A collection of free, easy-to-understand articles, covering how things work, cutting-edge science, cool gadgets, and computers. http://www.explainthatstuff.com/index.html Wed, 1 Feb 2012 10:40:00 GMT Steam engines might be wonderful to watch, but they're not so wonderful to pay for: they're hugely inefficient and need huge piles of coal and tanks of water to keep them running. Stirling engines work in a similar way but, by using a much more efficient design, use far less coal and no water at all. Here's how they work... http://www.explainthatstuff.com/how-stirling-engines-work.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/how-stirling-engines-work.html Thu, 12 Jan 2012 13:40:00 GMT Our <a href="http://www.facebook.com/explainthatstuff">Facebook wall</a> has been running for six months now and has a following of a few hundred really great people who join in and post interesting things. Pretty much once a day, I post some interesting little story about science and technology. If you're not there already, it's the place to get your daily dose! Since Google+ is also picking up momentum, I've decided to start posting a few (different) things on there as well, for those of you who don't use Facebook. You're welcome to join me there - and we'll see how it goes. https://plus.google.com/101536672158385330677/ https://plus.google.com/101536672158385330677/ Thu, 12 Jan 2012 11:40:00 GMT At last, I've had time to write and upload some new articles - and here's the first one for 2012. Can you stop a train with nothing but a magnet? You can! And here's how. You make the magnet move so it generates (or "induces", to use Michael Faraday's favorite word) swirling, electric eddy currents. They oppose whatever causes them, producing an opposing magnetic field that acts like a brake. Eddy-current brakes are widely used in high-speed trains, factory machines, and all kinds of other neat places where friction brakes don't cut the mustard. http://www.explainthatstuff.com/eddy-current-brakes.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/eddy-current-brakes.html Mon, 12 Sep 2011 20:40:00 GMT I'm pleased to report that all 400+ of the articles on Explain that Stuff have been updated over the last six months, with facts and figures checked, updated charts, many improved illustrations and lots more suggestions for further reading. Phew! Now that's done, I can actually set about writing some new stuff. http://www.explainthatstuff.com/azindex.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/azindex.html Sun, 14 Aug 2011 20:40:00 GMT Another quick reminder about our new Facebook wall: we've been posting interesting snippets of cool science pretty much every day since we launched the new page about a month ago and it's going really well. You don't have to be a member of Facebook to follow the page; you can even view it on our own site <a href="http://www.explainthatstuff.com/facebook.html">here</a>. http://www.facebook.com/explainthatstuff http://www.facebook.com/explainthatstuff Fri, 1 July 2011 09:30:00 GMT So finally we have a facebook page for Explain that Stuff where I'll be posting news about the site and other favorite things I find. You're also welcome to post your ideas, questions, and feedback on our wall. It's always great to hear from you! http://www.facebook.com/pages/Explain-that-Stuff/181964825191482 http://www.facebook.com/pages/Explain-that-Stuff/181964825191482 Wed, 22 June 2011 15:30:00 GMT After years of writing books and barely hearing a peep out of my readers, it's great to write for a website and get real feedback from real people! So, in an effort to encourage more review comments, I've added a new feedback link to every page on the site. If you rate or comment on one of my articles, I'll make a small donation to WaterAid (a charity we've supported since 2006 that helps to bring clean water and sanitation to developing countries). http://www.explainthatstuff.com/feedback.php http://www.explainthatstuff.com/feedback.php Wed, 22 June 2011 10:30:00 GMT Our old article about touchscreens has had a dusting down. There are lots of new diagrams comparing the various different kinds of touchscreen technology that you find in everything from iPhones to railroad station kiosks. There's also a new section on how touchscreens were, if not exactly invented, then "developed" over the last half-century. http://www.explainthatstuff.com/touchscreens.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/touchscreens.html Fri, 3 June 2011 08:30:00 GMT How does a smoke detector sniff out a fire? Our smoke detector article has been revamped with two new animations comparing the two kinds of detector (optical and ionization). http://www.explainthatstuff.com/smokedetector.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/smokedetector.html Tue, 24 May 2011 07:20:00 GMT We take it for granted that we can watch videos online, but have you ever stopped to consider how that's possible? A video contains a massive amount of sound and visual information that has to be crammed down a very limited capacity Internet connection. How do you squeeze something so big into something so small? With a neat technology called streaming. Here's another recently revised article from a few years ago. http://www.explainthatstuff.com/streamingmedia.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/streamingmedia.html Sun, 22 May 2011 16:40:00 GMT I'm revising and updating some of my old articles with new material this month and I'll be reposting the longer ones on this feed in case you missed them the first time around. Yesterday, I took another look at microwave ovens (an article I wrote about five years ago) and read through the original patents Percy Spencer (the inventor) filed in the 1950s. There's an amazing patent for a microwave-operated coffee brewer--a bit like a cross between a microwave oven and an espresso brewer with the coffee heated by a blast of microwaves. I've included one of Spencer's patent drawings in my updated microwave article so you can see for yourself how similar it is to a modern microwave. http://www.explainthatstuff.com/microwaveovens.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/microwaveovens.html Fri, 22 Apr 2011 16:40:00 GMT What a neat idea: wrap a saw blade around a kind of bicycle chain, hook it up to a mini car engine and--hey presto--you have a machine that can cut down a tree in just a couple of minutes! Here's how a chainsaw actually works... http://www.explainthatstuff.com/how-chainsaws-work.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/how-chainsaws-work.html Fri, 8 Apr 2011 15:40:00 GMT Can you really cook your dinner with a magnet? You can if the magnet's an electromagnet, built into a cunning kind of cooktop that uses induction (simply speaking: turning magnetism into electricity). Here's more about how it works, how it was discovered in the 19th century, and how it's put to practical use in wipe-clean cookers that are cool in more ways than one! http://www.explainthatstuff.com/induction-cooktops.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/induction-cooktops.html Thu, 31 Mar 2011 14:00:00 GMT Why do colors spin on the surface of a soap bubble or the shiny side of a compact disc? Why do the lenses of binoculars and telescopes look that funny blue color? How come butterflies, birds, and beetles shimmer in sunlight? And how do coated eyeglasses help you drive more safely at night? Believe it or not, all these things happen for similar reasons connected with the interference of light waves. Permit me to explain... http://www.explainthatstuff.com/thin-film-interference.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/thin-film-interference.html Sat, 26 Mar 2011 16:30:00 GMT Before LEDs came along there were amazing orange-red numeric displays made from little nixie tubes. Once deeply unfashionable, they're now making a comeback as electronic "retro chic". Here's how they work... http://www.explainthatstuff.com/how-nixie-tubes-work.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/how-nixie-tubes-work.html Sat, 19 Mar 2011 16:30:00 GMT Ever wondered about the science and technology of drilling holes? It might sound plain and simple, dull and boring, but without drilling we'd still be stuck in the horse-and-buggy age of the 19th century! How does big-time drilling differ from drilling holes in your wall at home? How does a drill bit survive high temperatures? These and other questions we shall explore! http://www.explainthatstuff.com/drilling.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/drilling.html Fri, 11 Mar 2011 16:30:00 GMT Saving energy is like a pay rise that keeps on coming. Whether you care about the environment or not, energy-saving makes a huge amount of sense. We have lots of articles about neat energy-saving technologies. This new article is designed to be more of an overview of the whole subject from which you can go on to explore those other pieces, as you wish. It introduces topics like heating, heat insulation, vehicle fuel efficiency, and the efficiency of household appliances. http://www.explainthatstuff.com/energy-saving-tips.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/energy-saving-tips.html Sat, 5 Mar 2011 11:30:00 GMT Computers and brains have much in common, but they're essentially very different. If we program computers to mimic the densely interconnected structure of brains, we can use them to recognize patterns, make simple decisions, and do all kinds of amazing new things. That's pretty much neural networks in one sentence, but if you want to find out more, read on! http://www.explainthatstuff.com/introduction-to-neural-networks.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/introduction-to-neural-networks.html Fri, 25 Feb 2011 18:50:00 GMT Metals are the shiny poster boys of the material world. What do they have in common? How do they differ from nonmetals? Why do they conduct heat and electricity. Here's a simple introduction... http://www.explainthatstuff.com/introduction-to-metals.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/introduction-to-metals.html Fri, 18 Feb 2011 13:40:00 GMT Ever get tired of drawing the curtains and closing the blinds? Wouldn't it be neat if you could turn all the windows in your home dark at the flick of a switch to protect your privacy or block out the sun? That's exactly what electrochromic "smart glass" is designed to do. Just flick a switch and it turns from clear to opaque or back again. Here's how it works... http://www.explainthatstuff.com/electrochromic-windows.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/electrochromic-windows.html Fri, 11 Feb 2011 09:30:00 GMT Got a fever? Stick a strip thermometer on your head and you'll soon find out! These handy little medical aids work using liquid crystals that change color as the temperature changes. You'll find similar "thermochromic" technology in mood rings, fax paper, and "hypercolor" T-shirts that show up your hand prints when you touch them. Here's how it works... http://www.explainthatstuff.com/thermochromic-materials.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/thermochromic-materials.html Mon, 31 Jan 2011 20:00:00 GMT If you love the idea of flying but you've nowhere in particular to go, a hot-air balloon could be just the thing. How do these giant floating gas bags actually work? Like this... http://www.explainthatstuff.com/how-hot-air-balloons-work.html http://www.explainthatstuff.com/how-hot-air-balloons-work.html