TED Talks
David Byrne: How architecture helped music evolve
As his career grew, David Byrne went from playing CBGB to Carnegie Hall. He asks: Does the venue make the music? From outdoor drumming to Wagnerian operas to arena rock, he explores how context has pushed musical innovation.
SciShow
A Surprisingly Simple Secret to Supersonic Flight
Making a faster plane takes more than building better engines and structures. To go supersonic, engineers had to solve hundreds of problems -- including ditching one of the biggest assumptions in aerodynamics!
MinutePhysics
The Sound of Hydrogen
This episode is a little bit different from the norm, because I've created the sound of hydrogen - or, that is, what if it would sound like if it emitted sound instead of light waves!
TED Talks
Woody Norris: Hypersonic sound and other inventions
Woody Norris shows off two of his inventions that use sound in new ways, including the Long Range Acoustic Device, or LRAD. He talks about his untraditional approach to inventing and education, because, as he puts it: "Almost nothing has...
TED Talks
Terry Moore: Why is 'x' the unknown?
Why is 'x' the symbol for an unknown? In this short and funny talk, Terry Moore gives the surprising answer.
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Why do your knuckles pop? - Eleanor Nelsen
Some people love the feeling of cracking their knuckles, while others cringe at the sound. But what causes that trademark pop? And is it dangerous? Eleanor Nelsen gives the facts behind joint popping.
SciShow
3 Extreme New Mission Concepts
From asteroid spaceships, to exploring ice volcanoes, let's look at a few of the NIAC's recently approved Phase I projects!
Be Smart
Space Sounds
There is no sound in space. In the near-vacuum of space, there is nothing to transmit the physical waves that we need to perceive sound. But that doesn't mean we can't MAKE sound from space.
TED-Ed
TED-ED: How brass instruments work - Al Cannon
What gives the trumpet its clarion ring and the tuba its gut shaking oompah-pah? And what makes the trombone so jazzy? Al Cannon shows how these answers lie not in the brass the instruments are made of, but in the journey that air takes...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Birth of a nickname - John McWhorter
Where do nicknames come from? Why are Ellens called Nellie and Edwards Ned? It's all a big misunderstanding from the early days of the English language, a misunderstanding that even the word nickname itself derives from. John McWhorter...
TED Talks
TED: Women, wartime and the dream of peace | Zainab Salbi
In war we often see only the frontline stories of soldiers and combat. AT TEDGlobal 2010, Zainab Salbi tells powerful "backline" stories of women who keep everyday life going during conflicts, and calls for women to have a place at the...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Why can parrots talk? | Grace Smith-Viduarre and Tim Wright
Whether they're belting Beyoncé, head-banging to classic rock, or rattling off curse words at zoo-goers, parrots are constantly astounding us. They are among the only animals that produce human speech, and some parrots do it almost...
SciShow
Yellowstone Supercomputer
Ever notice how adding "super" in front of something makes it way more awesome? Hank gives us the rundown on the Yellowstone SUPERcomputer.
SciShow
Could a Shirt Hear Your Heartbeat? | SciShow News
Microphones keep getting smaller and smaller, but have you ever asked what it would be like to have a bigger one in the form of a shirt? And though we tend to incorrectly think that we’re having two-way conversations with our pets, we...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Why is there a "b" in doubt? - Gina Cooke
Say the word "doubt" aloud. What is that "b" doing there? Does it have any purpose? Gina Cooke explains the long and winding history of "doubt" and why the spelling, though it seems random, is a wink to its storied past.
SciShow
Life on an Eyeball Planet? It's Possible
Tidally locked planets could be more common than Earth-like planets! And these 'eyeball planets' might even be a promising place to look for unique lifeforms!
MinuteEarth
Why Wolves Don't Chirp
Sounds that animals make can be really different, and it turns out that there's a reason why some species communicate with certain sounds.
PBS
Are MP3s & Vinyl Better than Live Music?
If you've ever talked to a vinyl purist (or are one yourself) you know that people can be pretty passionate about what format is king when it comes to music. And based on how much people like to brag about what band they saw live and how...
TED Talks
TED: Remaking my voice | Roger Ebert
When film critic Roger Ebert lost his lower jaw to cancer, he lost the ability to eat and speak. But he did not lose his voice. In a moving talk from TED2011, Ebert and his wife, Chaz, with friends Dean Ornish and John Hunter, come...
SciShow
How Wasps Protect Their Babies With a Virus
Contracting a virus is generally a bad thing, but among certain parasitic wasps, passing a virus to their offspring is actually key to their survival.
PBS
Super Mario Brothers as Surrealist Art?
We all know the Mario Brothers. But have you ever stepped back and tried looking at those games from a fresh perspective? They're bananas! There are armored turtles who stand on their hind legs and steal princesses! There are bullets...
TED Talks
Golan Levin: Software (as) art
Engineer and artist Golan Levin pushes the boundaries of what's possible with audiovisuals and technology. In an amazing TED display, he shows two programs he wrote to perform his original compositions.
TED Talks
Fabian Oefner: Psychedelic science
Swiss artist and photographer Fabian Oefner is on a mission to make eye-catching art from everyday science. In this charming talk, he shows off some recent psychedelic images, including photographs of crystals as they interact with...
SciShow
What the Fox Says
Thanks to a couple of Norwegian musicians, a lot of people have become obsessed with one question: What does the fox say? It turns out that foxes "say" lots of different things depending on the situation, and if you think the song is...