How do elevators work?

WEBVTT
1
00:00:08.210 --> 00:00:12.630
You're listening to Brains On, where we're serious about being curious.
2
00:00:15.650 --> 00:00:18.829
Welcome to Brains On headquarters. What floor, please?
3
00:00:19.250 --> 00:00:19.969
What floor?
4
00:00:20.370 --> 00:00:23.089
Shoot, I don't know what floor I'm supposed to go to.
5
00:00:23.670 --> 00:00:26.250
I heard two, going to the second floor.
6
00:00:26.269 --> 00:00:28.559
Wait, that's not what I meant.
7
00:00:29.579 --> 00:00:30.839
I heard basement.
8
00:00:31.190 --> 00:00:31.929
Going down.
9
00:00:32.609 --> 00:00:33.929
No, no, no.
10
00:00:34.229 --> 00:00:36.780
I mean, I don't know what floor Molly is on.
11
00:00:37.219 --> 00:00:39.920
I was just told to arrive at 1130.
12
00:00:39.920 --> 00:00:40.340
Got it.
13
00:00:40.719 --> 00:00:42.000
Heading to floor 1130.
14
00:00:42.000 --> 00:00:42.399
What?
15
00:00:42.479 --> 00:00:50.310
Too fast. Make it stop.
16
00:00:50.590 --> 00:00:51.170
Stopping.
17
00:00:54.549 --> 00:00:57.210
I don't feel great. That was intense.
18
00:00:57.890 --> 00:00:58.549
I heard tenth.
19
00:00:58.929 --> 00:01:00.310
Tenth floor, coming up.
20
00:01:00.509 --> 00:01:03.929
No, no way. Stop it now. I did not say tenth.
21
00:01:04.390 --> 00:01:07.409
Just chill out for a second. You're going up and
22
00:01:07.469 --> 00:01:09.129
down like a roller coaster.
23
00:01:09.670 --> 00:01:11.549
Oh, you wanted roller coaster mode?
24
00:01:11.829 --> 00:01:12.310
Got it.
25
00:01:12.549 --> 00:01:14.290
Wait, roller coaster mode?
26
00:01:14.549 --> 00:01:15.769
Hold on, please.
27
00:01:15.870 --> 00:01:18.829
What kind of.
28
00:01:18.950 --> 00:01:19.849
Elevator is this?
29
00:01:19.890 --> 00:01:21.370
Whoa. Whoa.
30
00:01:21.390 --> 00:01:22.890
Ew, yeah.
31
00:01:23.549 --> 00:01:23.629
Psst.
32
00:01:28.670 --> 00:01:30.859
Wow, that was actually fun.
33
00:01:31.120 --> 00:01:32.280
Would you like to go again?
34
00:01:32.299 --> 00:01:33.900
Yes, but no.
35
00:01:34.359 --> 00:01:37.680
But maybe, no. I need to be at the studio
36
00:01:37.739 --> 00:01:38.560
to meet Molly.
37
00:01:39.680 --> 00:01:41.200
Oh, the studio.
38
00:01:41.420 --> 00:01:42.950
Why didn't you just say that?
39
00:01:43.730 --> 00:01:44.290
Coming up.
40
00:01:46.629 --> 00:01:50.870
Hey, whoa, Siraksha, you look a little disheveled. What's going on?
41
00:01:50.950 --> 00:01:53.250
The elevator started talking and then it shot up and
42
00:01:53.290 --> 00:01:55.170
down like a roller coaster and then it was a
43
00:01:55.209 --> 00:01:58.469
roller coaster. And does this building really have 1130 floors?
44
00:01:58.530 --> 00:02:00.129
And what is going on, Molly?
45
00:02:00.150 --> 00:02:05.090
Aha, I see. We're trying out this new experimental elevator system,
46
00:02:05.299 --> 00:02:08.009
but I think it's still a little glitchy. Why don't
47
00:02:08.030 --> 00:02:10.000
you catch your breath and then we'll start the show.
48
00:02:10.099 --> 00:02:12.280
Sounds good. Which way's the studio?
49
00:02:12.360 --> 00:02:16.479
We're already in the studio. This elevator transforms into whatever
50
00:02:16.539 --> 00:02:19.740
we need it to be. Except the bathroom. It won't
51
00:02:19.780 --> 00:02:20.879
transform into a bathroom.
52
00:02:21.120 --> 00:02:22.319
Yeah, that makes sense.
53
00:02:22.520 --> 00:02:24.860
But other than that, we are good. So let's do this.
54
00:02:25.180 --> 00:02:25.939
Keep listening.
55
00:02:34.889 --> 00:02:37.740
You're listening to Brains On from American Public Media. I'm
56
00:02:37.759 --> 00:02:41.439
Molly Bloom, and with me today is 11-year-old Siraksha Thirunavakarasu
57
00:02:41.500 --> 00:02:43.689
from Edison, New Jersey. Welcome to the show.
58
00:02:43.710 --> 00:02:45.250
Hi, Molly. Hello.
59
00:02:45.310 --> 00:02:47.969
So today we are talking about elevators. Do you get
60
00:02:48.009 --> 00:02:48.909
to ride elevators much?
61
00:02:49.590 --> 00:02:52.330
Yeah, a lot of times. I hate taking the stairs.
62
00:02:52.870 --> 00:02:55.310
Elevators make that easier for sure. Do you have a
63
00:02:55.370 --> 00:02:56.110
favorite elevator?
64
00:02:56.650 --> 00:03:00.539
I really like the transparent elevators. Sometimes it's in malls.
65
00:03:00.639 --> 00:03:02.819
I just feel like I could see what's happening, but
66
00:03:02.879 --> 00:03:03.939
no one can see me.
67
00:03:04.199 --> 00:03:06.569
And you are a math ambassador at your school. Can
68
00:03:06.629 --> 00:03:07.770
you tell me what that means?
69
00:03:08.050 --> 00:03:11.430
So a math ambassador is basically like there are fifth
70
00:03:11.509 --> 00:03:14.849
graders and fourth graders, which the teachers pick and they
71
00:03:14.909 --> 00:03:18.050
think would be helpful to help the first and second graders.
72
00:03:18.370 --> 00:03:20.469
Since you are a math ambassador, do you see math
73
00:03:20.610 --> 00:03:22.990
in places that other people don't see it? I do.
74
00:03:23.150 --> 00:03:25.810
I see it a lot of times. Like we have
75
00:03:25.879 --> 00:03:29.300
our A math ambassador meetings everyone, I say, in the library.
76
00:03:29.699 --> 00:03:32.919
So then when there's a shelf, there's library books in
77
00:03:32.939 --> 00:03:35.460
the front and then a line down. So I like
78
00:03:35.500 --> 00:03:37.719
to see it as rows and columns. So I see
79
00:03:37.780 --> 00:03:38.460
math everywhere.
80
00:03:38.879 --> 00:03:40.280
That's amazing. That's really cool.
81
00:03:40.580 --> 00:03:40.960
Thanks.
82
00:03:42.319 --> 00:03:46.889
Okay, let's get this elevator party started.
83
00:03:47.250 --> 00:03:49.310
Our first question comes from Gabe.
84
00:03:49.569 --> 00:03:50.530
My name is Gabe.
85
00:03:50.770 --> 00:03:51.449
I'm from St.
86
00:03:51.509 --> 00:03:54.120
Louis, but I'm also a doctor. My question is, how
87
00:03:54.159 --> 00:03:58.020
do elevators go up and down? Great question. How do
88
00:03:58.139 --> 00:04:01.219
elevators go up and down? To help us answer this,
89
00:04:01.560 --> 00:04:03.949
we're going to bring on Vijay J.S. Chandran.
90
00:04:04.129 --> 00:04:07.169
He's an executive director of engineering with the Otis Elevator
91
00:04:07.210 --> 00:04:10.830
Company in Connecticut. And he's on, let's see, this floor.
92
00:04:13.550 --> 00:04:14.610
Welcome to Brains On.
93
00:04:14.969 --> 00:04:15.949
Hey, great to see you guys.
94
00:04:16.290 --> 00:04:18.009
How do elevators go up and down?
95
00:04:18.470 --> 00:04:22.029
Oh, that's a great question. The elevator is basically a cabin, right,
96
00:04:22.069 --> 00:04:24.129
in which you ride and it takes people up and
97
00:04:24.170 --> 00:04:27.029
down the building. So you've got to have some method
98
00:04:27.110 --> 00:04:29.189
to pull it up and down the building. So there's
99
00:04:29.629 --> 00:04:33.550
two most common methods by which this is done. The
100
00:04:33.569 --> 00:04:35.970
first one is called a traction elevator, and that's what
101
00:04:36.149 --> 00:04:40.120
you will see mostly around the world. where the elevator
102
00:04:40.480 --> 00:04:43.540
hangs off a pulley with the help of ropes or belts.
103
00:04:44.000 --> 00:04:47.120
A pulley is like a wheel with a groove in it,
104
00:04:47.360 --> 00:04:50.560
and then you can drop the rope inside it. And
105
00:04:50.620 --> 00:04:53.579
so when you rotate the pulley, the rope's going to
106
00:04:53.620 --> 00:04:55.220
ride along with it, and one side is going to
107
00:04:55.259 --> 00:04:56.920
get longer and the other side is going to get shorter.
108
00:04:57.839 --> 00:05:00.399
And the pulley is powered by an electric motor, so
109
00:05:01.079 --> 00:05:03.600
as you turn the motor, the ropes go over the
110
00:05:03.639 --> 00:05:05.839
pulley and the elevator goes up and down in the
111
00:05:05.860 --> 00:05:09.410
direction depending on how the pulley is rotating. So that's
112
00:05:09.430 --> 00:05:12.660
the traction elevator. And then we also have a hydraulic elevator.
113
00:05:13.279 --> 00:05:16.279
And you typically see these in smaller buildings where the
114
00:05:16.339 --> 00:05:19.220
elevator is just going a few floors. It's much slower.
115
00:05:19.759 --> 00:05:22.339
And in this case, what happens is the elevator is
116
00:05:22.579 --> 00:05:25.730
pushed up by a piston. It's really like a big
117
00:05:25.870 --> 00:05:29.970
metal cylinder, like a shaft, which is under the elevator.
118
00:05:29.990 --> 00:05:32.350
It's very strong because it has to push the elevator up.
119
00:05:32.930 --> 00:05:35.230
And then there's oil behind it. So as you push
120
00:05:35.449 --> 00:05:38.410
oil under it, the piston pushes up and it pushes
121
00:05:38.449 --> 00:05:40.370
the elevator up with it. And then when you want
122
00:05:40.389 --> 00:05:42.709
to go down, it just releases the oil slowly and
123
00:05:42.730 --> 00:05:45.439
lets the elevator down. So that's the hydraulic elevator.
124
00:05:45.740 --> 00:05:47.720
So instead of being pulled by a rope, in this case,
125
00:05:47.800 --> 00:05:52.240
it's actually just being pushed up and down by this tube, basically.
126
00:05:52.439 --> 00:05:52.920
Exactly.
127
00:05:53.180 --> 00:05:53.439
Okay.
128
00:05:53.939 --> 00:05:56.089
And then the other thing to remember is that once
129
00:05:56.129 --> 00:06:00.129
you've got an elevator sort of suspended inside a shaft,
130
00:06:00.329 --> 00:06:02.649
it's like if it's on ropes, it's hanging in there.
131
00:06:02.670 --> 00:06:04.329
So you've got to make sure it stays on track.
132
00:06:04.980 --> 00:06:07.740
So we also have rails like a train, which keep
133
00:06:07.759 --> 00:06:10.060
the elevator guided and make sure that it goes up
134
00:06:10.100 --> 00:06:12.439
and down along a certain path. So that's how you
135
00:06:12.480 --> 00:06:14.240
kind of get elevators to go up and down a building.
136
00:06:14.480 --> 00:06:15.000
Cool.
137
00:06:15.699 --> 00:06:18.490
What's the tallest elevator in the whole world?
138
00:06:18.860 --> 00:06:22.160
Well, so the tallest building in the world is Burj
139
00:06:22.180 --> 00:06:26.170
Khalifa in Dubai, and Otis has the elevators in that building.
140
00:06:26.610 --> 00:06:31.209
It's 828 meters tall, and the tallest elevator in there
141
00:06:31.269 --> 00:06:34.180
goes to the observation deck, so that's where people go
142
00:06:34.209 --> 00:06:36.100
to get a really nice view of the countryside.
143
00:06:36.120 --> 00:06:40.680
Okay, so here's another question from one of our listeners.
144
00:06:40.980 --> 00:06:41.920
My name is Eric.
145
00:06:42.639 --> 00:06:44.430
I live in Cottage Grove, Minnesota.
146
00:06:45.170 --> 00:06:48.069
I would like to know why elevators in shorter buildings
147
00:06:48.529 --> 00:06:51.610
move slower than elevators in taller buildings.
148
00:06:52.069 --> 00:06:52.310
Sure.
149
00:06:52.589 --> 00:06:53.750
That's a great question.
150
00:06:53.910 --> 00:06:55.850
As you would imagine, you know, we usually design the
151
00:06:55.889 --> 00:06:59.100
elevators to make sure that the people riding them don't
152
00:06:59.129 --> 00:07:01.779
have to wait too long. So we typically want them
153
00:07:01.800 --> 00:07:04.000
to not wait very long after they push the button
154
00:07:04.259 --> 00:07:06.180
calling the elevator, and then we don't want them to
155
00:07:06.220 --> 00:07:09.720
take too long to ride to their destination. So as
156
00:07:09.779 --> 00:07:12.199
the building gets taller... you're going to have to move
157
00:07:12.240 --> 00:07:14.699
faster to make sure that they get there faster, right,
158
00:07:14.920 --> 00:07:16.779
in the same amount of time. So that's why we
159
00:07:17.300 --> 00:07:19.819
have faster elevators in taller buildings. And then as the
160
00:07:19.860 --> 00:07:23.180
buildings get really tall, you'll also notice that there are
161
00:07:23.220 --> 00:07:25.160
more than one elevator. So in a small building, you
162
00:07:25.180 --> 00:07:27.120
can get away with one elevator to get the few
163
00:07:27.160 --> 00:07:29.189
people who are trying to get above the ground floor.
164
00:07:29.639 --> 00:07:31.970
But in the larger buildings, you may have groups of
165
00:07:32.050 --> 00:07:34.689
four or eight elevators so that they're all kind of
166
00:07:34.790 --> 00:07:37.310
working in unison and ferrying all these people all over
167
00:07:37.350 --> 00:07:39.370
the place and getting them to where they want to go.
168
00:07:39.470 --> 00:07:42.209
So they get faster and then you end up adding
169
00:07:42.250 --> 00:07:44.310
more elevators if you have more people to take to
170
00:07:44.329 --> 00:07:44.990
their destination.
171
00:07:45.350 --> 00:07:45.750
Cool.
172
00:07:46.110 --> 00:07:49.889
What are some of the most exciting advances in elevators today?
173
00:07:50.389 --> 00:07:52.939
Some of the new technologies that we are working on
174
00:07:52.980 --> 00:07:55.420
and some of the new dimensions are really around connecting
175
00:07:55.480 --> 00:07:58.399
people to the elevator. We're looking at ways in which
176
00:07:58.860 --> 00:08:01.379
as you walk into a building, you could have the
177
00:08:01.420 --> 00:08:04.339
building door open for you. As you proceed through the building,
178
00:08:04.420 --> 00:08:06.500
things can happen. So you get close to the elevator
179
00:08:06.579 --> 00:08:09.079
and If the elevator knows you're coming and you typically
180
00:08:09.139 --> 00:08:12.120
go to the 25th floor where your office is, your
181
00:08:12.139 --> 00:08:14.100
cell phone or a display will say, please go to
182
00:08:14.160 --> 00:08:17.040
elevator B. And once you're in, it's already entered the
183
00:08:17.079 --> 00:08:18.600
call to take you to the 25th floor. So you
184
00:08:18.620 --> 00:08:21.579
really don't have to do anything. You're riding the elevator
185
00:08:21.939 --> 00:08:25.339
and maybe there's a screen in there. And, you know, hey,
186
00:08:26.060 --> 00:08:28.620
here's the score from a recent game that was on
187
00:08:28.660 --> 00:08:30.680
last night. The sports team that you follow, it could
188
00:08:30.720 --> 00:08:33.100
personalize it for you. Maybe you could have music that
189
00:08:33.139 --> 00:08:35.600
plays that's personalized to you. All of these things can
190
00:08:35.620 --> 00:08:37.509
be done. in a connected way.
191
00:08:37.529 --> 00:08:42.389
So does pushing the elevator call button over and over
192
00:08:42.500 --> 00:08:43.299
do anything?
193
00:08:44.000 --> 00:08:48.720
I get that question from multiple people. So actually, once
194
00:08:48.840 --> 00:08:51.879
you push the call button when you're waiting for the
195
00:08:51.919 --> 00:08:54.779
elevator and the light goes on, then pushing it again
196
00:08:54.899 --> 00:08:59.120
doesn't really impact what happens. The system's already figuring out
197
00:08:59.139 --> 00:09:01.970
that there's somebody waiting. So yeah, pushing it many times
198
00:09:02.009 --> 00:09:03.870
might make you feel good, but it's not really doing
199
00:09:03.929 --> 00:09:04.570
much to the elevator.
200
00:09:05.649 --> 00:09:10.389
Okay. Thanks, Vijay, for being here. We really appreciate it.
201
00:09:10.389 --> 00:09:18.200
Thank you.
202
00:09:21.200 --> 00:09:23.799
Now, Siraksha, I hope your ears are up for a task.
203
00:09:24.500 --> 00:09:26.139
Here comes the mystery sound.
204
00:09:26.159 --> 00:09:29.629
Mystery sound.
205
00:09:30.950 --> 00:09:50.720
Here it is. Any guesses?
206
00:09:52.379 --> 00:09:55.950
I think it's like back in the day when, even
207
00:09:55.990 --> 00:09:57.889
though I wasn't born yet, I think it's like those
208
00:09:58.029 --> 00:10:02.570
elevators that really have the person inside it. And I
209
00:10:02.610 --> 00:10:04.870
feel like it's the person who's running the motor.
210
00:10:04.889 --> 00:10:05.809
I don't know.
211
00:10:05.830 --> 00:10:08.769
That is an excellent guess. And we're going to get
212
00:10:08.789 --> 00:10:10.070
back to that in a little bit to see if
213
00:10:10.110 --> 00:10:13.649
you're right. First, a little history with producer Sandon Totten.
214
00:10:14.090 --> 00:10:15.669
He's on this floor.
215
00:10:18.740 --> 00:10:19.299
Hey, guys.
216
00:10:19.639 --> 00:10:20.259
Hey, Sandon.
217
00:10:20.279 --> 00:10:21.919
Hi, Sandon. What have you got for us?
218
00:10:22.340 --> 00:10:24.539
Well, you know, elevators, they're kind of one of those
219
00:10:24.600 --> 00:10:27.210
ideas that seem super obvious when you think about it, right?
220
00:10:27.539 --> 00:10:27.830
Sure.
221
00:10:28.049 --> 00:10:32.710
I mean, buildings are tall. Stairs take forever. People want
222
00:10:32.769 --> 00:10:35.970
another way up, so you invent the elevator. Easy peasy.
223
00:10:36.409 --> 00:10:36.909
Exactly.
224
00:10:37.490 --> 00:10:40.700
But in reality, it wasn't so easy, it wasn't so peasy,
225
00:10:41.320 --> 00:10:43.539
and it wasn't so obvious. In fact, it took a
226
00:10:43.679 --> 00:10:46.000
lot of people a long time to get it right.
227
00:10:46.600 --> 00:10:50.000
And there were two main figures who really helped shape
228
00:10:50.080 --> 00:10:51.080
the modern elevator.
229
00:10:51.460 --> 00:10:52.940
Two big names in elevator history.
230
00:10:53.139 --> 00:10:53.759
Who were they?
231
00:10:54.299 --> 00:10:57.289
I said two big figures, but just one name.
232
00:10:57.710 --> 00:10:57.990
Otis.
233
00:10:58.470 --> 00:10:58.690
Right.
234
00:10:59.009 --> 00:11:01.769
We just spoke to Vijay from the Otis Elevator Company.
235
00:11:02.090 --> 00:11:05.769
Yeah, that's one Otis. Elijah Otis founded that company in
236
00:11:05.789 --> 00:11:09.190
the mid-1800s. But there was a second Otis who also
237
00:11:09.230 --> 00:11:11.830
played a huge part in this saga, even though he's
238
00:11:11.929 --> 00:11:15.759
often forgotten. His name was Otis Tufts. And these two
239
00:11:15.799 --> 00:11:16.720
were actually rivals.
240
00:11:17.220 --> 00:11:19.120
Two Otises? Or Odysseys?
241
00:11:19.240 --> 00:11:21.080
Or Odai? Anyway, whatever.
242
00:11:21.360 --> 00:11:24.419
Two people named Otis working on elevators at the same time?
243
00:11:24.879 --> 00:11:25.600
Sounds confusing.
244
00:11:26.019 --> 00:11:26.299
Yeah.
245
00:11:26.679 --> 00:11:29.539
You'd think they'd pair up. Double the Otis, double the fun.
246
00:11:29.980 --> 00:11:30.220
Right.
247
00:11:30.659 --> 00:11:33.620
Well, it might have actually been their differences that helped
248
00:11:33.779 --> 00:11:35.259
bring us the modern elevator.
249
00:11:35.950 --> 00:11:36.509
Let me explain.
250
00:11:37.440 --> 00:11:44.000
This is The Tale of Two Otises. My co-narrator is
251
00:11:44.039 --> 00:11:47.419
a guy named Lee Gray, an expert on all things elevator.
252
00:11:47.559 --> 00:11:51.940
I'm a professor of architectural history at UNC Charlotte.
253
00:11:52.240 --> 00:11:55.159
He says simple elevators have been around a long time.
254
00:11:55.399 --> 00:11:57.840
These were just platforms with a rope and a pulley.
255
00:11:58.320 --> 00:12:00.820
Someone tugged on the rope, it went over the pulley,
256
00:12:01.259 --> 00:12:02.659
and it helped to lift the platform.
257
00:12:02.820 --> 00:12:05.500
You know, if we think of the Colosseum in Rome.
258
00:12:06.559 --> 00:12:10.759
That's the big outdoor theater where gladiators fought animals for sport.
259
00:12:12.370 --> 00:12:16.750
Below the floor of the Coliseum was where the lions, tigers,
260
00:12:16.789 --> 00:12:19.529
the beasts, all those things that were used in their, quote,
261
00:12:19.610 --> 00:12:23.429
entertainment were kept. And they had what we would think
262
00:12:23.590 --> 00:12:26.870
of as an elevator-type hoist that they could load a
263
00:12:26.929 --> 00:12:32.330
lion into and then hoist the lion up. And he
264
00:12:32.350 --> 00:12:36.990
would magically appear in the amphitheater above to attack whoever
265
00:12:37.029 --> 00:12:39.230
he was supposed to attack. Ah, neat trick.
266
00:12:40.210 --> 00:12:42.850
Ah, bad kitty, bad kitty, down, down kitty.
267
00:12:43.490 --> 00:12:46.389
Now, for a long time, that's all an elevator was.
268
00:12:46.460 --> 00:12:48.860
It was people hoisting up platforms up and down a
269
00:12:48.899 --> 00:12:53.059
shaft by pulling on ropes. Flash forward a few hundred
270
00:12:53.139 --> 00:12:56.679
years to the early 1800s, and we figured out how
271
00:12:56.700 --> 00:12:59.519
to use water wheels to power the hoist so people
272
00:12:59.559 --> 00:13:02.970
didn't have to pull ropes anymore. Still, these elevators didn't
273
00:13:03.009 --> 00:13:03.649
go very high.
274
00:13:03.809 --> 00:13:04.649
They had no walls.
275
00:13:04.909 --> 00:13:08.220
And importantly, they were just used to carry heavy things
276
00:13:08.259 --> 00:13:10.259
like boxes. They weren't really meant for people.
277
00:13:10.480 --> 00:13:15.000
Most of them used not steel cables, but just thick ropes.
278
00:13:15.700 --> 00:13:16.600
And they broke a lot.
279
00:13:17.039 --> 00:13:19.389
And when they broke, the platform would slide down the
280
00:13:19.409 --> 00:13:22.649
shaft and smash into the floor. Boxes and barrels could
281
00:13:22.690 --> 00:13:25.009
be thrown into the air, and that could seriously injure
282
00:13:25.029 --> 00:13:26.149
the people standing around.
283
00:13:26.409 --> 00:13:29.570
Well, this is where our first Otis, Elijah Otis, comes
284
00:13:29.610 --> 00:13:31.269
into the picture. How do you do?
285
00:13:31.570 --> 00:13:32.649
Otis at your service.
286
00:13:32.669 --> 00:13:37.080
Okay, so it's the mid-1800s now, and Elijah Otis, he's
287
00:13:37.100 --> 00:13:40.360
this kind of tinkerer, inventor type who lives in New York,
288
00:13:40.759 --> 00:13:43.610
and he's working at a factory when he notices a problem.
289
00:13:44.210 --> 00:13:47.289
It takes so long to get supplies to the higher floors,
290
00:13:47.889 --> 00:13:48.389
but these.
291
00:13:48.269 --> 00:13:49.909
Hoists are so dangerous.
292
00:13:49.929 --> 00:13:50.120
Hmm.
293
00:13:51.360 --> 00:13:53.320
What if.
294
00:13:53.759 --> 00:13:56.840
So what he does is he designs a very simple
295
00:13:57.000 --> 00:13:58.279
kind of safety device.
296
00:13:59.019 --> 00:13:59.980
Yes, that's it!
297
00:14:00.539 --> 00:14:04.350
That he hooks to the top of a freight elevator
298
00:14:04.879 --> 00:14:08.769
so that if the rope is cut, the safety activates
299
00:14:09.049 --> 00:14:12.090
and it stops the freight platform from falling.
300
00:14:12.629 --> 00:14:14.789
Oh, Elijah, you clever scoundrel.
301
00:14:14.830 --> 00:14:15.549
This is good.
302
00:14:15.610 --> 00:14:16.769
This is real good.
303
00:14:16.789 --> 00:14:18.129
Oh, do you likey?
304
00:14:21.480 --> 00:14:23.960
Imagine you're sliding down a tube slide at the park
305
00:14:24.460 --> 00:14:26.340
and you pushed out your hands and feet against the
306
00:14:26.379 --> 00:14:30.230
walls mid-slide to stop yourself. That's sort of how Elijah
307
00:14:30.269 --> 00:14:32.970
Otis' safety works. It's basically a device that makes it
308
00:14:33.009 --> 00:14:35.480
so when the rope is cut, The sides of the
309
00:14:35.519 --> 00:14:38.360
hoist elevator spring outward and push against the guideposts of
310
00:14:38.379 --> 00:14:41.980
the elevator shaft, where they get stuck. That stops the
311
00:14:42.100 --> 00:14:46.159
elevator mid-fall, so it doesn't fall any further. Otis tests
312
00:14:46.200 --> 00:14:48.570
it out. It does the job. It seems really safe.
313
00:14:48.970 --> 00:14:49.669
So he thinks.
314
00:14:49.870 --> 00:14:51.830
This could be big. I could sell this.
315
00:14:52.169 --> 00:14:54.350
Factories everywhere would love to have one.
316
00:14:54.429 --> 00:14:55.029
Woo-hoo!
317
00:14:55.210 --> 00:14:56.750
I'm doing my happy dance.
318
00:14:57.450 --> 00:15:00.330
Lee Gray says eventually Otis takes his invention on the road.
319
00:15:00.610 --> 00:15:03.370
At an industrial fair in New York City in what
320
00:15:03.409 --> 00:15:06.200
was called the Crystal Palace, which was this great big
321
00:15:06.279 --> 00:15:07.539
greenhouse-like building.
322
00:15:07.799 --> 00:15:09.539
Gather round, everybody. Gather round.
323
00:15:09.620 --> 00:15:13.539
What he supposedly did is he built a small framework
324
00:15:13.580 --> 00:15:17.379
to hold a freight platform with his safety on, and
325
00:15:17.440 --> 00:15:19.600
he would load some barrels and things on it. He
326
00:15:19.639 --> 00:15:22.899
would then stand onto the platform, and he would have
327
00:15:22.960 --> 00:15:25.210
his assistants haul him up.
328
00:15:25.250 --> 00:15:26.710
Be good. Be careful, man.
329
00:15:26.789 --> 00:15:29.009
So he suspended off the ground, and then they would
330
00:15:29.129 --> 00:15:32.399
cut the rope. And then his safety would spring into
331
00:15:32.519 --> 00:15:36.799
action very quickly. Then he would call out to the crowd.
332
00:15:37.299 --> 00:15:38.200
All safe, gentlemen.
333
00:15:38.799 --> 00:15:39.490
All safe.
334
00:15:40.179 --> 00:15:41.850
Thank you.
335
00:15:42.009 --> 00:15:45.750
Booyah! Elijah Otis for the win. He patents his idea.
336
00:15:45.769 --> 00:15:48.909
He starts the business we now call the Otis Elevator Company.
337
00:15:49.409 --> 00:15:52.889
And factories start using the invention. But we're still talking
338
00:15:52.990 --> 00:15:57.570
about elevators for stuff, not for people. For that breakthrough,
339
00:15:57.830 --> 00:16:01.379
we need another genius inventor type who also happens to
340
00:16:01.399 --> 00:16:04.679
be named Otis. His story coming right up.
341
00:16:05.399 --> 00:16:06.039
Stay tuned.
342
00:16:16.070 --> 00:16:25.970
So Hey, we are working on an episode all about spacesuits,
343
00:16:26.129 --> 00:16:28.899
and we want to hear from you. If you could
344
00:16:28.919 --> 00:16:31.159
invent a suit to help you with something here on Earth,
345
00:16:31.480 --> 00:16:33.960
what would it do? What would it look like? Send
346
00:16:34.019 --> 00:16:38.360
us your answers by visiting brainson.org slash contact. You can
347
00:16:38.379 --> 00:16:43.470
also send questions, drawings, mystery sounds, and high fives there too, brainson.org
348
00:16:43.669 --> 00:16:47.029
slash contact. To thank the awesome listeners who contribute their
349
00:16:47.070 --> 00:16:49.590
ideas and energy to the show, we add their names
350
00:16:49.649 --> 00:16:53.070
to the Brains Honor Roll. like Dani from Parker, Colorado,
351
00:16:53.129 --> 00:16:53.649
who sent.
352
00:16:53.570 --> 00:16:54.529
Us this question.
353
00:16:54.690 --> 00:16:55.929
Why do crickets chirp?
354
00:16:56.669 --> 00:16:58.980
We'll have an answer to that question and the latest
355
00:16:59.039 --> 00:17:01.200
installment of the Brains on a Roll at the very
356
00:17:01.299 --> 00:17:03.700
end of this episode. So keep listening.
357
00:17:07.900 --> 00:17:11.660
You're listening to Brains On from American Public Media. I'm
358
00:17:11.700 --> 00:17:13.180
Sayrakh Chaturnavakarsu.
359
00:17:13.380 --> 00:17:16.700
And I'm Molly Bloom. Today we're talking elevators, and with
360
00:17:16.789 --> 00:17:19.670
us is Sandin Totten, You've told us about one Otis,
361
00:17:20.029 --> 00:17:21.430
but what about the other Otis?
362
00:17:21.769 --> 00:17:21.970
Right.
363
00:17:22.450 --> 00:17:25.250
We left off with Elijah Otis, who invented a safer
364
00:17:25.369 --> 00:17:29.009
elevator for carrying things, but it wasn't for moving people.
365
00:17:29.390 --> 00:17:32.319
So this is where Otis Tufts comes in.
366
00:17:32.670 --> 00:17:35.279
Otis Tufts, maker of stuffs. Pleased to meet you.
367
00:17:35.720 --> 00:17:39.240
Tufts is also an inventor. He designed ironclad ships and
368
00:17:39.319 --> 00:17:42.660
some steam engines. But where Elijah Otis, our first Otis,
369
00:17:42.960 --> 00:17:46.440
was a builder who improved things already out there, Tufts
370
00:17:46.799 --> 00:17:49.180
was more of a dreamer who came up with big
371
00:17:49.279 --> 00:17:52.480
ideas and had others build them. So around the same
372
00:17:52.529 --> 00:17:55.490
time that the other Otis, Elisha Otis, is making these
373
00:17:55.569 --> 00:17:59.789
freight elevators safer, Otis Tufts is asked by a fancy
374
00:17:59.869 --> 00:18:03.750
hotel builder to design an elevator that would carry people.
375
00:18:04.190 --> 00:18:07.880
That's a challenge I accept. Let me sketch something here.
376
00:18:08.339 --> 00:18:12.339
Historian Lee Gray says this required Otis Tufts to rethink
377
00:18:12.480 --> 00:18:13.319
what an elevator was.
378
00:18:13.720 --> 00:18:16.079
Well, first it has to be an enclosed car.
379
00:18:16.599 --> 00:18:19.480
And people want something more than a platform.
380
00:18:20.609 --> 00:18:22.440
How about... Yes, that's it.
381
00:18:22.849 --> 00:18:23.410
Walls!
382
00:18:24.329 --> 00:18:27.109
It has to have doors that open and close that
383
00:18:27.150 --> 00:18:29.099
allow access to the car.
384
00:18:29.210 --> 00:18:30.599
And how about a seat?
385
00:18:31.400 --> 00:18:34.680
It has to have an operator in it to control
386
00:18:34.720 --> 00:18:36.859
the machine so that it can go up and down
387
00:18:36.880 --> 00:18:39.089
in the way we need it to.
388
00:18:39.950 --> 00:18:43.710
I think I've got it. Oh, Tufts, you cheeky rascal.
389
00:18:44.150 --> 00:18:46.710
This is good. This is real good. Odie likey.
390
00:18:47.009 --> 00:18:50.049
Tufts called it a vertical railway. And let me tell you,
391
00:18:50.230 --> 00:18:51.990
it was a fancy ride.
392
00:18:53.089 --> 00:18:58.400
You would wait at the vertical railway stations. The elevator
393
00:18:58.440 --> 00:18:59.009
would arrive.
394
00:18:59.269 --> 00:19:00.910
Oh, look at that.
395
00:19:00.950 --> 00:19:01.869
You would step in.
396
00:19:02.069 --> 00:19:02.970
Right this way.
397
00:19:03.009 --> 00:19:03.829
You would take a seat.
398
00:19:03.890 --> 00:19:05.230
Look at this upholstery.
399
00:19:05.269 --> 00:19:07.549
You would admire the mirrors on the walls.
400
00:19:07.569 --> 00:19:08.049
Lovely.
401
00:19:08.289 --> 00:19:12.140
The burning gas chandelier hanging in the center. The operator
402
00:19:12.160 --> 00:19:13.000
would close the door.
403
00:19:13.599 --> 00:19:14.119
Going up.
404
00:19:14.180 --> 00:19:17.259
And then you would very, very slowly be taken up
405
00:19:17.299 --> 00:19:19.539
to the floor where your room was. And then you
406
00:19:19.559 --> 00:19:20.039
would exit.
407
00:19:20.180 --> 00:19:21.769
Oh, that was fantastic.
408
00:19:21.789 --> 00:19:22.710
That's great.
409
00:19:22.750 --> 00:19:24.490
Never taking stairs again. Oh, yeah.
410
00:19:25.170 --> 00:19:25.329
Now.
411
00:19:25.880 --> 00:19:30.019
Tufts elevators looked great, but the mechanics were kind of bad.
412
00:19:30.500 --> 00:19:34.279
Rather than being lifted by cables like modern elevators, these
413
00:19:34.359 --> 00:19:36.890
elevators would kind of wind up a pole like a
414
00:19:37.009 --> 00:19:39.329
nut on a bolt, except the pole would turn, not
415
00:19:39.349 --> 00:19:43.730
the elevator. This elevator was slow. It was noisy. Still,
416
00:19:43.769 --> 00:19:46.910
they were flashy and people really liked them. So Tufts,
417
00:19:47.210 --> 00:19:50.650
he also decided to get into the elevator business. This
418
00:19:50.910 --> 00:19:55.029
is how he and the other Otis, Elijah Otis, became rivals.
419
00:19:55.329 --> 00:20:00.059
Tufts, you fiend. I'll outsell you any day. Oh, poppycock, Elisha.
420
00:20:00.160 --> 00:20:02.500
Your elevators are all show, no flow.
421
00:20:02.660 --> 00:20:04.240
Mine are much more efficient.
422
00:20:04.279 --> 00:20:06.019
You call those elevators?
423
00:20:06.299 --> 00:20:10.660
More like smell-evators, because your designs stink.
424
00:20:10.900 --> 00:20:12.579
Smell-evators? Oh, that's funny.
425
00:20:12.700 --> 00:20:13.220
Who told you that?
426
00:20:13.259 --> 00:20:17.609
They both make very specific contributions. One of them provides
427
00:20:17.869 --> 00:20:22.180
a technical solution... that says these things can be made safe.
428
00:20:23.059 --> 00:20:26.720
The other one provides the conceptual vision of this is
429
00:20:26.759 --> 00:20:29.660
what a passenger elevator really is. This is how it
430
00:20:29.740 --> 00:20:32.460
is distinct from a freight elevator.
431
00:20:32.839 --> 00:20:35.900
So both Otis's keep working in the elevator industry for
432
00:20:35.920 --> 00:20:39.039
a while, and then they both pass on in the 1860s.
433
00:20:39.420 --> 00:20:43.569
Elijah Otis's sons take over his business. From there, elevators
434
00:20:43.700 --> 00:20:46.730
quickly become a staple of the modern city. They allow
435
00:20:46.869 --> 00:20:50.299
architects to build taller and taller buildings. since suddenly people
436
00:20:50.319 --> 00:20:52.819
don't have to walk up all those stairs. Soon you
437
00:20:52.839 --> 00:20:57.660
see six-story buildings, 10-story buildings, 20-story buildings, and eventually skyscrapers.
438
00:20:58.180 --> 00:21:00.980
Cities are never the same again. And it was really
439
00:21:01.009 --> 00:21:03.849
the marriage of these two ideas that helped that happen,
440
00:21:04.269 --> 00:21:08.029
the practical savvy from Elijah Otis and the grand vision
441
00:21:08.089 --> 00:21:12.230
from Otis Tufts. And that's often how innovation happens. One
442
00:21:12.269 --> 00:21:15.609
person's good idea mixed with another person's good idea makes
443
00:21:15.789 --> 00:21:18.190
a really great idea that changes the world.
444
00:21:18.650 --> 00:21:20.089
Thanks, Anand, for telling us that story.
445
00:21:20.390 --> 00:21:21.329
Yeah, thanks.
446
00:21:21.750 --> 00:21:22.269
No problem.
447
00:21:23.440 --> 00:21:25.240
And this is my stop, so I'll see you next time.
448
00:21:25.259 --> 00:21:26.119
See ya.
449
00:21:26.599 --> 00:21:29.210
Now, before our next stop, Sir Akshar, are you ready
450
00:21:29.250 --> 00:21:30.150
for that mystery sound again?
451
00:21:30.890 --> 00:21:31.329
Here it is.
452
00:21:49.210 --> 00:21:50.549
Do you have a new guess or do you want
453
00:21:50.569 --> 00:21:54.380
to stick with your original guess of the old timey elevator?
454
00:21:55.690 --> 00:22:00.059
Now I think it's maybe an elevator going up and
455
00:22:00.740 --> 00:22:05.019
it's just the modern day elevators, but I'm still not sure.
456
00:22:05.059 --> 00:22:06.799
I think I'll just stick with my old answer.
457
00:22:07.099 --> 00:22:08.319
Okay, excellent.
458
00:22:09.519 --> 00:22:10.680
Here is the answer.
459
00:22:10.990 --> 00:22:14.069
Okay, you just heard the sound of a manual elevator.
460
00:22:14.769 --> 00:22:23.099
My name is Ruben Pardo, P-A-R-D-O. I drive an old elevator,
461
00:22:23.119 --> 00:22:24.920
a manual elevator.
462
00:22:25.579 --> 00:22:29.359
So you were 100% correct in your first guess. Like,
463
00:22:29.720 --> 00:22:32.240
you got it exactly. So that's amazing.
464
00:22:33.039 --> 00:22:33.759
Good work.
465
00:22:34.200 --> 00:22:37.720
Manual elevators like these are old school. Instead of people
466
00:22:37.819 --> 00:22:40.140
pushing buttons and the elevator going to the right floor...
467
00:22:40.309 --> 00:22:43.319
These elevators have operators, like Ruben, who actually drive the
468
00:22:43.380 --> 00:22:45.759
elevator up and down the building. Have you ever seen
469
00:22:45.799 --> 00:22:46.920
one of these in person, Sarakha?
470
00:22:47.380 --> 00:22:51.640
I don't think so. Maybe my parents seen it, but
471
00:22:51.839 --> 00:22:52.420
I never had.
472
00:22:52.839 --> 00:22:55.380
Well, in the early part of the 1900s, your typical
473
00:22:55.440 --> 00:22:59.250
elevator was manual. But starting in the 1950s, these were
474
00:22:59.289 --> 00:23:02.890
replaced with automatic ones. Ruben is one of the last
475
00:23:03.029 --> 00:23:06.650
professional elevator operators in the country. He works in Los Angeles.
476
00:23:07.420 --> 00:23:13.920
This elevator is located inside an office building, 11-story office building.
477
00:23:14.400 --> 00:23:19.470
It has been inside this property since 1929. So when
478
00:23:19.549 --> 00:23:25.089
people push the button inside their offices, it lights up
479
00:23:25.369 --> 00:23:28.549
and it rings like your doorbell, and that's when I
480
00:23:28.759 --> 00:23:34.799
answer it. The old elevator, you have to drive it yourself,
481
00:23:35.220 --> 00:23:37.819
but you have to have a lot of experience to
482
00:23:37.859 --> 00:23:41.920
level it with the floor. There's a lever that you
483
00:23:41.960 --> 00:23:46.069
have to push it either up or you push it down.
484
00:23:46.609 --> 00:23:49.569
One direction is to go up, and the other direction
485
00:23:49.589 --> 00:23:52.490
is to go down. Like right now, are you hearing
486
00:23:52.549 --> 00:23:57.700
a bell? I have to go and answer it. Right now,
487
00:23:58.039 --> 00:24:00.819
I'm pushing the lever to the right. I'm picking up
488
00:24:00.880 --> 00:24:03.650
somebody from the art gallery. We have an art gallery
489
00:24:03.690 --> 00:24:04.730
on the second floor.
490
00:24:06.470 --> 00:24:06.970
Going down?
491
00:24:07.190 --> 00:24:13.589
Yeah. I'm a professional. I've been doing elevators for most
492
00:24:13.630 --> 00:24:17.960
of my life. And I think I hit almost 60
493
00:24:17.960 --> 00:24:22.130
years of driving elevators in total. Thank you. Have a
494
00:24:22.150 --> 00:24:23.009
nice weekend, girls.
495
00:24:23.309 --> 00:24:24.170
Thank you.
496
00:24:24.210 --> 00:24:25.730
Come again.
497
00:24:25.829 --> 00:24:28.150
I just enjoy it. That's all. I get a kick
498
00:24:28.230 --> 00:24:28.630
out of it.
499
00:24:31.650 --> 00:24:34.259
It's weird to think about now, but when automatic elevators
500
00:24:34.299 --> 00:24:38.259
were first introduced, people were freaked out. They were scared
501
00:24:38.380 --> 00:24:40.900
of riding without an operator. It took most of the
502
00:24:41.180 --> 00:24:43.440
1950s for the technology to even be accepted.
503
00:24:43.859 --> 00:24:46.440
It goes to show we're not always ready for the
504
00:24:46.500 --> 00:24:49.660
future when it arrives, but It might help if we
505
00:24:49.680 --> 00:24:51.079
start thinking about it now.
506
00:24:51.279 --> 00:24:53.279
So we asked you what you thought the future of
507
00:24:53.339 --> 00:24:54.299
elevators might look like.
508
00:24:54.619 --> 00:24:57.009
I would like the elevator of the future to be
509
00:24:57.089 --> 00:25:00.190
like all the walls, ceiling, floor could all be glass
510
00:25:00.230 --> 00:25:02.230
so you could see through it. And I would also
511
00:25:02.250 --> 00:25:05.009
like the elevator of the future to have a table
512
00:25:05.049 --> 00:25:06.390
where you could put all your stuff.
513
00:25:06.569 --> 00:25:09.380
I would like an elevator to be able to fly
514
00:25:09.599 --> 00:25:10.519
all over the world.
515
00:25:10.980 --> 00:25:14.140
Also, if it could have a kitty face, that would
516
00:25:14.160 --> 00:25:14.460
be good.
517
00:25:15.910 --> 00:25:19.859
I want elevators to be able to go side to
518
00:25:19.940 --> 00:25:25.339
side and forward and backward, not just up and down.
519
00:25:25.359 --> 00:25:31.400
My idea for an elevator is that it's pink, it
520
00:25:31.460 --> 00:25:35.309
has hearts, and it goes into outer space and is
521
00:25:35.390 --> 00:25:38.750
powered by gas. I had an idea for an elevator
522
00:25:38.869 --> 00:25:43.089
that would be put in a vacuum tube and it
523
00:25:43.130 --> 00:25:47.240
would just go up bigger buildings faster. I'd like to
524
00:25:47.319 --> 00:25:50.619
tell you about my elevator. It starts off like a
525
00:25:50.700 --> 00:25:54.140
normal elevator, but you could talk to it where you
526
00:25:54.200 --> 00:25:58.319
want to go. You don't have to press any buttons.
527
00:25:58.819 --> 00:26:03.190
We wish elevators had disco balls so we can have
528
00:26:03.210 --> 00:26:05.329
a dance party every time we ride.
529
00:26:06.430 --> 00:26:09.289
Thanks to Josiah from Mountain View, California, Caleb and Indigo
530
00:26:09.329 --> 00:26:12.650
from Seattle, Asha and Luca from Brooklyn, California, Chase from Topeka, Kansas,
531
00:26:12.990 --> 00:26:16.099
and Allison, Elias, Lucille, and Caroline from Terre Haute, Indiana,
532
00:26:16.140 --> 00:26:19.119
for those innovative ideas. We always want an excuse to
533
00:26:19.160 --> 00:26:20.000
have a dance party.
534
00:26:26.779 --> 00:26:28.160
Innovation never stops.
535
00:26:28.420 --> 00:26:31.559
To tell us more about how engineers are still improving elevators,
536
00:26:31.960 --> 00:26:34.349
we're going to pick up producer Mark Sanchez.
537
00:26:35.720 --> 00:26:36.609
Hi, Mark.
538
00:26:36.930 --> 00:26:37.490
Hey, guys.
539
00:26:38.390 --> 00:26:41.910
I have some good news and I have some bad news. First,
540
00:26:41.950 --> 00:26:45.779
the bad. There will be no flying elevators anytime soon.
541
00:26:46.279 --> 00:26:47.180
The good news, though, is.
542
00:26:47.160 --> 00:26:52.019
That there are already elevators with disco balls. What? Yeah,
543
00:26:52.079 --> 00:26:55.579
turns out the geniuses at Legoland Hotels have all your
544
00:26:55.599 --> 00:26:58.400
disco elevator needs covered. You can go into one of
545
00:26:58.420 --> 00:27:03.569
those elevators there and boogie to your heart's content. And
546
00:27:03.710 --> 00:27:05.470
for those of us who feel the need.
547
00:27:05.559 --> 00:27:06.119
Don't say it.
548
00:27:06.410 --> 00:27:08.440
The need for speed.
549
00:27:08.920 --> 00:27:09.259
Yup.
550
00:27:09.519 --> 00:27:10.099
He said it.
551
00:27:10.319 --> 00:27:10.759
Oh, geez.
552
00:27:11.059 --> 00:27:14.299
Come on. Some people want super fast elevators. Think about
553
00:27:14.319 --> 00:27:17.740
the first Otis elevators. They moved at a mind numbingly
554
00:27:17.799 --> 00:27:21.549
slow pace, about 40 feet per minute. That's about half
555
00:27:21.569 --> 00:27:25.009
a mile per hour. Casual human walking pace is three
556
00:27:25.049 --> 00:27:27.890
miles an hour. So basically we can walk way faster
557
00:27:27.950 --> 00:27:30.210
than the first elevators went from floor to floor. Fast
558
00:27:30.230 --> 00:27:34.039
forward about 160 years to 2016. when a Guinness World
559
00:27:34.140 --> 00:27:39.960
Record was set at 67.25 feet per second. That speedy
560
00:27:40.019 --> 00:27:43.849
elevator was in China's Shanghai Tower. It's an enormous skyscraper
561
00:27:43.880 --> 00:27:47.609
standing at 2,074 feet. That's second only to the Burj
562
00:27:47.630 --> 00:27:50.890
Khalifa in Dubai. The elevator in the Shanghai Tower only
563
00:27:50.930 --> 00:27:54.089
took 53 seconds to go from the second basement level
564
00:27:54.349 --> 00:27:56.930
all the way up to the 119th floor during its
565
00:27:56.970 --> 00:27:57.750
record-breaking trip.
566
00:27:58.130 --> 00:28:00.819
Wow, that thing can fly, but not literally fly, because
567
00:28:00.839 --> 00:28:02.380
you said elevators can't fly, right?
568
00:28:02.849 --> 00:28:05.210
True, they can't just sprout wings and take off like
569
00:28:05.269 --> 00:28:08.400
rocket ships. But there's a growing community of people who
570
00:28:08.480 --> 00:28:12.019
think elevators can take us into the final frontier.
571
00:28:12.039 --> 00:28:12.819
Space?
572
00:28:13.220 --> 00:28:15.900
Yep, I'm talking space elevators.
573
00:28:16.380 --> 00:28:18.400
How is that even possible?
574
00:28:18.880 --> 00:28:21.150
Well, until recently, it was kind of a pipe dream
575
00:28:21.170 --> 00:28:24.529
written about in sci-fi books. But new technology has made
576
00:28:24.569 --> 00:28:28.509
the potential for elevators in space pretty real. Some people
577
00:28:28.549 --> 00:28:33.099
think the secret ingredient may just be carbon nanotubes. Molecules
578
00:28:33.119 --> 00:28:37.619
of carbon bonded together and shaped into tubes. They're 10,000
579
00:28:37.619 --> 00:28:40.460
times thinner than human hair. They're also about 10 times
580
00:28:40.519 --> 00:28:44.990
stronger than steel. Super strong and super light are just
581
00:28:45.009 --> 00:28:47.750
the ingredients a space elevator needs for its tether, which
582
00:28:47.789 --> 00:28:50.849
is basically a ribbon of material stitched together that the
583
00:28:50.970 --> 00:28:51.950
elevator will climb.
584
00:28:52.650 --> 00:28:54.650
Okay, so it's kind of like a super strong and
585
00:28:54.690 --> 00:28:57.740
super light elevator cable. But how does that get us
586
00:28:57.799 --> 00:28:58.279
into space?
587
00:28:58.630 --> 00:29:01.569
The idea is that something really strong like carbon nanotubes
588
00:29:01.630 --> 00:29:04.630
will be stitched together to form the tether. And that
589
00:29:04.670 --> 00:29:08.710
will stretch 62 miles from Earth into space. The Earth
590
00:29:08.839 --> 00:29:11.460
end will be anchored somewhere along the equator, and the
591
00:29:11.500 --> 00:29:15.039
other end, anchored with a counterweight, will be in space.
592
00:29:15.579 --> 00:29:17.940
And what keeps all this stuff from crashing back down
593
00:29:18.019 --> 00:29:18.480
on the Earth?
594
00:29:19.000 --> 00:29:22.440
Yeah, good question. But that would be our pal, centripetal force.
595
00:29:22.859 --> 00:29:24.740
Imagine a tennis ball attached to a piece of string.
596
00:29:25.220 --> 00:29:28.190
And if you grabbed the non-tennis ball end and swung
597
00:29:28.230 --> 00:29:30.609
it around over your head, how would the string look?
598
00:29:30.809 --> 00:29:33.630
Would it be straight and tight or squiggly and loose?
599
00:29:33.970 --> 00:29:34.930
Straight and tight.
600
00:29:35.470 --> 00:29:38.509
Exactly. And the reason the string is straight and tight
601
00:29:39.009 --> 00:29:39.970
is because of centripetalism.
602
00:29:40.200 --> 00:29:40.500
Force.
603
00:29:41.160 --> 00:29:44.279
A space elevator would use this same principle. Our spinning
604
00:29:44.299 --> 00:29:46.920
earth takes the place of your swinging arm, a carbon
605
00:29:46.940 --> 00:29:49.839
nanotube tether takes the place of the string, and a
606
00:29:49.900 --> 00:29:52.900
counterweight in space takes the place of the tennis ball.
607
00:29:53.380 --> 00:29:55.839
Okay, I get the idea. But why would we want
608
00:29:55.859 --> 00:29:56.460
to build one of these?
609
00:29:57.230 --> 00:29:59.549
If space elevators do get built, they would give us
610
00:29:59.609 --> 00:30:02.609
a much more efficient and cheaper way of reaching space.
611
00:30:03.250 --> 00:30:06.250
Elevators of all sizes could climb a tether into space
612
00:30:06.769 --> 00:30:09.430
so we could launch satellites or carry up space station
613
00:30:09.470 --> 00:30:11.049
equipment or even take a vacation.
614
00:30:11.069 --> 00:30:14.069
A spacecation? Sounds fun.
615
00:30:14.390 --> 00:30:14.650
I'm in.
616
00:30:15.170 --> 00:30:16.039
How do I get a ticket?
617
00:30:16.599 --> 00:30:18.799
If all goes well, there's a company in Japan that
618
00:30:18.839 --> 00:30:21.819
actually has plans to have a working space elevator built
619
00:30:21.980 --> 00:30:22.220
by 2050.
620
00:30:22.200 --> 00:30:22.269
But!
621
00:30:25.359 --> 00:30:28.640
Right now, there are a couple little carbon nanotube hurdles
622
00:30:28.680 --> 00:30:31.619
to clear. So far, nobody has actually been able to
623
00:30:31.720 --> 00:30:35.369
stitch together carbon nanotubes of any great length. And there's
624
00:30:35.400 --> 00:30:38.230
also the fact that one tiny defect in any one
625
00:30:38.250 --> 00:30:40.730
of these nanotubes could corrupt the rest of the tether,
626
00:30:41.630 --> 00:30:46.650
basically rendering it useless. Nevertheless, scientists are hard at work
627
00:30:47.099 --> 00:30:47.710
on the problem.
628
00:30:48.140 --> 00:30:50.920
The real question, what button will you press for space?
629
00:30:51.500 --> 00:30:53.500
An S? Or like just a picture of a star
630
00:30:53.519 --> 00:30:53.900
or something?
631
00:30:54.440 --> 00:30:56.200
I guess engineers are going to have to work on
632
00:30:56.240 --> 00:30:56.619
that too.
633
00:30:57.700 --> 00:30:58.680
Well, this is my floor.
634
00:30:58.740 --> 00:30:59.119
See you later.
635
00:30:59.140 --> 00:31:00.059
Thanks, Mark.
636
00:31:00.319 --> 00:31:00.940
Thanks, Mark.
637
00:31:04.000 --> 00:31:06.180
Some elevators use a series of pulleys and ropes to
638
00:31:06.200 --> 00:31:08.900
go up and down. Others are pushed up from below
639
00:31:09.059 --> 00:31:10.279
by hydraulic pistons.
640
00:31:10.680 --> 00:31:14.059
In early elevators, people pulled those ropes, but over time,
641
00:31:14.200 --> 00:31:16.940
we found ways to make the machines do that hard work.
642
00:31:17.140 --> 00:31:18.920
It took a long time and a lot of ideas
643
00:31:18.980 --> 00:31:21.180
to bring us an elevator that was both safe and
644
00:31:21.299 --> 00:31:21.940
pleasant to ride.
645
00:31:22.279 --> 00:31:25.450
And engineers are still dreaming up new ways to use
646
00:31:25.490 --> 00:31:26.369
this technology.
647
00:31:26.490 --> 00:31:29.230
From elevators that go super fast to elevators that can
648
00:31:29.289 --> 00:31:33.230
reach space. Oh, and don't forget elevators with disco balls.
649
00:31:33.390 --> 00:31:35.529
Discovators sound awesome.
650
00:31:35.880 --> 00:31:38.500
Thanks for joining us on this ride. If it inspired
651
00:31:38.519 --> 00:31:40.579
you to think of a new type of elevator, draw
652
00:31:40.619 --> 00:31:44.099
a picture and send it to us at hello at BrainsOn.org.
653
00:31:44.660 --> 00:31:46.740
And stick around until the end for the honor roll
654
00:31:46.819 --> 00:31:49.019
and our new segment answering one of your questions.
655
00:31:49.619 --> 00:31:53.009
Brains On is produced by Molly Bloom, Mark Sanchez, and
656
00:31:53.049 --> 00:31:53.869
Sandon Totten.
657
00:31:54.150 --> 00:31:58.430
Super thanks go out to Leigh Gray, Vijay Jayachandran, Meenakshi Kalidas,
658
00:31:58.730 --> 00:32:01.410
Nicole Miller, and her fifth graders at John Marshall Elementary
659
00:32:01.490 --> 00:32:02.470
in Edison, New Jersey.
660
00:32:02.789 --> 00:32:03.569
That's my class.
661
00:32:03.990 --> 00:32:06.970
Hey, guys. Also, thanks to Katie Padgett and the Otis
662
00:32:07.009 --> 00:32:11.130
Elevator Company, Vicki Kreckler, Julia Greer, John Moe, Veronica Rodriguez,
663
00:32:11.250 --> 00:32:20.339
Eric Ringham, Stuart Bloom, Austin Cross, and Lori Gallaretta. Now
664
00:32:20.410 --> 00:32:22.210
it's time to answer Dani's question.
665
00:32:22.319 --> 00:32:23.559
Why do crickets chirp?
666
00:32:23.819 --> 00:32:27.220
.
667
00:32:28.640 --> 00:32:32.220
.
668
00:32:32.220 --> 00:32:35.049
He's a
669
00:32:35.069 --> 00:32:37.769
graduate student at Cornell. He studies crickets.
670
00:32:39.039 --> 00:32:43.079
Crickets chirp for primarily one reason, which is to communicate
671
00:32:43.119 --> 00:32:48.420
with each other. But it's almost exclusively male crickets who
672
00:32:48.460 --> 00:32:51.279
do the chirping and female crickets who do the listening.
673
00:32:51.500 --> 00:32:54.529
So if you're outside on a hot August night and
674
00:32:54.569 --> 00:32:57.289
you hear a bunch of crickets, you're probably hearing males
675
00:32:57.369 --> 00:32:59.730
singing their most common kind of song, which is a
676
00:32:59.769 --> 00:33:04.170
calling song. And males sing calling songs to attract females.
677
00:33:04.710 --> 00:33:06.750
so that they can mate. Imagine if you were a
678
00:33:06.789 --> 00:33:09.549
cricket trying to find a female cricket in a big
679
00:33:09.609 --> 00:33:11.190
field with a lot of grass and stuff. It would
680
00:33:11.230 --> 00:33:14.130
be hard just by walking around and hoping you would
681
00:33:14.150 --> 00:33:16.890
bump into them. And so males sing this song to
682
00:33:16.930 --> 00:33:21.079
sort of advertise both their location and how good of
683
00:33:21.119 --> 00:33:22.900
a mate they'd be to females. So it's sort of
684
00:33:22.940 --> 00:33:27.099
like they're saying, hey ladies, I'm over here. Come check
685
00:33:27.140 --> 00:33:32.230
me out. Hear how loud and rhythmically I'm chirping. Males
686
00:33:32.309 --> 00:33:35.579
produce the chirp by rubbing their wings together. So on
687
00:33:35.759 --> 00:33:39.279
one wing, there's a sort of comb-like structure, and on
688
00:33:39.299 --> 00:33:41.779
the other wing, there's a hard and sharp structure called
689
00:33:41.819 --> 00:33:46.799
a scraper. And a male rubs his wings together, and
690
00:33:46.839 --> 00:33:49.730
the scraper runs against the comb-like structure, sort of like
691
00:33:49.769 --> 00:33:52.089
if you took a pencil and rubbed it against a comb,
692
00:33:52.150 --> 00:33:54.269
it would make a sound. Sort of the same thing's
693
00:33:54.289 --> 00:33:57.549
going on in a cricket wing. And the rest of
694
00:33:57.569 --> 00:34:00.349
the wing serves as sort of a resonance structure, kind
695
00:34:00.369 --> 00:34:03.130
of like the body of a guitar or violin to
696
00:34:03.170 --> 00:34:05.730
help amplify the sound um.
697
00:34:07.109 --> 00:34:09.369
And now here's the most recent group to join danny
698
00:34:09.530 --> 00:34:12.349
on the brains honor roll aiden and ian from topsfield
699
00:34:12.389 --> 00:34:16.289
massachusetts and from quincy massachusetts eddie from minneapolis simon and
700
00:34:16.329 --> 00:34:19.269
darwin from oakton virginia matthew and kate from kilgore texas
701
00:34:19.409 --> 00:34:22.429
and when matic and bevin from austin texas julia from
702
00:34:22.469 --> 00:34:26.210
wilmette illinois halal from rehovot israel allison from kansas city
703
00:34:26.250 --> 00:34:29.369
missouri leah and rowan from squamish british columbia Ella and
704
00:34:29.409 --> 00:34:33.909
Hazel from Bend, Oregon. Smetam from San Francisco. Josiah from Guadalajara, Mexico.
705
00:34:34.320 --> 00:34:37.179
Jonah from Port Moody, British Columbia. Jack from Bend, Oregon.
706
00:34:37.280 --> 00:34:40.579
Blake Moore from Washington, D.C. Ailey from Brooklyn, New York.
707
00:34:40.739 --> 00:34:44.659
Tessa and Lucy from Northport, Alabama. Bodhi from Squamish, British Columbia.
708
00:34:44.780 --> 00:34:49.139
Zoe from Seattle. Lucas from Irvine, California. Inien from Portland, Oregon.
709
00:34:49.199 --> 00:34:52.659
Sadie from Kishner, Ontario. Owen and Arlo from Montana. Isaac
710
00:34:52.679 --> 00:34:56.449
from Bend, Oregon. Lucia and Calvin from Monterey, California. Eli
711
00:34:56.489 --> 00:35:00.639
from Flagstaff, Arizona. Charlotte from Houston, Abe from Lafayette Hill, Pennsylvania,
712
00:35:00.840 --> 00:35:04.199
Claire from Sydney, Australia, Powell from Galetta, California, Wallace and
713
00:35:04.239 --> 00:35:06.989
Frederick from Los Angeles, Tegan and Kellen from San Diego.
714
00:35:07.389 --> 00:35:10.699
Eva from Manassas, Virginia. Emery and Killian from Denver. Ryan
715
00:35:10.739 --> 00:35:14.960
from Fairfax, Virginia. Lily from Antioch, California. Maisie from Chicago.
716
00:35:15.079 --> 00:35:19.900
Theo from Portland, Oregon. Riley from Arvada, Colorado. Felix from Canberra, Australia.
717
00:35:19.980 --> 00:35:23.409
Camden and Lander from Leesburg, Florida. Charlie from Chanhassen, Minnesota.
718
00:35:23.630 --> 00:35:27.210
Nicholas from Minneapolis. Hayden from Aldi, Virginia. Wyatt from Las Vegas.
719
00:35:27.329 --> 00:35:31.599
Theodore from Lafayette, Colorado. Abner from Corvallis, Oregon, Rebecca, Jacob, Thomas,
720
00:35:31.619 --> 00:35:34.579
and Elizabeth from Dallas, Stella from Los Angeles, Leo and
721
00:35:34.619 --> 00:35:37.840
Rafa from Toronto, Charlie and William from Austin, Texas, Finn
722
00:35:37.860 --> 00:35:41.030
from Cape Town, South Africa, Kaylin and Hadley from Bailey, Colorado,
723
00:35:41.070 --> 00:35:44.090
Nathan and Henry from Cleveland, Blair and Reed from Edmonton, Alberta,
724
00:35:44.210 --> 00:35:47.409
Tegan and Warren from St. Louis, and Oliver from Snohomish, Washington.
725
00:35:56.170 --> 00:35:58.510
We'll be back soon with more answers to your questions.
726
00:35:58.789 --> 00:36:01.650
Thanks for listening. Now, how do we get back to
727
00:36:01.690 --> 00:36:02.210
the lobby?
728
00:36:02.230 --> 00:36:05.690
I don't actually know. I haven't really used this elevator
729
00:36:05.730 --> 00:36:06.349
much before.
730
00:36:06.369 --> 00:36:09.250
I heard 24 going up.
731
00:36:09.710 --> 00:36:11.829
Good grief. Not this again.
732
00:36:11.849 --> 00:36:24.119
Next time, let's take the stairs. And now for a
733
00:36:24.159 --> 00:36:27.849
special preview of the latest Smash Boom Best Debate. Rice
734
00:36:28.219 --> 00:36:33.840
versus noodles. Our micro round is Smash Boom Superhero. We
735
00:36:33.940 --> 00:36:36.539
asked Joy and Megan to write a movie trailer for
736
00:36:36.599 --> 00:36:40.719
a superhero movie starring their side. Joy went first last time,
737
00:36:40.780 --> 00:36:44.869
so Megan, you're up. Let's hear your super noodle movie trailer.
738
00:36:44.889 --> 00:36:52.710
A long, long, long, long noodle away in a world
739
00:36:52.809 --> 00:36:57.920
turned slurp-free. The evil Lord Rhizotron has captured the high
740
00:36:58.039 --> 00:37:02.019
throne of planet Stovus, plotting to take over the galaxy.
741
00:37:02.360 --> 00:37:06.320
Ha ha, bow down to your galactic grain overlord.
742
00:37:06.900 --> 00:37:10.699
And unite the warring factions of the Cook planetary systems
743
00:37:10.760 --> 00:37:16.610
behind him by infecting their bodies with brain-eating aliens, turning
744
00:37:16.650 --> 00:37:21.909
the warriors into mind-numbed zombies who desire only a single
745
00:37:22.449 --> 00:37:26.719
boring food. in a choice of just one shape and
746
00:37:26.860 --> 00:37:32.210
two flavors, white or brown. Mmm, rice.
747
00:37:32.570 --> 00:37:34.570
So plain, so boring.
748
00:37:35.750 --> 00:37:40.769
The Ricetron takeover was near, but he forgot just one thing.
749
00:37:41.150 --> 00:37:43.769
Hey, rice zombies. Chew on this.
750
00:37:44.369 --> 00:37:44.570
It stinks.
751
00:37:45.250 --> 00:37:51.750
Quantum Noodle. Stretching through time. Shapeshifting through universes. I'm a string.
752
00:37:52.210 --> 00:37:53.110
I'm a spiral.
753
00:37:53.429 --> 00:37:57.300
I'm a cheese-packed pillow of power. I'm gluten-free if need be.
754
00:37:57.679 --> 00:38:01.940
This slippery hero is here to bring justice and endless
755
00:38:02.019 --> 00:38:06.900
delicious variety. Quantum Noodle, you're so tough. No, ma'am.
756
00:38:07.380 --> 00:38:08.940
I'm just al dente.
757
00:38:09.539 --> 00:38:11.659
Coming soon to a bowl near you.
758
00:38:14.480 --> 00:38:23.199
That is great delightful alright Joy it's your turn let's
759
00:38:23.239 --> 00:38:26.579
hear your take on a superhero trailer for Rice.
760
00:38:27.679 --> 00:38:30.300
In a world where everyone is hungry.
761
00:38:30.360 --> 00:38:33.079
Oh boy I'm so hungry.
762
00:38:33.010 --> 00:38:35.269
An impossible situation how.
763
00:38:35.190 --> 00:38:36.769
Am I going to get this house of cards to
764
00:38:36.829 --> 00:38:42.389
stick together my baby my baby can someone feed my.
765
00:38:42.210 --> 00:38:45.179
Baby one grain of rice.
766
00:38:45.559 --> 00:38:48.659
Don't you understand? Feeding people is in my past. I'm
767
00:38:48.699 --> 00:38:51.539
just a single grain of rice. What could I do?
768
00:38:52.300 --> 00:38:54.360
To rule them all.
769
00:38:54.960 --> 00:38:58.219
I'm going to need water. A whole lot of water.
770
00:38:59.059 --> 00:39:03.670
One grain will absorb the courage to bind, to satisfy hunger,
771
00:39:04.110 --> 00:39:09.989
and to kick butt. Aborio, Basmati, Forbidden, and Jasmine star
772
00:39:10.190 --> 00:39:13.570
in Rice Revengers, The Pot Runneth Over.
773
00:39:14.210 --> 00:39:17.489
A trilogy. Coming to a rice cooker near you in
774
00:39:17.489 --> 00:39:18.469
20 to 25 minutes.
775
00:39:21.119 --> 00:39:22.679
To hear the rest of this debate and find out
776
00:39:22.719 --> 00:39:25.340
who was crowned the Smash Boom Best, you can find
777
00:39:25.360 --> 00:39:28.710
the rest of the episode at smashboom.org, or you can
778
00:39:28.750 --> 00:39:31.639
subscribe to Smash Boom Best. wherever you get your podcasts.