You probably never actually bother to think about how your zipper works, or the mechanics behind a key unlocking a door, let alone how a dog successfully laps up water or an ant walks with all those legs. Oh, and you definitely don’t consider how a gladiator spider hunts (because you’d like to be able to sleep at night…or ever again).
The bad news is that by not taking the time to appreciate the way things work, we cheat ourselves of being able to admire the amazing process of evolution (like how a cheetah uses its tail for stability during a high-speed chase) or the innovative and often elegant designs that we rely on all the time (like how a sewing machine operates). Fortunately for us there is good news; the folks at relativelyinteresting.com have put together a definitely interesting list of 25 GIFs that explain how things work.
Some of our favorites include:
How a violin string makes sound. (“Look at the blubber fly!”)
What happens when we swallow. (Oh, it goes down the throat.)
How the Pythagorean Theorem works. (Every math class in America should have one of these.)
How braces work over time. (Teeth are weird, but this is amazing.)
Make sure you head over to see all of them because each is great, including how a crocodile jumps out of the water. Oh, and don’t quit before the end, so you can get your weekly reminder that the ocean is terrifying and no one should ever go in the ocean, especially fish.
What GIFs explaining how things work did they leave out? Share your favorites with us in the comments below.
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