Archeologists use available clues to reconstruct ancient civilizations in Marajó Island in the mouth of the Amazon in Brazil. Potsherds found in 91 sites led to a reconstruction of the civilization through stratigraphy and seriation.

Introduced by American ambassador to Great Britain, Walter Gifford, this is the first British television program recorded and broadcast in the United States. A history of television in Britain follows, from the father of British TV John Logie Baird to the present where television signals are carried throughout the country by cables and radio links to broadcast towers from London to Scotland. A brief film of an early British television program originally broadcast in 1936 with the singer Sylvia Peters and ballerina Margot Fonteyn is shown. This is the first of three broadcasts originating in Great Britain about developments in British science, and is the only one known to still be in existence.

Small amounts of money invested in scientific research have led to great benefits for mankind worth many times the initial investments. Great strides in research have brought about the development of the magnetic recorder, silica gel as a drying agent, coal power as an energy source for large motors, and the use of the spectroscope in the steel industry and astronomy.

Researchers design propellers for torpedoes so that they can go faster, farther, quieter and travel more accurately. Use of a water tunnel helps measure cavitation that aids in the design of propellers that will reduce cavitation to benefit U.S. naval operations.

The process of blood transfusion is explained as it passes from the donor to the blood bank to the recipient. The discovery that the addition of sodium citrate to blood will preserve blood and keep it from coagulating, led to the development of blood banks.

Fluorine is needed for healthy tooth growth and to prevent tooth decay. Studies show that areas with fluoridated water supplies have much less incidence of tooth decay in children. One part of fluorine added to a million parts of water is the optimum amount. Addition of fluorine does not affect the color, taste, odor, or turbidity of the water.

Scientific research at American universities has led to many important discoveries and applications during the first half of the twentieth century. Research on botulism, kidney function, human heat tolerance, x-rays and other topics from the University of California at Berkeley, University of Pennsylvania, UCLA, Indiana University and other institutions are featured.

Solar power is used by plants for creation of starch and sugar which releases oxygen into the air. This process is known as photosynthesis. Research into solar energy will lead to harnessing the energy from the sun to become a reliable source of power.

Dr. Abel Wolman describes the purpose of a university as a place to search for truth without interference. When research is in its initial stages, the information generated does not appear to have any useful application. By using case studies, the show demonstrates that basic research can have profound implications. Dr. Wolman provides some examples of how seemingly insignificant research can lead to important discoveries: Josiah Willard Gibbs, professor of theoretical physics; Henry A. Rowland, builder of the engine for ruling diffraction gratings; and Ira Remsen, developer of saccharine. Next, Dr. Francis Schwenkter describes recent medical inventions, instruments, and investigations that revolutionized the world: the circulation of spinal fluid, the properties of folic acid, and the treatment of blue babies, cancer, and rickets.

This program takes place during the meeting of the American Roentgen Ray Society in Washington, DC, where new developments in X-ray technology are exhibited. After Lynn Poole explains x-rays' discovery by William Roentgen (1895), their definition, and their use, Dr. Russell Morgan interviews three scientists from the conference. Dr. E.S. Gurdjian, a Wayne State University radiologist, describes types of automobile accidents and shows how x-rays can demonstrate the severity of skull fractures at different speeds. Dr. Wallace Tirman, of Caylor Nichol Institute in Bluffton, Indiana, demonstrates a technique for using fine-grain film to make x-rays viewable under a microscope. These microradiographs show thin slices of body tissue for analysis on a diffraction x-ray unit. Dr. Jeffrey P. Moore, of Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia, shows that inserting a needle into a patient's back and injecting an opaque material is a more direct method for x-raying the spinal column to diagnose cartilage problems.