Recommended YouTube channels

While the pandemic rages and people are stuck at home, it’s worth exploring YouTube a little more seriously than usual — whether you’re looking for entertainment, enlightenment, relaxation, or cool stuff for your kids to watch while they’re home from school. [PS. my YouTube channel is here; please subscribe]

Here are my favorite channels, arranged by topic, with links:

Popular Science:

  • Applied Science (Twitter: @BenKrasnow): link

  • Economics Explained: link

  • Kurzgesagt [great animated short films about science, ethics, and the meaning of life; Twitter: @Kurz_Gesagt]: link

  • Journey to the Microcosmos [tiny things explained; Twitter: @JourneyToMicro]: link

  • Intelligence Squared [structured debates about science, politics, current affairs; Twitter: @intelligence2]: link

  • National Geographic [geography; Twitter: @NatGeo]: link

  • Peacockspiderman [tiny peacock spiders]: link

  • PolyMatter [animated popular science, politics, economics, geopolitics; Twtter: @PolyMatters] link

  • PsychologicalScience [talks by leading psychology researchers; Twitter: @PsychScience]: link

  • Sam Harris [interviews with leading thinkers; Twitter: @SamHarrisOrg]: link

  • SciShow [Twitter: @SciShow]: link

  • TED [high quality short talks on diverse topics; Twitter: @TEDTalks]: link

  • Veritasium [Twitter: @veritasium]: link

Politics, Current Affairs, Viewpoint Diversity:

  • American Enterprise Institute [Twitter: @AEI]: link

  • The Cato Institute [Twitter: @CatoInstitute]: link

  • The Economist [videos from the world’s best magazine; Twitter: @TheEconomist]: link

  • Tim Pool [Twitter: @Timcast]: link

  • Quillette [Twitter: @Quillette]: link

  • PragerU [Twitter: @prageru]: link

  • ReasonTV [videos from the leading libertarian magazine; Twitter: @reason]: link

  • Rebel Wisdom [Twitter: @WisdomRebel]: link

  • Joe Rogan Experience [PowerfulJRE; Twitter: @joerogan]: link

  • The Rubin Report [Twitter: @RubinReport]: link

  • Subverse News [Twitter: @onSubverse]: link

  • Triggernometry [Twitter: @triggerpod]: link

  • Eric Weinstein [Twitter: @EricRWeinstein]: link

Friends & Family

  • Geoffrey Miller [my channel: please subscribe; Twitter: @primalpoly]: link

  • Diana Fleischman [my wife: evolutionary psychology; Twitter: @sentientist]: link

  • Justin Murphy [housemate: political theory; Twitter: @jmrphy]: link

Effective Altruism:

  • Centre for Effective Altruism [twitter: @Effect_Altruism]: link

  • Future of Life Institute [Twitter: @FLIxrisk]: link

  • 80,000 Hours [Twitter: @80000Hours]: link

Life & Self-Improvement

  • Jordan B Peterson [Twitter: @jordanbpeterson]: link

Science Fiction:

  • Dust [HD animated science fiction short films; Twitter: watchdust]: link

Culture, Media, Film

  • Looper [Twitter: @looper]: link

  • Nerdwriter1: link

  • Think Story [Twitter: @ThinkStoryYT]: link

Engineering, Military Tech

  • The Infographics Show [animated shorts about diverse tech, science, military topics; Twitter: @TheInfoShow]: link

  • Military History Visualized [Twitter: @MilHiVisualized]: link

  • Real Engineering [animated short films about tech, engineering, military stuff]: link

Eye Candy:

  • Maths Town [fractal zooms; Twitter: @MathsTown]: link

  • HDCOLORS [kaleidescopes]: link

  • CodeParade [computer animation; Twitter: @_CodeParade_]: link

  • Felix Colgrave [weird artsy animation; Twitter: @FelixColgrave]: link

  • StatusSilver [finger tutting; Twitter: @StatusSilver]: link

Ear Candy/ASMR:

  • Ozley ASMR: link

  • Goodnight Moon: link

  • Karuna Satori ASMR [Twitter: @KarunaASMRtist]: link

YouTube Production & Video

  • Peter McKinnon [Twitter: @petermckinnon]: link

  • CaseyNeistat [Twitter: @Casey]: link

  • Think Media: link

  • DSLR Video Shooter [Twitter: @calebpike]: link

  • Jevan Dovey: link

  • Parker Walbeck [Twitter: @parkerwalbeck]: link