What does it mean to "understand"?
That's the core question of a video from Prof. Lemeshko I've recently watched. He is a theoretical physicist at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) near Vienna, and sometimes brings up pretty interesting topics in his videos that are not necessarily physics related, but rather more about general scientific stuff.
This one was very interesting, because it touches a topic that all of us have encountered throughout life. Whether it's when we read about something, listening to a presentation, or just listening to the teacher/professor giving a talk. We learn new stuff pretty much every day, although at a certain point is already known to us. But do we understand it?
Nowadays, I often encounter this in my job, when I have to explain stuff to colleagues, students, or even strangers. When explaining something, it's not sufficient to just know it, I have to really understand it. And…


Nice. Having 2 scientists for parents sounds fun. Where I'm from, people are quick to label themselves by saying things like "oh, I'm not a math person". I think anyone can like STEM if they can somehow develop a personal relationship with it. I think having parents who can nurture that curiosity helps with that. You mentioned that science didn't exactly come naturally to you? Did you ever struggle with science or math in school? Could you always ask your parents for help with math or science homework? Did pursuing a career in electronics even feel like a decision to you or did you decide on it early? I messed around with electronics a bit when I was a kid. I liked making LEDs light up and tried (unsuccessfully) assembling really basic circuits from schematics I found online. I didn't really know what I was doing though, and educational resources on sites like youtube weren't as good as they are now. Do you have any tips or beginner project ideas for someone who wants to pick up electronics as a hobby? I think it'd be cool to look at a schematic and understand how each component works (transistors, capacitors, diodes, etc). But it's obviously a super huge field and I can see myself getting overwhelmed really fast.