How do storm drains work? Storm drains work by directing rainwater from roads, sidewalks, roofs, and streets into underground channels, where the water can be controlled and carried away. Before there were cities, storm drains were obviously not necessary. When it rains in nature, the water hits the ground and either soaks into the soil, […]
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Why are British people called Limeys and Poms? British people are called Limeys because of the citrus juice British sailors drank to prevent scurvy, and they are probably called Poms because of Australian rhyming slang connected to the word immigrant. There are many names for British people around the world. Some of them are affectionate
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What causes traffic jams? The biggest cause of traffic jams is obviously the volume of traffic, but, in order of importance, they are caused by bottlenecks, traffic incidents, bad weather, road construction, poor signal timing, and other factors. Obviously, the main cause of traffic congestion, irrespective of the other reasons, is the volume of traffic
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Who invented the shopping mall? The shopping mall was invented by an Austrian architect called Victor Gruen in the 1950s. Shopping malls are sprawling labyrinths of shops and restaurants that spread out over an enormous area. They are usually out of town and are surrounded by even more enormous car parks to accommodate the masses
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Why do plugs spark when you pull them out? Plugs spark when you pull them out because, for a very brief moment, the electrical current can continue across the tiny gap as the plug loses contact with the socket. It does not continue for long, but it can continue just long enough to ionize the
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What is the rarest coin in the world? There are several possible candidates for the rarest coin in the world, but the most widely recognized contender is the 1933 Saint-Gaudens Double Eagle. This is a difficult question because there have been so many different coins over the thousands of years since coins were first used
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How do cranes balance? Cranes balance by using a system of counterweights, a stable base, and computers that monitor the load and angle of the crane at all times. The idea behind counterweights is fairly simple to understand, and it can be tested on a desk with a ruler, a pencil, and some heavy objects.
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What is the Janney coupler? The Janney coupler is a device that goes between train cars to join them together. It was a revolutionary jump in railroad technology and is still used today, over 150 years later. If you have ever ridden on a train and you have looked at the coupling that hold the
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How does a ship’s anchor work? A ship’s anchor works because the anchor digs into the seabed and the heavy chain creates a huge amount of resistance while keeping the pull on the anchor low and steady. Most people think that when ships rest at anchor, the only thing holding them in place is the
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Do we still need weather balloons? Yes, weather balloons are still needed. Satellites can provide a lot of data, but they still cannot sample the atmosphere directly from inside it, and they are far more expensive. There are thousands of satellites in orbit around Earth at the moment, so it is easy to assume there
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