefully
0:50:13 > 0:50:17because actually one is oil-based and is floating on the top
0:50:17 > 0:50:21and the other one is water-based and has sunk to the bottom.
0:50:22 > 0:50:26The key thing about these particular chemicals is that the small
0:50:26 > 0:50:29molecules of each liquid are capable of bonding together with
0:50:29 > 0:50:32the molecules of the other to form larger molecules,
0:50:32 > 0:50:35long chains, called polymers.
0:50:35 > 0:50:40And that's exactly what happens where they meet.
0:50:40 > 0:50:44A chemical reaction takes place, creating a delicate film,
0:50:44 > 0:50:47the polymer, between the two liquids.
0:50:47 > 0:50:50If I then remove the film with a pair of tweezers,
0:50:50 > 0:50:54a fresh boundary is created and the reaction continues.
0:50:54 > 0:50:56And I get huge long chains of plastic,
0:50:56 > 0:51:01and as long as I keep pulling, so this will continue.
0:51:01 > 0:51:08If I attach this to this mandrill and rotate, I get as much as I want.
0:51:08 > 0:51:10I just keep rotating this.
0:51:10 > 0:51:13And as long as there are two liquids in this beaker,
0:51:13 > 0:51:16I get more and more of this plastic filament.
0:51:16 > 0:51:19And this was one of the most influential
0:51:19 > 0:51:21plastics in the 20th century.
0:51:21 > 0:51:24And it's called, of course, nylon.
0:51:25 > 0:51:29Nylon was developed by Wallace Carothers at DuPont,
0:51:29 > 0:51:31in the late 1930s.
0:51:31 > 0:51:35It was one of the first fully synthetic fibres.
0:51:35 > 0:51:39And one of the first uses for this new plastic fabric was
0:51:39 > 0:51:43a product which quickly became known as nylons.
0:51:46 > 0:51:49In the early decades of the 20th century,
0:51:49 > 0:51:53the hemlines of fashionable ladies' dresses began to rise.
0:51:53 > 0:51:56Slowly, more and more leg was being revealed.
0:51:59 > 0:52:01What was needed was a cheap,
0:52:01 > 0:52:05sleek and sheer garment to cover the exposed skin.
0:52:05 > 0:52:08Nylon was quickly pressed into service.
0:52:12 > 0:52:16Here, I've got a little box of some of the original nylon tights.
0:52:16 > 0:52:19These are from 1948.
0:52:19 > 0:52:23There we are. Look at that! This is an antique!
0:52:23 > 0:52:25But a beautiful one.
0:52:25 > 0:52:30And look, you can see the shaped leg, the seam down the back.
0:52:30 > 0:52:33These were the must-have item of the time.
0:52:33 > 0:52:37People rioted in the streets if the stocks ran low of this product.
0:52:39 > 0:52:43Woven into stockings, nylon turned a luxury item into something
0:52:43 > 0:52:46actually much better than their expensive silk predecessors.
0:52:48 > 0:52:53Nylons were durable, easy to wash and had an attractive appearance.
0:52:53 > 0:52:57They were so good, in fact, that during World War II,
0:52:57 > 0:53:00when stock was scarce, women were reportedly prepared to fight
0:53:00 > 0:53:02just to get their hands on them.
0:53:05 > 0:53:08But things have actually changed a lot since then.
0:53:08 > 0:53:10They're not made of pure nylon any more.
0:53:10 > 0:53:13In fact, if you take a pair of modern tights
0:53:13 > 0:53:15and have a look at them,
0:53:15 > 0:53:19what you get is actually something that's far more sophisticated.
0:53:19 > 0:53:21It has a lot of give in it, for a start.
0:53:21 > 0:53:24And that's because there's a new material in there,
0:53:24 > 0:53:27not just nylon, but elastane. Here's some nylon.
0:53:27 > 0:53:32And this is a great, nice, stiff, strong fibre, good durability,
0:53:32 > 0:53:35but it doesn't have much give and actually, it'll just snap
0:53:35 > 0:53:36if you pull it too hard.
0:53:36 > 0:53:42And over here is a role of elastane. You might know it as Lycra.
0:53:42 > 0:53:45And this is very stretchy stuff. Look at that!
0:53:45 > 0:53:48And so you can stretch it quite a long way before it breaks.
0:53:48 > 0:53:51So, the thing is, you've got these two things.
0:53:51 > 0:53:53One gives you a very nice feel next to the skin
0:53:53 > 0:53:57and it's very sheer, and the other one gives you this flexibility,
0:53:57 > 0:54:00conforms to any shape you want it to be.
0:54:00 > 0:54:02And how do you combine them together?
0:54:02 > 0:54:04Well, you can either weave them together,
0:54:04 > 0:54:08or you can actually combine them in a single fibre. Look at this.
0:54:08 > 0:54:12So, this has got an elastane core, nylon wrapped around it.
0:54:20 > 0:54:22This factory in Derbyshire produces more
0:54:22 > 0:54:25than 700,000 pairs of tights every week.
0:54:29 > 0:54:33Each is woven and stitched together by an array of balletic
0:54:33 > 0:54:35robotic machines.
0:54:35 > 0:54:37And because of elastane,
0:54:37 > 0:54:41each of the 120 different designs will be a perfect fit,
0:54:41 > 0:54:45something appreciated by the women who work here.
0:54:45 > 0:54:50- So, what would life be like without tights?- Very boring.
0:54:50 > 0:54:54You can dress an outfit up. So they're essential.
0:54:54 > 0:54:57They're not just something to keep you warm,
0:54:57 > 0:55:00they're something to set your outfit off, you know?
0:55:00 > 0:55:02Make you look sexy, make your legs look long.
0:55:02 > 0:55:05- They make you feel sexy as well. - Yeah, make you feel sexy.
0:55:05 > 0:55:09So, life would be less sexy, less interesting and a bit cold.
0:55:09 > 0:55:12If you haven't got time to shave, they're a good cover up!
0:55:12 > 0:55:14LAUGHTER
0:55:17 > 0:55:19Synthetic fibres like nylon
0:55:19 > 0:55:23and elastane epitomise our mastery of materials.
0:55:24 > 0:55:25Our ability to invent
0:55:25 > 0:55:29and engineer new materials specific to our needs and use them
0:55:29 > 0:55:32to manufacture products that are affordable to the greatest
0:55:32 > 0:55:34number of people.
0:55:38 > 0:55:42Our homes, what we put into them, and how we use them,
0:55:42 > 0:55:46have been revolutionised by our ability to make new materials.
0:55:46 > 0:55:50Yet, despite the material diversity of our homes,
0:55:50 > 0:55:53all new materials share some fundamental similarities.
0:55:53 > 0:55:57They make our lives more secure, more comfortable and more enjoyable.
0:56:02 > 0:56:07King Camp Gillette freed up time and made shaving a less hazardous
0:56:07 > 0:56:09pursuit with his disposable razor blade.
0:56:11 > 0:56:14The marvellously unshaven Joseph Swan gave us
0:56:14 > 0:56:17more usable time with his electric light bulb, ultimately
0:56:17 > 0:56:21kick-starting the electrification of our homes and ushering
0:56:21 > 0:56:25in an age of electrically-powered domestic appliances.
0:56:26 > 0:56:29And the world of plastics has delivered to us
0:56:29 > 0:56:33a cornucopia of creature comforts, from cushioning to clothing,
0:56:33 > 0:56:37that nowadays, we just can't imagine being without.
0:56:37 > 0:56:38For centuries, comfort
0:56:38 > 0:56:41and convenience was the preserve of the rich,
0:56:41 > 0:56:44and that's because the objects that made up a home were handmade.
0:56:44 > 0:56:48That's time consuming and expensive. And now, we all live all like kings
0:56:48 > 0:56:50and queens cos we've created materials that can be
0:56:50 > 0:56:53mass-produced, and that's allowed everybody to have
0:56:53 > 0:56:55a bit of comfort and luxury in their homes.
0:56:58 > 0:57:01'Next time, even more miracles.'
0:57:01 > 0:57:06So there you are, that's the raw superconductor levitating itself.
0:57:06 > 0:57:09'I'll be on the road...' It's liberation.
0:57:09 > 0:57:12'..looking at how our mastery of stuff has coaxed us
0:57:12 > 0:57:14'out of our homes
0:57:17 > 0:57:21'and kept us safe, as we travelled further and moved faster.
0:57:21 > 0:57:25'How getting around town landed us up in space.
0:57:27 > 0:57:30'And how our obsession with going further has allowed us to see
0:57:30 > 0:57:32'ourselves in a totally new light.
0:57:34 > 0:57:37'And even become creators.'
0:57:38 > 0:57:41This gives a whole new meaning to a new nose job, doesn't it?
0:57:41 > 0:57:43If you would like to explore some of the everyday
0:57:43 > 0:57:46miracles of engineering and materials,
0:57:46 > 0:57:49have a look at the free learning activities
0:57:49 > 0:57:55on the Open University website. Go to...
0:57:55 > 0:57:57..and follow the links to the Open University.