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How Do GPS Coordinates Work?

So you’ve seen those location-tagging numbers on maps and GPS devices before, but do you actually know what they mean? Brainstuff is here to fill you in.

Most Watched in BrainStuff

4:18

BrainStuff: How Do Farts Work?

Sure, flatulence is embarrassing. But why do we do it?

2:38

BrainStuff: How Does A Gas Nozzle Know When To Shut Off?

If you've ever put gas in a car, you've probably noticed how the gas pump shuts off when your tank is full. But how does it know to do that? Learn more about the clever mechanism that keeps your gas tank from overflowing in this episode.

2:15

BrainStuff: Where's the best place to sit in a movie theater?

When it comes to where you should sit in a movie theater to get the best experience, it's mostly a matter of preference. Except when it comes to sound. Find out why -- and where you should sit -- in this episode.

4:52

BrainStuff: How Is An Autopsy Performed?

When you need someone to exam a corpse to determine a cause of death, how do they conduct the autopsy?

2:53

BrainStuff: Why Do People In Old Movies Talk Weird?

It’s not quite British, and it’s not quite American – so what gives? Why do all those actors of yesteryear have such a distinct and strange accent?

2:15

BrainStuff: BrainStuff Outtakes 02

BrainStuff Outtakes.

2:31

BrainStuff: The Science of Glow Sticks

What do fireflies, TVs, neon signs, and glowsticks have in common?

3:13

BrainStuff: How Does Hair Dye Work?

Some hair dyes are basically fine-grained paint. But dyes that stick with you for more than a couple weeks physically and chemically change each hair. Learn how with HowStuffWorks.

4:14

BrainStuff: How Do GPS Coordinates Work?

So you’ve seen those location-tagging numbers on maps and GPS devices before, but do you actually know what they mean? Brainstuff is here to fill you in.

2:13

BrainStuff: Is Glass A Liquid Or A Solid?

There seems to be a bit of debate over the physical state of glass. Find out about glass' actual state of matter in this episode of BrainStuff.

3:05

BrainStuff: How Do We Know What Dinosaurs Looked Like?

Can we really reconstruct a dinosaur’s appearance from a bunch of million-year-old fossils? How?

1:48

BrainStuff: Why Does Alka-Seltzer Fizz?

The fizzing you see when you drop an Alka-Seltzer tablet in water is the same sort of fizzing that you see from baking powder. This reaction is caused by an acid reacting with a base. Check out this BrainStuff episode to learn more.

Recent Videos in BrainStuff

4:14

BrainStuff: How Do GPS Coordinates Work?

So you’ve seen those location-tagging numbers on maps and GPS devices before, but do you actually know what they mean? Brainstuff is here to fill you in.

3:37

BrainStuff: How Does Anxiety Work?

Anxiety is a normal, healthy response for the human body. But when it interferes with daily life it can become a disorder. We investigate anxiety's symptoms and biochemistry to learn how it can become irrational... and how you treat it.

3:28

BrainStuff: Can Smoking A Scorpion Get You High?

Some people are using scorpions as a narcotic. Will it give you euphoria? Or just a toxic cocktail of intense pain?

3:25

BrainStuff: What is 'New Car Smell?'

Ben explains just what it is you're smelling when you get inside a new car.

5:57

BrainStuff: What Is The Drake Equation?

Josh explains Frank Drake's famous formula for determining whether intelligent alien life exists.

6:41

BrainStuff: The Way We Think About Sugar Is Going To Change

The FDA recently changed their Nutrition Facts label to include added sugars. But why?

3:35

BrainStuff: How Does Aspirin Work?

How does aspirin target your pain? The plants that aspirin were derived from have been used as medicine for about 6000 years, we finally discovered how it works in 1971, and Lauren explains it to you now.

3:33

BrainStuff: Why Do Some People Faint At The Sight Of Blood?

Josh explains the science of why people faint at the sight of blood.

3:16

BrainStuff: Is It Possible To Erase Your Memories?

Science suggests it's possible to erase specific memories. But even if we can, should we?

3:35

BrainStuff: What Is Satanism?

Just the term "satanism" is controversial. But what's actually going on with this counter-culture religion that values individualism and nonconformity?

4:55

BrainStuff: How Much Does It Cost To Run For President?

There’s a big difference between running for President and actually winning the election. So how much money will you need to have a decent shot at being Commander-in-Chief?

3:26

BrainStuff: Do Crosswalk and 'Close Door' Buttons Really Do Anything?

Are the buttons we push to cross streets, close elevator doors, and nudge the office thermostat really connected to anything? Some aren’t! Learn how these placebo buttons (don’t) work.