Explain that Stuff

Welcome to Explain that Stuff... in podcast form! Yes, by popular request, an audio version of the easy-to-understand science website you can listen to round the house or on the move. We cover the basics of how things work, cutting-edge science, cool gadgets, and computers. Unlike other websites, the emphasis is on explaining things simply and clearly so you can actually understand them. Not masses of facts and unnecessary details. Just clear, simple explanation. We teach stuff the way a teacher would, by building out from what you know already. Please subscribe and stay tuned...
Episodes
Episodes



Saturday Aug 03, 2024
Teaching computers to talk - all about speech synthesis
Saturday Aug 03, 2024
Saturday Aug 03, 2024
From HAL and "Speak & Spell" to Siri, and Alexa, we look at how speech synthesizers work... and why they still don't work perfectly!



Saturday Jul 27, 2024
Inspiration or perspiration - where do inventions come from?
Saturday Jul 27, 2024
Saturday Jul 27, 2024
Is there still a place for the lone genius inventor - the Edison, Ford, Tesla, or Marconi? Or is invention now solely the province of giant corporations like Apple, IBM, and DuPont?



Saturday Jul 20, 2024
The surprising science of sport
Saturday Jul 20, 2024
Saturday Jul 20, 2024
Hurrah, the Olympics is nearly here! From springy pole vaulters and leaping long jumpers to spinning ice skaters and slippery swimmers, we're going to take a quick tour through the surprising science behind sport!



Saturday Jul 13, 2024
Sparks through time - the history of electricity
Saturday Jul 13, 2024
Saturday Jul 13, 2024
Let's zip back over two and half thousand years to understand the sparky story of electricity, from Thales and Aristotle to Edison, Marconi, and James Clerk Maxwell!



Saturday Jul 06, 2024
Sticky stuff - the science of glues!
Saturday Jul 06, 2024
Saturday Jul 06, 2024
How goes a gecko stick to the ceiling... why doesn't glue stick to the tube? Today, I'm exploring adhesive and cohesive forces and trying not to come unstuck as I explore the sticky science of glues.



Saturday Jun 29, 2024
Getting down with gravity!
Saturday Jun 29, 2024
Saturday Jun 29, 2024
Can you feel the force? Maybe it's gravity - the tingling attraction between everything in the Universe and everything else. Where does it come from? What causes it? How near are we to understanding it?



Thursday Jun 27, 2024
The Internet and the Brain
Thursday Jun 27, 2024
Thursday Jun 27, 2024
From anatomy to abnormality, we compare nature's finest marvel (the human brain) with the best that humans have so far produced (the electronic computer). How are they similar and how are they different? Is the Net becoming increasingly brain-like? Will it ever become conscious and self-aware?



Friday Jun 21, 2024
Artificial intelligence - a simple introduction
Friday Jun 21, 2024
Friday Jun 21, 2024
What is intelligence and, if it's such an essential part of being human, can we ever really hope to build an "intelligent machine"? What are the different kinds of AI? What's the difference between old-style AI and new-style machine learning? How will we know when we've built a machine that is truly intelligent?