Manage the control room of a virtual nuclear power plant

Simulate the effects of changing supply and demand on the electric grid

In this application, users can modify the demand of fictional cities and the supply of various generators, including a nuclear power plant and a wind farm, which can be disconnected from the grid. Notice that current may flow into or out of external systems to compensate for available generation. See what it takes to cause a blackout in different cities or shut down the entire grid.

Check out this interactive 3D animation of a virtual renewable energy-powered island

The US Department of Energy’s Renewable Energy Discovery (REDi) Island invite explorers to discover clean, renewable energy options by navigating a virtual island filled with energy efficient power generation and desalinization technologies.

Explore the decommissioning work at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station

This virtual tour explores the nuclear disaster site, which resulted from a magnitude 9.1 earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011, and the various processes underway to remove debris, fuel, and contaminated water.

Water acts as a coolant and a moderator of nuclear reactions in reactors

Nuclear reactions within a containment structure boil water into steam, which drives a turbine that generates electricity. This water is then recirculated via pumps back into the containment structure to repeat the process, with reaction rates lowered by the insertion of control rods that absorb neutrons, which trigger reactions.

Watch an animated, step-by-step reconstruction of the Chernobyl explosion

This video shows how a 1986 safety test at Chernobyl spiraled out of control—leading to a massive rise in temperatures, an explosion and reactor meltdown that produced the largest civilian nuclear disaster in history.

Build atomic nuclei to explore their instability and resulting radioactive decay

In this simulation, users can add protons and neutrons to create an atomic nucleus, view its half-life and decay options, and identify patterns in how specific combinations of particles create extremely stable nuclei, from which the nuclear shell model of stability emerged.

Play an incremental game that teaches the history of particle physics

Developed during the CERN Summer Student Webfest 2014, this game tasks you with building the reputation of your particle accelerator as you discover particles and hire staff to collect data. A historical breakdown accompanies each discovery, allowing you to recreate the timeline of the field.

Watch a tour of an integrated circuit fabrication plant

Explore the protocols in place to ensure clean rooms have no dust to jeopardize the integrity of silicon wafers as they are transformed into working microchips. Layering, photolithography, etching, and chemical vapor deposition are shown alongside digital visualizations.

Take a 360-degree tour of a Google data center

View the layout and components that make up a typical data center

Alongside server rooms for the storage, processing, and transmission of data, data centers include climate control systems to manage the heat generated by microchips, backup systems to ensure systems can run during power outages, offices for on-site personnel, and monitoring and security stations to provide continuous protection against physical threats.

NUKEMAP lets you model the effects of a nuclear detonation anywhere on Earth

The tool was built by Alex Wellerstein, a historian of nuclear technology at the Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey. NUKEMAP uses declassified weapons data to calculate blast radius, thermal radiation, fallout patterns, and estimated casualties for any nuclear device dropped on any city. More than 50 million people have used it since its 2012 launch.

Take a virtual tour of the Space Shuttle

This interactive 3D experience allows users to navigate the Space Shuttle virtually, moving through the cockpit, crew cabin, airlock, and payload bay to view the vehicle's layout and systems from the inside.

Run your own social media Trust & Safety team with this eye-opening game

Ever wondered what really goes on behind the scenes at a popular social media company trying to keep users, businesses, and workers safe? Now you can try out your own ideas for moderation and management with this fun and informative game designed to...

Explore a simulation of the greenhouse effect

Investigate how cloud cover, surface albedo—a measure of a surface's reflectiveness—greenhouse concentrations, and atmospheric layers affect the energy balance on a simulated planet. Using either the wave or particle models of light, users can also explore how changes in solar intensity affect planetary surface temperature.

AI's growing energy demands are driving tech companies to consider nuclear power

Big Tech has rebranded nuclear power as a green solution to address the strain on the grid from millions of people using power-hungry AI tools. As of mid-2025, generating one image uses as much electricity as charging the average smartphone, or leaving a household light bulb on for 87 consecutive days.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has destabilized safety and oversight at Chernobyl

Russian forces cut power and disabled monitoring of the decommissioned nuclear power plant in 2022, endangering operators at Chernobyl. In February 2025, a Russian drone struck the confinement structure—part of broader efforts to pressure Ukraine's energy infrastructure—punching a hole in the containment shell.

Learn how to build your own vivarium

Creating a self-contained habitat for plants and microscopic animals requires a careful balance of organisms that maintain a cycle of water, nutrients, and other chemicals throughout. Bottlenecks in these cycles are mitigated through careful construction, such as incorporating a drainage layer to effectively manage water.

Explore an interactive database of critical minerals and their uses

Columbia University's Critical Materials Monitor identifies 56 elements required for the clean energy transition. The tool provides details on the reserves, production, and trade of each element, alongside what materials are needed for each technology (desktop only).

Explore the components of autonomous vehicles controls

A suite of cutting-edge hardware and computation-intensive software creates the potential for self-driving cars to be safer, more fuel-efficient, and more accessible to a broader range of drivers. However, automation also introduces potential cybersecurity threats.

Explore an interactive 3D model of the brain

The brain contains about 86 billion neurons—nervous system cells—and controls vital bodily functions via electrochemical signals. Neurons form circuits through axons, and different brain regions use these circuits to perform specific tasks.

Explore a map of every charging station in the US and Canada

An electric vehicle owner's main fear running out of power before getting to their final destination. Using this interactive, users may identify stations and their charger type to map fuel corridors for EV road trips.

An interactive visualization tracking 25 years of US-North Korea nuclear negotiations

From 1990 to 2017, the United States and North Korea engaged in a complex series of bilateral and multilateral negotiations. This interactive page, compiled by CSIS Beyond Parallel, displays a record of provocations and negotiations between the two...

Test your ability to identify AI-generated images

This interactive project from MIT challenges users to distinguish between AI-generated images and real ones.

Simulations incorporating mixed reality have improved trainee certification rates

Such software provides immersive, risk-free environments where students can manipulate digital re-creations to optimize the training experience without producing waste. One meta-analysis showed that MR in welding training boosted passing rates on certification exams by 41.6% versus traditional training methods.

Generate a powerpoint filled with 'consulting slop' for your business

Created by the consulting company NOBL, this AI generator mimics and mocks the vague and impersonal presentations sometimes shared by consulting firms.

Discover the catastrophic consequences of a failure of the US electrical grid—something that is more likely than many Americans think.

In 1984, Operation Smash Hit intentionally crashed a 239-ton train into a nuclear waste canister at 100 miles per hour to prove the canister's safety, which remained completely intact and lost just 0.29 of its 100 pounds of pressure.

Play the role of a student in a game where you try to navigate college and remain debt-free, selecting different income levels, high school experience, race, ethnicity, and more.

Radioactive elements can introduce software errors because the ionizing radiation they produce can detach electrons from atoms, and computer code relies on the distribution of electrons.

This site reaches millions of visitors who are tired of AI chatbots and seeking human connection. Pretend to be an AI chatbot and ask questions, provide answers, and draw for people in real time.

Explore our favorite visualization of the immense scale of space, from an astronaut to the size of the observable universe

Explore what it's like inside a patient isolation unit, used in situations such as treating a patient or suspected patient with Ebola.

Explore the history, structure, and species of Australia's Great Barrier Reef with this interactive journey narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

How fusion—which releases energy when two lighter atoms combine to form a heavier atom—differs from fission

A vending machine run with Anthropic's AI went out of business after it was convinced to give away items for free and sell a video game console.

Watch how deep-sea mining equipment collects and processes polymetallic nodules—metal-rich, potato-shaped rocks—from the ocean floor and creates environmentally damaging plumes of sediments.

Visualize how CRISPR-Cas9—a type of immune system used by single-celled organisms to attack invasive viruses—targets and makes precise changes to a gene's DNA.

Use this tool to calculate the dollar value of your parental mental load, from meal planning to coordinating after-school care, then see resources that help generate solutions.

Explore chaos in this simulation of two double pendulums, where small differences in the release angles produce wildly different outcomes.

After 25 people used virtual reality headsets to practice flying with virtual wings—flapping their arms—their visual cortex responded to the wings almost as if they were real arms, treating them as body parts.

Sunflowers have long been a symbol of nuclear disarmament because they can extract large amounts of radioactive cesium from soil.

This poison ivy knowledge quiz—accompanied by photos of the plant's varied forms—may help you identify this common rash-inducing growth.

Search a massive database of over 4 decades of clues from the TV quiz show 'Jeopardy!'

The history of many kitchen appliances involves unexpected discoveries and applications, including wartime radar turned hamster defroster and replacing an 'ice king' with heat-stealing boxes.

Legendary architect Frank Lloyd Wright designed the SC Johnson headquarters in Wisconsin, aiming to make a cathedral-like workplace

The 1987 Nintendo video game 'Stadium Events' isn't known for being particularly fun, but its scarcity has made it a highly sought-after item that has sold for up to $35K at auction.

Planeterrellas create artificial auroras that mimic the atmospheric displays of light by setting up an electric field between two metal balls in a jar filled with a small amount of air.

Explore the archaeological treasures of Pompeii, the city buried under volcanic ash when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 CE.

Listen to an in-depth conversation on the links between Parkinson's disease and herbicide exposure and the challenging pace of scientific investigation.