Friction brakes are brilliantly simple, but they're a huge waste of energy. How can different vehicles - from trucks and trains to bikes and elevators - work more efficiently with energy-saving regenerative brakes?

With thousands of fossil-fuel power plants dotted round the world, we're locked into burning huge amounts of carbon for decades to come. Can carbon capture and storage help us get around the problem and slow the effects of climate change?

What's the difference between an old-style Hoover and a new-style Dyson? This week, we take a quick look at the technology that gets your rugs and carpets clean...

From the alphabet to the Internet, enjoy a 10,000-year, whistle-stop tour through the whole history of human communication!

What makes supercomputers millions of times better than the one on your desk? Here's our quick introduction to supercomputers and massively parallel processing...

Old-style telephones are giving way to Internet phones - or Skype-style VoIP. What is it and how exactly does it work?

The Ancient Greeks knew about static electricity but, surprisingly enough, 2600 years later, we still don't understand it completely. What really causes it, how can it help us, and how can we keep dangerous static properly in check?

Noble gases used to be called "inert gases" because people thought they were so un-reactive and boring. In this week's episode, we discover how they provide the secret atomic power behind neon lamps, xenon lamps, and the brightest lights in our otherwise dark and dingy world!