What If Yellowstone Erupts + Other Unthinkable What-Ifs

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Transcript

00:00:00So, you notice anything weird?

00:00:04Recently there have been alarming changes in the water levels in different parts of

00:00:08Yellowstone Lake.

00:00:09At the same moment, the water level can be rising on one side of the lake and falling

00:00:14on the other.

00:00:16It looks as if the lake basin gets lifted by some underground forces.

00:00:21Can it be a sign of a looming disaster?

00:00:24Geysers, mud pots, and hot springs turn Yellowstone National Park into some extraterrestrial world.

00:00:31And all these wonders are fueled by a mighty supervolcano.

00:00:36Supervolcanoes produce super-eruptions.

00:00:38When it happens, they launch more than 240 cubic miles of ash, molten rock, and hot gases

00:00:44up into the air.

00:00:45To make it easier to imagine, four super-eruptions could fill the Grand Canyon to the brim.

00:00:51The Yellowstone Giant was thought to be responsible for at least three enormous eruptions and

00:00:56countless smaller ones.

00:00:58In that region, the volcanic deposits are scattered over tens of thousands of miles.

00:01:04Scientists believe they had been created by many weak eruptions.

00:01:07But after doing more research, experts found out these deposits had been left by two previously

00:01:13unknown super-eruptions.

00:01:15Those probably took place about 9 and 8.7 million years ago.

00:01:20This discovery means that the area around the Yellowstone volcano used to face a super-eruption

00:01:26every half a million years.

00:01:28But over the last 3 million years, the hotspot has seen only two super-eruptions.

00:01:33It makes scientists believe these catastrophic events are slowing down.

00:01:37Or just maybe one is overdue.

00:01:41Anyway, if the Yellowstone supervolcano went off with as much power as it had 2.1 million

00:01:47years ago, it would spit out more than 588 cubic miles of boiling lava.

00:01:53That's more than 4,500 times the volume of Sydney Harbor.

00:01:58That's a lot of lava!

00:02:00Whether it's likely to happen or not is another question.

00:02:03There's no doubt that something is going on with the volcano.

00:02:08The water level changes in Yellowstone Lake mean the caldera is lifting under the surface.

00:02:14Inside the caldera is what's left over after a volcano erupts and then collapses.

00:02:19The Yellowstone caldera is not just going up, creating a dome-shaped uplift.

00:02:24It also moves up and down in a kind of breathing motion.

00:02:28It might be because the magma is seeping into the crust.

00:02:32Or because this magma is heating up the Yellowstone hydrothermal system, making it expand and raise

00:02:38the crust.

00:02:39Yellowstone has the status of an active volcano.

00:02:43Its volcanic explosivity index is 8 out of 10.

00:02:47Such a high number means that if this volcano erupted, it would be an apocalyptic event.

00:02:53Right before the disaster, the ground around the national park would lift.

00:02:58Geothermal pools and geysers would heat up to boiling temperatures and get more acidic

00:03:03than usual.

00:03:04The magma would start to rise toward the surface.

00:03:07At some point, the rock roof of the magma chamber wouldn't be able to resist anymore,

00:03:13and the explosion would kick off.

00:03:15A massive column of lava and ash would shoot up to a height of over 16 miles.

00:03:21After that, the volcano would keep pumping ash for days on end.

00:03:25The mixture of lava, ash, and gas would be hotter than 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit.

00:03:30It would travel through the area at a speed of 300 miles per hour, faster than a racing

00:03:35car.

00:03:36The air near the center of the eruption would heat up to 570 degrees Fahrenheit.

00:03:42One of the most dangerous consequences would be ash fallout.

00:03:46Volcanic ash can turn into glassy cement within seconds after being inhaled and getting in

00:03:51the lungs.

00:03:52People and animals would have problems with breathing.

00:03:55Okay, so that's an understatement, just so you know.

00:03:58Buildings would start to collapse under the weight of this dense substance.

00:04:01It would take just several days until a 10-foot layer of ash covered the territory of about

00:04:0750 miles around the center of the eruption.

00:04:11After the ash got into the stratosphere, the temperatures all over the world would

00:04:15start to drop.

00:04:17If the eruption was rich in sulfur, an effective sun blocker, it would get so cold there would

00:04:22be no summer in the entire world for the next several years.

00:04:26The monsoon seasons would change.

00:04:29Agriculture would face serious problems.

00:04:31There would be issues with food supplies.

00:04:33Over the past 50 years, the Yellowstone Caldera has risen almost two feet.

00:04:39It shouldn't alarm you, though.

00:04:40Experts are sure it's a natural behavior for Yellowstone.

00:04:44Periods of dome-shaped uplift are followed by the caldera lowering.

00:04:49Scientists think the supervolcano doesn't present any danger at the moment.

00:04:53For an eruption to happen, the magma inside has to be at least 50% molten.

00:04:59With Yellowstone, this number is just 5-15%.

00:05:02The probability of the eruption is 1 in 730,000.

00:05:07Safe to say it's a long shot.

00:05:10Even better, a recent study made the researchers believe the hotspot might be in a state of

00:05:15decline right now.

00:05:17Even despite all the breathing and dome-raising activity.

00:05:20Still, there have been tons of discussions about what people could do to prevent the

00:05:25disastrous supereruption from happening.

00:05:28And the most popular and seemingly effective idea was to cool the Yellowstone supervolcano

00:05:34down.

00:05:35Unfortunately, there's a catch.

00:05:37The volcano leaks out only 70% of the heat which comes from its magma-filled chambers.

00:05:43But the rest of the heat stays inside.

00:05:45As soon as it reaches a particular threshold, the volcano erupts.

00:05:50If it was possible to extract at least 35% of the Yellowstone volcano's heat, the eruption

00:05:56could be avoided.

00:05:57The cooler the magma is, the thicker and stickier it gets.

00:06:01It stops being so fluid and doesn't try to get out to the surface anymore.

00:06:06After considering these facts, NASA scientists came up with a plan.

00:06:10They suggested drilling a 6 miles deep well and pumping down cold, pressurized water.

00:06:16The temperature of the water that would get back to the surface would be approximately

00:06:20662 degrees Fahrenheit.

00:06:23This way, the heat would be gradually extracted from the volcano.

00:06:27And if a geothermal plant was built on the site, it would generate plenty of electric

00:06:32power.

00:06:33The energy would be very simple to produce, and its price would be very alluring.

00:06:37About 10 cents per kilowatt-hour.

00:06:39At first glance, it was an amazing idea.

00:06:43But sometime later, it started to receive a lot of criticism.

00:06:47Imagine drilling through the Earth's crust, getting deeper and deeper.

00:06:51And then wham bam, you hit a hypothermal pocket.

00:06:55Uh-oh, get ready for a catastrophe!

00:06:58This can release gases that are likely to cause a series of super-powerful explosions.

00:07:03In the worst-case scenario, it may even trigger a full-scale volcanic eruption.

00:07:08Now, you already know about its catastrophic outcomes.

00:07:12From fountains of lava and avalanches of molten rocks to climate changes all over the globe.

00:07:18Yeah, not good.

00:07:20Or let's say you're drilling a well to deliver cold water to the volcano.

00:07:24And then you suddenly hit its magma chamber.

00:07:27In this case, instead of cooling the giant down, you'll make the top of the magma chamber

00:07:32much more fragile than it used to be.

00:07:35And the whole construction will be at risk of collapsing at any moment.

00:07:39And don't forget that your drilling may also release toxic gases.

00:07:43They often accumulate at the top of the reservoir with magma.

00:07:47Can it get any worse?

00:07:48Well, yes, it can.

00:07:50The whole process would stretch for more than 16,000 years.

00:07:54This method is too risky to cool the volcano down as fast as people would probably want.

00:08:00And scientists aren't even 100% sure that when the cooling system construction is finished,

00:08:05the volcano will stay cold for at least another 100 years.

00:08:10And last but not least, the project of making the Yellowstone supervolcano a bit cooler

00:08:15would cost a mind-boggling $3.5 billion.

00:08:19A huge price for something that might not work out altogether.

00:08:22Oh, by the way, Yellowstone isn't the only volcano that has a lava dome that's lifting

00:08:28at the moment.

00:08:29Lava domes are created when magma gets to the surface and then gathers around the vent.

00:08:35Scientists have found one of those inside an underwater volcano in Japan.

00:08:39This dome is more than 2,000 feet high and more than 6 miles wide.

00:08:44Even though the Japanese supervolcano seems to be sleeping, experts don't let their guard

00:08:50down.

00:08:51The volcanic system can go from being calm and docile to teetering on the edge of an

00:08:56eruption in the blink of an eye.

00:08:58Another massive dome is growing in the central Andes, on top of the planet's largest active

00:09:03magma store.

00:09:05The Altiplano Puna Plateau, there's a tongue twister, and where the dome was found, is

00:09:11the second-highest plateau in the world, and the dome itself is more than half a mile tall.

00:09:17You might wonder how come experts have known nothing about this enormous uplift until recently.

00:09:22The answer is simple – it was hidden within the plateau.

00:09:26It's an arid region littered with volcanoes, and it stretches for thousands of miles.

00:09:31Yep, another case of hiding in plain sight.

00:09:48your homes.

00:09:49From the corner of your eye, while chatting with your buddies, you register that street

00:09:53lights are out already.

00:09:55Although it's 3 a.m. and still dark outside, eh, whatever.

00:10:00The taxi drops you at your house and speeds away.

00:10:03The driveway is dark as well.

00:10:06Everyone's probably asleep, no wonder.

00:10:09You walk to your front door.

00:10:10Ah, the motion-sensitive light doesn't turn on, that's weird.

00:10:15The bulb must've blown.

00:10:17You shrug and fumble for your keys in the dark.

00:10:20Ah, gotcha.

00:10:22Now be quiet not to wake everyone.

00:10:24You don't turn on the lights in the hall, take off your shoes, and tiptoe to the bathroom.

00:10:29All you need now is a good shower to wash off the sweat from all that dancing.

00:10:34You click the light switch, and nothing.

00:10:37The light doesn't turn on here either.

00:10:39Now that's not a coincidence.

00:10:42You briefly think of going to the basement and using the diesel generator, but drop the

00:10:46idea.

00:10:47The thing is too loud.

00:10:48Okay, you'll wash in the dark then.

00:10:52You turn the bathtub, but all it does is gurgle and let out a few grimy drops, and then it

00:10:58goes quiet.

00:10:59Ah, wonderful.

00:11:01No light, no water.

00:11:03The best end of the night ever.

00:11:05Annoyed, you go upstairs to your room.

00:11:09Careful not to step on your cat on the way.

00:11:13And fall on the bed without even undressing.

00:11:15What's the point, right?

00:11:18Morning.

00:11:19You wake up feeling yucky.

00:11:21The clothes cling to your body.

00:11:23You desperately need a shower now.

00:11:27You go downstairs to the bathroom, click on the lights without thinking, and it all comes

00:11:33back to you.

00:11:34There's still no light.

00:11:37You check the tap again.

00:11:38No news there either.

00:11:41Just great.

00:11:42Okay, it's 11 a.m. already.

00:11:44Generator it is then.

00:11:47You go to the basement and pour some gas into the tank, then turn it on.

00:11:51It begins roaring loudly, but at least it works.

00:11:54That means you have electricity now.

00:11:57As you go back up, you see your mom's woken up.

00:12:00You explain what's going on and go outside to the nearby store to get some bottled water.

00:12:06Along the way, you meet one of your neighbors.

00:12:09He's carrying a gallon bottle of water in each hand.

00:12:13You quickly find out everyone seems to have the same problem.

00:12:16No light, no water.

00:12:18As you turn the corner, even from afar, you can see a line before the store entrance.

00:12:24You have to wait for a full 20 minutes before your turn comes, and you take your own 2 gallons.

00:12:33The cashier informs you in a tired voice that card payments are not available due to

00:12:38power outage.

00:12:39Only cash, please.

00:12:41You roll your eyes and give him 5 bucks.

00:12:44Surely it's a temporary inconvenience, nothing more.

00:12:48You go back hauling the bottles.

00:12:51It's been a full month now without electricity and tap water.

00:12:55What started as a nuisance is now turning into a full-blown disaster.

00:13:01Most public venues are closed as well as factories and even schools.

00:13:06TV isn't working either, obviously, so many people have gone unemployed.

00:13:12You had to drop your studies, helping your parents in the yard.

00:13:15They've been busy growing their own vegetables there.

00:13:18But what really worries you is that there still hasn't been any official announcement

00:13:23about what's happening.

00:13:26People are starting to gather in close communities to help each other.

00:13:31Many of those whose work was related to computers and machines are now learning to survive on

00:13:36their own without the modern conveniences.

00:13:40But even farmers have had it tough.

00:13:42They try to use machines sparingly, saving the fuel, and their work has become increasingly

00:13:47hard.

00:13:50Bottled water is becoming a luxury too.

00:13:52The prices have skyrocketed in the past few weeks, and if it doesn't get better soon,

00:13:57only select few will have access to clean water.

00:14:02At home, you only turn on the diesel generator when it's necessary, to cook food or do

00:14:07a quick clean-up once every few days.

00:14:11At other times, you don't use electricity at all.

00:14:14You're starting to get used to waking up at dawn to catch as much sunlight during the

00:14:19day as possible.

00:14:21When the sun sets, nothing can be done in the darkness, so you either go to sleep after

00:14:26a hard day's work, or burn a candle and read a good old-fashioned book.

00:14:32Half a year has passed, nothing's changing, there's still no information about what

00:14:37caused the outage, and people who went on expeditions to other towns return with the

00:14:42same news from everywhere.

00:14:44The problem seems to be global.

00:14:48Getting used to your new lifestyle, you and your parents have reorganized your household.

00:14:53You've got a couple of cows and several chicken for milk and eggs.

00:14:58And your backyard is now a real garden with cucumbers, potatoes, tomatoes, and even apples

00:15:03growing under your supervision.

00:15:06Getting water for drinking and gardening is an ordeal, though.

00:15:09Bottled water has become too rare and extremely expensive.

00:15:13So now you have to go to the river 6 miles away.

00:15:17At first, you travel there by car, taking as many bottles and canisters as could fit.

00:15:23After a few months, you've completely run out of gas.

00:15:26So now you and your dad walk all the way down there and back.

00:15:31At least you have a cart so you can haul more than you would with your bare hands, but the

00:15:35journey still takes the best part of a day.

00:15:39The town has become a really friendly and supportive community.

00:15:43Neighbors help each other all the time.

00:15:45And it's become common to have barbecue parties with the whole neighborhood.

00:15:49Everyone's bringing their own food to contribute.

00:15:52And those who aren't coping with natural living yet take home some goods to fill their

00:15:56bellies for several days.

00:15:59Although you're living on the outskirts, almost in the country, it's still unusual

00:16:03how quiet it is without cars driving by.

00:16:07Still, another sound has replaced the engines – hooves clopping along the road.

00:16:12More and more people are riding horses again to get by.

00:16:16The town itself has grown almost empty.

00:16:19People are leaving their apartments to live in the country, and many of them have to unite

00:16:23in tight groups to survive on the plots of land they've procured for themselves.

00:16:29The best spots are, of course, along the riverbanks.

00:16:32That's where most townspeople have concentrated.

00:16:35Some try to organize posts and sell water from the river, but they were soon put to

00:16:40shame.

00:16:41Free access to water was given to everyone.

00:16:44It's your mom's birthday today!

00:16:47You and dad have traded some meat and vegetables for a nice bouquet of white roses and strawberries,

00:16:53her favorites.

00:16:54It's the fourth time you celebrate her birthday in this new world.

00:16:58Four and a half years you've been living off the ground, and things are looking better

00:17:02than ever.

00:17:03Your dad talked to the community and the former townspeople by the river, and they agreed

00:17:08to help build an irrigation system.

00:17:11You've dug three canals that help water everyone's crops and then return to the

00:17:15main flow.

00:17:17Now you don't have to travel 12 miles every few days.

00:17:21Also, people from your neighborhood have arranged for communal crops, and you work on your patch

00:17:27every day, sowing, plowing, and harvesting.

00:17:31Afterwards, the harvest is distributed among everyone according to the size of their households.

00:17:37With this system, nobody gets left out, even if they can't work in the field.

00:17:42Surprisingly, you took a liking to this lifestyle.

00:17:46You barely remember what it was like to have a smartphone or to watch TV, but you enjoy

00:17:51the singing of birds every night and working in the fresh air every day.

00:17:57Although it was hard at first, you've now grown tanned and lean and muscular, and both

00:18:02your physical and mental health has improved.

00:18:05You're no longer pursuing deadlines or hurrying anywhere.

00:18:08Your life is now peaceful, and you have a simple purpose – to live and help others.

00:18:15You haven't forgotten your friends either, and you come visit each other often.

00:18:19They come to help you in the field, and in the evenings, you have a dinner together,

00:18:23play cards, and sing songs around the fire.

00:18:27As far as you know, life's never been this simple yet satisfying.

00:18:31Nobody still knows what happened, but it seems to be for the better after all.

00:18:39Another crazy thing happened to me recently.

00:18:41It was a Sunday morning, and I fried eggs for breakfast.

00:18:44But something was definitely wrong.

00:18:46I wasn't sure if it was the eggs or me, though.

00:18:49Now, you've tried fried eggs, right?

00:18:51They normally taste like, you know, eggs.

00:18:54But that time, along with the eggs, I could also taste lemon, vanilla yogurt, and even

00:18:59some paper.

00:19:00And it's not as good as you might think.

00:19:02Yogurt tastes nice by itself, but together with eggs, it's gross.

00:19:07Whatever was the reason, I decided I'd be okay with just a tea for that day.

00:19:12But as soon as I tried it, I spat it out.

00:19:15What is that?

00:19:16Did I put a spoonful of black pepper there?

00:19:19I needed some water ASAP.

00:19:21I got a glass, and thankfully, it was just a regular glass of water.

00:19:26I tried to eat some strawberries, but along with the normal strawberry taste, they had

00:19:31a taste of hot chili.

00:19:32That's not a good combination, to be honest.

00:19:35It looked like something happened to all of the food in the house.

00:19:39I also had an orange juice, so I drank a glass of it.

00:19:42Surprisingly, it tasted totally fine.

00:19:45Suddenly, I got a weird thought.

00:19:47Do I taste colors?

00:19:50It was so crazy and strange that I needed to check this theory immediately.

00:19:54I admit, I licked the white back of my cell phone, but it really did taste like vanilla

00:19:59yogurt, just like the egg.

00:20:02So it was true, I could taste colors.

00:20:05That would mix with every food's original taste and mess it up.

00:20:09I wanted to go to the doctor, but although this new superpower was weird, it was still

00:20:14a bit exciting.

00:20:15Also, I couldn't wait to figure out what other tastes are like.

00:20:19So I went to a store and got myself a pack of markers.

00:20:23I got to the table, opened the yellow one, and licked it.

00:20:26It did taste like lemon.

00:20:28So I licked each one and made a list.

00:20:31Red tasted like strawberry, red was chili, orange was an orange.

00:20:36Blue was very bitter, light blue was salty, and violet was blueberry.

00:20:42Black was black pepper, beige nutmuss, gray paper, and green tasted like puke.

00:20:48Well, I had to conclude I don't eat green food from now on.

00:20:53Not that I was really sad about it, though.

00:20:56Only one color was left – the brown one.

00:20:59I was very reluctant to try it, but I had to figure it out.

00:21:04To my relief, it had the taste of coffee.

00:21:07I don't like coffee, but it could be worse.

00:21:10I knew I had to go see my doctor, but I kinda wanted to live with this superpower for a

00:21:15while.

00:21:16It doesn't happen to you every day, you know.

00:21:18So I decided I'll go to the doctor tomorrow.

00:21:22And today, I had to learn how to live with this ability.

00:21:25I had to avoid putting in my mouth anything black, gray, blue, and green.

00:21:30Not only food, but the dishes and cutlery as well.

00:21:34And I had to figure out what food I can actually eat, because I didn't like strawberries

00:21:39that tasted like chili pepper.

00:21:41So I went to the store to get some transparent dishes.

00:21:45While walking, I was thinking about my menu for today.

00:21:48Orange juice works, strawberry, vanilla, and lemon yogurt too.

00:21:53I could make a fruit salad with mango, raspberries, grapes, banana, and yogurt.

00:21:59But that was all I could come up with.

00:22:01As I was thinking, I was biting my lip and found out it tasted like strawberry.

00:22:07In the store, it was pretty easy to find a transparent bowl.

00:22:10But spoons and forks were a problem.

00:22:13I think I went to every store in my city until I could finally find them.

00:22:17As soon as I got back home, I cut all the fruits and made a fruit salad.

00:22:21I hadn't eaten much that morning, as you remember.

00:22:24Honestly, it was the best salad ever.

00:22:27I saved some money because I didn't have to buy berries, oranges, and lemons, but the

00:22:31taste was there.

00:22:33As I was enjoying my meal, the phone rang.

00:22:36It was my grandma, and she invited me for dinner that evening.

00:22:39I tried to say I couldn't make it, but she wouldn't listen.

00:22:43Grandmas.

00:22:44You know it's just impossible to skip when they want to feed you.

00:22:47So she said she didn't want to hear any excuses and that I had to be at her house

00:22:53by 6.

00:22:54This meant I couldn't wait until tomorrow.

00:22:56I had to go to the doctor right then and get rid of this superpower before my grandma made

00:23:01me eat puke and drink tea with black pepper.

00:23:05I checked the time.

00:23:06I had only 20 minutes before my doctor left, and the clinic was several blocks away.

00:23:11I finished my salad and ran out of the apartment.

00:23:14I got to the clinic just 5 minutes before it closed for the day and asked if my doctor

00:23:18could see me because I had an emergency.

00:23:21To my relief, he agreed.

00:23:23When I told him that I could taste colors, he looked at me puzzled and probably thought

00:23:28it was a stupid prank.

00:23:30Then I told him the whole story about the fried egg for breakfast and how I bought and

00:23:34tasted all the markers, that violet was blueberry and green was not an apple as he might've

00:23:40thought.

00:23:41I spent hours trying to find a transparent spoon and fork.

00:23:45To be honest, in my head, it sounded better and was making much more sense.

00:23:49The doctor was silent and kinda suspicious.

00:23:52He measured my temperature, my blood pressure, and looked at my mouth.

00:23:56So, you've been eating markers, he smiled.

00:23:59Oops, I guess my tongue was the color of a rainbow.

00:24:02Well, that really doesn't sound normal for a grown-up.

00:24:05The doctor obviously didn't believe me, so he just let me go, recommending a good

00:24:10night's sleep.

00:24:11So, I guess I was stuck with it, and I had to go to grandma's.

00:24:16Unfortunately, there was no way she'd feed me strawberry yogurt for dinner.

00:24:21I got home to get my new cutlery, so at least I didn't have to taste paper when eating

00:24:25with my grandma's gray metal fork.

00:24:28I had another couple of hours, so I did some Googling but still couldn't find any solution

00:24:34or even research on my condition.

00:24:36I thought that maybe I could wash it off, so I drank a gallon of water.

00:24:41But it didn't help, so I went to grandma's place feeling doomed.

00:24:46Plus, I really needed to go.

00:24:48She was happy to see me and announced that she had my favorite broccoli pancakes for

00:24:53me.

00:24:54Yeah, maybe yesterday they had been my favorite, but definitely not anymore.

00:24:59I tried to say I'm not hungry and I could just drink some orange juice, but of course,

00:25:04she wouldn't listen.

00:25:05She gave me a plate with 5 pancakes and a cup of black tea.

00:25:09Suddenly, I got an idea of how I could get rid of at least the pepper taste.

00:25:14If I put a piece of lemon in the tea, I'll get brown.

00:25:17Therefore, I'll have a coffee tea instead of a pepper tea.

00:25:21I was lucky, my grandma did have the lemon, so the tea problem was solved.

00:25:26But the worst part was the pancakes, and my grandma was looking at me all excited and

00:25:31pleased.

00:25:32I had to eat.

00:25:33I was trying hard to control my facial expression and looked very happy as if I was eating the

00:25:39best food on the planet, even though it was the most terrible meal in my life.

00:25:44And yes, I was drinking a lot of my coffee tea.

00:25:47Well, 3 cups.

00:25:49But when I finished and thanked my grandma, she was so happy that I understood eating

00:25:54puke was worth it.

00:25:56Turned out my grandma actually had a vanilla yogurt, so I ate all she had to get rid of

00:26:01the taste I still had in my mouth after the pancakes.

00:26:05On my way home, biting my strawberry lip, I was thinking.

00:26:09I had to come up with a plan on how to get rid of this ability, but I couldn't think

00:26:14of anything.

00:26:15So, as soon as I got home, I just went to sleep, even though it was only 9 p.m.

00:26:20I slept for 11 hours, and the next morning, I made myself a fruit salad with yogurt.

00:26:26Again.

00:26:27I guess from then on, it was my dish for the rest of my life.

00:26:31I was eating it with my transparent fork and watching a TV show, when I suddenly realized

00:26:37I couldn't taste any lemon there.

00:26:39And no orange as well.

00:26:41I bit my lip, and it didn't have a taste anymore.

00:26:44With my hands shaking, I opened the fridge to get my strawberries.

00:26:48I ate one, and it tasted like a regular normal strawberry.

00:26:53No chili pepper.

00:26:55Everything was back to normal like it never happened, but I swear it did.

00:27:00Really!

00:27:01As soon as the Earth is cut in half, almost all living creatures will come to an end.

00:27:07An apocalypse will begin, which has not been shown in movies.

00:27:11The atmosphere is damaged, the magnetic field will change, and the planet's landscape completely

00:27:17alters.

00:27:18But, the planet will be completely renewed, and life, like a phoenix, will be reborn from

00:27:24the ashes.

00:27:25A super-powerful laser would be needed to separate the planet.

00:27:30Such a laser has to receive energy directly from the sun.

00:27:34The weapon goes into space on a rocket, thousands of miles above our world.

00:27:39Then, once the laser arrives at its destination, it opens wide to expose plates of solar panels.

00:27:46The laser absorbs and concentrates the sun's rays, then a powerful energy beam with the

00:27:51diameter of several cities shoots into the middle of the planet.

00:27:56Oceans through which the beam passes boil and evaporate from the high temperature.

00:28:01These vapors turn into a vast thundercloud in the sky.

00:28:05A strong wind drives these clouds over the continents.

00:28:08Heavy rain falls, which floods not only cities, but entire countries.

00:28:14As the tectonic plates shift, tsunamis are created.

00:28:18Huge waves crash onto the shore.

00:28:20The Earth is split in two.

00:28:24And this is just the beginning.

00:28:27The structure of the Earth, or rather, each half of it, is changing.

00:28:32Strong earthquakes occur all over the world.

00:28:35The worst disasters happen near the fault line.

00:28:38Billions of tons of ground are smashed.

00:28:42Massive landslides drag entire cities below.

00:28:46Chunks of land thousands of miles in size shoot away from our planet.

00:28:51All living creatures on these pieces of land fly into outer space.

00:28:56Other broken pieces of the planet land on the half that is closest to them.

00:29:01Imagine a huge rock the size of a whole city falling from the sky.

00:29:06And there will be hundreds or thousands of such stones.

00:29:10Those who live far from the cut site have a chance to survive.

00:29:14But even there, earthquakes will destroy houses.

00:29:18The moon will also start to throw off pieces from itself.

00:29:22These pieces, like a meteor shower, will fall onto the Earth halves and create massive explosions.

00:29:29These explosions will create fires.

00:29:31The skies will be covered with ash.

00:29:33And until it settles, we won't be able to see the sun.

00:29:38Both parts of the planet are drifting away from each other.

00:29:41The red hot heart of our Earth is right in the center between the two.

00:29:46This is the Earth's core, consisting of molten metals.

00:29:50Each half of the core exudes energy comparable to a star.

00:29:55Between the two parts of the planet, a layer of such hot space is created that nothing

00:30:00can survive there.

00:30:02Any item that falls into this space immediately turns into ashes.

00:30:07The mass of the core is much larger than the ground mass, so there's a higher level

00:30:11of gravity.

00:30:13The core sucks in everything that comes close.

00:30:16You can't travel from one part of the Earth to the other.

00:30:19The core's gravity attracts any shuttle.

00:30:23Each half of the Earth now lives on its own.

00:30:26Typically, the core inside our planet rotates and creates the Earth's magnetic field.

00:30:32This field is a shield that protects us from the sun and space.

00:30:36If the shield is damaged, solar and cosmic radiation passes through the atmosphere.

00:30:42Because the core is divided into two parts, the Earth's magnetic field becomes unstable.

00:30:49Power outages begin in both parts of the planet.

00:30:52Microwaves, TVs, kettles, traffic lights, computers, everything is broken.

00:30:58The screen of your laptop or phone starts turning on and off.

00:31:02The video may freeze, and the battery runs out and charges in one second.

00:31:08Satellites stop working, which means there will be no more GPS.

00:31:12High-frequency radio waves used for communication stop working, which means you can't make calls

00:31:18and send texts.

00:31:19In fact, all power plants may sink underground or be flooded because of the earthquakes,

00:31:25so there might not be electricity at all.

00:31:29Some people are sensitive to solar storms and experience severe headaches.

00:31:34When the magnetic field is damaged, the surviving people and animals will suffer from severe

00:31:39migraines.

00:31:40Scientists will have to invent special helmets to protect people from the sun.

00:31:45For full protection, people will have to live in underground cities.

00:31:49Compass needles no longer point north.

00:31:52They just spin in different directions.

00:31:55The birds go mad.

00:31:57They don't know where to fly to wait out the winter because the south no longer exists

00:32:01for them.

00:32:02All animals stop migrating.

00:32:04In the sky, planes can't navigate.

00:32:08Plants and flowers can't grow naturally thanks to the increased radiation from the sun.

00:32:14Livestock are poorly fed.

00:32:16The quality of products deteriorates.

00:32:18There's famine.

00:32:19The main goal for people on each half of the planet is survival.

00:32:24In some places, closer to the fault, the Earth's atmosphere is completely damaged.

00:32:29The conditions there will be similar to those in space.

00:32:33There is no air or heat.

00:32:35Only in a spacesuit can you stay in this territory.

00:32:39Unfortunately, you won't be able to jump and fly because gravity still works.

00:32:44Besides, it's gravity that becomes the salvation of our planet.

00:32:49Both parts of the Earth won't fly away from each other because of the force of gravity.

00:32:54Instead, they will rotate and start to attract each other.

00:32:58In a hundred thousand years, both parts of the planet will reconnect once more, and the

00:33:04Earth will be completely renewed.

00:33:06Since the core is molten metal, it will return to a single heart.

00:33:10But it will take much longer to connect the solid rock of the halves.

00:33:15A scar forms along the entire fault.

00:33:18The scar will be overgrown with forests and flooded with oceans, but there will be strong

00:33:23earthquakes in some places near this scar.

00:33:27By this time, all living things have probably disappeared.

00:33:31On our planet, conditions are about the same as 4.5 billion years ago.

00:33:37Seas and oceans boil, lightning strikes everywhere, tectonic plates change their shape, and lava

00:33:43flows from volcanoes in a rapid stream.

00:33:47The Earth looks like a vast boiling pot, inside which, life is gradually created.

00:33:54Because the Earth has decreased in size and the core hasn't changed much, the gravity

00:33:59will be different.

00:34:00On land, it will be more difficult for an ordinary person to walk.

00:34:04They will weigh much more.

00:34:07In such conditions, new, previously unknown life will be created.

00:34:12Today, the world's atmosphere and oceans are polluted.

00:34:16Population is increasing, and glaciers are melting.

00:34:20In the future, things could be much worse for our planet.

00:34:24In a thousand years, when humanity has mastered space travel, we may decide to change our

00:34:29residence.

00:34:30We'll start looking for other Earth-like planets, and maybe we'll find something.

00:34:35However, nothing compares to our first home, and humanity decides to cure it.

00:34:41Perhaps we'll come up with the idea to divide the planet in half and live on one side.

00:34:47And after a hundred thousand years, we can come back to a new, healthy home.

00:34:53What if you divide other planets?

00:34:55Since they don't have a magnetic field, they won't be as affected.

00:34:59For example, Venus and Mars have no seas, oceans, or lakes.

00:35:04Some scientists think they're entirely dried up because the magnetic field has disappeared

00:35:10there.

00:35:11This led to the complete destruction of the atmospheres of these planets.

00:35:15The solar wind blew across their surface with such force that it dried up all the liquid.

00:35:21The Earth's atmosphere reflects this wind, so thankfully, we're safe.

00:35:27There would be no significant cataclysms on other planets, except for earthquakes.

00:35:32Like Earth, the two parts of each world would simply rotate until they reconnect once more.

00:35:41Oh boy, you find yourself in the mysterious ruins of an ancient city.

00:35:45You're the only member of the expedition who has managed to make it here.

00:35:49You're walking through a dark maze when you accidentally activate a trap.

00:35:54Whoa, that's a strange sound.

00:35:56Suddenly, a huge rock starts rolling towards you down the hallway.

00:36:00You run as fast as you can, jumping over debris.

00:36:04A final dash and…

00:36:06This room looks like a treasury.

00:36:09Gold coins and gems are scattered everywhere.

00:36:12You go wide-eyed with astonishment.

00:36:15That's enough money to live the life of luxury for decades on end.

00:36:19But it's not the shiny gold that interests you.

00:36:22It's an old lamp that lies in the rubble.

00:36:26As soon as you pick it up, the lamp starts shaking, and a huge genie jumps out of it.

00:36:32You have one wish.

00:36:34Yeah, just one, because it's a lazy genie.

00:36:36No problem.

00:36:37You ask for so much money that you'll never be able to spend it all.

00:36:42The genie claps his hands and disappears.

00:36:47Ding!

00:36:47This is a message to your phone.

00:36:49Your bank account has been topped by one zero zero zero zero.

00:36:54Boy, that number doesn't even fit on the screen.

00:36:58You go back to the surface and pull out your phone.

00:37:01You're gonna check who's the richest man on Earth now.

00:37:05Ah, there you are at the top of the page.

00:37:08And again, the number ends in three dots.

00:37:11Well, it's time to go home and start spending your money.

00:37:15The first thing on the list is a plane ticket.

00:37:17An extra legroom seat?

00:37:19Nah, too cheap.

00:37:20First class?

00:37:22The same.

00:37:23How about your own plane?

00:37:24Something like an Arabian Prince would own.

00:37:27You opt for a huge Airbus 380 converted into a private jet.

00:37:32There's a spiral staircase, an elevator,

00:37:35four VIP rooms, a concert hall, a Turkish bath, and a parking lot.

00:37:42You press the pay button, and your plane's waiting for you on the landing strip.

00:37:47You check your bank account, and the number hasn't even changed.

00:37:50So the genie didn't cheat.

00:37:54As you fly home, you wonder about other ways to spend your endless supply of money.

00:37:59A car?

00:37:59A house?

00:38:00You need some more time to mull it over.

00:38:03You land in your country, and now you need to get home.

00:38:07Taking a bus or catching a cab is out of the question.

00:38:11You walk up to a newly purchased Bugatti.

00:38:14This car is one-of-a-kind and costs $18.6 million.

00:38:20Your small apartment doesn't suit you anymore.

00:38:23You need something bigger.

00:38:24A skyscraper!

00:38:26So, the world's most expensive skyscraper has been the Abraj Al Bayt in Saudi Arabia

00:38:32that costs $16 billion to build.

00:38:35But you invest $20 billion to break the record.

00:38:39The construction has started, but you still need somewhere to live.

00:38:42You buy a penthouse at 172 Madison Avenue in New York City for $100 million.

00:38:50You've already spent $17 billion, but it doesn't seem your bank account has changed.

00:38:55You feel bored.

00:38:56You decide to entertain yourself by buying the costliest things in the world.

00:39:01A watch with a bunch of the world's rarest diamonds?

00:39:04$55 million.

00:39:06Got it.

00:39:08One more car, this time an old-school Ferrari worth $70 million.

00:39:13It's yours!

00:39:15A baseball card that costs more than $3 million.

00:39:18Hey, why not?

00:39:20A $450 million painting created by Leonardo DiCaprio.

00:39:25Oops, I mean Leonardo da Vinci.

00:39:28It goes into the basket too.

00:39:30Wow, this shopping is so exhausting!

00:39:33Time to relax!

00:39:35Which means a private island!

00:39:38$610 million is the price of a huge island in Hawaii.

00:39:42It's the size of a large city, and now it's all yours!

00:39:46You aren't going to board your old plane to get to the island, uh-uh!

00:39:51You're buying a new one!

00:39:53It's a Boeing 747, the model presidents use when they need to fly somewhere.

00:39:59$660 million, and now it's all yours!

00:40:04Sitting on a luxury plane with a large team of flight attendants at your service,

00:40:09you feel like the world's number one person.

00:40:13And you've already imagined sailing around your new island, right?

00:40:17How could you forget about a yacht?

00:40:19The world's most expensive one is plated with gold

00:40:22and reportedly has some T-Rex bones in the bedroom.

00:40:25It took 3 years and 10 tons of solid gold to build,

00:40:29and you buy it for almost $5 billion.

00:40:34The island looks deserted.

00:40:36There's nothing here but golden beaches and lush greenery.

00:40:39But aren't you the richest man in the world?

00:40:42You decide to build yourself a palace.

00:40:44Click, and $3 billion Buckingham Palace appears on the island.

00:40:49And one more for your guest, please!

00:40:52Now you're actually traveling around the beautiful island on your own yacht.

00:40:57But your face doesn't look happy.

00:40:59The entertainment for the rich is rather boring.

00:41:02You look up at the sky and think about flying to the stars.

00:41:06And here you are, standing on the launch pad near the rocket

00:41:09that's about to take you into space.

00:41:12You've paid $52 million to do it.

00:41:15But the International Space Station seems to be filled with nothing but research labs.

00:41:19Not too exciting.

00:41:22That's why you build a new $150 billion space station

00:41:26with lots of fun stuff and even a spa.

00:41:29You've already spent more money than all the richest people on the planet ever have.

00:41:35But your bank account still hasn't changed whatsoever.

00:41:39Your imagination is running amok.

00:41:42Ooh, Mars!

00:41:44You spend another $2.5 billion and become the first person to set foot on Mars.

00:41:49Well, red sands, steep mountains, craters…

00:41:52But there's nothing to do, even for you, the man with an unlimited amount of money.

00:41:57So you slam your rocket's door closed and go home.

00:42:014.

00:42:03All your skyscrapers are already built.

00:42:05New York City with your house in the middle looks very different now.

00:42:09You're lying in a giant bedroom with marble floors,

00:42:13ancient Chinese vases, and a fountain.

00:42:16Your money can buy anything, but you're lonely.

00:42:20So you have another skyscraper built next to yours.

00:42:23This one is for your friends.

00:42:25And one more for your family.

00:42:27And, of course, your beloved cat also deserves a private penthouse.

00:42:32You've run out of free space.

00:42:34It's time to build your own city.

00:42:37You choose a place that used to be a scorching desert with nothing but sand for miles on end.

00:42:42But you pay trillions of dollars and have a city built from scratch.

00:42:47There's a chain of restaurants with your name on them.

00:42:50There are billboards with your face in the streets.

00:42:52And a giant statue on the tallest building in the city looks exactly like you.

00:42:57The city is almost empty, but you drive through its streets,

00:43:01escorted by security guards in extravagant cars.

00:43:05For dinner, you buy the most high-priced fish in the world.

00:43:09It's the bluefin tuna for $3 million.

00:43:13And then you decide it's time to make a movie about yourself.

00:43:17The most expensive movie ever made cost $400 million.

00:43:21You pay $1 billion and hire the world's highest-paid actors.

00:43:26But when the movie's ready, the only audience watching it is you.

00:43:31Mostly because you're in your private theater.

00:43:33When the credits are rolling, you start to throw popcorn at the screen.

00:43:37You didn't enjoy the show.

00:43:40You walk down a long corridor with the most expensive pictures in the world.

00:43:44Next to them, you see the rarest archaeological finds and…

00:43:48Is it another fountain?

00:43:51No, you're not okay.

00:43:53You spent trillions of dollars, but you haven't gotten an ounce happier.

00:43:57You decide to go back to where it all began.

00:44:01With a torch in your hand, you return to the ancient ruins.

00:44:05There it is, the treasury.

00:44:07You find the genie's lamp where you left it.

00:44:10As soon as you pick it up, the genie appears in front of you.

00:44:13He laughs at you because you've fallen into his trap.

00:44:17He gave you an infinite amount of money so that these riches drove you crazy.

00:44:23But you pull out your phone and press the donate all button.

00:44:27In that very second, your money goes to charity accounts all over the world.

00:44:32Now scientists have more opportunities to work on new medicines.

00:44:37Ecologists have found more funds to use while saving our planet.

00:44:41And every person on Earth has enough food now.

00:44:45The genie gets angry because you've tricked him.

00:44:48He's about to strike you with a lightning bolt.

00:44:51But you grab the lamp and confine the genie to it forever.

00:44:55When you get home and turn on the TV, you see your face on every channel.

00:45:00You're called a hero, the savior of humanity.

00:45:04You get thousands of thank-you letters from people you've made happy.

00:45:08You smile and feel better too.

00:45:10Apparently, helping others is the best thing you can do.

00:45:15Ah, such a beautiful day, isn't it?

00:45:18It is, until it all goes boom.

00:45:20That's gravity disappearing for just a second.

00:45:23Let's recap the events from the smallest to the largest scale.

00:45:26We'll start with you.

00:45:28Yes, you.

00:45:29If gravity is lost for a single second, unfortunately, you'll most probably be no more.

00:45:35Thing is, gravity doesn't only keep you anchored to the Earth,

00:45:38it also holds all the atoms inside your body together.

00:45:42If this force completely disappears even for such a short period of time,

00:45:46chances are you'll simply fly apart.

00:45:50If you don't, then you'll start floating above the ground.

00:45:53Not high, though, because one second isn't enough to fly too far away.

00:45:57If the gravity stops working only for you,

00:46:00then you'll levitate a little over an inch upwards and then fall back without consequences.

00:46:05Your thoughts will be occupied by the lack of oxygen in your lungs, though,

00:46:09because with no gravity, your blood will stop pumping.

00:46:13Now, if it affects the surrounding objects as well, you'll be lucky to be away from home

00:46:18because everything around you will float too.

00:46:21And after a second, all your cutlery, your bed, your wardrobes, etc., will smash down on the floor.

00:46:28Luckily, buildings and trees will probably stay put

00:46:31because they're strongly rooted in the ground by their own means.

00:46:34Still, the picture won't be pretty, and it'll be up to you to clean that mess.

00:46:39Aw, shucks.

00:46:41By the way, you surely know our planet is spinning and hurtling through space at mind-blowing speeds,

00:46:47so there's a chance that if gravity does turn off for a second,

00:46:51everything on the Earth's surface will succumb to inertia

00:46:54and fly horizontally at several hundred miles per hour.

00:46:57That will be an even bigger mess.

00:46:59But only if everything retains its mass.

00:47:02If it doesn't, then it should be no problem.

00:47:05Maybe.

00:47:07Yet the real trouble starts if the gravity disappears for the entire planet.

00:47:12The force of gravity is equal to the pressure from inside the Earth.

00:47:15And if the outside pressure is gone,

00:47:18nothing will stop the molten innards of our planet from bursting onto the surface.

00:47:22An immense earthquake will begin all over the Earth as the tectonic plates move upwards.

00:47:28Also, all the world's volcanoes will probably erupt too,

00:47:32since the lava will be pumped up with the pressure.

00:47:35If such a mega-eruption occurs,

00:47:37no life will survive except the sturdiest of creatures, such as tardigrades.

00:47:42The clouds of volcanic ash will spread across the whole planet, blocking the sun.

00:47:48At first, the temperatures will rise due to the greenhouse effect.

00:47:52But then the planet will cool down, and a new ice age will begin.

00:47:56Optimistic.

00:47:57This will all happen even if the gravity returns after a second.

00:48:01Because the motion will already start, and it'll take a more powerful force to calm it down.

00:48:07Up above, the atmosphere of the Earth will simply evaporate.

00:48:11The air we breathe is also kept around the planet by the force of gravity.

00:48:15So if it pops, we'll have nothing to fill our lungs with.

00:48:19When the gravity comes back in a second, the atmosphere will eventually gather itself back.

00:48:24But the damage will have been done already.

00:48:26It will take a lot of time for the air to return to its original composition.

00:48:32Meanwhile, in space, things are even worse.

00:48:35As far as we know, everything in the Universe is held together by gravity,

00:48:39including other planets, stars, galaxies, and even galactic clusters.

00:48:44On a cosmic scale, our planet is but a fleck of dust, having a really tiny mass.

00:48:50The Sun is incredibly huge by comparison.

00:48:53It's 109 times bigger in diameter, and over 300,000 times more massive.

00:48:59Which is why its gravity is able to keep so many planets in its orbit.

00:49:04And now that enormous force is just poof!

00:49:08Even though it's only a second, the immense pressure of gas from inside our star makes

00:49:12it explode, sending a heat wave far greater than anything we've ever experienced in history.

00:49:18Now, the Sun will most likely survive,

00:49:20because a second is too short a period of time for the star to inflate too much.

00:49:25But the same can't be said about Mercury, Venus, Earth, and probably Mars too.

00:49:30Mercury, being the closest, will probably be simply incinerated.

00:49:34The temperature on Venus is already extremely high,

00:49:37but it will spike even more, scorching its surface.

00:49:41Good thing it's not inhabited.

00:49:43And bad thing that Earth is.

00:49:45The heat wave from the Sun will probably obliterate our atmosphere first,

00:49:49and then do the same with the surface.

00:49:51So, from the looks of it, nothing will be able to survive.

00:49:55Again.

00:49:56Oh well.

00:49:58But that's not even close to the end.

00:50:00Our Sun is one of the smallest stars in the Universe,

00:50:03the biggest known one being about 1,500 times larger and more massive.

00:50:08If such a giant loses its gravity for a second,

00:50:11everything around it for millions upon millions of miles will simply disintegrate,

00:50:16including other smaller stars.

00:50:19But the objects with the most mass and, as a result,

00:50:22the most gravity are neutron stars and black holes.

00:50:26Both of them are extremely small for their mass, like me.

00:50:30But the pressure inside them is so immense that the loss of gravity

00:50:34for even a fraction of a second might mean a tremendous space explosion.

00:50:39And with a whole second, it's basically warranted.

00:50:42Nobody knows for sure, though, how black holes operate,

00:50:45so there's a chance that something else will happen with them.

00:50:49Or nothing at all.

00:50:51Finally, on the largest scale, if gravity decides to take a second-long break,

00:50:56surprisingly, nothing much will happen.

00:50:59Planets will mostly retain their orbits, although they might change a little bit,

00:51:04and if we talk about galaxies or galactic clusters, those won't even notice anything.

00:51:09The biggest changes will be local because, as I said earlier,

00:51:13stars will explode, and the larger the blast,

00:51:16the more it will affect the neighboring celestial bodies.

00:51:19For example, if a star large enough sends a wave of energy in the direction of our solar system,

00:51:25it might send asteroids flying toward us from the Oort cloud.

00:51:29Those space rocks fall onto the Moon and even Earth quite regularly,

00:51:33but they're mostly rather small.

00:51:36The ones sent to us by a star explosion, however, might be a lot bigger and more dangerous.

00:51:41We will be protected by other planets, but still,

00:51:44the chances of collision will be a lot higher than normal.

00:51:48But who cares, really? We'll be toast by then!

00:51:52Obviously, this is all just speculation.

00:51:54Nobody knows for sure what'll happen if gravity suddenly decides to stop working even for a second.

00:52:00What we know, though, is that it can't happen without numerous laws of physics being broken

00:52:06all at once.

00:52:07Scientists are pretty certain such a turning off is impossible altogether.

00:52:11For this to happen, everything in the Universe will have to lose its mass first.

00:52:16Mass is the main reason things have gravity.

00:52:18So, the heavier the object, the more gravity it has.

00:52:22Even you have it.

00:52:23It's just so small that you can't feel it.

00:52:25But if you were several million times more massive,

00:52:28you'd probably be the center of everyone's attention.

00:52:32Hey, I'd use that opportunity!

00:52:35Oh, man!

00:52:36Five minutes to go!

00:52:38The most important moment in your career is coming!

00:52:40You're sweating buckets in that tux, but it's too late to change now!

00:52:44You're at an international technology conference

00:52:47along with the world's most famous scientists, engineers, programmers,

00:52:51economists, and a whole bunch of other important people.

00:52:54Artificial intelligence developers have made a discovery that could change the world forever.

00:52:59And in four minutes, there will be a public demonstration of this world-changing revelation.

00:53:04You're here as a translator.

00:53:06You need to translate all the science-y stuff into several languages.

00:53:10You've loved learning languages your whole life.

00:53:13First, it was foreign films and TV series with subtitles, books, comics.

00:53:18Then you started to study more seriously.

00:53:20Your parents took you all over the world to absorb different world cultures.

00:53:24And when you found out there are about 7,000 languages on our planet,

00:53:29you decided to spend your life learning them.

00:53:32Well, some of them.

00:53:33Prestigious universities, post-grads, living in different countries,

00:53:38studying the history of ancient languages.

00:53:41All this made you the best translator and language expert in the world.

00:53:45And now you're a little nervous,

00:53:47as you have to translate the conference into 7 different languages.

00:53:52The event begins.

00:53:53Scientists start to talk about the evolution of AI.

00:53:57No, it's not going to take over the planet.

00:53:59On the contrary, it's going to make people's lives easier.

00:54:04You have a bad feeling about this for some reason.

00:54:07The main developer leaks the big news.

00:54:10A new language has been created for the whole world to use.

00:54:13The language is simple to learn.

00:54:15The AI translation algorithm makes it easy to remember words, grammar.

00:54:20Basically, there will be no more communication problems anymore.

00:54:24To make learning it even easier,

00:54:26scientists have created an app that can translate any kind of speech into the new language.

00:54:32Context, meaning, sarcasm, irony.

00:54:35It can now all be translated into UCL, Universal Common Language.

00:54:40The world's population will be united like never before.

00:54:44That's when you realize that the biggest moment of your career

00:54:48is also the beginning of its destruction.

00:54:51Who's going to need a translator if everybody speaks the same language?

00:54:56Over the next 20 years, the planet moves to speaking the common language.

00:55:01Every gadget has the UCL app.

00:55:04The language is taught in schools and institutes.

00:55:07Big companies and corporations introduce mandatory language courses for their employees.

00:55:12AI translates thousands of books a day into UCL.

00:55:16In movies and TV, only actors who speak UCL get the big awards.

00:55:22People who just couldn't learn a foreign language before have no problem with UCL.

00:55:27The learning process is easy and fun.

00:55:29Plus, it's a requirement for literally everything.

00:55:33So, countries start canceling their visa programs.

00:55:37Borders start getting erased.

00:55:39All over the world, the number of conflicts is decreasing.

00:55:42Because now people can understand each other much better.

00:55:46Operating systems, video games, tech articles, songs, jokes, science stuff,

00:55:51you name it, are all created in the new world language.

00:55:56You can call anyone on the other side of the planet,

00:55:58tell them something, and listen to their interesting stories.

00:56:02You can go on a trip around the world and not be afraid you'll accidentally

00:56:06order 17 squirrels for breakfast because you mixed up one little word.

00:56:11Movie companies stop dubbing movies.

00:56:13And no more subtitles!

00:56:16The world has become more open.

00:56:18Air ticket prices are way down, and tourism and studying and working abroad is booming.

00:56:24Every year, more and more people renounce their citizenship

00:56:27and recognize themselves as citizens of the world.

00:56:31Science is developing faster than ever before

00:56:34because scientists from all over the world can finally work together.

00:56:38And studying foreign languages? A thing of the past.

00:56:42Okay, it seems like the world's become a better place.

00:56:46But UCL also has a dark side.

00:56:49Translators and language professors lose their jobs.

00:56:52Language schools get closed around the planet.

00:56:55Those dubbing actors also lose their jobs.

00:56:58You and many other people are opposed to the new language.

00:57:02You set about trying to prove that, sooner or later, UCL will cause a catastrophe.

00:57:08While the whole world communicates in the new language,

00:57:11scientists finished their first multi-country study of the human mind.

00:57:15The number of neural connections, so the thoughts and biological processes in the brain,

00:57:20have decreased.

00:57:22Scientists studied hundreds of thousands of people in three groups.

00:57:26Multi-language speakers, one-language speakers,

00:57:29and those who were born in the new world and only speak UCL.

00:57:33Studies show that the human brain's stopped functioning as it did before.

00:57:38People used to try to understand foreign languages,

00:57:41speak them and translate them, training their minds.

00:57:44Now, the parts of the brain that are responsible for this have stopped working.

00:57:49Even if you'd never learned a foreign language,

00:57:52you still used to see and hear words that you didn't understand,

00:57:55and your brain at least tried to process the information.

00:57:59Now, our brains are relaxed.

00:58:02Some say, if there are no other languages, what difference does it make?

00:58:06Who cares about a relaxed brain?

00:58:09But that's not the end of it.

00:58:11The human brain has become worse at analyzing information,

00:58:15remembering, and finding clever ways out of difficult situations.

00:58:19It's hard for people to learn new knowledge.

00:58:22People's vocabulary ends up becoming smaller and smaller.

00:58:26Sometimes, people can't even say what's on their mind.

00:58:30The average IQ begins to dip.

00:58:33Learning the languages of the past is becoming almost impossible.

00:58:37Some are worried about the future.

00:58:39People may forget their history.

00:58:41Changes in the human brain are one thing,

00:58:43but forgetting our history could be really dangerous.

00:58:46Every language is linked to its geography and history.

00:58:50But most importantly, language brings cultural diversity into your daily life.

00:58:56For example, there are many more words to describe the cold in cold countries,

00:59:01more shades of green in tropical countries.

00:59:03You get the picture.

00:59:05With UCL, these little things that make cultures different just sort of vanish.

00:59:10Most people now like the same music, watch the same movies.

00:59:14People start to lose interest in everything.

00:59:17Imagine you saved up money for 6 months to fly to the other side of the world.

00:59:22You arrive there, and everyone talks and acts just like your neighbors back home.

00:59:27They even watch the same shows and follow the same influencers as you.

00:59:32From now on, you'll never be able to determine where a person grew up by their accent.

00:59:38People talk with the same intonation, use the same sentence structure and words.

00:59:42Communication becomes boring.

00:59:45To better express your emotions, you use gestures and body language.

00:59:50Two people arguing starts to look a lot like two crazy people – quivering, twitching,

00:59:55waving.

00:59:56But the worst thing is that people start to lose their sense of humor.

01:00:00Because there's less vocabulary, there's less thought.

01:00:04It's getting hard to think, let alone talk.

01:00:07Dreams get super boring, and poetry and song lyrics all start to sound the same.

01:00:13Yeah, life's become much easier, but so what?

01:00:17We can easily understand each other, but at the same time,

01:00:20we've forgotten how exciting it can be to learn something new.

01:00:25AI keeps trying to simplify UCL, and every year it gets easier and easier.

01:00:31Scientists have found that, at this rate, people will communicate using only sounds

01:00:36in a few decades.

01:00:37Nobody will be able to clearly express their thoughts or explain their actions.

01:00:42The global understanding everyone has is soon going to change to epic misunderstanding.

01:00:48People will simply forget how to communicate their thoughts.

01:00:52You've had a rough time since you lost your job as a translator.

01:00:56You've spent nearly every waking moment trying to prove that languages are necessary.

01:01:01Fortunately, you and other translators and professors make it happen.

01:01:07People will never stop using UCL, but interest in learning old languages reappears.

01:01:13Learning an old language becomes the hot new thing.

01:01:17There are more language schools than ever before.

01:01:20There are only a few people left on the planet who still remember multiple old languages.

01:01:25You and other translators get rich.

01:01:29Learning languages is now the most popular hobby,

01:01:32which perfectly develops your mental abilities.

01:01:36If it used to be cool to have an expensive car,

01:01:38a stacked bank account, and a beautiful house,

01:01:41now the ability to speak two languages is considered a sign of success.

01:01:46Film companies are making movies.

01:01:48Writers are writing books.

01:01:50Artists are creating songs, all in different languages again.

01:01:54The world goes back to being diverse, interesting, and fun.

01:01:59Merci beaucoup!

01:02:02Well, hello there, my dear!

01:02:05Who's ever listening to this?

01:02:07My name is Zenergizer.

01:02:09Uh, no, Aggravator.

01:02:12No, wait, Dagnabbit.

01:02:14I'll get myself together and remember my name correctly.

01:02:18Oh, Ebenezer.

01:02:20Yeah, that's how my ma and pa called me.

01:02:22I ain't nothing special, but it's only yet.

01:02:25I've just been born a year after all.

01:02:29My ma's a beautiful lady.

01:02:31She's in her mid-40s now.

01:02:33Just the age to have seniors like me.

01:02:37My pa is a big and kindly fella,

01:02:40listening to my blabbering with a smile on his bearded face.

01:02:45I saw their pictures of yore before my time,

01:02:47and pa was a boldy back then.

01:02:50But now his hair is so thick, ma's hands get lost in it.

01:02:56They keep telling me I'll be a good lad when I grow young.

01:03:00I love him so much.

01:03:02Well, I'm tired now.

01:03:05Need some beauty sleep here.

01:03:06Evergazer out.

01:03:09Hey there, it's been a while since I recorded something here.

01:03:13I'm 10 now, and it's an awful good time to be alive, you know.

01:03:18I go to school and have lots of friends there.

01:03:22It's a lot of fun to study, and during breaks we play bridge.

01:03:27I love math and literature.

01:03:29You have to make your gears turn to understand those numbers and analyze books.

01:03:34I read a lot too, so I'm the best in my class.

01:03:39Can't stand PE though.

01:03:40My joints aren't saying no thank you exactly for making them run and pump iron.

01:03:46Billy's good at that.

01:03:47He says he's gonna be an athlete when he's young.

01:03:50Looking at his physique, I kinda believe him.

01:03:53Okay, the break's over.

01:03:55Time to get back to my studies.

01:03:57Ebenezer out.

01:04:00I'm 20 now, and life's becoming a virtue.

01:04:03I just graduated from college.

01:04:05Been here for close to 5 years, a big deal.

01:04:09I'm officially a master of science now and thinking of becoming a doctor.

01:04:13But I'm not sure my ma and pa will be alright without me.

01:04:17They're already growing too young now, and I'm afraid they'll get in trouble if I'm not there.

01:04:24Once pa went to a party and didn't come back for 3 days.

01:04:28Got my worried sick.

01:04:30She gave him a huge slap when he finally turned up.

01:04:33They made up real soon though.

01:04:35Youth is passionate, you know.

01:04:38I used to hate PE at school, but I love it now.

01:04:41Every chance I get, I go running in the nearby park

01:04:44and even ask my parents to get me a gym membership for my birthday.

01:04:49It's so good to feel those old bones creak less and less with each passing day.

01:04:54Oh, incidentally, gotta go for another run now.

01:04:58See you in 10 years, I guess.

01:04:59Ebeneezer out!

01:05:02Hey, you know what a pain it is to care for two 70-somethings?

01:05:06All they want to do is throw loud parties at home,

01:05:09have sleepovers every weekend, and fight with each other over some petty stuff.

01:05:14Every time I leave for work, I'm terrified of what I'll see when I get back in the evening.

01:05:20Once I came home and couldn't even open the front door

01:05:23because one of their friends decided to take a nap right on the porch.

01:05:27Whenever I try to bring this topic up with mom or dad,

01:05:31they chide me for being insensitive.

01:05:35They say they brought me up as a good man,

01:05:37but they deserve to have the time of their lives after so many years of hard work.

01:05:42Okay, I surrender.

01:05:46The only person who understands me is Felicity.

01:05:49I'm a civil engineer, and we met at a construction site.

01:05:53She's a bit younger than me, but that's fine.

01:05:55She also has to put up with her parents who are moody all the time.

01:05:59She thinks they've joined some sort of goth subculture or something.

01:06:03And they keep telling her that she's wrong

01:06:05for taking up such a mundane job as a construction supervisor.

01:06:10When we started dating, we decided we'd give our parents some space,

01:06:14so we often leave for long vacations together while they demolish our houses.

01:06:19Oh, there she comes!

01:06:21Well, time for me to go then.

01:06:22Ebeneezer out!

01:06:26Hey, remember me?

01:06:27These past 10 years have been grand!

01:06:30Felicity and I got married, and now we take care of our parents together.

01:06:34And it's awesome!

01:06:36They're all in their 80s now and having fun at kindergarten while we're at work,

01:06:40and we take them for barbecues, bubble parties, and theme parks afterwards.

01:06:44They get their retirement benefits alright and leave them for us to take care of.

01:06:49They say we're the best kids they could wish for,

01:06:52and I've never been so proud in my life after hearing this.

01:06:55It's actually Mom's birthday today,

01:06:57and she and Dad invited all their friends from the kindergarten and from her previous job.

01:07:02My personal favorite's Jenny.

01:07:04She's a little mischief alright.

01:07:06She spooked both me and Felicity,

01:07:08hiding under the table when we were cooking dinner and then jumping out at us from there.

01:07:13And Felicity adores Donnie.

01:07:15That old boy seems really serious at first glance,

01:07:18but that little grin of his speaks volumes about him.

01:07:22And I've got the best news ever for dessert.

01:07:25Last year, we got our very own senior.

01:07:28Can you believe that?

01:07:29We named her Cecilia after her grandma.

01:07:31Hey Cece, say hi to this thing here!

01:07:34She's shy, sitting all day in that rocking chair of hers and trying to knit.

01:07:39Can't walk by herself yet, so we move her around the house in that thing.

01:07:43She loves it, always cackles with that toothless laugh of hers.

01:07:48Felicity's now running after Donnie around the backyard with a broom.

01:07:52I think he stole a piece of the birthday cake from the kitchen.

01:07:55Gotta go help her, I guess.

01:07:57Cheers!

01:07:57Ebeneezer out!

01:08:01Hey, we, uh…

01:08:02We've been living without our parents for three years now.

01:08:05The last year was the toughest, I guess.

01:08:08I never thought babies needed so many diapers.

01:08:11It was hard to prevent them from falling wherever they crawled too.

01:08:14But Cece helped us a lot, by the way.

01:08:17She was only 7 and just started going to school.

01:08:19But she loved cooing over them and rocking their cradles.

01:08:23We showed Cece their pictures when they were seniors just like her.

01:08:26She didn't recognize them, of course.

01:08:28They were so old and gray.

01:08:31Meanwhile, Felicity and I are on our way to retirement, and we're so looking forward to it.

01:08:36I'm 51, and she's 54, which means we're entering our prime now.

01:08:41We decided to let Cece live on her own when she's young enough

01:08:44and have been looking at various holiday homes in the country.

01:08:48I'm rooting for the one in the mountains.

01:08:49We've been doing a lot of mountain climbing lately,

01:08:52and I feel Felicity is with me in that.

01:08:54Well, I'll keep you updated in a decade.

01:08:56Ebeneezer out!

01:08:58Hey, it's Ben again!

01:09:00Yeah, I discarded that awfully boring name, so I go with Ben now.

01:09:05What can I say?

01:09:06Being over 60 is no piece of cake.

01:09:09Lizzy is always pounding about something,

01:09:11and I think she's jealous of me for hanging out with Lana.

01:09:15But she also keeps saying Dan this, Dan that, as if Dan is everything she can think of.

01:09:21We had lots of fights about that,

01:09:23and once I even spent most of my retirement benefits on a rented apartment

01:09:27and stayed there for two weeks.

01:09:29When I got back, we promised each other never to speak with Lana or Dan ever again.

01:09:35Cece seemed frustrated with us way too often.

01:09:38Come on, give me a break!

01:09:40Can't a married couple get some life after retirement?

01:09:43She calls us every evening and threatens to come to our place if we don't behave.

01:09:48Since when has that old girl become so adult, I wonder?

01:09:52Huh?

01:09:52Oh, okay!

01:09:54Anyway, Will says the zipline from the top of the mountain is ready.

01:09:57We're going for a flight of our lifetime!

01:10:00Ben out!

01:10:02How do you use this?

01:10:04Oh, yeah, hey.

01:10:06Hey, it's Ben!

01:10:08Ebeneezer!

01:10:10I'm 72 today!

01:10:12Did you know that?

01:10:14Cece says I have to record something to come commemorate this date.

01:10:21I don't know what to say, but I want my cake already.

01:10:25Cece, where's my cake?

01:10:28Well, hello there.

01:10:30It's Franklin speaking.

01:10:33My grandpops, Ebeneezer, left this device for posterity, which I guess I am.

01:10:39He's 84 now and mostly lying around in his little bed.

01:10:44But mom tells me lots of stories about him and grandma.

01:10:48I think I'll take up his tradition and let his legacy live on.

01:10:52Oops, little Benny soiled his nappy.

01:10:55Gotta go now.

01:10:57Franklin out.

01:11:01Okay, what if pressing only one key could change your life forever and make it much easier?

01:11:06Well, if we were in Minecraft, everything would be possible.

01:11:10Too hard to live?

01:11:11Too many tasks, deadline, school classes are tedious, and you just can't go on like this?

01:11:17Change your life mode to somewhat less challenging.

01:11:20Just press escape.

01:11:22Adjust your life difficulty choosing peaceful, easy, normal, or even hard for those who like

01:11:27it tough.

01:11:28If your teacher is as hostile as a green and white pixelated creeper, choose peaceful mode.

01:11:33Monsters don't spawn there.

01:11:35Or just get yourself a cat.

01:11:37Creepers are terrified when they see them.

01:11:39Even if your pet looks a bit boxish.

01:11:42One more cool piece of news, if your life is in peaceful mode now, you don't even need to

01:11:46eat, which could save you a ton of money.

01:11:49As for appearances, no more worries about pimples.

01:11:52Now that you're pixelated, nobody's ever gonna notice them.

01:11:56You look the same every day.

01:11:57Your haircut, even if you hate it and can't wait for your hair to grow, never changes,

01:12:02unless you change the skins.

01:12:04You can't grow or lose some pounds.

01:12:06Your body proportions are much different too.

01:12:09In our world, the head-to-body ratio is about 1 to 7.

01:12:12And in Minecraft, it's more as if everyone had a baby body with a huge head and smaller

01:12:18torso.

01:12:19You wouldn't have fingers, so if you had Minecraft body in real life, you wouldn't

01:12:23be good at fine motor skills.

01:12:25Um, I guess no Minecraft surgery, huh?

01:12:29No matter what kind of biome you live in, you don't need some super cold-resistant clothes

01:12:34or nice shoes.

01:12:36Life without changes means that you don't age the way we normally do.

01:12:40No more birthdays anymore.

01:12:42The cake you find in the game is not for candles or making wishes.

01:12:46It can only help you if you're starving.

01:12:48A day-night cycle is somewhat different now, with 100 Minecraft days equaling 33 standard

01:12:54hours.

01:12:55So, life expectancy should change too.

01:12:58The average lifespan in the USA is 78 years, or about 683,000 hours.

01:13:05So, the average lifespan, according to Minecraft, would jump up to 5,700 years, eh?

01:13:11And you can also respawn.

01:13:14Ready to live forever?

01:13:16Food isn't that different from what we have in real life, even in terms of calories.

01:13:20A whole cake will replenish your energy so much more than a plain beetroot.

01:13:26Carbs!

01:13:27There would be some exceptions too.

01:13:29A golden apple gives extra health in Minecraft.

01:13:32So, sad golden delicious from Walmart are only delicious in real life.

01:13:37You can starve in Minecraft in 2 game days, though it takes a bit longer in real life.

01:13:42Yeah, going with no food is a real challenge, but a human actually can do that.

01:13:47Water, on the other hand, is pretty essential in our world,

01:13:50but doesn't do much to Minecraft people when they drink it.

01:13:54Today's agriculture uses some fertilizers to speed up plant growing.

01:13:58But if we had that bone meal Minecraft people feed their plants with,

01:14:02we'd have an abundance of any fruit or vegetables.

01:14:06Life would be quite boring, though.

01:14:08You wake up today and you mine.

01:14:10You wake up the next day, you craft.

01:14:12The retail industry could never compete with skillful people,

01:14:15who actually don't need it, being able to create various objects from scratch.

01:14:20Anyway, you don't need that much.

01:14:22You can do almost anything with a mere pickaxe, upgrading it to a diamond one.

01:14:28All those hardware stores full of handy items would go bust in a real world

01:14:32with a pickaxe replacing everything else.

01:14:35It'd also have to be a bit more hard-working, though.

01:14:38If you want to have a nap, there's no way you can do that in the Minecraft world.

01:14:43Here, you only sleep at night or if there's bad weather outside.

01:14:47Sleep is essential not to be caught by monsters that appear as soon as the night falls.

01:14:52And you gotta be sure there are no monsters nearby before you go to bed anyway.

01:14:57You can only sleep in your bed, though.

01:14:59Even if you want to spread on a nice meadow in the shadow, you won't just fall asleep.

01:15:04Same with school classes.

01:15:06No matter how boring they are, it's just impossible to doze off.

01:15:10If you're used to watching pop science TV shows, well,

01:15:14that's something that would probably be almost unchanged.

01:15:17Discovery Channel would show not only various biomes and square animals,

01:15:21but other worlds too, like the Nether and the Overworld.

01:15:25Anyway, you wouldn't spend that much time indoors.

01:15:28Most activities in Minecraft are performed outdoors, so you'd have to go outside really often.

01:15:34Traveling is fun in Minecraft world.

01:15:36Want to visit the Nether?

01:15:38No, not the Netherlands.

01:15:40It's a trip to the Underworld.

01:15:42No need to buy tickets, go through customs, spend hours in a tiny airplane seat.

01:15:47You only want some lava and a bit of water.

01:15:49Pour one over the other, and you get obsidian.

01:15:53As soon as you create at least 8 blocks of the stuff, build a portal with them,

01:15:57set it on fire, and voila!

01:16:00Welcome to the Nether!

01:16:01If you travel a lot, you can casually grab your bed with you and assemble it wherever you want.

01:16:07Nice move to avoid pricey hotels.

01:16:10Which are missing in the Nether anyway.

01:16:12It's not just a fun trip, though.

01:16:14There are a bunch of ingredients you may need for potions.

01:16:17No fancy souvenirs either.

01:16:19Rather, some useful stuff you mine from exotic Nether blocks.

01:16:23Despite their moniker, locals called Zombie Pigmen are quite friendly

01:16:27and never attack unless it's you who started a fight.

01:16:31Lava can help you to travel, be a kind of trash bin, and keep intruders away.

01:16:36In Minecraft world, you can be sure unexpected guests won't bother you.

01:16:40They'll just fall into boiling lava.

01:16:42End of story.

01:16:44You can also install a tripwire hook just behind your front door

01:16:48to activate piston-based traps for unwanted visitors.

01:16:51Once your guest triggers the tripwire,

01:16:53the pistons will remove the flooring and send the visitor into the void.

01:16:58If you're going to the seaside, take your front door with you.

01:17:01It'll help you explore the ocean deep.

01:17:04If you fall into water, all you need to breathe freely is place a door above you.

01:17:09Nobody could ever hold their breath for more than 24 minutes in our real life,

01:17:13but in Minecraft, you can stay underwater almost forever.

01:17:16Or just as long as you want.

01:17:18Transportation system is much cooler now.

01:17:21You can still use all the means of transport you're used to,

01:17:24but having a ride in a cart can be both fun and fast.

01:17:28Just build the rails wherever you want and forget about traffic jams.

01:17:33Physics are another big change.

01:17:34They give you lots of superpowers not accessible in the real world.

01:17:38You can jump higher, climb any mountain easier,

01:17:41and run faster as if the whole gravity stuff was a joke to you.

01:17:45You can make a vertical row of blocks,

01:17:47and even if you smash the lowest block, the one above it will hang in the air.

01:17:52It doesn't mean you can't fall down from a height.

01:17:54You can.

01:17:55But it's safe if you just spill some water from a bucket right before the impact.

01:18:00Not only can you perform all that,

01:18:02but you can also easily chop a massive trunk in just a few moves.

01:18:06No tools necessary, by the way.

01:18:08Just your bare hands.

01:18:10And not even a scratch left on them afterwards.

01:18:12You don't feel pain in this world.

01:18:15Don't worry, the top branches of the tree you just fell won't hurt you either,

01:18:19since they'll be hung in the air.

01:18:21Deforestation in Minecraft looks insane.

01:18:24Can you imagine a forest made up of floating trees?

01:18:27No squirrel could ever climb any trunk in such a forest.

01:18:31Walking around here, you're likely to come across wild animals, such as bears and wolves.

01:18:37You can domesticate wolves and almost convert them into dogs,

01:18:40and bears are not that dangerous for you.

01:18:43Just trap them inside a fence.

01:18:45It looks flimsy, but it's Minecraft World, so it's absolutely safe.

01:19:03So you're running through the jungle with tree branches and thick vines blocking your way.

01:19:08You don't know where you're going, but you feel like you're not in control of your movements.

01:19:13You see a huge rock in front of you.

01:19:15You can't stop running.

01:19:16You're about to crash into it.

01:19:18Suddenly, whoop, you're up in the air, soaring at an incredible speed.

01:19:22Below you is a steep valley with sharp rocks and a raging river.

01:19:27You hold your breath, hoping this is all a dream.

01:19:30But then you land back on the ground and continue running without breaking a sweat.

01:19:35Risking a glance behind you, you see a group of high-tech drones chasing right after you.

01:19:40But in front of you, there's a bright light.

01:19:43And as soon as you run past it, everything turns black.

01:19:47You catch yourself sitting in a dark room with nothing around you,

01:19:50trying to guess a tough riddle that's almost impossible to understand.

01:19:55You only have seconds to guess, or something bad will happen to you.

01:19:59Only 5 seconds left to make that guess.

01:20:02You blurt out the first thing that comes to your mind,

01:20:04but your tongue slips and you say something completely wrong.

01:20:07The look on your face is that of fear.

01:20:10Everything turns black.

01:20:12You're climbing up a large ladder, but you're not in control.

01:20:16Below you are rows and rows of flat tiles.

01:20:19You finally scale to the top and wait for yourself to move, but you can't.

01:20:23No matter how hard you try, it's like you're cemented to your spot.

01:20:28But in a few moments, you're able to move through some of the tiles and progress.

01:20:33The only thing that you can't control is how far you walk.

01:20:36You land facing a giant snake longer than two buses head to tail.

01:20:41Its hissing is terrifying, and its fangs are dripping with venom.

01:20:45Luckily, you move past it without any conflict.

01:20:49But what's this?

01:20:50You land facing another snake, and this one is even bigger than the previous one.

01:20:55It opens its large, gaping mouth and unleashes a thunderous roar.

01:21:00Its red scales reflect your terrified face back at you.

01:21:04The snake gulps you down, and you slide down the belly of the beast.

01:21:08And through the dark tunnel, you suddenly end up back to where you started.

01:21:13It's impossible to move, and you have to go through the snakes and ladders.

01:21:18You're cruising in one of those fancy old sports cars.

01:21:21It's a lovely day in London.

01:21:23You pass by Trafalgar Square before taking the train at King's Cross station.

01:21:28But suddenly, you're not so hot anymore.

01:21:31As soon as you land on Mayfair, you look at your bank account, and it doesn't make any sense.

01:21:36All your finances are now down the drain.

01:21:39You have so much money to pay that it's impossible to cough up the rent.

01:21:43You're panicking.

01:21:44You have no choice but to mortgage your lands, and if that's not enough,

01:21:49you have to sell some of your houses and hotels to finance the rent.

01:21:53All that hard work gone in a matter of seconds.

01:21:57What about a game of patience and years of experience?

01:22:00You're standing in the middle of an open green field.

01:22:03You're glued to your spot, and you can't move.

01:22:06The people around you are also glued to their spots.

01:22:09Suddenly, somebody moves two spots in front of them,

01:22:12and then you realize that everyone around you has a specific move.

01:22:17Some move diagonally, others forward or sideways.

01:22:21Some can move in an L shape.

01:22:23As everyone moves, you realize you're the only one who can move sideways, front, and even backwards.

01:22:29And what's cool is that you have unlimited moves.

01:22:33But there's threats all over, hidden, disguised as innocent placements.

01:22:38And before you know it, you're one of the few still standing.

01:22:42Everyone else is gone.

01:22:44The sun is set, and the field is more open than before.

01:22:47You're now one of the main components to victory.

01:22:50As you continue, there are fewer and fewer people around.

01:22:54But out of nowhere, you're placed in a position poised for victory.

01:22:58And it's checkmate.

01:23:00You're anxious and breathing heavily.

01:23:02There was a crime committed in the library.

01:23:05Or maybe not, who knows?

01:23:07But you're one of the detectives at the scene trying to figure out what happened.

01:23:12All you know is that it happened inside the mansion,

01:23:15and you need to uncover who committed the crime, with what tool, and where the perpetrator did it.

01:23:21The night is young, but the clues are scattered all over, and there's no time to waste.

01:23:26There are other detectives trying to solve the case, but you need to be quicker.

01:23:31You investigate every corner and alley to try to come up with a conclusion.

01:23:36Looking under every lamp, between the curtains, every crack on the wall.

01:23:40But nothing.

01:23:41Zilch.

01:23:42You make your way around every room, but something is quite intriguing in the dining room.

01:23:48You already looked there, but didn't pay attention to the details.

01:23:51And you may have found the first clue to solving the mystery.

01:23:56After extra searching, you can determine that you've found the tool used in the crime.

01:24:01And in no time, you've found out where the culprit did it.

01:24:05You lay down a press conference as soon as you're confident of your conclusion.

01:24:09Everyone is waiting to see what you have.

01:24:11And you blow them away with your analysis.

01:24:14The offender was in the room the whole time.

01:24:17You close the case and get that promotion you've always wanted.

01:24:21But there are more cases to be solved which are equally challenging.

01:24:26Imagine waking up and not knowing how to speak.

01:24:29You begin your day by brushing your teeth and getting dressed.

01:24:32But as soon as you want to exit your apartment, you can't seem to move.

01:24:36Like an invisible barrier is blocking your way.

01:24:39You look at your hand and see seven random numbers jumbled up.

01:24:43A message appears that you need to make a word in order to get out.

01:24:48So you try to come up with the cleverest word you can think of.

01:24:51But of course, no cheating.

01:24:53You can forget about the dictionary.

01:24:55After punching in the word, you're able to gain access outside and continue your day.

01:25:00But you're not able to enter your car.

01:25:02Another invisible barrier is blocking you.

01:25:06This time, you look at your hand and see another random set of seven letters.

01:25:10And you need to come up with another word.

01:25:12It's getting more difficult to figure it out.

01:25:15Eventually, you end up laying a mediocre word, but it gets the job done.

01:25:20By the time your day is over, you'd be a super wordsmith.

01:25:24You wake up in a dark, damp room.

01:25:27It's chilly with moss scattered across the cobbled floor.

01:25:30As you get up, you realize you're wearing medieval armor.

01:25:34You're a magical wizard with an awesome wizard hat.

01:25:38You find a torch in the distance to illuminate the room.

01:25:41And then you realize you're in a dungeon.

01:25:44There's fog in which you can't see beyond a couple of feet.

01:25:48You venture on until you hear a voice from above speaking to you.

01:25:52The game has begun.

01:25:54You will need to get out of this dungeon, avoiding all obstacles in your path.

01:25:58You are gifted with many spells to help you.

01:26:02But be warned, your magic is limited and your foes are many.

01:26:07Well, that was creepy.

01:26:09You look around and there's no one else around you.

01:26:11You have your wizard staff and you go deep into the dungeon.

01:26:15Suddenly, you cross a one-eyed creature with slime oozing down its head.

01:26:20Eight tentacles and a mean growl.

01:26:22You need to figure out how you're going to get past the creature.

01:26:26Out of nowhere, you see your spells in front of you.

01:26:29And through a decent selection, you know what the creature's weakness is.

01:26:33You cast a lightning spell that irritates the creature.

01:26:36It ducks into the shadows and disappears.

01:26:39You continue your journey deep into the dark dungeon

01:26:42and cross a path of lava floor and spikes.

01:26:46But it's all good, because you have a magical shield

01:26:49to protect you from all the dangers in your surroundings.

01:26:52After defeating countless creatures, you see the light at the end of the tunnel

01:26:57and make it out of the dungeon.

01:26:59You find yourself in an enchanted forest with lush green trees and a mystical river.

01:27:05Fluttering around you are little fairies.

01:27:07They're pretty friendly too.

01:27:09But when you make your way deep into the forest, everything begins to change.

01:27:14The trees are barren and the ground seems scorched.

01:27:17That could only mean one thing.

01:27:19The dragon is nearby.

01:27:22But that's okay.

01:27:23You've leveled up pretty good to face it.

01:27:25You reach the mouth of a large cave where the dragon sleeps.

01:27:29But before you know it, the dragon wakes up and sets off into the air,

01:27:34breathing fire on the trees and land.

01:27:37You conjure some allies to help you.

01:27:39And with so many magic spells, you finally defeat the dragon.

01:27:44The Ocean is Turning Red Hot

01:27:49You try to get closer for a better look,

01:27:51but you start feeling the air getting hotter and hotter, like reaching into an oven.

01:27:56And the sand is so hot that your rubber slippers start melting.

01:28:00The oceans somehow turned into steamy hot, gooey lava.

01:28:04You start running inland and see a frenzy of people running wild.

01:28:09See, in reality, lava is made of molten rocks from below the Earth's surface.

01:28:15Deep inside our planet, like the distance between New York and Philadelphia deep,

01:28:20the underground heat from the core melts rocks the same way the sun melts ice cream.

01:28:26When these rocks melt, their temperatures can reach around 2200 degrees Fahrenheit.

01:28:32But don't worry.

01:28:33That only happens really deep under the ground and only in some specific areas.

01:28:38Mostly around the Atlantic Ocean.

01:28:40And it only pops out of the ground when there's so much pressure

01:28:44that it flows up to the surface as a gooey orange super hot liquid called lava

01:28:49that usually erupts through a volcano's neck.

01:28:52But somehow, the entire ocean is made of lava now.

01:28:57And although from a really far away distance,

01:28:59it looks pretty cool to look at, it's really dangerous.

01:29:03First of all, say goodbye to the beautiful blue waves and the ocean currents.

01:29:08Unlike water, lava is thicker, closer to creamy peanut butter in texture,

01:29:13so the wind can't move it around like it used to.

01:29:16But that also means that nothing can sink or swim in it.

01:29:21So even if some ocean creatures could withstand the super high temperatures of lava,

01:29:26they won't be able to live inside of it.

01:29:28They'll either be submerged or float on the surface instead.

01:29:32Depending on their density.

01:29:35So all our marine friends and other creatures that used to call the ocean home

01:29:40will need to find another body of water to live in if they want to survive.

01:29:44Actually, the only animals on this planet that could possibly survive the heat of lava

01:29:49would be the tardigrades.

01:29:51These cute microscopic creatures can survive in any extreme environment on this planet.

01:29:56From frozen icy glaciers to hot and fiery volcanoes.

01:30:01They can even survive in outer space under the cosmic rays.

01:30:06You run away from the beach along with everyone else nearby.

01:30:09The atmosphere is getting thicker and it's not easy to see around you.

01:30:14You think to yourself, I should have stayed home.

01:30:17But home isn't exactly safe either.

01:30:20The heat radiating from all the lava alone would be intolerable for miles.

01:30:25So no more houses by the sea and beach resorts.

01:30:29You're going to want to make sure you live as far away from the ocean as possible.

01:30:34Most of the coastal cities would become instantly uninhabitable.

01:30:38Especially areas touching the ocean with more than one side.

01:30:42Places like Florida, California and Central America would become mostly unbearable to live in.

01:30:49And that's not to mention island life.

01:30:51Most islands would be so hot that no animal or plant could survive.

01:30:5797% of the planet was made up of ocean water and it now all turned to lava.

01:31:03No place on earth can hold snow anymore as the planet would look like a glowing orange lava ball.

01:31:09Temperatures would rise so much that the furthest place from the shores

01:31:13and even the highest peaks will still feel like the hottest day in a desert.

01:31:18As you keep running away from the ocean, you realize that maybe you're dreaming.

01:31:22But you look at your skin and see so much redness.

01:31:26Even if you run for miles, the heat will still catch up to you.

01:31:30All the offshore oil rigs and ships in the middle of the oceans will face plenty of problems too.

01:31:37Their metallic composition would simply glow red and melt instantly when in contact with hot lava.

01:31:44And even if it doesn't melt, you better hope nobody happens to be on it.

01:31:48But in any event like that, they would have evacuated everyone.

01:31:52Meanwhile, at the north and south poles where the planet is at its coldest,

01:31:57all the ice that was covering the ocean is instantly melting in contact with the lava.

01:32:03It would then cool down and solidify into rocky black landmasses

01:32:07called igneous rocks that are often glassy in texture.

01:32:11The moment the hot lava cools down, huge clouds of acidic steam and gases

01:32:16get released into the air, covering the sky.

01:32:19Scientists call those lays, which is a combination of the words lava and haze.

01:32:26Kind of like when you exit the shower and all the heat comes in contact with the cold outside air,

01:32:31creating a haze.

01:32:33Except this one would cover the whole north and south poles, and it would be super toxic.

01:32:38It sometimes even contains tiny glass particles that are extremely hazardous.

01:32:44And this laze can travel around the world with strong enough winds to cover it.

01:32:50And cover almost the entire northern hemisphere.

01:32:53It could also cover the southern part of New Zealand, Argentina, South Africa, and Australia.

01:32:59Flying an airplane through this gas wouldn't be the best idea.

01:33:04The heat alone emitted from the lava would be enough to cause major damage to the exterior

01:33:09and affect the airplane's hardware.

01:33:13It's a good thing you found your trusty oxygen container.

01:33:16The air is barely breathable at this point.

01:33:19You make your way to your car and drive away as fast as you can.

01:33:23But even your car's taken some damage.

01:33:25You drive out to the countryside, where the atmosphere hasn't been affected by the lava yet.

01:33:30But even all the way out here, the temperature is changing.

01:33:35The river you used to see on your weekly hikes is drying up.

01:33:39The plants around you are losing their green lush.

01:33:42The animals around have migrated to a different place.

01:33:46Rivers flowing into the ocean would simply create mounds of glassy igneous rocks upon contact,

01:33:52permanently creating natural dams.

01:33:56The rest of the water inland, like in ponds and lakes, would eventually evaporate over time.

01:34:02With the rise in temperatures and no rainfall,

01:34:04it would be the end of water on the planet as we know it.

01:34:08The huge mass of ocean water plays a major role in creating clouds and rainfall.

01:34:14Without water in the atmosphere, the sun's heat would add to the lavas.

01:34:19The world would be a huge barren wasteland.

01:34:22The nights would be hot and the days even hotter.

01:34:28Hop on the Bright Side of life together with our brand new tees, hoodies and more.

01:34:32Click the link to pick your choice.

01:34:34Still, lava cools down eventually in contact with the cool air.

01:34:39So soon enough, the surface would start forming a thin layer of black crust

01:34:44that would gradually thicken over the years.

01:34:46The thicker the lava, the longer it takes to completely cool down on the inside.

01:34:52It would still be super hot though,

01:34:54but at least if you touch it, you won't be directly touching the burning lava.

01:34:59That's actually how many islands were formed.

01:35:02Like the Hawaiian Islands, for example.

01:35:04They're fully formed by lava erupting from below the ocean

01:35:08that dried over hundreds of thousands of years.

01:35:11It accumulated layers over layers of solidified lava from below the ocean

01:35:16until it rose above the surface forming islands and even mountains.

01:35:21As we speak, a new landmass in Hawaii is being formed by an active volcano.

01:35:27Scientists expect it to be a new fully formed island in about 10,000 years.

01:35:33So now, the view that used to be the blue ocean

01:35:36turned into steamy glowing orange slime

01:35:39that will in turn quickly transform into a solid black wasteland.

01:35:44But don't think you can easily walk over that ocean.

01:35:47It could take hundreds of years for it to fully cool down and turn into solid rock.

01:35:52Until then, walking on that dried lava crust

01:35:55would be similar to walking on a frozen lake.

01:35:58Except that in this case,

01:36:00one misstep would cause you to fall into boiling hot lava

01:36:04instead of ice cold water.

01:36:07Some regions would even take thousands of years to fully solidify.

01:36:11The Mariana Trench, the deepest region of the ocean,

01:36:14is about a whopping 43,000 feet deep.

01:36:17It would actually take at least 5,000 years

01:36:20for that much lava to completely cool down.

01:36:23There are many planets out there that are so-called lava planets.

01:36:27A recently discovered planet, K2-141b,

01:36:31has magma oceans, supersonic winds up to 3,000 miles per hour,

01:36:36and even rocky rains.

01:36:39That's right, the planet is so hot that it vaporizes rocks and rains them back down.

01:36:45Keep in mind that this planet is much closer to the sun than our planet is.

01:36:51Maybe their oceans once turned into lava overnight.

01:36:58Wow, you're zipping through space in a large ship

01:37:00as big as three New York City central parks.

01:37:03There's a lot of commotion going on.

01:37:06No, it's not some alien invading the spaceship.

01:37:08It's a very important day.

01:37:10The date is January 22, 2700.

01:37:14You've just been born outside of the Earth's atmosphere.

01:37:18Happy birthday!

01:37:19There's a medical team attending to everything.

01:37:22Futuristic gadgets help out with every aspect.

01:37:25And the view from the giant spherical glass ship

01:37:28is nothing but the incredible vastness of space.

01:37:31You can't even see Earth anymore.

01:37:33The spaceship is flying to a new destination millions of miles away.

01:37:37ETA on reaching that new host planet?

01:37:40Decades.

01:37:41Fast forward a bit.

01:37:42You're 25 years old, and this spaceship's the only home you've ever known.

01:37:47So far.

01:37:48You've learned all the ins and outs of the ship.

01:37:51You start your day in your dorm, which has all the essentials.

01:37:54A small compact bathroom, a mini kitchen, a bunk bed,

01:37:58and a magnificent view of the stars and planet outside the ship's reinforced glass.

01:38:03And you never need to worry about space radiation.

01:38:07The ship has an everlasting magnetic shield that reflects space radiation

01:38:11so it doesn't seep its way onto the ship.

01:38:14Otherwise, there'd be big problems.

01:38:16The ship was designed to have artificial gravity.

01:38:19Astronauts normally lose 1-2% of their bone density every month they're up in space,

01:38:24since they're just floating around all the time.

01:38:27But now, I mean in the future, in deep space travel, they're able to solve this problem.

01:38:33You make your way out of your dorm,

01:38:35and see a wave of fellow crew members making their way to work.

01:38:38They're all gliding through on their advanced mini hoverboards,

01:38:42and everyone's wearing different colors, a space age uniform.

01:38:46Yours is blue.

01:38:47So you hop on your board and join the blue wave.

01:38:50You get to the underpass of the space transport and begin your work.

01:38:54As an engineer on board, your job is super important.

01:38:58Maintaining the ship and keeping it running.

01:39:01But something's wrong.

01:39:02Numbers are flashing all over the panels, and the dreaded red light won't stop blinking.

01:39:07You alert your co-workers, but they don't know what's happening either.

01:39:11Quick, you keep checking the logs and all the complicated equations, but nothing adds up.

01:39:16Panic starts to spread throughout the ship.

01:39:19The hair on your arms is standing on end.

01:39:21You try to click on as many buttons and switches as you can.

01:39:25The buzzing keeps getting louder and louder.

01:39:27The light is flashing brighter.

01:39:29Some of your colleagues make a break for it, and you're all alone in the red room.

01:39:34Suddenly, finally, your supervisor rushes down to help.

01:39:38After a while, the two of you figure it out.

01:39:41That was close.

01:39:42You still have a lot to learn about managing the ship.

01:39:46Since your early years, you were assigned to work as an engineer.

01:39:49You were great at physics, chemistry, math, all those science-y things.

01:39:54It's just another day in the office.

01:39:56But on this ship, you may make captain one day.

01:40:00After work, you get a call from your friends wanting to hang out.

01:40:03And when I say call, I mean a phone-less device that lets you communicate with anyone

01:40:08while seeing all their info through a hologram projection that only you can see.

01:40:13You can also use it to listen to old tunes from Earth.

01:40:16Pop music has now become classical music.

01:40:19And movies are now 3D projections of your own imagination.

01:40:23You make your way out of the underpass and go up to the space plaza.

01:40:28That's where everyone hangs out when they have time off.

01:40:31Some cafes, restaurants, a barbershop, even an ice cream parlor.

01:40:35You've never hung out anywhere else.

01:40:38The space transport is essentially a small city which has all the important things society needs.

01:40:44That includes a biosphere full of animals and plants from different climates on Earth.

01:40:49Many tropical forests, many deserts, many rainforests, you name it.

01:40:54The biologists on board make sure to keep it all healthy so you feel like you're at home.

01:41:00Not that you've ever set foot on Earth.

01:41:02You enter the wild savannah and see some gazelles galloping around.

01:41:07A few wildebeests seem to be rummaging around, and a small pack of lions are on the prowl.

01:41:12In the jungle, you feel the humidity and the thick leaves and bushes all around.

01:41:17Some mountain gorillas are playing, and there are little tree frogs here and there.

01:41:22And lurking in the trees, making its way down for a sip of water, is a jaguar.

01:41:28Over in the dry desert, you see some roaming camels,

01:41:32a little rattlesnake slithering its way out of the heat,

01:41:35and some little scorpions crawling around in the sand.

01:41:38You've learned a whole lot of biology these last 25 years.

01:41:42You know all about Earth, but you've never been there. Weird.

01:41:46After the tour of nature's habitats, you hear an announcement on the PA. It's the captain.

01:41:52The new planet is hours away, earlier than anticipated.

01:41:55Everyone, assume positions for landing.

01:41:58Everyone on the ship rushes to their dormitories,

01:42:01except the key crew members needed to run the ship.

01:42:04You strap into your bunk bed that turns you into a seat with fancy interstellar seatbelts.

01:42:09You look out your window and see a blue dot in the distance.

01:42:13It gets bigger and bigger, and it looks a whole lot like Earth, from far away at least.

01:42:18That didn't take all that long, only 25 years.

01:42:22Wonder what's going under the hood of that spaceship.

01:42:25You look back at your life in space, knowing this first part of it is coming to an end.

01:42:30It's kind of like living at the South Pole. At the bottom of the world lives a small

01:42:34community of scientists who work between winter and summer doing all kinds of research,

01:42:39from climate and geology to meteorology and astronomy.

01:42:43Their lives must be similar to living here in outer space.

01:42:47They have their own bunkers, scientific labs, and even recreational rooms for sports and music.

01:42:53The nature on the planet you're approaching is unlike anything on Earth.

01:42:57Tropical trees soaring higher than the highest skyscrapers.

01:43:01Oceans that are so wild, there are hurricanes that last for years, just roaming about.

01:43:07The pilot announces the landing. It's all good. Time to get to work.

01:43:11You unstrap yourself and head outside to see the new planet for yourself.

01:43:16Walking on land feels like, well, like arriving on a new planet.

01:43:20The humidity is thick, and the wind is warm.

01:43:23The ship landed on the tropical side of the planet,

01:43:26where studies show is the best place to begin a brand new settlement.

01:43:31It's not going to be easy. Humans usually begin new settlements next to lakes and rivers.

01:43:36Think of the Mesopotamians, the ancient Egyptians, the Aztecs. The list is endless.

01:43:42They began as small settlements until they grew to be fully functioning mega-civilizations.

01:43:48By trading and exploring, they were able to advance their technology,

01:43:52learn new languages, and discover awesome cooking recipes.

01:43:56Hey, I could go for some pasta and sushi right about now!

01:43:59According to scientists, being born in space could alter the way humans look.

01:44:04Human heads could be bigger within thousands of generations. Who knows?

01:44:08There's no way to simulate it on Earth. We can even have different new skin colors,

01:44:13since we would need more melanin, that pigment stuff that protects us from sun radiation.

01:44:18Being closer to the sun or any hot burning mass of fire

01:44:22might mean we'd produce more or different kinds of melanin to protect us.

01:44:26We might turn dark brown, purple, gray, or even green.

01:44:30We'd have to wait a couple million years to find out.

01:44:33And with no gravity, humans would have to get used to having a lower bone density,

01:44:38kind of like birds have. That means we'd probably be weaker than our old Earth human cells

01:44:44and have some slightly odd physical things going on.

01:44:47Gravity is essential for our balance, and mobility is one of the key factors for human survival.

01:44:52So, without gravity, we'd most likely have exoskeleton suits for walking and running.

01:44:58Or taking out the trash.

01:45:00Now, nothing like this is gonna happen for a very long time.

01:45:03They're still brainstorming how to bring someone into this world. Or out of this world.

01:45:08Technically speaking, outer space is considered to be 62 miles above sea level

01:45:13from any continent on the world. Beyond that, endless possibilities.

01:45:23Alright, you get up after a long party with your friends, the sun's already high up in the sky,

01:45:29you take a look at the clock. Oh well, it's noon, the store's already closed. Or at least,

01:45:35that's a little story you like to tell yourself when you don't feel like going out for groceries.

01:45:41Well, time for a late, late breakfast. You open the fridge. Oh no, what's that weird smell?

01:45:48Is that cheese in a plastic bag? It's just about the only thing left in your fridge,

01:45:53and the store is almost 4 blocks away. So, nothing else to do but take a chance.

01:46:00Mold is often a sign your food is spoiled, except for when it comes to cheese.

01:46:05If possible, just remove the moldy parts so you can eat the rest. If by accident you ended up

01:46:11eating some of that mold, don't worry. Most cheese types already contain some kind of mold.

01:46:17It's an important part of the cheese-making process. Now, there are a few exceptions,

01:46:23such as dark black-gray mold. If you see that stuff on soft cheeses, you're gonna have to

01:46:29chuck it out and hit the store. Or maybe, just maybe, you have a Sardinian roommate

01:46:35whose grandma just sent him his island specialty – rotten cheese, aka maggot cheese.

01:46:44The Sardinian cheesemakers leave their cheese to go really, really bad. And voila! You've got

01:46:50yourself a famous delicacy with a tongue-burning taste. It's actually illegal in some countries.

01:46:57So, before going for that suspicious cheese chunk in your fridge,

01:47:01check if anything's moving around inside.

01:47:05If you're preparing an omelet and don't have enough ingredients to spice it up with,

01:47:10take eggshells, if they're organic, boil them, and then bake them at 400°F. When they get crispy,

01:47:18grind them into a powder and toss some on your omelet.

01:47:21Eggshells are a pretty good and cheap source of calcium, so it's worth a shot!

01:47:28If things get hairy, grab your tent, blanket, and lamp, and run to the woods. At least there,

01:47:34you'll have an endless supply of tree bark, so you won't have to worry about going hungry.

01:47:40Yep, our ancestors were eating bark ever since the beginning of time.

01:47:45Cinnamon bark's among the most popular.

01:47:49Wouldn't it be great if you didn't have to do the dishes after every meal?

01:47:53Yes, I'm talking about plates and cutlery you could eat right after using them. It's not a

01:47:59new concept. There are edible plates like tortilla shells, ice cream cones, and one

01:48:05Indian company has been making edible cutlery from rice, wheat flour, and millet for over 10 years.

01:48:11Now if they could just invent an edible cake tin…

01:48:17Remember those good old days when you were younger and no one gave you strange looks

01:48:22for eating chalk? That happened to my friend, yeah! Well, in its purest form,

01:48:27chalk is just calcium carbonate. You won't get any special health benefits from eating it,

01:48:33but it's a non-toxic and natural substance that won't do any harm to your body.

01:48:39People who eat it usually have pica, a condition that makes people eat non-nutritional items.

01:48:46Paper is also one of the things people with this condition crave.

01:48:51One of the reasons for that could be that paper is fibrous,

01:48:54and they are possibly experiencing a lack of fiber. Paper is not nutritious at all,

01:49:00plus it's chemically treated, so better stay away!

01:49:06It's even not that unusual to eat clay. In some parts of the world, people use it to deal with a

01:49:11zinc deficiency. Of course, it has to be a special clay that's purified and suitable for consumption.

01:49:18Dirt, oooh! Back to those good old days, spending time in the garden,

01:49:25making pretend cakes out of mud. Not that dirt should be on your everyday menu,

01:49:30but if you can find yourself a nutrition expert, you might just find that eating a little bit of

01:49:36the right dirt isn't all that bad. Some clays and muds have tons of minerals in them,

01:49:42if they're made specially with no chemicals or anything.

01:49:45Dandelions are one of the healthiest edible things you can find. You got vitamins, iron,

01:49:51antioxidants, yep, highly nutritious, and better yet, you can find them literally everywhere!

01:50:00Cactus definitely looks like a plant you should avoid, but if you clean it and prepare it

01:50:05properly, you can add it to desserts, salads, soups, breads, drinks, you name it! It tastes like,

01:50:13it tastes like, well, kind of gooey to be honest. Remember to double-check you got all the spiky

01:50:19bits off! Have you ever taken a walk, looked up at the sky, noticed some bird's nests and thought,

01:50:27ooh, that could be my dinner for tonight? Not quite? Yeah, but edible nests are a hit in several

01:50:34countries. They're nutritious, have a unique taste, and yes, are made out of the saliva of a

01:50:41very specific kind of bird. They're extremely dangerous to harvest and hard to prepare,

01:50:47so if you're into that sort of thing, don't forget to hit up the ATM beforehand. It can sell up to

01:50:53$4,000 a pound! One more expensive item, get ready for consumption – gold!

01:51:02Not that you can eat your mom's necklace if you're in the mood for a shiny afternoon snack,

01:51:07but gold flakes or leaves are often used to decorate food, especially when it comes to

01:51:13desserts. Gold is actually inert, so it doesn't cause any chemical reaction in your body and can

01:51:19pass straight through your digestive system without being absorbed. I was gonna make a

01:51:25crack here about having a gold rush, but I won't. Some cultures used to boil, tenderize, and chew

01:51:34leather when they were out of food. Well, even if you wanted to try it, you can't.

01:51:39Today's leather is chemically treated, so it's pretty much a no-go.

01:51:45What would you do if you came across a tarantula? If it's in Cambodia, at a tarantula stall,

01:51:51you eat it! It's a classic Cambodian deep-fried snack. They say the taste of tarantula is similar

01:51:58to crab, so let me know if it's true! Tarantulas certainly have more meat than

01:52:06grasshoppers, who also ended up on the menu in Asia and parts of the Americas.

01:52:11Both them and crickets are rich in protein and extremely edible. All these little guys need to

01:52:17be expertly raised and prepared, you just can't walk around picking up random insects and eating

01:52:23them. By the way, they say grasshoppers taste like sardines. Curious?

01:52:30Just a regular afternoon, you're sitting on the couch in front of the TV,

01:52:34wondering which snack perfectly fits into your bin session. Okay, some chocolate chip cookies

01:52:41could do the trick, but how about wasp crackers? Yup, biscuits filled with wasps. Next big thing?

01:52:49These rice cracker cookie things with added wasps come from Japan. The wasps are bred

01:52:55specially just for these cookies. They don't just go around town with a net!

01:53:02Another unusual thing from Japan is fugu blowfish. You need a lot of professional

01:53:09training to prepare this thing properly since it's full of toxic poison. A good serving could

01:53:15cost you up to 120 bucks. Once the licensed chef separates the poisonous parts, they get dumped

01:53:22into a metal container that gets locked with a padlock. It then gets taken to a certified fish

01:53:28market to be burned. It's too poisonous to throw in the regular trash. Imagine your job is collecting

01:53:36ant eggs. And you get paid per pound. How long would it take to gather up enough?

01:53:42Well, if you move to Laos, you might find out. They have one of the most unusual soups around,

01:53:49white ant egg soup. The taste kinda reminds people of shrimp, so it could be worth trying.

01:53:56Or you could just have shrimp soup. Just saying!

01:54:01Century eggs are something you can find in China. And no, sorry people, they're not thousands,

01:54:06hundreds, or even tens of years old. It usually takes just a couple of months to prepare them,

01:54:12but how they do it is pretty interesting. They're immersed in clay or mud. This technique is

01:54:19something that people in China have been doing for centuries. It preserves all the great benefits of

01:54:24eggs. So what happens inside the egg? Basically, ammonia and sulfur build up in the yolk,

01:54:32as well as some strange snowflake-like patterns and amber color on the outside of the egg.

01:54:38Apparently, it has a pretty strong ammonia smell. Oh, the beauty of rotten smelling foods!

01:54:47Ah, it's a lovely day for a boat ride in the swamp. If not for these mosquitoes,

01:54:52then today would be perfect. But for some reason, the mosquitoes keep getting bigger

01:54:58the further you go into the swamp. They started out as tiny, almost invisible insects, and can

01:55:03now be the size of your thumb. You can hear their buzzing as they whiz past you. You go deeper to

01:55:09investigate why they're so big. Eventually, you see a large cluster of mosquitoes the size of your hand

01:55:16buzzing around. They notice you and start flying toward you. You grab a branch and start swatting

01:55:22them away. You run back to your boat and try to escape, but they follow you and some manage to

01:55:28land on you. You swat them away, but more mosquitoes pop out of nowhere the size of a basketball.

01:55:35You start your boat and speed your way back to the mainland. As you arrive, you see everyone

01:55:40running away in a frenzy, panicking because of the giant mosquitoes. Some of them are as big as a

01:55:46large dog. People are ducking under picnic tables, while some are running back to their cars and

01:55:52driving away. You get off the boat and run toward the closest grocery store along with dozens of

01:55:57people. The employees lock up the gates, but the large glass panels show the mosquitoes multiplying.

01:56:04They're getting bigger and bigger until you can see one as big as a car zipping by. It's so strong

01:56:10that it landed on an empty car and crushed it. Everyone inside is ducking away out of fear.

01:56:16You try to calm everyone down and not make any noise. The mosquitoes are landing on the glass

01:56:21panel, blocking out the natural light. It's getting dark inside. Someone turns up the volume on the

01:56:27TV to the breaking news. Mosquitoes are flying rampant all across the continent, destroying

01:56:34natural resources and infiltrating cities. People are advised to stay indoors until further notice.

01:56:40The mosquitoes notice that there are people in the store, so they try to get in by force.

01:56:45A car-sized mosquito flies around in the sky, unaware of what's happening below. Everyone

01:56:51hears some noise coming from the back room. The employees realize they didn't lock the doors.

01:56:57A large mosquito enters and knocks down everything. Everyone runs around in a panic,

01:57:03while throwing random stuff at it. Some people grab a fire extinguisher and spray it until it

01:57:08flies to the back room. Some employees lock the door and barricade it so that nothing can enter.

01:57:14Everyone waits nervously. The TV broadcasts some live coverage of how giant mosquitoes are flying

01:57:20everywhere. A helicopter is forced to land because the mosquitoes are flying around wildly in the

01:57:25skies. Everyone shudders when they hear the sound of more mosquitoes buzzing around near the back

01:57:31door. Hours pass, and more mosquitoes keep coming endlessly. There are no people outside, and much

01:57:39of the urban and landscape design in the park is destroyed or overrun by giant insects. Some people

01:57:45eat whatever is available, while some are sleeping. A piece of breaking news interrupts the live

01:57:51coverage and shows that there will be armored buses ready to pick up people near the picnic

01:57:55site. However, the buses won't drive to hot spots since it'll be too dangerous. The only way to get

01:58:02on them is by being on the highway in two hours. Everyone tries to call their loved ones, but the

01:58:08cell towers have been knocked down and no one can call anyone. The mosquito that broke in a while

01:58:13ago destroyed the only landline that was present. People are arguing about whether they should stay

01:58:18or go. More insects cover the only clear patches of the sky until the sun disappears. The people

01:58:26split into two parties, those who are leaving to catch the bus and those who want to stay. The

01:58:31employees know a back way that can quickly lead to the highway. The only problem is that it'll take

01:58:36around 20 minutes on foot and there are no cars to use. The way is tricky. First, they would need to

01:58:43escape through the main entrance and head through the bushy forest behind the dumpsters. Over there,

01:58:49they can enter a building, possibly through the sewers, which will lead to the lake next to the

01:58:53highway. The first party decides to leave. They prepare supplies for the breakout. Every second,

01:59:00more mosquitoes arrive, covering the sky. They gear up with anything they can find to protect

01:59:05themselves. Mosquitoes are attracted to the carbon dioxide that people breathe out and they know that

01:59:11there's a source coming from the grocery store. Once everyone is ready, they get some makeshift

01:59:16torches and light them up. They add some barbecue fuel to keep the fire going. You're part of the

01:59:22party that is planning to escape. The doors open and everyone makes a break for it behind the

01:59:27dumpster. Many mosquitoes try to attack you, but the smoke from the fire repels them. Every second,

01:59:33more mosquitoes are filling the sky and the environment. Many people end up running back

01:59:38into the store since they couldn't make it past the dumpster to the other building.

01:59:43Eventually, the rest of the people, including yourself, run toward the building, but it's locked

01:59:48and no one can break down the door. Plan B is to break the glass from a window and crawl inside.

01:59:54You grab a rock and smash the closest window. The only problem is that the mosquitoes can follow

02:00:00you inside. So without any options left, you pull through and run to the basement of the building to

02:00:06find the entrance to the sewer. Success! You've found it and everyone descends to the bottom.

02:00:12No mosquitoes in sight, just rats. You're walking knee high in sewer water with it flowing past you,

02:00:19but it's only a few minutes until you reach the river. Another problem is that the sewer isn't

02:00:25going to the lake, but somewhere deep into the sewer channels. You follow it until you see what

02:00:30looks like an outlet. You make it out and are near a water hole where all the discarded sewage

02:00:35leads next to the swamp. The only problem is that you're not next to the highway anymore and time

02:00:41is running out. More mosquitoes are swarming the air, but they don't bother buzzing next to you.

02:00:46You notice some cat-sized creatures floating on the water. These are baby mosquitoes, or the larva,

02:00:54and they're coming your way. You and everyone else swim for your lives to the shore.

02:00:59The giant alpha mosquito soars into the air and swoops down to try and grab someone, but it misses.

02:01:06Everyone makes it to the thick swampy area where no giant mosquitoes can enter.

02:01:11Everyone covers themselves with branches to protect themselves. 15 minutes until the armored bus

02:01:16arrives. Since the mosquitoes can't enter, this will be the best place to hide until then. Darkness

02:01:22falls and still no bus. It's been three hours and nothing! The mosquitoes are still buzzing around

02:01:29and everyone is getting uncomfortable under the thick bushes. After a while, everyone hears a

02:01:34roaring engine and sees lights flashing on the highway. Everyone gets up and runs to the bus,

02:01:40but you stop them to not draw the mosquitoes' attention. You volunteer to sneak out and stop

02:01:45the bus, and then everyone else can follow without drawing too much attention. You move a couple of

02:01:51branches, step over some tree bark, and crawl to the highway. You try to hold your breath so that

02:01:56you won't make any heavy breathing sounds. You reach the side of the road and wave your arms to

02:02:02stop the bus. It pulls over and the door opens. You signal the rest of the people to follow,

02:02:07and they follow your lead. Everyone is inside and safe. Some mosquitoes notice and start pecking on

02:02:14the bus, but the armor is sturdy. The bus drives off looking for other people along the road,

02:02:20and suddenly a Goliath lands in front of you. The bus stops and sees a mosquito the size of a

02:02:26Boeing 747. It looks straight at you. It gets ready to attack, but the bus speeds under its legs and

02:02:33drives off. The mosquito takes off and tries to catch the bus, but you enter a tunnel to the other

02:02:39side of the mountain. After a few minutes, you reach an open area with no trees or buildings.

02:02:45The bus is speeding while dodging obstacles along the way. Finally, you notice you are near the

02:02:51grocery store where you were held up. The bus opens the door for everyone inside to be taken

02:02:56to a safe zone. You hear from the aid workers that the whole world is being overrun by these giant

02:03:02creatures. As you drive along, you see a hybrid mosquito that has two heads and a scorpion's tail.

02:03:09It's as tall as a Statue of Liberty, and it's ready to attack! Whatever is causing these

02:03:15mosquitoes to grow abnormally is also making them into hybrids and mutants! And you thought it was

02:03:21going to be a good Monday! That's it for today! So hey, if you pacified your curiosity, then give

02:03:26the video a like and share it with your friends! Or if you want more, just click on these videos

02:03:31and stay on the Bright Side!

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