Up Next
Back to Show
It's Okay to Be Smart
How the Meter Became The Meter
Season 5
Episode 6
The meter is the world’s ultimate measure, but how did it become “the” meter? What is this measurement based on? The story of this revolution in measurement traces its roots to the French Revolution. Scientists decided that an equal and united people should have equal and united measures. So they sent a pair of young astronomers out to measure the world, and invent the meter.
Support Provided By
37:33
Crashing a car is usually a terrible accident. But sometimes, it’s a way to save lives.
18:10
A huge part of our identities, emotions, and our lives get tied up...Why is that?
10:57
X is everywhere and it’s probably thanks to math. But why is x the symbol for the unknown?
17:34
What’s the most average thing in the universe? We’re on a mission to find it.
17:48
New ideas come from chance events and unexpected connections involved in working together.
11:18
Our universe locked incredible secrets in a code written in rainbows.
13:54
Butterfly metamorphosis is one of nature’s most magical transformations.
14:03
Scorpions are an evolutionary marvel with venom that could save lives.
14:29
Join me on my visit to the most advanced cultivated meat production facility in the world.
14:03
Life on Earth may have stayed boring and small if it weren’t thanks to one deadly element.
17:58
How the CIA used Cold War technology to study and combat climate change
13:58
The secret physics at the core of every syllable, starting with the first words we speak.