As a journalist, I ask a LOT of questions. Many times, I can find the answers online or in interviews with people I feature in stories I write.
But there is one kind of question I have a hard time answering on my own, and that’s about how things related to science or mechanics work. When I am curious about those topics, I bother one person more than anyone else, and that’s my oldest son Alex, who studied mechanical engineering and physics in college and now works as an aerospace engineer (FYI, he’s also the musician whose work is featured at the beginning and end of each podcast episode).
As a writer, I don’t know a whole lot of mechanically-minded people, so it’s fun for me to have access to someone who has studied enough science and engineering to put together an educated answer to the (sometimes bizarre) things I ask.
With that in mind, I thought it would be fun to publish a recurring segment with Alex where readers can ask questions related to how things work. He has already noted many times that he is not an expert in most areas we will cover, but he is happy to do research and learn alongside us (though he has a bit of a head start given his degree and line of work!).
This week, since the segment is new, my Mom and I supplied the questions:
How does a pipe organ work? and
What are solar flares and what kinds of problems can they cause here on earth? (these have been mentioned recently in the news and I wanted to learn more).
Alex does a great job of answering both in this episode… and now every time I go to church I stare at the organ pipes and wonder which one makes what sound…
If, after listening to the segment, you think of any questions you’d like to ask Alex, feel free to send them to me or submit them in the comments, and we will be sure to cover them in future episodes!
In the meantime, enjoy, and thanks so much for listening -