Dr. Olsen, one of the team of scientists from the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab, briefly discusses the history of fire. He explains the zones and structure of a candle's flame and uses the Schlieren system of photography to detect the density gradients in the rising gas. Capt. Gayhart discusses the study of early spark-ignited flames, and he diagrams the operation of the Schlieren system. Mr. Edmondson shows three films of a flame's development in a stream of combustible gas taken at 100,000, 20 million, and 200 million frames per second.

Under supervision of physics teacher Malcolm Davies, students from the Rocket Club of the Baltimore Polytechnic Institute demonstrate the thrust of a CO2 cylinder on a student-built dynamometer. They then use the CO2 capsule to propel a rocket on a horizontal wire. Student Julian Palmore compares zinc, sulfur, and a mixture of the two as alternate rocket propellants and explains a diagram of a student-built rocket. Another student explains the laws of uniform acceleration as a rocket rises and falls. Film clips and photos document the actual launch the students' rocket project. Mr. Davies exhibits two related books on the subject: Tomorrow's Air Age by Holmes Alexander and Your Trip in Space by Lynn Poole.

This program focuses on the scientific achievements of four U. S. universities. At Indiana University, Vaclav Hlavaty solved the differential equations of unified gravitational and electromagnetic field thus providing proof for Einstein's unified field theory. Erwin Schrodinger and Karl Schwarzschild, pioneers in this research, are also discussed. From the New York University, Dr. Serge A. Korff directed a study of the effects of cosmic radiation from a high altitude observatory built on Mt. Wrangell in Alaska. His plane pilot was Dr. Terris Moore, president of the University of Alaska. University of Pittsburgh's Dr. Buchsbaum, professor of zoology, worked with colleagues to research how cells bathed in a nutrient fluid react to drugs and disease. A film shows these cell reactions under a phase-contrast microscope. Under the direction of Henry J. Gomberg, William Kerr, assistant director of the Michigan Memorial Phoenix Project and assistant professor of electrical engineering at the University of Michigan are investigating peaceful uses of atomic energy. They have developed a beta ray microscope that uses radioactive isotopes as tracers in specimens under microscopic investigation. This allows them to see how atoms are distributed in alloys and tracing the path of carbon in plants.

Dr. Edgerton outlines the origin of plastic surgery beginning with the Hindus, who were famous for reconstruction of missing noses in what has been termed the Indian method. In the 15th century, the Branca family developed techniques for other facial reconstruction, called the Italian method, shown in diagrams. Gaspare Tagliacozzi, the true father of plastic surgery, wrote a textbook on the subject in the 16th century. Carl von Graefe was the first to use the term "plastic" in his 1818 work Rinoplastik. Johns Hopkins University's Dr. John Staige Davis published the first American textbook on plastic surgery and established the first formal training program in the specialty. In discussing modern plastic surgery, Dr. Edgerton notes that it is not necessarily centered on the face or visible external features. Common uses of plastic surgery are to correct congenital deformities, such as cleft palette; burns; disease, such as cancer; and disfigurement from war or high speed accidents.

Dr. Cuthbert C. Hurd of IBM describes how the 701 computer can solve a complex physics problem as well as translate Russian to English in a fraction of the time a person could perform these tasks. On film from General Electric Labs in New York, Ted Baum explains the development, design features, operation, and uses of the mechanical arm.

In a dramatization, a mother and daughter in their kitchen react to an assortment of food and health-related superstitions they believe while the announcer explains the basis and origin of many of them, such as eggshell color as indicator of nutrient, ailments from aluminum, hiccups remedies, sneeze superstitions, and other food misconceptions. Lynn Poole adds to the list: the beneficial properties of coffee and tea, smoking to ward off disease, night-borne illnesses, the evil eye. Superstitions surrounding medical treatment, such as treating wounds with "sympathy powder," is also addressed.

Dr. Boyer tells the viewers that concrete is composed of cement, water, sand, and aggregate or coarse gravel in proper proportions. He notes that "Portland" is not a trade name for cement but rather a standard cement powder formula named by an English bricklayer in 1824 for the isle of Portland. The Romans used concrete, made from Mt. Vesuvius's volcanic rock and sand, to construct many of their famous buildings. Mixing concrete is compared to following a recipe since measurement is critical. Furthermore, the chemistry of concrete is such that it requires moisture for 7-10 days to properly harden. Dr. Boyer enumerates the versatility of concrete and shows how pre-casting concrete of precise forms speeds up construction. He then discusses concrete use in bridge building. Because concrete is strong in compression but relatively weak in tensile strength, reinforced concrete with embedded steel was developed in 1850, and pre-stressed concrete, held in a permanent squeeze with steel wires and bars, is now used in bridges and many other applications.

Lynn Poole displays and discusses various symbols including: the skull and crossbones, horseshoe, swastika, barber pole, cigar store Indian, mortar and pestle, and chevron. Words can be symbols also. Latin, although not spoken today as a living language is still used in scientific communication. Latin began as the language of Rome and its vicinity, but through many conquests the Romans spread the use of Latin to the rest of Italy and what is now France, Spain, and North Africa. The Romans also conquered Greece, but since Green was also a highly developed literary language, the Greeks retained their own language. Latin also became the language of the Roman Catholic Church and medieval universities. Many scientific discoveries made during the Renaissance and the early modern period were given names in Latin. Even today Latin names such as Zea mays (corn) are used in scientific communication. Carl von Linné or Carolus Linneaus in Latin classified life forms in an orderly way using Latin terms. In his classification of kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus and species, a dog would be animal, chordata, mammalia, carnivora, canidae, canis familiarus. The Babylonians were fond of the number 60, which is retained today in 60 seconds in a minute, and 60 minutes in an hour, and even 360 degrees in a circle, which is 6 times 60. Weights and measures have been standardized so that they mean the same thing all over the world.

A U. S. Forest Service film shows a forest's natural enemies: fire and destructive insects such as the spruce bark beetle. Mr. Mann further elaborates on the natural enemies of wood by including fungi, insects such as termites, and marine borers such as gribbles, and displays examples of damage done by each. He says that for wood preservatives to be useful, they must be poisonous to destructive organisms but not to humans or animals, permanent, non-corrosive, and inexpensive. He then discusses the chemicals in the creosote, oil-borne, and water-borne preservatives. Mr. Warnes compares the strength and fire retardation of treated and untreated wood and explains why treated wood is non-combustible. He further demonstrates a cylinder that pressure treats wood with preservative and notes that the primary markets for such wood are railroad crossties, poles, and crossarms; fenceposts and other farm-related uses; and housing. An industry film shows the detailed process of pressure creosoting large quantities of wood.

A film produced by the U. S. Air Force's Air Research and Development Command in conjunction with the Atomic Energy Commission depicts the testing ground in Nevada where 20 bombs (14 aerial) were exploded in the last two years. Major General John S. Mills commands the Air Force at the site. During atmospheric nuclear tests, aircraft track the atomic cloud, survey blasted acres with radiation counters, and gather samples from within the atomic cloud. Tests are conducted on the effects of the atomic blast on aircraft and on flash blindness in man. The film follows the preparation and launching of an A-bomb, emphasizing the precision of the bomb drop. A second film by the Civil Aeronautics Commission shows research being conducted on the effects on man of bailouts from jet aircraft and of explosive decompression. Wind tunnel tests reveal the stresses on a subject under differing angles and velocities, in varying positions, and clothed and unclothed.