TED-Ed
TED-Ed: One of history's most dangerous myths | Anneliese Mehnert
From the 1650s through the late 1800's, European colonists descended on South Africa. They sought to claim the region, becoming even more aggressive after discovering the area's abundant natural resources. To support their claims to the...
TED Talks
The counterintuitive way to be more persuasive | Niro Sivanathan
What's the best way to make a good point? Organizational psychologist Niro Sivanathan offers a fascinating lesson on the "dilution effect," a cognitive quirk that weakens our strongest cases -- and reveals why brevity is the true soul of...
TED Talks
TED: How to win an argument (at the US Supreme Court, or anywhere) | Neal Katyal
The secret to winning an argument isn't grand rhetoric or elegant style, says US Supreme Court litigator Neal Katyal -- it takes more than that. With stories of some of the most impactful cases he's argued before the Court, Katyal shows...
Crash Course
Assisted Death & the Value of Life: Crash Course Philosophy
As we wrap up Crash Course Philosophy, we’re using the things we’ve learned to explore big issues like the value of life. Today, we’re discussing abortions in cases of fetal abnormality, assisted suicide, and euthanasia. We will consider...
TED Talks
TED: Why is colonialism (still) romanticized? | Farish Ahmad-Noor
Colonialism remains an inescapable blight on the present, lingering in the toxic, internalized mythologies and stereotypes that have outlived the regimes that created them, says historian Farish Ahmad-Noor. Examining why these prejudices...
PBS
Is It Irrational to Believe in Aliens?
Aliens! Could humans really be alone in this expansive universe? And if we're not, how come we've never made contact with other intelligent life? Everyone's thought about it; especially members of the scientific community. Join Gabe as...
SciShow
Why People Do So Many Weird Things on the Internet | Compilation
The internet has given us access to a wealth of information about humanity, including about those big weird brains that make us who we are.
SciShow
Why You Can't Win an Internet Argument
One of the internet's favorite pastimes is arguing, but very few of those arguments ever actually go anywhere. It can be frustrating to watch, but scientists have some ideas on why things play out the way they do.
SciShow
Do You Really Know What You Think You Do?
We are generally pretty confident when it comes to things that we know really well. But what if your brain is lying to you... tricking you into thinking you know everything, but you really know nothing?
SciShow
International Skeptics Day Playlist
In honor of October 13th, International Skeptics Day, Hank has put together this playlist of some of the most interesting science-y, skeptic-y videos from all around YouTube.
Crash Course
Aquinas & the Cosmological Arguments: Crash Course Philosophy
Our unit on the philosophy of religion and the existence of god continues with Thomas Aquinas. Today, we consider his first four arguments: the cosmological arguments.
TED Talks
Daniel H. Cohen: For argument's sake
Why do we argue? To out-reason our opponents, prove them wrong, and, most of all, to win! Right? Philosopher Daniel H. Cohen shows how our most common form of argument -- a war in which one person must win and the other must lose --...
Bozeman Science
Practice 7 - Engaging in Argument from Evidence
Paul Andersen explains the importance of argumentation in improving both understanding and design. This video begins with a discussion of the heliocentric and geocentric model of the Universe that eventually lead to the Copernican...
TED Talks
TED: The long reach of reason | Steven Pinker and Rebecca Newberger Goldstein
* Viewer discretion advised. This video includes discussion of mature topics and may be inappropriate for some audiences. Here's a TED first: an animated Socratic dialog! In a time when irrationality seems to rule both politics and...
Crash Course
Intelligent Design: Crash Course Philosophy
Last week we introduced Thomas Aquinas’s four cosmological arguments for the existence of god; today we introduce his fifth argument: the teleological argument, and the ensuing dialogue it initiated.
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: How can you change someone's mind? (hint: facts aren't always enough) - Hugo Mercier
Why do arguments change people's minds in some cases and backfire in others? Hugo Mercier explains how arguments are more convincing when they rest on a good knowledge of the audience, taking into account what the audience believes, who...
SciShow
Should You Stop Saying 'Like' and 'Um'?
Y’know lots of people say you shouldn’t use, like...filler words, but uh, should you really like, stop using them?
Crash Course
Anselm & the Argument for God: Crash Course Philosophy
Today we are introducing a new area of philosophy – philosophy of religion. We are starting this unit off with Anselm’s argument for God’s existence, while also considering objections to that argument.
Crash Course
Papers & Essays: Crash Course Study Skills
Writing research papers is an essential skill in your career as a student, and this week we're going to help you do that like a pro. From figuring out where to begin, to finding the best systems, to breaking out of the research recursion...
Crash Course
How to Argue - Philosophical Reasoning: Crash Course Philosophy
Before we dive into the big questions of philosophy, you need to know how to argue properly. We’ll start with an overview of philosophical reasoning and breakdown of how deductive arguments work (and sometimes don’t work).
Crash Course
How to Argue - Induction & Abduction: Crash Course Philosophy
We continue our look at philosophical reasoning by introducing two more types: induction and abduction. Hank explains their strengths and weaknesses, as well as counterarguments and the Socratic method.
SciShow
Is Passive-Aggressiveness a Personality Disorder?
You might have a roommate who rolls their eyes a lot and leaves sassy sticky notes all over the place, but no matter how frustrating it is, it’s probably not a personality disorder.
SciShow
How Ads (and People) Persuade You
If you can recognize when you're being persuaded, it's a lot easier to make sure your opinions are actually your own.