A large collection of channels I regularly follow and consider to be reputable sources of information and enterntainment. I have most of these on Omea (an RSS feed... tracker? by JetBrains) but decided to also create a public page I can share, as it seems many of these channels are brought up quite often in conversation.
Covers what we know about various stellar phenomena as well as detailed summaries of what various missions discovered. Dense in content and with very good production quality.
Covers astrophysics, astronomy but also extensively covers quantum mechanics, Spacetime is characterized by very high production values and regular uploads.
The go-to YouTuber for keeping up with space exploration updates, but also learning about space technology, space history and occasionally astrophysics. His videos typically feature him on camera with relevant images or videos taking over when appropriate, and extensive use of Kerbal Space Program to demonstrate principles. Scott holds degrees in astrophysics and is currently working for Apple as a software engineer.
A less dense but ever enthusiastic approach to the subject of space, a former astronaut talks in depth about various aspects of space exploration. Some of the perks of his connections include on-site visits and demonstrations, however the videos are often longer (some reaching an hour), the upload schedule can be irregular and relatively sparse, and in a way rather characteristic of American YouTubers, not that dense. Also often uploads an entire stream of a launch (as in, a three hour stream).
Members of professional VFX studio Corridor Digital, known for their own short comedic VFX films on the eponymous channel, do breakdowns of film and television scenes analyzing the VFX and stunts in their "VFX artists react" and "Stuntmen react" series. A must for anyone interested in effects and cinematography, they provide unparalleled insight into how the scenes were made, but also point out remarkable achievements, techniques and also mistakes.
This quirky persona takes it upon himself to slap some sense into the world, debunking and recreating videos that have often gone viral but are made with visual effects.
A channel dedicated to independent and amateur videographers, covering everything from camera settings, setting up the room and lighting, all the way to visual effects and props. I first watched their Backyard FX series, but have since made use of their advice in other videos too.
A CG artist with a talent for making (extremely) short, clear and useful tutorials primarily on creating 3D scenes very easily, efficiently and cleanly.
The veterans of Extra Credits decided they could also teach history, and they were right. The very familiar and characteristic art style gives good visual cues to bind to very well presented bits history, typically in serials of 3-7 episodes covering a war, campaign or biography, but also shorter episodes on significant events and incidents, like the Wall Street crash or Irish Potato Famine. Although the original Extra Credits channel has seen better days (as of early 2021), Extra History maintains its quality and goes a step further with the "Lies" episodes, where they correct errors they made during the series.
With his iconic bowtie and the slogan "because history deserves to be remembered", the history guy regularly features videos 10-15 minutes long on noteworthy isolated events which will likely have passed under your radar but are important for anyone studying their period in depth. Topics range from the history of a ship, a significant industrial accident, a battle and even a tradition or cultural symbol (see the great moustache strike of Paris). Presentation is vivid with good imagery to assist, and the topics are always surprisingly interesting.
Significant events in history narated with excellent illustrations. This is a great channel if you have a bit more time (videos usually range from 15 to 40 minutes) and want to learn not just more about events you have heard of a dozen times, but also learn about other significant events that are glossed over in the highschool history textbooks.
Though more serious in narration and visual aids, Mark Felton delivers detailed and well researched videos into some of the more obscure events, mostly in WWII. The videos have a lot of information and make extensive use of footage, maps and images. If you are looking for coverage of events no one else has even mentioned, this is a good place to be.
Archaeologist by training, Nicholas Lloyd delivers extensive, dense and detailed invormation on historical events, warfare, what life was like and so on. Aside from being a walking history book, Nicholas is also a swing and lindy hop instructor, war reenactor, chartered camera man and a few other things.
Long in-depth dives into leaders or campaigns, with high quality animated maps and visual aids. The presentation and research is top quality
Reviews scenes from historic (mostly WWII and later) war movies commenting on the vehicles and equipment used when filming and the relative authenticity of the equipment and depiction.
Detailed analyses of how warfare was carried out, technologies and historical events in the roman, medieval and gunpowder eras.
Though the naration could be a bit more vivid, the videos detail military doctrine and tactics using the actual field manuals of the period and meoirs of the soldiers who employed them, creating an accurate and representative picture of how combat was actually conducted. Visual aids and diagrams accompany the narration to draw a clear picture.
In-depth naval history, covering events, engineering and trends primarily in the two world wars, but also venturing into ironclads and the age of sail. For such an underapreciated subject, Drachinfel's videos are a treasure trove of information.
Jason Murphy and Brian Brushwood explore various topics, usually learning the basics through research or with the help of an expert guest, and try their own hand at it. The episodes generally fall under three categories: Learning a new pracical skill, going through a list of interesting facts, and learning about a topic, such as etiquete at social events or everything there is to know about whiskey collections. Some of the more interesting (to me) episodes include stenography and basic cryptography (as well as a treasure hunt using the techniques they learned) and amateur radio and SSTV. Their upload schedule is fairly regular (once or twice a week) and being professional showmen, they always provide some good humor and entertainment.
A channel and novelty toy shop ran by two retired BBC producers and presented by Tim Rowett, who has been collecting toys for over 30 years, the videos on their YouTube channel pick a theme and Tim starts showing items from his collection and the shop that put a spin on the theme, offering some thoughts as well as insight into the inner workings of some of these items. The videos are characteristically sere with Tim's calming voice and no background music to distract; personally I find them a lot more interesting than ASMR.
Typically Cody starts with some object and declares that he will chemically extract a specific element from it. Among others, he recently extracted a considerable quantity of pure potassium from bananas, and he has extracted gold from electronics, uranium from asphalt (YouTube was not too happy about that) and others. This definitely falls under the "do not do this at home", as something like producing a cloud of cyanide is not unusual for this show. His upload schedule is not particularly regular and sometimes uploads something off-topic.
I am not as closely acquainted with Nile Red, but again we have a skilled chemist using his skills to synthesize or isolate complex substances.
Another spin-off of Extra Credits, Extra Sci-Fi goes through some of the classics of science fiction, often works you wouldn't expect. They took a chronological approach, with Mary Schelley's Frankenstein being the first episode, and have covered iconic figures like H.P Lovecraft, Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clark and many others. If you are not into sci-fi you may think this is not for you, but I urge you to watch the episodes on Stand on Zanzibar, which was written some 60 years ago but is spookily close to today's world, and The Belonging Kind, where Gibson touches a very modern subject very effectively.
This is probably the most unique channel in here. A straight-up gangsta gives a quick summary of a classic literary work, and proceeds to give a concise analysis, explaining the main theme and the writer's approach to it, as well as symbolisms in the book. All the while speaking the kind of language you would expect to hear in the neighbourhood Lil'Jon grew up in (I assume, I don't know where he grew up). Non-native English speakers be warned, you'll want to turn on the closed captions on this one (c button by default). The rest of you, prepare for a hilarious educational journey.
Another PBS production, SciShow covers all sorts of topics of scientific interest, from biology to quantum mechanics to AI, with lively presentation and quality production values. Always interesting, often a good starting point for a long dive into a subject.
Covering a variety of topics in the natural sciences, this channel delivers lively presentation with useful visual aids and a variety of interesting topics, often related to things we experience every day.
Usually very short videos covering a specific phenomenon, though sometimes they do have to cross the ten-minute mark. Explanations are pretty concise and simple to understand, but still provides enough interesting information to keep people in the sciences just as engaged.
Short videos (typically 2-5 minutes) presenting a scientific publication in lay man's terms and providing context or its significance.
Destin is very enthusiastic about the world around him and the phenomena in it. A former NASA engineer, he can tackle all sorts of subjects, but more importantly is excellent at spotting very interesting facts just about anywhere. Just watch the couple of videos he has made about the design of machinery and buildings in farms and you will be surprised how interesting that can be. Some more conventionally interesting topics he has covered is sonar, life on a nuclear submarine, the Mars rover and the YouTube algorithms.
A good place to get an information dump on a specific topic, or even a yearly update on everything new that happenned the last year in a field. It covers all areas of science and technology.
A very interesting channel, as unlike most of my recommendations this one is very down to earth: while others are thrilled by the unique and the exotic, the cosmic and the cutting edge, Technology Connections is very well aware of the ingenuity that goes into everyday things. Thougt your [insert random household appliance] was boring? This channel can certainly tell you something interesting about how (and even why) it works.
Host hour-long (give or take fifteen minutes) lectures by experts on their field. The lectures are long enough that they can cover a number of interesting topics in some depth. The Royal Institution is one of the more prestigious scientific organizations worldwide, and as such has veritable celebrities delivering the lectures.
Episodes around 15-20 minutes centered on the engineering challenges and leaps that make certain vehicles, infrastructure and projects stand out and shine. A lot of innovative ideas and engineering principles are analyzed and explained with very good visuals and presentation.
This channel has a preference toward unique military vehicles and spaec exploration but doesn't hesitate to deliver solid content in physics and other science and engineering topics. Presented by Uncle Fester's slightly more normal doppelganger with the enthusiasm that Fester would show for a crate of TNT, the videos are very enjoyable and very informative.
A rather lightweight channel that takes a dive sometimes into real world facts, sometimes into a scientific analysis of science fiction and fantasy hypotheticals, Kyle Hill keeps your attention with visuals and light humour while making the workings of things around us very plain to understand.
A channel that stands out for its characteristic rich animation but delivers quite seriously in topics ranging from astrophysics to AI to viruses and biology, Kurtzgesagt has earned a very good reputation with good reason. As the name suggests ("shortly said" or "in a nutshell" in German), the videos tend to be short (around 7 minutes) and give a pretty solid introduction to their varying topics.
By one of the presenters of PBS SciShow, It's okay to be smart explores various topics with a brief but deep dive into the science behind them, ranging from biology to engineering and astrophysics.
Old (from 1930s even) videos explaining the mechanics of cars, such as gearboxes, differential drive etc.
Though a channel dedicated to worldbuilding (the creation of fictional worlds and settings for literature, film and interactive media), unlike other channels that focus on plot and planning, this one dives deep into the science behind various phenomena, focusing on creating organic and believable worlds. Topics cover anything among galaxies, star formation, planet formation, plate tectonics, and other topics in geology, such as mountain and river formation and mineral deposits, and even climate and atmosphere. The subjects are given an impressively scientific approach, with plenty of terminology, statistics and even formulas for calculating things such as planet gravity, density, atmosphere density at different altitudes, river depths and widths based on rainfall, planet temperatures based on distance from star, etc. Learning these topics as tools to create new worlds has been a blast!
A software engineer and linguist, Tom Scott travels to interesting places to talk about strange structures, devices and phenomena, and the science behind them.
Steve Mould talks about a whole host of topics ranging from technology to biomechanics and how our brain processes the world around us. It is hard to put a finger on what exactly he does, but it's always something interesting.
Mehdi is an electrical engineer that demonstrates all things electric and gets shocked in the process. The first couple of times you may think that he is incompetent, but you will soon realize how good he must be to have been shocked so many times and still be alive. Aside from enjoying Mehdi getting shocked at least twice per video, you will also learn a lot about electricity and circuits. He also has great humour, and his jokes, whether verbal or visual, deliver every time.
A large variety of slightly more advanced electronics projects with a detailed explanation of the workings and creation process. These projects are complete and not just a small experiment, so the end product is quite presentable.
Hosted by the University of Nottingham, academics and professionals talk about various topics and algorithms explaining them with simplicity and precision. Very approachable and fairly dense in content, as it typically revolves around the solutions people found to problems, this channel never fails to stimulate the mind. Topics include cryptography, pathfinding, sorting, networking, graphics and others drawn from computer science.
A sister channel to Computerphile, Numberphile is also hosted by th University of Nottingham. Again academics and professionals join to put into layman's terms mathematical puzzles and problems, and explain the surprising answers that often occur. It is usually my position that raw mahematics stripped of its application is pointless, but Numberphile at least proves that it can still be very interesting.
Ever considered making your own computer from scratch? This guy pretty much did it, enough said. Only it's not enough said, because he explains the how and why and guides you through the process with solid explanation.
A very enthusiastic journey into mathematical problems and oddities, this channel could be compared to Numberphile in terms of depth and engagement, but has a distinct approach, less of a tutorial session and more of a guided tour. Not unlike Numberphile, Standup Maths will bring to your attention noumerous mathematical oddities and interesting properties.
One of the more advanced mathematics channels, 3Blue1Brown explains in depth some advanced topics in linear algebra, signal processing and other fields, with very good visuals and explanations. I have used this channel to study for some of the more advanced modules of my CE integrated masters.
Everyone who wants to build their own computer or make a very educated choice when buying must watch Linus Tech Tips. Although most of the content is around a specific part or build, LTT has made a number of videos explaining more obscure specs like cache latency, RAM types and the numbers described, overclocking and just about any value you can find printed on a product's description. Throughout the other videos some in-depth tips and explanations are also given, so it is worth watching if you want to know the ins and outs of computer.
Prepare for a cerebral journey like no other. Typically exploring a common theme, VSauce starts from one topic and spins a wild ride along seemingly unrelated topics connected each time by a common point, arriving to one greater conclusion that connects everything together. Superb research and compelling presentation make VSauce a channel whose videos keep 100% of your attention and which you can watch over and over, as there is so much knowledge crammed into such an unpredictable path that it is impossible to capture everything in one sitting. This is definitely one of the channels that will broaden your mental horizons. Also of particular interest is the Mindfield series, which takes a more focused and lengthy dive into various deep concepts that characterize humanity, often recreating experiments and interviewing the subjects to give a better understanding.
Like VSauce I cannot quite put Veritasium quite into the science channels, as here too you will get this distinct feeling of learning a lot of different interesting stuff in a wide variety of topics, that slowly change your perception of the world. Veritasium is presented by a professional TV host and enjoys this extra layer of professionalism, without the constraints of television.
Andy originally started out with the question "how is [insert item] made?", following the whole process from the planting/harvesting/collection of raw materials to the end product, and making one himself with materials he harvested himself. That's how you end up with a $1500 sandwitch. But the channel really found its calling with "the reset", from which point onward Andy and his assistant began literally from scratch, harvesting materials with their bare hands, and only use tools they have already made, using tools they have already made, using tools they have [....] made literally from scratch. As such they have gone through flintknapping and stone tools, to copper, to bronze and currently to iron tools, forging and casting them themselves (with a first-time tutorial from an expert). They often do an episode on food but I suspect it is so they can keep some regularity while they are working hard to make the next step toward the industrial revolution. This is a must-watch for history enthusiasts, as they can observe the HTME crew go through the original processes used to create the items we see in museums.
A newcommer to the creative family on YouTube, Stuff Made Here is working on rather ambitious projects with fairly good results. Some current examples include a bullet-powered baseball bat that hits balls with lethal force, a machine to press steel toes for crocs, and not one but two robots that can give someone a haircut, which kind of work.
Mark makes interesting machines of very good quality and performance, and uploads about once per month. Though for the most part very worthwhile, with devices like dartboards and basketball hoops that move into the way of your projectile so you can get a perfect hit, oversized nerf guns and water guns and more, there are the occasional somewhat disappointing (for me) uploads, where he re-iterates on an existing project or does something that feels very miscellaneous even for his miscellaneous builds (squirrel obstacle course? It was fun but it wasn't the technological marvel I was hoping for after a month of waiting).
A cardiologist explains various conditions, biological phenomena, trends and experiments from the past, often being interrupted by his pager.
Literally hundreds (I estimate 250+) videos on systems in video games, tropes, themes, mechanics, keeping player attention, but also some practical issues like ethics and legal matters. Extra Credits is the grand daddy of video game design channels. The content has become rather sparse from 2020 onward, possibly due to the departure of the original writer James, but it is absolutely worth going back and through the 8 or so seasons where the original host, Dan, was narating, and even into the seasons with the new narator, Matt. To be clear, there has been some backlash to the recent cast changes, but they came after specific videos came out, which contradicted older ones. Nevertheless, they still usually produce valuable content, even if less dense.
I have watched every single Extra Credits video to date, and recommend you watch the videos on skinner boxes, MMO economies, worldbuilding and quest design II (also I, but II blew my mind)
Ambitious though this channel's name may be, the videos uploaded go in depth into various mechanics, themes or the design of a specific game, providing valuable insight and breakdowns.
Monthly breakdowns of systems and design decisions, usually often a specific game as a central example, analyzing why and how they work.
If you're talking video game design, one must assume that the Game Developer Conference will have some great stuff, right? Well, often. Though I have found some great talks, there are also many one-hit wonders doing "post-mortems" (a term I heartily hate, loath, detest and so on) where they just talk about their game. But there are also many industry titans talking about the development and evolution of systems of actually very significant games.
Refering specifically to the series War Stories rather than the entire channel. War Stories is a series of interviews with the men behind legendary titles, talking about the feature that made their game so iconic and successful, and the challenges they faced. Some examples are how the Crash Bandicoot hacked the Playstation to multiply its rendering performance, how Prince of Persia defeated Apple II's memory limiations, and the difficulties in implementing Thief's stealth or Command Á Conquer's pathfinding.
AI and Games usually talks about the tricks and techniques used in the artificial intelligence of a specific game each time, but sometimes also about the history and evolution of said techniques, and occasionally about the game design itself.
Sebastian Lague's channel is a very special one, in that his videos document his journey implementing a specific feature. Essentially he develops a mini-game around a concept like generating planets, recreating atmospheric effects, simulating a small ecosystem or using real-world heightmap data for the environment. What's more, he extensively uses shaders for everything, to the point where there is essentially no point using an engine. On top of that he plainly shows the relevant snippets of code so all the knowledge is transferable to your own projects