Awesome Learning

Mental Floss fills our brains with a bunch of random trivia. Regardless, you’ll feel slightly more educated by the end. Whether you’re a fan of The Simpsons, Taco Bell, blue whales or Sia, there’s something for everyone here.

Brett Gaylor’s Do Not Track is an interactive educational web series about how companies monitor and store your online behavior and data without your awareness, and how it affects you and other people online.

Vsauce wonders if we’ll ever run out of names. The answer is a resounding no, although our descendants might have unmemorable names. Then Michael goes off on his usual tangents and explores how our identities can influence us.

Beazknees’ short profile of forensic photographer Nick Marsh. He loves his job because of the variety of experiences it brings, and laments that the proliferation of affordable cameras has led to a reduced appreciation of his field and his skills.

(PG-13: Language) In his interview with Last Week Tonight, Edward Snowden also talked about passwords. He recommends using passphrases. The right passphrase is harder to crack yet more memorable than a random string of characters.

YouTuber John Ruddock shows two projectionists changing the xenon arc lamp of The Tech Museum‘s IMAX projector. The 15,000W bulb costs about $6,000. It’s so bright if you lit it up on the Moon we’ll be able to see it from here.

(PG-13: Language) “If we sacrifice our values because we’re afraid, [that means] we don’t care about those values very much.” Last Week Tonight talks to Edward Snowden and reminds us of the Patriot Act’s impending renewal.

Despite the controversy and dangers behind nuclear energy, the science behind it is impressive. Here, Kurzgesagt takes a look at how radioactive elements are harnessed into usable power, and the history of nuclear power.

In the first part of Smarter Every Day’s space series, Destin talks to astronauts Scott Kelly and Greg Wiseman to give us an idea of how the Soyuz spacecraft works and how it docks with the International Space Station.

Vsauce talks about awkwardness, including why we feel the same symptoms when we’re embarrassed as when we’re in danger of physical pain. He also explains that in a stupid way, people who are easily embarrassed are being narcissistic.

Two species of the Demodex mite can be found on all humans, usually on our faces. As SciShow says, that means you’re never really alone. It also means that at any given moment hundreds of mites are dying or making love ON YOUR FACE.

Did you know that panthers don’t exist? Or that dead jellyfish can still sting? Or that 80% of koalas have chlamydia? Learn all of that and more from Mental Floss’ List Show. Damn, koalas. Check yourself before you wreck yourself.

Bite-sized Psych explains the human flaw called anchoring – our tendency to rely on the first piece of information we acquire when faced with an unfamiliar task – and shows hows how businesses exploit it to rope in customers.

CGP Grey talks about how thoughts can spread like germs and viruses. A study in 2009 based on three months worth of New York Times’ online articles found that the most viral thoughts are those that make people angry or anxious.

Mental Floss looks at some of the worst moves in the history of business. From idiotic CEO moves to missed opportunities to hubris, its proof that senior management generally suck at their jobs. We’re surprised they skipped New Coke.

Vsauce talks about the upbeat topic of human extinction – its probability and possible causes, its impact on our planet and more. He didn’t mention that we’re still merely a blip in time though. We could still get better at this. Or worse.

Filmmaker IQ talks about the auteur theory, a mindset that still carries weight today, if only as a marketing tactic. You can skip to 5:34. Remember: art and criticism are not absolute. They are concocted by humans with biases and limitations.

We’ve always been fascinated by these color-changing creatures. But did you know they don’t do it to blend in? These lizards just wear their emotions on the outside. Veritasium explores the extraordinary biology behind their strange ability.

Mental Floss’ John Green takes a look at 43 words and terms that have made our way into our lexicon, after being made up by authors who decided think outside of the dictionary. That Samuel Taylor Coleridge sure was prolific.

Vsauce breaks down this classic high school physics question. On one hand, we love this episode because Michael was laser focused. On the other hand, it still hurt our brain. Einstein was a freakin’ Einstein.

(NSFW: Language) A stellar comedy cooking series. Kate McCartney is intolerant to a lot of edibles. Her friend Kate McLennan is trying to come up with safe food so she won’t have to live on booze alone. (Thanks Taylor!)

In 2007, 91-year-old Clara Cannucciari started a cooking show with the help of her grandson, where she’d share recipes and stories from the Great Depression. She also spun it off into a book and DVDs. Clara passed away in 2013.

After setting us straight on common television misconceptions, Mental Floss is back to educate us on some of the many things people have been led to believe thanks to the *ahem* always reliable Internet.