How the States Got Their Shapes

When the founding fathers drew the first map of America, they confronted many of the same challenges that unite and divide us today. How The States Got Their Shapes explores how our borders evolved--and continue to change--in response to religion, transportation, communication, politics, culture clashes and even Mother Nature. This is no textbook-style documentary series. Local experts and everyday folks lead host Brian Unger, a journalist and former Daily Show correspondent, to insights about some of America's most baffling questions. How are flying fish threatening to re-draw the shape of Illinois? What does the use of cell phones by Pennsylvania's Amish have to do with the shape of their state? How is the phrase "sold down the river" linked to the shape of what might be our 51st state? Why did the invention of air conditioning change how America picks its Presidents? Unger uncovers the answers, hidden in our map. (official distributor synopsis)