View full lesson: Space is where things happen. Time is when things happen. And sometimes, in order to really look at the universe, you need to take those two concepts and mash them together. In this first lesson of a three-part series on space-time, hilarious hosts Andrew Pontzen and Tom Whyntie go through the basics […]
Tag: TED-Ed
The history of the world according to corn – Chris A. Kniesly
Trace the 9,000 year old history of the domestication of corn, or maize, and its effects on global agriculture. — Corn currently accounts for more than one tenth of our global crop production. And over 99% of cultivated corn is the exact same type: Yellow Dent #2. This means that humans grow more Yellow Dent […]
Is math discovered or invented? – Jeff Dekofsky
Explore some of the most famous arguments in the ancient debate: is math a human construct or part of the fabric of the universe? — Would mathematics exist if people didn’t? Did we create mathematical concepts to help us understand the world around us, or is math the native language of the universe itself? Jeff […]
The myth of Hades and Persephone – Iseult Gillespie
Dig into the Greek myth of Persephone, who is abducted by Hades and is only allowed to leave the underworld every spring. — One day, Persephone was frolicking in a meadow with the nymph, Cyane. As they admired a flower, they noticed it tremble in the ground. Suddenly, the earth split, and a terrifying figure […]
The myth of Prometheus – Iseult Gillespie
Check out our Patreon page: View full lesson: Before the creation of humanity, the Greek gods won a great battle against a race of giants called the Titans. Most Titans were destroyed or driven to the eternal hell of Tartarus. But the Titan Prometheus, whose name means foresight, persuaded his brother Epimetheus to fight with […]
What is consciousness? – Michael S. A. Graziano
Explore the theories of human consciousness and the science of how your brain works to create a conscious experience. — Patient P.S. suffered a stroke that damaged the right side of her brain, leaving her unaware of everything on her left side. If someone threw a ball at her left side, she might duck. But […]
What's hidden among the tallest trees on Earth? – Wendell Oshiro
View full lesson: When Stephen Sillett was a boy, he took to the forests of Pennsylvania with his brother and grandmother. Looking up into the dense branches and leaves, his curiosity was piqued: What was hidden up there? Wendell Oshiro tells the story of an adult Sillett’s bold (if not a little dangerous) exploration of […]
The beginning of the universe, for beginners – Tom Whyntie
View full lesson: How did the universe begin — and how is it expanding? CERN physicist Tom Whyntie shows how cosmologists and particle physicists explore these questions by replicating the heat, energy, and activity of the first few seconds of our universe, from right after the Big Bang. Lesson by Tom Whyntie, animation by Hornet […]
The 2,400-year search for the atom – Theresa Doud
View full lesson: How do we know what matter is made of? The quest for the atom has been a long one, beginning 2,400 years ago with the work of a Greek philosopher and later continued by a Quaker and a few Nobel Prize-winning scientists. Theresa Doud details the history of atomic theory. Lesson by […]
The physics of surfing – Nick Pizzo
Wondering how you can catch the perfect wave? Dive into the fascinating and complex physics of surfing. — Whether or not you realize it, surfers are masters of complicated physics. The science of surfing begins as soon as a board first hits the water. Surfers may not be thinking about weather patterns in the Pacific, […]