Imaginary scenes from the 1960s Zambian space program
In 1964, a Zambian grade-school science teacher single-handedly, and unilaterally, created a space program for his country. The program involved rolling aspiring astronauts down a hill in a barrel and clipping their rope-swings at the height of their arc to simulate weightlessness. He claimed his country would not only beat both the Americans and Russians…
10 Things We’ve Learned About the Earth Since Last Earth Day
Yesterday was the 42nd celebration of Earth Day, which was started in 1970 to help educate people about environmental issues and demonstrate public support for conservation science. With that in mind, Surprising Science‘s Joseph Stromberg thought it a good time to recap the most surprising, awe-inspiring and alarming things that we have learned about the…
How To Choose the Right Extension Cord for Anything
There are a lot of extension cords out there, and sometimes it’s hard to know which one to use. Often, people just go to the same one for everything—and it’s not always a safe choice for the wires carrying the current, the outlet, or the machine itself. Eliminate the guesswork by using the best cords…