Biology / Computing / Earth & Space / Economics / Engineering / Food Science / History / Language / Maths / Mind / Music & Sound / Physics

Step away.
Come back smarter.

Short, interactive explainers for your break from work. Read one in thirty seconds, dive deeper if you like, then get back to it.

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Music & Sound5 min read Why guitar frets get closer together as you go up the neck Guitar frets crowd together toward the body because of one fact about hearing: we hear pitch by ratio, not by… Music & Sound5 min read Why some notes sound sweet together and others seem to fight Play C and E together and they sound sweet. Play C and C sharp and they buzz. The notes aren't the problem: the clash… Food Science5 min read Chilli isn't hot: capsaicin trips the heat alarm on your tongue A chilli is exactly as warm as the room. There is no heat in it at all. The burn comes from capsaicin, a molecule that… Physics5 min read Why soap bubbles swirl with colour, then turn black just before they pop Soap has no dye, yet bubbles shimmer with magenta, gold and green. The colour comes from thickness: light bounces off… Biology4 min read How chameleons change colour: they stretch a mirror made of crystals A chameleon doesn't change colour by mixing pigments. Under its skin sit cells packed with tiny guanine crystals… History5 min read Why October 1582 lost ten days: a calendar year 11 minutes too long In 1582, Thursday 4 October was followed by Friday 15 October. Ten dates were simply deleted across Catholic Europe…

Categories

01 BiologyCells, bodies, evolution and everything that grows. 3 breaks 02 ComputingThe ideas inside the machines we use all day. 3 breaks 03 Earth & SpacePlanets, weather, oceans and the sky above them. 3 breaks 04 EconomicsPrices, incentives and why markets do what they do. 2 breaks 05 EngineeringHow things are built, and why they don't fall down. 2 breaks 06 Food ScienceThe chemistry happening in your kitchen. 3 breaks 07 HistoryThe decisions, accidents and people that shaped now. 3 breaks 08 LanguageWords, grammar and how people make meaning. 3 breaks 09 MathsPatterns, chance and the numbers hiding in everyday things. 2 breaks 10 MindPsychology, perception and the quirks of the brain. 2 breaks 11 Music & SoundVibrations, harmony and why some sounds feel right. 4 breaks 12 PhysicsForces, light, time and the odd behaviour of the very small. 3 breaks

How it works

30 Second Break is a collection of short explainers for curious people of every age. Each break is one idea you can read in thirty seconds, with an optional deep dive that has its own interactive design.

01
Pick a topic
Browse by category, or hit Random.
02
Read for 30 seconds
Go deeper if you have a few more minutes.
03
Back to work
One thing smarter than before.