How To Reverse a River

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  • čas přidán 18. 06. 2024
  • The Chicago River is flowing backwards, rather than going downhill from inland Illinois into Lake Michigan instead it goes in the opposite direction. This isn’t some quirk of nature, but an engineering megaproject - indeed four engineering megaprojects - on a scale quite unlike anything else on Earth. So, what does it take to reverse a river?
    --------- II ---------
    This video was brought to you by an unhealthy amount of coffee and our awesome Patrons at / atomicfrontier .
    --------- II ---------
    Hi, I'm James. I explore the world looking for interesting engineering stories which explore complex issues in interesting ways. I hold a First-Class Honors in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Western Australia and am currently studying a Masters of Space Systems Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
    My website is www.atomicfrontieronline.com, I occasionally tweet from / atomicfrontiers , and you can join the Atomic Frontier Discord server to talk about cool engineering stuff at / discord . You can help support my work and see some cool behind-the-scenes content at / atomicfrontier .

Komentáře • 412

  • @AtomicFrontier
    @AtomicFrontier  Před 2 lety +890

    Not a bad place to take a walk.

    • @KentuckyFriedChildren
      @KentuckyFriedChildren Před 2 lety +19

      truly a 🗿moment

    • @strike6899
      @strike6899 Před 2 lety +4

      I would love two have this for australia. a huge canel net work to terraform the center of it.

    • @timgooding2448
      @timgooding2448 Před 2 lety +3

      @@strike6899 And where is the water coming from to do this terraforming?

    • @H26_
      @H26_ Před 2 lety +20

      How do you rotoscope the images behind you and the surroundings? Is that done manually or do you have some AI which figures out the foreground and background? Also love the single take!

    • @strike6899
      @strike6899 Před 2 lety +2

      @@timgooding2448 ocean.

  • @MedlifeCrisis
    @MedlifeCrisis Před 2 lety +233

    Levels of difficulty:
    Low - one-taking a video
    Medium - reversing a river
    High - the rotoscoping contained herein

  • @pangolian
    @pangolian Před 2 lety +1240

    That rotoscoping must have been a NIGHTMARE! The camera work is seriously impressive, too!

    • @AtomicFrontier
      @AtomicFrontier  Před 2 lety +347

      Thanks! Yup aftereffects was giving me grief so tried a few AI ones out and they were marginally better but still a nightmare! Glad you liked the camerawork - will pass your comment onto Julia!

    • @LupinoArts
      @LupinoArts Před 2 lety +79

      @@AtomicFrontier seriously, with this kind of production value and quality, how come you don't make documentaries for the BBC or something? Or at least have a couple of million subscribers? I follow your channel since you substituted for Tom Scott some time ago and every video impressed me more than the one before. Please keep at it, you are an international treasure (or however the saying goes)

    • @fireaza
      @fireaza Před 2 lety +7

      @@AtomicFrontier While not _perfect,_ they still look really good, so I'd say stick with the AI!

    • @dcallan812
      @dcallan812 Před 2 lety +11

      @@AtomicFrontier walking and talking... impresive. filming focuing walking forward and backward.... also very impresive.

    • @R3BootYourMind
      @R3BootYourMind Před 2 lety +8

      @@dcallan812 Based on the somewhat low resolution this was filmed with a 360 camera. The camera person is just walking forward without aiming the camera. The framing is done in editing from the sphere like footage the 360 camera takes. The shadow of the 360 camera can be seen at 4:27

  • @the_kraken6549
    @the_kraken6549 Před 2 lety +341

    Putting the water collection tunnels further and further out feels like something you’d do in Cities: Skylines.

    • @Soken50
      @Soken50 Před 2 lety +7

      Oh wow, you just gave me my next mega project idea in Cities Skyline, reversing a river to dump sewage

    • @deephorizon1365
      @deephorizon1365 Před 2 lety

      It really does lol

    • @jort93z
      @jort93z Před 2 lety +2

      @@Soken50 Just produce enough sewage to reverse it.

  • @limesta
    @limesta Před 2 lety +819

    It's been a hot minute since you've been able to pull off a solid one take like this! I know not every video is suitable for these one takes. I'm impressed! Love the fluidity and the firm presentation, and I feel as though you've nailed it with bringing relevant facts. Can't wait for the next one!

    • @AtomicFrontier
      @AtomicFrontier  Před 2 lety +152

      Thanks! Yup they're a nightmare to make and only have a 50% success rate (the video about Red Delicious was actually a one take that got cut down because of audio issues), but they're a lot of fun too! Think the next one will be somewhere away from cities, busses, alarms, skateboarders, and joggers.

    • @AdrianBridgett
      @AdrianBridgett Před 2 lety +50

      Let's not forget "whilst walking backwards". I wouldn't be surprised if juggling or an egg on a spoon are involved shortly :)

    • @Nighthawk20000
      @Nighthawk20000 Před 2 lety +13

      @@AtomicFrontier Obviously while I love a good "1 take" don't feel as if you're forced to do them if it makes production so much harder! I don't think anyone would lose much enjoyment from your videos if you had to do a cut once in a while

    • @magica3526
      @magica3526 Před 2 lety +1

      @@AtomicFrontier that red delicious video was a banger. your channel is one of the few that always gets me excited to receive the upload notification

    • @skaalfort
      @skaalfort Před 2 lety

      I dislike the one takes

  • @JulianOShea
    @JulianOShea Před 2 lety +332

    Great work! - Huge projects - think I might add Chicago to my hit list. Backflip into the river would have been a strong finish - but great stuff.

    • @simonabunker
      @simonabunker Před 2 lety +22

      I was expecting that too!

    • @rianfelis3156
      @rianfelis3156 Před 2 lety +14

      Although it is "pretty clean" it's not actually clean enough to swim in. Runoff from storms often cause sewage overflows still, and there is uncertainty about how pollution from past industrial waste can resurface, but the biggest problem really is that the city didn't engineer it to swim in, preferring boats. There just isn't anywhere to actually get in and out safely, but there are apparently plans to improve that over the next decade.

  • @FianFreigeist
    @FianFreigeist Před 2 lety +275

    First: I think you did well explaining the issues and solutions! Second.... is that a more than 7 minute long one-take?! That's just as insane as the post work with all the rotoscoping and masking! I really enjoyed it :D

  • @dashielemerson4620
    @dashielemerson4620 Před 2 lety +102

    I got so excited when he stared walking forward instead of cutting that this video is gonna be excellent! Your reputation proceeds you!

  • @jazzlovr6515
    @jazzlovr6515 Před 2 lety +71

    Walk-and-talks, especially at length, cannot be easy. This is one of your best works yet; congratulations.

    • @codex4046
      @codex4046 Před 2 lety

      And here I was thinking it was their worst work in a long time. The backwards walking, rotating, oh wait I've to rotate the other way etc really distracted me from the topic. After watching I had to put the video away and just listen to what they were saying.

    • @Soken50
      @Soken50 Před 2 lety

      @@codex4046 Yeah I felt a similar way, while the production quality is still great I feel all the things he had to think about while talking impacted the narration :/

  • @AceSkates
    @AceSkates Před 2 lety +11

    This long, single take, style of recording is so impressive! This guy and Tom Scott are the only people who I have seen do it well, at least the only people who aren't actual BBC documentary makers

  • @Nirad-jt7en
    @Nirad-jt7en Před 2 lety +62

    A single take, very impressive!

  • @omichels6678
    @omichels6678 Před 2 lety +12

    Love how the first shot of the video begins with the river flowing right to left, and at the end of your walk the camera ends up seeing the river moving left to right. Absolutely amazing take!

    • @wowjay1
      @wowjay1 Před 3 měsíci

      Left to right then right to left your dyslexic bud

  • @Tra-vis
    @Tra-vis Před 2 lety +61

    Really love your use of augmented reality. Subtle, not overbearing, and very useful

  • @philipphermann9454
    @philipphermann9454 Před 2 lety +22

    Another interesting project that concerns water supply is the Bodensee-Wasserversorgung. Built in the 1950s, they take water from lake constance in a depth of 60 m, treat it and feed it into a 1700 km long network of pipes - some of the water travels over 400 m uphill from the point it is collected. Around 4 Million people are dependend on that water, tough many cities also mix it with their own water from wells that would on their own not be enough for the local demand.

    • @whuzzzup
      @whuzzzup Před 2 lety

      Very interesting, thank you. Did not know that this existed. It's astonishing.

    • @philipphermann9454
      @philipphermann9454 Před 2 lety

      @@whuzzzup if you are there, you can visit it free of charge as far as I know

  • @hatpeach1
    @hatpeach1 Před 2 lety +6

    Beautiful, original, video! Nice. FYI, the "next big thing" in Chicago is called the Tunnel and Reservoir Plan (TARP), or as it is known locally, "Deep Tunnel."

    • @AtomicFrontier
      @AtomicFrontier  Před 2 lety +6

      Thanks! Ok now just gotta hope someone from the MWRD sees the video and invites me to take a look!

    • @TheSpecialJ11
      @TheSpecialJ11 Před 2 lety

      I'm really excited for it, because frankly it might just save our asses from the increasing flash floods climate change will likely cause. If we added more water retention infrastructure throughout the city, such as bioswales and blue roofs, we might be okay.

    • @hatpeach1
      @hatpeach1 Před 2 lety +2

      @@AtomicFrontier Call, show them the video, ask for a tour. You do great work, and I'm guessing there's quite a few people at MWRD who would love to show you the massive tunnels, especially if you seemed friendly to the project. These monster projects are always controversial... and there's been more than a few billion dollars wasted... but it keeps generations of Chicagoans working... and maybe always will? 🤔 😊

    • @cell21633
      @cell21633 Před 2 lety +1

      MWRD regularly hosts tours of the O'Brien wastewater facility, so that's definitely possible to do a run there. Although I doubt you'd get into the Deep Tunnel project, since there's a lot of liability there and I'm sure they want to keep you above ground. The Thornton Reservoir opened up a few years ago as part of TARP. It's an active quarry they use to store runoff from heavy rains from our combined sewers until they can process it.

  • @feldamar2
    @feldamar2 Před 2 lety +26

    You...you are outdoing yourself everytime. This was phenomenal. The pictures in the background, sound balancing, the script. You are improving so much so well!
    And this is quite the gold standard already.

    • @Sleepszn379
      @Sleepszn379 Před 2 lety +1

      And guess what if he added 20 more seconds to this video he could make money on it but this man's integrity 👏

  • @setharnold9764
    @setharnold9764 Před 2 lety +12

    It's been said a few times but The Algorithm appreciates engagement so I'll say it again: fantastic. One very long take, amazing camera work, beautiful in-place graphics, and an interesting story I hadn't heard yet.

  • @JerGol
    @JerGol Před 2 lety +3

    The single take delivery, coupled with solid info, enthusiastic delivery, and clever graphics make this channel a real treat.

  • @pyglik2296
    @pyglik2296 Před 2 lety +5

    I like how their solution to polution in their lake was to put it somewhere else, really far away, so it's not their problem anymore.
    Watching this I wonder how much time did it take to plan, memorise, and execute the choreography, so you're in the right place at the right time, while talking all the time.

    • @Ki_Thi
      @Ki_Thi Před rokem

      Indeed! Apple Keynote levels of choreography well done!

  • @CaptainCandycorn
    @CaptainCandycorn Před 2 lety +9

    My dude just did this whole thing in one take and it's fantastic. One of my favorite channels.

  • @nachofwg
    @nachofwg Před 2 lety +3

    Had to watch twice because the first watch through I was blown away with your mastery of the one-take with that unreal camera work and choreographed trek. So happy Tom Scott introduced me to you.

  • @someguy9563
    @someguy9563 Před 2 lety +3

    Is this a recurring Challenge? One take for an entire Vid. Magnificent. you keep getting more fluid and confident with each video you put out and your narrator voice is getting better and better. love your content, looking forward to the next one.

  • @RTDelete
    @RTDelete Před 2 lety +4

    How did you remember all of that? And still speak with such clarity? Magic!

  • @MarkReviews
    @MarkReviews Před 2 lety +2

    I love ALL Atomic Frontier content, but these single-take videos are next-level. The amount of research/preparation/writing/rehearsal must be insane.

  • @chiefcheese2
    @chiefcheese2 Před 2 lety +10

    I honestly thought he was going to step back into the river after the sign off lmao

    • @AtomicFrontier
      @AtomicFrontier  Před 2 lety +8

      Yup that was origional script but Julian (and the city website) said no. Sorry :(

  • @mallard3084
    @mallard3084 Před 2 lety +1

    destroying the bubble curtain and electrified fence to allow carp to invade the lake sounds like something an obscure supervillain would do

  • @mfaizsyahmi
    @mfaizsyahmi Před 2 lety +1

    Tom Scott: "ONE TAKE!" as he jubilantly exclaims and jumping for joy.
    James Dingley: _Just smiles._

  • @amolkhade
    @amolkhade Před 2 lety +5

    Great work, yet again! Brought be back to the days when I walked around the same place to and fro work! Loved the camera work, the single take as well as the information you shared on the walk. You're top tier CZcams material!

  • @goldenkolben6169
    @goldenkolben6169 Před 2 lety +22

    Your production quality is over the moon as always! I look forward to the next one!😄

  • @ducttapetuba
    @ducttapetuba Před 2 lety +13

    Always fascinating information and beautifully presented. More of this please!

  • @CristanMeijer
    @CristanMeijer Před 2 lety +1

    I want to say I really love your ending quote "keep looking up". I love how optimistic it is and I always look forward to hearing it at the end of your videos :)

    • @AtomicFrontier
      @AtomicFrontier  Před 2 lety +1

      Thanks, thats really nice of you! I like it too

  • @gelelied
    @gelelied Před 2 lety +1

    Lovely presentation. You strung together and explained a lot of events that I, as a native Chicagoan, already knew about but you made so much clearer. Love the one take camerawork, the historic slide overlays. Very very well done.

  • @TankswillRule
    @TankswillRule Před 2 lety +1

    That editing though. At the first few steps with the pictures, I assumed they were tourist signs and information boards, took me a few seconds to realize they are moving towards the camera.
    Epic editing.

  • @IcelandicGoblin
    @IcelandicGoblin Před 2 lety +1

    My man you're just getting better and better each video, I jumped on your channel after your Tom Scott video and he couldn't have said it better himself "someone who's going to have my job in a few years" incredible stuff man

  • @simonmikkelsen
    @simonmikkelsen Před 2 lety +5

    Truly amazing presentation, camera work and post processing. Neither has been easy.

  • @washyourhands
    @washyourhands Před 2 lety

    I haven't seen one of your videos in about a year but it's good to see that your unique blend of Rare Earth, Tom Scott, Alpha Phoenix, and your own methods has only gotten better! I regret not subbing a year ago, but now I have some videos to catch up on

  • @aboldy
    @aboldy Před 2 lety +1

    I was waiting for you to jump in at the end. A beautiful job of filming and adding in all the geo stable images. Best production value I've seen in a long time!!

  • @Electric-Gal
    @Electric-Gal Před 2 lety +1

    I am deeply glad to see my beloved Chicago River getting your attention! This is great.

  • @finnanloveday
    @finnanloveday Před 2 lety

    Love how precise this was. Very well put together

  • @samgiles3515
    @samgiles3515 Před 2 lety

    great video as always James!

  • @nuggetonastick1804
    @nuggetonastick1804 Před 2 lety +1

    Absolutely astounding video great editing keep it up dude

  • @bigjimbo3917
    @bigjimbo3917 Před 2 lety +3

    Wonderful job, loved the subtle cues and details in the long take. Your skills as a presenter and the work of the cameraman are fantastic.

    • @criggie
      @criggie Před 2 lety +1

      Wondering if "america's first sewer system" at @1:16 and the adjacent hotel signage is subtle or just a coincidence.

  • @moobles2998
    @moobles2998 Před 2 lety

    Great work, you manage to pick topics that are informative, interesting and refreshing.

  • @ThatSkiFreak
    @ThatSkiFreak Před 2 lety

    It's quite impressive you do these in one take while walking across town, and it works well for these videos where you are talking about something where you don't need to cut between a bunch of locations.

  • @Technodude255
    @Technodude255 Před 2 lety

    I love your videos soo much! Amazing content!

  • @sagewaterdragon
    @sagewaterdragon Před 2 lety

    This is my favorite video of yours to date, thanks for making it.

  • @ORANGEFRUITMUSIC
    @ORANGEFRUITMUSIC Před 2 lety

    The minute you started walking in the beginning blew my mind! The way you include pictures is just next level. It made me so happy so watch this :)

  • @HitboxGamingNews
    @HitboxGamingNews Před 2 lety

    Watched a lot of your videos as someone from Illinois when I saw the title I knew you would be here. Hope you had a fun trip to Chicago.

  • @KTL17
    @KTL17 Před 2 lety

    This is so clean, holy editing. Informative without needing to be 45 minutes long and still captivating! Good stuff.

  • @jimmysgameclips
    @jimmysgameclips Před 2 lety

    This channel is superb! Always interesting to watch

  • @williebrort
    @williebrort Před 2 lety

    The thought that went into planning this informative tour is amazing. Great job on producing this! :D

  • @maxmccann5323
    @maxmccann5323 Před 2 lety +1

    Did not expect it to be one take! Insane!

  • @helmutzollner5496
    @helmutzollner5496 Před 2 lety

    Very well presented and interesting. Thank you for sharing!

  • @thames_music1219
    @thames_music1219 Před 2 lety

    Incredible work James. Doing everything in one take is amazing!

  • @albarnie1168
    @albarnie1168 Před 2 lety

    Absolutely awesome one-take! congrats to you, julia and julian for the amazing presentation, camera work and music!

  • @andrewwmitchell
    @andrewwmitchell Před 2 lety

    Love these one take walking videos, great to see another one. I'm always so impressed and engaged by your physical and mental co-ordination and that of your camera crew as well... And fascinatd by the content as well, of course.

  • @scroogemcdooge
    @scroogemcdooge Před 2 lety

    Always a good time! Thanks for sharing!

  • @redeyeofthenightfall
    @redeyeofthenightfall Před 2 lety

    BRAVO James! well done, production
    loved this one

  • @Fraxxxi
    @Fraxxxi Před 2 lety +2

    that was one of the lowest key super impressive things I've ever watched, and am so sorry that with all the work that went into researching, planning, writing, learning, rehearsing, retrying, filming, editing, and probably other steps I haven't even considered, that my main takeaways were "so that's how the Undercity came to be", "glad they didn't accidentally tunnel right under Demonreach", and "so much effort and ingenuity and Ethniu nearly broke it all!"

  • @xydya
    @xydya Před 2 lety

    Wonderful as always!

  • @hoofie2002
    @hoofie2002 Před 2 lety +1

    One shot - very impressive! And another great video with a fascinating subject and detailed research.

  • @TM10000
    @TM10000 Před 3 měsíci

    It was funny watching people walk by, some in t-shirts and some in full winter attire. Made it look like you were traveling through different climate zones rather than just traveling a quarter mile. Cool video.

  • @testbenchdude
    @testbenchdude Před 2 lety

    Wow, all in one take! Well done you guys, great video.

  • @DescubreAntigua
    @DescubreAntigua Před 2 lety

    I've watched several of this channel vids, the content is always great, but hey!, the production is awesome too.

  • @haxxx0rz
    @haxxx0rz Před 2 lety

    All in one take. Very impressive and informative!

  • @SpeedyRK
    @SpeedyRK Před 2 lety +3

    Incredible video, I love the way you include imagery along the sidewalk, it's like you turn the city into a living museum, very nice! Also, absolutely blew my mind :)

  • @robbudden
    @robbudden Před 2 lety

    you're absolutely brilliant, as an orator and an educator. Camera work is superb.
    exceptional good package

  • @veryboringname.
    @veryboringname. Před 2 lety +1

    I feel like you've beaten Tom at the one-take game. And all that roto work... oh boy. Great job!

  • @CaptSumTingWong1
    @CaptSumTingWong1 Před 2 lety

    This video is so freaking impressive in so many ways, wish this channel would get more recognition!

  • @wdwerker
    @wdwerker Před 2 lety

    Very impressive video effects and explanation of a subject with more detail than I previously knew. Our county’s sewer treatment plant is so advanced we put in huge pipes to return the cleaned water to the lake we draw our raw water from.

  • @illumiNOTme326
    @illumiNOTme326 Před 2 lety

    Seriously impressive work!

  • @midgelfc
    @midgelfc Před 2 lety

    Amazing one take shot. Glad to see it get recognition! Loved this video as I was just in Chicago last week. My hotel is in the background at the start of the video! We also did a kayak tour on the Chicago River and the guide explained about the river project. Granted in not as much detail as you did lol

  • @PkPvre
    @PkPvre Před 2 lety +2

    insane one take jake, the best to ever do it

  • @WhyDoIBeHere
    @WhyDoIBeHere Před 2 lety

    Yet another exceptional piece of work James!

  • @DoryAbelman
    @DoryAbelman Před 2 lety

    Very well made video that was super interesting to watch! It was cool how you walked backwards with the cameraman walking forwards instead of the other way around, which is usually the case :)

  • @Manbemanbe
    @Manbemanbe Před 2 lety

    James this is next level content, mate. All that text! Amazing work!

  • @Iamthelolrus
    @Iamthelolrus Před 2 lety

    My God man, video quality was already great but this one really stood out to me. Thank you for putting in the time and effort.

  • @mitchellwalker9839
    @mitchellwalker9839 Před 2 lety

    Excellent video, keep up the good work

  • @cooperbraidwood7204
    @cooperbraidwood7204 Před 2 lety

    You’re an amazing bloke mate keep up the good work

  • @toxicvoid272
    @toxicvoid272 Před 2 lety

    Wow this Chap has a really promising future. I'm always listening to your videos. Always great and Informative. The only topping on the cake for this video was if you did a back flip into the clean river at the end!! Love your Work!!

  • @yuridaman
    @yuridaman Před 2 lety

    One take! Very Impressive. Very informative. Well done team.

  • @StubbyPhillips
    @StubbyPhillips Před 2 lety

    Dude! You're REALLY good at this!

  • @Jbmz03
    @Jbmz03 Před 2 lety

    Beautiful storytelling and camerawork + editing again !! Pleasure to watch.

  • @raykewin3608
    @raykewin3608 Před 2 lety +1

    Great work.

  • @haroldberserker
    @haroldberserker Před 2 lety

    Solid one take, awesome

  • @monkeylordofdoom14
    @monkeylordofdoom14 Před 2 lety

    Yet another super cool and super informative video! Thank you so much I found this so cool! 😀

  • @thomasn4424
    @thomasn4424 Před 2 lety

    What a great video. Thank you ❤️

  • @walthodgson5780
    @walthodgson5780 Před 2 lety

    Nice graphics inlays. At first I was impressed that you went to the expense and effort of making and placing those murals on the stairs and then saw that they were moving a little....and then then faded away. Well done.

  • @vallassy
    @vallassy Před 2 lety +3

    I have to watch the video again, I was too fascinated watching how well you walk backwards.

  • @xakaryehlynn4749
    @xakaryehlynn4749 Před 2 lety

    This was an incredible video.

  • @InfamousBLT
    @InfamousBLT Před 2 lety

    You packed a ton of really neat stuff in this video dang

  • @GabeSullice
    @GabeSullice Před 2 lety

    wow, just found your channel. The way you presented this with embedded images and a walking presentation was really cool. well done 👍

  • @large_individual
    @large_individual Před 2 lety

    Honestly, props for continuing to walk while talking, and not showing any sign of being out of breath

  • @MicroscopicMedia
    @MicroscopicMedia Před 2 lety

    Excellent video, well done!

  • @kauemoura
    @kauemoura Před 2 lety

    Loved the editing style.

  • @Life_42
    @Life_42 Před 2 lety

    Most aesthetically pleasing video ever filmed! What a beautiful remarkable walk!

  • @herdek550
    @herdek550 Před 2 lety

    Your video-production is amazing. I love the camera and afterefects. Only downside is that I was enjoying the video quality so much I almost forget to focus on your speech. This deserves more views. You earned my subscribe

  • @defeatSpace
    @defeatSpace Před 2 lety

    Hello! Cool to see you at my state of residence, hoping Chicago treats you well! River North is very nice to explore :)

  • @maxxxy910
    @maxxxy910 Před 2 lety +1

    The production of this video is insane! Wow! Also was kinda hoping you'd jump in at the end >.

  • @Frenotx
    @Frenotx Před rokem

    Very well done.