Tom Scott

Season 11

A series of educational web videos across a range of topics.

Where to Watch Tom Scott • Season 11

50 Episodes

  • Trying To Fail A Drug Test On Purpose
    E1
    Trying To Fail A Drug Test On PurposeDrug tests don't just work as a buzzkill, they can keep doctors and patients honest regarding some of the more dangerous drugs known to man. The problem is, poppy seeds can throw a giant wrench in that circle of trust. Poppy seeds come from the papaver somniferum flower native to Turkey, and even though they don't contain opium, consuming the seeds has historically caused the tests to register opiate use. In this video, I explore how these tests work, what they look for, and how something as simple as a bottle of seeds available at any grocery store, can cause a false positive for painkillers, heroin, morphine, and other drugs.
  • Australia's Bushfire-Hunting Satellites
    E2
    Australia's Bushfire-Hunting SatellitesTurns out that trying to precisely detect fire from space is more difficult than "point a camera at it".
  • Trying To Create an AI Tom Scott (on a $100 budget)
    E3
    Trying To Create an AI Tom Scott (on a $100 budget)And, please don't try this at home.
  • The Radioactive Beach In New York
    E4
    The Radioactive Beach In New YorkDeep in Brooklyn there's a beach you definitely wouldn't swim at, unless you're an archaeologist.
  • Hill Hill Hill Hill, debunked, debunked
    E5
    Hill Hill Hill Hill, debunked, debunkedTorpenhow Hill, in the Lake District in the north-west of England, is the only place in the world whose name has the same word four different times. That's the story, anyway. The truth is a bit more complex.
  • YouTubers have to declare ads. Why doesn't anyone else?
    E6
    YouTubers have to declare ads. Why doesn't anyone else?Around the world, there are regulations for "influencers". Those regulations make sure that if someone is paid to endorse a product, they have to declare that payment to the people watching. But why does no-one on TV, or film, or anywhere else have to do that?
  • I asked an AI for video ideas, and they were actually good
    E7
    I asked an AI for video ideas, and they were actually goodI didn't expect this to work so well.
  • Why Progress Bars Don't Move Smoothly
    E8
    Why Progress Bars Don't Move Smoothly4 minutes remaining. Then 15 seconds. Then 5 hours. Why can't computers just tell you how long something's going to take?
  • Why Hollywood explosions don't look like real explosions
    E9
    Why Hollywood explosions don't look like real explosionsExplosions on film are made to look good: fireballs and flame. In reality, though, they're a bit disappointing. Here's how Hollywood does it.
  • No-one is going to save Covehithe
    E10
    No-one is going to save CovehitheOn the south-east coast of England sits Covehithe: a little Suffolk village going back at least a thousand years. By the end of the century, it'll likely have fallen into the sea. Here's why no-one's planning to save it.
  • Why Shakespeare Could Never Have Been French
    E11
    Why Shakespeare Could Never Have Been FrenchShakespeare sounds a certain way. Why? And why could it only work in English?
  • "High explosives" doesn't just mean "bigger boom"
    E12
    "High explosives" doesn't just mean "bigger boom"I didn't even realise that "low explosives" were a thing; let's talk about deflagration, detonation, and how high explosives can actually be safer.
  • This changed my mind about aquariums.
    E13
    This changed my mind about aquariums."Life support system" were the three key words that convinced me to do a video about an aquarium. Because yes: behind the scenes at The Deep, an aquarium in Hull, there's a life support system, and it deserves that name.
  • What Color Is My Hoodie?
    E14
    What Color Is My Hoodie?Grey? Blue? Purple? It can look different, depending on the context. Let's talk about color perception, color temperature, and the history of laundry.
  • I asked an AI for video ideas for other YouTubers. It went badly.
    E15
    I asked an AI for video ideas for other YouTubers. It went badly.GPT-3: not quite up to the task. Yet.
  • England's oldest attraction turns teddy bears to stone
    E16
    England's oldest attraction turns teddy bears to stoneIn Knaresborough, in Yorkshire, sits Mother Shipton's Cave. Folks there have been charging admission for nearly 400 years, and the star of the show is a "petrifying well". A few folk legends do actually turn out to be true.
  • Taking The Emergency Exit From A Wind Turbine
    E17
    Taking The Emergency Exit From A Wind TurbineWind turbines have emergency exits, but they might not be for the reason you think.
  • The beach where Lego keeps washing up
    E18
    The beach where Lego keeps washing upPerranporth Beach, in Cornwall, is famed for being the "Lego beach". The truth is more complicated.
  • I promise this story about microwaves is interesting.
    E19
    I promise this story about microwaves is interesting.Tomtunrs to the source of 1950s research on cryogenic suspended animation and reanimation which actually worked. Just not on people.
  • The long-forgotten history of the British moon spacesuit
    E20
    The long-forgotten history of the British moon spacesuitDecades before NASA's Apollo program, the British Interplanetary Society wanted to go to the moon: in a spacesuit that looked like a suit of armour.
  • The Accidental Rush for Anthrax Island
    E21
    The Accidental Rush for Anthrax IslandGruinard Island, in the north-west of Scotland, was where Britain tested its biological weapons. That story's been told many times: but I found something in the archives that I don't think anyone's ever noticed before.
  • The world's last turntable ferry has a really clever design
    E22
    The world's last turntable ferry has a really clever designIn Glenelg, on the west coast of Scotland, there's the Skye Ferry: the last turntable ferry in the world. And the reason for that turntable is a lot more clever than I initially thought.
  • Landing at the only airport that's also a public beach
    E23
    Landing at the only airport that's also a public beachBarra Airport, in Na h-Eileanan Siar in the west of Scotland, is unique: it's the only commercial airport where the runway's made of sand, and tide covers it up twice a day. Here's how it works.
  • History forgot these old fireworks. We recreated them.
    E24
    History forgot these old fireworks. We recreated them.Around the old mining areas of North Wales, you can find rock cannon: old Welsh firework sites. Most of the world has never heard of them: so we recreated them on a test range.
  • The Shocking New Use for Red Telephone Boxes
    E25
    The Shocking New Use for Red Telephone BoxesWhat do you do with a disused phone box? And can they help save lives?
  • How many robots does it take to run a grocery store?
    E26
    How many robots does it take to run a grocery store?In Ocado's grocery warehouses, thousands of mechanical boxes move on the Hive. Are they all individual robots? Or is this one giant hive mind?
  • The UK's last aerial ropeway uses no power, moves 300 tonnes a day, and will be gone by 2036.
    E27
    The UK's last aerial ropeway uses no power, moves 300 tonnes a day, and will be gone by 2036.In Claughton, Lancashire, the Forterra brickworks produces 50 million bricks a year, from shale that's quarried a mile and a half away. To get that shale to the brickworks: the last aerial ropeway in the country. These used to be common: but now, the last one will be gone by 2036.
  • An Unedited, Rain-Soaked Ride on Claughton's Aerial Ropeway
    E28
    An Unedited, Rain-Soaked Ride on Claughton's Aerial RopewayHere's the full video from a camera attached to a bucket on the Claughton Aerial Ropeway.
  • I tried to film a volcano and it was a complete disaster
    E29
    I tried to film a volcano and it was a complete disasterIceland has a new volcano, Fagradalsfjall: I wanted to visit, to talk about the infrastructure around it, and work out how the country deals with a new and dangerous tourist attraction. It didn't go well.
  • The diving gondola: a strange elevator to the ocean floor
    E30
    The diving gondola: a strange elevator to the ocean floorOn the German coast of the Baltic Sea, there's a tourist attraction that I think is very strange: the "Tauchgondel", a room that sinks under the waves and lets you go diving - without getting wet.
  • How one little boat (and me) held up miles of London traffic at Tower Bridge
    E31
    How one little boat (and me) held up miles of London traffic at Tower BridgeTower Bridge is a tourist attraction these days: but first and foremost, it's a working, lifting bridge. And river traffic comes first.
  • I helped cover a 5,000-year-old monument with worn-out tires
    E32
    I helped cover a 5,000-year-old monument with worn-out tiresNess of Brodgar, in Orkney, is one of the most important archaeological sites in western Europe. This week, it was covered by old, worn-out tires. Here's why.
  • The Islands With Too Much Power
    E33
    The Islands With Too Much PowerThe Orkney Islands, off the northern tip of Scotland, have so much electricity that it's actually a problem. Here's why: and here's what they're doing about it.
  • I took the world's shortest flight. It was underwhelming.
    E34
    I took the world's shortest flight. It was underwhelming.The flight between Papa Westray and Westray takes 80-90 seconds and covers about 2km. Why does it exist? And what's it like? On a rainy day in the Orkney Islands, I went to find out.
  • Why this observatory fires lasers at satellites
    E35
    Why this observatory fires lasers at satellitesNERC's Space Geodesy Facility, hidden away in the English countryside, fires lasers at satellites. Because it turns out that knowing a satellite's position exactly is really, really difficult.
  • Three strange river crossings
    E36
    Three strange river crossingsOver the Manchester Ship Canal, you'll find the Hulmes Ferry, the Thelwall Ferry, and the Warburton Toll Bridge. They're all strange in their own way, all under the control of one company, and all dating back to old laws and legal documents from a hundred years ago. I was in the area, so I stopped by, and found that things might be changing soon.
  • The public toll road with no speed limit
    E37
    The public toll road with no speed limitA public toll road with no speed limit, the Nürburgring Nordschleife, alternates as a permanent racetrack with unforgiving blind corners and hills.
  • The World's Most Useful Model Railway
    E38
    The World's Most Useful Model RailwayTechnische Universitat in Darmstadt Germany offers classes for future railroad operators. Simulators are available for engineers. But for station operators a more real world experience is required. To that end the university operates a model railroad with all the switching controls in service since 1950.
  • I thought the Schmid Peoplemover was impossible
    E39
    I thought the Schmid Peoplemover was impossibleAn elevator that can go smoothly from horizontal to vertical isn't possible - right? Turns out that the conventional wisdom is wrong, and the Schmid Peoplemover has been doing that for many years.
  • The world's only float-through McDonald's
    E40
    The world's only float-through McDonald'sOn a little canal off the Elbe river in Germany, sits the McBoat: the world's only paddle-through McDonald's. It seemed like the sort of thing I should investigate.
  • The shooting range where you fire over a busy road
    E41
    The shooting range where you fire over a busy roadThe Brünnlisau shooting range in Switzerland has its targets on the other side of a major road. And it's safe. Here's how and why.
  • The highway where trucks work like electric trains
    E42
    The highway where trucks work like electric trainsIn Lübeck, Germany, there's one of several eHighway test projects: overhead catenary wires, where electric trucks with pantographs can pull power directly from the grid.
  • An actual, real-world use for robot dogs
    E43
    An actual, real-world use for robot dogsRobot 'dogs' can walk, climb and pretty much go anywhere humans can. But what are they good for. What about inspecting remote locations especially in bad whether.
  • Why this "falling rocks" sign is more important than most
    E44
    Why this "falling rocks" sign is more important than mostIn Brienz/Brinzauls, a small village in the east of Switzerland, there's a village slipping into a valley and a road that's surprisingly dangerous.
  • This tiny railroad across the sea has an important job
    E45
    This tiny railroad across the sea has an important jobThe Hallig's are a chain of barrier islands that project the north coast of Germany from flooding. The tiny little Lüttmoorsiel-Nordstrandischmoor island railway was built to ferry supplies for the maintenance of the islands. Today it is also used by residents of the islands who build their own little trolleys to travel to the mainland.
  • The tunnel where people pay to inhale radioactive gas
    E46
    The tunnel where people pay to inhale radioactive gasIn most of the world, inhaling radon for pain relief sounds like a bizarre idea. In some places, though, it's so accepted that it's prescribed by doctors and covered by health insurance. And I have no idea how to talk about it.
  • The town where holding fireworks over your head is a tradition
    E47
    The town where holding fireworks over your head is a traditionBridgwater Carnival, in Somerset, has a long tradition of squibbing: a huge procession of people holding fireworks right above their heads. This year, I got the chance to be one of the squibbers.
  • The world's most expensive object by weight
    E48
    The world's most expensive object by weightAt $8.3 million dollars for around 40 milligrams, the British Guiana 1c magenta is the world's most expensive object by weight: it's a postage stamp from 1856, the only one of its kind.
  • The Thames Barrier must never fail. Here's why it doesn't.
    E49
    The Thames Barrier must never fail. Here's why it doesn't.The Thames Barrier is a wonder of engineering. If it fails, then London floods. Here's how the engineers there make sure it doesn't fail.
  • The hidden background noise that can catch criminals
    E50
    The hidden background noise that can catch criminalsElectrical Network Frequency analysis, ENF analysis, matches background hum against power grid logs. I talked to one of the researchers who works on it, and also set them a challenge.

 

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