Awesome Learning

(PG-13) Last Week Tonight looks at the sorry state of sex education in the United States. Many schools get lessons and speakers with sexist and archaic perspectives, so at 17:51, the show presents a much better alternative.

Not Drizzy’s Meek Mill diss or Pippen’s Nikes. We’re talking about humanity’s greatest discovery. It’s Okay to Be Smart sums up Michael Faraday’s beginner lessons on fire, specifically candlelight.

AsapSCIENCE looks at the changes your body would go through if you stopped eating food and never looked back. Sure, you’d lose some weight to start, and you can survive longer than you might think, then things run off the rails badly.

Veritasium visited Arizona’s Titan Missile Museum – a former nuclear missile silo for a sobering simulation of a nuclear missile launch. The warhead in the former silo’s Titan II missile was 650 times stronger than Little Boy.

AsapSCIENCE looks at a variety of facts about dogs, from their impressive schnozzes, to their ability to respond to emotions, their intelligence compared to humans, and the reasons they do the things that endear them to us.

The short answer? Nope. Perishable food spoil because of microorganisms that feast on sugar or protein, which are both absent in drinking water. But water can be contaminated, and that’s where trouble can begin.

The opening scene from the third episode of Kirby Ferguson’s ongoing series This is Not a Conspiracy Theory goes over the appeal of the supernatural. Beyond entertainment, magic provides hope and certainty.

(PG-13 Language) Last Week Tonight used clips from Just Eat It to dive into the US’ mind blowing food waste. Americans throw away the equivalent of 20 lb. of food per person per month, while tens of millions in their country go hungry.

Tommy Edison talks about the various gadgets and software he’s used throughout the years to help him find out what time it is. He started with a Braille watch, then he moved on to talking clocks. We wonder what he thinks of the Bradley.

The Game Theorists argue that esports should be on ESPN, which by the way also shows poker tourneys and spelling bees. The problem is that non-gamers have outdated perceptions about competitive gaming and video games in general.

New York Magazine’s scientifically-proven tips to help you power through a day even if you didn’t get enough sleep. They’re pretty simple actually: ration your coffee, get some sunlight and stay away from sugary foods.

“The only way you can exercise the mind is by bringing new ideas to it, so it’ll be surprised.” A look at the progression of the late, great cartoonist and director Chuck Jones. He had talent, and also knew how to keep himself sharp.

“What would happen if a black hole the size of a coin suddenly appeared near you? Short answer: You’d die. Long answer: It depends.” Kurzgesagt asks this imponderable and leaves us with the sense that you wouldn’t want to be nearby.

“It looks like a planet, it’s got atmosphere, it even has a heart. Unlike you.” Incoming late night host Stephen Colbert talks to astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson about the scientist’s condescension towards Pluto.

Mental Floss debunks myths about video games, from it being primarily a children’s hobby to making gamers violent or desensitized to violence. And no, blowing into cartridges doesn’t really work and could actually damage the cart.

Last Week Tonight explains that in the United States, teams are allowed to spend millions of dollars of taxpayer’s money for their stadiums. But studies have shown that those barely have any financial benefit for locals.

The Film Theorists delve into the history and science of adhesives to see if a person can die by licking envelope adhesive, which was how George’s fiancée Susan passed away in Seinfeld.

Kurzgesagt teaches us about the importance of honey bees to our world’s delicate ecosystem, and the science behind the phenomenon of colony collapse disorder. Next time you see a bee buzzing around you head, think about this video.

Our body tends to cool down before we sleep, and our feet and hands have blood vessels close to the surface of the skin. Thus exposing your feet cools your body down relatively quickly and helps signal that it’s time to sleep.

Did you know that Uncle Sam was a real person? Or that while Minnesota is known for its lakes, Alaska actually trumps it with over 3,000,000 lakes? Learn about those trivia and more in Mental Floss’ Independence Day special.

Despite the heavy losses suffered by the failed SpaceX cargo mission and the other two missions before it, Smarter Every Day points out that these failures yield priceless data, and that they couldn’t have happened at a better time.

(PG-13 Language) “Official rules can end up legitimizing prejudice.” Last Week Tonight looks at the struggles of transgender people, such as dealing with ignorance and the lack of support from the government.

Many Americans want the “Confederate Flag” banned because of its ties to slavery. But CGP Grey points out that this hotly debated flag is actually just the flag of the Confederate Army, not of the entire Confederacy. Still, it should go.