TED Talks
Fahad Al-Attiya: A country with no water
Imagine a country with abundant power -- oil and gas, sunshine, wind (and money) -- but missing one key essential for life: water. Infrastructure engineer Fahad Al-Attiya talks about the unexpected ways that the small Middle Eastern...
TED Talks
TED: The world in 2200 | Pete Alcorn
In this short, optimistic talk from TED2009, Pete Alcorn shares a vision of the world of two centuries from now -- when declining populations and growing opportunity prove Malthus was wrong.
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Illuminating photography: From camera obscura to camera phone - Eva Timothy
The origins of the cameras we use today were invented in the 19th century. Or were they? A millenia before, Arab scientist Alhazen was using the camera obscura to duplicate images, with Leonardo da Vinci following suit 500 years later...
TED Talks
4 tips to kickstart honest conversations at work | Betsy Kauffman
Why is it so hard to speak up and productively disagree at work? Leadership and organization coach Betsy Kauffman shows how to bring the candid conversations that usually happen at the watercooler out into the open with four practical...
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: Why should you read "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy? | Laura Wright
Set in a small town in India, "The God of Small Things" revolves around fraternal twins Rahel and Estha, who are separated for 23 years after the fateful hours in which their cousin drowns, their mother's affair is revealed, and her...
SciShow
3 Cosmic Time Capsules
Long before we were around, the universe was preserving clues about the distant past, in everything from little balls of carbon to huge groups of stars.
PBS
Are Space and Time An Illusion?
This episode of Space Time is actually about Spacetime, so pull up a chair, grab your favorite snack, and buckle up, because this episode is going to be a TRIP. Gabe explores what reality is, what "time" is, and why what you think those...
TED Talks
TED: The racial politics of time | Brittney Cooper
* Viewer discretion advised. This video includes discussion of mature topics and may be inappropriate for some audiences. Cultural theorist Brittney Cooper examines racism through the lens of time, showing us how historically it has been...
Crash Course
Decolonization and Nationalism Triumphant Crash Course World History
In which John Green teaches you about the post-World War II breakup of most of the European empires. As you'll remember from previous installments of Crash Course, Europeans spent several centuries sailing around the world creating...
TED Talks
Louise Leakey: A dig for humanity's origins
Louise Leakey asks, "Who are we?" The question takes her to the Rift Valley in Eastern Africa, where she digs for the evolutionary origins of humankind -- and suggests a stunning new vision of our competing ancestors.
Crash Course
Terrorism, War, and Bush 43 Crash Course US History
In which John Green teaches you about the tumultuous 2000's in the United States of America, mainly the 2000's that coincide with the presidency of George W Bush. From the controversial election in 2000, to the events of 9/11 and Bush's...
PBS
What Does Dark Energy Really Do?
How does dark energy affect the universe's expansion? Measuring past expansion history should tell us the future expansion without ever having to count any galaxies. To measure this we need to measure the redshift-distance relationship,...
TED Talks
Nanfu Wang: What it was like to grow up under China's one-child policy
China's one-child policy ended in 2015, but we're just beginning to understand what it was like to live under the program, says TED Fellow and documentary filmmaker Nanfu Wang. With footage from her film "One Child Nation," she shares...
Be Smart
Are We All Related?
In part 3 of our special series on human ancestry, we investigate how closely related we all really are. Basic math tells us that all humans share ancestors. But you'll be amazed at how recently those shared ancestors lived. Thanks to...
SciShow
3 World-Changing Biology Experiments
Hank tells us the stories of three experiments in biology that, with creativity and luck, changed science & the world with it in their work to solve the mysteries of the universe.
SciShow
Great Minds: James Hutton, Founder of Geology
Rocks are more than just rocks, they're the key to Earth's history!
TED-Ed
TED-Ed: How to build a fictional world - Kate Messner
Why is J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy so compelling? How about The Matrix or Harry Potter? What makes these disparate worlds come alive are clear, consistent rules for how people, societies -- and even the laws of physics --...
TED Talks
TED: The secrets I find on the mysterious ocean floor | Laura Robinson
Hundreds of meters below the surface of the ocean, Laura Robinson probes the steep slopes of massive undersea mountains. She's on the hunt for thousand-year-old corals that she can test in a nuclear reactor to discover how the ocean...
SciShow
How a Butterfly’s Wingbeat CAN Change the Weather
You may have heard of the butterfly effect, where butterflies flapping their wings somehow cause tornadoes. Although it seems pretty unlikely, butterflies can affect the weather, just not in the way you might think.
TED Talks
Yang Lan: The generation that's remaking China
Yang Lan, a journalist and entrepreneur who's been called "the Oprah of China," offers insight into the next generation of young Chinese citizens -- urban, connected (via microblogs) and alert to injustice.
TED Talks
Mani Vajipey: How India's local recyclers could solve plastic pollution
India has one of the world's highest rates of plastic recycling, thanks largely to an extensive network of informal recyclers known as "kabadiwalas." Entrepreneur Mani Vajipey discusses his work to organize their massive efforts into a...
SciShow
Does Sensory Deprivation Really Help You Think?
Sensory deprivation tanks have grown in popularity recently, and while the research is not extensive, scientists have found some positive effects from spending some time without so much stimulation.
Crash Course
Democracy, Authoritarian Capitalism, and China: Crash Course World History 230
In which John Green teaches you about the end of World History, and the end of the world as we know it, kind of. For the last hundred years or so, it seemed that one important ingredient for running an economically successful country was...
MinutePhysics
Why is it Dark at Night
Have you ever wondered why you look up and see a dark sky at night?