SciShow explores the unexpected. We delve into the scientific subjects that defy our expectations and make us even more curious! For more from SciShow, check out SciShow Kids and SciShow Tangents, along with SciShow Space and Psych.
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12:118K views · today · 12:11
The Alvin submersible revolutionized deep-sea exploration in 1964, and it's still being used today. But it wasn't made by a traditional submarine builder or defense contractor. It was built by General Mills. Every donation of every size supercharges our impact. Visit to make a tax-deductible donation now!
13:23144K views · 1d ago · 13:23
If you or someone you know has been treated for cancer, there's a good chance part of that treatment included radiation. But radiation comes in many forms, and the chances are far less likely that treatment included a medicine that directly delivered some radioactive waste to the tumor. Doctors are already using elements like iodine-131 and lutetium-177 to help treat some cancers, and researchers are investigating elements like actinium-225 to treat even more.
13:04161K views · 2d ago · 13:04
In 1922, Albert Einstein claimed that two effects of general relativity were so tiny, humanity would never be able to prove they really happen. Fast forward several decades, and two scientists proposed a way to measure those effects in outer space, with technology that didn't exist yet. Fast forward several more decades, and we finally created that technology...the most important pieces of which were four perfectly smooth balls.
7:431.3M views · 3d ago · 7:43
Learnathon is a celebration of learning, of our free content here at SciShow and all of Complexly! We’re doing activities and videos and livestream Nov 9-20 at Most people know someone who’s faced a cancer diagnosis. But ask yourself: Have you ever met anyone with /heart/ cancer? Probably not, because that type of cancer is very rare. And it’s taken scientists years to finally figure out why.
11:39199K views · 4d ago · 11:39
Generally speaking, plants and animals aren’t huge fans of fire. But it might surprise you to learn that there are some species that have turned fire into a friend. These plants and animals not only tolerate the flames, they /thrive/ alongside them.
13:49283K views · 7d ago · 13:49
Learnathon is a celebration of learning, of our free content here at SciShow and all of Complexly! We’re doing activities and videos and livestream Nov 3-21 at Depending on where you live, Yellowstone might be the most famous (or infamous) supervolcano. But there are plenty other of supervolcanoes around the world, from Japan, to New Zealand, to Guatemala and more!
5:51397K views · 8d ago · 5:51
You may have heard of an ocean creature called a Portuguese man o' war. They're far more fascinating that a blob of ocean jelly has a right to be, but they're also terrifying. And more than that, they're spreading. Find more of Kallie over on our sister channel, PBS Eons!
15:111M views · 9d ago · 15:11
At some point in our lives, we've all been hounded to eat our veggies to get our vitamins. But what is a vitamin?? Why are there so many B's? What happened to vitamin G? And will there be more in the future? Or support us directly
14:41209K views · 10d ago · 14:41
Alcoholic drinks are nearly ubiquitous across ancient human cultures, with many independently developing them at some point in time. But which one was oldest? Let’s take a journey through the archaeology of alcohol to find the very oldest drink.
10:57148K views · 11d ago · 10:57
These lumpy, bumpy stones have a lot of legends connected to them, but their actual origin story is way cooler. Even though they're not as extraterrestrial as we thought, they still tell us all about our own planet. This mythic mineral is the cintamani stone, AKA obsidian!
13:28181K views · 14d ago · 13:28
Maps are amazing tools for navigation, but that's not /all/ they are. Maps can change how we view the world, and can tell us how it /was/ viewed and what we understood at the time the map was made. Today we’re talking about 5 maps that changed history, some for the better, some... maybe up for debate.
7:44273K views · 15d ago · 7:44
There isn't a more iconic, powerful oceanic predator than the great white shark. But while researchers have been studying them for decades, they've found that white shark populations are threatened, in two different locations, and for two different reasons. And researchers are still unraveling the mystery to figure out what's going on.
17:051M views · 16d ago · 17:05
Since 2022, the use of large language model chatbots like ChatGPT has skyrocketed. This explosion in usage comes with some real and serious concerns, like people who experience AI psychosis. It can be deadly, so we're going to talk about it. What it is, how dangerous it can be, and what we can do about it.
15:02260K views · 17d ago · 15:02
How do you trap something that dissolves its container? Or is too small or hot or fast or...? Here are the solutions experts came up with to hold alkali metals, fluorine gas, a single atom, antimatter, light, bose-einstein condensate, and plasma.
10:34184K views · 18d ago · 10:34
How many times can you clone a clone (and then clone THAT clone) before some kind of genetic disaster strikes? If you watch a movie like The Prestige, you might think you could do it forever. If you watch a movie like The Substance, you might think you can't even do it once. Reality, it turns out, is somewhere in the middle. But it might be a lot more than you think.
8:22188K views · 21d ago · 8:22
During World War II, a British pilot was shot down and pieces of his plane's shattered canopy were embedded in his eyes. It led to a revolutionary treatment for a disease he didn't even have. Or support us directly Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast
8:41163K views · 22d ago · 8:41
Semaglutide used to have to be injected, but now comes as a pill! What other shots can we make ingestible, and why has it been such a long road? Or support us directly Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast
8:53653K views · 23d ago · 8:53
There are some people who just can't seem to get high on THC, and it might have something to do with variations in baseline body chemistry. As it turns out, your endocannabinoid system being out of whack could be affecting a lot more than your urge to eat every chip in the house...
14:00210K views · 24d ago · 14:00
Feline Infectious Peritonitis or FIP is a mutated offshoot of feline enteric coronavirus or FECV. And it's 100% fatal to kittens. But vigilante pet parents made the FDA think twice about a new treatment. Or support us directly
11:11530K views · 25d ago · 11:11
In 1856, a young chemistry whiz failed so spectacularly at whipping up a cure for malaria, he accidentally invented the color mauve. He also accidentally opened up an entirely new field of science. A field that synthesized everything from perfumes, to pesticides, to perhaps some pills inside your medicine cabinet right now.
15:57407K views · 28d ago · 15:57
Scientists have only explored 0.001 percent of the ocean floor, making it Earth's final frontier. Here are five of the deep sea spots researchers are most desperate to explore. Or support us directly Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast
8:39647K views · 29d ago · 8:39
Why doesn't gold tarnish? A simple answer might be that it's a so-called "noble metal"—its atoms don't like to chemically react with others. But a more complex answer also answers why gold atoms are so unreactive. Some of it is due to special relativity, and some is due to a phenomenon called reconstruction.
9:07338K views · 1mo ago · 9:07
Scientists have created a vaccine – in mice – that works against respiratory germs of all sorts, both viruses /and/ bacteria, and even /allergens/. It’s a /universal/ vaccine. And it could be a game-changer for pandemic preparedness.
12:42575K views · 1mo ago · 12:42
What is the Tully Monster? It might be a vertebrate, or it might not, but scientists have unable to agree for 70 years. Or support us directly Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast Bluesky
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