TED Talks
Beau Lotto: Optical illusions show how we see
Beau Lotto's color games puzzle your vision, but they also spotlight what you can't normally see: how your brain works. This fun, first-hand look at your own versatile sense of sight reveals how evolution tints your perception of what's...
3Blue1Brown
Science YouTubers attempting a graph theory puzzle
A classic puzzle in graph theory, the "Utilities problem", a description of why it is unsolvable on a plane, and how it becomes solvable on surfaces with a different topology.
SciShow
Not Every Egomaniac Has Narcissistic Personality Disorder
Professionally diagnosing narcissistic personality disorder is difficult for psychologists, partially because anyone who might have it just thinks they’re great!
TED Talks
Danny Hillis: Back to the future (of 1994)
From deep in the TED archive, Danny Hillis outlines an intriguing theory of how and why technological change seems to be accelerating, by linking it to the very evolution of life itself. The presentation techniques he uses may look...
TED Talks
Sarah Kay: "A Bird Made of Birds"
"The universe has already written the poem you were planning on writing," says Sarah Kay, quoting her friend, poet Kaveh Akbar. Performing "A Bird Made of Birds," she shares how and where she finds poetry. (Kay is also the host of TED's...
TED Talks
TED: Abundance is our future | Peter Diamandis
Onstage at TED2012, Peter Diamandis makes a case for optimism -- that we'll invent, innovate and create ways to solve the challenges that loom over us. "I’m not saying we don’t have our set of problems; we surely do. But ultimately, we...
TED-Ed
TED-ED: Why should you read Virgil's "Aeneid"? - Mark Robinson
In 19 BC, the Roman poet Virgil suffered heatstroke and died on his journey back to Italy. On his deathbed, he thought about the manuscript he had been working on for over ten years, an epic poem called the "Aeneid." Unsatisfied with the...
SciShow
Chimera Cats and Your Mom
Hank talks about chimeras, and why Venus the cat probably isn't one - but your mom might be
3Blue1Brown
All possible pythagorean triples, visualized
There are a few special right triangles many of us learn about in school, like the 3-4-5 triangle or the 5-12-13 triangle. Is there a way to understand all triplets of numbers (a, b, c) that satisfy a^2 + b^2 = c^2? There is! And it uses...
TED Talks
TED: My country will be underwater soon -- unless we work together | Anote Tong
For the people of Kiribati, climate change isn't something to be debated, denied or legislated against -- it's an everyday reality. The low-lying Pacific island nation may soon be underwater, thanks to rising sea levels. In a personal...
SciShow
The Majestic Grolar Bear
Although polar bears and grizzly bears aren't all that similar and are definitely separate species, they can interbreed and create fertile offspring in the wild. Hank brings us the story of these misfit bears, which he likes to call...
SciShow
The Ridiculous Reasons It's Hard to Measure Sea Level
From problems with the moon, to the lumpiness of earth, sea levels aren't quite as exact as we have them figured out to be.
TED Talks
TED: How deepfakes undermine truth and threaten democracy | Danielle Citron
* Viewer discretion advised. This video includes discussion of mature topics and may be inappropriate for some audiences. The use of deepfake technology to manipulate video and audio for malicious purposes -- whether it's to stoke...
TED Talks
TED: Different ways of knowing | Daniel Tammet
Daniel Tammet has linguistic, numerical and visual synesthesia -- meaning that his perception of words, numbers and colors are woven together into a new way of perceiving and understanding the world. The author of "Born on a Blue Day,"...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Inside a cartoonist's world - Liza Donnelly
From cave drawings to the Sunday paper, artists have been visualizing ideas -- cartoons -- for centuries. New Yorker cartoonist Liza Donnelly walks us through the many stages every cartoon goes through, starting with an idea and turning...
TED Talks
TED: Can we stop climate change by removing CO2 from the air? | Tim Kruger
Could we cure climate change? Geoengineering researcher Tim Kruger wants to try. He shares one promising possibility: using natural gas to generate electricity in a way that takes carbon dioxide out of the air. Learn more -- both the...
TED Talks
TED: Life lessons from big cats | Beverly + Dereck Joubert
Beverly + Dereck Joubert live in the bush, filming and photographing lions and leopards in their natural habitat. With stunning footage (some never before seen), they discuss their personal relationships with these majestic animals --...
TED Talks
TED: How to get (a new) hip | Allison Hunt
When Allison Hunt found out that she needed a new hip -- and that Canada’s national health care system would require her to spend nearly 2 years on a waiting list (and in pain) -- she took matters into her own hands.
TED Talks
TED: Dear Facebook, this is how you're breaking democracy | Yaël Eisenstat
Lies are more engaging online than truth, says former CIA analyst, diplomat and Facebook employee Yaël Eisenstat. "As long as [social media] algorithms' goals are to keep us engaged, they will feed us the poison that plays to our worst...
TED Talks
TED: How young Africans found a voice on Twitter | Siyanda Mohutsiwa
What can a young woman with an idea, an Internet connection and a bit of creativity achieve? That's all Siyanda Mohutsiwa needed to unite young African voices in a new way. Hear how Mohutsiwa and other young people across the continent...
SciShow
Slingshot Spiders Put Fighter Pilots to Shame
There are all kinds of ways that a spider can catch its prey, but few species are as extreme as the slingshot spider!
TED Talks
TED: An illustrated kingdom of real, fantastical plants | Nirupa Rao
Botanical artist Nirupa Rao captures the spirit and beauty of nature in watercolor. With a portfolio of enchanting, scientifically accurate illustrations, she aims to reignite our emotional connection to the environment -- and open our...
TED-Ed
A day in the life of the Oracle of Delphi | Mark Robinson
As the sun rises over Delphi in 500 BCE, Aristonike hurries to the temple of Apollo where a single oracle known as the Pythia communicates Apollo's will. Reserved only for women, this is the most important job in the city— and one that...