For the final episode of season 2 we’re heading to Moscow on suggestion of a listener to learn about the history of the famously colourful St Basil’s Cathedral. St Basil’s Cathedral is a monument of many colours and many names, with Vivan describing it as “a Disneyland looking castle with colourful vaguely onion shaped domes”, […]
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Season 2 – Episode 11: Norway’s Tunnel Highways
This episode we’re back on the road(s) again! Vivian’s been itching to do another roads episode ever since the Via Appia all the way back at the start of season 1, and today we’re not just exploring one road but an entire road system: Norway’s tunnel highways. The decision to take this podcast road trip […]
Season 2 – Episode 10: Hagia Sofia
From Basilica to Cathedral to Mosque to Museum, this episode’s monument spans across 1,600 years, multiple empires, and centuries upon centuries of dedicated engineers and architects keeping it in proper repair: The Hagia Sofia In the city that today is known as Istanbul, the first iteration of the Hagia Sofia was built in 360AD, at […]
Season 2 – Episode 09: The RADARSAT Constellation Mission
Just how many black rhinos could Canada into orbit? What exactly is a satellite constellation? What is the Canadian Space Agency doing to help protect Canadians from natural disasters? With the help of special guest Geneviève Houde, Systems Engineer for the CSA, we answer all of these questions in this week’s episode. Nearly all of our episodes so […]
Season 2 – Episode 08: The Port of Buenos Aires
This episode comes via special request from a listener, and is the first engineering project of its kind on the podcast: The Port of Buenos Aires. Being the first port on the podcast we get the opportunity not just to discover the history of the project itself but also to learn about the complex multidisciplinary […]
Season 2 – Episode 07: The Great Zimbabwe
For our first monument on the African continent we examine the The Great Zimbabwe. This Iron Age city in southern Africa lies mostly in ruins today, but at the height of its power between the 11th and 15th century housed as many as 20,000 people. We’ll discuss what we know about this site today, and […]
Season 2 – Episode 06: International Women in Engineering Day
In honour of International Women in Engineering Day on June 23rd we’re breaking the usual format to share a panel-style interview featuring current and former colleagues of Vivian, Pippa Higgins and Arianne Cowx. Throughout this episode John interviews Vivian, Arianne, and Pippa, looking for insights from their personal experiences within the engineering industry. Throughout this […]
Season 2 – Episode 05: The Great Wall of China
Spanning over 20,000km and connecting eras of China’s history across more than two millennia, this episode we discuss an engineering monument visible from low earth orbit, The Great Wall of China. In the west we typically learn that the wall was built to protect northern China from Mongolian invaders but the true story is a […]
Season 2 – Episode 04: The CN Tower
The topic for this episode comes straight out of our figurative backyard – The CN Tower! This iconic Canadian landmark was the world’s tallest building from its opening in 1976 right up until 2007 and today we find out how and why this concrete and steel behemoth was built. Originally built and owned by CN […]