Why can't you put metal in a microwave? - Aaron Slepkov

[@hyperviper0126]

From a literal military machine to a household device. Just shows inspiration is limitless and beyond who expects ?

[@micahbush5397]

That's pretty common, actually. War can be a pretty strong incentive for research and development.

[@berankb]

@@micahbush5397 Very true,things such as computers and modern medicine would be farther away now.This is also true for things like the space race

[@casjean8904]

@@micahbush5397 velcro!

[@danquaylesitsspeltpotatoe8307]

This was nearly as informative as the TED Talk why you should not smash your hand with a hammer!

[@AloisAgos]

Yeah, nearly all innovative tech started out as "how can we use this new technology to kill our enemies?" Before we had nuclear power plants we had nuclear bombs. Before we had GPS, we had spying devices. Before we had a knife for carving, we had a knife for stabbing.

[@luckymo_on]

The thing is you CAN put anything in the microwave whether you SHOULD is the question here...

[@perpetualbystander4516]

You can't boil eggs though, 'cause then you'll end up with a terrible mess.

[@perpetualbystander4516]

But of course, you could...

[@Ya-boy-BoM]

Egg go boom

[@powpuckmobile9226]

Can put a house in a microwave oven. Checkmate

[@supportpossum5672]

@@powpuckmobile9226 just need a small enough house or big enough microwave oven. You absolutely could.

[@hotskoz]

My first experience with a microwave oven was in the early seventies. I took a job at a restaurant and someone handed me a large can of hot fudge topping and told me to put it in the microwave to heat it up before pouring it into the warmer. They failed to mention I needed to put the fudge in a bowl first so I just opened the can, put it in the microwave and turned it on. Moments later there was a lightning storm firing between the can and the walls. Interesting to watch but probably not too cool for the microwave. A second funny microwave story. My daughter, when she first moved from home, decided to make baked potatoes. She put two potatoes in the microwave and, remembering we always cooked baked potatoes for an hour, set the timer for sixty minutes. She then left to the mall. She came back an hour later to find the fire department had busted down her door and were setting up large fans to clear the dense smoke from her apartment. Lesson learned. Great video.

[@alannamichel5627]

Omg 😂

[@Ath3nx_2]

ded rn💀

[@nguyenson7073]

60 mins is crazy, 6 mins at high power is enough to smoke those 2 potatoes 😅

[@practicalpen1990]

Some 25 years ago my Mom, a coworker of hers, and I went to a convenience store to get instant noodle soup for lunch. Back then the clerks were still managing food preparation, so this one clerk thought that the 3-minute cooking on the soup meant 9-minute cooking if she put the 3 soups together. Of course, the soups boiled out of their cups, the noodles exploded inside the microwave, and it was a mess. The clerk had to clean it up and start from scratch - without charging us double for her mistake. Lesson learned, I hope.

[@hotskoz]

@@practicalpen1990 Great story.

[@thecooleraliguar]

they fire waves and they go whooooooosh and then heat. Super simple

[@6Twisted]

3:56 So you're telling me I shouldn't push my face up against the glass to watch it?

[@Philippines1943]

Yeah, and that's funny because when your mom forced you to get out of your house, she got fined for littering.

[@Infinitiaverity]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/e3XRoqGkZs2FlZI

[@kronoxodus319]

@@Philippines1943 What a useless comment, please find a job.

[@alexandermcclure6185]

@@Philippines1943 Yeah, and that's funny because nobody asked for your opinion.

[@hazardeur]

@@alexandermcclure6185strange comment. its youtube comments, he can comment as much as he likes, even if you donßt agree with it

[@supereldian]

The reason microwaves have that mesh screen on the door is to allow users to see inside and to prevent the electromagnetic waves from escaping. The electromagnetic waves are too big to exit through the small mesh screen on the door.

[@agnieszkacz_]

Oh damn, that’s actually a really neat piece of addition microwave knowledge 😯😯🤔☺️

[@shubhrajit2117]

Faraday's cage

[@michaelweaver4718]

Went to an engineering school where we had to measure the size of the waves. Essentially, the size of a pencil. If you compare that to the mesh screen, even if you remove the metal between two of the holes, the wave still cannot get out. It takes a slightly larger hole, as a bit of redundancy is built in so you do not microwave your face (although your eyeballs will notice them first.)

[@coreyl6102]

@@michaelweaver4718 this made my eyes hurt. just thinking about it. thats scary lol

[@mind7938]

how could a wave be measurable like matter

[@madcat789]

Invisible Gnomes,.cmon, we all know this.

[@Gladgrampa]

Gotta go to work. Work all day.

[@hyperviper0126]

I agreed. no argument and case closed

[@owlson2527]

Oh my god it’s cthun

[@NeyGeneral]

We're related 💀

[@yanguskhan8513]

Man tough gig they got. Eleves get to make cookies, gnomes works the waves man.

[@marzukimalik2241]

It's almost 3am, I can't sleep, and suddenly this pops up. Thanks!

[@QUBIQUBED]

wow, science makes you sleepy?

[@leolow2057]

​@@QUBIQUBED wow someone can't read

[@Colin.71]

@@leolow2057wow someone’s rude for no reason

[@WaveRider1989]

Time to heat up some pizza rolls 😂

[@itsblonk]

Ah yes, TED-Ed giving me answers that my intrusive thoughts wanted to know.

[@Sara-eh4ln]

now I want to know what happens if the metal spoon touches the oven's wall

[@Hyrule_Castle-s1m]

​@@Sara-eh4lnIt explodes

[@marianoguy]

So now intrusive thoughts is just regular thinking?

[@Kaity143]

@@marianoguy I think it should be expected because of how misused the word is.

[@marianoguy]

@@Kaity143 yeah, it's misused to this extreme. If used to describe regular thoughts it loses all meaning

[@holokyttaja5476]

Electroboom tried it in a video and it is arguably harder to get something violent to actually happen than to just get a fork or a knife that is really hot.

[@ScotianSouthy]

I was looking for the informed comment.

[@1998ichigokurosaki98]

It is scary how many people think that that radiation is dangerous. Some even avoid the microwave oven at all

[@ZaDussault]

Should we tell them their radiator isn't making them nuclear mutants?

[@catdogmousecheese]

Well, anything that generates heat is technically radioactive like humans are radioactive because our bodies are constantly generating heat.

[@Pingwn]

We should all just live in cave in conplete darkness because light itself is radiation and the light we can see has even higher frequency than microwaves.

[@justaguy4311]

Microwaves make food taste funny

[@AliceP.]

I feel attacked

[@pumpkinhead002]

You can put metal in a microwave. They even come with metal grates in them sometimes. Eddy current do happen, but it's generally a non issue unless you have something really conductive like aluminum, copper, or gold, and that metal is rough or crinkled. If you put a spoon in the microwave, say like you are stirring your soup and too lazy to remove it. Nothing bad will happen. You won't even get hot spots

[@bushputz]

I've worked in a lot of commercial kitchens. If we needed something heated quickly and didn't want to fire up a burner, we just threw it in a stainless steel 1/6 pan and nuked it. It's fine unless you leave a metal spoon in it or put a metal lid on it. Lots of people I worked with made that mistake - once.

[@HayTatsuko]

I love the art style and narration in this. Thanks for making such a lovely presentation!

[@KhánhNhiênĐặng]

1. from a military machine to a necessary household device 2. how does a microware oven operate 3. different food's composition will have different effects 4. not all of microwaring metal is dangerous

[@Infinitiaverity]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/e3XRoqGkZs2FlZI

[@MatubbarAzadAvijit]

Many myths surrounding the microwave oven have been discussed in this video. Very good one. Thanks. 👌

[@KnowArt]

lovely animation

[@JasonTheOneAndOnly]

I put my face right up the glass when I hungry, am a dead man.

[@pedro92073]

😂

[@suprnova23]

You know that little metal matrix/ grating on the microwave door? It prevents any waves from leaving the microwave. They just get bounced back in. I wouldn’t worry about it ✌️

[@alexandermcclure6185]

@@suprnova23 It reduces them exponentially, not perfectly blocking them. This is why there is also a thick layer of glass between the mesh and the outside, too. Still best to sit at least a couple inches away, though.

[@MuhammadHamzah-y3w]

Wait, if spencer's chocolate melted, and popcorn and egg cooked, why wasn't spencer getting affected by the microwave at all?

[@FarangizAxmadaliyev]

😂😂😂

[@brawlwith_me]

I love this animation style.. Good Job👍

[@terence602]

Never put a banana in your microwave while texting your friend

[@grapeshott]

Time travel is a myth

[@margaretwordnerd5210]

That is so oddly specific I can't stop visualizing how you learned this. It's the intellectual equivalent of being Rick-rolled. Well played.✌🖖

[@redshankyman4181]

El Psy Congroo

[@terence602]

@@grapeshott The organization has brainwashed you.

[@terence602]

The organization is deleting my replies 💀

[@alial-jassim2504]

"Microwave is safe" "experts recommend to stay a few feet away when cooking"👁👁

[@pedrojorge1912]

"to totally limit exposure, experts recommends..." There's no harm being lightly exposed, but if you want to avoid exposure nonetheless, stay a few feet away.

[@ronin1648]

@@pedrojorge1912 There's a mesh on the screen door that should prevent waves from passing through.

[@SharowbladyeGaymerPorate]

I absolutely love TED ED Keep going team!

[@noahahmed5821]

So thrilled to see a Steven Wright joke as the opener!

[@jaredjoe133]

Such a beautiful style

[@masterdna117]

perfect video to watch after or before electroBOOM's video on microwaving metal

[@paytonturner1421]

The video on microwaves is interesting when you dig deeper into the science of it.

[@maeannengo4908]

Please do a video about magnets since some people believe magnets do not work underwater

[@raeldri5867]

3:57 if it was the intent why put a window that allows me to watch my hot pockets cook? 😅

[@VegaTheLyra]

The amount of things in this world that are only possible because water is polar is insane

[@DoneDragon1]

Whats crazy is that since there are effectively no moving parts, anyone trying to figure out what it does without knowing about radiation would assume its magic lol

[@kidbonesonline]

Ted Ed out here asking the REAL questions.

[@paramgalib040]

No way Ted Ed posted a video on something I just Googled an hour ago 😮

[@Michaelonyoutub]

Microwaves heat *liquid* water, they aren't actually that great at heating frozen water, which is why frozen things often don't heat that well and heat unevenly. If something frozen is in a microwave at room temperature, parts on its surface where water might have warmed up enough to thaw due to the air around it, get cooked and then thaw the areas immediately around it allowing them to get cooked, while frozen areas surrounded by more frozen areas, remain frozen and experience no thawing/cooking. Eventually heat from areas that initially thawed and got cooked, reach the frozen areas and thaw them, but by that point the initial thawed area is likely over cooked. That why when cooking something frozen in a microwave, you should first leave it out to thaw a bit so it cooks evenly, or alternatively, find some way to warm it up above freezing with hot water or something before cooking.

[@empyreum6869]

or you use the defrost setting.

[@danielfrancisco2341]

My microwave has a little sticker reminding me to put a metal spoon in if I’m heating liquids to avoid superheating

[@Smolstarfish]

Ted Ed: Why can't you put metal in a microwave? Me: Yeah, why not? 😡

[@migu8328]

No! I'm gonna stare at my microwave eyes anninch away from the door

[@ghoust592]

Thankfully Microwaves now are made with metal grating, radiation is not able to penetrate the grate since the waves are too big for them to escape

[@themoon5201]

This video made me think why learning science in school were worth it😂

[@freebirdy333]

Man i literally was wondering about how do microwaves work a few days ago, thanks 😂🙏🏻

[@Anonymou.s_1234]

Loved it❤ Amazing explanation

[@nimaybolar]

Great video. Always wondered this.

[@ericscott7230]

Okay I watched all 5:49 of this video and still don’t understand how microwave works. Thanks God for all you scientists out there!

[@ArcaneWaveAudio]

Amazing! Who needs magic when you have science?

[@gailaltschwager7377]

Thank you!

[@YamenNazer]

Wooooooow i loved the animation TED-Ed😍😍😍.. does anybody know what programs used to make such video?>

[@anthonyfoster2605]

The cavity magnetron was a radical improvement introduced by John Randall and Harry Boot at the University of Birmingham, England in 1940

[@kiwilonewolf]

Great talk, except that radar technology was already in use before Percy Spencer appeared on the scene.

[@ajchapeliere]

One of the baking KZbinrs I follow did a demo on making ganache in a stainless steel bowl in the microwave. They've said it has to be stainless, which makes at least some sense. Stoneware retains a lot of heat, so it's easy to overheat the ganache and break its emulsion.

[@jazz6711]

That explains why when I put a little water in my leftovers, it heats up better

[@ElizabethBanks-d4u]

Love the animation

[@prakashs538]

Very very good video . I learnt many things from this video about microwave

[@vaclavnovacek1035]

If the magnetron melted Spencers candy bar how come it did not burn him, or at least made him feel the warm?

[@jorgemtzb9359]

It did, or at least it should have. chocolate bars don't need that much heat to melt but yes, in effect he was being cooked alive... just, barely.

[@adrianblake8876]

Assuming the candy bar was chocolate (which is how I always heard the tale), it melts at just above room temperature... I've had chocolate melt in my pocket on warm days...

[@jeanmarc6517]

"I dont understand, how can the sun melt this chocolate bar...but not me??" Because we transfer heat around our body and sweat to expulse heat, unlike the candy bar.

[@ajchapeliere]

To add a bit to the *first comment: If the waves from the magnetron in the room were primarily being focused upwards to look for aircraft, I think only a small amount would be "leaking" into the room itself, so to speak. Chocolate itself is also... Kinda wild as a material. It has a low melting point and the structures it forms when it solidifies are based on how hot it got while it was liquefied. I'm guessing the difference in composition and size might also be a factor. The human body is mostly water with some proteins for structure and from a scale perspective it's much bigger than the chocolate bar. If you want to dig a bit further into any of it, I recommend finding some videos about "specific heat" (Crash Course or one of the other STEM channels should have something). I'd also recommend videos on tempering chocolate and making ganache. Sorry if I'm coming off as ranty, I get a bit excitable when the random information in my head might have a use *and* lines up in ways I didn't expect 😂 Stay curious, my friend! *Clerical edit: some of the other comments weren't displaying when I initially said "previous"

[@ajchapeliere]

​@@jeanmarc6517that's not very good logic. Firstly, the heat transfer from the sun comes from other parts of the electromagnetic spectrum; some frequencies of microwaves can't even get through our atmosphere because the water vapor and other molecules and particles reflect or scatter them. Secondly, sunburns are basically our skin getting cooked by the sun's UV radiation. This probably has less to do with how our bodies regulate temperature and more to do with where the microwaves were focused and the difference in water content and overall mass between the person and the chocolate bar.

[@Hollowdude15]

Great video TED-Ed :]

[@jonbilgutay2]

In my experience, food cooked in a microwave cool faster then food headed on a stove or in an oven.

[@1luvxSummer]

Love the animation ❤😊

[@RealFoxTrotFox]

Thank Ted-ED for answering questions I ask myself at 3am

[@schoolvilleOfficial]

The Animation is nice

[@crazyeeveelady3636]

Tell me why this taught me more about molecules and radiation in six minutes than all the chemistry classes they made me take in school

[@voldlifilm]

This is why I'm usually against the notion of knowing what to use something for before looking for it. We need to do science for the sake of science, because once you shake the universe a bit, there's no telling what might drop out.

[@hsaqib8995]

Thnak you for sharing

[@jforster29]

There are two dominant heating mechanisms: dipolar rotation and ionic conduction. I have been studying the application of microwaves for assisted comminution of ores and we have demonstrated excellent results! Microwaves can selectively heat sulphide minerals in rocks and this causes differential thermal expansion between the grains and microfractures to occur in the rocks which allows for a reduction in ore competency and an increase in the liberation of valuable minerals.

[@arcie3716]

I kept remembering that AWOG episode where one of the characters (I think it was Darwin) left a spoon in the microwave and the house exploded

[@worzi3]

Some soups and ready to eat meals have a metal top, but they mitigate the arcing by placing a plastic lid over the remaining top metal after it has been opened.

[@odyssey327]

It's hard to comprehend that his candy melt and his popcorn popped, and he was still standing there.

[@bilbo3820]

This video wasn't suggested to you. You searched for it.

[@GyreArts]

Ironically it was suggested to me

[@ruanrobert00]

About the opening sentence "I put instant coffee in a microwave oven and almost went back in time". The general theory that if you go fast enough you can move through time. It's possible that he was alluding to the combination of speedy microwave ovens and instant coffee. Probably seemed funnier in its time when microwave ovens were new.

[@zodiacfml]

I just saw a recent microwave video from a few days ago. I'm now certain TED-ed gets their choice of topics browsing youtube. Microwaving tips they gave about metals like spoon or forks very accurate from my experience

[@m_.371]

This video was suggested to me 😀

[@zeonb]

This still doesn't explain why we get a hot plate with cold food after heating it

[@tastethejace]

Metal impurities in the plate

[@margaretwordnerd5210]

If a dish or cup is hotter than the food, it isn't microwave safe. Tastethejace is correct about metal impurities. It's not fun to get a 2nd degree burn from a mug handle. Note the unsafe dishes and never microwave them again. Check the bottom for manufacturer labels saying it is or isn't safe, but many don't say. Dishes older than 1980 are frequently not microwave safe.

[@perpetualbystander4516]

Plates are known for being greedy heat absorbers...

[@margaretwordnerd5210]

@@perpetualbystander4516 It isn't about the shape of the dish. Try microwaving a plate made of paper, plastic, or ceramic without metal. Does the plate get hotter than the food? Now microwave a different shape that is lead glazed pottery. That can get dangerously hot. Watch the video, they explain it well.✌🖖

[@perpetualbystander4516]

@@margaretwordnerd5210 Oh, it seems I forgot to add a suitable smiley to go with my previous comment. Here it is: 😜 But thanks anyway for the info I never asked for. 👍

[@Frootyloops629]

Its 100% safe but don't stand close to it

[@bottasheimfe5750]

Oh so that’s why it’s not smart to cook meat with a microwave… the microwave doesn’t actually affect the chemical bonds of food inside it the same way the thermal heating of an oven does. That’s really interesting!

[@EricaGamet]

You can cook meat in a microwave, though. My mom got a microwave in 1975 and pretty much every meal was made in that behemoth for 2 decades.

[@KingOfTheChoppas]

4:05 for the part about metal

[@alec5868]

Why when the man was near the radar magnetron the sweet melt but he was unharmed? I mean why the water inside the human body was not vibrating and heating up?

[@DCBfanboy]

Preach. I was wondering the same thing.

[@sresnic]

The really crazy thing is the reason he was standing near the magnetron. It had nothing to do with radar. He was trying to reanimate frozen hamsters.

[@Vengemann]

I actually am doing a project about microwave and magnetron and yeah i eventually came to this part

[@calexprenas]

I leave a spoon in my oatmeal soups gravies etc every day and have for years. If the food isn’t liquid enough it can cause burnt areas so only do this with liquid-y dishes!

[@gennavandella]

how does a time machine work?

[@tysxlam]

So that's why my pizza feels soggy after microwaving it. Huh.

[@Kaienhere]

Microwave is terrible for reheating dough. An oven or air fryer is the way to go 👍🏻

[@degiguess]

reheat your pizza in a pan with a very small amount of oil. Let the oil crisp up the bottom of the pizza and then pour in like a tablespoon or 2 of water into the pan and cover it to steam the cheese. Best way to reheat a pizza

[@noobiamyes4853]

@@degiguessI’d still rather use the microwave

[@sarahmcburney]

Put a cup of water in the microwave with your pizza to prevent the crust from getting too soggy.

[@minanabil-sg1ku]

very informational

[@4h4nn]

If you reverse the rotation of the rotating plate, you can use the device to build a time machine.

[@mind7938]

Lol

[@suleyman-h2i]

Just realized, only One minute of the video is actually why we can't put metal in a microrwave

[@qowalapundit]

thanks for great educational vids, btw who was the narrator? Mr. Slepkov himself?

[@KJchanel88]

Wow it is amazing to watch this,,, now we know

[@lysseul2138]

What do you call someone’s small waving? -*microwave*

[@jasonreyarana4034]

I've been preventing puting a metal inside the microwave. Now I know better.

[@Sjalabais]

But I still don't quite understand why we, who are mostly water, can stand in the same radiation and experience a candy bar melt in our pockets - yet, still be fine? A microwave oven may penetrate a mere few centimeters, but a radar is much stronger?

[@yusufa5429]

The only downside of leaving your metal spoon inside your bowl of soup in a microwave is the annoying sounds coming from your family when they see it.

[@cattameme]

Ceramic bowls are so mich nicer and feel better quality. I love my ceramic set.

[@elineverhoeven]

A microwave is called a magnetron in Dutch! Makes sense now

[@cybersoul3371]

The fact that the invention of the microwave included an exploding egg and people still think it's a good idea to put eggs in the microwave...

[@KafshakTashtak]

Correction : microwave doesn't vibrate molecules. The energy of the microwave photon is in the range of rotational energy of molecules, so it rotates them.

[@briantaylor9285]

Amazing.

[@rosrinsuwankiri2418]

So the solution that using Microwave is harm to health or not. Thanks for clarifying

[@keagan.9334]

Ooh so that’s why I created a thunderstorm in my microwave years ago..

[@Ki1aGam3z]

“Soon after, the first microwave oven became available” Ahh yes, a Ted Ed classic line

[@nathalie_desrosiers]

I still prefer the taste of oven cooked food over the micro-wave. And the problem with micro-wave, is that it never warms uniformly.

[@searchingforlostatoms7191]

Not to mention it is a pathetic and lazy way to prepare food that's palatable

[@andreivasile4378]

Why does it change the taste of food sometimes if it doesnt affect the molecular structure?

[@simonmeadows7961]

The definition of an intellectual is someone who can watch this video without thinking of Gremlins.

[@caotranvu4799]

this one is so good

[@Oatmeal_Queen]

Homie in the blue shirt BETTER clean up that food explosion in the microwave 🤨

[@deadlypyre]

Hey TedEd, can you please make a video on Music Conductors and its history over the years ?

[@HimanshuVaid25]

This should go down as the first TED video who taught us nothing