13x01 - Hammers/Swiss Cheese/Roller Skates/Coloured Pencils

[bunniefuu]

Narrator:
for thousands of years,

Aboriginal peoples
have used drums

To call on healing spirits.

But the sound of the drum itself
can be a source of renewal.

The repetitive beat
can induce a meditative state

Which may actually have
healing properties.

[ Chanting ]

Today, a new generation
beats the drum

To heal body and spirit.

These young men

Are from the tewa tribe
of northern new mexico.

Like their ancestors
before them,

They chant and drum
in a rhythmic appeal to heal.

To make a healing drum,

They start with pieces
of pine or spruce --

Soft woods that are lightweight.

The native craftsman creates
an octagonal design

And leaves the glue joints
to dry.

The next craftsman

Soaks a cowhide in water
to make it soft and pliable.

He drapes the wet hide
over a drum frame

And as he does, he looks
for cuts or thin patches.

He arranges it so that any flaws
aren't apparent.

He then trims the hide.

This particular drum
is for powwows.

So it's extra large.

It's a two-sided version
for a deeper tone.

He pulls the wet hide
to the desired tension

And punches holes
in the skirting.

He hammers nails
through the holes

To tack the hide to the frame
and cuts a scalloped edge.

He then tacks a hide
to the other side.

He places another piece
of wet rawhide on a spiral blade

And pounds the hide into it
using a hickory mallet.

This slices the leather
into a long, thin lace.

He extracts the lace
from the cutter.

After softening it with water,
he takes it outside.

He wraps one end around a post
and pulls,

Stretching the leather
to remove slack.

It breaks at any weak points,
leaving the strongest parts.

He now laces the leather
drumheads to the frame.

He cuts a slit in the end
and pulls the rest of the lace

Through the slit
to knot it to the drumhead.

He zigzags the lacing

Through alternate holes
in the the two drumhead hides.

He tugs the lace as he goes

To pull the leather drumheads
tightly to the frame.

Once complete,
he knots the other end.

He threads the second piece
of lace

Through the remaining holes,
creating a crisscross pattern.

Paint applied
to the frame early on

Shows through
the crisscross weave.

The leather dries
to a dark patina

For a stunning contrast
to the blue hue.

This double-sided drum
is now ready for a powwow.

To make
a single-sided healing drum,

They bend a piece of wood
into a complete circle.

A craftsperson signs and stamps
the maker's information

On the inside.

Then it's over
to the drum maker.

She pulls a wet hide
to the wooden hoop

And folds it under the rim,
smoothing out any puckers.

She punches holes for securing
the drumhead to the wooden hoop

And slices off the excess hide.

She's now ready to lace
the drumhead to the frame.

She ties the skin to the frame
in a configuration

That looks like the spokes
of a bicycle wheel.

She pulls it tightly
for the desired tonality.

It's all in the technique.

If she doesn't get it right now,

The wet drumhead will warp
as it dries.

The leather spokes meet
at the center in a cross

Where the drummer will grip it.

The leather darkens as it dries
and the tension sets.

She now weaves strips
of tanned leather

Around the cross at the center.

It's a decorative touch
that also gives the drummer

Something more substantial
to hold on to.

The drummer will hook a thumb
in the cross section

To hold the drum
with an open hand.

An artist paints symbolic images
on the native healing drum.

She works freestyle.

A few strokes of the brush
produce a buffalo...

And then then an entire herd.

[ Drumming, people chanting ]

For native peoples
of north america,

The bison is a symbol
of strength and unity.

A corn maiden painting on a drum
represents abundance.

It's art designed to help one
heal to the beat.

[ Drumming, chanting continue ]

Narrator: incredibly,
people have been drying grapes

To turn them into raisins
for 2,000 years.

Today, there are potato chips
and chocolate bars,

But people are still snacking
on raisins.

Preserved and sweetened
by the drying process,

They can still be enjoyed
anytime, anywhere.


On the snack circuit,

And raisins still get
plenty of nibbles.

They're also
a popular ingredient

In baked goods, cereals,
and salads.

At this california vineyard,

They plant grapevine cuttings
in late winter.

They're the seedless kind.

These cuttings take three years
to grow and bear fruit.

Each winter,
they prune the vines,

Cutting away weaker canes
and dead wood.

Pruning reduces
the number of buds.

So the plant's energy
goes to the ones that remain,

Resulting
in larger fruit clusters.

They twist the remaining chutes
around an overhead wire trellis

And tie them to it.

Grapevines are natural climbers.

Securing them to the trellis

Positions them to grow in an arc
for maximum sun exposure.

They pipe water
between the rows.

It pools there
and seeps into the soil

And down to the roots
of the vines.

These particular vines are
growing on t-shaped trellises.

It's an older style of trellis.

When the grapes ripen,
they cut the canes.

The fruit continues to hang
there and it dries on the vines.

After 6 to 8 weeks, the grapes
shrivel up and become raisins.

A harvester with comb-like teeth

Shakes the raisins
from the vines.

They fall onto a conveyer,
and a vacuum pulls out leaves

And then shoots the raisins
into bins.

On this particular harvester,

The conveyer and the bins
are on board.

The t-trellises require
a different harvesting system,

And the bins are outside
in the next row.

Once full,
a loader retrieves the bin,

And then it's on its way
to the packing plant.

Upon arrival, these raisins
undergo extensive scrutiny.

An inspector from the u.s.
Department of agriculture

Looks for defects as the raisins
bounce by on a shaker conveyer.

Technicians also test

The moisture content and
general quality of the fruit.

A vacuum
removes twigs and stems.

They're lighter than the raisins

And so they
can be easily pulled out.

Here's a sample of the raisins
as they arrive from the field.

And here they are
with the plant debris removed.

They often store the raisins for
weeks before further production.

And during this time,

The raisins stick together
and form clumps.

A revolving wheel with paddles

Now breaks up the clumps
and separates the raisins.

They tumble off the conveyer and
onto a perforated shaker table.

This separates any raisins which
may still be clinging together.

Some cap stems remain.

These bits link the grapes
to the vine stems.

The raisins now flow
into cone-shaped machines

That spin them
to knock off the cap stems

Without damaging the raisins.

Once the raisins
have been sorted by size,

They travel under sprayers
for a rinse,

Wash, and then another rinse.

They cruise by a laser
that detects

Any missed cap stems
or plant material.

A blast of air
then gets rid of them.

Next, the raisins go
into an inspection station

And a worker picks out

Any material that may have been
missed by the laser.

With her approval, the raisins
are ready for packaging.

Suctioning devices grab
and unfold snack-sized boxes

And place them, lid up,
on a high-speed conveyer or.

Raisins spill
into the open snack boxes,

And it's all a blur.

They fill 30,000 snack boxes
an hour at this facility.

It takes about a year to grow
and dry these raisins

And just minutes
to package them.

Stored in a cool, dry place,
they will last a year --

Unless someone eats them first.

Narrator: stereoscopic viewers
date back to the 1840s.

Then, you had to manually insert
one photograph at a time.

In 1939, a new type of viewer
was introduced

Which used a reel of slides
instead of printed photographs.

You advance from one to the next
by pulling on a lever.

Early stereoscopic viewers gave
people a way to see the world.

When viewers with reels came
out, travel remained the focus.

You could visit a tourist site,

Then buy yourself a reel
at the gift shop as a souvenir.

Today, 3-d viewers
are also a business tool.

Companies use them
as a creative way

To market products
or train employees.

And consumers now buy them
as a novelty or gift,

Going online
to order custom reels

Featuring
their personal photographs.

Whatever the purpose,
it's all about the pictures.

The manufacturer can use photos
shot with a 3-d digital camera

Or with
a standard digital camera.

The company's editor transfers
the photographs to a computer

And types a caption
for each one.

If the photos were taken
with the regular camera,

He performs some computer magic.

He moves the image backwards,
away from the viewer's eyes,

Then floats the text
in the foreground

Closer to the viewer's eyes.

This little trick

Makes the photo
appear to be 3-dimensional.

He puts two of each photo
on a reel template.

You view one with each eye and
your brain combines the two,

Creating 3-dimensional depth.

A photo and title in the center
identify the reel.

Then the editor sends
the assembled reel file

To a photo processing lab

And sets up the number of copies
to be printed.

The photo processor's lasers

Print the photographs pixel
by pixel on polyester film.

The machine prints
a full sheet of 35 reels

In exactly


Then the sheet travels

Through a series
of chemical baths and a dryer.

And 11 1/2 minutes later,
the film is ready.

The editor carefully inspects
every photo on every reel.

If everything's perfect,

He feeds the film
through a laminator.

The machine sandwiches the film

Between two sheets
of transparent plastic

Then uses
simultaneous pressure and heat

To fuse everything together.

Encased in plastic,

The floppy film is now rigid
and three times thicker.

They now feed the laminated film

Into a hydraulic
punching machine.

Its cookie-cutter type dies

Slice the perimeter
of the reels,

Releasing them from the sheet.

The viewer itself is made up
of injection-molded plastic.

A worker secures the front part
in an assembly fixture

Then places plastic lenses
in the eyeholes.

A machine then expands the
plastic, locking in the lenses.

Preparing two viewers
at a time now,

He places a frosted plastic
panel on the back part

To diffuse the daylight
or artificial light

Coming into the viewer.

An inner eyepiece
goes over the diffuser,

Then this machine applies heat
to fuse it in place.

Next, the lever you pull down
to advance from photo to photo.

This spring returns it to the
"up" position after each pull.

Now he mates
the two parts of the viewer.

A high-pressure air press

Squeezes them together
in a permanent bond.

The finishing touch --
a printing pad

Stamps the front of the viewer
with the brand name.

Stereoscopic viewers
have come a long way

Since their invention
in the 1800s.

While still offering
a dose of nostalgia,

There's a new twist --

Putting your very own photos
on a reel as a unique gift

Or a fun way to relive
those vacation memories.

Narrator: the ribbon microphone
was invented in the 1920s

And first commercially produced
in 1931.

It's called a ribbon microphone
because inside,

A thin aluminum ribbon
positioned between two magnets

Converts sound waves
into electrical signals.

Introduced in 1931, ribbon
microphones revolutionized

The broadcasting and
audio recording industries

With unprecedented
sound quality.

This company manufactures
a modern version of the rca-44,

One of the first
ribbon microphones.

This manufacturer handcrafts
the microphone,

Starting with the frame,
which holds all the components.

After cutting
a flat piece of brass,

The machinist
makes two bends with a press,

Then drills threaded holes
for the fasteners

That will connect the frame
to the rest of the microphone.

Then he puts the bar
into another press

That bends the two ends upward
to form a u-shape.

The frame goes off
to another department

To be chrome-plated
and polished.

Meanwhile,

Another machinist takes
a sheet of perforated brass

To begin forming the
microphone's signature grille.

He secures it to a die
with two mounting plates.

The die is the shape of one half
of the multisided grille.

He mounts it onto a fly press,

A press operated by rotating
a heavy counterweight.

As that counterweight spins, the
die descends into a forming mold

That's also in the shape
of half of the grille.

A high-speed automated cutter
trims the perimeter

To make a neat, even edge
all around.

Then the grille halves

Are sent off to be chrome-plated
and polished.

Next, a technician
assembles the motor,

The heart of the microphone.

First, he snaps on
two strong magnets.

The gap between them

Is where he'll later insert
the key component --

The thin aluminum ribbon

Which gives this type
of microphone its name.

After aligning the top
of the motor with the bottom,

He attaches the frame,

Which has since acquired
a custom-made transformer,

Electrical terminals,
and side brackets.

Now for
the all-important ribbon.

A technician crafts it

From a hair-thin sheet
of pure aluminum.

It's so fragile, he
has to handle it with tweezers.

First, using the edge
of a razor blade,

He glues down the edges
to a thin sheet of paper

Set on a glass cutting surface.

Then, he places a second sheet
of paper on top

And, with a razor blade,
slices lengthwise,

Dividing it into 4 ribbons,
each 2/10 of an inch wide.

When sound waves
pass through the microphone,

They cause minute differences
in air pressure

Between the front and the back
of the ribbon inside.

This causes the ribbon to move

In response to the peaks
and valleys of the sound wave.

The technician corrugates
the ribbon so that it responds

To this minute air-pressure
changes more accurately.

He removes the protective papers

And installs the ribbon in the
motor, between the two magnets.

In this position,

The moving ribbon is a conductor
in a magnetic field,

Generating a tiny current --

An electrical replica
of the sound wave

That can recorded, amplified,
or broadcasted.

A technician tests
the ribbon's tension

To ensure it's neither too tight
nor too loose.

He hooks up the terminals
to an audio signal generator

And measures at what frequency
the ribbon resonates.

If necessary, he tunes the
ribbon by adjusting its tension.

He installs
what's called a puff shield.

It prevents puffs of air

From stretching or tearing
the delicate ribbon.

A two-part metal housing

Will encase the lower part
of the motor.

However, before assembling it,

A technician glues on
an embossed medal medallion

Bearing the company's logo.

Then he takes the motor,

Which by now has acquired
an output cable,

Stands it upside down, and
assembles the housing around it.

Then he turns it right-side up

And assembles the two halves
of the grille.

A sleek-looking chrome-plated
band hides the joint.

He fastens the microphone to
a u-shaped stand called a yoke.

On each side,
there's a thumb nut,

Which you loosen to tilt the mic

Then tighten
to lock the position.

Although newer technologies
have emerged since,

The classic ribbon microphone
still remains a favorite

Of sound engineers
around the world.

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