STRIVE

🌍 How Do Scientists Know What Is Inside the Earth? Humans have explored only a tiny fraction of the Earth’s interior. The deepest holes ever drilled reach just a few kilometres below the surface, while the Earth’s radius is more than 6,000 kilometres. So how can scientists know what lies beneath our feet? They rely heavily on seismic waves produced by earthquakes. When an earthquake occurs, energy travels through the planet in different forms. These waves behave differently depending on the material they encounter. Scientists infer the structure of the Earth’s interior by examining how quickly seismic waves travel and how their paths change. When a wave reaches a boundary between different materials, it may speed up, slow down, or change direction. These observations have allowed researchers to distinguish between several major layers, including the crust, mantle, outer core, and inner core. The behaviour of seismic waves also provides evidence that the outer core is liquid, while the inner core is solid. Scientists cannot directly observe most of these layers, so they must reconstruct their properties from indirect evidence. This approach is similar to solving a puzzle: researchers combine thousands of measurements to develop a model that best explains what they observe. The evidence is not always straightforward. Scientists must account for factors that could affect their measurements and evaluate competing explanations. As new data becomes available, existing models can be modified or rejected. In this way, scientists can investigate places they may never physically reach. The Earth itself becomes a kind of experiment, revealing its hidden structure through the waves that travel through it. 📖 New words • infer — to reach a conclusion based on evidence rather than direct observation → делать вывод, заключать • distinguish — to recognize the difference between two or more things → различать, отличать • reconstruct — to form an idea of something by combining information from different sources → восстанавливать, воссоздавать • account for — to consider or explain something when analyzing a situation → учитывать, объяснять • evaluate — to judge the quality, importance, or effectiveness of something carefully → оценивать • straightforward — easy to understand or deal with; not complicated or confusing → простой, однозначный

🔭 Why Is Space Almost Completely Silent? In movies, explosions in space are often accompanied by enormous crashes and dramatic sounds. In reality, space is almost completely silent. The reason is surprisingly simple: sound needs matter to travel through. On Earth, a sound begins when an object vibrates. These vibrations move through air as waves until they reach our ears. In space, however, there is no atmosphere dense enough to carry these waves over long distances. This does not mean that space is completely empty. It contains scattered particles, radiation, magnetic fields, and extremely thin clouds of gas. Yet these materials are usually too sparse to transmit sound in the same way that air does on Earth. Scientists can still detect activity in space by observing other forms of energy. Telescopes can record electromagnetic radiation, while specialized instruments can measure changes in magnetic fields or particles. Researchers can then convert some of this information into sounds that humans can hear. This technique allows scientists to derive information about distant cosmic events that would otherwise be impossible to experience directly. In some cases, these observations can corroborate theories about what is happening around stars, planets, or black holes. So although the universe may appear silent to human ears, it is far from inactive. Space contains an abundance of physical processes—we simply need the right instruments to detect them. 📖 New words • sparse — existing only in small amounts or spread over a large area → редкий, разреженный • transmit — to cause something such as energy or information to pass from one place to another → передавать • derive — to obtain something from a particular source or process → получать, выводить • corroborate — to provide evidence that supports an idea or statement → подтверждать, подкреплять доказательствами • abundance — a very large quantity of something → изобилие, большое количество • discern — to recognize or understand something that is difficult to perceive → различать, распознавать

Which word means "working well without wasting time or resources"?

Modern computers can ____ huge amounts of data in a few seconds.

Choose the word that matches: "a force that opposes motion between two surfaces".

Что означает слово "surveillance"?

Predicting exact earthquake times remains an ____ problem for modern science.

Which word means "extremely large in size or amount"?

A good bridge must be designed to handle a heavy ____ without bending.

Что означает слово "withstand"?

Choose the word that matches the definition: "easily capable of catching fire".

Scientists use special instruments to ____ radiation from distant stars.

Всем привет! Целую неделю мы занимались по интересным топикам и учили новые слова. Давайте проверим ваши знания🔥 Ниже будут 10 вопросов. Сможете ответить на все правильно?

🌍 Why Do Earthquakes Remain So Difficult to Predict? Earthquakes can release enormous amounts of energy within seconds, yet scientists still cannot determine precisely when one will occur. This is not because researchers lack information. In fact, modern instruments constantly record tiny movements beneath the Earth’s surface. The main difficulty lies in the enormous complexity of the planet’s interior. Earth’s crust consists of massive plates that move extremely slowly. Their movement causes stress to accumulate along faults. Eventually, the pressure may become too great, causing the rocks to shift suddenly and release energy. Scientists can identify regions where earthquakes are more likely to occur, but several factors constrain their ability to make precise predictions. Conditions beneath the surface cannot be observed directly, and the relationship between different geological processes is not always clear. Researchers examine previous earthquakes, monitor ground movement, and analyse changes in underground structures. These observations may help them discern patterns that would otherwise remain unnoticed. However, no single measurement can reliably indicate that an earthquake is about to happen. Scientists therefore focus increasingly on underlying processes rather than searching for one simple warning sign. Their research may eventually elucidate why some faults remain stable for centuries while others suddenly become active. Until then, earthquake prediction remains an elusive scientific problem: researchers can estimate risk, but they cannot yet provide an exact time and place. 📖 New words • constrain — to limit or restrict what someone or something can do → ограничивать, сдерживать • discern — to notice or recognize something, especially when it is difficult to see or understand → различать, распознавать • underlying — existing beneath the surface and forming the basis of something → лежащий в основе • elucidate — to make something clearer by explaining it in greater detail → прояснять, объяснять • elusive — difficult to find, achieve, understand, or define → трудноуловимый, неуловимый

🌉 Why Don’t Bridges Collapse Under Huge Loads? A bridge can carry thousands of cars and trucks every day without falling apart. But how does it manage to support such a massive weight? The secret is not that bridges are impossibly strong. Instead, engineers design them so that the forces acting on them are carefully distributed. When a vehicle crosses a bridge, its weight creates a downward load. This load is transferred through different parts of the structure and eventually reaches the ground. Some parts are pushed together, while others are pulled apart. Engineers choose materials that can withstand these forces without losing their shape. Steel, for example, can handle large amounts of tension, while concrete is particularly good at resisting compression. The shape of a bridge also matters. An arch can redirect the force of the load toward its supports, while cables in a suspension bridge transfer the weight to towers and foundations. Engineers also have to consider forces that are not caused by vehicles. Strong winds, temperature changes, and repeated movement can gradually weaken materials. For this reason, bridges are designed with a certain margin of safety rather than being built to support exactly the expected weight. A successful bridge does not eliminate forces. It controls and transfers them in a predictable way. As long as the forces remain within the limits of the materials and design, the bridge can remain stable even under an enormous load. 📖 New words • distribute — to spread something over different parts or areas → распределять • load — the weight or force placed on a structure → нагрузка • withstand — to successfully resist something difficult or damaging → выдерживать, противостоять • margin — an additional amount that allows for possible problems or changes → запас, допустимый предел • remain — to continue to be in the same state or place → оставаться

🌌 How Do Scientists Study Galaxies They Can Never Reach? Some galaxies are so far away that humans could never travel to them with current technology. So how can scientists learn anything about objects that are billions of light-years away? The key is light. A galaxy may be impossibly distant, but the light it produces can travel across space and eventually reach Earth. Scientists use powerful telescopes to detect this light and study its properties. Different wavelengths can reveal different information. Visible light can show the shape and structure of a galaxy, while other types of radiation can help scientists learn about its temperature, gas, dust, and energetic objects. Scientists can also study the way a galaxy’s light changes. For example, when a galaxy is moving away from us, its light becomes redshifted. By measuring this shift, researchers can estimate how quickly the galaxy is moving away and how far away it may be. In this way, a telescope is much more than a camera. It is a scientific instrument that allows us to investigate distant parts of the universe without ever travelling there. 🌠 New words • detect — to discover or notice something, especially by using a scientific instrument → обнаруживать • distant — far away in space or time → далёкий • wavelength — the distance between two corresponding points of a wave → длина волны • radiation — energy that travels through space as waves or particles → излучение • properties — the characteristics or qualities of something → свойства, характеристики • redshift — a shift of light toward the red end of the spectrum caused by an object moving away → красное смещение • estimate — to calculate or judge something approximately → оценивать, приблизительно определять • investigate — to study something carefully in order to discover facts → исследовать

🌦️ How Does a Computer Know What the Weather Will Be? Have you ever wondered how your phone can tell you that it will rain tomorrow? The answer is not as simple as looking at the sky. Modern weather forecasts are created with the help of powerful computers that process enormous amounts of information. First, weather stations, satellites, airplanes, and other instruments collect data about the atmosphere. They measure temperature, air pressure, humidity, wind speed, and many other conditions. Then, this information is given to a computer model. The model uses mathematical equations to describe how the atmosphere behaves. Because the atmosphere is constantly changing, even a small difference in the initial data can sometimes lead to a different forecast. The computer divides the atmosphere into millions of small areas and calculates what might happen in each one. It then repeats these calculations many times to predict how the weather will change over the next few hours or days. But computers cannot predict the weather perfectly. Some processes in the atmosphere are extremely complex, and there is always a certain amount of uncertainty. This is why weather forecasts become less reliable the further into the future they look. So, the next time your weather app says “70% chance of rain,” remember: it is not simply guessing. Behind that number are satellites, measurements, physics, mathematics, and a huge amount of computing power. 📖 New words • forecast — a prediction about what will happen in the future, especially about the weather → прогноз • humidity — the amount of water vapor in the air → влажность • process — to examine or deal with information using a system → обрабатывать • complex — consisting of many connected or difficult parts → сложный • uncertainty — a situation in which something is not known or certain → неопределённость • initial — existing at the beginning of a process → первоначальный • measurement — information obtained by measuring something → измерение • satellite — an object sent into space to collect information or communicate → спутник • enormous — extremely large in size or amount → огромный • divide — to separate something into smaller parts → разделять

✈️Why Did Airships Stop Flying? In the early 20th century, airships looked like the future of transportation. They could carry passengers, travel long distances, and stay in the air for hours. So why did they disappear? The main problem was that airships were huge, slow, and highly dependent on weather. Strong winds and storms could make them difficult to control. Another major issue was hydrogen. Many early airships used hydrogen because it is very light, but it is also highly flammable. The famous Hindenburg disaster in 1937 caused public confidence in airships to collapse. However, the biggest reason was the rapid development of airplanes. Aircraft became faster, safer, and more reliable. An airship could offer a comfortable journey, but an airplane could take passengers to the same destination much faster. Today, airships still exist. Modern designs can use non-flammable helium and are being explored for advertising, tourism, surveillance, and scientific research. Airships did not necessarily “fail”. They simply lost the competition to a technology that became more practical and efficient. 📖 New words • airship — a large aircraft that stays in the air because it is filled with a gas lighter than air → дирижабль • flammable — easily capable of catching fire → легковоспламеняющийся • dependent — needing something in order to function or succeed → зависимый • reliable — able to be trusted to work well → надёжный • collapse — to suddenly fail or lose strength → разрушаться, резко ухудшаться • efficient — working well without wasting time or resources → эффективный • surveillance — careful observation of a person, place, or activity → наблюдение, мониторинг • practical — suitable for real-world use → практичный

⚡️Where Does Energy Go? When a moving object slows down, it may seem that its energy simply disappears. However, energy cannot be destroyed. Instead, it is transferred or transformed into another form. Imagine a bicycle moving down a road. While the bicycle is moving, it has kinetic energy. When the cyclist stops pedaling, friction between the tires and the road, as well as air resistance, gradually slows the bicycle down. The kinetic energy is not lost completely. Much of it is transformed into thermal energy, which slightly increases the temperature of the tires, the road, and the surrounding air. The same principle can be observed in many everyday situations. When an object falls, its gravitational potential energy is converted into kinetic energy as it speeds up. When the object reaches the ground, some of this energy may become sound, heat, or energy used to deform the object. Understanding energy transformations is important because they happen constantly around us. Cars, machines, power plants, and even our own bodies rely on the transfer of energy. In physics, the important question is often not “Where did the energy disappear?” but rather “What form did the energy change into?” 📖 New words • transform — to change something from one form into another → преобразовывать • transfer — to move something from one place or form to another → передавать, переносить • kinetic energy — the energy an object has because of its motion → кинетическая энергия • potential energy — stored energy related to an object’s position or condition → потенциальная энергия • friction — a force that opposes motion between two surfaces → трение • resistance — a force or effect that makes movement more difficult → сопротивление • surrounding — existing around something → окружающий • deform — to change the shape of something → деформировать • rely on — to depend on something → зависеть от, полагаться на • constantly — happening continuously or very often → постоянно

🚀 WE’RE BACK! После небольшого перерыва мы возвращаемся — и теперь в нашем Telegram будет ещё больше полезного STEM-контента. Мы запускаем серию коротких научных статей на английском языке 🧪📚 В них будем разбирать интересные темы из физики, математики, технологий, космоса, биологии и других STEM-направлений. Каждая статья будет не только помогать узнавать что-то новое, но и: → расширять английский словарный запас → тренировать Reading на английском → готовить вас к SAT и IELTS Reading → учить понимать сложные тексты без страха → постепенно формировать привычку читать на английском — и получать от этого удовольствие А это только начало 👀 Мы также планируем проводить онлайн и офлайн мероприятия, STEM-конкурсы, олимпиады, курсы, образовательные проекты и другие активности для школьников. Наша цель — создать пространство, где можно не просто готовиться к экзаменам, а интересоваться наукой, развиваться и пробовать новое. So… welcome back! More science. More English. More opportunities. 🚀