The Science of Lying
Hank gets into the dirty details behind our lying ways – how such behavior evolved, how pathological liars are different from the rest of us, and how scientists are getting better at spotting lies in many situations.
Lectures
Top 5 Deadliest Substances on Earth
There are natural poisons that lurk in bacteria, plants, and fungi pretty much everywhere, and they’re there for good reasons (according to the organisms that produce them) – but what is it about their chemical make up that makes them so poisonous? How do their toxins attack the human body with such deadly efficiency? Discover the answers to these and other questions as Hank talks about some of the most deadly natural substances in the world.
Txtng is killing language. JK!!!
Does texting mean the death of good writing skills? John McWhorter posits that there’s much more to texting — linguistically, culturally — than it seems, and it’s all good news.
Horsehead sculpted in dust
This year marks the 23rd year of observing for the Hubble Space Telescope. Alongside cutting-edge science, the orbiting observatory has produced countless stunning astronomical images. Some of the most striking and beautiful subjects of Hubble’s images have been nebulae — vast interstellar clouds of gas and dust.
Ferrofluid – the magnetic liquid!
Materials scientist Mark Miodownik demonstrates some of the weird properties of ferrofluid. This liquid is literally ‘dripping with magnetism’, containing a suspension of ferromagnetic nanoparticles that make the liquid responsive to external magnetic fields, generating unusual patterns, shapes and motion.
Gold Bullion Vault
The Bank of England protects about £197 billion ($315bn) worth of gold, according to the mostly recently published figures.
Parkinson’s, depression and the switch that might turn them off
Deep brain stimulation is becoming very precise. This technique allows surgeons to place electrodes in almost any area of the brain, and turn them up or down — like a radio dial or thermostat — to correct dysfunction. A dramatic look at emerging techniques, in which a woman with Parkinson’s instantly stops shaking and brain areas eroded by Alzheimer’s are brought back to life.
Dare to educate Afghan girls
Imagine a country where girls must sneak out to go to school, with deadly consequences if they get caught learning. This was Afghanistan under the Taliban, and traces of that danger remain today. 22-year-old Shabana Basij-Rasikh runs a school for girls in Afghanistan. She celebrates the power of a family’s decision to believe in their daughters — and tells the story of one brave father who stood up to local threats.
Precipitation reactions
A lot of ionic compounds dissolve in water, dissociating into individual ions. But when two ions find each other that form an insoluble compound, they suddenly fall out of solution in what’s called a precipitation reaction. In this episode of Crash Course Chemistry, we learn about precipitation, precipitates, anions, cations, and how to describe and [...]
Lab-Grown Meat
Strange story of in vitro meat – muscle tissue grown in laboratories with the hope that someday we will eat it.
Potato biodiversity — ensuring the future
Farmers in the Andes use biodiversity as insurance. The potato, a plant native to the area that is now the world’s fourth most important staple crop, is still locally grown in thousands of varieties. With help from Lima’s International Potato Center, Andean farmers are preserving potato diversity to protect this critical food source against threats like pests and diseases, weather extremes, and climate change.
Time perception
How does the human brain keep track of time? Interview with Luke Jones from the University of Manchester.
How does an atom-smashing particle accelerator work?
An atom smasher, or particle accelerator, collides atomic nuclei together at extremely cold temperatures, very low air pressure, and hyperbolically fast speeds. Don Lincoln explains how scientists harness the power of both electric and magnetic fields to smash atoms, eventually leading to major discoveries about the matter in our universe.
Who invented writing?
Speaking came thousands of years before writing. All writing that has developed since its invention can be traced back to two civilizations: Sumerian and Chinese. Matthew Winkler dissects the evolution of Sumerian cuneiform and explains the difference between writing those first symbols and simply drawing meaning.
