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PlayOwl

Explore · Wonder · Discover

How Things Work

Ever wondered how airplanes fly, why popcorn pops or how your heart pumps? Pick a question, then watch it, look inside, try it, solve a challenge and go deeper. Every topic changes for Preschool, Elementary and Middle school.

  1. 1Watch it
  2. 2Look inside
  3. 3Try it
  4. 4Solve a challenge
  5. 5Go deeper

500 topics to explore · showing 361–384

Every topic

#361 Buildings & city systems How do desalination plants remove salt from seawater? Explore a simplified membrane system and compare its freshwater and concentrated saltwater outputs. #362 Buildings & city systems How can one heating plant warm a neighborhood? Follow heat through insulated district pipes and building heat exchangers. #363 Buildings & city systems How do prefabricated buildings fit together? Assemble factory-made sections and match their structural, plumbing, and electrical connections. #364 Buildings & city systems How do retaining walls hold back soil? Compare wall shape, drainage, and reinforcement under different simulated loads. #365 Buildings & city systems How do parking garages identify empty spaces? Move cars between bays and watch sensors update guidance signs. #366 Buildings & city systems How do railway signals keep trains separated? Divide track into sections and operate signals as trains enter and leave. #367 Buildings & city systems How does air traffic control organize flights? Guide aircraft along assigned routes and coordinate spacing and runway approaches. #368 Buildings & city systems How do dry docks make ship repairs possible? Float in a vessel, close the gate, and lower water around its hull. #369 Buildings & city systems How do utility maps show what is underground? Switch between pipe and cable layers before planning a simulated excavation. #370 Buildings & city systems How does a stadium open and close its roof? Coordinate movable roof sections as they travel along their tracks. #371 Buildings & city systems How do buildings use emergency backup power? Simulate an interruption and watch essential equipment transfer to a backup supply. #372 Buildings & city systems How do roofs keep rain out? Layer materials, add flashing and drainage, and trace raindrops around joints. #373 Buildings & city systems How can underground pipes be repaired without digging up a street? Insert a virtual lining and watch a repaired passage form inside a damaged pipe. #374 Buildings & city systems How do utilities find hidden water leaks? Compare flow readings across a network and narrow down where water escapes. #375 Buildings & city systems How do airport passenger bridges connect to airplanes? Adjust height, direction, and extension to meet different aircraft doors. #376 Electricity & energy How do LEDs produce light? Explore a simplified semiconductor junction as electrical energy becomes light. #377 Electricity & energy How do LCD screens make pictures? Control tiny screen elements and color filters to build a pixel-based picture. #378 Electricity & energy How do transistors act as electronic switches? Use a small control signal to switch another current path in a model circuit. #379 Electricity & energy How do diodes guide electricity in one direction? Reverse connections and compare current through a wire and a diode. #380 Electricity & energy How do capacitors store and release energy? Charge a virtual capacitor and use its stored energy for a brief action. #381 Electricity & energy How do resistors control current? Change resistance and observe corresponding changes on a virtual current meter. #382 Electricity & energy How do transformers change voltage? Adjust turns in model coils and compare input and output voltages. #383 Electricity & energy How do inverters change direct current into alternating current? Follow a switching sequence and watch a steady supply become an alternating waveform. #384 Electricity & energy How do circuit boards connect electronic parts? Route connections across a transparent board and trace signals between components.

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