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as well, “stay out of the kitchen.”
    Rosa waved good-bye with her spatula. “Hurry! The guests arrive in two hours! We must have cake!”
    Back at the lab, Drake and Nell wasted no time. They pulled a book off the shelf and turned to the correct section: “Loco Oven Analysis: What to Do When Your Oven Has a Code Name, Laughs Like the Dickens, and Your Fiesta Becomes a Fiasco.”
    After Nell read the section aloud, Drake formulated a hypothesis. He said, “I believe what’s happening to Rosa’s oven is …”
    Nell listened and nodded. “Agreed. Let’s test our hypothesis. Meanwhile, maybe we could ask for your mother’s help.”
    So, with Mrs. Doyle on board (she’d said, “ No problemo ” when asked for her help), Drake and Nell tested their hypothesis. They plugged this into that. They dialed this knob. They twirled that dial.
    Then they headed back to Rosa’s neighborhood and conducted a quick stakeout. It took only 2.5 minutes of standing outside the neighbor’s window before they had their answer. And not just any answer. The right answer.
    Analysis complete, Drake and Nell hurried back to Rosa’s. “We’ve solved the mystery, Ms. Alvarez,” said Drake, as they entered the kitchen.
    “But what about my cake?” Rosa asked. “Everyone will be coming soon for the surprise. There’s not enough time now to bake a cake.”
    “First things first,” said Drake. “Scientist Nell?”
    “Thank you, Detective Doyle.” Nell began to pace. “Are you aware, Ms. Alvarez, that there are radio waves everywhere? For instance, there are radio waves bouncing off this cake batter, off my arm, through the air, and even through outer space.”
    Rosa looked puzzled. “If that is true, then why can’t we hear them?”
    “Excellent question,” said Nell. “In order to hear speech or music across radio waves, two things must occur. Detective Doyle?”
    “Ah, yes, two things.” Drake pushed his glasses up with his finger. “First, someone must transmit the speech or music. Second, someone must be able to receive the transmission. There is speech and music being transmitted all the time through radio waves. But you can’t hear anything unless you receive it. Case in point—” Drake walked over to a radio sitting on the counter and flipped it on.
    “. . . para bailar la bamba … ”
    “Ah, one of my favorites.” Drake tapped his foot. “You see, Ms. Alvarez, your radio is a receiver, enabling us to hear the transmission.”
    “Now, all of this brings up an important question.” Nell stopped pacing, her hands clasped behind her back. “Why don’t we hear all the radio stations at once? With all the voices and all the music in one big jumble?”
    “Excellent question, Scientist Nell,” Drake answered. “Because radio operators transmit on a certain frequency. When you turn the knob on a radio, you are dialing in different frequencies.” Drake twirled the dial of the radio, and as he did, the radio stations changed.
    “There are thousands of frequencies,” said Nell, “all with different-size wavelengths.”
    “But,” said Rosa, glancing at her watch, “my mother … the cake … the fiesta … and what does any of this have to do with my oven?”
    “Ah,” said Drake. “Now we come to the heart of the matter. You see, in order for something to receive a particular radio transmission, it must first be resonant on that frequency. Let’s say there are A to Z frequencies. If someone transmits on H frequency, we must tune into H frequency in order to hear him or her. Now, we noted that your oven had one element that was broken—”
    “And one that was not,” said Nell. “Very simply, the two elements canceled each other out. In doing so, they created resonance on a particular radio frequency.”
    “Plus,” added Drake, “the oven acted as a nice speaker box. Quite handy, really.”
    “So we were hearing a radio?” asked Rosa.
    “Not just any radio,” replied Nell, “but a ham radio.