TED Talks
Ella Al-Shamahi: The fascinating (and dangerous) places scientists aren't exploring
We're not doing frontline exploratory science in a huge portion of the world -- the places governments deem too hostile or disputed. What might we be missing because we're not looking? In this fearless, unexpectedly funny talk,...
SciShow
The Secrets of Life’s Toughest Material
One of the toughest materials known to science is made not by humans, but by nature... and it's inside of oysters.
TED Talks
TED: You have no idea where camels really come from | Latif Nasser
Camels are so well adapted to the desert that it's hard to imagine them living anywhere else. But what if we have them pegged all wrong? What if those big humps, feet and eyes were evolved for a different climate and a different time? In...
TED Talks
How synthetic biology can improve our health, food and materials | Emily Leproust
What if we could use biology to restore our balance with nature without giving up modern creature comforts? Advocating for a new kind of environmentalism, scientist and entrepreneur Emily Leproust rethinks modern sustainability at the...
SciShow
The Climate Crisis Is Changing the Circle of Life
When you think about the impact of climate change on the circle of life, you likely picture polar bears or Bengal tigers struggling in new conditions. But the impacts on the world go all the way down to the tiniest creatures who do some...
SciShow
3 Things to Know About Cecil the Lion
Cecil was one of the most thoroughly studied lions in Africa. And thanks to him, we know several reasons why the death of one big cat can be a big deal.
TED Talks
TED: A "forest generation" living in harmony with nature | Ernestine Leikeki Sevidzem
We need to care for and live in harmony with the environment, says climate and gender activist Ernestine Leikeki Sevidzem. The best way to do that? Nurture a forest generation: one that learns to protect nature. Sevidzem shares how she's...
TED Talks
TED: The African swamp protecting Earth's environment | Vera Songwe
The peatlands of Africa's Congo Basin are a vast expanse of swamp and greenery that act as one of the world's most effective carbon sinks -- and they're under threat of environmental destruction. Economist Vera Songwe explains how...
TED Talks
Jonathan Klein: Photos that changed the world
Photographs do more than document history -- they make it. At TED University, Jonathan Klein of Getty Images shows some of the most iconic, and talks about what happens when a generation sees an image so powerful it can't look away -- or...
TED Talks
TED: Let's protect the oceans like national parks | David Lang
You don't have to be a scientist to help protect the world's oceans, says underwater drone expert and TED Fellow David Lang -- in fact, ordinary citizens have pulled together to save the planet's natural treasures many times in history....
TED Talks
Ayana Elizabeth Johnson: A love story for the coral reef crisis
Over the course of hundreds of scuba dives, marine biologist Ayana Elizabeth Johnson fell in love -- with a fish. In this ode to parrotfish, she shares five reasons why these creatures are simply amazing (from their ability to poop white...
TED Talks
David Brooks: Should you live for your résumé ... or your eulogy?
Within each of us are two selves, suggests David Brooks in this meditative short talk: the self who craves success, who builds a résumé, and the self who seeks connection, community, love -- the values that make for a great eulogy....
TED Talks
TED: How we'll find life on other planets | Aomawa Shields
Astronomer Aomawa Shields searches for clues that life might exist elsewhere in the universe by examining the atmospheres of distant exoplanets. When she isn't exploring the heavens, the classically trained actor (and TED Fellow) looks...
TED Talks
TED: Meet the microscopic life in your home -- and on your face | Anne Madden
Behold the microscopic jungle in and around you: tiny organisms living on your cheeks, under your sofa and in the soil in your backyard. We have an adversarial relationship with these microbes -- we sanitize, exterminate and disinfect...
SciShow Kids
Where Do Snowflakes Come From?
Each snowflake is a six-pointed work of art, as cool and as individual as you are. But how does nature make snowflakes?
SciShow
What Happens If You Fuse All Your Chromosomes? | SciShow News
Two separate groups of biologists reported fusing entire sets of Saccharomyces cerevisiae chromosomes together, and surprisingly, the actual number of chromosomes might not be as important as we thought.
TED Talks
TED: Why you should love gross science | Anna Rothschild
What can we learn from the slimy, smelly side of life? In this playful talk, science journalist Anna Rothschild shows us the hidden wisdom of "gross stuff" and explains why avoiding the creepy underbelly of nature, medicine and...
TED-Ed
TED-ED: Nature's smallest factory: The Calvin cycle - Cathy Symington
A hearty bowl of cereal gives you the energy to start your day, but how exactly did that energy make its way into your bowl? It all begins with photosynthesis, the process that converts the air we breathe into energizing glucose. Cathy...
TED Talks
Shohini Ghose: Quantum computing explained in 10 minutes
A quantum computer isn't just a more powerful version of the computers we use today; it's something else entirely, based on emerging scientific understanding -- and more than a bit of uncertainty. Enter the quantum wonderland with TED...
TED Talks
TED: How we could better predict and stop floods | Virginia Smith
From village to metropolis, global flooding is on the rise, and traditional approaches to managing the swells won't cut it, says water resource engineer Virginia Smith. Giving an overview of the dynamic shift needed to stymie the flow of...
SciShow
We’ve Found a New(ish) Type of Supernova
We’ve known about different types of supernovas for some time, but researchers now believe they have observed a previously unseen kind! And, sadly, the odds of life on Venus may not be as high as we once believed.
TED Talks
TED: The ancient, earth-friendly wisdom of Mongolian nomads | Khulan Batkhuyag
There's a lot we can learn from Mongolian nomads about how to survive in the years to come, says environmental activist Khulan Batkhuyag. Taking us on a journey through the country's stunning rural landscape, she shows how Mongolian...
TED Talks
TED: How your nature photos can help protect wild animals | Tanya Berger-Wolf
We're losing animal and plant species at such a swift, unprecedented rate that it's nearly impossible to keep up. Computational biologist Tanya Berger-Wolf demonstrates how harnessing the power of artificial intelligence and one of the...
TED Talks
TED: Be humble -- and other lessons from the philosophy of water | Raymond Tang
How do we find fulfillment in a world that's constantly changing? Raymond Tang struggled with this question until he came across the ancient Chinese philosophy of the Tao Te Ching. In it, he found a passage comparing goodness to water,...