YouTube education: quick information for short attention spans

“Actually, the TSA doesn’t protect us from terrorist attacks,” CollegeHumor comedian Adam said from my laptop screen.

“Isn’t this so cool?” I asked my friend as she stared blankly at her phone. After days of talking about the show I had just discovered, “Adam Ruins Everything,” she grudgingly gave in to my demands, and I made sure to replay the beginning of the video until she paid attention.

Like the other millions of viewers who keep up with these fascinating videos, I enjoy watching “educational” videos on YouTube to increase my knowledge. I subscribe to YouTube channels like TED, Vsauce, AsapSCIENCE, SmarterEveryDay, Veritasium and SciShow to keep up on uncommon topics that pique my curiosity.

For example, I can spend hours watching videos from “Adam Knows Everything,” a YouTube show designed to shock viewers with interesting explanations on how the world truly works, with videos ranging from “Why your credit card is not secure” to “Why Lie Detectors Don't Detect Lies.”

Although some people may believe that I’m wasting my time by religiously watching these videos, knowing strange facts can often be a conversation starter. Besides, I’d rather learn seemingly useless information than keep up with what Kim Kardashian had for lunch.

With the intriguing titles, like “Are We Ready For Aliens?” and purposefully shocking thumbnails, it’s hard to stay away from these addicting videos. Whenever I have an upcoming Chemistry Honors test, I look up a CrashCourse video by YouTuber Hank Green to review the topic and then find myself watching five more related videos. I am unable to resist the interesting breakdown of difficult topics accompanied by colorful graphics and Green’s quirky humor.

As my generation spends much of its time online anyway, it makes sense for education to move in the same direction. Educational websites like Khan Academy, which teach students through videos, are so popular because they explain complex topics in simple ways. Viewers can also establish their own comfortable learning pace.

As YouTube videos stray from everyday topics that you learn at school, the line between education and entertainment, however, becomes blurred. They condense information in visually interesting videos that quickly summarize concepts to make a huge range of topics readily accessible. No, you may not need to know how who owns the moon, but if you go onto VSauce’s channel you can learn about the topic in an interesting format.

If you have a couple of minutes to spare or have been staring blankly for hours at “Tasty” cooking videos on Facebook, I suggest you watch an interesting educational video or two on YouTube. You might surprise your friends with the knowledge you gain, whether it’s about spherical mirrors, gluten or the reason for yawning.