Bright Side

Ever ridden on a school bus? The most prominent thing about them (at least in the U.S.) is that they’re yellow. But their roofs are usually a different color – white. So why is that? Let's figure out!

By the way, while the iconic yellow school buses are common around the world there are school buses that are anything but ordinary. And today, we will talk about them too! For example, almost 50% of the Netherlands’ population rides a bike every day to go to work. So the government came up with the idea of a bus for kids ages 4 to 12 that will carry them to school the same way. This bus can fit a driver, 8 students who must pedal, and 3 other students who can sit on a bench in the back.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The average person spends about 4 hours a day on their phone. That means in a single week, our eyes are glued to the screen for over an entire day! While there’s nothing wrong with a little screen time every now and then, there are some places where your phone should stay in your pocket…

Have you ever been texting your friends as you got in the car and forgot you left your coffee on the roof? Imagine something like that, and you might have an idea why so many gas stations have signs up warning customers to stay off their phones as they’re pumping gas. Also, some people believe the device can shoot out radio waves or sparks and catch the gas on fire? Let's find out if that's true!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Imagine that you weigh just 1 pound. You'd feel very light, but life would become much harder. Tapping “likes” on photos would take much more than just tapping. You’ve been scrolling Instagram feed, but it feels like you’ve run 6 miles on a treadmill.

You leave the apartment and take the stairs because the elevator simply won't work if you weigh less than 30 pounds. The weather outside better be warm and without strong wind. Otherwise, it may blow you away. And you better turn off vibration on your phone. With your mass, it will be tantamount to a minor earthquake.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever thought about what will happen to your solar system’s “perfect harmony” if it loses a planet? For example, the closest planet to the Sun is Mercury, right? Oh, it’s so small! So with Mercury gone, how’s Earth looking? Hmm, no changes in the solar system. It’s all about gravity. 

Every object that has some mass attracts other objects because of its gravitational force. The larger the mass, the greater the force it has. Mercury is the smallest planet in the solar system, so it’s not too massive in space terms. But what about other planets? 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What a wonderful feeling when you know that tomorrow is your day off and you don’t have to go anywhere. But stop and think -- what if all the people on the planet quit working and everyone took a day off at the same time? Sounds cool, but it sure wouldn't lead to anything good.

Okay, so you wake up in the morning after a good night’s sleep. The alarm didn't go off because you don’t have to go anywhere. You're ready to take a shower, so you turn the handle and… dirty water comes flowing out. The water stops with a 'clunk', and then bursts out with such intense pressure that your faucet breaks. The fact is that there's no one to regulate the filtration and pressure of the water. And this is just the beginning.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So what would life be like without metals? You know, copper, silver, lead, iron, and whatnot. What if they all just disappeared overnight? As if some has meddled with our metal. “So, no more spoons and coins? Big deal!” you say.

Not so fast! You can go ahead and say goodbye to that phone of yours. And the tablet, TV, computer, all the blinky fun stuff. They’re not just made of plastic and a glass screen. Metals are most often used as conductors of electric current. Without them, all our flashy toys are useless. Plus, they have metal parts inside them. And you know what all that means? All modern ways of communication are no longer...

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

These days, any cruise ship is like a huge city, where every detail is thought out so that passengers feel just as comfortable as on land, only better. You can take a shower, do the laundry, or swim in a pool. But where does all the dirty water go?

The average ship spends about 40-50 gallons of water per passenger every day. It makes tons of wastewater that needs to be utilized. Say, the world's biggest cruise ship, Harmony of the Seas, can carry about 5,500 passengers together with 2,300 crew members. They produce about 312,000 gallons of wastewater daily!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You ever walk into a room just to forget where you were going or what you were looking for? How about finding your car keys in the fridge or the dog’s food in your cereal bowl? Sounds like you could use a brain boost. There're some really great ways you can train the old thinker!

Did you know, for example, that automated actions stall your brain since it’s not taking an active part in what you’re doing? Or that solving math problems doesn’t even rack your brain as much as learning an unfamiliar tongue? And if you have a sweet tooth, this one’s for you: chocolate contains an important amino acid that helps your brain process things faster and with more efficiency!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do you know what you sound like? You’re not alone in thinking, “Who is that clumsy, mumbling fella?” And sorry to break it to ya, but what you hear on the recording is what people around you hear every time you speak to them. But they don’t mind, so why should you sweat about it so much?

You probably do because it’s so different from how you hear yourself when you’re speaking. Yes, you hear your voice all the time, more than anyone in the world, but it comes from inside you, like, in your head! The last thing you do is hear it with your own ears. So if you thought that you have a smooth baritone or bass, that’s probably not the case, unfortunately. Your real voice is higher than you think!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever woken up at 3 AM with a flood of urgent questions in your mind? Like, how do barcode readers work? How did bubble wrap appear? And, most importantly, is there a reason erasers are pink? Ok, they now come in all colors and shapes, but what about that classic bubble-gum hue? History’s got all the answers! 

Do you know why when the first computer mouses appeared, producers referred to them as turtles? Or why paper money isn't the most reliable form of cash? Or what product is perfect for bachelors? Interested? Then check out these really cool facts!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices