Category
😹
FunTranscript
00:00 [music]
00:24 In the beginning, the world was all wet. Today, it is still four-fifths wet.
00:31 [music]
00:33 Man, the nomad, in the course of his migrations, often encountered bodies of water too wide or too deep to be crossed.
00:45 Always the thinker, man soon evolved the most primitive form of aquatic transportation, a log.
00:55 [music]
00:58 Supported by the log, or seated upon it, the next question was one of propulsion.
01:05 First the foot, then the hand, and then, ah-ha, the first marine invention, the paddle.
01:15 [music]
01:19 From the paddle, the logical development was the oar, which employed the simple mechanics of the lever and fulcrum,
01:26 producing maximum power with a minimum of effort.
01:30 [music]
01:34 Because of the limitless, uncharted expanse of water, the ancient mariner oft times found himself far, far out at sea,
01:44 with only the stars to guide him.
01:47 Star light, star bright, glasher, wish I knew where I was tonight.
01:53 [music]
02:00 Swiftly and surely the stars steered him on to his destination.
02:05 [music]
02:08 In the 13th century, even as today, great thinkers worried about what shape the world was in.
02:16 Some great minds firmly believed that if you sailed west far enough,
02:21 [music]
02:26 you would sail off the edge of the world.
02:30 [music]
02:38 From the earliest days, sailors were preyed upon by pirates.
02:45 In those romantic days, ships often changed captains very suddenly.
02:51 This colorful ceremony was called rocking the plank or feeding the shark.
02:57 [music]
03:00 Hey, bells, come and get it.
03:04 [music]
03:10 When old father Neptune went on the rampage,
03:13 [music]
03:24 for safety's sake, sailors would latch themselves to the mast.
03:29 [music]
03:31 Thus the sailor was able to stick to his post through hail and high water.
03:37 [music]
03:39 The flag is the sign language of the sea.
03:43 Sailors could communicate with each other by semaphoring and wig wagging.
03:48 A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R,
03:56 [mumbling]
03:59 He wigged what he should have wagged.
04:03 [music]
04:10 The happy, carefree sailor expressed himself with a horn pipe,
04:15 traditional dance of the sea.
04:17 [music]
04:18 Hauling in rope, hoisting sail,
04:21 [music]
04:23 rowing,
04:24 [music]
04:28 lookout,
04:29 [music]
04:32 lookout,
04:33 [music]
04:36 [screaming]
04:38 [splash]
04:39 [music]
04:40 Ah, the clipper ship.
04:43 The queen of the seven seas.
04:46 The heyday of sail.
04:48 Iron man.
04:50 [splash]
04:51 [music]
04:52 Wooden ships.
04:55 Through centuries of practice, the sailor has developed a perfect set of sea legs.
05:01 [music]
05:07 A sailor is easily recognized by his walk.
05:11 Oh, knots.
05:14 Who should know how to tie knots better than the sailor?
05:17 He invented them.
05:18 The square knot.
05:20 The sheep shank.
05:22 [sheep bleating]
05:24 The granny knot.
05:27 A very interesting knot.
05:28 Bears great strength.
05:31 [laughing]
05:32 The slip knot.
05:33 Now the barrel knot.
05:35 Most slip proof of all.
05:37 [music]
05:39 Take it away!
05:41 [music]
05:43 [splash]
05:44 This explains why sailors are often called old tars.
05:49 [music]
05:51 And now, through trial and error, the sailor has at last mastered the sea.
05:57 A far cry indeed from his early ancestors to the modern scientific mariner of today.
06:04 [music]
06:11 All hands, man battle stations, stand by to attack.
06:16 Hey! Stand by to attack!
06:18 [music]
06:22 Ready?
06:23 [music]
06:25 [splash]
06:26 Aim.
06:29 Fire!
06:30 [music]
06:38 [explosion]
06:39 [music]
07:08 [BLANK_AUDIO]