Back to Show
It's Okay to Be Smart
Glass is Solid… So Why Is It Clear?
Season 8
Episode 25
Glass is made of sand, which is a kind of rock. But glass is transparent, and rocks aren’t transparent. What’s up with that? Why is glass clear? And why can I sit on a chair? And why can we touch anything? Today we zoom down to the weird world of electron clouds and quantum touching to find the answers.
Sign up now for inspiring and thought-provoking media delivered straight to your inbox.

26:19
Dire wolves are back—sort of.

16:53
The key enzyme behind photosynthesis isn’t actually all that great at its job.

16:40
The oldest rocks on Earth are more than just ancient—they’re time machines!

17:11
This is one of the weirdest mysteries of human evolution: Why do we have grandmas?

12:28
Why do some people taste music or hear colors? Let’s talk about synesthesia.

14:35
How a chemical in lizard spit inspired one of the most important medical advancements.

12:15
These diamond makers create one of the most amazing materials on Earth — from dead people.

11:20
Learn nature’s ultimate game of hide-and-seek, and the way to win this game is all in the brain.

11:17
Nature has had to come up with some crazy ways to survive winter. None are weirder than hibernation.

12:40
Political scientist Don Green joins Joe to figure out the complex psychological and social factors t

16:27
Why do certain sounds make some of us so upset?!

11:43
Despite what you may have heard or learned in school, the sun is NOT the center of the solar system.