Be Smart
Why Are We Warm-Blooded?
A human with the metabolism of a hummingbird would need to eat about 80,000 calories a day to survive. That’s because staying warm by making your own heat takes a ton of energy. And that brings up a paradox, because creating your own...
Be Smart
Why Are There 7 Days In a Week? EXPLAINED
Why does everyone use a 7 day week, and where did it come from? Where do the names of the days come from? And who can we blame for Mondays? Here’s the true story of one of the oldest human customs still in use today. It gets a little weird.
Be Smart
Where On Earth Do You Weigh The Least?
You may have heard that a kilogram of feathers weighs the same as a kilogram of steel, but that all depends on where you weigh them. This video is all about the difference between mass and weight, and how weirdly awesome Earth’s gravity...
Be Smart
When Will We Stop Using Oil?
We've heard news of "peak oil" and "the end of the oil age" for years now, but we keep coming up with ways to find and pump more of it to the surface. Rising CO2 levels and the changing climate that results from burning fossil fuels mean...
Be Smart
When Is Now?
When is now? Seems like a pretty simple question… just look at your watch. But do you and I share the same “now”? Let’s journey from Einstein’s thought experiments about relativity to cutting edge neuroscience research to try and answer...
Be Smart
What's the Largest Living Thing On Earth?
The biggest thing that has ever lived on Earth… is a tree? Hard to believe, but it’s true. Travel with me to the Rocky Mountains of Colorado to go inside the most massive species on our planet, and learn what unique and special...
Be Smart
What Would Happen if ONE MILLION Species Went Extinct?
A massive new study has just been released showing that human activities are threatening Earth’s other life forms in some very bad ways. One million species may be at risk of extinction. Just let that sink in. Isn’t the Anthropocene...
Be Smart
What is Impossible in Evolution?
Could humans ever evolve to have wings? Why don’t fish have propellers? Why don’t tigers have wheels? Why don’t zebras have laser turrets? These might all seem like stupid questions (and maybe they are!) but they can teach us a lot about...
Be Smart
What Is A Dinosaur And What Isn’t a Dinosaur?
There’s a lot of confusion out there about what is and isn’t a dinosaur. And you’d be forgiven for being kinda confused. Maybe paleontologists are just messing with us. Or… maybe the question of what is and isn’t a dinosaur goes deeper...
Be Smart
What If We Could See Nature In Infrared?
Why are trees and other plants green? Seems like a simple question. But the answer is full of surprises. Using a special camera that can pick up light just beyond the visible range, into the near-infrared, you’ll get to see trees like...
Be Smart
Trying to Land a Plane (to Prove the Dunning-Kruger Effect)
You may not be an expert, but perhaps you feel pretty confident that you could ride a motorcycle, or give someone a decent haircut - if you absolutely had to - right? Not so much, according to the psychological phenomenon known as the...
Be Smart
Inside a Machine That Can Recreate Hurricanes (for Science)
Hurricanes, typhoons, and tropical cyclones are Earth’s most powerful storms, capable of unleashing destruction and death on coastal areas worldwide. As climate change warms Earth’s oceans, we face more risk of storms rapidly...
Be Smart
This Is How Astronauts Drink Coffee In Space!
I love coffee. Like, a lot. You know who else loves coffee? Astronauts! And also the people who help them do awesome things in space (I think NASA might be powered by coffee). But how do astronauts actually drink coffee in space, aboard...
Be Smart
This Face TOTALLY Changes the Human Story
Greetings, fellow Homo sapiens. Our species is the only remaining member of the genus of upright, walking apes known as Homo. Where did we come from? Our history just got a whole lot more complicated (in a good way) thanks to some...
Be Smart
These Butt-Tickling Ants Are Endangered Butterfly Bodyguards | IN OUR NATURE
Seemingly distant ecosystems, even half a world apart, are connected in surprising ways. In this special limited series, Emily Graslie and Trace Dominguez join me as we explore the universal rules of life that tie together Earth’s living...
Be Smart
The Unexpected Measure that Makes the Modern World Tick
All of modern society relies upon a seemingly simple but surprisingly complex unit of measurement: the second. But knowing exactly what a “second” is is more complicated than you might think!
Be Smart
The Unbelievable Science of How We Read
Reading. You’re doing it right now. I bet you don’t even have to think about it. But have you ever wondered what’s happening in your brain to turn all these weird symbols into meaning? This video will teach you how to read all over...
Be Smart
The Transcontinental Burrito Hypertunnel (a Very Serious Science Video)
The finest burritos in the world are made in San Francisco’s Mission District. But how can you get a hot & fresh one in New York City in time for lunch? Physics, that’s how. For this very serious and scientific video, we dug a classic...
Be Smart
The Strange Science of Why We Dream
It would be a lot easier to study the science of dreaming if we weren’t asleep every time we did it. Why do we dream? What does dreaming do for our brains? How did dreaming evolve? Here’s a look at the current theories from psychology...
Be Smart
The Mathematical Code Hidden In Nature
How do zebras get their stripes? How do leopards get their spots? And how do giraffes get their giraffe-shaped thingies, whatever they are called? Would you believe the answer is… math? This is the story of a WWII wartime codebreaker and...
Be Smart
The Magic (and Mystery) of Mirrors
How many times do you look in a mirror every day? Have you ever stopped to wonder how they actually work? Mirrors do strange things to our world, seemingly flipping everything so that what was right is left and what was left is right....
Be Smart
Why is Puberty so Weird?
There is no phase of a human’s lifetime that is as strange and disgus....er....magical as the transition from childhood into adulthood - that handful of years that we call . . . PUBERTY. Why does it happen? How does it work? Why is it so...
Be Smart
Unraveling the Great Butterfly Migration Mystery
The monarch butterfly migration is one of nature’s greatest events. This orange-winged wonder travels up to 4,500 km from all over North America to spend the winter hanging from oyamel fir trees in central Mexico’s mountain forests. I...