Skip to main content

Up Next

How Atom Bombs Can Uncover Forged Art

How Atom Bombs Can Uncover Forged Art

Season 5 Episode 44
5:06
How Much Plastic is in the Ocean?

How Much Plastic is in the Ocean?

Season 5 Episode 10
4:43
Why Is Blue So Rare In Nature?

Why Is Blue So Rare In Nature?

Season 5 Episode 45
7:39
Where Did Humans Come From?

Where Did Humans Come From?

Season 5 Episode 13
6:18
Why Are We The Only Humans Left?

Why Are We The Only Humans Left?

Season 5 Episode 14
6:09
Why Does Hair Grow The Way It Does?

Why Does Hair Grow The Way It Does?

Season 5 Episode 15
4:18
Are We All Related?

Are We All Related?

Season 5 Episode 16
6:06
Why Do Fireflies Have Blinky Bottoms?

Why Do Fireflies Have Blinky Bottoms?

Season 5 Episode 23
4:22
How Do Glaciers Move?

How Do Glaciers Move?

Season 5 Episode 26
6:30
Back to Show
It's Okay to Be Smart

Illuminating the Universe: The History of Light

Season 5 Episode 9

Beyond what we can touch, taste, smell, and hear, we experience the universe through light. But how did we come to discover light, and how did we learn light’s true nature, as the fastest thing in the universe, an electromagnetic spectrum, a wave and particle capable of the most amazing things? Here is the history of light, according to physics.

Sign up now for inspiring and thought-provoking media delivered straight to your inbox.
Support Provided By
Season
Why is the universe organized the way it is? And why is it so empty?
Why I ❤ PBS
2:32
Why I Love PBS.
Do You Really Have Two Brains?
4:20
Are you a left-brained person or a right-brained person? Spoiler: You’re neither.
Putting Hurricane Harvey In Perspective
3:58
How do we comprehend a storm like Hurricane Harvey? Let's put it into perspective.
DNA Doesn’t Look Like What You Think!
5:18
Learn why we can’t look directly at DNA. Find out how DNA is actually packed inside cells.
How Poop Shapes the World
3:34
Poop, throughout nature, shapes the world in ways you might not imagine.
When Is It Winter On Other Planets?
5:00
Earth has seasons, but what about the rest of the planets in the solar system?
Your Climate Conscience - feat. Al Gore
5:21
News about climate change is often full of doom, guilt, and anxiety.
Why Nature Loves Hexagons (featuring Infinite Series!)
5:58
From spirals to spots to fractals, nature is full of interesting patterns.
How Do Glaciers Move?
6:30
Glacier ice flows like a liquid, and it does that without melting!
Why Do Fireflies Have Blinky Bottoms?
4:22
This week we investigate the beautiful phenomenon of bioluminescence.
How The Pyramids Were Built (Pyramid Science Part 2)
5:41
This week we look at ancient Egyptian mathematics, building techniques, tools, and culture
Active loading indicator