TED-Ed
TED-Ed: How corn conquered the world | Chris A. Kniesly
Corn currently accounts for more than one tenth of our global crop production. And over 99% of cultivated corn is the exact same type: Yellow Dent #2. This means that humans grow more Yellow Dent #2 than any other plant on the planet. So...
TED Talks
Dan Dennett: Dangerous memes
Starting with the simple tale of an ant, philosopher Dan Dennett unleashes a devastating salvo of ideas, making a powerful case for the existence of memes -- concepts that are literally alive.
SciShow
The Real Reason Peppers are Spicy
SciShow’s hot take: Peppers don’t produce that spicy goodness for the reason you think!
SciShow
Why Do We Keep Planting Trees That Smell Like Semen?
What's that awful smell? Cat urine? Semen? Rancid butter? Possibly one of these gorgeous city trees?
SciShow
What Does it Mean for a Virus to Be “Airborne”?
What does it mean when a virus is airborne? It turns out it's more than just what comes out when you sneeze
TED Talks
Keith Bellows: The camel's hump
Keith Bellows gleefully outlines the engineering marvels of the camel, a vital creature he calls "the SUV of the desert." Though he couldn't bring a live camel to TED, he gets his camera crew as close as humanly possible to a one-ton...
TED Talks
Andy Hobsbawm: Do the green thing
Andy Hobsbawm shares a fresh ad campaign about going green -- and some of the fringe benefits.
SciShow
What's Killing the World's Amphibians
Of the more than 7,000 known species of amphibians in the world, an estimated one third are now threatened with extinction. Hank breaks down the science behind the decline of amphibians around the world, and what you can do to help.
TED-Ed
TED-ED: Mysteries of vernacular: Quarantine - Jessica Oreck and Rachael Teel
Stemming from the days of bubonic plague in Medieval Europe, quarantines were originally used to prevent potentially plague-infested ships from disembarking at a port city. Jessica Oreck and Rachael Teel explain how the length of the...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Why do you get a fever when you're sick? | Christian Moro
There are many mysteries around fever, but we do know that all mammals, some birds and even a few invertebrate and plant species feel fever's heat. It has persisted for over 600 million years of evolution. But it has a significant cost:...
SciShow
The Real Story of John Snow
While you might hear the name John Snow and think of dragons and unfruitful endings. There was a real life physician whose efforts saved lives and built the foundation for modern epidemiology.
SciShow
Why Does Rain Smell so Good... to Bugs?
Humans love the smell after good rain, though we may not be the the target of the pleasing aroma. There's evidence the characteristic post-rain scent is used to lure arthropods to bacteria.
Be Smart
How Well Do Masks Work? (Schlieren Imaging In Slow Motion!)
Wearing a mask is a cheap and easy way to help stop the spread of airborne infections like COVID-19. It’s also a sign that you want to help protect other people and have them protect you… that we’re all in this together. Here’s some...
Crash Course
Why Human Ancestry Matters: Crash Course Big History 205
This week, Emily Graslie is teaching you about human ancestry and geneaology, how we got to be the species we are, and why that matters in our zoomed out look at Big History.
SciShow
How a Sick Chimp Led to a Global Pandemic: The Rise of HIV
In the first video in our two part series on HIV and AIDS, we explain how scientists figured out what HIV is, when the infection morphs into AIDS, and where they think the virus originated.
SciShow
The Horrible Reason Rolly Pollies are Sometimes Blue
If you uncover a bunch of rolly pollies under a log, you don't expect to find a bright blue one crawling among all the usual grays and browns. But it turns out your fun surprise is some very bad luck for that terrestrial isopod.
TED Talks
TED: Could fish social networks help us save coral reefs? | Mike Gil
Mike Gil spies on fish: using novel multi-camera systems and computer vision technology, the TED Fellow and his colleagues explore how coral reef fish behave, socialize and affect their ecosystems. Learn more about how fish of different...
TED Talks
TED: How cancer cells communicate -- and how we can slow them down | Hasini Jayatilaka
When cancer cells are closely packed together in a tumor, they're able to communicate with each other and coordinate their movement throughout the body. What if we could interrupt this process? In this accessible talk about cutting-edge...
TED Talks
TED: How farming could employ Africa's young workforce -- and help build peace | Kola Masha
Africa's youth is coming of age rapidly, but job growth on the continent isn't keeping up. The result: financial insecurity and, in some cases, a turn towards insurgent groups. In a passionate talk, agricultural entrepreneur Kola Masha...
SciShow
How Measles Made a Comeback
SciShow News explores how a diseases that was officially eliminated in the U.S. has made a sudden comeback.
TED-Ed
TED-ED: Why do people get so anxious about math? - Orly Rubinsten
Have you ever sat down to take a math test and immediately felt your heart beat faster and your palms start to sweat? This is called math anxiety, and if it happens to you, you're not alone: Researchers think about 20 percent of the...
SciShow
Building a Dyson Sphere
What if an advanced civilization ran out of room to grow on their home planet? Their best bet might be to build settlements in space, so they could capture more of their star's energy.
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Can you outsmart a troll (by thinking like one)? | Claire Wardle
Your town is holding a mayoral election and the stakes have never been higher. You suspect one of the candidates will begin pushing false information to swing the election. As the cybersecurity expert, your job is to inoculate the...
SciShow
The "Disease" That Struck Medieval Church Organs
During long, cold winters in medieval Europe, church organs grew gray, sickly-looking circles that spread over their pipes. People back then believed that this was the work of the devil, but as it turns out, it’s just some pretty simple...