Popular Mechanics - USA (2019-03)

HIGH-POWERED

LASERS THAT CUT

THROUGH CLOUDS

For the answers, see page 82.

5 Wthis tool?hat is

A. Clamp

B. Grabber

C. Pliers

D. Tongs

3 Wwasher?hat is a

(^2) how do you know that When using a level,
your surface is straight?
A. When the level can
be pressed flat against the
surface
B. When the level is against
the surface and the air bub-
When the air bubble
When the air bubble
(^1) tools (or hanging When using power
around someone who is),
what protective equipment

• pads and
  shin guards gloves, and
  ear protection

A. A machine

A screw with a wide,

A long tube used to

A thin doughnut-

shaped plate that sits

under a bolt or screw

THE TOOL

TEST

4 Wstripped screw?hat is a

A. A screw that has

no packaging

B. A screw with a damaged

head that is difficult to turn

C. A headless screw

D. A screw that’s not

wearing any clothes

8080 March 2019 _ PopularMechanics.com

GENERATE

ELECTRICITY

WITH LEGOS!

WIND TURBINES ARE super-
aerodynamic windmills. They’re
one of the easiest ways to cre-
ate electricity. When the wind
blows, air pushes the blades of
the turbine fast enough to crank
a generator, a tool that turns
motion into electrical energy.
Lego just introduced its
own working version of a wind
turbine, called the Vestas. It’s
named after the biggest wind-
power company in the world.
Real Vestas turbines are 410
feet tall and can generate
enough electricity to power
1,500 houses for a year. The
Lego Vestas is three feet tall
when it’s fully assembled and
has 826 pieces. Another cool
thing about it is that all of those
Legos are made out of plants!
Most plastic is bad for the
environment since it requires
a lot of chemicals to make and
takes a long time to biodegrade.
Because of that, Lego engi-
neers developed a new kind of
plastic that’s made out of sugar-
cane, but will still look, feel, and
snap together like normal Lego
bricks. This is the first Lego set
to use the new bricks, but by
2030, Lego plans to make all of
its Legos out of the material.
When your model turbine
is complete, you can hook up
a motor to make the blades
turn just like they do on a real
Vestas machine. You can buy
one for $200.

TO SEND DATA to a satellite floating hundreds

of miles above Earth, you need something

that can travel very fast. That’s why scientists

communicate with satellites using lasers. But

there’s one big problem: Lasers can’t travel

through clouds. The moisture in clouds breaks

up the laser light, which means that a lot of the

laser transmissions never actually make it to

space. This fall, researchers at the University of

Geneva in Switzerland tested a new idea. They

shot two lasers, one right after the other. The

first heated the water in the clouds, basically

burning a hole big enough for the second laser

to sneak through. This is great news for satellite

communication. Because science should never

have to wait for a storm to pass.