the.com/insulator
The professional bouncer of physics, blocking electrons that didn't make the list.
means A material or device that resists the flow of electricity, heat, or sound, keeping it contained where it belongs.
from From Latin 'insula,' meaning 'island' — the same root that gave us 'isolate' and 'peninsula.' To insulate something is to make it an island, cut off from its surroundings; an insulator is the thing that builds the moat. The word entered English in the 18th century, riding the wave of early electrical experimentation.
- glass twist
- Glass insulates until heated, then conducts electricity
- diamond king
- Diamond insulates electricity but conducts heat brilliantly
- collector craze
- Antique glass power-line insulators sell for thousands
- superconductor flip
- Some insulators become superconductors near absolute zero
- life saver
- Rubber gloves keep electricians breathing around live wires
cork flooring — thermal insulator harvested from cork oak bark in portugal, spain, maintains 5-10°c difference
fiberglass batts — r-value 3.2-3.8 per inch, standard in us residential walls since 1930s
aerogel — silica-based foam with 99.8% air, used on mars rovers, insulates to -270°c