The Language Counting Paradox
AdultsEducationMathScienceLanguage... Lots of languages and species are going extinct, but because others keep getting found or described, the official counts of languages and species are still increasing.
Why the Hardest Rocks Can Be Easy to Break
AdultsEducationMathPhysicsScienceGeology... So, rocks are hard. But the scale we use to rank them, the Mohs scale, is only really good at quantifying that for one kind of hardness, and topaz is a perfect stone to talk about to explain that. And you can check it out in our SciShow Rocks Box subscription!
How The Most Useless Branch of Math Could Save Your Life
AdultsEducationMathScience There is an entire branch of math simply devoted to knots
Numbers They Don't Teach You In School
AdultsEducationMathNatureScience... There's a strange number system, featured in the work of a dozen Fields Medalists, that helps solve problems that are intractable with real numbers.
The Riddle That Seems Impossible Even If You Know The Answer
AdultsEducationMathScienceProblem-Solving... The 100 Prisoners Riddle feels completely impossible even once you know the answer. This video is sponsored by Brilliant.
Combinations of 52 cards (52 factorial)
AdultsMathPsychologyScience Whenever you shuffle a deck of 52 cards, it is quite likely that you are achieving something never done before in history. The number of combinations is 52 factorial.
How Imaginary Numbers Were Invented
AdultsHistoryHumanScienceMath... A general solution to the cubic equation was long considered impossible, until we gave up the requirement that math reflect reality.
The Simplest Math Problem No One Can Solve
AdultsEducationHistoryMathScience... The Collatz Conjecture is the simplest math problem no one can solve — it is easy enough for almost anyone to understand but notoriously difficult to solve.
Can you solve the fantasy election riddle? - Dennis E. Shasha
AdultsEducationHumanMathPoliticsSociety... After much debate, the realm has decided dragon jousting may not be the best way to choose its leaders, and has begun transitioning to democracy.
The Ridiculous Way We Used To Calculate Pi
AdultsEducationHistoryMathScience... For thousands of years, mathematicians were calculating Pi the obvious but numerically inefficient way. Then Newton came along and changed the game. This video is sponsored by Brilliant.
Game theory challenge: Can you predict human behavior?
AdultsHumanPsychologyScienceMath... Solve this classic game theory challenge: given integers from 0 to 100, what would the whole number closest to ⅔ of the average of all numbers guessed be?
What if a Radioactive Spider Bites You?
AdultsAnimalsMediaScienceMathGaming... Everyone knows that when you're bitten by a radioactive animal, you get superpowers... right? Kyle weaves a web of facts and math to ensnare the truth in this week's Because Science!
How Hard Can You Hit a Golf Ball? (at 100,000 FPS)
AdultsMathMediaPhysicsScience... We used a pressurized vacuum cannon to get the golf ball up to speeds of over 500 miles per hour.