Brian Cox Builds a Cloud Chamber - Wonders of Life - Series 1 Episode 3 Preview - BBC

[@Worldwave]

Never knew of what a cloud chamber is before this video. It's astonishing how it actually makes the traces of cosmic rays visible to the eyes, and how such a small little thing can mean so much to our interpretation of reality. Our universe is amazing.

[@Asterra2]

Worth understanding that when a cosmic ray legitimately hits a cloud chamber, it leaves a much more vivid trail. Pretty rare but it does happen. The trails seen in this video are almost certainly entirely from Earth-bound background radiation, leaving the weaker trails typical of beta particles.

[@ChimeraImagination]

Brian Cox is awesome. Never a dull moment. Always smiling!! He rules!

[@EvanXDev]

He rules the fools.

[@omi685]

@@EvanXDev Well, you seem to be one obnoxious individual.

[@ekspatriat]

@@EvanXDev fool

[@KK_on_KK]

​@@EvanXDev boner

[@dewinmoonl]

sits on top of a beautiful mountain scenery. bury heads in a black box science.

[@bijouxbijouxbijoux]

How could you dislike a video like this... This is just wonderfull and captivating ❤️

[@Embers7]

This is really cool from a particle physics standpoint and I'm extremely impressed he was able to build a cloud chamber in the field like that, but most of the variance in humans comes from the "normal" processes of meiosis and crossover rather than de novo mutations. The average human has less than 10 de novo mutations that actually affect coding regions of DNA. Simpler, asexual organisms tend to have much higher mutation rates - mutations drive most viral evolution, for example. But for us, it's just not a major contributor.

[@5577vob3]

I think he is inferring to how we became humans in the first place.

[@conversiamo]

I wonder how a person who is constantly aware that we are just a combination of chemical elements, aware of the very limited time of our existence isn't depressed but, as it turns out, extremely happy and always smiling. Thanks for being such a cool cat, Professor Cox.

[@sublime2craig]

That just literally blew my mind! Most crazy things about science etc I can't visualize to well in my brain, so seeing something like this is just awesome 😎

[@zinger52]

That was good to see and in fact I have never seen before making it doubly rewarding, I am learning thank you for the upload. BBC

[@brothersalt5827]

I love how he’s just a boy in wonder, the way he talks about this, but really he’s a super genius 😄

[@damoysamuel7149]

nice :) It is possible to see a few cosmic rays, but at low altitude most of these tracks are probably from natural radioactivity in soil or materials. Even the ordinary glass contains traces of natural radioactive emitters like potassium 40 and thorium 232

[@3D4Ureel]

So, stars ruled our destinies after all.

[@praveenraj2640]

In the past few days, I don't know why I get those videos in my suggestions. But damn I just now understand why I studied my science classes and these videos makes sense and made me more deep into these . Literally now I'm now more concerned in watching all videos by profs about theories like these...

[@Prayukth]

This video will never age...never

[@Trackhat]

**DEAFENINGLY LOUD SCREAMING** 'y'hear that?'

[@RifaOnGaming]

Amazing

[@generalerica4123]

DIY Cox. Delightful.

[@digiconvalley]

Beautifullll.. U rock man!

[@arenotdiy]

This just in, multiple people have been hospitalized with heat stroke and alcohol poisoning, after squatting in the desert with a black sheet over their heads and a fish tank full of ethyl alcohol for multiple hours.

[@akymrinkovsky289]

Way to go Brain Cox. 🙏~ Its exactly what i needed 😉~ In fact it's even more than i had hoped for 🔮~ Abracadabra 👋~ Thank you buddy 🙇 ~

[@malcolmhardwick4258]

Bit late for the party but how cool is that !

[@mervviscious]

amazing.

[@Pwnchful]

Brilliant!

[@slehcyo8223]

I actually expected a cloud 💀

[@daveabh]

I still cant get over the fact he's almost 45!

[@jhe-p0t]

Damn. This explanation blows my mind

[@Latvianstyle]

ProfBrianCox - the wonder number one in the Eart and between stars&planets

[@Mikhail269]

Tha man always smiling ❤🙏

[@stevephillips8083]

Awesome! More!

[@rocklobster1976]

i just made myself one about a week ago. my question is i tend to see particles traveling in a specific direction (just over about 1 hour of observation) why is that? i guess that's just the direction of the source, which, would change most likely depending on the time of day (the rotation of our planet) and any deflection caused by the magnetic field of the earth or nearby electric currents but what other affectors might i be over looking?

[@julianstorey2699]

Did you look at it at different angles? Just thinking.

[@JoshuaBrierton]

Source of the particles might be a factor. The sun is spewing a lot of stuff at us constantly and it's a heck of a lot closer to us than another star.

[@rocklobster1976]

@@JoshuaBrierton god, I'm so retarded. and like..... it really couldnt be ANY BIGGER huh. (well, no, actuallly it could be way bigger, but, still big enough.) see thats why i got you, to remind me just how dumb i am thank you (i think the sun looses around is it 5 million tons of matter mostly as particles...... PER SECOND?

[@ben00000100]

@@rocklobster1976 you’re not dumb at all mate, when observing something that mechanistically may be complicated to understand, it’s easy to then think complicated when identifying the source of it without contemplating the simple bits. Goes to show how things still being discussed in the cutting edge of scientific discovery, are just happening around us all the time, makes you wonder what else there is that we have yet to discover

[@genin69]

Because cosmic rays are attracted to alcohol.. moral of the story.. drinking can possibly make you smarter and change your DNA..

[@Duhya]

genin69 That's the liquor talking.

[@piagenove6977]

genin69 really

[@greezil]

They aren't attracted to the alcohol. They're whizzing around all over the place. You can just see the trails they leave when they go through the alcohol.

[@venancioercoli]

Amazing!

[@n1msu]

If only there was a simpler way to show ionising radiation than having to source dry ice etc to make a cloud chamber! Great to see though; gives some 'context' to what my geiger counter is detecting.

[@DataWaveTaGo]

Oh My!!!

[@DataWaveTaGo]

re: I do understand what religion can do to the mind. And what the mind does with religion. Two mid-20th century Canadians looked deeply into the effects of consciousness. Northrop Frye "The Great Code" & "Anatomy of Criticism" (and many other works), and Marshall McLuhan "Laws of Media" (his last work). Their books are still in print. In their works Frye & McLuhan reveal the interplay of conscious & unconscious processes that give us our world view, as a species & individual.

[@Konigszapfen]

thats awesome!!!

[@Blackdragon5284]

Yeah, I've done that before too.

[@Blackdragon5284]

I understand, but I just wasn't sure if he was really being serious. I haven't got as much experience as you, obviously, but I do understand the human mind to a slight degree, my mother was a Psychologist working in the mental health ward. A splendid field of science I must say. I myself study Physics, the best science for many reasons in my opinion. While I don't claim to be an expert, I do understand what religion can do to the mind.

[@KumarKaneswaran-KumarKanes]

How does this have 188k views and a Bieber video has 9 zillion, our priorities need to change.

[@YoungManDub]

Who is Benny Fischal?

[@theviney]

I think I just read 81 comments of either 'Objective reason versus Brick-wall subjectivity', or the most effective troll on the internet ever.

[@Eltoca21]

It is a real shame BBC America does not pick up a lot more programming from "BBC UK". Come on BBC America! You can do so much better.

[@glenliesegang233]

Is your aquarium glass? Is there a risk of shattering?

[@23forrestgump]

my brain just exploded

[@simpsonmark]

Where is episode 1?

[@ohtheirony7723]

Question, how comes it appears as a single particle, I thought radiation is a wave?

[@DataWaveTaGo]

LOL! I missed that response from you and it seems that is due to the fact many people flagged you as a spammer. Here are a few hints for you for evolution as science.1) Proton Gradient (If you watched Brian Cox to the end you'd see that). 2) Virus particles. 3) eukaryotes.

[@shaneh1003]

Why are we not all effected by different parts of space that we’re traveling through at such tremendous speeds? It seems there should be varying concentrations of different particles and effects in the new space we’re constantly entering that would saturate through our entire solar system and galaxy.

[@nickhowatson4745]

because atoms are mostly empty space, the particles are incredibly small and dont interact very strongly.

[@NxDoyle]

That's fucking cool.

[@knobovsossidge2022]

What mechanism causes steel to make noise on cooling? Sounded more like the CO2 gas escaping as some of the dry ice sublimed on contact with the warmer steel.

[@GoldSrc_]

It's pretty much the bouncing of the metal against the solid Co2 caused by the pockets of gas what causes that sound.

[@VIKASHSINGH-hf3kt]

I think its rapid contraction of the metal......that sounded...

[@uncommonamerican]

Anyone remember sliders? Episode where scientist were popular instead of. Sports stars

[@kingthanos4964]

me neither

[@nathanw9344]

Neat

[@uncommonamerican]

And dry ice sales skyrocket

[@Dylan_aM]

hello

[@bmw325i_85]

Lol I knew you'd be here Dylan

[@bmw325i_85]

Welcome class of 9K.

[@Dylan_aM]

@@bmw325i_85 lmao

[@BertandLiv]

interesting..

[@PauloConstantino167]

Dream on.

[@Blackdragon5284]

I meant I*

[@verticalsmurf]

My bad, don't know how that happened, his comment turned up in my inbox and I just hit the reply back button. Sorry about that.

[@schinkdiesel]

What if you make one of these and place it next to the LHC ?

[@Spirit532]

If you place it *right* next to the ring when it's operational, you'll probably see a thick cloud of lines, because the LHC emits lots of fun things when working. Same can be said for, say, a piece of uranium ore(which you can buy if you're in the US), or an ionisation-based smoke detector. The latter two will have to be placed inside the chamber though, because they mostly emit alphas.

[@thekaxmax]

The detectors of the LHC are huge and sophisticated versions of exactly this.

[@DogsBAwesome]

and chocolate is slimming

[@KafshakTashtak]

Insert mind blown gif.

[@CV_CA]

Wish someone invented one that I only have to plug into the wall.

[@SlumphYT]

wheres the wonder in that?

[@jackryan740]

My little mind had a explosion

[@palang2231]

Beneficial ?? I doubt it

[@MiNDx1er]

Did I miss the religious fight? Darn! *Clicks another science video*

[@brookstream]

"put hot water bottle on top"

[@Lasv25]

Where is the vostfr ????? :P

[@andyh8548]

must of had some lucky dna from space

[@Golem29]

Beats genesis any day

[@toshy584]

Ok, now that I have all the ingredients, I dont need to climb a mountain too? I can do this in my shed right? I love Cox, seen his road show this year, was OK.

[@DataWaveTaGo]

I've left two messages for dionstrezlecki, essentially inviting him to come down to earth and explain himself.

[@DataWaveTaGo]

answer = Higgs Field! Now I've looked at an item you "Like" - 'Origins - Science: The Whole Story with Dr. Danny Faulkner' and I have to tell you these characters are quite frankly, self-indulgent, arrogant, and narcissistic in the Extreme (Marshall McLuhan explained why this is so). Give me a link to an intelligent discourse on the findings and unequivocal data/facts that back up creationism (free of God-Fawning Clowns) and I'll give it serious attention.

[@ElSombreroUnited]

Why can we only use alcohol vapor?

[@KennethJohnsonII]

Alcohol evaporates at a reasonably low temperature to form the vapor needed to see the particle interactions

[@Seabass-a]

The dry ice is used to super cool the alcohol vapor. In this state the alcohol vapor is 'super critical', it is cooled past it's normal condensation temperature. The vapor only needs a little "push" of energy to condence. The push comes from the high energy particles which crash Into the alcohol vapor and ionize it in little streaks. The ionized alcohol molecules then attract other alcohol molecules around it and condense into streak of alcohol droplets.

[@leoverran311]

sebastian ayala Thank you

[@shakeyste]

Great show think the camera focuses on his face to much with the close ups and that

[@Zodiak34]

So thats what rodney mullen has been up to

[@Blackdragon5284]

Also, basic genetics? I study genetics in college, anybody who has passed school knows about genetics, something you obviously never did. Had you any knowledge of genetics, you would understand why we created the theory of Evolution, and why it links so well to our current knowledge of all Organisms. If Evolution never existed, we would still be like the neolithic humans who walked the Earth long before Homo Sapiens. Mutations in humans and animals are also proof of evolution.

[@14159james]

'Sup. Atheist geneticist here, what exactly are we supposedly ignorant of, and how does DNA "prove" "creation" according to your particular episteme?

[@Defrock78]

he forgot to mention the dry ice ............... he said it merely consists of...........

[@pedroaltomar]

"Frozen carbon dioxide", he says. Basically solid CO2.

[@14159james]

Try searching "Preparation for Introductory Biology: DNA to Organisms" on Coursera. I think you'd really appreciate the course, it's quite brief and not at all challenging. People like me have generally spent significant amounts of time reading ancient religious texts, contemporary hermeneutics, and generally trying to understand your culture. It'd be nice if you did the same. It'll save us from wasting time on the empirically proven basics. Unless, of course, that's what you're really after.

[@14159james]

Jesus, if you're going to troll, at least try to be clever or original about it. There are actual idiots out there with real opinions that can be changed, and there's far more fun to be had engaging with opinions you find challenging than covertly scoring own goals against the uninformed but argumentative.

[@MarioRugeles]

10 people prefers gangnam style over science

[@sonpacho]

Why wouldn't they continue to cause mutations? If that happened and it's possible particles can hit/mutate DNA...we're still being hit by them, why haven't there been any more mutations?

[@SandManEXP]

It does and there are. Mutation doesn't mean like x men where someone gets claws growing out of their arms randomly. Its not nessisarly that noticeable but just thinking of negative mutations, think of all of the genetic disorders out there. It's also important to mention that this isn't the only way genes mutate. Theres errors in cell copying etc.

[@sonpacho]

@@SandManEXP I'm no expert, I've heard of genetic disorders but I've never heard of them suddenly developing. That's what I'm assuming it would be like. There're so many particles passing through us that I would assume developing genetic disorders would be common - like seasonal allergies, colds, etc.

[@SandManEXP]

@@sonpacho They can suddenly develop. Its random. Not very likely though. It would depend on what type of particle and it doesn't nessisarily mutate your genes every time it hits one. "When ionizing radiation interacts with a cell, several things can happen: The radiation could pass through the cell without damaging the DNA. The radiation could damage the cell’s DNA, but the DNA repairs itself. The radiation could prevent the DNA from replicating correctly. The radiation could damage the DNA so badly that the cell dies. This is called apoptosis. One dead cell is not a big problem. After all, millions of your cells die every day. But if too many cells die at once, the organism could also die." "as many as 5% of an astronaut's cells might be killed during such missions." "Recently reported estimates of the human genome-wide mutation rate. The human germline mutation rate is approximately 0.5×10−9 per basepair per year." ^This is the closest I got for rate of mutations.

[@sonpacho]

@@SandManEXP "Not very likely though." That's what I don't get. Just using the examples you listed and the amount of particles passing through us every second...it would seem more weird stuff would happen more frequently. The way my brain is understanding it is: we're basically walking on the bottom of the ocean without getting wet I understand he said it was only a 'theory.' So I'm not trying argue the point either way. Doesn't that also suggest if we [humans] went to a region of space with different concentration of particles we might unravel on a genetic level? The more I learn the more I'm convinced that NOTHING that actually wanted 'life' to succeed would've designed sh*t like this...lol!

[@SandManEXP]

​@@sonpacho "Doesn't that also suggest if we [humans] went to a region of space with different concentration of particles we might unravel on a genetic level?" ^ ^Yes, This is what happens to a person during a radiation leak in a nuclear power plant for example. They effectively melt as all their cells die, skin falls of etc and then their body kills itself. (Don't google images) This is also why people who are around a lot of radiation get cancer more often. Also sunbathers with skin cancer. UV radiation (from the sun or tanning beds) is the number 1 cause of skin cancer. Its a cell replication mutation. (Tumor) With the likelyhood of mutations in general its all up to chance, but the chances of a cell actually mutating after getting hit by a cosmic ray is clearly not that high. As well as this are a myriad of other things that can happen like I mentioned. I feel like we should be opperating under the assumption that nothing did design this seeing as we are talking about genetic mutations. A theory not supported by creationists. Btw "Theory" in science means "a fact as far as we know". There are no facts in science, only theorys. because it would imply you know everything. For example, gravity is a "theory".

[@andyh8548]

i wonder if thats how jesus was produced or usain bolt haha

[@thekaxmax]

Jesus was invented, possibly by a cosmic ray hitting a synapse in a Jewish elder

[@DataWaveTaGo]

LOL! You're still here. Are atoms themselves alive?

[@verticalsmurf]

Couple of problems here. First, its 'just' minus seventy degrees celicus - no worries love, I'll pop down to the shop for some milk, it's just minus seventy degrees celcius outside. No problem at all. Second, he is wasting alcohol. Naughty scientist.

[@verticalsmurf]

Explain to us how evolution is a religion

[@njrsa]

So horoscope and astrology which relies on stars and their movements to predict a persons character traits are related to this anti matter theory?

[@pablobonilla5893]

Nope

[@trickdaddy0162]

Wrong sir

[@nickhowatson4745]

the video is 100% correct.

[@dunsel5887]

Doesn't this prove that the Muon being detected on the ground is not do to relativity, but is do to that cosmic ray striking an atom lower in the atmosphere?

[@greezil]

I'm not sure what you mean. The Muons are produced higher up in the atmosphere and then some of them come hurtling toward the ground at high speeds where their effects can be measured in cloud chambers like this. The only reason they can reach the ground before decaying is due to time dilation.

[@thekaxmax]

no-one detects things using relativity.

[@Blackdragon5284]

Well, basically Evolution and Creation cannot be 100% proven, Evolution is a theory, and Creationism is a belief, in essence, also a theory. So, I have no idea why you are even arguing which is wrong, which is a lie, and all that crap. When one is either proven, or disproved, you can mouth off then, but not now. I didn't even insult Creation, so it would be nice if you wouldn't insult Evolution. Do you comprehend?

[@Blackdragon5284]

I'm the one saying it isn't religion. You want the other guy.

[@CyberhubCoNz]

That being said it is still freaking awesome that you can build a simple device that enables you to see these particle. It is just has foundational belief system underpinning science is leading him to incorrect conclusions.

[@godnesspunk7990]

you sir should read over those statement again, search online or read a book even on ACTUAL facts and then fix what you wrote. F-

[@CyberhubCoNz]

Godness Punk How are you? this is one of my favourite subjects that I have read many books on both for and against the belief system of evolution. The latest one I read is called Genetic Entropy & the Mystery of the Genome by Dr J.C Sanford great book. Dr Sanford is a highly qualified geneticist and points out many issues with the theory of evolution in relation to genetics. Are you aware that science has never demonstrated a mutation that can increase information in a genome based on that fact alone evolution should be abandoned as a science. Also the next point which is very interesting is that a majority of mutations are neutral or negative. If in the highly unlikely chance a positive mutation ever occurs the neutral or negative mutations cancel it out in a process called genetic drift. Plus there are many other observational evidence which does not fit the belief system of evolution such as soft tissue being found on dinosaur bones supposedly millions of years old.

[@FrankHarrison12]

Soft tissue? That was explained already by the scientist who found the soft tissue (who happens to be a creationist as well). Iron acted as a preservative binding to the soft tissue and allowing it to retain its form indefinitely. They even replicated the process with ostrich cells, I believe, in which the cells soaked in iron were relatively unchanged after years at room temperature. A simple google search will net you dozens of articles describing "increasing information" through mutations, but it really comes down to what you mean by that term and how honest you are in what qualifies.

[@thekaxmax]

Evolution is used every day in pharmacological labs, and they make billions of dollars doing it. It's observed in the lab and in the wild. It's used successfully in labs finding ways to get viruses to make batteries and other useful things. 'Natural selection' means keeping the good mutations and throwing away the bad ones. You make our argument for us. It exists, it's a fact, denying it can't change that.

[@mariojuwani2527]

Im not agree with you

[@verticalsmurf]

Religion involves worship. No-one worships evolution. Religion involves faith, there is no faith in evolution, just interpretation of physical evidence. Are you saying some deity put fossilised sea shells in the Himalayas just for funsies? I envy my friends who have faith. At the same time, they combine their beliefs with physical evidence. There may be a God that created all this, but it wasn't done as the religious texts say. Seven billion years, maybe, definately not seven days.

[@DataWaveTaGo]

The Creationist Strategy Call Creationism a science. Call the science of evolution a religion. BTW, if you don't care, why are you here browbeating and belittling people plus pontificating about creationism? The Christians who powered the Industrial Revolution through the power of principled ideas would find you a Vulgar Reprobate.

[@Blackdragon5284]

Well, then. Explain to me how it isn't instead of just reiterating the same baloney over and over. You're giving me a point with no evidence, and without evidence, it isn't valid. Give me evidence that evolution is not science. You can't, because it is science. It's a scientific theory shaped by facts we currently know.

[@streetabix]

Could this csuse cancer ?

[@greezil]

Yes. Pretty frequently, your DNA is hit by some sort of ionizing radiation (some of which may be cosmic rays). When your DNA fails to repair itself after such a collision, it can result in a mutation. If that mutation causes the cells to rapidly replicate out of control, you have cancer. However, any individual collision is unlikely to cause cancer, and there really is no way to avoid exposure to some radiation since it is literally everywhere.

[@streetabix]

Joel Frankford. cheers

[@RahilSethi]

Joel Frankford No wonder I have heard that star light causes cancer :-D

[@DogsBAwesome]

Your ignoring of reality is rather sad. Evolution with a decent, modern, full education is an obvious truth, just look at the physiological similarities of various mammals, and that's before you bring out the big gun of species shared DNA

[@lancesheldon1068]

and so your here to preach the creationism myth correct?

[@KuznVinny]

No. DNA and cosmic rays are not how the life forms of earth are here in such an amazing array.