The area of the pistons, how far they travel in the cylinder, and the number of cylinders all come together to tell us how much air the engine is capable of displacing. Ready for some math?

Piston rings are the reason internal combustion engines can exist ... responsible for sealing the combustion pressure inside the cylinder and keeping oil out of the combustion chamber.

The valve for one of the cylinders has its guide exposed, which isn't something you should be seeing. Plus, there's a hunk of piston at the bottom of the engine when the timing cover comes off.

In the video after the break, [Brick Technology] uses LEGO to gain some practical insight into the world of piston engine design, from single-cylinder all the way up to radial twelve-cylinder engines.

Fromm explains that in a conventional engine, there is a piston which goes back and forth in a cylinder. But in an opposed-piston engine, every cylinder has two pistons that come together.

Before both components can be put together, rings are added to the pistons. This creates an airtight seal in the engine's cylinder. The piston is placed into a machine that will marry the ...