Crash Course
Water and Classical Civilizations: Crash Course World History 222
In which John Green teaches you about water! So, we talk about resources a lot on Crash Course, and today is no exception. It turns out people can't live without water, which means it's absolutely necessary for civilization. Today John...
TED Talks
TED: Why joy is a state of mind | Angélique Kidjo and Femi Oke
With infectious energy, singer-songwriter Angélique Kidjo ties together the threads of her legendary career as a creative force and global activist. In conversation with journalist Femi Oke, she discusses how joy powers her music (and...
TED Talks
Jennifer Lin: Improvising on piano, aged 14
Pianist and composer Jennifer Lin gives a magical performance, talks about the process of creativity and improvises a moving solo piece based on a random sequence of notes.
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.
TED Talks
Nora York: Singing "What I Want"
Nora York gives a stunning performance of her song "What I Want," with Jamie Lawrence (keyboards), Steve Tarshis (guitar) and Arthur Kell (bass).
Crash Course
Where Does Your Mind Reside?: Crash Course Philosophy
Today we continue our unit on identity by asking where the mind resides. Hank explains the mind body problem and several approaches to the question of where our minds reside, including reductive physicalism, substance dualism, and...
TED Talks
Aditi Shankardass: A second opinion on developmental disorders
Developmental disorders in children are typically diagnosed by observing behavior, but Aditi Shankardass suggests we should be looking directly at brains. She explains how one EEG technique has revealed mistaken diagnoses and transformed...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Should you trust your first impression? - Peter Mende-Siedlecki
You can't help it; sometimes, you just get a bad feeling about someone that's hard to shake. So, what's happening in your brain when you make that critical (and often lasting) first judgment? Peter Mende-Siedlecki shares the social...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: The tragic myth of the Sun God's son | Iseult Gillespie
Every morning, Helios unleashed his golden chariot, and set out across the sky. As the Sun God transformed dawn into day, he thought of his son, Phaethon, below. To prove to Phaethon that he was truly his father, Helios decided to grant...
PBS
Is Minecraft the Ultimate Educational Tool?
Some experts have brought Minecraft into the classroom, allowing teachers to customize lessons and students to engage with concepts in new ways. And while educational games aren't new, Minecraft has some unique advantages that could...
TED Talks
Dessa: Can we choose to fall out of love?
What's the best way to get over heartbreak? Rapper and writer Dessa came up with an unconventional approach after a chance viewing of Helen Fisher's TED Talk about the brains of the lovestruck. In a wryly funny talk, she describes how...
TED Talks
TED: Don't fear superintelligent AI | Grady Booch
New tech spawns new anxieties, says scientist and philosopher Grady Booch, but we don't need to be afraid an all-powerful, unfeeling AI. Booch allays our worst (sci-fi induced) fears about superintelligent computers by explaining how...
Crash Course
Modern Thought and Culture in 1900: Crash Course European History
Europe was in transition politically and culturally at the beginning of the 20th century. Today, we're looking at the dawn of modern science, and the rise of Modernism in the arts, especially in music, dance, and visual arts. We'll look...
SciShow
Me, Myself, and I: Dissociative Identity Disorder
Edward Norton and Jim Carrey might be charming actors, but their film portrayals of people with multiple personalities aren’t even close to accurate.
SciShow
The Psychology of Trolling
As denizens of the internet, most of us are familiar with the trolls. In this episode of SciShow, learn a little about how social scientists think trolls came to be, and how online communities are figuring it all out.
TED Talks
TED: A scientific approach to the paranormal | Carrie Poppy
What's haunting Carrie Poppy? Is it ghosts or something worse? In this talk, the investigative journalist narrates her encounter with a spooky feeling you'll want to warn your friends about and explains why we need science to deal with...
TED-Ed
TED-ED: What is abstract expressionism? - Sarah Rosenthal
If you visit a museum with a collection of modern and contemporary art, you're likely to see works that sometimes elicit the response, _My cat could make that, so how is it art?" But is it true? Could anyone create one of Jackson...
TED Talks
TED: A flirtatious aria | Danielle de Niese
Can opera be ever-so-slightly sexy? The glorious soprano Danielle de Niese shows how, singing the flirty "Meine Lippen, sie küssen so heiss." Which, translated, means, as you might guess: "I kiss so hot." From Giuditta by Frans Lehár;...
TED Talks
TED: A new way to think about the transition to motherhood | Alexandra Sacks
When a baby is born, so is a mother -- but the natural (and sometimes unsteady) process of transition to motherhood is often silenced by shame or misdiagnosed as postpartum depression. In this quick, informative talk, reproductive...
TED Talks
TED: When technology can read minds, how will we protect our privacy? | Nita Farahany
Tech that can decode your brain activity and reveal what you're thinking and feeling is on the horizon, says legal scholar and ethicist Nita Farahany. What will it mean for our already violated sense of privacy? In a cautionary talk,...
TED Talks
David Chalmers: How do you explain consciousness?
Our consciousness is a fundamental aspect of our existence, says philosopher David Chalmers: “There’s nothing we know about more directly…. but at the same time it’s the most mysterious phenomenon in the universe.” He shares some ways to...
TED Talks
Drew Curtis: How I beat a patent troll
Drew Curtis, the founder of fark.com, tells the story of how he fought a lawsuit from a company that had a patent, "...for the creation and distribution of news releases via email." Along the way he shares some nutty statistics about the...
TED Talks
TED: How AI can bring on a second Industrial Revolution | Kevin Kelly
The actual path of a raindrop as it goes down the valley is unpredictable, but the general direction is inevitable, says digital visionary Kevin Kelly -- and technology is much the same, driven by patterns that are surprising but...