Surprising Science — March 25, 2014

Supersonic Jet Creates a “Cloud”

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This supersonic jet, the F-14 Tomcat, can create a cloud. Check out this footage of the jet ripping through the sky, leaving a trail of vapor. What you’re witnessing are the effects of the Prandtl–Glauert Singularity.

Image credit: mashleymorgan/Flickr

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

A golden-brown turkey being carefully lowered into a metal pot outdoors, ready for a deep fry amidst the grassy area and wooden fence.

Starts With A Bang

What happens if you deep fry a frozen turkey?

It’s the ultimate setup for a Thanksgiving Day disaster. The physics of water and its solid, liquid, and gas phases compels us not to do it.

A glitch art depiction of an old sketch reminiscent of Da Vinci, featuring a bearded man in a hat with digital distortion weaving through his face.

High Culture

Ken Burns on what we get wrong about Leonardo da Vinci

Burns’ latest documentary dives into the long-romanticized life and work of the Italian polymath.

The Future

“Mad King” behavior: A prediction for how 21st-century nuclear war would unfold

“We are not our grandparents. It’s time to start thinking differently,” journalist Annie Jacobsen told Big Think.

Silhouettes of three people in red stand on a podium made of white cubes, evoking the spirit of ranked choice voting, with blue circles against a dark grid background.

The Present

Can ranked-choice voting heal our poisoned politics?

The electoral reform also known as instant-runoff voting promises bridge-building and broad appeal instead of culture war and gridlock.

A large telescope observatory under construction at dusk with a visible moon and stars in the sky. Cranes and construction equipment are present around the structure.

Starts With A Bang

How to see the comet of the century from all over the world

Comet A3, also known as Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, has sprung to life since 2024’s last equinox. Here’s how to catch the show for yourself.

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