PBS Nova - Diamond Deception (2000) VHSrip.avi

How to turn peanut butter into diamonds... An interesting show about the history and technology of synthetic diamonds.

VHSrip, 54 minutes, English, original broadcast date - Feb 1, 2000.

The tape's format was 4:3 but 97% of its content is 16:9 so I cropped the top and bottom. The intro and credits are only times that it can be noticed.

The same VHS is $30-47 on Amazon.com. Free to you. Please seed :)



Video: XVID 672x400 29.97fps 1580Kbps
Audio: MPEG Audio Layer 3 48000Hz stereo 192Kbps


From the Nova web site:
Today science is closing in on an impossible dream: the ability to manufacture gem-quality diamonds in a few days, instead of the billions of years required by nature. These synthetic diamonds are such good copies of the real thing that they not only have the identical atomic structure but can even replicate their flaws. Even the most sophisticated machines can scarcely distinguish the difference. More important, these diamonds can be made and sold at a handsome profit.

In "Diamond Deception," NOVA dramatizes the breakneck battle in the 1950s as a team at General Electric beat its rivals to synthesize the first industrial diamonds. Then the show explores today's race to produce the first artificial gem-quality stones. Surprisingly, crucial breakthroughs have been made with primitive-looking equipment in makeshift labs in Russia and China. These unlikely pioneers are now closing in on their goal of producing bigger stones with fewer flaws and perfect coloration. Their efforts threaten the centuries-old monopoly of De Beers and may transform the marketing of the world's most desirable gem.