PBS
Why Quasars are so Awesome
When Quasars were first discovered the amount of light pouring out of such a tiny dot in space seemed impossible. A hysterical flurry of hypothesizing followed: swarms of neutron stars, alien civilizations harnessing their entire...
SciShow
A Violent Origin Story for Tiny Space Diamonds | SciShow News
Scientists may have discovered some clues to two vastly different anomalies. Microscopic diamonds inside of meteors, and why ancient black holes are so massive.
SciShow
Why Solar Eclipses Create Those Crescent-Shaped Lights
Everyone is watching the sky during a solar eclipse, but but if you look down, you'll catch another kind of light show.
SciShow
The Kugelblitz: A Black Hole Made From Light
Can you make a black hole out of light? Learn about the strange theoretical object called the 'Kugelblitz'.
TED-Ed
TED-ED: The deadly irony of gunpowder - Eric Rosado
In the mid-ninth century, Chinese chemists, hard at work on an immortality potion, instead invented gunpowder. They soon found that this highly inflammable powder was far from an elixir of life -- they put it to use in bombs against...
SciShow
The Strange Scourge of Light Pollution
Light pollution -- it's not just the bane of light sleepers and frustrated astronomers. It also is tinkering with the biological cycles of all kinds of living things, including us! SciShow takes you behind the glare to understand the...
Be Smart
The Surprising Places We Waste Energy
We use a LOT of energy, but we waste a lot too. Where that waste happens might surprise, you though. We don't just waste energy when we leave the lights on or the thermostat cranked down too low. It happens at the dinner table and the...
TED Talks
Edith Widder: Glowing life in an underwater world
Some 80 to 90 percent of undersea creatures make light -- and we know very little about how or why. Bioluminescence expert Edith Widder explores this glowing, sparkling, luminous world, sharing glorious images and insight into the unseen...
TED Talks
Paul Romer: Why the world needs charter cities
How can a struggling country break out of poverty if it's trapped in a system of bad rules? Economist Paul Romer unveils a bold idea: "charter cities," city-scale administrative zones governed by a coalition of nations. (Could Guantánamo...
SciShow
A Tribute to John Glenn
The first American astronaut to orbit Earth, John Glenn passed away yesterday in Ohio. But he leaves an admirable legacy.
SciShow
These Lice Dive Kilometers Under the Ocean!
Lice don’t just thrive in the biomes of body hair and fur, they can also live in a place that seems like it should be bug-free: the oceans.
TED Talks
TED: Can light stop the coronavirus? | David Brenner
Far-UVC light is a type of ultraviolet light that kills microbes and viruses and, crucially, seems to be safe to use around humans. Radiation scientist David Brenner describes how we could use this light to stop the spread of SARS-CoV-2,...
TED Talks
TED: Lessons from a solar storm chaser | Miho Janvier
Space physicist Miho Janvier studies solar storms: giant clouds of particles that escape from the Sun and can disrupt life on Earth (while also producing amazing auroras). How do you study the atmosphere on the Sun, which burns at...
TED Talks
TED: The weird, wonderful world of bioluminescence | Edith Widder
In the deep, dark ocean, many sea creatures make their own light for hunting, mating and self-defense. Bioluminescence expert Edith Widder was one of the first to film this glimmering world. At TED2011, she brings some of her glowing...
SciShow
Why Shouldn't You Look at the Sun?
You might have done it accidentally or intentionally but one thing is clear: Don't stare at the the sun! Hank Green explains why.
TED Talks
Tom Thum and Matthew Broadhurst: What happens in your throat when you beatbox?
Viral beatboxer Tom Thum has an orchestra in his mouth, but how does he make all those sounds? Get an up-close-and-personal look as laryngeal surgeon Matthew Broadhurst sticks a camera down Thum's throat while he creates a mind-boggling...
SciShow
3 Times Science Debunked the Paranormal
With the right questions, and careful observation, a ghost story can transform from a spooky anecdote to a scientific experiment.
TED Talks
TED: My escape from North Korea | Hyeonseo Lee
As a child growing up in North Korea, Hyeonseo Lee thought her country was "the best on the planet." It wasn't until the famine of the 90s that she began to wonder. She escaped the country at 14, to begin a life in hiding, as a refugee...
TED Talks
TED: Never, ever give up | Diana Nyad
In the pitch-black night, stung by jellyfish, choking on salt water, singing to herself, hallucinating … Diana Nyad just kept on swimming. And that's how she finally achieved her lifetime goal as an athlete: an extreme 100-mile swim from...
TED Talks
Rogier van der Heide: Why light needs darkness
Lighting architect Rogier van der Heide offers a beautiful new way to look at the world -- by paying attention to light (and to darkness). Examples from classic buildings illustrate a deeply thought-out vision of the play of light around...
TED Talks
TED: The loves and lies of fireflies | Sara Lewis
Biologist Sara Lewis has spent the past 20 years getting to the bottom of the magic and wonder of fireflies. In this charming talk, she tells us how and why the beetles produce their silent sparks, what happens when two fireflies have...
SciShow
Kicked in the Crotch vs. Childbirth The Great Debate
Childbirth or a swift kick to the crotch? Both are painful experiences, but is there a scientifically accurate way to tell which is worse?
TED Talks
Shih Chieh Huang: Sculptures that’d be at home in the deep sea
When he was young, artist Shih Chieh Huang loved taking toys apart and perusing the aisles of night markets in Taiwan for unexpected objects. Today, this TED Fellow creates madcap sculptures that seem to have a life of their own—with...
SciShow
How Do Blacklights Make Things Glow?
Join Hank Green as he explains why blacklights make some things glow!