14videosTechnology Connections
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Playlists · 11
35:15Heat Pumps: the Future of Home Heating
4.85M viewsHow heat pumps move heat instead of making it, why they reach efficiencies above 100%, and how they handle cold climates.
Old pinball machines are amazingly complex
3.52M viewsTechnology Connections opens an electromechanical pinball machine to show how relays, score reels and switch matrices run the game logic.
41:47Catalytic converters are simple, but getting them to work is not
1.96M viewsHow three-way catalytic converters clean exhaust and why engines need tight air-fuel control to make them work.
25:50Contactors: how we power the big stuff
1.69M viewsWhat contactors are and how they switch large electrical loads like AC compressors and EV chargers.
32:35Detergent packs are kinda wishy-washy (Dishwashers Explained)
6.02M viewsWhy detergent packs underperform in many dishwashers, explained through how the wash cycle and prewash dispense detergent.
17:37How do vinyl records hold stereo sound?
1.69M viewsHow a single groove on a vinyl record carries two stereo channels using 45/45 modulation.
29:08How the gas mantle made lamps 10X brighter
3.71M viewsHow the incandescent gas mantle made gas and kerosene lamps about ten times brighter.
16:47Lines of Light: How Analog Television Works
1.45M viewsHow black-and-white analog television works: scanning lines, sync pulses and the CRT.
39:03Movies made sound with a light bulb: Sound-on-film
2.57M viewsHow optical sound-on-film works: variable-area and variable-density tracks read by a light bulb and photocell.
17:34Nyquist-Shannon; The Backbone of Digital Sound
597K viewsThe Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem and why 44.1 kHz audio captures everything we can hear.
54:46Oil pressure is the only thing keeping an engine alive
2.01M viewsHow engine lubrication and oil pressure work, and what the oil-pressure warning really means.
16:13Passive infrared motion sensors: a two-bit camera powered by crystals
1.12M viewsHow passive infrared motion sensors use a pyroelectric crystal and a Fresnel lens to detect moving warm bodies.
36:31Simmerstats: The genius old tech that controls your stovetop
2.5M viewsHow the infinite-switch "simmerstat" on electric stovetops cycles a burner using a bimetallic strip and a cam.
37:16The Birth of Photography: Drawing With Light (and silver iodide)
1.64M viewsThe birth of photography: camera obscura, daguerreotypes and how silver halides record light.
43:00The step-by-step, mechanical logic of old pinball machines
1.12M viewsHow electromechanical pinball machines sequence a game with relays, stepper units and score motors.
31:46Why do hurricane lanterns look like that?
6.11M viewsWhy hurricane (tubular) lanterns are shaped the way they are: hot and cold blast air circulation.
27:47Your dishwasher is better than you think (tips, tricks, and how they work)
8.47M viewsHow a dishwasher actually works — the cycle, the detergent dispenser, prewash — and practical tips to get far better results.
27:19Electric car chargers aren't chargers at all – EVSE Explained
2.23M viewsWhy the 'charger' on the wall for an electric car is really a safety switch (EVSE), and where charging actually happens.
11:02How to design an actually good toaster with lessons from the 1940's
852K viewsWhat made 1940s automatic toasters so good, and what modern toaster design forgot.
48:25I messed up. You're using too much detergent.
5.36M viewsA long correction-and-deep-dive on laundry and dish detergent dosing: why most people use far too much and what that does.
33:33Longer-lasting light bulbs: it was complicated
2.33M viewsWhy incandescent bulbs had the lifespans they did, and the real engineering trade-off behind the Phoebus cartel story.
25:48Perhaps the weakest link in the US electrical system
5.14M viewsWhy cheap back-stab receptacle connections are a weak point in US household wiring.
52:22Power is not energy: why the difference matters
2.3M viewsPower versus energy: why the distinction matters for batteries, grids and everyday appliances.
The Antique Microwave Oven that's Better than Yours
2.68M viewsTechnology Connections takes apart the features of an antique microwave and shows how its humidity and temperature sensors cooked food automatically.
12:31The Superheterodyne Radio: No really, that's its name
987K viewsHow the superheterodyne receiver works: mixing, intermediate frequencies and why nearly every radio uses it.
24:26The US electrical system is not 120V
3.07M viewsHow North American split-phase power gives homes both 120 V and 240 V from one transformer.
Ground Source / Geothermal Heat Pumps and Other Info
1.19M viewsHow ground-source (geothermal) heat pumps move heat from the ground, why the ground temperature makes them efficient, and how they compare with air-source units.
13:14How Analog Color TV Works: The Beginnings
503K viewsHow analogue colour TV worked: luminance, chrominance and compatibility with black-and-white sets.
Portable Air Conditioners - Why you shouldn't like them
10.4M viewsTechnology Connections explains why single-hose portable air conditioners pull hot outside air into the room and cool far less than their rating suggests.
11:18The simple, clever sensor behind automatic windshield wipers
1.79M viewsHow automatic windshield-wiper rain sensors use infrared light and total internal reflection.
32:51Thermoelectric cooling: it's not great.
6.38M viewsWhy thermoelectric (Peltier) coolers are inefficient, and where they still make sense.
57:50A Complete Beginner's Guide to Electric Vehicles
A 58-minute video from Technology Connections: “A Complete Beginner's Guide to Electric Vehicles”.
36:29Drip Coffee Makers — super simple, super cheap
A 36-minute video from Technology Connections: “Drip Coffee Makers — super simple, super cheap”.
22:05Forced-air Furnaces: The What, Why, and How
A 22-minute video from Technology Connections: “Forced-air Furnaces: The What, Why, and How”.
46:33Heat Pumps are Not Hard: Here's what it will take to start pumping
A 47-minute video from Technology Connections: “Heat Pumps are Not Hard: Here's what it will take to start pumping”.
12:16LED Experiments: Making Holiday Lights Less Garish
A 12-minute video from Technology Connections: “LED Experiments: Making Holiday Lights Less Garish”.
Books that go with these videos
- The Way Things Work Now, David MacaulayDavid Macaulay's beloved illustrated guide to how machines work
- Engineering in Plain Sight, Grady HillhouseAn illustrated guide to infrastructure
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