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Posts

April 16, 2013

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4:30 PM | Gray Matter: Funnels Of Flame
How nature scorches the skies with fire tornadoes. Every year I burn down my backyard. Not because I have an unhealthy fascination with fire (which I do), but because my backyard is native prairie. It needs regular burning to maintain the ecosystem. Sometimes I witness fire whirls-spinning columns of flame that last a few seconds and reach 30 to 40 feet into the air. But those are nothing compared to what much bigger […]
Popular Science
General Science

March 18, 2013

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1:00 PM | Gray Matter: Watch A Hybrid Rocket Burn From The Inside Out
Real Clear Rocket Science A metal pipe feeds oxygen gas into the hollow acrylic cylinder. Blue flames signal efficient, high-temperature combustion in a stream of pure oxygen. Mike WalkerSeeing through a rocket engine is easier than you might think. Space tourism front-runner Virgin Galactic hopes to launch customers toward the edge of space later this year. To get them there, in a winged craft called SpaceShipTwo, the company will light up hybrid-fuel rockets. Hybrid-fuel engines marry two […]
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General Science

January 28, 2013

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3:00 PM | Gray Matter: How To Make Cheap Fake Gold
Real Or Fake? Lead bars coated in imitation gold leaf [top left, top right] seem like knockoffs next to real bullion [cylindrical, flat bars] and a fake covered in genuine gold leaf [center]. Mike WalkerCast your own bogus bullion. Last September, a New York City gold dealer spent $72,000 on his worst nightmare: fake gold bars. The four 10-ounce counterfeits came with all the features of authentic ingots, including serial numbers. That's pretty scary when you consider how many people own […]
Popular Science
General Science

November 27, 2012

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3:01 PM | Gray Matter: Finding Water Where It's Least Expected
Flash Fried Hot oil may release water hidden in dry starchy foods, such as mung bean noodles and shrimp chips, converting it to steam and causing them to puff up. Mike WalkerFree the trapped H20 for some deep-fried deliciousness. Water hides itself really well. Its molecules can form weak chemical bonds with many substances, allowing it to remain concealed within their crystal structures. There's no sign of water's presence-no dampness, no softness, no anything-until something triggers its […]
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General Science

November 19, 2012

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2:00 PM | Gray Matter: How Not To Deep-Fry A Turkey
Deep-frying a turkey can be a delicious Thanksgiving treat-or a deadly conflagration, as our rather dramatic video shows.
Popular Science
General Science
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