Understanding the World's Greatest Structures: Science and Innovation from Antiquity to Modernity (DVD set) from The Great Courses.

This highly acclaimed series is among the highest rated titles in the history of the Great Courses. In 24 captivating demonstration lectures, award-winning instructor and engineering professor Stephen Ressler uses images, 3-D models, and simulations to take you on a whirlwind tour of the world's great structures, explaining the engineering concepts that make them possible. Learn about the science of structure, from the power of arches, columns, and cables to modern thin-shell structures, and explore the world's finest examples from Rome's Parthenon to Dubai's Burj Khalifa. Includes a 202-page guidebook with lecture notes, diagrams, questions to consider, timeline, glossary, and bibliography prepared by Professor Ressler.