Paper Planes

You know when your bored in class*, and have nothing to do? Well the following video shows a step-by-step guide to how to build the perfect paper plane! Note: not my video, just found it, enjoy!



*=never bored in english class

Turn a Pencil into a Light!

The following is a youtube video about converting any normal pencil into a light. You do not need a jumper cable or a car battery, and wire and a regular 6volt battery should work too. Note: not my video, just found it on youtube, enjoy!

Thomas Edison and the Lightbulb

Thomas Edison's greatest challenge was the development of a practical incandescent, electric light. Contrary to popular belief, he didn't "invent" the lightbulb, but rather he improved upon a 50-year-old idea. In 1879, using lower current electricity, a small carbonized filament, and an improved vacuum inside the globe, he was able to produce a reliable, long-lasting source of light. The idea of electric lighting was not new, and a number of people had worked on, and even developed forms of electric lighting. But up to that time, nothing had been developed that was practical for home use. Edison's eventual achievement was inventing not just an incandescent electric light, but also an electric lighting system that contained all the parts necessary to make the incandescent light practical, safe, and affordable. After one and a half years of work, success was achieved when an incandescent lamp with a filament of carbonized sewing thread burned for thirteen and a half hours. He is also famous for his quote "I haven't failed once, I found out 2,000 ways how not to make a lightbulb".

Dynamics of Flight

Many people wonder just how birds and planes fly, to understand how, start with the basics. Air is a physical substance which has weight. It has molecules which are constantly moving. Air pressure is created by the molecules moving around. Moving air has a force that will lift kites and balloons up and down. Hot air expands and spreads out and it becomes lighter than cool air. When a balloon is full of hot air it rises up because the hot air expands inside the balloon. When the hot air cools and is let out of the balloon it comes back down. In the case of airplanes, the wings are curved on the top which make air move faster over the top of the wing. It moves slower underneath the wing. The slow air pushes up from below while the faster air pushes down from the top. This forces the wing to lift up into the air. Birds' wings are the same way, their feathers are also hollow which make the bird lighter. By moving its wings up and down, a bird can turn while in the air. For example, if a bird moves it's left wing up, and right wing down, it will turn right because all of its weight falls onto that wing, this is called the aileron. A bird or plane can move up and down by controling its head of body. If a plane's nose or a bird's head is moved down, the body will follow.

History of the Airplane

Orville and Wilbur Wright, commonly refered to as the Wright brothers, had a dream of flying, and dedicated their lives to create a "flying machine". After countless failed attempts, they made their first successful airplane in December 1903. Their plane flew at an altitude of 10 feet, traveled 120 feet, and landed 12 seconds after takeoff. Their invention is known today as the first airplane vehicle. The "Kitty Hawk" as the brother's called it, was the starting point for engine powered airplanes and gave birth to not only a new passage for discovery, but for transportation, entertainment and warfare

History of the Engine and the Car

The engine is one of the most useful and famous inventions of all time. In 1769, a guy named Nicholas Cugnot created the first self-powered vehicle, which used a steam engine. However, the first gas-powered engine, which is used in the cars we use today, was invented by Gottlieb Daimler, which later formed the company known as Chrysler today. Daimler had competition though, a man named Karl Benz was also on the quest to create the first gas-powered car, and even though Daimler is recognized to be the first to create the engine, Benz received the first patent for a gas-powered vehicle in 1886. Over the next several decades, many other car companies formed, competing to make a vehicle that no other car could rival. Companies such as Ford, Chrysler, Mercedes-Benz and Oldsmobile cars are still around today and may even be parked in your garage. The first break-through vehicle was the Ford Model-T in 1908. By 1927, more than 15 million Model-T's were sold.