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25 Chemistry Experiments in 15 Minutes
Chemists specialize in turning one thing into another. From the ancient and largely unsuccessful art of alchemy to modern day medicine, chemistry has been a huge part of pushing civilization forward. Andrew Z. Szydło is a chemistry teacher and in this TEDx talk, goes through 25 fascinating science experiments in 15 minutes.
Year In Search 2018
The year has nearly come to an end. Before you put 2018 behind you completely, take a look back at the events that shaped it through Google's most searched topics.
DIY SpaceX Rockets
No longer the sole province of huge government organizations or private defense companies, getting into space is being revolutionized by private companies. SpaceX is leading the charge with their reusable rockets, but in a sign of how far technology can filter down, Joe Barnard is building his own — albeit on a smaller scale. While Joe hasn't successfully landed a rocket yet, he's getting closer every day, along with learning a lot in the process.
Spending Christmas Around the Moon
When John F. Kennedy kicked off the space race by announcing the goal of landing on the moon by the end of the decade, it was one of the biggest crunch times in history. The newly-formed NASA faced the nearly-impossible task of not only getting there but designing and building the multitude of systems required to make the trip. On December 21, 1968, Apollo 8 launched and put three astronauts in orbit around the moon. Flying on largely untested equipment, the mission was a success as the crew spent Christmas watching the Earth rise over the horizon of the moon.
Voyager 2 Leaves the Solar System
Launched 16 days before its twin Voyager 1 in 1977, Voyager 2 has left the Solar System and entered interstellar space and is now taking the first direct measurements of the plasma fields there. In operation for 41 years, 3 months and 21 days, Voyager 2 has technology that is far inferior to the smartphone in your pocket — yet it's still providing valuable data to scientists here on Earth. See you space cowboy. . .
Sounds of Mars
Last spring, NASA's InSight Lander was launched into space on a journey to Mars. After landing on the Red Planet, the spacecraft's seismometer picked up the first sounds. What you hear are Martian winds blowing across the Elysium Planitia at around 10-15 mph.
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Timex x Peanuts Snoopy Watch
Some things never go out of style. Timex and Peanuts comics are two prime examples. The iconic pair team up with help from Todd Snyder for this timepiece which places Snoopy "On The Move" at the center of the dial. The watch has a 34mm stainless steel case, quartz movement, domed acrylic crystal, and a black leather strap and is available just in time for the holidays and reruns of A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Presented by Timex.
Coinmine One Cryptocurrency Miner
Up to this point, mining cryptocurrencies has required a lot of technical know-how. The Coinmine One Cryptocurrency Miner aims to make it as easy as possible. Developed with the backing of Coinbase, this plug-and-play machine runs Mine OS, a new mission-specific operating system. Over-the-air updates let it adapt to changing protocols and adopt new ones, and unlike most standalone units, it uses only 120W — about as much as a PS3 — and produces only 40 decibels of noise. You can monitor your earnings from an app, mine Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Monero, and Z-Cash right out of the box, and will be in great position to mine the currencies of the future with minimal effort.
Presented by Coinmine.
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The Truth About Vinyl
It's become one of the greatest debates of the modern age: Is vinyl better than digital? Vinyl records have experienced a resurgence in the last few years, with claims of better sound fidelity versus the digital format. Real Engineering tries to settle the debate once and for all by analyzing the science behind the two competing formats.
The Longest Timelapse From Space
The International Space Station has been orbiting the Earth for 20 years. The first module was launched in 1998, and since then, the ISS has been more than the most distant research platform in history — it also represents what we are capable of when we come together for a common goal. In honor of the ISS' 20th anniversary, The European Space Agency released the longest timelapse ever recorded from space.
NASA InSight Mars Landing
NASA's InSight touched down on the Red Planet on November 26 with a plethora of instruments that will exponentially increase our understanding of Mars. InSight is the first lander that takes its instruments from itself and places them on the surface — described as the most high-tech version of the arcade claw game you could imagine. NASA streamed the whole event live, along with the first communications from InSight.
The End of Space
Trash isn't just a problem on the surface of Earth — it also poses a danger for the communications and scientific infrastructure that we rely on in space. 60 years of launching things into orbit have created a huge amount of space junk that can destroy satellites, even at sizes as small as a pea. With the problem of space junk growing exponentially, some novel solutions have been proposed, from nets and harpoons to repelling magnets and lasers.
We Are NASA
You don't have to be a space nerd to get goosebumps from the latest NASA promo. Narrated by Mike Rowe, America's space agency launched a new video taking an inspiring look back at their 60-year history. The focus then shifts to their future, teasing plans for Mars missions and a return to the Moon.
World's Fastest Jet Suit
Richard Browning is the founder and chief test pilot of Gravity, maker of the fastest jet suits in the world. Browning grew up flying model aircraft with his father, an aeronautical engineer, and started designing his first jet suit a few years ago. After a lot of trial and error, Browning has a fully-functional jet suit that would make James Bond jealous — and it's faster than anything that's been built before.
First 8k Video From Space
From experiments with DNA and RNA to growing plants in zero-gravity, the International Space Station has been a major contribution to humanity's reach for the stars. NASA recently got some ultra-high-definition camera equipment to the ISS and released the first video shot in the format to the public. With crew members performing experiments and incredible shots of the Earth below, expect even more breathtaking scenes from our spot 254 miles above the planet.
Scaling the Universe
When trying to grasp the scale of stars and planets in an infinite universe, our finite minds have trouble visualizing how big things get out there. Most visualizations use a fixed perspective, where a larger planet or star appears to be the same size in the frame as the one before it. Corridor Crew took a different approach, setting Earth as the size of a tennis ball, and placing stars of increasing size in familiar a cityscape to help us truly see how small our neck of the galaxy is.
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StockX G-Shock Watches
In celebrating 35 years of G-Shock Casio has released a myriad of special limited edition watches that won't go unnoticed. They've taken classic references like the GMW 5000 and GA 700 and dressed them in gold and steel accents with the full metal and Glacier Gold collections. These are true limited editions selling over retail in most cases. These are future collectibles for anyone that loves G-Shock, but always thought they were a bit too subtle. Find your favorite on StockX, who carry each of these anniversary models, along with all the regular G-Shocks you know and love.
Presented by StockX.
Norlan Rauk Heavy Tumbler
Developed for whisky drinkers that prefer a chilled dram, Norlan's Rauk tumbler takes its name from the old Scottish word for rock. The glass is made of crystal and precision modeled to touch down on four crystal points, making surface contact but providing the appearance that it's hovering. The Rauk also has extruded v-shaped markings inside that offer friction points for gripping slippery peels in cocktails before you muddle them back to life.
Presented by Norlan.
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Apollo 11's Journey to the Moon
You've seen the launch and watched Neil Armstrong take those first steps but that was only a part of the mission. A lot happened during the eight-day journey between the Earth and the Moon to make the lunar landing a success. This animated breakdown details exactly what took place during the deconstruction of the Saturn V rocket and Apollo spacecraft.
The History of Ctrl+Alt+Del
If you've ever used a computer, you've used that magical three-key combo — Ctrl+Alt+Del. Stuck programs or locked up computers, that simple command gets you out of the loop and back to work. Dr. Dave Bradley invented the command while working at IBM on its revolutionary personal computer. When something crashed, Dr. Bradley needed a way to get the computer reset without having to go through the entire boot process — and Ctrl+Alt+Del was born.
Parkour Atlas
It's faster than you, stronger than you, and now it can do parkour better than you. While we sit behind our devices, every day Atlas is evolving into the ultimate super-species. Boston Dynamic's robot now uses special control software to jump over logs, climb steep terrain, and take over the world.
The First Manned Launch of an Apollo Mission
15 months before the launch of Apollo 11 that landed the first humans on the Moon, Apollo 7 was the first Apollo mission that carried humans into orbit. NASA celebrates the first manned launch of the Apollo program with this retrospective featuring archival footage and interviews with Walter M. Schirra, Donn F. Eisele, and R. Walter Cunningham, the three astronauts on the historic mission.
The Most Precise Atomic Clock in the World
The first atomic clock was built in 1955, and since then, they've been the standard at keeping the world synchronized. From TV broadcast signals to GPS, atomic clocks do more than minutes and seconds. Dr. Jun Ye and his team at the University of Colorado have built the most accurate atomic clock ever, an instrument capable of measuring everything from the Theory of Relativity to movement at the center of the Earth.
What Smartphones are Made Of
The supercomputer in your pocket is a miracle of human progress in science and technology — and a representative of the environmental impact of our modern society. From rare earth minerals to heavy metals like lead, a smartphone requires a lot of resources, and those resources mostly come from small countries with cheap labor. TED looks at what you need to make a smartphone and how that affects people and environments across the globe.
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The First Private Passenger On The Lunar BFR Mission
No human has been to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. Well, that's about to change. Although the rocket hasn't even been built yet, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk announced that his company had officially signed the first private passenger to board the BFR launch vehicle and fly around the Moon. That person is Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa. The fashion tycoon has bought the entire first flight and it's scheduled to take off as early as 2023.
How We Could Build a Moon Base Today
When it comes to space colonization, everyone is talking about Mars. But if humans wanted to inhabit a closer space rock, we could start today. We currently have the technology and estimates from NASA to build a Lunar base. This could be the first step in further colonies as well as new technologies that could enhance our life here on Earth. As always, Kurzgesagt gives the details in a vibrantly animated nutshell.
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How Life on Earth Can Help the Search for Aliens
Microbiologist Luke McKay is fascinated by the prospect of life on other planets. To help the search for alien life, McKay is studying a little closer to home — in the hot springs of the United States. Motherboard talked with McKay to see how life living in some of the most extreme conditions on Earth can help scientists look for life on other planets.
Apple's Big News in 108 Seconds
In an event held at the Steve Jobs Theater on the Apple Campus, the trillion dollar company made some big announcements. They revealed a new line of iPhones and an updated Apple watch. While the entire keynote took about two hours, you can catch all the highlights right here in under two minutes.
Decoding the Mind With Robotic Limbs
One of the biggest problems in science isn't out there in space — it's right inside our own heads. Psychologist Axel Cleermans is on the search for what consciousness is, where it comes from, and why we alone seem to have it. By using robotic limbs activated by thinking, Cleermans is taking steps to answer one of the biggest questions in the universe.
The New Hunt for Dark Matter
Beneath a mountain in Italy, an international team of scientists called SABRE is preparing a new way to hunt for the most elusive substance that may or may not exist in the universe: dark matter. The Italian lab will work with another lab built in a gold mine in Australia, in order to filter out as much cosmic interference as possible. Geomicrobiologist Jennifer Macalady got to take an early tour of the facility with physicist Davide D'Angelo to learn how close we are to understanding one of the biggest mysteries of the universe.
What A Nuclear Blast Feels Like
There are 15,000 nuclear bombs in nine countries across the world — a devastating amount of destruction. Thankfully, very few people have witnessed firsthand the power of a nuclear explosion. But for those that have, it's an unforgettable experience. Motherboard talked to former British soldiers who were subjected to nuclear tests and what it was like to see the most destructive force on the planet up close.
Searching For Life's Origins Underground
Jennifer Macalady is a microbiologist exploring Italy's water-filled Frasassi Caves. The conditions in these caves might be similar to the conditions that the first life on Earth began — lightless and dark. Macalady hopes that the microbes she's discovering might hold the secrets to the origin of life, without the ability to harvest energy from the sun.
