From TED Ed. Explore the psychology behind why children invent imaginary companions and what skills they can develop through pretend play. — Amia and her friend Zelba have been inseparable for nearly a year. They share secrets, play games, and rule over imaginary kingdoms. Amia sometimes has bad ideas, and Zelba goes along with them…

From TED Ed. Explore how snakes evolved, and find out how their jaw-dropping anatomy allows them to take down prey several times their size. — Since slithering onto the scene some 150 million years ago, evolving length and limbless-ness out of their ancestral lizard forms, snakes have diversified rapidly. Their noodly bodies and flexible heads…

From TED Ed. Take a tour of the vast, underground network of the Paris Catacombs, and find out how this 18th century cemetery came to be. — For centuries, Parisians had buried their dead in the Cemetery of the Innocents. By the 18th century, the grounds had become overcrowded — spewing foul odors across the…

From TED Ed. Explore the science of silica gel, and find out why these packets are everywhere and if they’re actually dangerous to ingest. — Of the many, many things we’re not supposed to snack on, perhaps the most common forbidden food is silica gel. This tiny packet pops up in packaging for everything —…

From TED Ed. Professional songwriters share their writing process, how they collaborate with other artists, and what it takes to be a songwriter. — "Think Like A Musician" connects you with working musicians who want to help the music-curious and music-passionate hone and share the gift of music with the world. Part interview, part animated…

From TED Ed. Trace the history and evolution of beer, from its first known existence 13,000 years ago to the modern beverage we know today. — Today, there are over 100 distinct beer varieties, from pilsners and bocks, to porters, stouts, and IPAs. The oldest evidence of beer brewing dates back 13,000 years, but experts…

From TED Ed. Dig into sortition, a system where officials are selected via lottery, and how it could address the problems of modern democracies. — Elections are tools that ensure a nation’s citizens all have an equal political voice. But these so-called “great equalizers” are often plagued by corruption, partisan divides, and uninformed voters. Which…

From TED Ed. Explore how the microplastics in your body can affect your health, and how we can regulate the amount of plastic in our world. — Plastic is everywhere. It’s in our clothes, our food, the air we breathe. And plastic is now also in our bodies. Micro and nanoplastics generally enter our bodies…

From TED Ed. Dig into what biological factors influence hair growth, how it can change as you age, and how to take control of your scalp. — At age 44, Xie Qiuping cut her hair for the first time in over three decades. Her impressive locks extended over 5 meters — earning the Guinness World…

From TED Ed. Dig into the body’s biological process that heals a broken bone, and find out how different kinds of fractures are mended. — The human body’s 206 bones come in many shapes and sizes: short bones, long bones, flat bones, irregular bones. Roughly 50% of people will break a bone at some point…

From TED Ed. Explore how two main types of emergency contraception work to prevent pregnancy by disrupting or delaying ovulation. — In a 2021 study, researchers asked over 500 participants to explain how the morning-after pill worked. Despite these pills’ widespread use, 60% answered incorrectly. Emergency contraceptives are often misunderstood— even the phrase “the morning-after…

From TED Ed. Trace the illustrious history of hats dating back to the Paleolithic Era, and explore how they were used in different periods. — Humans have been fashioning caps since the dawn of civilization. A bearskin cap from the Bronze Age is one of the earliest surviving hats, discovered alongside Europe’s oldest mummy. Hats…

From TED Ed. Dig into the pros and cons of annuity and lump sum lottery payouts, and find out the most common mistakes lottery winners make. — After winning the lottery, one of the first decisions you’d have to make is how you want your winnings to be paid out. You can choose the full…

From TED Ed. Explore the science of hypnosis, and dig into how the practice can affect your body and brain when hypnotic suggestions work. — In the 19th century, Scottish surgeon James Braid revolutionized the field of hypnotism, transitioning the practice towards inducing a sleep-like state. Today, hypnosis is used in psychiatry as a helpful…

From TED Ed. Professional musicians share what makes for great, memorable lyrics, their writing process, and where they get inspiration from. — "Think Like A Musician" connects you with working musicians who want to help the music-curious and music-passionate hone and share the gift of music with the world. Part interview, part animated course, our…