Podcast Summary
Mysteries of Movement: Turbulence in Planes: Business success relies on simplicity and precision, while scientific mysteries add intrigue and drive innovation.
Simplicity and precision are key to business success, as demonstrated by Mercury's financial services and Apple Card's daily cashback and savings offerings. In the world of science, there are still mysteries to be solved, as shown in the game show "Unexplainable or Not," where guests, including Avery Truffleman, try to guess which scientific mystery has been solved. This week's theme is movement, and one of the mysteries is about turbulence in planes. Despite some people's fascination with the science behind plane crashes, the cause of turbulence remains a mystery, adding an element of uncertainty to even the most seasoned flyers' travels. Overall, whether it's in business or science, striving for understanding and clarity can lead to significant advancements and improvements.
Understanding Turbulence in the Atmosphere: Scientists are working on the Navier-Stokes equations to better understand fluid dynamics and predict turbulence, potentially improving aircraft design.
Our understanding of turbulence in the atmosphere, which can significantly impact flights, is still in its infancy. Air behaves like a fluid ocean, and turbulence is caused by unpredictable currents. Scientists are working on the Navier-Stokes equations, developed over a century ago, to better understand fluid dynamics, which could lead to advancements in predicting turbulence and improving aircraft design. However, some argue that the unpredictability of turbulence adds to the adventure of flying and is a reminder of the vastness and complexity of the natural world. Next up, Brian Resnick discusses the science behind ice skating.
Why is ice slippery? Thompson's experiment reveals ice's unique properties: Ice's slipperiness is due to its unique state as a solid that behaves like a liquid under pressure, allowing us to skate on it and impacting natural phenomena like glacier movement and Earth's surface features.
The mystery of why ice is slippery and allows us to skate on it is a fascinating question with implications beyond just recreational activities. Ice, despite being a solid below 32 degrees Fahrenheit, has unique properties that make it possible for us to glide on its surface. James Thompson, a 19th century scientist, proposed an explanation for this phenomenon through an experiment involving a cube of ice and a weighted wire. He discovered that ice, being less dense than water, can transform under pressure, allowing the wire to cut through it. This property of ice is crucial to understanding its behavior in various contexts, such as glacier movement and the formation of Earth's surface features. The slipperiness of ice is a result of its unique state as a solid that behaves like a liquid under certain conditions, making it an intriguing and essential aspect of our natural world.
Everyday experiences hide deeper truths and mysteries: Keep an open mind and be curious about the world around you, as everyday experiences may reveal deeper truths and mysteries
Our everyday experiences, no matter how mundane they may seem, can hide deeper truths and mysteries. Using the examples of turbulence in air travel and ice skating, we learned that our initial assumptions about how these phenomena work are often incorrect. Ice skating cannot be explained by the pressure melting the ice or by friction melting the water. Instead, there are more complex factors at play. Similarly, the self-stability of a bicycle is still not fully understood, despite our long history of using and making them. These examples remind us that the world is full of wonders and mysteries, even in the things we encounter every day. So, whether it's the turbulence in the sky or the balance of a bike, keep an open mind and be curious about the world around you.
Myths debunked: Balance not solely explained by gyroscopic or caster effects: Bicycle balance is influenced by multiple factors beyond gyroscopic and caster effects, including the caster effect's role in self-balancing and the importance of understanding the fundamental nature of balance for innovation in other devices.
The balance of a bicycle is not solely explained by the gyroscopic effect or the caster effect. For decades, it was believed that these effects were the primary reasons why a bicycle stays upright while moving forward. However, in the 1970s, a researcher discovered that the equations describing these effects contained basic math errors. To prove this, he built a bike with counter-rotating wheels to cancel out the gyroscopic effect and found that the bike still maintained its balance. This led him to explore the caster effect, which is caused by the wheel's contact point being behind the steering axis. This design feature allows the wheel to trail the steering axis and self-balance. However, another researcher built a bike that canceled out the caster effect, yet the bike still balanced while moving forward. These discoveries showed that the gyroscopic effect and caster effect are important but not the core reasons for a bicycle's stability. Understanding the fundamental nature of balance could lead to improvements in other devices, such as e-scooters, that are difficult to balance. The mysteries of the fundamental nature of air, ice, and balance are still open questions in science.
Apple Card rewards vary for purchases, 'Running Sucks' highlights women runners' growth: Apple Card rewards change based on purchases, while 'Running Sucks' showcases female runners' personal growth
Apple Card offers different rewards based on how you make purchases, with higher rewards for preferred items and lower rewards for others. Meanwhile, the docuseries "Running Sucks" celebrates women who run and the communities that support them, emphasizing the personal growth and empowerment that comes from pushing past challenges. In the realm of science mysteries, the hosts discussed the seemingly contradictory nature of ice's solid yet slippery surface, which was explained by chemistry professor David Lemmer as a result of the surface behaving more like a liquid than a solid.
The Surprising Quasi-Liquid Layer on Ice Surface: Ice has a thin, quasi-liquid layer on its surface that makes it both sticky and slippery, and this property was only proven in the 1980s using X-ray imaging.
Ice, which appears to be a solid, has a thin, quasi-liquid layer on its surface that makes it both sticky and slippery. This was first proposed by scientist Michael Faraday in the 1800s, but it wasn't proven until the 1980s with the help of X-ray imaging. This layer, which is only about 6 nanometers thick, allows ice to behave in unexpected ways, such as sticking together when stacked and providing a thin film of lubrication for ice skating. The molecules at the surface of the water are less stable because they don't have as many other molecules to hold onto, so they can wander around and create this quasi-liquid layer. This property of ice is counterintuitive and shows how complex the behavior of seemingly simple substances can be.
The Boundary Between Ice and Liquid: Continued scientific exploration uncovers hidden interfaces between states of matter, like ice's boundary with liquid, challenging our assumptions and enhancing our understanding of the natural world.
Ice, despite appearing solid, has a boundary where it transitions into a liquid state. This interface, which is often unseen, challenges our understanding of matter as strictly solid, liquid, or gas. This concept was first explored in the 1800s but wasn't proven until technology advanced enough to observe it. This idea of the existence of these interfaces between states of matter highlights the importance of continued scientific exploration and discovery. For instance, this understanding of ice's unique properties is crucial for activities like ice skating, where maintaining balance relies on the skater's ability to navigate this boundary between solid and liquid. Overall, this discussion emphasizes the importance of questioning our assumptions about the natural world and the role technology plays in expanding our knowledge.
Mysteries of Deja Vu and Plant Copying: The Unexplainable podcast delves into the mysteries of deja vu and the story of Mandingwein, a man who can copy plants, featuring experts and storytellers, with listeners encouraged to submit their own mysteries.
The Unexplainable podcast, hosted by Noam Hassenfeld, explores various mysteries and phenomena, bringing in experts and storytellers to shed light on unexplained occurrences. The episode featured the mystery of deja vu, which Neil DeNaysha forgot about, and the story of Mandingwein, who copies plants. Avery Truffleman was a guest on the show, discussing her podcast "Articles of Interest" and its focus on fashion history and politics. Listeners are encouraged to submit their own mysteries or participate as contestants. The podcast is produced by Brian Resnick, Meredith Hoddenott, and Noam Hassenfeld, with contributions from Andy Ruina and Holger Babinski. The team includes Christian Ayala for mixing and sound design, Zoe Malik for fact-checking, and music by the host himself. The episode closed with a nod to Abba's 70th anniversary and an invitation for feedback and reviews. The podcast's catchy outro emphasizes the slipperiness of ice, which is due to a quasi-liquid layer on its surface.
