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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Why honey never spoils: it isn't the sugar, it's the missing water
Honey is rich, sweet and nutritious, so why don't bacteria and moulds move in? Because microbes need free water, and…
Why a small ball on a big ball shoots up nine times higher: the two-step bounce
Drop a tennis ball on top of a basketball and the small ball can fly far above the height it fell from. Nothing is…
Why a nerve spike is always the same size: the all-or-nothing action potential
Every nerve signal in your body is the same size. A feather touch and a hammer blow send identical electrical spikes…
How two royal names in rings cracked hieroglyphs: Ptolemy, Cleopatra and the Rosetta Stone
In 1799 a slab was dug up near Rosetta carrying one decree in three scripts, and nobody could read two of them. The…
Why sunflower seeds never leave gaps: the golden angle and the Fibonacci spirals
Sunflower seeds are not placed in spirals on purpose. Each new seed turns a fixed angle from the last, and only one…
Why there are two high tides a day: the Moon pulls the near sea harder and the far sea softer
The sea rises twice a day, not once, and the second high tide happens on the side of the Earth facing away from the…
Categories
01
BiologyCells, bodies, evolution and everything that grows.
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ComputingThe ideas inside the machines we use all day.
11 breaks
03
Earth & SpacePlanets, weather, oceans and the sky above them.
12 breaks
04
EconomicsPrices, incentives and why markets do what they do.
11 breaks
05
EngineeringHow things are built, and why they don't fall down.
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06
Food ScienceThe chemistry happening in your kitchen.
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HistoryThe decisions, accidents and people that shaped now.
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08
LanguageWords, grammar and how people make meaning.
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MathsPatterns, chance and the numbers hiding in everyday things.
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10
MindPsychology, perception and the quirks of the brain.
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Music & SoundVibrations, harmony and why some sounds feel right.
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PhysicsForces, light, time and the odd behaviour of the very small.
13 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.