I learned this today. Bulletproof glass is made of two different types of laminated glass, one hard and one soft. Glass was invented in about 2500 BC, although only used as beads and jewelry. In 1450 BC, Egyptians started using glass drinking vessels. Plate glass was invented in about 1620 and glass production was […]
#217 How does bulletproof glass work? Read More »
I learned this today. Antimatter is matter made up of antiparticles. An antiparticle and a particle have the same mass but opposite electrical charges. A proton, for example, contains three quarks (2 up and 1 down), has a positive charge, and weighs 0.00000000000167262192 picograms. (A picogram is 100 billionth of a gram.) An
#216 What is antimatter? Read More »
I learned this today. The Dutch East India Company was nationalized in 1796 and dissolved on 31st December 1799. All of its assets were taken by the Dutch government and all of its territories became Dutch colonies. The Dutch East India Company was called the Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compangnie, which is why its logo is
#215 What happened to the Dutch East India Company? Read More »
I learned this today. Quarks are elementary particles that make up the fundamental constituents of matter. Everything that has matter in the universe is made up of atoms. The screen you are reading this on is made of glass (probably), which is basically silica. Silica has one silicon atom with bonds to four
#214 What is a quark? Read More »
I learned this today. FOXP2 is known as the language gene. FOXP2 stands for Forkhead box protein P2. Forkhead box proteins bind to a specific DNA sequence to control the rate of information. They are important for cell growth, proliferation, differentiation, and longevity. They, and all of the forkhead box proteins, have a
#213 What is the language gene, FOXP2? Read More »
I learned this today. The Higgs boson is an elementary particle associated with the Higgs field. The Higgs field is an energy field that transmits mass to the things that move through it. A boson is a particle that carries a force and energy. Bosons are at the route of the fundamental forces,
#212 What is a Higgs boson? Read More »
I learned this today. A dwarf galaxy is a galaxy with 1000 to a few billion stars. Our galaxy, the Milky Way, has between 200 and 400 billion stars. Dwarf galaxies tend to orbit larger galaxies. There are at least 14 satellite dwarf galaxies orbiting the Milky Way right now. They are the most
#211 What is a dwarf galaxy? Read More »
I learned this today. We all age and there are nine problems that aging causes in humans. These are DNA mutations, faulty gene expressions, shortening telomeres, the build up of faulty proteins, worn out cells don’t die, mitochondria become faulty, metabolism becomes faulty, stem cells become exhausted, and cells lose the ability to communicate with
#210 What problems does aging in humans cause? Read More »
I learned this today. Statins work by blocking a substance that our bodies need to make cholesterol. What is cholesterol? Cholesterol is a waxy, whitish-yellow fatty substance that our bodies use to build cells, make vitamin D, and make hormones, and fat dissolving acids. It is an essential part of our bodies. A 68 kg,
#209 How do statins work? Read More »
I learned this today. Cows combine nutrients from their blood, sugar, fat, and water in their udders to produce milk. All mammals, except for monotremes (like the duck billed platypus) produce milk. In all but one case the milk is produced by the female mammal. The only male mammal that produces milk is the Dayak
#208 How do cows produce milk? Read More »
