Railroading in America

Although I'd always thought of it as the "body odor" railroad in Monopoly, the B&O Railroad, inaugurated on July 4, 1828, actually stands for the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, and it's one of the more prominent historical lines featured in this entertaining look at past, present, and future examples of railroading in America. Presented by Popular Mechanics magazine, the program offers a thumbprint historical sketch of the rise of the railroads across the U.S., including the legendary merger of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific lines in Utah in 1869. Nifty computer-animated sequences show viewers how both steam and diesel engines work, and tours through the engineer's booths of new engines show how far railroad technology has come in the last 175 yrs. Today, just like the rest of us, the engineer (on many trains) sits at a desktop staring at a monitor. Here, the engineer is able to track the status of the train and the route. The tape closes with a thrilling look at the Amtrak X2000--our answer to Japan's bullet train; this sleek land-based jet tops speeds of 150 m.p.h. The end coaches are kept on the track during turns through the use of a clever hydraulics system under the train carriage which operates by....ok, I can hear some eyes glazing over out there. Anyway, this--and a companion volume Great Trains Ride Again--is recommended for both general audiences and rail fans (and people who like widgets). Aud: P. (R. Pitman)