TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Why don't "tough" and "dough" rhyme? | Arika Okrent
Spelling reformers have been advocating for changes to make English spelling more intuitive and less irregular. One example of its messiness: take the “g-h” sound from “enough,” the “o” sound from “women” and the “t-i” sound from...
PBS
Author Robert McCrum Explains How English Has Taken Root Worldwide (Jul. 23, 2010)
"Globish" Author Robert McCrum explains why the English language went global and how it has become the first worldwide language.
Curated Video
Fall of The Roman Empire...in the 15th Century: Crash Course World History
In which John Green teaches you about the fall of the Roman Empire, which happened considerably later than you may have been told. While the Western Roman Empire fell to barbarians in 476 CE, the Byzantines in Constantinople continued...
TED Talks
TED: How the new generation of Latinx voters could change US elections | María Teresa Kumar
A historic number of Latinx voters participated in the 2020 US presidential election, including a record number of young people casting their ballots for the first time. Civic leader María Teresa Kumar takes a look at the issues closest...
Crash Course
Pee Jokes, the Italian Renaissance, Commedia Dell'Arte: Crash Course Theater #12
This week, we're going to Italy for a Renaissance. The Middle Ages are over, and it's time to talk about the flourishing of art and humanism across Europe. Painting, sculpture, music, architecture, and plays with fart jokes were all...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: A brief history of Spanish | Ilan Stavans
Beginning in the third century BCE, the Romans conquered the Iberian peninsula. This period gave rise to several regional languages in the area that's now Spain, including Castilian, Catalan, and Galician. One of these would become...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: How did clouds get their names? - Richard Hamblyn
The study of clouds has always been a daydreamer’s science, aptly founded by a thoughtful young man whose favorite activity was staring out of the window at the sky. Richard Hamblyn tells the history of Luke Howard, the man who...
SciShow
IDTIMWYTIM Equinox Stupid Latin
In this edition of IDTIMWYTIM, Hank explains why the common understanding of "equinox" is wrong, what the equinox actually is, and then rages a little against astronomers and their stupid confusing Latin terms.
TED Talks
Terry Moore: Why is 'x' the unknown?
Why is 'x' the symbol for an unknown? In this short and funny talk, Terry Moore gives the surprising answer.
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Why is there a "b" in doubt? - Gina Cooke
Say the word "doubt" aloud. What is that "b" doing there? Does it have any purpose? Gina Cooke explains the long and winding history of "doubt" and why the spelling, though it seems random, is a wink to its storied past.
TED Talks
TED: How I'm using LEGO to teach Arabic | Ghada Wali
After a visit to a European library in search of Arabic and Middle Eastern texts turned up only titles about fear, terrorism and destruction, Ghada Wali resolved to represent her culture in a fun, accessible way. The result: a colorful,...
SciShow
The Weird Truth About Arabic Numerals
Hank unravels the fascinating yarn of how the world came to use so-called Arabic numerals -- from the scholarship of ancient Hindu mathematicians, to Muslim scientist Al-Khwarizmi, to the merchants of medieval Italy.
Crash Course
Florence and the Renaissance: Crash Course European History
The Renaissance was a cultural revitalization that spread across Europe, and had repercussions across the globe, but one smallish city-state in Italy was in many ways the epicenter of the thing. Florence, or as Italians might say,...
TED-Ed
TED-ED: Where did English come from? - Claire Bowern
When we talk about 'English', we often think of it as a single language. But what do the dialects spoken in dozens of countries around the world have in common with each other, or with the writings of Chaucer? Claire Bowern traces the...
TED Talks
La faute de l'orthographe
La faute de l'orthographe Nous avons été profs de français, explique linguistes Arnaud Hoedt et Jérôme Piron, sommés de nous offusquer des fautes d'orthographe et nous avons été pris pour les curés de la langue. Dans ce discours comique,...
Crash Course
Cosmic Sexy Time, Eggs, Seeds, and Water: Crash Course World Mythology
In which Mike teaches you about the creation of the universe, with sex. This week we're talking about creations stories from Egypt, West Africa, Greece, China, and Persia that have a lot in common with human sexual reproduction. And also...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: How the Normans changed the history of Europe - Mark Robinson
In the year 1066, 7,000 Norman infantry and knights sailed in warships across the English Channel. Their target: England, home to more than a million people . Around the same period of time, other groups of Normans were setting forth all...
Be Smart
How The Elements Got Their Names
Ever wonder what all those names on the periodic table actually mean? There's a whole lot of fascinating history on Mendeleev's table. Some carry names from antiquity, some are named for people, some are named for places, and some are...
Crash Course
Taxonomy: Life's Filing System - Crash Course Biology
Hank tells us the background story and explains the importance of the science of classifying living things, also known as taxonomy.
SciShow
Pliny The Elder: Great Minds
Before there was Google, there were encyclopedias. The very idea of these vast collections of knowledge can be credited to Pliny The Elder. So who was he, and why does he seem to pop up everywhere from Alchemy to Zoology? Hank has the...
Crash Course
The Bicameral Congress: Crash Course Government and Politics
In which Craig Benzine teaches you about the United States Congress, and why it's bicameral, and what bicameral means. Craig tells you what the Senate and House of Representatives are for, some of the history of the institutions, and...
Crash Course
The Death and Resurrection of Theater as...Liturgical Drama: Crash Course Theater #8
As the Roman Empire fell, so did the theater. If there's anyone who hates theater and actors more than Romans, it's early Christians. As Christianity ascended in the west, theater declined. But, fear not. This isn't the end of the...
TED Talks
TED: An honest history of an ancient and "nasty" word | Kate Lister
With candor and cunning, sex historian Kate Lister chronicles the curious journey of an ancient, honest word with innocent origins and a now-scandalous connotation in this uproarious love letter to etymology, queens, cows and all things...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Is there any truth to the King Arthur legends? - Alan Lupack
King Arthur has risen again and again in our collective imagination, along with his retinue of knights, Guinevere, the Round Table, Camelot, and of course Excalibur. But where do these stories come from, and is there any truth to them?...