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  • COVID-19 & Mask Myths DEBUNKED!

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    Uploaded 23-07-20

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    Bottom line: Masks work. They are safe for almost everyone to wear, and the more people that wear them along with adhering to physical distancing and other strategies, then that's more lives we'll save. But there's still a lot of confusion and misinformation out there when it comes both to wearing masks and the actual risks of getting infected with COVID-19. In this video, I address a few of the most common myths and misunderstandings using scientific evidence. #WearAMask

    00:00 Introduction
    00:46 Myth 1: Farts vs. viral particles
    02:20 Myth 2: Cloth masks can't stop viruses
    03:25 Myth 3: Oxygen deprivation/CO2 poisoning
    05:40 Myth 4: Toxins
    06:41 Myth 5: I feel healthy so I don't need a mask
    07:51 Myth 6: Masks aren't 100% effective, so why wear one?
    08:34 Mask-wearing history
    09:25 Myth 7: Government mask exemptions
    10:24 Myth 8: COVID isn't a big deal
    12:09 Conclusion

    Watch our previous video about masks: https://youtu.be/0Tp0zB904Mc

    Our entire COVID-19 playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsmqeqKj7M-pvu23aAUn6gtvDZAymnZ0K

    References: https://sites.google.com/view/covid-mask-myths-references/home


    Special thanks to our Brain Trust Patrons:
    AlecZero
    Diego Lombeida
    Dustin
    Ernesto Silva
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    Jay Stephens
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    Ron Kakar
    Robert Young
    vincbis

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    17 min
  • The Weird Reason Plants Aren't Black

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    Uploaded 25-10-19

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    Why are trees and other plants green? Seems like a simple question. But the answer is full of surprises. Using a special camera that can pick up light just beyond the visible range, into the near-infrared, you’ll get to see trees like you’ve never seen them before. And these other-worldly images can teach us not only why trees are green on Earth, but what color photosynthetic life on other planets might be.
    #TeamTrees

    References: https://sites.google.com/view/treesonotherplanets-references/home

    Special thanks to our Brain Trust Patrons:
    AlecZero
    Bob Rosset
    Brent M.
    Diego Lombeida

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    14 min
  • Why the Heck Are We Ticklish?

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    Uploaded 14-04-20

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    I’ve explained a lot of weird bodily functions on this show but there’s one that we haven’t covered that’s always confused me: Tickling. What are you for, tickling? What’s the point of you? Why do you exist? Why do you make us laugh even though we hate you? Let’s dig into our evolutionary past to try and find an answer.

    References:

    Laughing, tickling, and speech http://untiredwithloving.org/dhahak.pdf
    Pathogenic laughter https://n.neurology.org/content/64/12/2154.short
    Tickling review http://charris.ucsd.edu/articles/Harris_EHB2012.pdf
    Darwin-Hecker http://charris.ucsd.edu/articles/Harris&Christenfeld_CE1997.pdf
    Early thoughts https://www.jstor.org/stable/1411471?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents
    Neural correlates of laughter https://academic.oup.com/cercor/article/23/6/1280/426218
    Neural correlates of laughter https://academic.oup.com/brain/article/126/10/2121/314497 Experience of pleasure https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/6877978
    Tickling and laughter https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/030105119090023P
    Ticklish rats https://science.sciencemag.org/content/354/6313/757
    Social laughter and pain https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2011.1373


    Special thanks to our Brain Trust Patrons:
    AlecZero
    Oliver and Arden Bradshaw
    Brent M.
    Diego Lombeida
    Dustin
    Ernesto Silva
    George Gladding
    Marcus Tuepker
    Ron Kakar
    vincbis

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    14 min
  • The Curious Physics That Makes Hurricanes So Powerful
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    The physics of the perfect storm…
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    ↓ More info and sources below ↓
    Learn more/references:
    “Divine Wind: The History and Science of Hurricanes” by Kerry Emanuel http://amzn.to/2aUY7P7
    Japan’s “kamikaze” winds may have been real: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/11/141104-kamikaze-kublai-khan-winds-typhoon-japan-invasion/
    “El huracán, su mitología y sus símbolos” Fernando Ortiz http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/60338937
    “Sea of Storms: A History of Hurricanes in the Greater Caribbean from Columbus to Katrina” Stuart B. Schwartz http://press.princeton.edu/titles/10324.html
    Emanuel, Kerry. "Tropical cyclones." Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences 31.1 (2003): 75.
    Knutson, Thomas R., et al. "Tropical cyclones and climate change." Nature Geoscience 3.3 (2010): 157-163.
    “Hurricane Force” Roger Smith 2006 Phys. World 19 (6) 32
    Could we nuke a hurricane? http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/tcfaq/C5c.html
    ----------------
    It’s Okay To Be Smart is written and hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.D.
    Produced by PBS Digital Studios
    Music via APM
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    9 min
  • Where Does the Aroma of Rain Originate?
    I smell a science storm a-comin'!!
    ↓ More info and sources below ↓
    Viewers like you help make PBS (Thank you 😃) . Support your local PBS Member Station here: https://to.pbs.org/PBSDSDonate
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    References:
    "Nature of Argillaceous Odor" (1964) http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v201/n4923/abs/201993a0.html
    "Petrichor and Plant Growth" (1965)
    http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v207/n5004/abs/2071415a0.html
    Human nose can detect a trillion smells
    http://news.sciencemag.org/biology/2014/03/human-nose-can-detect-trillion-smells
    Petrichor and fish spawning
    http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1095-8649.1974.tb04518.x/abstract
    Camels seek out wet soil smells
    http://www.theguardian.com/science/2003/mar/06/science.research
    Chemistry of petrichor:
    http://cen.acs.org/articles/91/i18/Scent-Rain-Strands-Honey.html
    http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com/post/85815194542/compoundchem-the-third-graphic-in-the-aroma
    http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/storm-scents-smell-rain/
    Joe Hanson - Host and writer
    Joe Nicolosi - Director
    Amanda Fox - Producer, Spotzen IncKate Eads - Associate Producer
    Katie Graham - Camera
    Editing/Motion Graphics - Andrew Matthews
    Gaffer - John Knudsen
    Theme music:
    "Ouroboros" by Kevin MacLeod
    Stock images via Shutterstock
    Produced for PBS Digital Studios
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    5 min
  • How Do Glaciers Move?

    This video is so cool, it's ICE COLD
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    Uploaded 25-07-17

    Glacier ice is weird. It’s solid. Solid things aren’t supposed to flow. But glacier ice flows like a liquid, and it does that without melting! How is this possible? I traveled to Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau, Alaska to find out.

    Special thanks to Josh Cassidy from KQED’s Deep Look for joining me in Alaska and shooting this episode! ► https://www.youtube.com/user/KQEDDeepLook

    Filmed under a Special Use Permit on the Juneau Ranger District, Tongass National Forest

    Archival glacier image: Glacier Photograph Collection - National Snow and Ice Data Center

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    READ MORE:

    Paterson, William Stanley Bryce. “The Physics of Glaciers.” Elsevier, 2016.

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    It’s Okay To Be Smart is hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.D.
    Director: Joe Nicolosi/Josh Cassidy
    Writer: Sarah Keartes
    Cinematography: Josh Cassidy
    Producer/editor/animator: Anastasiya Bulavkina
    Producer: Stephanie Noone and Amanda Fox

    Produced by PBS Digital Studios
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    10 min
  • How to Sidestep a Deadly Asteroid Impact
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    Turns out the sky IS falling. SUBSCRIBE! http://bit.ly/iotbs_sub
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    A giant asteroid took out the dinosaurs 66 million years ago. Could a big meteor hit Earth again? And if we find one coming our way, how can we use science to avoid a deadly asteroid or meteorite impact?
    Want to wear your love for science? We’ve got merch: http://dftba.com/besmart
    References/Learn More:
    Impact Earth! Simulator: https://www.purdue.edu/impactearth/
    Thanks to Destin for letting us use a clip from Smarter Every Day #84! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NLBtZKx2cA
    National Academies report: “Defending Earth” https://www.nap.edu/catalog/12842/defending-planet-earth-near-earth-object-surveys-and-hazard-mitigation
    3D asteroid simulation www.asterank.com/3d/
    NASA’s near-Earth object program http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/
    Facts about asteroids from NASA http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/asteroids/overview/fastfacts.html
    Great meteor/meteorite FAQ http://www.amsmeteors.org/meteor-showers/meteor-faq/
    ----------------
    It’s Okay To Be Smart is written and hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.D.
    Have an idea for an episode or an amazing science question you want answered? Leave a comment or check us out at the links below!
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    11 min
  • When Is Now?

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    Uploaded 15-02-21

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    When is now? Seems like a pretty simple question… just look at your watch. But do you and I share the same “now”? Let’s journey from Einstein’s thought experiments about relativity to cutting edge neuroscience research to try and answer that question.

    References: https://sites.google.com/view/when-is-now-references/home

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    25 min
  • How to Observe Time Travel!!!
    Behold the COSMOTRON 5000!!!
    Viewers like you help make PBS (Thank you 😃) . Support your local PBS Member Station here: https://to.pbs.org/PBSDSDonate
    Subscribe to It's Okay To Be Smart: http://bit.ly/iotbs_sub
    How to build your own cloud chamber particle detector and test relativity at home: http://www.fromquarkstoquasars.com/make-a-cosmic-ray-detector-at-home-and-test-relativity/
    Carl Sagan discusses cosmic radiation and the origin of life in "Cosmic Connection": http://amzn.to/1wiHIsu
    Learn about muons, time dilation, and relativity: http://cosmic.lbl.gov/SKliewer/Cosmic_Rays/Muons.htm
    Produced for PBS Digital Studios
    Joe Hanson - Host and writer
    Joe Nicolosi - Director
    Amanda Fox - Producer, Spotzen IncKate Eads - Associate Producer
    Katie Graham - Director of Photography
    Andrew Matthews - Editing/Motion Graphics
    John Knudsen - Gaffer
    Dalton Allen - Post-production Intern
    Theme music:
    "Ouroboros" by Kevin MacLeod
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    5 min
  • This Salamander Can Regrow Limbs Like Deadpool

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    Uploaded 15-05-18

    Axolotls are special salamanders. Not only to they stay in their juvenile form their whole lives, they can regenerate entire limbs! Studying how they do it could change the way we treat human limb injuries.

    Special thanks to the Dallas Zoo!

    References: http://bit.ly/2Gkoihd

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    It’s Okay To Be Smart is hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.D.
    Director: Joe Nicolosi
    Writer: Sarah Keartes
    Creative Director: David Schulte
    Editor/animator: Karl Boettcher and Derek Borsheim
    Producers: Stephanie Noone and Amanda Fox

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    11 min

About Be Smart.

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We give you deep answers to simple questions about science and the rest of the universe. And also dad jokes.