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 […]
Tag: TED-Ed
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, […]
Where did Earth’s water come from? – Zachary Metz
View full lesson: Water covers over 70% of the Earth, cycling from the oceans and rivers to the clouds and back again. It even makes up about 60% of our bodies. But in the rest of the solar system, liquid water is almost impossible to find. So how did our planet end up with so […]
The Egyptian Book of the Dead: A guidebook for the underworld – Tejal Gala
View full lesson: Ancient Egyptians believed that in order to become immortal after death, a spirit must first pass through the underworld — a realm of vast caverns, lakes of fire, and magical gates. Needless to say, one needed to come prepared. But how? Tejal Gala describes an Egyptian “Book of the Dead” — a […]
How a few scientists transformed the way we think about disease – Tien Nguyen
View full lesson: This video was created with support from the U.S. Office of Research Integrity: For several centuries, people though diseases were caused by wandering clouds of poisonous vapor. We now know that this theory is pretty ridiculous, and that diseases are caused by specific bacteria. But how did we get to this new […]
Why does ice float in water? – George Zaidan and Charles Morton
View full lesson: Water is a special substance for several reasons, and you may have noticed an important one right in your cold drink: ice. Solid ice floats in liquid water, which isn’t true for most substances. But why? George Zaidan and Charles Morton explain the science behind how how hydrogen bonds keep the ice […]
The wacky history of cell theory – Lauren Royal-Woods
View full lesson: Scientific discovery isn’t as simple as one good experiment. The weird and wonderful history of cell theory illuminates the twists and turns that came together to build the foundations of biology. Lesson by Lauren Royal-Woods, animation by Augenblick Studios. source