How Things Work
How Do Aeroplanes Fly? Lift, Wings and a Famous Myth
A jumbo jet weighs hundreds of tonnes, yet stays in the air. How wings create lift, the four forces of flight, and why a popular explanation is wrong.
How Things Work
From GPS to aeroplanes: the science behind the technology we use every day.
How Things Work
How Do Touchscreens Work? Why Your Finger Works and Gloves Don’t
Phone screens sense your finger through an invisible electrical grid. How capacitive and resistive touchscreens work, how multi-touch works and why gloves fail.
How Things Work
How Does GPS Work? Satellites, Atomic Clocks and Einstein
Your phone finds its position from satellites 20,000 km away. How GPS uses signal timing, why it needs four satellites and why Einstein’s relativity matters.
How Things Work
How Do Rechargeable Batteries Work? Inside a Lithium-Ion Battery
Your phone’s battery moves lithium ions back and forth between two layers. How charging works, why batteries wear out and the habits that make them last longer.
How Things Work
How Does a Fridge Work? It Doesn’t Make Cold – It Moves Heat
A fridge doesn’t make cold; it pumps heat from inside to the kitchen. How the cooling cycle works, why the back is warm and why an open door won’t cool a room.
How Things Work
How Does Wi-Fi Work? Radio Waves, Routers and Why Walls Slow It Down
Wi-Fi sends data through the air as radio waves. How routers encode information, what 2.4, 5 and 6 GHz mean, and why your signal drops in some rooms.