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Antiscience
| Examining the rise of the anti-science movement (5) Time: 6:02 2026-03-21 Climate scientist Michael Mann joins CBS News' The Takeout to discuss Science Under Siege, the book he co-wrote with vaccine scientist Peter Hotez. Mann, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, is best known for the "hockey stick" graph of global temperatures and has spent decades on the receiving end of organized attacks on climate science. What the interview covers
Why it mattersMann and Hotez come from different fields, climate and public health, but describe the same pattern: manufactured doubt, personal attacks on scientists, and policy decisions that ignore the evidence. Seeing the common tactics makes them easier to recognize and counter, whichever field they target. Play Time: 6:02 | Examining the rise of the anti-s (5)Time: 6:02 2026-03-21 |
| How Anti-Science Influences Public Health and Safety (15) Time: 13:51 2026-05-06 This clip from The Proof with Simon Hill, a science-focused health and nutrition podcast, looks at the real-world costs of misinformation. From GMO myths to climate denial, it argues that when facts lose to fear, people get hurt and billions of dollars are lost. What the clip covers
The evidenceMajor scientific bodies, including the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, have concluded that approved genetically modified crops are as safe to eat as conventional ones. Fear of GMOs has still had real consequences: Golden Rice, engineered to fight vitamin A deficiency, was delayed for decades, and some countries have restricted crops that could raise yields and cut pesticide use. Criticism of corporate behaviour is fair, but it is a separate question from whether the technology is safe. Play Time: 13:51 | How Anti-Science Influences Publ (15)Time: 13:51 2026-05-06 |
| Science Under Siege (7) Time: 6:01 2026-03-24 Peter Hotez and Michael Mann, a vaccine scientist and a climate scientist, join CNN's Jake Tapper to discuss their book Science Under Siege. The book argues that anti-science is now organized, well funded and politically powerful, and that it is "obstructing the needed response from government and civil society." What the interview covers
About the authorsHotez is a pediatrician and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, and co-developer of the low-cost Corbevax COVID-19 vaccine. Mann is a climate scientist at the University of Pennsylvania, known for the "hockey stick" temperature record. Both have been targets of sustained campaigns against their work, which gives the book first-hand authority. Play Time: 6:01 | Science Under Siege (7)Time: 6:01 2026-03-24 |
| Understanding Science Denial (14) Time: 11:00 2026-04-29 In this TEDxUNB talk from 2021, Richelle Witherspoon explores why some people fall for false or pseudo-scientific information while others don't. Her conclusion surprised her: the two groups have much more in common than either would like to believe. What the talk covers
Why it mattersResearch on science communication supports her point. Beliefs are tied to identity, values and trust, so presenting more facts often doesn't work, and can make people dig in. Approaches that respect people's concerns, build trust, and explain how we know what we know tend to work better. Recognizing that we all share the same mental shortcuts is a good starting point for more productive conversations. Play Time: 11:00 | Understanding Science Denial (14)Time: 11:00 2026-04-29 |
| Why Don't Some People Believe In Science? (8) Time: 5:14 2026-03-24 This Seeker explainer asks a simple question: why do some people reject well-established science, such as vaccine safety or climate change, even when the evidence is strong? The short answer is that belief is rarely just about evidence. What the video covers
The researchPsychologists describe several overlapping causes. Motivated reasoning: people tend to accept evidence that fits what they already believe and reject what threatens it. Identity: when a scientific question becomes a marker of political or group identity, accepting the evidence can feel like betraying your group. Trust: people judge a message by who delivers it, so distrust of scientists or institutions spills over onto the science. A widely cited 2022 review in PNAS, "Why are people antiscience, and what can we do about it?", groups these into four bases: the source, the recipient, the message, and a mismatch between the message and how the recipient thinks. Play Time: 5:14 | Why Don't Some People Believe In (8)Time: 5:14 2026-03-24 |
Climate Change
| Carbon Pricing (1) Time: 4:45 2026-03-13 This Global News explainer looks at carbon pricing, one of the most debated tools for cutting greenhouse gas emissions. It sets out the basic idea: put a price on carbon pollution so that polluters pay for the damage instead of passing it on to everyone else for free. What the video covers
The evidenceCarbon pricing is one of the most studied climate policies. British Columbia introduced a revenue-neutral carbon tax in 2008, and studies of it found emissions fell with little measurable harm to the province's economy. Carbon pricing now covers roughly a quarter of global emissions. The political debate is real (Canada dropped its consumer carbon price in 2025 but kept pricing for large industrial emitters), but economists broadly agree that putting a price on pollution is one of the cheapest ways to cut it. Play Time: 4:45 | Carbon Pricing (1)Time: 4:45 2026-03-13 |
| Extinction Crisis (18) Time: 6:00 2026-09-14 In this BBC film, Sir David Attenborough looks at the extinction crisis: around a million species are at risk of extinction. He explains why the loss of nature isn't just a wildlife problem but a threat to people too. What the video covers
The evidenceThe "one million species" figure comes from the 2019 global assessment by IPBES, the intergovernmental science panel on biodiversity. It found that nature is declining faster than at any time in human history, driven mainly by land and sea use, overexploitation, climate change, pollution and invasive species. Healthy ecosystems pollinate crops, purify water and store huge amounts of carbon in forests, soils and oceans. When wildlife habitats are destroyed and people and animals come into closer contact, diseases are more likely to jump from animals to humans. Play Time: 6:00 | Extinction Crisis (18)Time: 6:00 2026-09-14 |
| Global Temperature Anomalies (2) Time: 0:55 2026-03-17 This short NASA Goddard visualization shows how Earth's surface temperature has changed since modern record-keeping began in 1880. Each frame compares temperatures with the 1951–1980 average, so warming shows up as a steady spread of warmer-than-normal colours across the globe. What the video shows
Since this video was madeThe trend it shows has continued. Every year since 2015 has been warmer than any year before it, and 2024 became the warmest year on record, about 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels. Independent groups, including NASA, NOAA, the UK Met Office, Berkeley Earth and Japan's Meteorological Agency, use different methods and reach the same result, which is strong evidence that the warming is real and not an artifact of how the data are processed. Play Time: 0:55 | Global Temperature Anomalies (2)Time: 0:55 2026-03-17 |
| Temperature Anomalies by Country (3) Time: 0:36 2026-03-17 This 36-second animation from Windy.com shows temperature anomalies for every country from 1880 to 2017, based on NASA's GISTEMP dataset. It is one of the quickest ways to see that warming is happening almost everywhere, not just in a few places. Why anomalies matter
The evidenceThe animation makes two well-established findings easy to see. Warming is global: by the end of the record nearly every country is warmer than its historical average. Warming is also uneven: land warms faster than the oceans, and the Arctic is warming several times faster than the planet as a whole. That uneven pattern is why a cold winter in one place doesn't contradict a warming world, a common talking point in climate denial. Play Time: 0:36 | Temperature Anomalies by Country (3)Time: 0:36 2026-03-17 |
| Temperature Breach is Unavoidable (19) Time: 2:29 2026-09-23 This explainer from India's Down To Earth magazine covers a sobering milestone: 2024 was the first calendar year in which global temperatures exceeded 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels, the limit set in the Paris Agreement. It draws on a United Nations Environment Programme report urging the world to plan for an "overshoot" of that limit. What the video covers
An important detailThe Paris limit refers to long-term average warming over about 20 years, not a single year. So one year above 1.5 °C doesn't mean the goal has formally been missed, but it shows how close we are. Every tenth of a degree matters: limiting the peak and shortening the overshoot means less extreme heat, sea-level rise and damage to ecosystems. It is a reason for urgent action, not despair. Play Time: 2:29 | Temperature Breach is Unavoidabl (19)Time: 2:29 2026-09-23 |
| The Most At Risk Cities - Climate Change (6) Time: 1:52 2026-03-24 This short GOOD Magazine animation looks at which cities are most at risk from climate change, and at a surprising link between the most vulnerable cities and the most resilient ones. It frames climate change as a human displacement problem as well as an environmental one. What the video covers
The evidenceEstimates of climate migration vary widely because they depend on emissions, adaptation and how "climate refugee" is defined. The World Bank's Groundswell report projected that up to 216 million people could be forced to move within their own countries by 2050 if strong action isn't taken. Weather-related disasters already displace tens of millions of people each year. Low-lying coastal cities face rising seas and storm surge, while hot, water-stressed cities face extreme heat and drought. The people with the fewest resources to adapt are usually hit hardest. Play Time: 1:52 | The Most At Risk Cities - Climat (6)Time: 1:52 2026-03-24 |
| Why Climate Action Is Unstoppable (20) Time: 24:10 2026-11-03 Recorded at the TED Countdown Summit in Nairobi in June 2025, this talk has Al Gore taking stock of climate action a decade after the Paris Agreement. He challenges “climate realism,” a fossil fuel industry narrative claiming energy transitions are always slow and that the world should focus on adapting rather than cutting emissions. What it covers
Why it mattersThe talk shows how climate denial has shifted from rejecting the science to questioning whether action is practical. Gore closes on a hopeful note, arguing that the tools to solve the crisis already exist and that political will is a renewable resource. Play Time: 24:10 | Why Climate Action Is Unstoppabl (20)Time: 24:10 2026-11-03 |
Evolution
| How we found out evolution is true (21) Time: 17:44 2026-11-03 In this TEDxNTU talk (2013), historian of science John van Wyhe, director of Darwin Online, starts from a puzzle. When Darwin published On the Origin of Species in 1859, the world was far more religious than today, yet scientists accepted evolution within about 15 years. Today there is vastly more evidence, but evolution is still treated as controversial. To explain the gap, he retraces how evolution was actually discovered. What it covers
Why it mattersThe talk shows that evolution became accepted through decades of accumulating evidence, not ideology. That makes it a useful corrective to claims that evolution is “just a theory.” Play Time: 17:44 | How we found out evolution is t (21)Time: 17:44 2026-11-03 |
| How Evolution Works (13) Time: 12:09 2026-04-28 PBS Eons uses all three of its hosts and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History's Deep Time Hall to explain how evolution actually works, and how scientists came to understand it. At about 12 minutes, it is one of the clearest short introductions to the subject. What the video covers
The scienceEvolution is change in the inherited traits of populations over generations. Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace proposed natural selection in 1858: individuals with traits better suited to their environment tend to survive and reproduce more, so those traits become more common. Mutation, genetic drift and gene flow also shape populations. Since then, evidence from fossils, anatomy, genetics and direct observation (from antibiotic-resistant bacteria to changes in finch beaks) has made evolution one of the best-supported theories in science. In science, a "theory" is a well-tested explanation, not a guess. Play Time: 12:09 | How Evolution Works (13)Time: 12:09 2026-04-28 |
GMOs
| Organic vs. Non-Organic Foods: Food Scientist Debunks (16) Time: 3:41 2026-05-10 On the TV program The Doctors, food scientist Erin, known online as the "Food Science Babe," takes on one of the most common beliefs about organic food: that organic farmers don't use pesticides. What the segment covers
The evidenceOrganic standards allow approved pesticides, mostly natural ones such as copper and sulfur compounds and some plant-derived insecticides. "Natural" doesn't automatically mean safer: copper, for example, can build up in soil. On residues, government testing such as the USDA's Pesticide Data Program consistently finds that the vast majority of both conventional and organic produce is well below safety limits. Eating more fruit and vegetables, organic or not, is far more important for health than the small difference in residues. Play Time: 3:41 | Organic vs. Non-Organic Foods: F (16)Time: 3:41 2026-05-10 |
Vaccines
| Anti-science: A Conversation with Peter Hotez (4) Time: 39:24 2026-03-21 In this episode of Northwell Health's 20-Minute Health Talk, host Dr. Chethan Sathya speaks with Dr. Peter Hotez, a pediatrician, vaccine scientist and one of the most prominent voices against the anti-science movement. Hotez is dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine and co-developed Corbevax, a low-cost, patent-free COVID-19 vaccine. What the conversation covers
The evidenceLarge studies involving millions of children have found no link between vaccines and autism, and there is no credible evidence that COVID-19 vaccines cause aggressive "turbo" cancers. Hotez's books, Vaccines Did Not Cause Rachel's Autism and The Deadly Rise of Anti-Science, set out the evidence in detail. Play Time: 39:24 | Anti-science: A Conversation wit (4)Time: 39:24 2026-03-21 |
| Combating Vaccine Misinformation (12) Time: 18:04 2026-04-20 WebMD Chief Medical Officer Dr. John Whyte talks with Steven Brill, an award-winning journalist and co-CEO of NewsGuard, about vaccine misinformation and how to find information you can trust. NewsGuard, which Brill co-founded in 2018, rates the reliability of news and information websites. What the conversation covers
Why it mattersMisinformation spreads quickly because it is often emotional, simple and shared by people we trust. Checking a source before sharing it works well: look at who runs a site, whether it corrects its mistakes, and whether other reliable sources report the same thing. Brill has written about this problem at length, including in his book The Death of Truth. Play Time: 18:04 | Combating Vaccine Misinformation (12)Time: 18:04 2026-04-20 |
| Debunking of Anti-Vaccine Misinformation (17) Time: 70:08 2026-09-10 In this 70-minute conversation on the Bad Boy of Science channel, molecular biologist Dr. Dan Wilson talks about his work debunking vaccine and COVID-19 misinformation. Wilson earned his PhD in molecular biology at Carnegie Mellon University and started his YouTube channel, Debunk the Funk, in 2020. It has become one of the most reliable "receipts factories" on YouTube, checking viral health claims against the scientific literature. What the conversation covers
Why it mattersDebunking works best when it shows its work. Wilson's approach (read the paper, check the data, explain the mistake, and link the sources) gives viewers the tools to evaluate the next claim themselves. Health experts, including vaccine scientist Paul Offit, have praised his detailed responses to prominent vaccine critics. Play Time: 70:08 | Debunking of Anti-Vaccine Misinf (17)Time: 70:08 2026-09-10 |
| Do you know how vaccines work? (9) Time: 1:55 2026-04-20 This short animation, co-created by NHS England and the British Society for Immunology, explains in plain language how vaccines protect against serious diseases. It is designed to be shared with families, carers, staff and educators to build vaccine knowledge and confidence. What the video explains
The scienceVaccines contain a harmless piece or version of a germ, or instructions to make one, as with mRNA vaccines. The immune system responds by making antibodies and memory cells, so a later infection is stopped quickly or made much milder. When enough people are immune, the disease struggles to spread. This "community immunity" protects newborns, people with weakened immune systems and others who can't be vaccinated. When vaccination rates fall, diseases like measles return. Play Time: 1:55 | Do you know how vaccines work? (9)Time: 1:55 2026-04-20 |
| Global impact of vaccines (10) Time: 1:24 2026-04-20 This animation from the British Society for Immunology summarizes the impact of vaccines on global health. It presents vaccination as one of the safest and most effective ways to protect children from serious disease. What the video covers
The evidenceMore recent research makes the case even stronger. A 2024 study in The Lancet, led by the WHO, estimated that vaccines have saved about 154 million lives over the 50 years since the Expanded Programme on Immunization began, most of them infants. Measles vaccination alone accounts for the largest share. Smallpox has been eradicated and polio has been pushed to the brink. These gains are fragile: when vaccination rates drop, diseases such as measles and whooping cough come back quickly. Play Time: 1:24 | Global impact of vaccines (10)Time: 1:24 2026-04-20 |
| How vaccines are made (11) Time: 1:35 2026-04-20 This British Society for Immunology animation follows a vaccine from the laboratory to the clinic. It explains the research, testing and manufacturing steps that every vaccine goes through, and what its ingredients are for. What the video covers
The processVaccines are tested in stages. Phase 1 trials check safety in a small group. Phase 2 trials expand to hundreds of people to find the right dose. Phase 3 trials involve thousands or tens of thousands of people to confirm the vaccine works. Regulators then review the data before approval, and monitoring continues afterwards through reporting systems such as ~177 in the United States. Ingredients such as stabilizers, preservatives and adjuvants are used in tiny, well-studied amounts. Claims that they are "toxic" usually ignore the dose. Play Time: 1:35 | How vaccines are made (11)Time: 1:35 2026-04-20 |