By BBC – The idea that we’re all pawns in a simulated universe isn’t a new one by any means. In his famous Allegory Of The Cave, the Greek philosopher Plato illustrated how what we assume to be real can so easily turn out to be an illusion. Some 2,000 years later, the French philosopher …
By BBC Focus – FERMILAB, THE AMERICAN particle accelerator facility near Chicago, has just seen the completion of a peculiar scientific instrument. Its purpose is to probe space-time and demonstrate that, far from being smooth, as Einstein believed, it is grainy like a newspaper photograph viewed close-up. If the Fermilab ‘Holometer’ succeeds, incredibly, it may …
The base ingredient of the majority of papers is wood, so the first step in paper manufacturing is the harvesting of trees. Once the trees have been felled and shred down to their trunks, they are transported to a paper mill. Once they arrive the trunks are fed through a bark-skimming drum in which they …
The lubricant that most vehicles can’t function without. Engine oil – or motor oil as it’s also known-is designed to lubricate the inner components of internal combustion engines, as well as to protect them against corrosion and keep them cool while in use. It’s made from two main elements: base stock and additives.
Scientists recently unearthed a vampire grave in Bulgaria — does this mean that vampires really exist? Vampires don’t exist, but in the past, myths about bloodsucking ghosts were common. Throughout the world, archaeologists have found graves containing humans who were believed to be vampires.
I’ve got butterflies in my stomach – this relates to more than just that feeling you get when you’re around someone you’d like to kiss, as the same feeling also comes when you’re nervous (eg before an exam or the first day on a new job).
The science of terminating bugs and other pests explained! Pesticides are mixtures of chemicals and other substances that are used to tackle pests such as weeds. Thousands of different types are in use, and some are even living organisms, such as the bacterium bacillus thuringiensis which is used to control insects.
Superconductors may seem like perfectly ordinary materials, but turn down the thermostat and their superpowers are revealed… Superconductors are metals (such as lead) or oxides which conduct electricity with no resistance. There’s just one catch – to display their superpowers, they need to be kept at a frosty -260 or so degrees Celsius (-436 degrees …
This classic state of matter can be difficult to see but it has some amazing properties. Along with liquids and solids, gases are one of the three major states of matter. Typically they result when a substance is heated in its liquid state to its boiling point, or when evaporation occurs from the surface of …
Discover the chemistry at work inside your washing machine. Anionic surfactants are the workhorse ingredients of most washing detergents. They are compounds such as sodium alkyl sulphate and are made up of molecules that have opposite charges at different points {polar molecules).
