- What do cereal, pasta and bread have in common?

Their story may have started right here in Buffalo, where the world's very first steam-powered grain elevator was invented.

In 1842, merchant Joseph Dart and engineer Robert Dunbar built the first one.

Suddenly, mountains of grain could be lifted, stored and shipped faster than ever before.

Just one of these structures stored tens of thousands of bushels of grain.

This invention turned Buffalo into the Grain Capital of the World and transformed how we feed growing cities around the globe.

They're much more than just storage bins.

They're towering marvels of science and engineering.

In this episode of "Compact Science," we'll uncover the surprising science behind these giants, explore simple machines that make them work, the physics that keeps silos standing and discover why Buffalo is truly the birthplace of the grain elevator.

(lively music) When the Erie Canal opened in 1825, Buffalo became the key transfer point for grain traveling from Midwest farms to East Coast markets.

But there was a problem.

Moving thousands of bushels of grain by hand was slow, messy and exhausting.

The grain elevator solved this problem.

Imagine thousands of workers shoveling grain for days on end, exhausted and barely keeping up.

Dart's invention changed everything, using steam power to scoop grain straight from the ships, lift it and pour it into storage bins.

What once took days now took hours.

Buffalo's waterfront soon filled with elevators of wood, steel and concrete.

By the early 1900s, Buffalo handled more grain than any place on Earth.

These machines didn't just shape the skyline.

They helped build the modern food supply system.

And that grain?

It's what makes our bread, pasta, cookies and breakfast cereal.

Without elevators, it would've been far harder to feed growing cities.

Behind the massive walls of a grain elevator are some of the simplest machines you can imagine, working together on a grand scale.

Grain arrives by train, truck or boat.

In Buffalo's case, ships carried it straight from Midwest farms across the Great Lakes.

The grain is poured into a pit and then scooped up by powerful elevators, a moving belt of buckets, lifting it high into the tower.

At the top, the grain pours into silos, those tall round containers that dominate Buffalo's waterfront.

From there, it's sorted by type and later moved into trucks, trains or ships for the next stage of its journey.

But here's the cool part.

To make this happen, grain elevators use simple machines that help make work easier by using less energy.

There are six simple machines that scientists and engineers use.

A lever uses a bar and a pivot point to lift something heavy.

In elevators, levers are part of the scoop systems that first hoist grain out of the pit.

Imagine trying to lift a big bag of grain.

It's heavy, right?

But if you use a lever, you can lift that heavy bag with less effort.

Pulleys change the direction of force using a wheel and a rope.

Pulleys help carry grain high into the tower, sometimes a hundred feet or more.

Wheel-and-axle systems help objects move smoothly and with less effort.

In a grain elevator, wheel-and-axle systems help move grain along conveyor belts.

Without them, hauling grain across long distances would take huge amounts of energy.

An inclined plane is a flat surface that's tilted at an angle.

So instead of lifting it straight up, inclined planes let gravity do the work.

Inside elevators, grain slides from one level to another smoothly.

Think of it like a slide on a playground.

It's much easier to move grain up a slope or down a ramp than to lift it straight up.

A screw turns rotational motion into movement.

Inside augers, the spiral design pushes grain through tubes, up, down or sideways.

A wedge is a simple machine with a pointed edge that can split or separate things.

Wedges can split clumps or block grain from spilling.

Combined, these simple machines form one of his history's most important complex machines, the grain elevator.

(curious music) Now, let's look at the structure itself.

Silos may look like simple tubes, but the physics inside is fascinating.

You'd think that filling a silo with grain would crush the bottom with pressure.

But let's do an experiment to test that out.

So I've got my silo, or a cylinder, and a balloon.

So if I were to push on the balloon, what happens to it?

Starts to flatten out a little bit.

If I kept going, though, what would happen?

It'd probably pop.

But let's see what happens when I put the, mm, I guess, my grain elevator on top of it.

So, going to add some grain.

(lighthearted music) (kernels rattling) Sweet popping corn, oh, let's keep going.

(lighthearted music continues) (kernels rattling) Okay, whoop, lost one.

So it is pushing down, but let's keep going.

(lighthearted music continues) (kernels rattling) So you see it's bulging quite a bit, and that's from the pressure of the grain pushing down on it.

(lighthearted music continues) (kernels rattling) Whoa, oh, oh, super cool.

Look at that.

So, I mean, while it's still pushing down on the balloon, it's not pushing as much as you'd think, especially with having twice as many grains on top of it, and that's the surprise.

The pressure at the bottom doesn't keep building at the bottom.

- Wow.

- The grains rub against each other and push outward against the silo walls.

This spreads the force in a phenomenon called the silo effect.

Over a century ago, German scientist H.A.

Janssen discovered that grain behaves like both a solid and a fluid, pressing down and sideways.

That insight changed how silos were designed, making them stronger and safer around the world.

From the outside, they look like simple towers.

Inside, the physics of thousands of tons of grain is always at work, balancing strength and collapse.

So the next time you eat a bowl of cereal or a slice of bread, remember, behind every bite is Buffalo's big idea, grain elevators powered by simple machines and surprising physics.

(bright music) (electricity sizzling) We've seen how a local invention revolutionized the food supply, uncovered the science behind their strength, and explored the simple machines that keep them running.

Now it's your turn.

If you are interested in learning more about simple machines, check out our Compact Science Viewer Challenge.

We have a fun experiment, building your own pulley system at home, just like the ones that lifted mountains of grains here in Buffalo.

Get all the instructions on our website, and be sure to share back your results.

I'm Sarajane Gomlak-Green, and you've been watching "Compact Science."

Until next time, stay curious.

(upbeat music) - [Announcer] "Compact Science" is funded in part by the Joy Family Foundation.

- Buffalo became the key transfer point for grain travel, grain traveling, grain, grains, (laughs) sorry.

Imagine thousands of workers shoveling grain for days on end.

I lost where I was.

Nope.

(laughs) This is what happens when I look elsewhere.

A screw turns rotational move, motion, oops, okay.

(bright music)