Science Compacted

FEATURES

Written by Ash Sanchez
Illustration by Gino Delos Reyes
Published 17 March 2021

Typewriters, beepers, newspapers. These are words that can be associated with the term “old-fashioned”. Here alone, it can be said that as generations have passed, technology has also developed. Typewriters have become computers; beepers have become smartphones; and newspapers have become online news. Aside from physical technological advancements, there is one popular innovation back in 2005 that has given people an opportunity to access information from around the world — YouTube.

YouTube has played an important role in the field of social media [1]. It is where you can find different kinds of entertainment (music, videos, vlogs), information (news, reviews, recipes), and more. As long as one knows where and how to look for their desired content, they are able to find it here! It is most probable that a person subscribes to a channel (i.e. a member’s personal space or account) when they become interested in the content that the “YouTuber” makes, hence not every content creator has the same number of subscribers. In other words, it all comes down to preference.

With various content that have been made since the beginning of the said platform, one of the most interesting categories is none other than: Science. Through these channels, a lot of people have appreciated the Sciences more, for these were able to make the vast field of it compact.

 

Science and the World

The world may seem highly complex to us, but these YouTubers have made it possible for it to become simple.

The first channel is Vsauce, created by Michael Stevens in 2010. With about 16.7 million subscribers as of writing, he continues to share his knowledge about the world. In an interview with Digiday in 2014, it is clear to see Stevens’ passion for discovery. He says, “My typical day involves a lot of books, a lot of research, and a lot of synthesizing. My desk has no room for a computer at the moment. I write down key things that I’m learning, that blow my mind or surprise me.  Like a crazy person following a conspiracy, I attach these things together and figure out how to write a script out of all of it.” [2] May you have questions about the illusions of time, or how to talk to aliens, or maybe if you want to learn more about behaviors and beliefs, Vsauce is definitely the way to go!

The next channel is AsapSCIENCE, co-created by Mitchell Moffit and Gregory Brown in 2012. Uploading videos almost every week, they continue to live by their principle which is to “make science make sense.” [3] The channel is known to have its videos shown by drawings on a whiteboard and a voiceover. Simple as this, both of them are able to entertain and inform their 9.58 million (and counting) subscribers about the scientific aspect of… the universe.

 Another interesting science YouTuber is Science Magazine. Unlike the first two, the channel focuses on being an “outlet for scientific news, commentary, and cutting-edge research” [4]. It is owned by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and is actually one of the world’s best academic journals! This being said, Science Magazine is not only on YouTube alone, rather it is composed of articles by researchers worldwide. If you aspire to have your original researches published, go on and submit them, you might be in the next issue!

 

Science and the Academe

Apart from all those, there are also educational channels that tackle almost everything we want (or have) to learn inside and outside of school. Like in the online set-up we are in today, they serve as virtual classrooms for students like us!

One of the most popular educational channels is The Organic Chemistry Tutor, founded by Julio Gonzales in 2015. The channel mainly focuses on the fields of organic chemistry, general chemistry, physics, algebra, trigonometry, precalculus, and calculus [5]. As you click on the YouTube channel itself, you expect to see tutorial videos on these subjects, whether or not they come off as “easy” for you!  

Unlike The Organic Chemistry Tutor, channels such as CrashCourse [6] (by the duo John Green and Hank Green), and Khan Academy [7] (by Salman Khan) produce video lessons that teach a wide variety of subjects for free! May it be about world history or psychology, the Sciences or the Maths, you might want to consider visiting these channels!

Aside from these three, TED-Ed is another initiative that provides an opportunity for people around the world to learn through animated videos and interactive lessons. [8] The channel is under TED, a nonprofit foundation which aims to “make great ideas accessible and spark conversation.” [9] Starting in 2012, it still continues to serve millions of educators and students every week! Looking through videos, they definitely live up to their slogan: “Ideas Worth Spreading” and “Lessons Worth Sharing”.

As Science gets more and more complex every single day, it is great if we take the time to appreciate these YouTubers who have devoted their time to share with us the knowledge that they have learned as they explore life. It is inarguable that the world is going to develop and continue to evolve, especially that “Science” in its nature encompasses everything about it. Moreso, as humans adapt to these developments, they strive to do research and create more inventions that will further progress the world we have today.

References

1. Zanatta JA. Dominican Scholar. Understanding YouTube Culture and How It Affects Today’s Media [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2021Mar13]; Available from: https://scholar.dominican.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1103&context=senior-theses 
2. Blattberg E. The secret sauce behind YouTube giant Vsauce [Internet]. Digiday. 2014 [cited 2021Mar13]. Available from: https://digiday.com/media/secret-sauce-behind-youtube-giant-vsauce/ 
3. AsapSCIENCE [Internet]. YouTube. YouTube; [cited 2021Mar13]. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/user/AsapSCIENCE 
4. Science Magazine [Internet]. YouTube. YouTube; [cited 2021Mar13]. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv0aU2eKry3kdSTnFa8QAWA 
5. Online Organic Chemistry Tutor [Internet]. Organic Chemistry Tutor. 2020 [cited 2021Mar13]. Available from: https://www.organicchemistrytutor.com/ 
6. Crash Course. [cited 2021Mar13]. Available from: https://thecrashcourse.com/ 
7. Free Online Courses, Lessons & Practice [Internet]. Khan Academy. Khan Academy; [cited 2021Mar13]. Available from: https://www.khanacademy.org/ 
8. Lessons Worth Sharing [Internet]. TED. [cited 2021Mar13]. Available from: https://ed.ted.com/about 
9. Our organization [Internet]. TED. [cited 2021Mar13]. Available from: https://www.ted.com/about/our-organization