Engines of Our Ingenuity

143

The story of technological progress is one of drama and intrigue, sudden insight and plain hard work. Let’s explore technology’s spectacular failures and many magnificent success stories.

This content is in service of Houston Public Media’s education mission and is sponsored by the University of Houston. It is not a product of our news team.

Recent Episodes
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1363: Man the Treasure
    Apr 28, 2025 – 3:38
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1362: Flying Across the Atlantic
    Apr 27, 2025 – 3:43
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1360: Cleaning Ourselves
    Apr 26, 2025 – 3:42
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1359: Windmills
    Apr 25, 2025 – 3:42
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2452: Kitchen Gadgetry
    Apr 24, 2025 – 3:49
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2268: The Lucifer Effect
    Apr 23, 2025 – 3:50
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2557: The Google Ranking System
    Apr 22, 2025 – 3:49
  • The Engines of our Ingenuity 1358: William Minor and the OED
    Apr 21, 2025 – 3:43
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1357: Testing Airplane Propellers
    Apr 20, 2025 – 3:41
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1356: Betting on Science
    Apr 19, 2025 – 3:44
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1355: George Squire
    Apr 18, 2025 – 3:45
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2450: A Musical Tradition
    Apr 17, 2025 – 3:52
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2419: Perfecting Coffee
    Apr 16, 2025 – 3:51
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 3310: Romantic Nature
    Apr 15, 2025 – 3:50
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 3311: Aerial Warfare in 1918
    Apr 14, 2025 – 3:52
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1353: Small Towns
    Apr 13, 2025 – 3:45
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1351: M & Mme Blanchard
    Apr 12, 2025 – 3:39
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1350: Amerigo Vespucci
    Apr 11, 2025 – 3:43
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2447: Simple But Brilliant
    Apr 10, 2025 – 3:50
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2010: George McJunkin and Ales Hrdlicka
    Apr 9, 2025 – 3:50
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2780: Mail Plane to History Maker
    Apr 8, 2025 – 3:40
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1349: Short-Lived Technologies
    Apr 7, 2025 – 3:41
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1348: Castel Del Monte
    Apr 6, 2025 – 3:45
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1347: Inventing Money
    Apr 5, 2025 – 3:44
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1346: 1900
    Apr 4, 2025 – 3:43
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2444: Of Wombats and Armadillos
    Apr 3, 2025 – 3:50
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2944: Max Planck’s Triumphs and Tragedies
    Apr 2, 2025 – 3:50
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2497: From Texas to Central Park
    Apr 1, 2025 – 3:48
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1345: The Pantheon
    Mar 31, 2025 – 3:45
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1344: The Monitor’s Flush Toilet
    Mar 30, 2025 – 3:41
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1343: Forgotten Lore
    Mar 29, 2025 – 3:44
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1041: Chinese Pharmacy
    Mar 28, 2025 – 3:31
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2441: Temple Geometry
    Mar 27, 2025 – 3:50
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2408: Roman Political Invective
    Mar 26, 2025 – 3:51
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2249: Mrs. Coade’s Stone
    Mar 25, 2025 – 3:49
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1040: Humanism and Feminism
    Mar 24, 2025 – 3:32
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1342: Wright and Langley
    Mar 23, 2025 – 3:44
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1341: Physiology in 1872
    Mar 22, 2025 – 3:41
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1340: Animals and Emotion
    Mar 21, 2025 – 3:43
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2437: Fire in the Kitchen
    Mar 20, 2025 – 3:50
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2075: Rudolph Ackerman
    Mar 19, 2025 – 3:45
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2382: The Invention of the Paperboy
    Mar 18, 2025 – 3:50
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1339: The Good Soldier Svejk
    Mar 17, 2025 – 3:42
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1055: Roller Skates
    Mar 16, 2025 – 3:30
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1054: Bats
    Mar 15, 2025 – 3:29
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1052: Of Wasps Making Paper
    Mar 14, 2025 – 3:40
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2434: Physics of Metaphysics
    Mar 13, 2025 – 3:50
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 2696: Winged Words
    Mar 12, 2025 – 3:48
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1051: A Conservation Lab
    Mar 10, 2025 – 3:29
  • The Engines of Our Ingenuity 1049: Hugh Miller
    Mar 9, 2025 – 3:37
Recent Reviews
  • Fatnessmonster8
    This cannot end
    I have been listening to this for 3 years and I cannot get enough. I listen to it in the car with my kids, although they are very young they are hearing about the wonders of engineeringand how inventive minds work
  • Evanpf
    My First Exposure to Science
    I remember listening to this show everyday on my way to elementary school. Thank you, John Lienhart for the great memories.
  • Jbjrcatches
    Each episode is packed with knowledge, like an espresso bean.
    Great starting point for exploring new subjects.
  • Dr. Eitz
    Broad range of subjects
    The podcasters cover an amazing array of subjects, but each presented in an engaging short format.
  • JhnnyBeeGud
    Favorite
    Been a long-time fan. Tremendous breadth in selection of topics. Highly recommended to anyone with curiosity!
  • Japandy
    Engaging, Pleasant, & Conscise
    As a non-engineer/non-scientist, this refeshingly concise podcast is consistently approachable and engaging.
  • Michael D. McAuley
    Couldn’t Ask for a Better History of Science and Engineering Podcast
    Have been listening for years, and John Lienhard is still going strong!
  • regulan
    Shameless oil sponsor ship.
    I’ve been listing to this podcast for almost a decade and deleted it from my feed today. It’s a science podcast that now has an oil industry sponsor. Helping global warming on a science podcast is despicable. Goodbye.
  • Art in Austin
    A magic and necessary part of every day
    From the heart, to the heart.
  • doubledoc12
    Houston radio's hidden gem
    I grew up listening to this every morning, and it always gave me a sense of wonder for innovation. I still get chills listening to it now; as an adult, I can better appreciate the more abstract pieces on history, philosophy, and human mechanics. It is as well-scripted as any radiolab or invisibilia episode and packs both an incredible childlike curiosity and a systematic analysis into a shockingly short monologue. John Lienhard has certainly left a legacy in this series.
  • explorerbob
    I look forward to every new episode
    this is one of the first podcasts I check for updates
  • MidshipmenVoyage
    Bold and factual
    Good discussion of vital topics.
  • Stentorianexpress
    Well written
    Good podcast about technology and it's interaction with human life.
  • billjank
    The intersection of Engineering and Everything
    Dr. Lienhard’s program is well written, insightful, and a tribute to its staff. In the tradition of the five “Why?”s, it digs deeper into the intersection of science and our lives, otherwise known as engineering, and brings out the humans behind our stuff.
  • PFargot
    No longer available
    This was an excellent podcast, but it is no longer available. Checking his site, it seems that Dr. John Lienhard's episodes are all produced as M3Us now. This is strange, as M3Us simply contain a path to a MP3. Why the decision to block out podcast listeners from this show is a puzzling one.
  • Reed77
    Excellent By Any Measure
    I listen to this show on my morning drive to work when my schedule fits and then catch up with episodes I've missed via podcast, usually while I'm traveling. Dr. Leinhard has a knack for picking interesting subjects related to science and engineering and then sharing remarkable depth and background on the topic in a few short minutes. I've yet to listen to an EoOI episode that didn't teach me something I didn't know, and I've been listening for years.
  • Brad in STL
    Believe it or not -- A family tradition
    On and off for 15 years I've been taking a break at 12:05 to listen to Engines of Our Ingenuity on my hometown radio station. When I moved away to college, my father taped them for me, and they would take up the first few hours of the long drives between home and school. When I moved to St. Louis, I listen to Engines online every day I can; if I'm away, Dad gets me a number so I can listen later. My kids (3rd grade and kindergarten) have their own favorite episodes. I love being able to sit for four minutes and learn something every single day. Thanks to everybody at the University of Houston and KUHF for their support of Engines.
  • chelseagirl19
    Ingenious!
    Ingenious indeed.
  • Fredcritter
    Wow!
    In the olden days--before podcasts--I was always thrilled when I happened to catch this show on one of the local public FM stations. So I'm especially thrilled that I can now pick it up regularly as a podcast. John Lienhard has a knack for putting invention and discovery into context and giving it a human face, and has developed the rare skill of telling charming and tremendously interesting stories in very short periods of time. Thank you Dr. Lienhard, thank you University of Houston, thank you KUHF, and thank you iTunes for bringing these to us!
  • Corvi
    Making connections, uncovering history
    Excellent, short and regular podcast from John Lienhard,looking at the history of scientific advancement and looking at the seeds of creative individuals and ideas.
  • DrinkingFrog
    The Best Few Minutes of My Day
    I have been listening to "Engines" for several years, and I do everything I can to hear it every day. Dr.Lienhard's ability to clearly show us how science, invention, art, literature, history, and our present all intermingle to form the world we are in today, as well as our future, always fascinates me. Dr. Lienhard has the same vision as many of the figures he so sincerely admires. Listen to just one of these episodes, and you will be not only hooked, but educated. Bravo, Dr. Lienhard! Bravo!
  • ancientlore
    Highly recommended
    Dr. Lienhard's program is a compelling and interesting look into the history of technology and its impact on our lives. I'm aware of no other program like it, and it's not to be missed!
  • Mythmaker
    Terrific "driveway" moments
    Engines has aired on KUHF in Houston for many years and I've always wanted a way to retrieve the most interesting episodes to play for my literature students at a local college. The best "engines" blend science, engineering, art, music, literature, and common sense into quirky tales that illuminate the best of our human interaction with the world in history and today.
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