Be Smart.

Be Smart.

By Joe HansonScienceEducationNatural Sciences
Download on the App Store

Be Smart. episodes

  • Scientists Finally Figured Out What Love Is For

    The dumb things we do for love make a lot more sense than you think…
    ↓↓↓ More info and sources below ↓↓↓

    Uploaded 11-06-26

    Love makes people do ridiculous things: quit jobs, cross continents, build monuments, and ignore every red flag in sight. But what if that's exactly what love evolved to do? This video explores the neuroscience, psychology, and evolutionary biology of romance to explain why love can feel irrational—and why that may have helped make us human.

    References: https://sites.google.com/view/purpose-of-love-references/home

    Be Smart explores science questions you didn’t even know you wondered about. It is hosted and produced by Joe Hanson, PhD. We post new videos all the time, so please subscribe! If you enjoyed this video, hit the ‘like’ button, leave a comment, or watch another of our videos!

    CONNECT WITH ME
    ____________________________________
    Website:
    https://www.itsokaytobesmart.com/

    Instagram:
    https://www.instagram.com/okaytobesmart/
    https://www.instagram.com/drjoehanson/

    Facebook:
    https://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmart

    Patreon:
    https://www.patreon.com/c/itsokaytobesmart

    A big thanks to our Brain Trust patrons: Baerbel Winkler, Bernadette Etienne, Brent Lopez, dani bowman, David Johnston, Ed Eyden, Eric Meer, Greg Olson, Jaap Westera, Karen Haskell, Marcus Pingel, Mike and Patty Loftis, Reuben Brewer

    SPONSORSHIP INQUIRIES
    ____________________________________
    Please email [email protected]


    Stock video and images provided by Shutterstock, Artlist, and MotionArray
    Music provided by APM
    Written Joe Hanson
    Edited by Steven Simone
    Produced by Least Square Media and Spotzen for PBS Digital Studios



    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    21 min
  • Why People Don't Trust Climate Science
    Get the FACTS about climate change: http://youtu.be/ffjIyms1BX4
    Don’t miss our next video! SUBSCRIBE! ►► http://bit.ly/iotbs_sub
    ↓ 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
    Scientists overwhelmingly agree that our climate is changing, Earth is getting warmer, sea levels are rising, and it's primarily because of humans putting lots of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Yet 4 in 10 Americans aren't convinced. Here's what psychologists and sociologists have to say about why some people don't believe in climate science.
    Last week's video: Climate Science - What You Need to Know https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffjIyms1BX4
    RECOMMENDED READING/SOURCES:
    "Don't Even Think About It" by George Marshall: http://amzn.to/1DCX6HU
    Also check out George Marshall's website: http://www.climateconviction.org/
    "The Republican Brain" by Chris Mooney: http://bit.ly/1GJew1C
    "Unscientific America" by Chris Mooney and Sheril Kirshenbaum: http://amzn.to/1BQsocf
    "Fool Me Twice" by Shawn Lawrence Otto: http://bit.ly/12Y2Gnc
    Want to learn about the science of climate change and why humans are causing it, but in layman's terms? I recommend these books:
    Climate Change: Evidence and Causes (National Academy of Sciences/Royal Society) FREE ebook: http://amzn.to/1w6itfl
    Global Weirdness (Climate Central) http://amzn.to/1BtZZbP
    How to Change Minds About Our Changing Climate (Seth Darling + Douglas Sisterson) http://amzn.to/12jjcxN
    Produced for PBS Digital Studios
    Joe Hanson - Creator/Host/Writer
    Joe Nicolosi - Director
    Amanda Fox - Producer, Spotzen Inc
    Kate Eads - Associate Producer
    Andrew Matthews - Editing/Motion Graphics
    Katie Graham - Director of Photography
    John Knudsen - Gaffer
    Dalton Allen - Post-Production Intern
    Theme music:
    "Ouroboros" by Kevin MacLeod
    -----------
    Join us on Patreon!
    https://patreon.com/itsokaytobesmart
    Twitter
    http://www.twitter.com/DrJoeHanson
    http://www.twitter.com/okaytobesmart
    Instagram
    http://www.instagram.com/DrJoeHanson
    http://www.instagram.com/okaytobesmart
    Merch
    https://store.dftba.com/collections/its-okay-to-be-smart
    Facebook
    https://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmartpbs/

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    11 min
  • Antibiotic Resistance and the Ascent of Superbugs
    -----------------
    It's Okay To Be Smart is written and hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.D
    Follow me on Twitter/Instagram: @DrJoeHanson @okaytobesmart
    Email me: itsokaytobesmart AT gmail DOT com
    Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmart
    For more awesome science, check out: http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com
    Produced by PBS Digital Studios: http://www.youtube.com/user/pbsdigitalstudios
    Joe Hanson - Creator/Host/Writer
    Joe Nicolosi - Director
    Amanda Fox - Producer, Spotzen Inc
    Kate Eads - Associate Producer
    Andrew Matthews - Editing/Motion Graphics/Animation
    Katie Graham - Director of Photography
    John Knudsen - Gaffer
    Dalton Allen - Post-Production Intern
    Theme music:
    "Ouroboros" by Kevin MacLeod
    Other music via APM
    Stock images from Shutterstock, stock footage from Videoblocks
    -----------------
    Last week's video:
    The Recipe For Life https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tuBWjY9BpEc
    More videos:
    Why Does February Have 28 Days? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgKaHTh-_Gs
    Why Vaccines Work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aNhzLUL2ys
    Why Are Some People Left-Handed? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPvMUpcxPSA
    Where Does the Smell of Rain Come From? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGcE5x8s0B8

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    11 min
  • How Do We Measure How Vast the Universe Is?
    Watch me host @HighSchoolQuizShow! https://www.youtube.com/@HighSchoolQuizShow
    Join our Patreon community: https://www.patreon.com/itsokaytobesmart
    ↓↓↓ More info and sources below ↓↓↓
    Since the time of the ancient Greeks, scientists have been constructing a cosmic measuring tape to measure the universe from our own backyard all the way to its ever-expanding edge: the cosmic distance ladder. In this video, we climb that ladder and explore how each rung has revealed something new and previously unthinkable about the universe we live in.
    References: https://sites.google.com/view/cosmic-distance-references/home
    0:00 How far away are things?
    1:05 Near, far, parallax that star
    3:25 Island universes and Hubble's blinking star
    5:51 Redshifted rainbows and the expanding universe
    7:41 Supernovae and the end of everything
    9:08 Conclusion: The ladder of discovery
    10:00 I'm hosting a game show!
    -----------
    High fives to all our Brain Trust Patrons:
    Ed Eyden
    Jennifer Burton
    Charles Horton, Jr
    Holly, Brett, and Ashe Bullion
    Jaap Westera
    Mehdi Damou
    Barbora Bei
    Burt Humburg
    dani bowman
    David Johnston
    Baerbel Winkler
    Eric Meer
    Karen Haskell
    Join us on Patreon!
    https://patreon.com/itsokaytobesmart
    Instagram
    http://www.instagram.com/DrJoeHanson
    http://www.instagram.com/okaytobesmart
    Facebook
    https://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmartpbs/
    Merch
    https://store.dftba.com/collections/its-okay-to-be-smart​

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    14 min
  • Could We Recreate Ourselves?
    Viewers like you help make PBS (Thank you 😃) . Support your local PBS Member Station here: https://to.pbs.org/PBSDSDonate
    Just be yourself! Or be your other self. Whichever.
    Subscribe: http://bit.ly/iotbs_sub Twitter: @okaytobesmart
    ↓ More info and sources below ↓
    Is the science of Orphan Black realistic? Could we clone humans, or engineer them to have customized traits? We take a look at today's genetic engineering technologies to find out if designer babies and human cloning is, or should be, a reality
    BOOKS! For more on the modern science of cloning and genetic modification, read the book "Frankenstein's Cat" by Emily Anthes: http://amzn.to/1zsVizw
    Chinese scientists have edited the genome of human embryos (sadly this news came out after we had filmed):
    http://www.theverge.com/2015/4/23/8477491/human-genome-editing-embryo-china-crispr
    How CRISPRs work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pp17E4E-O8
    Scientists call for a moratorium on human gene editing: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/20/science/biologists-call-for-halt-to-gene-editing-technique-in-humans.html?_r=1
    Three-parent babies: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/29/magazine/the-brave-new-world-of-three-parent-ivf.html
    Have an idea for an episode or an amazing science question you want answered? Leave a comment below!
    Follow on Twitter: http://twitter.com/okaytobesmart
    http://twitter.com/jtotheizzoe
    Follow on Tumblr: http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com
    Follow on Instagram: http://instagram.com/jtotheizzoe
    -----------------
    It's Okay To Be Smart is written and hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.DFollow me on Twitter: @jtotheizzoe
    Email me: itsokaytobesmart AT gmail DOT com
    Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmart
    Google+ https://plus.google.com/+itsokaytobesmart
    For more awesome science, check out: http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com
    Produced by PBS Digital Studios: http://www.youtube.com/user/pbsdigitalstudios
    Joe Hanson - Creator/Host/Writer
    Joe Nicolosi - Director
    Amanda Fox - Producer, Spotzen IncKate Eads - Associate Producer
    Andrew Matthews - Editing/Motion Graphics/Animation
    Katie Graham - Director of Photography
    John Knudsen - Gaffer
    Dalton Allen - Post-Production Intern
    Theme music:
    "Ouroboros" by Kevin MacLeod
    Other music via APM
    Stock images from Shutterstock, stock footage from Videoblocks
    -----------------
    Last week's video:
    Is Ultron Inevitable? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Irmtk5QG8s
    More videos:
    Why Does February Have 28 Days? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgKaHTh-_Gs
    Why Vaccines Work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aNhzLUL2ys
    Why Are Some People Left-Handed? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPvMUpcxPSA
    Where Does the Smell of Rain Come From? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGcE5x8s0B8​

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    8 min
  • How These Ants Swept Across the U.S. 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
    And how we're fighting back!
    Don't miss our next video! SUBSCRIBE! ►► http://bit.ly/iotbs_sub
    ↓ More info and sources below ↓
    Get yourself an awesome IOTBS shirt! http://dftba.com/besmart
    Special thanks to Dr. Rob Plowes from the University of Texas at Austin fire ant research lab for letting us come film their ants and phorid flies: http://www.sbs.utexas.edu/fireant/Research%20Program.html
    If you want to learn everything there is to know about fire ants, read "The Fire Ants" by Walter R. Tschinkel http://amzn.to/1U8jz1S
    Check your local library! https://www.worldcat.org/title/fire-ants/oclc/64379652
    Rachel Carson - "Silent Spring" http://amzn.to/20QwWbM
    Fire ant raft - Matt Bennett https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FA-e65i3bDs
    Fire ant escape rafts - Company of biologists https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxjT99l0mqw
    ----
    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!
    Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmart
    Follow on Twitter: http://twitter.com/okaytobesmart
    http://twitter.com/drjoehanson
    Follow on Instagram: http://instagram.com/DrJoeHanson
    -----------------
    It's Okay To Be Smart is written and hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.D.
    Follow me on Twitter: @jtotheizzoe
    Produced by PBS Digital Studios: http://www.youtube.com/user/pbsdigitalstudios
    Music via APM
    Stock images from SciencePhoto http://www.sciencephoto.com/ and Shutterstock http://www.shutterstock.com
    Stock footage from Videoblocks (unless otherwise noted) http://www.videoblocks.com​

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    10 min
  • How Many Stars Can We Count?
    Viewers like you help make PBS (Thank you 😃) . Support your local PBS Member Station here: https://to.pbs.org/PBSDSDonate
    Counting stars from the shore of the cosmic ocean…
    Subscribe: http://bit.ly/iotbs_sub Twitter: @okaytobesmart
    ↓ More info and sources below ↓
    LIKE THE SHIRT I'M WEARING? It's glow in the dark! You can get it here (along with space undies and other good stuff): https://www.etsy.com/shop/makeitgoodpdx
    How many stars are there in the universe? Are there more stars out there than grains of sand on Earth? Thanks to advanced space telescopes, we've been able to peer farther into deep time and the distant universe than we ever thought possible, and we might finally be able to answer these mind-boggling questions
    Every star visible from Earth (naked eye): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bright_Star_Catalogue
    Number of stars in the universe (estimated): http://www.universetoday.com/102630/how-many-stars-are-there-in-the-universe/
    Hubble gigapixel image of Andromeda: http://www.spacetelescope.org/images/heic1502a/
    Hubble eXtreme Deep Field: http://xdf.ucolick.org/
    How big is the sky? http://www.badastronomy.com/bitesize/bigsky.html
    How much sand is there on Earth? http://www.hawaii.edu/suremath/jsand.html
    What would the cosmic sandbox look like? https://what-if.xkcd.com/83/
    Carl Sagan's Cosmos: "The Shore of the Cosmic Ocean": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pa1ImgOcOPM
    Have an idea for an episode or an amazing science question you want answered? Leave a comment below!
    Follow on Twitter: http://twitter.com/okaytobesmart
    http://twitter.com/jtotheizzoe
    Follow on Tumblr: http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com
    Follow on Instagram: http://instagram.com/jtotheizzoe
    -----------------
    It's Okay To Be Smart is written and hosted by Joe Hanson, Ph.DFollow me on Twitter: @jtotheizzoe
    Email me: itsokaytobesmart AT gmail DOT com
    Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmart
    Google+ https://plus.google.com/+itsokaytobesmart
    For more awesome science, check out: http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com
    Produced by PBS Digital Studios: http://www.youtube.com/user/pbsdigitalstudios
    Joe Hanson - Creator/Host/Writer
    Joe Nicolosi - Director
    Amanda Fox - Producer, Spotzen IncKate Eads - Associate Producer
    Andrew Matthews - Editing/Motion Graphics/Animation
    Katie Graham - Director of Photography
    John Knudsen - Gaffer
    Dalton Allen - Post-Production Intern
    Theme music:
    "Ouroboros" by Kevin MacLeod
    Other music via APM
    Stock images from Shutterstock
    -----------------
    Last week's video:
    What Color Is The Universe https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibVofIHq71s
    More videos:
    Why Does February Have 28 Days? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgKaHTh-_Gs
    Why Vaccines Work https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aNhzLUL2ys
    Why Are Some People Left-Handed? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPvMUpcxPSA
    Where Does the Smell of Rain Come From? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGcE5x8s0B8​

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    6 min
  • Building Music From Space!
    PBS Member Stations rely on viewers like you. To support your local station, go to: http://to.pbs.org/DonateOKAY
    ↓ More info and sources below ↓
    Check out some beautiful music made from space itself
    Click here to SUBSCRIBE, it's FREE! -- http://bit.ly/iotbs_sub
    There is no sound in space. In the near-vacuum of space, there is nothing to transmit the physical waves that we need to perceive sound. But that doesn't mean we can't MAKE sound from space. This week, I feature several artists using scientific data to create "space sonification" projects. From the longest palindrome ever created to a chorus created from Earth's magnetic field, these pieces lie at the intersection of art and science. More than just art, they allow us to perceive patterns in complex data in a completely new way
    Perhaps it answers the question: If the universe had a voice, what song would it sing?
    FULL Versions of Pieces Featured:
    Robert Alexander - Transit of Venus http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com/post/42845983348/robert-alexander-solar-sonification
    Semiconductor Films - "20 Hz"
    http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com/post/44264199289/20-hz-auroras-as-sound
    Van Allen Belt chorus
    http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com/post/32692373350/chorus-van-allen-belts
    Daniel Starr-Tambor - "Mandala"
    http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com/post/15977543553/mandala-a-planetary-musical-palindrome-by-daniel (this piece is the longest palndrome ever created, at 62 viginitillion notes!!)
    Written and hosted by Joe Hanson
    Produced by Painted On Productions (http://www.paintedon.com/)
    -----------
    Join us on Patreon!
    https://patreon.com/itsokaytobesmart
    Twitter
    http://www.twitter.com/DrJoeHanson
    http://www.twitter.com/okaytobesmart
    Instagram
    http://www.instagram.com/DrJoeHanson
    http://www.instagram.com/okaytobesmart
    Merch
    https://store.dftba.com/collections/its-okay-to-be-smart
    Facebook
    https://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmartpbs/

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    6 min
  • Can You Crush a Human Using the Atmosphere?

    Try Audible for 30 days visit https://www.audible.com/ok or text ok to 500 500!
    SUBSCRIBE so you don’t miss a video! ►► http://bit.ly/iotbs_sub
    ↓↓↓ More info and sources below ↓↓↓

    Uploaded 02-04-19

    Air. I bet you never even notice that it’s there. Yet you are swimming in an ocean of it every day. If there’s a literal ton of air pressing down on you all the time, so why don’t we feel it? We look back at the history of physics to learn how we figured out air pressure, why vacuums don’t suck, and how people like Galileo, Torricelli, and Otto von Guericke changed science forever with a few simple experiments. #AirPressure #Physics #Atmosphere

    DISCLAIMER: Do not perform the trash bag experiment without adult supervision. Always have a helper nearby so you don’t get trapped in the bag. And never ever put your head inside a trash bag, ever. Here’s how to try it yourself: https://exploratorium.edu/snacks/feeling-pressured

    -----------
    REFERENCES:
    Walker, Gabrielle. An Ocean of Air: Why the Wind Blows and Other Mysteries of the Atmosphere. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2008.

    -----------
    FOLLOW US for more curiosity:

    Twitter
    http://www.twitter.com/DrJoeHanson
    http://www.twitter.com/okaytobesmart

    Instagram
    http://www.instagram.com/DrJoeHanson
    http://www.instagram.com/okaytobesmart

    Merch
    https://store.dftba.com/collections/its-okay-to-be-smart

    Facebook
    http://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmart

    Books from our episodes:
    http://smart-books.tumblr.com/

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    11 min
  • How a Planet-Sized Telescope Took the First Picture of a Black Hole | STELLAR

    PBS Member Stations rely on viewers like you. To support your local station, go to: http://to.pbs.org/DonateOKAY
    ↓ More info and sources below ↓

    Uploaded 03-07-19

    Thank you to Draper and its Hack the Moon initiative for supporting PBS Digital Studios | Learn more at https://wehackthemoon.com

    It took about a century for black holes to go from impossible, to theoretical, to real. And it was just this year, in 2019, when we finally saw the first picture of a black hole! But how to you take a photo of something so massively dense that not even light can escape its gravitational pull? You use a telescope the size of the Earth!

    This video is a bit different from most It's Okay To Be Smart videos. It's part of a new PBS miniseries called STELLAR, done in collaboration with Matt O’Dowd from PBS Space Time and Dianna Cowern from Physics Girl. Over six episodes we travel to telescopes, go inside space research centers, and chat with amazing scientists to bring you the most exciting stories about space. Next up is Matt's episode where he tells you how we discovered galaxies outside of our own. And if you missed it, check out:

    **Matt O’Dowd exploring the oldest quasar ever seen at the Gemini Telescope: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqCPnXHKO5c

    **Physics Girl visits LIGO to learn about gravitational waves: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtp71NT0GNg

    You'll be able to see future episodes on the Physics Girl, Space Time and It’s Okay to be Smart YouTube channels, as well as the PBS Digital Studios Facebook page.

    Stellar is a part of the PBS Summer of Space. They'll be lots of awesome space related content all summer long on PBS. See what's happening at https://www.pbs.org/summer-of-space/

    #SummerOfSpacePBS #astrophysics #space

    Hosted by Joe Hanson
    Written by: Sophia Chen, Joe Hanson, Andrew Kornhaber, Eric Brown
    Directed by: Eric Brown and Andrew Kornhaber
    Producer: Randa Eid
    Director of Photography: Eric Brouse
    Sound: Tobi Nova
    Production Assistant: Anna Bosketti
    Editing: Pavel Ezrohi
    Graphics: Murilo Lopes
    Assistant Editing: Daniel Sircar
    Produced By: Kornhaber Brown

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

    11 min

About Be Smart.

From the publisher's feed

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