How languages evolve - Alex Gendler
AdultsHistoryLanguageScienceOver the course of human history, thousands of languages have developed from what was once a much smaller number. How did we end up with so many? And how do we keep track of them all? Alex Gendler explains how linguists group languages into language families, demonstrating how these linguistic trees give us crucial insights into the past.
The fundamentals of space-time: Part 2 - Andrew Pontzen and Tom Whyntie
AdultsMathPhysicsScience...Light always travels at a speed of 299,792,458 meters per second. But if you're in motion too, you're going to perceive it as traveling even faster -- which isn't possible! In this second installment of a three-part series on space-time, CERN scientists Andrew Pontzen and Tom Whyntie use a space-time diagram to analyze the sometimes confounding motion of light.
Deep ocean mysteries and wonders
AdultsEcologyEnvironmentNature...In the deepest, darkest parts of the oceans are ecosystems with more diversity than a tropical rainforest. Taking us on a voyage into the ocean -- from the deepest trenches to the remains of the Titanic -- marine biologist David Gallo explores the wonder and beauty of marine life.
There's No Such Thing As Cold
AdultsPhysicsWeatherScience...You've felt cold before. Sometimes it's cold outside. But what if I told you that "cold" isn't real? There's no substance or quantity called "cold" in science. We can't measure the amount of "cold" in something. Instead it's about what's NOT there. In this week's video, learn the difference between heat and temperature, why a wind makes us feel colder, and what it's like to live as a mass of jiggling atoms. This is the physics of cold.
Does Sound Affect Taste?
AdultsFoodScienceExperimentsGreg foot creates an experiment from his kitchen to see if the sounds we listen to can affect the way we taste things.
Quantum Entanglement & Spooky Action at a Distance
AdultsPhysicsScienceTechnologyDoes quantum entanglement make faster-than-light communication possible?
How a wound heals itself
AdultsBiologyHealthHuman...Our skin is the largest organ in our bodies, with a surface area of about 20 square feet in adults. When we are cut or wounded, our skin begins to repair itself through a complex, well-coordinated process. Sarthak Sinha takes us past the epidermis and into the dermis to investigate this regenerative response.
Myths and misconceptions about evolution
AdultsEnvironmentHistoryWorld...How does evolution really work? Actually, not how some of our common evolutionary metaphors would have us believe. For instance, it's species, not individual organisms, that adapt to produce evolution, and genes don't "want" to be passed on -- a gene can't want anything at all! Alex Gendler sets the record straight on the finer points of evolution.
How do pain relievers work?
AdultsHealthScienceBiologySome people take aspirin or ibuprofen to treat everyday aches and pains, but how exactly do the different classes of pain relievers work? Learn about the basic physiology of how humans experience pain, and the mechanics of the medicines we've invented to block or circumvent that discomfort.
The Most Radioactive Places on Earth
AdultsGlobal WarmingLifeWorld...I'm filming a documentary for TV about how Uranium and radioactivity have shaped the modern world. It will be broadcast in mid-2015, details to come. The filming took me to the most radioactive places on Earth (and some places, which surprisingly aren't as radioactive as you'd think). Chernobyl and Fukushima were incredible to see as they present post-apocalyptic landscapes. I also visited nuclear power plants, research reactors, Marie Curie's institute, Einstein's apartment, nuclear medicine areas of hospitals, uranium mines, nuclear bomb sites, and interviewed numerous experts.
This double amputee can control two robotic arms with his mind
AdultsBiotechnologyDisabilityTechnology...A Colorado man made history at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) this summer when he became the first bilateral shoulder-level amputee to wear and simultaneously control two of the Laboratory's Modular Prosthetic Limbs.