The History Channel

Rick auditions a new employee when a 1950s Cushman scooter with sidecar swerves into the shop. Will this specialized staffer ace this tricky trial or will another one bite the dust? And later, the shop gets a-rockin' on a 1948 homemade wooden horse. Can they saddle up this swaying steed or will this trotting toy buck them off?

Rick and his crew sharpen their service skills when a client ships in a 1900s Berkel meat slicer. Can they carefully carve out a mechanical masterpiece, or will they lose a few fingers on this slice and dice device? And later, a 1950s stamp vending machine arrives at the shop. Can they refurbish this snail mail mechanism or will this correspondence contraption be postmarked return to sender?

When Rome is sacked by barbarians, Europe enters a Dark Age. But from the fringes of the old empire, two new forces remake the world. The Arabs, funded by a gold rush, unite under the banner of Islam. The Vikings rejuvenate the cities of Europe, travel to America and become Christian knights. The stage is set for a clash of civilizations--the Crusades.

What does the Universe sound like? From the sweep of a pulsar, to the deafening roar of our boiling sun this episode explores the undiscovered soundscapes of the solar system, the galaxy, and the entire cosmos. And, is it true that in space nobody can hear you scream?!? Our scientists reveal that there are places in the Universe that prove this sci-fi statement wrong.

What are the latest discoveries in the deadly world of asteroids? Will a recently returned Japanese spacecraft become the first to bring an asteroid sample back to our planet? What would happen to America's East Coast if the massive asteroid impact that helped form Chesapeake Bay 35 million years ago struck today? And why did President Barack Obama choose an asteroid as the destination for the next great manned mission into space? Learning about these huge space rocks isn't just about science, it's about survival.

It sounds like a Hollywood blockbuster: a deadly asteroid is on a collision course with Earth. But in reality, it's only a matter of time before a giant space rock threatens to wipe out civilization. An asteroid took out the dinosaurs sixty-five million years ago. Are we next? This episode analyzes the threat and explores the many ways--from a nuclear bomb to ingenious new technology--that experts are proposing to stop Armageddon.

Hitch a ride on the journey of a comet as it roars from the cold, dark outer reaches of the solar system to the fiery surface of the Sun. Visit the surface of each planet, from the mountains on the moons of Neptune, to the caves beneath Mars, to a solar tsunami. You'll also tour the lesser-known "neighborhoods" of the Solar System, like The Oort Cloud and planet-sized asteroids like Eris and Ceres. Witness the punishing extremes experienced by a massive, grit-covered snow-ball as it travels 300 million miles from the edge of the Solar System to the skies above earth.

It may seem like seem like science fiction, but the cosmos isn't just something way out there. Many times in human history, objects or forces from space have changed the course of life on earth. Many believe an asteroid played a role in the fall of the Roman Empire...and millennia earlier another asteroid might have been the "fire and brimstone" that destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.

In the city of Jerusalem, a man is crucified--Jesus of Nazareth. His death gives birth to a global religion. But Christianity may never have happened without the Roman Empire. A vast network of roads and shipping lanes, it allows goods and ideas to flow across three continents. Jesus' message transforms Mankind. Today one in three people on the planet are Christians.

Kick off your shoes with the Pawn Stars when Rick and the Old Man are offered a pair of slippers owned by Pope Leo XIII. Considered one of history's most influential popes, will the guys have a prayer of making a deal? Then, Chumlee and Olivia are working the night shift when a guy brings in a driver's license owned by god guitarist of Guns N Roses: Slash. Is this rock memorabilia worth waking up Rick? And later, the Old Man's 20 cup-a-day coffee habit sparks a family intervention. But can you really teach this old dog a new trick?

Start your engines with the Pawn Stars as the guys check out a 1956 Chevy drag racing car. Custom built for the 1/4 mile, will the guys race to make an offer or will negotiations stall before the light turns green? Then, when a guy brings in a historic magician s "sawing in half" box the guys learn that cutting Chumlee in half is the easy part... putting him back together is a bit tougher. And later, Corey shocks Rick and the Old Man when he tells them he s considering a job offer from another pawn shop.

A dynamic duo of inventors serve up an invention that they say will forever change the way we eat ribs, wings and other finger foods. Now, it's up to Scotty and Reichart to decide if the two deserve a shot at a deal that could lead the inventors to millions. Then, Scotty goes crash test dummy and Reichart breaks out the big guns when the guys test an invention called the RES-Q Pod. Is it a revolutionary lifesaver or a floating bone crusher?

Is the old man sleeping or just resting his eyes? Whatever it is, Rick orders quiet in the pawn shop, as they bargain over a colt revolver, coffee machine, presidential pins and a spinning wheel.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

Informational programming.

The story of the photographer whose pictures captured bloody battlefield scenes and who actually drew more notice in his time than the legendary Mathew Brady.

Space colonization is no longer the fodder of science fiction, it is becoming a reality. Examine the efforts underway to establish a human colony on Mars, including how they plan to grow food, recycle wastewater and introduce greenhouse gases to revive the red planet and make it more habitable for humans. Cutting-edge computer graphics are used to bring the universe down to earth to show what life would be like on Mars, and to imagine what kind of life forms might evolve in alien atmospheres.

According to the laws of physics we can never travel faster than the speed of light...or can we? Light speed allows us to see things instantly here on Earth, and shows us the entire history of the universe going back nearly 14 billion years. Learn all about light speed, the ultimate constant in the universe and discover ways scientists envision breaking the "light barrier" which may be the only way the star travel of our imaginations ever comes to reality.

Low Earth Orbit, 120 miles above sea level, is where the majority of space exploration has occurred. This 1,100 mile band around Earth is where--for a cool $20 million--any private citizen can take the vacation of his or her life on the International Space Station. Commercial prospects for LEO are huge; but dangers lurk for any individual willing to travel here--radiation, cosmic rays, and space debris numbering in the thousands threaten any spacecraft traveling in orbit. It's the new frontier, or the final frontier...and the possibilities are endless if you are willing to travel to the edge of space exploration.

On alien planets, they rain from the sky as scalding iron. On distant moons, even at hundreds of degrees below zero, they slosh around in pristine lakes of methane. They can cover entire planets in miles-deep oceans of electrified hydrogen metal. Or erupt on alien worlds through miles-high geysers. They churn in the interiors of dead stars and even our own planet. They're so rare in the universe, they almost don't exist, but these are the magical liquids of our Liquid Universe.

They've discovered water on other planets, and snatched the actual building blocks of life from a comet's tail. But can space probes find a new Earth...and even make contact with alien life? In the 21st century, space probes are photographing, drilling and even sniffing new worlds in the quest for life, and scanning thousands of distant suns trying to detect Earth-like planets. It's only a matter of time before space probes unlock the secrets to extra-terrestrial life and the universe itself.