Discover Resources
Browse curated homeschool resources from the community
History vs Augustus Alex Gendler and Peta Greenfield
His reign marked the beginning of one of history’s greatest empires … and the end of one of its first republics. Was Rome’s first emperor a visionary leader who guaranteed his civilization’s place in history, or a tyrant who destroyed its core values? Peta Greenfield and Alex Gendler put this controversial figure on trial in History vs. Augustus.
How Do Airplanes Stay in the Air Raymond Adkins
By 1917, Albert Einstein had explained the relationship between space and time. But, that year, he designed a flawed airplane wing. His attempt was based on an incomplete theory of how flight works. Indeed, insufficient and inaccurate explanations still circulate today. So, where did Einstein go wrong? And how exactly do planes fly? Raymond Adkins explains the concept of aerodynamic lift.
Whoever Builds Something Here Will Be Rich Beyond Measure Fabio Pacucci
Since the 1950s, governments, companies, and researchers have been planting flags among the stars. But while it might seem like there’s plenty of room in space, some pieces of celestial real estate are more valuable than others. As far as human space exploration is concerned, Lagrange points may be the most important places in our solar system. So what exactly are they? Fabio Pacucci explains.
The Secret Sex Lives of Pandas Lucy Cooke
In the 1930’s, a grand panda drama unfolded at the Chicago Zoo. Zookeepers procured a female panda named Mei Mei, and they were determined to find her a mate. They found a prospective suitor named Mei Lan, and the public eagerly awaited the patter of tiny panda paws. But the wait dragged on... and on. Why weren’t the bears breeding? Lucy Cooke shares common misperceptions about pandas.
How We Can Detect Pretty Much Anything Helene Morlon and Anna Papadopoulou
Scientists have been staking out a forest in Montana for an animal that’s notoriously tricky to find. Camera traps haven’t offered definitive evidence, and experts can’t identify its tracks with certainty. But within the past decades, researchers have developed methods that can detect even the most elusive species. So how does it work? Hélène Morlon & Anna Papadopoulou dig into DNA metabarcoding.
What We Learned from 5 Million Books Erez Lieberman Aiden and Jean Baptiste Michel
Have you played with Google Labs' Ngram Viewer? It's an addicting tool that lets you search for words and ideas in a database of 5 million books from across centuries. Erez Lieberman Aiden and Jean-Baptiste Michel show us how it works, and a few of the surprising things we can learn from 500 billion words. (Filmed at TEDxBoston.)
Your Body Language Shapes Who You Are Amy Cuddy
Body language affects how others see us, but it may also change how we see ourselves. Social psychologist Amy Cuddy shows how “power posing” -- standing in a posture of confidence, even when we don’t feel confident -- can affect testosterone and cortisol levels in the brain, and might even have an impact on our chances for success.
History vs Russias Most Infamous Empress Carolyn Harris
Catherine the Great, Empress of Russia for over three decades, used strategic dalliances, military might, and cutting-edge philosophy to modernize, expand, and transform the Russian Empire. But was she a dedicated ruler determined to move Russia into the future, or a ruthless monarch who oppressed anyone who questioned her? Carolyn Harris puts this controversial figure on trial.
What is Normal and What is Different Yana Buhrer Tavanier
The word “normal” is often used as a synonym for "typical," "expected," or even "correct." By that logic, most people should fit the description of normal. But time and time again, so-called normal descriptions of our bodies, minds, and perceptions have turned out to match almost no one. So what does normal actually mean— and should we be relying on it so much? Yana Buhrer Tavanier investigates.
How Do Oysters Make Pearls Rob Ulrich
Despite their iridescent colors and smooth shapes, pearls are actually made of the exact same material as the craggy shell that surrounds them. Pearls, urchin spines, the shells of mussels, snails and clams, even coral— all these structures are made out of the same chemical compound: calcium carbonate. So how does this single ingredient form such a vast array of materials? Rob Ulrich investigates.
Why a Sausage Can Do What Your Gloves Cannot Charles Wallace and Sajan Saini
In 2010, South Korea experienced a particularly cold winter. People couldn’t activate their smartphones while wearing gloves, so they began wielding snack sausages— causing one company to see a 40% rise in sausage sales. So, what could sausages do that gloves couldn’t? In other words, how do touchscreens actually work? Charles Wallace and Sajan Saini dig into the science of touchscreens.
Where Do Your Online Returns Go Aparna Mehta
Do you ever order clothes online in different sizes and colors, just to try them on and then send back what doesn't work? Aparna Mehta used to do this all time, until she one day asked herself: Where do all these returned clothes go? In an eye-opening talk, she reveals the unseen world of "free" online returns and shares a plan to help put an end to this growing environmental catastrophe.
How the Suez Canal Changed the World Lucia Carminati
Today, nearly 30% of all global ship traffic passes through the Suez Canal, totaling over 20,000 ships in 2021. The site of the canal had been of interest to rulers as far back as the second millennium BCE, but plans to construct a passageway were obstructed by cost, political strife, and the ever-shifting sands— until the 19th century. Lucia Carminati details the creation of the Suez Canal.
Why is Marie Antoinette so Controversial Carolyn Harris
She was the Queen of France, notorious for living in opulence while peasants starved and became a symbol of everything wrong with monarchy. But was Marie Antionette a heartless, wasteful queen, or a convenient scapegoat in turbulent times? Carolyn Harris puts this controversial figure on trial in History vs. Marie Antoinette.
From the Top of the Food Chain Down Rewilding Our World George Monbiot
Our planet was once populated by megafauna, big top-of-the-food-chain predators that played their part in balancing our ecosystems. When those megafauna disappear, the result is a "trophic cascade," where every part of the ecosystem reacts to the loss. How can we stay in balance? George Monbiot suggests rewilding: putting wolves, lions and other predators back on top -- with surprising results.
Is There a Reproducibility Crisis in Science Matt Anticole
Published scientific studies can motivate research, inspire products, and inform policy. However, recent studies that examined dozens of published pharmaceutical papers managed to replicate the results of less than 25% of them — and similar results have been found in other scientific disciplines. How do we combat this crisis of scientific irreproducibility? Matt Anticole investigates.
What Did Dogs Teach Humans About Diabetes Duncan C Ferguson
Diabetes has a history dating back to Ancient Greece. Our treatment of it, however, is more recent and was originally made possible with the help of man's best friend. Due to physiological traits shared with humans, dogs have saved countless lives through the discovery of insulin. Duncan C. Ferguson shares the story of the canine's great contribution to man -- and how we can all reap the medical benefits.
What Makes the Great Wall of China so Extraordinary Megan Campisi and Pen Pen Chen
The Great Wall of China is a 13,000-mile dragon of earth and stone that winds its way through the countryside of China. As it turns out, the wall’s history is almost as long and serpentine as its structure. Megan Campisi and Pen-Pen Chen detail the building and subsequent decay of this massive, impressive wall.
Can Robots Be Creative Gil Weinberg
People have been grappling with the question of artificial creativity -- alongside the question of artificial intelligence -- for over 170 years. For instance, could we program machines to create high quality original music? And if we do, is it the machine or the programmer that exhibits creativity? Gil Weinberg investigates this creative conundrum.
What is a Calorie Emma Bryce
We hear about calories all the time: How many calories are in this cookie? How many are burned by doing 100 jumping jacks, or long-distance running, or fidgeting? But what is a calorie, really? And how many of them do we actually need? Emma Bryce explains how a few different factors should go into determining the recommended amount for each person.
How Mucus Keeps Us Healthy Katharina Ribbeck
Your body produces more than a liter of mucus every day, and when you’re sick, it can be hard to miss. But what exactly is mucus? And what does it do, besides making you miserable? Katharina Ribbeck reveals the mysteries of this transparent, shape-shifting layer that moistens and lubricates the vulnerable parts of our body while rendering us invisible to potentially deadly microbes.
How to Grow a Bone Nina Tandon
Can you grow a human bone outside the human body? The answer may soon be yes. Nina Tandon explores the possibility by examining how bones naturally grow inside the body, and illuminating how scientists are hoping to replicate that process in a lab.
When to Use Me Myself and I Emma Bryce
Me, myself, and I. You may be tempted to use these words interchangeably, because they all refer to the same thing. But in fact, each one has a specific role in a sentence: ‘I’ is a subject pronoun, ‘me’ is an object pronoun, and ‘myself’ is a reflexive or intensive pronoun. Emma Bryce explains what each role reveals about where each word belongs.
An Exercise in Time Perception Matt Danzico
Why is that some experiences feel like they last forever, while others fly by? We tend to miscalculate the time it takes to engage in novel activities due to the influence of memories. Matt Danzico explains why your childhood feels like it lasted forever and why that beach vacation seemed like two months rather than two weeks.