SciShow

We Were Totally Wrong About Zebra Stripes

Dec 26, 2025

Why do zebras have stripes? This question has plagued scientists since Darwin and Wallace were alive, and modern research has finally gotten us closer to the answer. Which is good, because the last time SciShow tried to answer it, we got it way wrong. Here's the real, updated science about how zebras got their stripes. Hosted by: Savannah Geary (they/them) ---------- Support us for $8/month on Patreon and keep SciShow going! https://www.patreon.com/scishow Or support us directly: https://complexly.com/support Join our SciShow email list to get the latest news and highlights: https://mailchi.mp/scishow/email ---------- Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: Jp Lynch, J.V. Rosenbalm, Cye Stoner, Chris Curry, Bethany Matthews, David Johnston, Steve Gums, Kevin Knupp, Kevin Bealer, Matt Curls, Joseph Ruf, Alan Wong, Eric Jensen, Jaap Westera, Garrett Galloway, Jeremy Mattern, Lyndsay Brown, Toyas Dhake, Jason A Saslow, Blood Doctor Kelly, Alex Hackman, Piya Shedden, Chris Mackey, Chris Peters, Adam Brainard, Friso ---------- Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast: https://scishow-tangents.simplecast.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scishow.bsky.social #SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly ---------- Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vQ3ZJbAquGHKVf7WQNiWqNJ2Tmfql5V6cFAUEncd-uf32i2vGHMJv9Ubo_KKBFYSVli_Qqlsz0PJ9BD/pub

10 Mysteries We Solved with Archeology | Compilation

Dec 25, 2025

Archeology is all about uncovering ancient mysteries. There are so many that we made this compilation with our favorite ones. Hosted by: Savannah Geary (they/them) ---------- Support us for $8/month on Patreon and keep SciShow going! https://www.patreon.com/scishow Or support us directly: https://complexly.com/support Join our SciShow email list to get the latest news and highlights: https://mailchi.mp/scishow/email ---------- Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: David Johnston, Cye Stoner, Jp Lynch, Bethany Matthews, Chris Curry, J.V. Rosenbalm, Alan Wong, Toyas Dhake, Reed Spilmann, Garrett Galloway, Friso, Lyndsay Brown, Jeremy Mattern, Jaap Westera, Matt Curls, Eric Jensen, Chris Mackey, Adam Brainard, Piya Shedden, Steve Gums, Alex Hackman, Kevin Knupp, Chris Peters, Kevin Bealer, Joseph Ruf, Jason A Saslow ---------- Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast: https://scishow-tangents.simplecast.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scishow.bsky.social #SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly ---------- Original episodes https://youtu.be/eGAMaM2nC7M?si=u5iBeob4BQhnUGdS https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=v7U0rwjdwXkidcEL&v=9u_ClqtLxjg&feature=youtu.be https://youtu.be/bGCD0J2IMX8?si=Vu1GWCb3u08aG-4d https://youtu.be/ejcF54RLnVU?si=vAv-CQz8FsSJlwMh https://youtu.be/U19LhQOP5To?si=if-bdLZp2VHNd1wA https://youtu.be/J0vmb_3VxWU?si=G6nJcYJC3S7Xzcfc https://youtu.be/UePoV1SU2M0?si=9r9eHFDDGJtaYPZF https://youtu.be/LRcXAQmbFUI?si=3_MCG4Tjjt0RenwM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zv0myuOFIeY https://youtu.be/9v_eRj7ivRE?si=jp2Sh76T6xH6vrLl Images: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vikings#/media/File:Viking_attack_on_Gu%C3%A9rande,_from_a_Saint-Aubin_MS.jpg

Why Your Gluten Intolerance Gets Better on Vacation

Dec 24, 2025

Visit https://brilliant.org/scishow/ to get started learning STEM for free and get 20% off their annual premium subscription. Some people avoid gluten in the US but eat it to their heart's content in Europe. There are reasons your body might respond differently to the gluten over there. But there are also reasons that you shouldn't even try it, like if you have Celiac disease. Hosted by: Niba @NotesbyNiba (she/her) ---------- Support us for $8/month on Patreon and keep SciShow going! https://www.patreon.com/scishow Or support us directly: https://complexly.com/support Join our SciShow email list to get the latest news and highlights: https://mailchi.mp/scishow/email ---------- Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: David Johnston, Cye Stoner, Jp Lynch, Bethany Matthews, Chris Curry, J.V. Rosenbalm, Alan Wong, Toyas Dhake, Reed Spilmann, Garrett Galloway, Friso, Lyndsay Brown, Jeremy Mattern, Jaap Westera, Matt Curls, Eric Jensen, Chris Mackey, Adam Brainard, Piya Shedden, Steve Gums, Alex Hackman, Kevin Knupp, Chris Peters, Kevin Bealer, Joseph Ruf, Jason A Saslow ---------- Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast: https://scishow-tangents.simplecast.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scishow.bsky.social #SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly ---------- Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSbCvoOkfGiAUGXXsDwF9ldEaCeapzwksgZO4URo1Fjz7_f7q6GfHE2iP-gFABW5pskOGX7Ka9Qh_Oo/pub

The Discovery of Bacteria Should Have Been Impossible

Dec 23, 2025

Try Rocket Money for free: https://rocketmoney.yt.link/otfn1vb Antonie van Leeuwenhoek is the father of microbiology and the first person to have observed bacteria. Which he should not have been able to do, but did anyway. Here's why the discovery of bacteria should have been impossible. Hosted by: Niba @NotesbyNiba (she/her) ---------- Support us for $8/month on Patreon and keep SciShow going! https://www.patreon.com/scishow Or support us directly: https://complexly.com/support Join our SciShow email list to get the latest news and highlights: https://mailchi.mp/scishow/email ---------- Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: David Johnston, Cye Stoner, Jp Lynch, Bethany Matthews, Chris Curry, J.V. Rosenbalm, Alan Wong, Toyas Dhake, Reed Spilmann, Garrett Galloway, Friso, Lyndsay Brown, Jeremy Mattern, Jaap Westera, Matt Curls, Eric Jensen, Chris Mackey, Adam Brainard, Piya Shedden, Steve Gums, Alex Hackman, Kevin Knupp, Chris Peters, Kevin Bealer, Joseph Ruf, Jason A Saslow ---------- Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast: https://scishow-tangents.simplecast.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scishow.bsky.social #SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly ---------- Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSqkvuRGOdbdIPhEHVRchssYh3RtlpNpS600Po9E-3TQXrwTYw5fs6w4Enf-1OeP_NucfSkT7sei9zj/pub

What Made The Bahamas’ "Atlantis" Rocks?

Dec 22, 2025

Check out Megalodons, Mermaids, and Climate Change: Answers to Your Ocean and Atmosphere Questions by Ellen Prager and Dave Jones at https://bookshop.org/lists/scishow-recommended-reading. This video was made possible by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. To learn more, head to https://sloan.org/programs/public-understanding. There's a series of underground structures in the Bahamas that bears a striking resemblance to the fabled Atlantis. And while these concretions aren't the remnants of a lost city, we do know that studying how they formed can give us insights into ocean currents, climate change, and could even give us insights into making cleaner, greener concrete. Thanks to The Sloan Foundation for their support in making this video. SciShow's Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/lists/scishow-recommended-reading Hosted by: Jaida Elcock (she/her) ---------- Support us for $8/month on Patreon and keep SciShow going! https://www.patreon.com/scishow Or support us directly: https://complexly.com/support Join our SciShow email list to get the latest news and highlights: https://mailchi.mp/scishow/email ---------- Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: David Johnston, Cye Stoner, Jp Lynch, Bethany Matthews, Chris Curry, J.V. Rosenbalm, Alan Wong, Toyas Dhake, Reed Spilmann, Garrett Galloway, Friso, Lyndsay Brown, Jeremy Mattern, Jaap Westera, Matt Curls, Eric Jensen, Chris Mackey, Adam Brainard, Piya Shedden, Steve Gums, Alex Hackman, Kevin Knupp, Chris Peters, Kevin Bealer, Joseph Ruf, Jason A Saslow ---------- Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast: https://scishow-tangents.simplecast.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scishow.bsky.social #SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly ---------- Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/e/2PACX-1vR2Cnsxlr8OPVrRajDf6YwPf3wV_ZA6eESOvihkmWKVNu8u8lcb2iw7oXkpQf_4JJYS5jLX3kbW6e6i/pub

Could We Hibernate All the Way to Mars?

Dec 19, 2025

Support for this episode was contributed by the Translational Research Institute for Space Health at Baylor College of Medicine. TRISH is an applied health research catalyst that funds high-impact scientific studies and technologies to keep astronauts healthy during deep space exploration. TRISH is empowered by the NASA Human Research Program, and is a consortium led by Baylor College of Medicine with partners MIT and Caltech. To learn more go here: bcm.edu/spacehealth One day, we might nap our way to Mars. Researchers believe suspended animation or hibernation is the best way to travel through space. Here's how they want to do it. Hosted by: @NotesByNiba (she/her) ---------- Support us for $8/month on Patreon and keep SciShow going! https://www.patreon.com/scishow Or support us directly: https://complexly.com/support Join our SciShow email list to get the latest news and highlights: https://mailchi.mp/scishow/email ---------- Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: David Johnston, Cye Stoner, Jp Lynch, Bethany Matthews, Chris Curry, J.V. Rosenbalm, Alan Wong, Toyas Dhake, Reed Spilmann, Garrett Galloway, Friso, Lyndsay Brown, Jeremy Mattern, Jaap Westera, Matt Curls, Eric Jensen, Chris Mackey, Adam Brainard, Piya Shedden, Steve Gums, Alex Hackman, Kevin Knupp, Chris Peters, Kevin Bealer, Joseph Ruf, Jason A Saslow ---------- Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast: https://scishow-tangents.simplecast.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scishow.bsky.social #SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly ---------- Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTCcyTcfKmltx2ShKdMlDCtX0i5ZuMRh8-NvnDnC0rVAmdKSSwVk8QAxt1lRbdFZs8lQmVhUhw7VMJ_/pub

Wooden Cutting Boards Are the Best

Dec 18, 2025

Thanks to Henson Shaving for sponsoring this video! Head to https://hensonshaving.yt.link/d2iieCF and use code scishow to receive 100 blades for free (2+ years worth). Just make sure both products are in the cart for the code to take effect. The great debate between microplastic shedding plastic cutting boards and bacteria harboring wooden cutting boards started with peer-reviewed science. We'll explore that research along with what scientists know about alternative cutting board materials to determine the most food safe option. Hosted by: Hank Green (he/him) ---------- Support us for $8/month on Patreon and keep SciShow going! https://www.patreon.com/scishow Or support us directly: https://complexly.com/support Join our SciShow email list to get the latest news and highlights: https://mailchi.mp/scishow/email ---------- Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: David Johnston, Cye Stoner, Jp Lynch, Bethany Matthews, Chris Curry, J.V. Rosenbalm, Alan Wong, Toyas Dhake, Reed Spilmann, Garrett Galloway, Friso, Lyndsay Brown, Jeremy Mattern, Jaap Westera, Matt Curls, Eric Jensen, Chris Mackey, Adam Brainard, Piya Shedden, Steve Gums, Alex Hackman, Kevin Knupp, Chris Peters, Kevin Bealer, Joseph Ruf, Jason A Saslow ---------- Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast: https://scishow-tangents.simplecast.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scishow.bsky.social #SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly ---------- Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/e/2PACX-1vTO4adHpZ0_I5mCxUcfktIzjxdxyq2IP_aBkj91dGDPsmdh7nvr1fqm9KY9_jFGqM95cKe9i9K5FJ92/pub

Do Glass Bottles Shed More Microplastics Than Plastic?

Dec 17, 2025

Check out Manta Sleep here https://tinyurl.com/yuyzxkx6 and make sure to use SCISHOW for 10% off your order! And then, take a nap! A surprising study in 2025 claimed that glass bottles deposit more microplastics in your drink than plastic bottles. Is this counterintuitive claim true? And what can we do about it? Hosted by: Savannah Geary (they/them) ---------- Support us for $8/month on Patreon and keep SciShow going! https://www.patreon.com/scishow Or support us directly: https://complexly.com/support Join our SciShow email list to get the latest news and highlights: https://mailchi.mp/scishow/email ---------- Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: David Johnston, Cye Stoner, Jp Lynch, Bethany Matthews, Chris Curry, J.V. Rosenbalm, Alan Wong, Toyas Dhake, Reed Spilmann, Garrett Galloway, Friso, Lyndsay Brown, Jeremy Mattern, Jaap Westera, Matt Curls, Eric Jensen, Chris Mackey, Adam Brainard, Piya Shedden, Steve Gums, Alex Hackman, Kevin Knupp, Chris Peters, Kevin Bealer, Joseph Ruf, Jason A Saslow ---------- Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast: https://scishow-tangents.simplecast.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scishow.bsky.social #SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly ---------- Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vRHsJIK8pUhpPSBI3qptekdbpz2ynTaX0uyd_T0jjSnqUEya41_isgzXI5Htc81B1Zm8w26JJqRagHw/pub

What Dinosaurs, Pyramids, and the Atomic Bomb Have in Common

Dec 16, 2025

What Dinosaurs, Pyramids, and the Atomic Bomb Have in Common - Inspired by Collisions video: Check out Collisions: A Physicist's Journey from Hiroshima to the Death of the Dinosaurs, by Alec Nevala-Lee at https://bookshop.org/lists/scishow-recommended-reading. This video was made possible by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. To learn more, head to https://sloan.org/programs/public-understanding. Sometimes, being an expert in one scientific field doesn’t translate to another. But then there's Luis Alvarez, a particle physicist who helped expand our knowledge of the world by investigating everything from atomic bombs, to Egyptian pyramids, to what actually killed the dinosaurs. Hosted by: Hank Green (he/him) ---------- Support us for $8/month on Patreon and keep SciShow going! https://www.patreon.com/scishow Or support us directly: https://complexly.com/support Join our SciShow email list to get the latest news and highlights: https://mailchi.mp/scishow/email ---------- Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: David Johnston, Cye Stoner, Jp Lynch, Bethany Matthews, Chris Curry, J.V. Rosenbalm, Alan Wong, Toyas Dhake, Reed Spilmann, Garrett Galloway, Friso, Lyndsay Brown, Jeremy Mattern, Jaap Westera, Matt Curls, Eric Jensen, Chris Mackey, Adam Brainard, Piya Shedden, Steve Gums, Alex Hackman, Kevin Knupp, Chris Peters, Kevin Bealer, Joseph Ruf, Jason A Saslow ---------- Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast: https://scishow-tangents.simplecast.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scishow.bsky.social #SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly ---------- Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vQV6kkGHYR5v1crwCOmN8EK5DtHbdeU07G803y3tj4RcSc-f_rHLyDTiGY33T3XlmhdRQR6j1W_56VE/pub

Is This The Biggest Mistake Science Ever Made?

Dec 15, 2025

Check out Air-Borne: The Hidden History of the Life We Breathe by Carl Zimmer at https://bookshop.org/lists/scishow-recommended-reading. This video was made possible by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. To learn more, head to https://sloan.org/programs/public-understanding. People have been trying to prevent the spread of infectious disease forever, yet we only got germ theory in the 19th century. Except for one 16th century Italian doctor, who got it exactly right and was immediately forgotten. Here's how we've been making slow progress for more than a millennium. Hosted by: Savannah Geary (they/them) ---------- Support us for $8/month on Patreon and keep SciShow going! https://www.patreon.com/scishow Or support us directly: https://complexly.com/support Join our SciShow email list to get the latest news and highlights: https://mailchi.mp/scishow/email ---------- Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: David Johnston, Cye Stoner, Jp Lynch, Bethany Matthews, Chris Curry, J.V. Rosenbalm, Alan Wong, Toyas Dhake, Reed Spilmann, Garrett Galloway, Friso, Lyndsay Brown, Jeremy Mattern, Jaap Westera, Matt Curls, Eric Jensen, Chris Mackey, Adam Brainard, Piya Shedden, Steve Gums, Alex Hackman, Kevin Knupp, Chris Peters, Kevin Bealer, Joseph Ruf, Jason A Saslow ---------- Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast: https://scishow-tangents.simplecast.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scishow.bsky.social #SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly ---------- Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSoxOeyC8VOKrmWYxfZcm66vSOpixNvUaBk6i7vv0CRjQITIUXER8fSr-hE3bk370fq-1pszqvQiaUY/pub

What’s the Truth about Acetaminophen and Autism?

Dec 12, 2025

You've probably heard the claim that there's a link between acetaminophen aka Tylenol and autism. And there are a lot of conflicting takes about what that claim means, which research is “right”, and what different studies really show. So here’s some of the major studies that are being talked about, their shortcomings, and what it means for all the pregnant and autistic people out there. Hosted by: Savannah Geary ---------- Support us for $8/month on Patreon and keep SciShow going! https://www.patreon.com/scishow Or support us directly: https://complexly.com/support Join our SciShow email list to get the latest news and highlights: https://mailchi.mp/scishow/email ---------- Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: David Johnston, Cye Stoner, Jp Lynch, Bethany Matthews, Chris Curry, J.V. Rosenbalm, Alan Wong, Toyas Dhake, Reed Spilmann, Garrett Galloway, Friso, Lyndsay Brown, Jeremy Mattern, Jaap Westera, Matt Curls, Eric Jensen, Chris Mackey, Adam Brainard, Piya Shedden, Steve Gums, Alex Hackman, Kevin Knupp, Chris Peters, Kevin Bealer, Joseph Ruf, Jason A Saslow ---------- Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet? SciShow Tangents Podcast: https://scishow-tangents.simplecast.com/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@scishow Instagram: http://instagram.com/thescishow Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/scishow Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/scishow.bsky.social #SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly ---------- Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vRu57DMsppUXEyKn4BHRYMfOKg_wod2J21IMWZB7ju86JGLRTnP8Cm0HTV-QaKUMswlrq3-fjzMTHn9/pub