I learned this today. We have 24 hours in a day because of Hipparchus. We have 60 seconds in a minute and 60 minutes in an hour because of Claudius Ptolemy, Al-Biruni, and the Babylonians. Before we look at this topic, we have to remember that needing to know the time exactly is a fairly […]
I learned this today. There is no reason why the speed of light is 299,792,458 m/s. It just is. The speed of light is the top speed that matter or energy can travel at. All forms of electromagnetic radiation travel at the speed of light. Radio waves and electricity, for example. Nothing can travel faster
#129 Why is the speed of light 299,792,458 m/s? Read More »
I learned this today. Moore’s Law, that the number of transistors on an integrated circuit will double every two years, is no longer true. Moore’s Law was coined by George Moore in 1965. He was working at Fairchild Semiconductor where he was the director or R&D. Electronics Magazine asked him what was going to happen
#128 Does Moore’s Law still apply today? Read More »
I learned this today. Cancer kills people because it grows into key organs, nerves or blood vessels and impairs their function. Cancer is caused when cells start to change abnormally. New cells in our bodies form through growth and division. When cells become old and need to be replaced, they are switched off and die.
#127 How does cancer kill people? Read More »
I learned this today. With the technology we have today a space elevator isn’t possible, but it could be possible in the not so distant future. The main idea for a space elevator would have a cabled anchored somewhere on the surface of the Earth. The other end of the cable would be attached to
#126 Is a space elevator possible? Read More »
I learned this today. Machu Picchu was most likely a royal estate for Inca emperors and nobles that was probably built in the 1420s and abandoned a little over 100 years later. The Incas had no written language, so all information about the site has been deduced by modern archaeology. The Incan Empire came into
#125 What was Machu Picchu built for? Read More »
I learned this today. The body produces a fever because pyrogens cause the hypothalamus to raise its set-point for body temperature. Fever is a defense mechanism, and most fevers happen when your body has a bacterial, viral or parasitic infection. Other things, such as alcohol withdrawal and heat stroke, can also cause a fever. Raising
#124 What makes the body produce a fever? Read More »
I learned this today. The first prime minister of the UK to live in 10 Downing Street was Sir Robert Walpole in 1735. 10 Downing Street is located in the City of Westminster, in London. In 960, an abbey was built there, and the area became known as “west minster” to differentiate it from the
#123 When did UK prime ministers start living in 10 Downing Street? Read More »
I learned this today. A wormhole is a hypothetical tunnel that would connect two separate points in space. Wormholes are hypothetical and have obviously never been discovered. They were first theorized in 1916. Karl Schwarzschild, a German physicist and astronomer started looking into Einstein’s field equations. These are the equations that Einstein used in his
#122 What are wormholes? Read More »
I learned this today. Fruits have been preserved as jams since at least before the ancient Greeks. Since the Paleolithic period, people have been preserving foods in different ways. Drying was the easiest way and probably the first form of preservation. Chilling would have been possible in cold climates, but not all year round. People
#121 When did people start making jam? Read More »
