ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

3D zoetrope

Have you ever played with a flipbook? How you see the drawings moving when you quickly flip the pages? Well, a 3D zoetrope is kind of like a flipbook, only bigger and in 3D.

Imagine a spinning circular wheel with small gaps cut out around its edges. Now, imagine that you put carved objects, like little animals or people, around the inside of the wheel, and you shine a strobe light at it. When you spin the wheel and turn on the light, the objects seem to come to life and move as if they are alive!

This is because your eyes can see the movement of the objects through the gaps as the wheel spins, and the strobe light makes it look like they are moving smoothly. It's a really cool way to make static objects appear to move in three dimensions.

People use 3D zoetropes to create amazing works of art and animation, like short films that appear to be happening right before your eyes. They can also be used for technical applications, like medical imaging or industrial design.

So next time you see a 3D zoetrope, you'll know that it's like a giant flipbook with moving objects!