Nature
Exploring "Why" questions about Nature
487 articles
Why aren’t we doing anything about the colossal amount of trash in the pacific ocean?
Because it isn't what people think. The Pacific gyre is filled with plastic, it's a huge problem, but the plastic is millions of tiny pieces suspended in the water. To 'do something' you'd have to fil
Why do lakes freeze but rivers don’t, in the same temperature?
Water in lakes is still, so it has time to freeze. Rivers are flowing, so water is constantly moving, making freezing much more difficult.
Why do things floating in pools, lakes etc, tend to eventually float toward the edge?
Lakes and pools have water surrounded by edges in all directions. If something that is floating has any sort of momentum, it will eventually get to one of the edges.
Why do British TV seasons/series tend to have very few episodes while the average US season has 20+?
British Drama/sitcoms are generally written by one or two people (i.e. the creator of the show or perhaps a comedy partnership). Whereas American shows are generally written by a team of writers inclu
Why do many rivers never seem to dry up?
The soil soaks up water, and this water is released slowly over longer periods of time, like a trickling sponge. In places where the (sandy) soil does not retain water as well, rivers are mostly seaso
Why California is flooding their fields for rice during a major drought when it exports 50% of the crop?
Because the price the farmers pay for water doesn't really reflect the total cost incurred from using that water. However, even if farmer's were paying the "social cost" of the water, they would still
Why does water freeze from top to bottom? Deep in the ocean it’s below freezing, why doesn’t it freeze?
There are several reasons. The salt in the ocean lowers the temperature needed to make it freeze. Currents stop the ice from bonding, and if Ice did freeze, it is less dense and floats.
Why is it that snowflakes are always perfectly symmetrical and hexagonal?
The underlying crystal structure of water is hexagonal, so it's natural that something made of ice follows this if allowed to grow that way. As for why symmetrical - well, they often aren't perfectly
Why do humans like white noise like rain so much?
The brain likes to use its senses. In dead silence the brain goes as far as making up noises for itself to process. White noise is less crazy person, more natural feeling.
why does toilet water lower when it’s a windy day?
There's a vent system connected to your plumbing. Its purpose is to keep air pressure neutral in your plumbing, so that the bad stuff can go down freely, and to make sure it doesn't come back up into