Geeking Out on Science & Tech

What the coronavirus does to the body, explained simply

The coronavirus is able to gain entry into cells by using the protein ACE-2 as a receptor that then unlocks the cell to the invading virus. Once inside, the virus uses your own cell to reproduce, eventually busting out of the cell and spreading.

Pandemic readiness: CDC guidelines

Your hands are a conduit for infection: wash them (20 seconds, with water) and keep them off your face (eyes, mouth, nose are all portals for the infection to enter your body).

What is pedophilia and where does it come from?

One researcher found significant differences in the white matter—the substance that connects one brain region to another—of pedophile versus non-pedophile brains.

What is a coronavirus?

As the disease has spread, patients are now reporting they’ve not been anywhere near the animal markets, which means the infection is now being transmitted from person to person.

Simplest explanation ever: how nuclear power plants work

When a neutron is blasted at the nucleus, the nucleus can break apart releasing lots and lots of energy. This is called “fission.”

Simple methods to detect a hidden camera

Should we trust our hosts? Or take a few minutes to conduct a few simple tests?

Ethiopian Air crash, Lion Air crash and the MCAS system: a simple explanation

A new placement for the new, larger engines–under some conditions, like low air speed at takeoff–could cause the nose to lift and the plane to stall. The MCAS was created to counteract that.

How vaccines work and why we thought they caused autism: a simple explanation

Vaccines are generally a weak version of a disease-causing pathogen. This version doesn’t cause infection but still resembles the original pathogen enough to trigger the immune system to fight it.

CRISPR: the simplest explanation ever

CRISPR is currently the simplest and most precise method of genetic manipulation.

Drones: some background

Right now you can buy a drone with a camera, 30 minutes of battery life, and a range of about four miles for about $1,000, making them a cheap alternative for endless applications.

What is Lou Gehrig’s disease?

The brain sends out signals based on information it receives from the world and from inside the body. The signals travel via the spinal cord to the motor neurons which fire muscles that allow us to move and react according to the messages sent from the brain. In Lou Gehrig’s disease (or ALS) this is disrupted.

E. coli, just enough information

Bacteria make a virulent factor called a Shiga toxin that undermines our immune system while helping it to get passed along to another host.

Global warming and the carbon tax solution

The earth is heated by the energy from the sun, and cools down by releasing radiation back into space. Incoming and outgoing energy have to be in balance if the temperature of the earth is to remain constant.

What is the dark web?

Dark, creepy, anonymous. Illegal activity. It’s all true. Here are the basics.

What is liquefaction and why does solid ground suddenly act like water?

When soil is saturated with water, like in coastal areas, water is settled between the soil particles. Think of marbles in a glass of water: the marbles are the sand particles, the water is in between the marbles.

A list of bad scooter accidents

A 26-year-old woman was riding a Bird scooter, applied the brakes–they didn’t work–and she crashed into a brick wall. She had a head injury, concussion, and laceration. Unfortunately she’s not alone.

A quick pass at Artificial Intelligence

It’s probably not the closing of factories that has had the biggest effect on job loss in recent years. What is artificial intelligence and why is it taking over our jobs?

Who are Diamond and Silk?

Is there a left-leaning bias on Facebook?

How does a self-driving car work?

There are variations in the technology across developers but this overview addresses the common points.

Doxxing: a few recent examples

As marches became violent in Charlottesville, Twitter user @YesYoureRacist to identify “Nazis marching in Charlottesville.” Within minutes, names, addresses, employment locations and more were made public.