Page 296 - Inventions - A Visual Encyclopedia (DK - Smithsonian)

Infrared A type of electromagnetic Navigation The process of finding the
radiation that carries energy in invisible position of a car, ship, or aircraft and
waves from hot objects. the best route from there to somewhere else.

Insulator A material that does not let Neutron A particle inside an atom
heat or electricity flow easily through it. that has no charge.

Intake The amount of food, water, air, Nuclear reactor A device designed to
or another substance taken into the maintain and control nuclear reactions.
body or a machine. They are used mainly for electricity
generation in nuclear power plants.
Iron Age A historical period after the
Bronze Age that is defined by the use Nucleus The center of an atom that is
made up of protons (positively charged
of iron as the most important material
GLOSSARY for making weapons and tools. It began ▲ LASER SHOW AT A CONCERT particles) and neutrons (particles with
no charge).
around 1200 bce in the Middle East,
and spread around the world over
about 1,500 years.
substance that plants or animals need
Magnetic field The area surrounding Nutrient A food or any nourishing
Laser The acronym for light amplification a magnet that is able to attract objects to live and grow.
by stimulated emission of radiation. A to itself.
laser can produce a very powerful beam Orbit The path that an object takes
of light by exciting atoms inside a tube. Mesopotamia Present-day Iraq and in space when it moves around a star,
its surrounding areas, between the planet, or moon.
LED An acronym for light-emitting Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
diode. An LED is a device that produces Ore A rock or mineral from which
light when an electric current passes Medieval A term that describes a useful element can be purified
through it. The color of its light depends something, such as a painting or and isolated.
on the compounds used in it. building, made during a period
of European history from about Oscillate The act of moving in a
Lever A tool that increases a small force 600–1500. back-and-forth fashion, like that
into a large force—for example, a person of a pendulum.
exerts a small force on a nutcracker by Mezzotint An engraving technique
squeezing it and breaking a nut. that involves scraping and polishing Patent A legal application to protect a
a copper plate. product and the way it is made from being
Levitation The act of rising up or copied by another person or company.
hovering in the air. Microbe A living organism too small
to be seen with the unaided eye. There Payload The amount of objects or people
Magnet A piece of iron that attracts are three main types of microbe: bacteria, on an aircraft or a spacecraft.
metals with iron or steel in them. viruses, and fungi. They can be beneficial
or harmful to plants and animals. Pendulum A weight suspended from a
fixed point that swings freely back and
Microwave A very short, electromagnetic forth under the force of gravity. A
▼ JOHN wave used for radar, cooking food in pendulum is commonly used to regulate
HARRISON’S a microwave oven, or for sending movements, for example in clocks.
1735 MARINER’S information by radio.
CLOCK Pesticide A chemical substance that
Module (space) A self-contained part is used for destroying insects or other
of a spacecraft. organisms that are harmful to plants
or animals.
Mold A soft growth that develops on
rotting food or on some items that are Phonetic The use of written language
left for a long time in humid conditions. to represent different sounds made
in speech.
NASA An acronym for National
Aeronautics and Space Administration. Pollution The introduction of a substance
Based in the US, NASA studies space into an environment that has harmful or
and is responsible for space travel. poisonous effects.

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