MinutePhysics
Why It's Impossible to Tune a Piano
Pianos can't be perfectly tuned - it's a mathematical fact!
TED Talks
TED: Beethoven the businessman | José Bowen
The revolution that made music more marketable, more personal and easier to pirate began ... at the dawn of the 19th century. José Bowen outlines how new printing technology and an improved piano gave rise to the first music industry.
SciShow
White Holes: An Impossible Possibility
Reid Reimers expands your mind with an explanation of white holes -- celestial objects that almost definitely are not real things that can be found in nature. Except, we might have actually seen one.
TED Talks
TED: How frustration can make us more creative | Tim Harford
Challenges and problems can derail your creative process ... or they can make you more creative than ever. In the surprising story behind the best-selling solo piano album of all time, Tim Harford may just convince you of the advantages...
TED Talks
Amanda Palmer: The art of asking
Don't make people pay for music, says Amanda Palmer: Let them. In a passionate talk that begins in her days as a street performer (drop a dollar in the hat for the Eight-Foot Bride!), she examines the new relationship between artist and...
TED Talks
Daria van den Bercken: Why I take the piano on the road ... and in the air
Pianist Daria van den Bercken fell in love with the baroque keyboard music of George Frideric Handel. Now, she aims to ignite this passion in others. In this talk, she plays us through the emotional roller coaster of his music — while...
TED Talks
Imogen Heap: "Wait It Out"
Imogen Heap plays a powerful stripped-down version of "Wait It Out," from her new record, Ellipse.
TED Talks
Teitur: Home is a song I've always remembered
For musician Teitur, singing is about giving away a piece of yourself to others. "If your intentions are to impress people or to get the big applause at the end," he says, "then you are taking, not giving." Listen as he plays on stage at...
TED Talks
Natalie MacMaster: Fiddling in reel time
Natalie MacMaster and her musical partner Donnell Leahy play several tunes from the Cape Breton tradition -- a sprightly, soulful style of folk fiddling. It's an inspired collaboration that will have you clapping (and maybe dancing) along.
TED Talks
John Q. Walker: Great piano performances, recreated
Imagine hearing great, departed pianists play again today, just as they would in person. John Q. Walker demonstrates how recordings can be analyzed for precise keystrokes and pedal motions, then played back on computer-controlled grand...
TED Talks
Nellie McKay: "The Dog Song"
Animal fan Nellie McKay sings a sparkling tribute to her dear dog. She suggests we all do the same: "Just go right to the pound/ And find yourself a hound/ And make that doggie proud/ 'cause that's what it's all about."
TED Talks
"Mother of Pearl," "If I Had You" - Nellie McKay
* Viewer discretion advised. This video includes discussion of mature topics and may be inappropriate for some audiences. The wonderful Nellie McKay sings "Mother of Pearl" (with the immortal first line "Feminists don't have a sense of...
PBS
What Does It Mean to Be a Number? (The Peano Axioms)
If you needed to tell someone what numbers are and how they work, without using the notion of number in your answer, could you do it?
TED Talks
Eddi Reader: "Kiteflyer's Hill"
Singer/songwriter Eddi Reader performs "Kiteflyer's Hill," a tender look back at a lost love. With Thomas Dolby on piano.
TED Talks
Jennifer Lin: Improvising on piano, aged 14
Pianist and composer Jennifer Lin gives a magical performance, talks about the process of creativity and improvises a moving solo piece based on a random sequence of notes.
TED Talks
Jim Hudspeth: The beautiful, mysterious science of how you hear
Have you ever wondered how your ears work? In this delightful and fascinating talk, biophysicist Jim Hudspeth demonstrates the wonderfully simple yet astonishingly powerful mechanics of hair cells, the microscopic powerhouses that make...
TED Talks
Nellie McKay: "Clonie"
Singer-songwriter Nellie McKay performs the semi-serious song "Clonie" -- about creating the ultimate companion.
TED Talks
TED: Redemption Song | John Legend
John Legend is on a mission to transform America's criminal justice system. Through his Free America campaign, he's encouraging rehabilitation and healing in our prisons, jails and detention centers -- and giving hope to those who want...
TED Talks
Eddi Reader: "What You've Got"
Singer/songwriter Eddi Reader performs "What You Do With What You've Got," a meditation on a very TED theme: how to use your gifts and talents to make a difference. With Thomas Dolby on piano.
MinutePhysics
Why It's Impossible to Tune a Piano
Pianos can't be perfectly tuned - it's a mathematical fact!
SciShow
Why Are Cheetahs the Fastest Land Animal?
Cheetahs are fast. You know this. But which is faster: a cheetah, or a Tyrannosaurus rex?
TED-Ed
TED-ED: A clever way to estimate enormous numbers - Michael Mitchell
Have you ever tried to guess how many pieces of candy there are in a jar? Or tackled a mindbender like: _How many piano tuners are there in Chicago?" Physicist Enrico Fermi was very good at problems like these -- learn how he used the...
Crash Course
How We Make Memories - Crash Course Psychology
Remember that guy from 300? What was his name? ARG!!! It turns out our brains make and recall memories in different ways. In this episode of Crash Course Psychology, Hank talks about the way we do it, what damaging that process can do to...
TED Talks
TED: Why democracy matters | Rory Stewart
The public is losing faith in democracy, says British MP Rory Stewart. Iraq and Afghanistan’s new democracies are deeply corrupt; meanwhile, 84 percent of people in Britain say politics is broken. In this important talk, Stewart sounds a...