What do a wheelbarrow and a bottle opener have in common? Did you know that a dentist's drill is a direct descendant of the first windmill? And what on earth is an anchor escapement? Don't worry, help is now at hand thanks to 'The Way Things Work'! Set amid the hustle and bustle of the timeless Mammoth Island, where islanders and long suffering mammoths construct outlandish contraptions to help make their lives easier, each story unravels a principle of science. Our guide and interpreter, the Inventor offers the islanders friendly advice. As they make their amazing discoveries, often quite by accident, we learn how these fundamentals apply to us today, from aircraft to zippers and from axles to zoom lenses. This video contains four episodes covering inclined planes, levers, wheels, axles, belts and gears.