Small discoveries in familiar things

Curious Facts

50 pieces · 5 fields

Choose a question about nature, science or everyday life, and read the reason behind it.

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A small question to explore

One question from all 50

Everyday

Where is the vacuum in an insulated flask?

A starting point

A vacuum flask removes air between two walls to reduce conduction and convection, slowing temperature change in its contents.

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Showing 10 of 50 pieces

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Nature
Are flamingos pink when they hatch?
Pink feathers lead us back to food in the water and time spent growing.
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Science
Why do we see lightning before hearing thunder?
The order in which a flash and a sound reach us can be misleading.
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History
Does the Rosetta Stone contain three languages?
Three visibly different scripts invite a distinction between writing and language.
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Culture
Does shadow puppetry show only black shadows?
Behind a Chinese shadow-theatre screen, light, hands and sound work together.
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Everyday
How does soap help water wash away grease?
Two different parts of a molecule work at the boundary between oil and water.
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Nature
Is the lichen on a rock a plant?
A small patch can bring together organisms with different roles.
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Science
Do all metals stick to a magnet?
A simple sticking test does not reveal every magnetic response.
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History
Why did sailors need an accurate clock?
A clock on a ship could preserve a vital clue: time at a reference place.
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Culture
How do warp and weft become cloth?
Beneath a textile’s surface lies an order of threads crossing over and under.
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Everyday
How do a zipper’s two rows of teeth join?
Inside the small part you move by hand, two paths come together.
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Nature
Can a fallen pine cone move with humidity?
Changes in a cone on the ground can come from the properties of its tissue.
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Science
How does a small corn kernel puff into popcorn?
Moisture, pressure and starch act together in a brief transformation.
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History
Was the first modern Olympic winner’s medal gold?
The familiar link between first place and gold cannot simply be projected into the past.
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Culture
Why does a woodcut print reverse the image?
Looking at a design is different from pressing its inked face against paper.
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Everyday
Where is the vacuum in an insulated flask?
Beside the drink chamber lies a gap designed to make heat transfer harder.
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Nature
Why do male seahorses give birth?
Separate the role of producing eggs from the role of carrying the developing young.
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Science
Why is the daytime sky blue but a sunset red?
The same sunlight can look different after taking different paths through the air.
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History
Did computer bugs really begin with an insect?
Separate a famous moth record from the older technical use of the word.
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Culture
Why paint a fresco before the plaster dries?
The wall’s finishing layer does more than wait underneath the picture.
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Everyday
What does the tiny ball in a ballpoint pen do?
Within the pen’s apparently pointed tip is a part that can turn against the paper.
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Nature
Are there fingers inside a bat’s wing?
Look beyond the wing’s outline to the bones supporting it.
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Science
Where does salt go when it disappears in water?
A visible grain and the tiny particles in a solution are very different scales.
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History
Did the first underground railway run on electricity?
Running underground and powering a train are separate questions.
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Culture
How can paper drawings seem to move?
A zoetrope shows successive moments instead of physically changing a drawing.
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Everyday
Why can water spread upward in a paper towel?
A wet patch rising above the water points to the spaces between the fibres.
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Nature
Is a banana’s thick column a tree trunk?
Look at what overlaps, rather than just how tall it grows.
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Science
Why does a straw look bent in water?
Separate the shape of the straw from the light’s path to your eye.
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History
Did the economics prize start with the Nobel Prizes?
Place familiar names on a timeline to see their different beginnings.
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Culture
How does a piano key set strings vibrating?
Follow a movement from the player’s fingertips into sound.
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Everyday
How can an NFC tag respond without a battery?
Instead of looking for a battery, follow the source of power.
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Nature
Is a camel’s hump a water tank?
Before picturing a desert journey, look at what is stored in the hump.
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Science
Can a day on Venus be longer than its year?
Before comparing numbers, check which motion each period measures.
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History
What did the world’s first website introduce?
At the beginning, there was a website about the Web itself.
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Culture
How do small pieces make a mosaic picture?
Move closer to a large pattern and look at it piece by piece.
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Everyday
Why is there wavy paper inside corrugated board?
Look beyond a parcel box’s smooth surface to the layers at its edge.
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Nature
Where does a cactus photosynthesize without broad leaves?
Look at a saguaro’s green column and spines as parts with different roles.
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Science
Does a spring tide only mean higher water?
Look at the gap between high and low water, not just one high tide.
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History
Was the metre’s standard always a metal ruler?
Follow a length standard from a stored object to light and time.
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Culture
Does the needle cut an etching’s lines directly into metal?
Distinguish the drawing tool from the action that forms the grooves.
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Everyday
How do hook-and-loop fasteners close without glue?
Look at the tiny structures behind the different feel of the two sides.
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Curious Facts

A small question to explore

Where is the vacuum in an insulated flask?

What are you curious about?

Choose a question

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Does the Moon rotate if we see the same face?

Why do stamps have tooth-like edges?

Why does an orchestra sound an A before playing?

Where does an eraser move a pencil mark?

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