Topic

How Tech Works

The technology behind your devices, apps, and the internet — explained in plain English, with the trade-offs left in.

Tech 5 min read

Bluetooth links your gadgets over short-range radio without wires. Here is how pairing, hopping frequencies, and low power keep them talking.

Theo Lindqvist

Tech 5 min read

Those black-and-white squares pack surprising amounts of data. Here is how a camera reads a QR code and recovers it even when damaged.

Theo Lindqvist

Tech 5 min read

These headphones fight sound with sound. Here is how microphones and inverted waves cancel out the rumble around you in real time.

Theo Lindqvist

Tech 5 min read

Your screen feels taps because your finger changes a tiny electric field. Here is how capacitive touchscreens turn a touch into a command.

Theo Lindqvist

Tech 5 min read

Your phone finds itself using signals from satellites thousands of miles up. Here is how timing and triangulation pin you to a few meters.

Theo Lindqvist

Tech 5 min read

The padlock in your browser means a secret handshake happened. Here is how HTTPS scrambles your data so eavesdroppers cannot read it.

Theo Lindqvist

Tech 5 min read

A click triggers a journey across cables, routers, and data centers. Here is the plain-English path your request takes around the world and back.

Theo Lindqvist

Tech 5 min read

Wi-Fi sends your data through invisible radio waves. Here is how your router, channels, and frequencies actually move information across a room.

Theo Lindqvist

The Explainer