Blog Archives •

How to Move the Sun: Stellar Engines

January 7th, 2020|

Nothing in the Universe is static. In the milky way, billions of stars orbit the galactic center. Some, like our sun, are pretty consistent, keeping a distance of around 30,000 light years from the galactic center, completing an orbit every 230 million years. This dance is not an orderly ballet - more like a [...]

A Practical Information Guide to Choosing A Secondary School

December 23rd, 2019|

A Practical Information Guide to Choosing A Secondary School Congratulations! You, like most Singaporean parents, have successfully steered your child through the potential minefield that is the Primary School Leaving Examinations (PSLE) and are about to give yourself a pat on the back for a [...]

The mathematics of sidewalk illusions

September 25th, 2019|

Have you ever come across an oddly stretched image on the sidewalk, only to find that it looks remarkably realistic if you stand in exactly the right spot? These sidewalk illusions employ a technique called anamorphosis — a special case of perspective art where artists represent 3D views on 2D surfaces. So how is [...]

The Physics of Drifting, Explained

July 12th, 2019|

Here's an in-depth look at the physics of drifting from Business Insider: Car drifting is both a pastime and profession. For hobbyists and professionals, the basic principles of drifting are the same. Toss the car sideways and hang on. We wanted to take a deeper look into the activity. We asked Leona Chin, a professional [...]

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20 Things You Didn’t Know About… DNA

December 27th, 2018|

Here are 20 surprising facts that you didn't know about... DNA. Read the top 5 from Discovery Magazine here: 1 Sorry, Jimmy: James Watson and Francis Crick did not discover DNA. That honor goes to Swiss biochemist Friedrich Miescher, who in 1869 found the molecule in the nuclei of white blood cells and called it [...]

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The hardest math problems of 2018 that went viral

December 19th, 2018|

Let's take a look back to the hardest math problems of 2018 that went viral as the internet seems to have a bit of a love-hate relationship with math. People couldn't get enough of math questions this year as they debated the answers in Twitter threads and parenting forums. But they also lamented how much [...]

Why don’t perpetual motion machines ever work?

December 18th, 2018|

Perpetual motion machines could totally transform our relationship with energy ... if only they worked. Ideas for perpetual machines all violate one or more laws of thermodynamics.

Where do math symbols come from?

October 17th, 2018|

Math is full of symbols: lines, dots, arrows, English letters, Greek letters, superscripts, subscripts ... it can look like an illegible jumble. Understanding them is a matter of memorizing them until they stick, as with any language. This video from Ted-Ed explains the symbols' origins.

How to prove the Pythagorean Theorem?

August 7th, 2018|

How many ways are there to prove the Pythagorean theorem? What do Euclid, 12-year-old Albert Einstein, and American President James A. Garfield have in common? They all came up with elegant proofs for the famous Pythagorean theorem. Watch this video by Ted-Ed to know more: