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Why water drops last longer on a hotter pan: the Leidenfrost effect Flick water onto a warm pan and it sizzles away in a second. Make the pan hotter, past about 193 °C, and something odd happens: the drop pulls into a bead… Physics5 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 pries open TRPV1, the gate in your… Food Science5 min read Stale bread isn't dry: its starch has quietly turned back into crystals Bread left on the counter turns hard and crumbly, and it looks like it dried out. It mostly didn't. In 1852 Jean-Baptiste Boussingault showed that bread sealed… Food Science4 min read Why a piano has 12 notes: the circle of fifths that never quite closes Stack pure 3:2 fifths, the most consonant interval after the octave, and you'd expect to eventually land back on your starting note. You never do. After twelve… Music & Sound5 min read Why popcorn pops, and why some kernels never do A popcorn kernel is a tiny, sealed pressure vessel. Its hard shell traps water inside the starchy core until heat turns that water to steam, and pressure… Food Science5 min read