You may have heard or seen the Ames window illusion before, but for anyone who wonders hot it works, Derek Muller of Veritasium is here for the job. Put simply, the illusion involves a flat piece of cardboard that appears to be a rectangular window but is, in fact, a trapezoid. The cardboard is hung vertically from a wire so it can rotate around continuously, or is attached to a vertical mechanically rotating axis for continuous rotation, and both sides have the same image. Read more for the video and additional information.
A sun-like ball of fire was spotted flashing across the sky in China’s Yushu City, and it literally turned night into day. Researchers haven’t yet confirmed that this is actually a meteoroid or some other unidentified flying object, but some experts claim it could be a bolide, an extremely bright meteor. Fortunately, no casualties have been reported, though some structures may have been damaged by small meteorite fragments. Read more for the video and additional information.
Photo credit: Regina Valkenborgh via Peta Pixel
Photographer Regina Valkenborgh started experimenting with pinhole cameras after noticing how digitally driven society was becoming and 8-years-ago, she was a fine-art student at the University of Hertfordshire in southern England when she decided to create a series of makeshift pinhole cameras by lining drink cans with photographic paper. After a series of successful experiments with long-exposure photography, she decided to place one of these cameras on a telescope at the university’s observatory. Read more to see the can that was used to capture the longest-ever photo exposure.
Photo credit: Andreas Kay via Peta Pixel
Photographer Andreas Kay happened to stumble upon a flatid planthopper nymph in Ecuador and recorded the encounter to show just how much the tiny insect looks like a kernel of walking popcorn. For those who haven’t seen them before, eggs are usually found in the bark of host plants in the winter and hatch the following spring. The adults are seen mainly in summer and fall, when they feed on sap from the trees. Read more for two videos and additional information.
Scientists have observed a human study in which they used a type of oxygen therapy to reverse aging, or to be more specific, telomere length and senescent cell accumulation. When humans age, telomeres – the protective caps found at the end of chromosomes – are shortened, which gives rise to malfunctioning senescent cells. The team conducted a clinical trial on 35 adults over the age of 64 to see if Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy could prevent the deterioration in these two indicators of the ageing process. Read more for a video and additional information.
Cody Detwiler just so happened to be in town for an event at DeSoto Speedway in Bradenton, Florida, and he brought along MonsterMmax, a heavily modified Ford pickup truck, in preparation to enter Sarasota Bay in hopes of driving into the Gulf of Mexico. Local authorities showed up on scene to inform the crew that they were not allowed to use the public boat ramp to assemble this monstrous truck, but little did they know MonsterMax was actually registered as an aquatic vessel. Read more for the video and additional information.
The Smarter Every Day team debuted their specialized cannon back in September, which was created to see how much faster it could propel a baseball than Aroldis Chapman and Jordan Hicks, who both hold the MLB record of 105.1 mph for fastest recorded pitch thrown. Let’s just say they managed to smash that record by hitting an eye-watering 1000mph with this cannon, and when a baseball propelled at that speed hits a metal barricade, it simply explodes. Read more to see what it would be like to catch one of these missiles.
Even true wireless earbuds, like the AirPods Pro, can be a hassle to wear sometimes when out in public, but what if there was a device that could beam music directly to your head? Introducing SoundBeamer 1.0 by Israel-based company Noveto Systems. How does it work? The device employs a 3-D sensing module to locates and track the user’s ear position before sending audio via ultrasonic waves to create sound pockets. The sounds can then be heard in stereo or a spatial 3-D mode, the latter of which creates a 360° sound around the listener. Read more for a video and additional information.
Photo credit: Julie Roussy, McGill Graphic Design and Getty Images
Scientists have discovered K2-141b, an exoplanet that is half the size of Earth but orbits so close to its star that two-thirds of the surface is permanently sunlit. This means that almost half of the planet is molten magma, thus the atmosphere created by vaporized rocks spreads around the planet, forming clouds and rains or snows down onto the molten surface below. When that is paired with wind speeds above 3,100 miles per hour, or faster than the speed of sound on Earth, things get a bit strange. Read more for a video and additional information.
Normal school buses are designed to withstand inclement weather, but when things really hit the fan, it may be time for the Torsus Praetorian. It can easily clear just about any obstacle, thanks to its high ground clearance and 4×4 drive, all the while carrying up to 35-children safely. On the inside, you’ll find bespoke seats with a math-inspired design, made from a polymer protective coating, complete with seat belt. Read more for a video, additional pictures and information.