Kurzgesagt

NEW VIDEO: This Virus Shouldn't Exist (But it Does)

Hidden in the microverse all around you, there is a merciless war being fought by the true rulers of this planet, microorganisms. Amoebae, protists, bacteria, archaea and fungi compete for resources and space. And then there are the strange horrors that are viruses, hunting everyone else. Not even being alive, they are the tiniest, most abundant and deadliest beings on earth, killing trillions every day. Not interested in resources, only in living things to take over. Or so we thought. <...

A Journey Into the Mysterious System That Keeps You Alive

Our latest video is just the beginning of the epic story that unfolds inside you every day and is told in full in IMMUNE, written by Philipp Dettmer, the founder and head writer of Kurzgesagt. The book will be out in six weeks and it would mean the world to us and Philipp if you could pre-order it. 

IMMUNE is a beautifully illustrated deep dive into the immune system, the most important t...

NEW VIDEO: How The Immune System ACTUALLY Works – IMMUNE

The human immune system is the most complex biological system we know, after the human brain, and yet, most of us never learn how it works. Or what it is. Your immune System consists of hundreds of tiny and two large organs, it has its own transport network spread throughout your body. Every day it makes hundreds of billions of fresh cells.

It is not some sort of abstract entity. Your immune system is YOU. Your biology protecting you from the billions of microorganisms that want to cons...

So shiny, so cosmically horrifying ✨

Ultramassive Black Holes simply defy the imagination. ⁠Our exclusive Ultramassive Black Hole Pin is a reminder that there is a vast and beautiful universe out there even though we can't really see or fully comprehend it.⁠

Only a bit less than 24 hours left to pre-order this sparkly Black Hole Pin – and then never again.⁠⁠

NEW VIDEO: The Largest Black Hole in the Universe - Size Comparison

The largest things in the universe are black holes. In contrast to things like planets or stars they have no physical size limit, and can literally grow endlessly. Although in reality specific things need to happen to create different kinds of black holes, from really tiny ones to the largest single things in the universe. So how do black holes grow and how large is the largest of them all?

Sources & further reading: 2021-08-05 14:36:09 +0000 UTC View Post

NEW VIDEO: How To Terraform Venus (Quickly)

Leaving earth to find new homes in space is an old dream of humanity and will sooner or later be necessary for our survival. The planet that gets the most attention is Mars, a small, toxic and energy poor planet that just about seems good enough for a colony of depressed humans huddled in underground cities.   
But what if we think bigger? What if we take Venus, one of the most hostile and deadly places in the solar system and turn it into a colony? Not by building lofty cloud ci...

NEW VIDEO: The Day the Dinosaurs Died - Minute by Minute

66 million years ago, maybe on a Tuesday afternoon, life was the same as it had been the day before or a thousand years before or pretty much a million years before. Things were good for our feathered dinosaur buddies. Until a tiny, tiny detail in the sky changed.

To all the birbs we loved before…

Hi birbs,

we love how the bird army is growing and getting bigger each month!

Right now, it’s unfortunately taking us pretty long until we can give your birb a spot in a video – we are still catching up with birds from 3 years ago.

Since there are so many of you now, we can no longer guarantee each bird to appear in one of our videos.

There is still a good chance, but it w...

NEW VIDEO: What Are You Doing With Your Life? The Tail End

Wrapping your mind around your life is pretty hard, because you are up to your neck in it. It's like trying to understand the ocean while learning how to swim. On most days you are busy just keeping your head above water. So it is not easy to figure out what to do with your life and how to spend your time. There are a million distractions. Your family, friends and romantic partners, boring work, and exciting projects. Video games to play and books to read. And then there is your couch that so...

NEW VIDEO: TRUE Limits Of Humanity – The Final Border We Will Never Cross

Is there a border we will never cross? Are there places we will never reach, no matter how hard we try? It turns out, there are. Even with sci-fi technology, we are trapped in a limited pocket of the Universe and the finite stuff within it. How much universe is there for us and how far can we go?

NEW VIDEO: The Most Extreme Things in the Universe - Ultimate Guide to Black Holes

Black holes are the most powerful and extreme things in the universe and they are wildly weird and complicated. What would happen if you fell inside one and what are they really?

NEW VIDEO: Do we Need Nuclear Energy to Stop Climate Change?

Do we need nuclear energy to stop climate change? More and more voices from science, environmental activists and the press have been saying so in recent years – but this comes as a shock to those who are fighting against nuclear energy and the problems that come with it. So who is right? Well - it is complicated.

Immune – A Journey into the Mysterious System That Keeps You Alive

Hey Everybody! Exciting news, the first sort of Kurzgesagt book will be out this year!

Since my name is on the cover, I probably should introduce myself real quick. I'm Philipp Dettmer and I'm the Founder, CEO, and most importantly, Head Writer of Kurzgesagt. So even if you don't know my voice, you know my words and thoughts and ideas.

What is this book about? Well, the title did give it away. It's about the immune system in all its wonder and mystery and beauty.

Did you kno...

NEW VIDEO: What if the World turned to Gold? - The Gold Apocalypse

Let us explore the scientific mystery of what would happen to you, if Earth suddenly turned into gold! The “Midaspocalypse”, based on the ancient tale of King Midas who was cursed so everything he touched turned into gold.

Digital Stickers?

A fellow patron of yours had an idea, which we are seriously considering 😊
But before we get started, we'd like to hear your opinion on it:

Would you be interested in digital stickers?

In times of zoom calls and virtual school sessions, these stickers could give anything a little glow up:

• Homework
• Reports 
• Dashboards
...
2021-03-04 17:38:51 +0000 UTC View Post

March of the Ducks Wallpaper

We are dedicating this month to our favorite mascot. It has been with us from the very beginning and continues to be our favorite of all the birds. ⁠

To kick of the celebration, we created a new Patreon only March of the Ducks Wallpaper.

There is also a lot of fancy Duc...

NEW VIDEO: What if We Nuke the Moon?

This was our last video of the year 12,020 and oh well, what an interesting and weird year it was, in all the worst ways. But it is finally over. We want to end it by saying thank you. For watching our videos, sharing and commenting and of course for your direct support. We get to do this channel and work on many exciting things because of you birbs and we are really grateful for that. Especially in this weird year it was great to be able to work on these videos, be it from home rather than t...

Can You Upload Your Mind & Live Forever? feat. Cyberpunk 2077

The desire to be free from the limits of the human experience is as old as our first stories. We exist in an endless universe, only bound by the laws of physics and yet, our consciousness is trapped in mortal machines made of meat. With the breathtaking explosion of innovation and progress, for the first time the concept of leaving our flesh piles behind and uploading our minds into a digital utopia seems possible. Even like the logical next step on our evolutionary ladder.

NEW VIDEO: What If Earth got Kicked Out of the Solar System? Rogue Earth

The night sky seems peaceful and orderly. But in reality, stars are careening through the galaxy at speeds of hundreds of thousands of kilometres per hour. Not bound by static formations but changing neighbourhoods constantly. Fortunately space is big, and so the stars of the Milky Way are very unlikely to hit us. Unfortunately, they don’t have to hit anything to make us have a really bad time on earth. And there are already stars starting to get very close.

We are 15,000 birbs

This really makes us take a step back and take a minute...

We started out tiny, with a big idea, and thanks to your help we have come so far! We are so grateful for each and every one of you. You’re wonderful support is making it possible for us to stay independent and focus on quality over anything else.

Thank you so much! Please give yourself a hug from us ❤

Much love,
the kurzgesagt team

NEW VIDEO: How Large Can a Bacteria get? Life & Size 3

In and out, in and out. Staying alive is about doing things. This very second, your cells are combusting glucose molecules with oxygen to make energy available, which keeps you alive for another precious moment. To get the oxygen to your cells you are breathing. Breathing is an answer to a very hard problem: How do you get the resources that your cells need to survive, from the outside, to the inside of your cells? Every living thing has to solve this problem and the solution is surprisingly ...

NEW VIDEO: Geoengineering: A Horrible Idea We Might Have to Do

By the end of the 21st century, humanity is becoming desperate. Decades of heatwaves and droughts have led to unusually  poor harvests, while the warming oceans yield fewer fish each year. In the tropical zones, millions suffer from famine and resource wars have made millions more flee to the north. As things quickly get worse, in an act of desperation, the world's governments decide to enact an emergency plan...
It is far from certain that a grim scenario like this will play out. Bu...

NEW VIDEO: Geoengineering: A Horrible Idea We Might Have to Do

By the end of the 21st century, humanity is becoming desperate. Decades of heatwaves and droughts have led to unusually  poor harvests, while the warming oceans yield fewer fish each year. In the tropical zones, millions suffer from famine and resource wars have made millions more flee to the north. As things quickly get worse, in an act of desperation, the world's governments decide to enact an emergency plan...
It is far from certain that a grim scenario like this will play out. Bu...

Listen up early birbs

We made sure you know first: The Year 12,021 Calendar is here!

For the fifth time, we present to you the Human Era Calendar for the year 12,021 – this time it is all about the journey of humanity, beginning tens of thousands of years ago, leading into the revolution of agriculture, to ancient high civilizations and the beginning of modern times, culminating in a vision for our future. 

Be ...

NEW VIDEO: Is It Too Late To Stop Climate Change? Well, it's Complicated.

Climate Change is just too much. There is never any good news. Only graphs that get more and more red and angry. Almost every year breaks some horrible record, from the harshest heat waves to the most rapid Glacier melt. It’s endless and relentless.   We have known for decades that rapid Climate Change is being caused by the release of Greenhouse Gases. But instead of reducing them, in 2019 the world was emitting 50% more CO2 than in the year 2000. And emissions are still rising. ...

The Universe in a Nutshell

Ohai Patreons! I wanted to let you know that we created our first app ‘Universe in a Nutshell’, together with Tim Urban of Wait but Why! You can get it here:
Appstore: http://kgs.link/universe-app-ios
Google Playstore: http://kgs.link/universe-app-android
Oh boy. Making an app is hard. It seemed so easy when we started. We underesti...

NEW VIDEO: The Largest Star in the Universe – Size Comparison

What is the largest star in the Universe? And why is it that large? And what ARE stars anyway? 

NEW VIDEO: The Warrior Kingdoms of the Weaver Ant

Deep in tropical jungles lie floating kingdoms ruled by beautiful and deadly masters: They are sort of the high elves of the ant kingdoms: Talented architects that create castles and city states. But they are also fierce and expansionist warriors and their kingdoms are ensnared in a never ending war for survival. Oecophylla weaver ants.  

NEW VIDEO: Unlimited Resources From Space – Asteroid Mining

Getting rare materials from the ground into your phone is ugly. The mining industry is responsible for air and water pollution and the destruction of entire landscapes. But what if we could replace the mining industry on Earth with a clean process that can’t harm anyone? Well, we can. All we need to do is look up.

Monthly Rewards

Hi friends,
We are so sorry, but due to technical issues we are not able to send out the monthly rewards at the moment.
We are working on it and hoping to fix this asap, so we'll be back on track next week.
Until then: Have a lovely weekend and stay safe!