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Scientific consensus: how research works

Research is a slow and long process. It is far from what is pictured, with a new discovery that becomes instantly the new scientific truth. When a new discovery is first made, it takes a while before it is accepted as a scientific consensus. The reason lies in how research works. Fundamental science Research is…
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Is Africa gonna split in two?

Don’t worry, it is not going to happen anytime soon, but geologists observe the formation of oceanic crust in Ethiopia. How is it possible since Ethiopia is obviously land and not ocean? What is happening exactly? What does it mean for the country and the future? An explanation is needed, from basic plate tectonics to…
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Everyday Science #2: The milk pouring principle

Has it ever happened to you, when you tried to pour milk into a bowl, that it stops and goes, spilling liquid everywhere? Well, this chaotic flow is based upon a common physical principle that I’ll explain here. An important post to have a safe breakfast! Initial situation We have a carton with a hole…
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Science Fun Facts #2

A new set of scientific fun facts. For the #1, head here: http://allyouneedisscience.net/science-fun-facts-1/ Mathematics The movement of a runner’s ponytail acts as a pendulum and follows the equation: Joseph B. Keller; “Ponytail motion”, SIAM J. Appl. Math., 70(7), 2667–2672; doi: 10.1137/090760477 Computer science It takes two neurons for an AI to learn how to ride a…
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Breaking the sound barrier

Like seen in the previous post [1], when an explosion is faster than the speed of sound, a shockwave is created, with a sonic boom. I didn’t detailed this phenomenon, then. So I will do it now by explaining what happens when an object producing sound moves becomes supersonic. Properties of sound A sound is…
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What triggers an explosion?

Viewers of action movies or fans of the TV show Mythbusters have seen countless explosions. Fireball, detonation at a very high speed, involving explosives. Everyone can picture this destructive event. But do you really understand what is underneath this phenomenon? How an explosion occurs? Definition of an explosion Back to the basics, to what do…
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Glaciers, our largest fresh water source

In a time of global warming, scientists pull the alarm every year about the consequences. One of the consequences that worry the most is the future of glaciers and what will happen if they keep loosing ice and disappearing. When asked what a glacier is, most of us easily picture this big mass of ice…
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Everyday Science #1: The shower-curtain effect

Sometimes, weird events happen in everyday life. One of them might happen every single day while you take a shower. It never occurred to you that the shower curtain seems to approach you when the water is on, like it is coming for you? Well, it does and there is a scientific explanation for that.…
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Science of cooking

Cooking is the arrangement of food supplies. It is cultural and depends on the ressources available and the climate the people are in. It evolved a lot through time and regions. Spicy, sweet, salty, tasty, every person has a different affinity with meals. However, what they all have in common, they respond to a primary…
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A B Sinusoid D E F G 🎶 (part 2)

In the previous post [1] we established how sounds and notes works. We also explained the functioning of some of the most famous instruments: guitars and pianos. These two are part of string instruments, one of three instrument families. The other two families are going to be describe in this post: wind instruments and percussion…
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