Author: How It Works Team
How do fireworks explode?
Despite all their different colours, shapes, and sounds, all fireworks have the same basic components. Aerial fireworks consist of a shell made of heavy paper that holds the ‘lift charge’, the ‘bursting charge’, and...
Win a prize bundle of gadgets, toys and books worth over £1,000!
Find the answer to our quiz in the latest issue of How It Works
History’s most gruesome inventions
From brutal torture devices to bizarre medical treatments, these terrifying contraptions reveal a darker side of innovation From the wheel to the World Wide Web, we have invented some truly ground-breaking things during our...
How do snowflakes form?
The formation of a snowflake begins when a microscopic cloud droplet freezes as a tiny ice particle. Water vapour that condenses on its surface causes the ice to develop flat, polished surfaces, known as...
Baking science: How to make the perfect cake
Want the secret to brilliant baking? It’s all in the chemistry of cake… Baking involves an abundance of chemical interactions. From air bubbles in the mix which expand and make the cake rise, to...
