Real astrophysicist reacts to Netflix's Don't Look Up

[@chrisallen3702]

I imagine this film started when someone said "people would take climate change seriously if it was an asteroid heading towards them in 6months" and then somebody replied "are you sure they would?"

[@josephgruber1119]

one of the producers David Sirota gave an interview about the genesis of this movie and that is almost exactly what happened.

[@STho205]

If astronomers found a large comet on an earth ending course 6 months from now, then any time you fretted about climate change, nuclear war, litter, politics,.... in the last 50 years would have been a colossal waste of time. 6 months from now is far too close to do anything...and it us unlikely we have any tool that could do anything. Even to reprogram a deep space rocket would take more than three months...and that's if we had SLS or Saturn Vs or Russian Nova rockets just hanging around the launch facilities being polished and cared for. None of the LEO and probe launch boosters could do anything. None of the ICBMs could do anything for non of them have enough thrust to escape earth orbit. So the premise of the movie is a giant propeganda strawman assembled by the producers just to be taken apart. Similar to this team's other movies. Similar to "Day After Tomorrow"

[@spook407]

@@STho205 really, a comet of *any* size would just be hurling towards us and we can’t do *anything* about it, despite a 6 month warning and there being an actual planetary defense agency, which the movie has highlighted is a real thing? How has civilization been progressing in your mind? Are we still in the 70s?

[@STho205]

@@spook407 I'd say as to deep Space TLI and TMI then we are not even in the 60s or 70s anymore....or did I miss those moonbases and Mars settlements when I was checking my telescope last night. We lob little probes into orbit and then use other planets to slowly propel them where they are going in a game of decade long billiards. These movies are hack jobs, as ridiculous as "When Worlds Collide" in the 50s. Science by literature and English majors.

[@spook407]

@@STho205 Yeah because god forbid they try to save fuel when launching a fucking probe right. And the planetary defense office thing, nah that's just a farce, it's all fake. No kind of work is gonna be done when a comet heads towards us with 6 months of preparation.

[@michaelsommers2356]

I think the townspeople of Springfield had the right idea: after Springfield was almost wiped out by a comet, they decided to burn down the observatory to make sure that never happened again.

[@murraymadness4674]

right, just like trump saying we need to do less testing so covid cases won't keep growing, this is not fiction, pretend it will just go away, when 850,000 americans die.

[@_PatrickO]

@@murraymadness4674 The florida governor held a million tests in a warehouse so they would expire before anyone could use them. A woman preparing to run against him in the next election uncovered what was going on.

[@TheRealMirCat]

@@_PatrickO That's ok. The FDA just un-expired them... (Seriously) Nothing matters any more. It's politics over science.

[@theexiled3034]

You sir, are a genius. I love that episode, yet it never even came to my mind, but yeah that pretty much sums up what i expect people would do.

[@yuanheli307]

@@TheRealMirCat Wait what?

[@andyking894]

The scariest part of this wasn't even the comet, it was society.

[@bootstraphan6204]

Idiocracy meets Armageddon

[@nzuckman]

It was the media!

[@alwaysdisputin9930]

Spoilers: IMO the BASH CEO felt the same so he arranged for Earth to be wiped out as an act of mercy. The BASH AI predicted the bronteroc so the BASH CEO knew his plan was going to fail. But despite having this insane level of tech (prescient AI, cryogenics, interstellar spaceship) he didn't fix it. He let it happen! He persuaded the POTUS to abort the US effort & possibly nuked the Russian-Chinese-Indian launch.

[@franklittle8124]

Exactly. Especially corporate technology-mediated society. I for one got an urge to read Kazinski's anti-"industrial society" "manifesto" which I did and got no insights save for the unabomber really was/is a lunatic.

[@SuperLifestream]

This is essentially how American news shows would react

[@zdiegi5493]

Probably the most unrealistic part of the movie was when all the "Don't look up"-people started to believe in the comet and panicked as soon as they could see it in the night sky....there's no way in hell that 90% of those people wouldn't just immediately come up with a conspiracy theory to not have to believe in what they were seeing😅🙈!

[@graymurray4952]

Holograms!!!

[@blowc1612]

It's god punishing people and the rapture is coming

[@josefelipe2812]

Haarp. 5G!

[@neutchain7838]

Or to some people the round shaped Earth lol

[@dannygjk]

Actually you would be able to see it during the day too. I remember watching the progress of Kahoutek back in the early 70s. (with my naked eyes). BTW there are people now who insist Kahoutek was a conspiracy.

[@toddharvey7089]

The tragic irony of the whole scenario was summed up so perfectly when the Leonardo character said, at the table with family and friends gathered around, "we really did have everything, didn't we?"

[@larrymbouche]

I really have to wonder about these actors and scientists alike who worry so extremely about surviving their own specific chosen tragedies, yet they aren't even slightly concerned about smoking toxic addictive substances, or over eating and lack of exercise or healthy lifestyles. Yet they grab onto a specific tragedy, and then demand that it be handled in their own way, as if only they have the divine gift of exclusive knowledge of how to be the salvation, all the while creating a massive chaotic cataclysm of ineptitude that only exacerbates to coming cataclysm. Global warming is a good example. Their solutions are less viable than their surreptitious "Don't Look Up" chant." They haven't saved the whales, porpoises, elephants, rhinos, cheetahs. Their pitiful solutions are as useless as making a line by standing on the shoreline holding hands and singing "CumByeYaah, trying to stop an incoming Tsunami / TidalWave. The Paris Climate Accords has crippled the most productive nations, while getting nothing from the most destructive nations that slash, burn, and cut down rainforests, which capture more carbon than any other land based system while producing oxygen that we all need. 3 top countries that PROMISE to reduce carbon 20, 30, 40 and 50 years down the future, are India, China, and Brazil. And they aren't alone. It'll all be just like the 'Save the Elephants' 'Save the Rhinos' programs. You CAN'T STOP IT. There's too many poachers and other problems that these men can't stop or solve. They aren't Gods. They don't have any solutions that are viable. The elephants are as doomed as the 'Passenger Pigeon' and the 'Dodo Bird'. So.... yeah.... Don't Look Up.

[@mgacy2957]

@@larrymbouche tl;dr

[@vanessamaldonado5877]

@@larrymbouche Well, you are in the crowd of dont look up it seems, caught up with the culture wars to even look beyond your own nose, we could change a lot of things if we used our collective power to bargain, literally the only reason why nothing is done to combat climate change is capitalism, because implementing green energies are not profitable enough and fossil fuel conglomerates dont want green energies to be developed and funded, but we as workers have the power to stop it but we are too divided to do so, if we had a national strike demanding green energy policies it will happen, thats why corporations hate unions because the only thing that they care about is their profits and organized labor is their worst enemy, so to the point of the movie "we did everything we could right?" which is the part that I actually want to focus on, we are not doing enough if we dont fight capitalism and use violence when needed. PPl demonize activists when they block companies from continuing their destructive work for profit, but it is literally the most effective action, we could be more effective if there was more ppl that gave a damn.

[@electrictroy2010]

“rainforests”. If you’re so concerned in America or Europe, start restoring the forests that used to cover your continent. Those forests would also hold huge amounts of sequestered carbon.

[@Wildstar40]

Yeah that line stuck with me as well.

[@4CountDaddy]

I love how your video opens with you rubbing your temple like this is the most frustrating thing you've ever watched, LOL.... priceless!

[@4CountDaddy]

... Interstellar was GREAT! Right up until love conquered physics... yeah...

[@c_ag9471]

this movie almost gave me an ulcer watching it too

[@rjonboy7608]

Bobby. You win the internet for this comment. You may pick it up at 123 Main Street, New York City. It's pretty large, heavy, and fragile so you should bring a virtual forklift. And maybe some binary code chains to tie it down with.

[@KtanKtanKtan]

Given some of the insane comments that have come from (R) politicians recently about the pandemic, I think that including mind bogglingly stupid comments from people in films actually makes the film more realistic. Sad but true.

[@YAWN....]

Cheese...

[@collincutler4992]

This movie gave me SO MUCH anxiety because I believe this is exactly how something like this would happen...and for the record, this movie WAS about climate change. Writer said it was.

[@michaelskywalker3089]

I thought it was an allegory about what would happen if the former president of the United States were confronted by a situation like a cometary impact and how electing someone that unbalanced could literally put every human life in jeopardy.

[@byrnemeister2008]

Also fits COVID and the rapid spread of disinformation and the sidelining of science. Growth of anti vax etc

[@vinnyganzano1930]

I live in Scotland, we could do with it being a bit bloody warmer to be honest.

[@collincutler4992]

@@byrnemeister2008 I would say it fits Covid and the rapid censorship of scientists that have an opinion differing from the "approved narrative" ie:Dr Robert Malone who literally had a hand in creating the technology and was immediately deplatformed.

[@collincutler4992]

@@vinnyganzano1930 tbh they say if the Earth warms a few degrees, like enough for Canada and Russia to thaw out, our ability to grow crops in these areas quadruples.

[@noneofyourbusiness3288]

This movie was genuinely chilling in a way. It almost felt like a horror movie, where you watch the main characters just helplessly running up against sheer incompetence of people in positions of power.

[@EmbraceTheStruggle24]

Yep definitely 💯

[@pho.phonic]

This is exactly why I watched it for the first time on Halloween 🎃

[@brainbane8550]

Try capitalist greed and the nihilistic doomerism brought about by liberal individualism

[@StanleyKubick1]

kinda feels like climate change, huh

[@acasualviewer5861]

was just like the pandemic..

[@Jaymzmiller]

That Brontoroc gag at the end had me laughing for an entire day. The setup to the joke just being slipped in like 40 minutes earlier, then the punchline to end the film, was just glorious.

[@hughcaldwell1034]

"I believe it's called a Brontoroc..." just bloody got me.

[@oscardiggs246]

It's time to start the Brontoroc Conservation Society. They have a role to play in our future and they must be preserved.

[@trillionbones89]

The beauty of it being wrong on Mindy's death before only improves the punchline.

[@electrictroy2010]

Brontoroc exists at a different star system. Not sure how you expect to “help save” something so far away

[@a..d5518]

@@electrictroy2010 whoooosh... pretty sure that was a joke.....

[@DaveLH]

The most depressing thing about this film was the idea that the only survivors are uber-wealthy idiots. But then, I guess it's just a reverse variation on Douglas Adams' idea in his "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" series that the entire human race is descended from the occupants of an alien spaceship that crashed on Earth millennia ago, all of whom were the home planet's rejected brainless middle-men.

[@iloveyourunclebob]

I think it's safe to say that the rich got eaten lol

[@vincentpelletier57]

They survived the Earth, but I do not think they survived the new planet. Also, they were mostly old farts, they will die out without really producing any children. Good riddance! Who needs telephone sanitizers... err... I mean mega rich selfish idiots?

[@deanstewart27]

Yes... however remember the home planet was subsequently wiped out by a pathogen from a dirty phone. 😎

[@lakshachibber159]

@@iloveyourunclebob that scene was the most satisfying lol

[@lurgee1706]

I mean, if the son of the president survived under the rubble, it's safe to say a lot of people did survive as well. So the odds are the humanity in general was wounded but lived, while the rich got eaten alive. Sounds like a happy ending...kinda, if the deaths of billions can be referred to as such.

[@woooster17]

As I watched this movie, the amount of frustration I felt almost made me stop watching.. but, that was the point. By the end I thought ‘wow, this was probably far to close to reality’ (if we were ever facing an ELE), the whole political, social media world cross over was scarily accurate

[@johndanielowicz14]

The movie is supposed to be our reaction to climate change

[@dewweh7399]

"If we were ever facing an ELE". The comet is climate change and you are, as pointed out. A scary amount of people doesnt even understand the quite obvious message of the movie. That this is happening as of right now. "Shit-box News" - Shit Fox News

[@TKUA11]

Yeah, it was ironic how all the mainstream political shows were ignoring the impending doom, but in real life all you hear on mainstream media is global warming fear mongering. Nowadays we are pushed to buy eco friendly, environmentally friendly items by eco alliance etc. Mainstream media are definitely pushing the global warming narrative onto us and definitely don’t forget to remind us about it

[@ahlamamr4659]

Yeah! I was kind of happy at the end when the bash mission failed because like they banned the true scientists and all of that. And when they made the comet hit the earth it was like a wake up call for the science deniers, I don’t know but sometimes I don’t like happy endings.

[@johndanielowicz14]

A comet hitting the earth is cut and dry climate change is not. Besides Leonardo DiCaprio lives in a house that probably uses the electricity and gas of 20 houses

[@oscardiggs246]

The reaction to the movie from movie reviewers, particularly the one from the Wall Street Journal, was so perfect to see from the same people who have driven our science denial misinformation complex. My favorite response was the guy that said "I'm so glad you reviewed this and let me know that this movie wasn't worth my time." It was either a depressing meta statement on the message of the movie, or a brilliant bit of comic irony. I'm still not sure which.

[@electrictroy2010]

I think it was a brilliant movie. Claiming it’s about global warming? No. It is a GRADUAL process. And it’s happened before (no ice on the poles). Life THRIVED in that condition… it didn’t go extinct. The movie shows an instantaneous extinction

[@lttfan9185]

@@electrictroy2010 of course it has parallels to Climate Change denialism. In both cases we're arguing about basic facts and thereby guaranteeing our response will be too late. And "It is a GRADUAL process. And it’s happened before" is not only irrelevant, it's facile bordering on ignorant - yes, some life thrived when the earth was warmer. Other life went extinct. In any case the bigger concern is how many people die before we actually react to climate change.

[@deandownsouth]

@@lttfan9185 What temperature should the earth be at? How do you know?

[@richardgratton7557]

@@deandownsouth I like 72.5 degrees F , myself.😜

[@phyokyawkhaing2251]

@@deandownsouth The temperature where people don't die of heatstroke, the temperature where natural disasters aren't common.

[@Tone720]

I kept expecting the Bash drilling drones to malfunction in some way, I was expecting more of an ED-209 kinda thing though. Think my favourite line was from where people were coming up with conspiracy theories, and Kate says "Guys the truth is way more depressing, they're not even smart enough to be as evil as you're giving them credit for". Lots to enjoy in this film in any case.

[@stratavosstuff7575]

well, the one about the bunkers/rocket was right, though you never admit to having an emergency escape when it's got limited seating.

[@electrictroy2010]

ED-209 is a very obscure reference from a movie almost 40 years old.

[@ryabow]

I work for the US federal government, and every time I'm sitting at a computer, staring at it for 40 minutes, waiting for it to have booted up enough for me to use it, I think more or less the same thing. like "how do people think we're competent enough to be behind all this crap? I can't even open up my emails yet."

[@alinac5512]

That quote and the "we really did have everything, didn't we?" Were my favorite moments of the movie.

[@ImWithTeamTrinity]

In the meantime, they are crashing drones into asteroids to see if they can "deflect" them....wouldnt it be funny if we were hit by one soon? One big enough to cause noticable damages?

[@CJLloyd]

Watching this film made me more aware than ever (and I've never been particularly unaware) of the value of science education and science communicators. Academic communicators of all kinds are vital to the society, now more than ever. So, let me say thank you, Dr. Becky, for taking the time to make this content, and be a part of the solution we so sorely need!

[@midnight_scout]

@@Kryptomi pretty sure the OP is applying their comment to things like covid, climate change, chemical waste and the blurred lines between capitalism’s interest in self preservation and profits vs facts and reality

[@midnight_scout]

@@Kryptomi wow. Thanks for proving my point. Oh how media muddies the waters. Good luck and Take care of yourself, physically and mentally.

[@midnight_scout]

@@Kryptomi you had a lot to say. The problem lies within your original reply to me. You claim the government WANTS there to be data that supports the idea that climate change is being accelerated by humans. There’s multiple faults within this logic. Mainly that our government has done little to no action for actually solving the issues causing the acceleration of climate change. Things such as the use of natural gasses, pollution from large factories & corporations and the increased use of plastics & other non-biodegradable/recyclable products. This is because the corporations that buy and own our politicians (ALL of our politicians, it’s quite astounding how bipartisan it can be) recognize that to change over to systems that are more eco-friendly would cost them profits. Politicians act like they hate eachother, but within the United States they’re practically the same party. It’s a dog and pony show. Liberals are diet republicans. An informed individual like you would know that their voting records are the same. Sleepy Joe Biden and Ted Cruz almost unanimously vote the same on all economic issues revolving around oil, military spending, tax cuts for the 1% & corporations and for cutting regulation on corporations. While simultaneously making life harder for middle and lower class citizens by voting against healthcare systems, education and other things. The only thing they fight about for the sake of the news is wether gay people should exist, and if we should throw homeless people in jail. It’s quite silly. These are things the movie tackled head on and called out. So again, the idea that those very same career politicians that vote in favor of the corporations that “donate” to them, would decide to create a narrative that would COST those same corporations money is ludicrous. Democrats pretend to want “the green deal” but it STILL hasn’t been voted in yet. They pretend to want to regulate oil and plastic consumption. But business as usual Joe Biden and his democrat friends all know that if they do that, the millions lining their pockets will disappear. So they pretend to care while sleeping in bed with big tech, oil & the military industrial complex. The movie literally says that out loud. So excuse me for seeing your anger and rage as misguided frustration. And for suggesting you get away from the media machine that has brainwashed you into thinking democrats are socialists. (btw they’re not even fucking close, but words don’t mean anything right?) Chill out man. Ask yourself why you’re so angry about this, if the man behind the screen really has your best interest in mind or if they’re making bank off your cyclical pattern of hate watching their content. I’m being genuine in saying take care of yourself, I’m trying to do the same. Avoiding the grifters is harder said than done. And staying sane is the best thing you and I can do.

[@midnight_scout]

@@Kryptomi btw. most of the science supporting the evidence of climate change isn’t even supported by federal funds anyways. But whatever

[@midnight_scout]

@@Kryptomi you’re right, I did assume your stance. And you’re right, we’re not the only factor. But it’s undeniable we’re greatly accelerating the process. It’s a cycle that was already going to happen, but it would’ve gone slower had we not affected the environment. Keep doing what you’re doing then. But still, not everything is big government, and left wing information can have grifters within it as well. So regardless of your position, take care.

[@davidgermain]

this is an underrated film for many reasons. the over politicisation of science is a real issue, and us and them of that.

[@TheBiggestMoronYouKnow]

Things and people that just exist seem to get politicized too often. It makes idiots think they have a legitimate point because a bunch of other idiots are giving them a platform

[@hafor2846]

How is it underrated? Everyone is talking about it.

[@user-ov9vr1wc2j]

It’s Oscar nominated now 😭

[@truthbetold1855]

@Juan Garcia Appeal to authority logical fallacies are fun.

[@catpoke9557]

Over politicization is as under statement, because including politics to ANY DEGREE in science is just... It doesn't even make sense. You don't bring facts into something all about opinions.

[@solartyrant9049]

Possibly one of the best modern sci-fi/sociopolitical movies. Handled the subject and themes really well

[@zurzakne-etra7069]

it's lots of fun to see the journalists being total haters of this movie tho!

[@reinux]

This movie was cowritten by a journalist who does a lot of climate change stuff, and it was intended to be a direct parable to climate change. Apparently then covid happened as they were working on it, and they had to amp up the crazy to try to keep it comedic... but then it stopped being much of a comedy 😂

[@robertgotschall1246]

Yeah, The Onion can't even keep up.

[@senselessinductor7921]

Sirota did a pretty good job of creating an existential comedy, in which laughing or crying both seem appropriate responses.

[@kirk5152]

I watched this here in Australia and all I could think about through the whole film was Americas response to covid. It was kind of uncanny.

[@davescott7680]

It's the current world's response to climate change condensed into 6months.

[@ashr_]

I found it hillarious. Loved it. But no one else I know liked it for some reason.

[@esthykechan]

it was the kind of satire that falls flat in terms of humor and instead makes you feel absolutely infuriated with how people can be. it definitely did a great job at that. I felt that it was relatable a lot with the whole covid situation out there as well

[@carolusrex5213]

My issue with it is that not trusting a government with vaccines and other stuff is a little different then a giant rock hurtling at earth that you can simply take out a telescope and see. I 100 percent thing everyone would be on Leo's side in our real world because a comet is a actual tangible threat, something humans usually take seriously

[@esthykechan]

@@carolusrex5213 I hope that’s true but people are literally whining about having to wear a face mask to protect themselves and there are some crazy enough to holding irl strikes during corona so my faith in humanity is decreasing by the day

[@carolusrex5213]

@@esthykechan yeah but you have to think about their view too is how I convinced some of my family. They felt unsure about it because it didn't have years of being used behind it and my dad especially said that he was more dead set in not getting the vaccine because whenever he asked about it people called him a dumbass. Think about how many of these people would have been convinced if we just talked instead of calling them names. I legit can not find a single Twitter thread where someone talks to someone unsure about covid vaccines in a kind manner they always call them idiots it kinda makes me realize that both sides have to work together to get to the truth.

[@midnight_scout]

@@carolusrex5213 the problem is you’re referring to Twitter. Normal conversations refer to peer reviews studies, the stats on hospitalizations and the fact the the side effects are lessened. I refer to STD’s during these conversations. Like yeah, gonnorrea has less than a 1% chance of killing you. But I’d rather be safe, prevent it, and treat it if I catch it. Covid causes cardiovascular issues, permanent lung damage, hair loss and in a large percentage of men, erectile dysfunction. We don’t even know the long term effects or how covid effects pregnancies. When someone has a conspiracy theory. Ask two questions. 1.) who stands to “gain” from this and what do they gain. 2.) how many moving parts have to be involved/covered up to make it happen?

[@desteny1393]

@@carolusrex5213 no I actually disagree with what you said about a comet being a more visible threat and people would take it more seriously, since I mean just look at flat earthers, there is a lot of “visible” evidence and people still don’t agree with it. Plus the people in the movie still didn’t think that the comit was that serious until they saw it up close with their own eyes.

[@eldarshamukhamedov4521]

"People are sick of experts." My god, that sums up everything wrong with humanity so succinctly.

[@seanbutterfield1]

Well I'm certainly sick of experts failing to actually change or affect anything. When are they going to go on strike or sabotage fossil fuel infrastructure or literally do anything to help the rest of us? As it is now, they keep finding new ways to get carbon out of the ground and into the air, so they can pretty much go fuck themselves.

[@julietfischer5056]

@@seanbutterfield1 - And nobody will run with 'Experts are terrorists!' or use that as proof of a covert conspiracy to take over the world.

[@HalNordmann]

These "catastrophe reaction" works always exaggarate. Climate change and similar problems are really complicated, but still solvable and being solved. Don't lose hope for humanity.

[@stevenscott2136]

More accurately, people are sick of experts who disagree with them.

[@seanbutterfield1]

@@julietfischer5056 they absolutely will, but you counteract that by materially improving the lives of working people and earning their confidence and loyalty instead of continuing to sell them out and line the pockets of those who would exploit them and destroy the world with climate change.

[@transplantman2287]

THIS is what I always want when a video title says “[expert in relevant field] reacts to [media relevant to their expertise]”: full on detailed explanations of lots of stuff that helps clarify what’s reality and what’s fabricated for good storytelling. Thank you, loved it!!

[@Czxvkq]

17:31 "the earth moves the length of its diameter every 7 minutes" as long as you know what a diameter is, this is an extremely intuitive way to think about the movement of the Earth. I'll be sure to pass on this fact to others as often as possible!

[@jajssblue]

Even if you don't know the diameter, you can take the 7 minutes and compare it to the length of the year (in minutes) to get an idea of how many diameters an orbit is. Reading your comment made me realize this neat relation.

[@jajssblue]

It overestimates by about 1.8% or 1300 km. Not bad for squishing an ellipse into a circle.

[@Gerard1971]

Or when you look at the Moon during Third Quarter (next on January 25, exact time depends on your location), realize that's roughly where you will be 3.5 hours later! (Or during First Quarter where you were 3.5 hours ago).

[@Tinker001]

@@Gerard1971 Takes me almost that long to drive to work some days... Kinda wish I worked on the moon now.

[@RogerWKnight]

@@Tinker001 7920 miles / 66600 miles per hour X 60 minutes per hour = 7 minutes 8 seconds. As for mining a comet for rare materials, that would be like polishing a turd. Asteroids made of iron and nickel would be a better bet.

[@rhydderc127]

I heard the Ariana Grande song on Spotify before I’d heard of this film and I PMSL at the “get your head out of your ass and listen to the goddamn qualified scientists” line, listened to it a couple of times thinking ‘awesome, Ari is a savage’. I know people have been saying this film fails as a satire because it’s as subtle as a sledgehammer, but we’re living through a time when there’s so much wilful ignorance everywhere that a story that smacks you right on the nose is the only thing that has a chance of working. Not that the people who need to see it will watch it, or would let themselves think about it. @Becky Watch Arrival next if you haven’t done that one, it’s beautiful… well, the science will probably annoy the shit out of you but as a story about loss seen from a reversed context it just makes me shiver every time.

[@DrBecky]

Haha I hated arrival too 😂

[@neurotic_nerd3808]

Savage in that private jet.....climate change uwu😊😋

[@sandpiperr]

It didn't fail and subtly doesn't work in our society.

[@rogerp566]

@@sandpiperr I do groundwater modeling and you are right- subtlety does not work. A sledgehammer doesn't always work, either.

[@reqontra]

@@DrBecky The short story the Arrival was based on ("Story Of Your Life" by Ted Chiang) is much more down-to-earth but intriguing (and there's no China in it!), while the idea of an alien language with predictive syntax was very novel (at least for me). I suggest you to read it, it shouldn't take longer than about an hour.

[@Ashmanaiel]

I LOVE that you had the exact same response to the Brontoroc scene: SO SATISFYING! I get so frustrated when idiots are rewarded for being stupid/willfully ignorant. The fact that those incredibly selfish people that caused so many of the problems getting their well-deserved end was so incredibly satisfying

[@TimoRutanen]

Can't imagine they had a successful society with Only idiots and rich executives remaining and none of the scientists, engineers and other experts necessary to have anything work.

[@jefflittle8913]

I think the reason that scene had to exist is to point a light on the "we will just colonize mars" perspective. I actually disagree, but even with that it is interesting.

[@denijane89]

@@TimoRutanen That was part of one of Peter Hamilton's books (I think The Void Trilogy) - a society created by a spaceship full of lawyers and executives and other nonsense. I think I'd felt satisfaction if they ended on this new planet and realized their average age is 70 and mostly men and whatever happens, that colony wouldn't survive. Now that would be a proper ending.

[@JohnVDenley]

@@denijane89 yes! I felt like that ending left it too much like they might have survived and got away with destroying the earth!

[@Toromboloize]

I love the way she expresses herself so clearly and in a way that laymen such as myself can understand without feeling condescended to.

[@bluebaconjake405]

I did not expect your reaction to be THIS detailed and im not complaining. This is a really informative and probably one of the best reaction videos ever!

[@indigoace261]

I love your science-packed reactions. It educates the amateur astronomer in me! Thanks as always for sharing.

[@Feefa99]

It is evident that Dr. Becky has media training

[@holdenrobbins852]

@@Feefa99 Nice.

[@santiagolarrain]

As a Data Scientist, I loved the Machine Learning tangent. Would love to hear more of that in the future!

[@isabelab6851]

Same here! I want to have better knowledge of machine learning

[@seanbutterfield1]

The best part of the movie was the CEO/Founder guy telling the President his algorithms predicted she would be eaten by a Bronteroc, and they didn't even know what it meant. Such a good send up of the tech bros.

[@PeterPlattDeveloper]

I am studying machine learning now. Wouldn't unsupervised learning be used for grouping and thus Wouldn't have to many issues with training data?

[@mnomadvfx]

@@seanbutterfield1 The point about the Bronteroc was a play on the fact that many artificial neural net systems are seen as 'black box' systems because once trained you really don't have a clue why they are spitting out result x or result y, they just do and that's that. Ongoing efforts have been made to make AI/ML systems more 'human readable' so that we can more easily tweak them after training.

[@seanbutterfield1]

@@mnomadvfx yes I understand that. They programmed a computer to tell them shit they don't understand, can't check, and that often fails, and they're betting the future of humanity on these algorithms and the sociopaths who programmed them. It's terrifying.

[@JH-vc5vu]

I LOVE that you check your facts in real-time, nobody does that anymore and it shows basic academic legitimacy

[@ConquerDriving]

Great video, I really enjoyed it. I didn't know the earth moved it's entire diameter every 7 mins, that's quite cool and also promising to find out that smashing a small object into a comet could save the day.

[@I_Don_t_want_a_handle]

Which of course means that if you were to use a time machine you would have to move in space too, otherwise you would asphyxiate pretty quick ...

[@extantsanity]

@@I_Don_t_want_a_handle I've been waiting decades for a time travel movie to mention this.

[@DanFre40]

@@I_Don_t_want_a_handle Yep, and going back in time 6 months not only means moving 186 million miles to the other side of Earth's orbit but also to where the solar system would have been six months ago!

[@spvillano]

@@I_Don_t_want_a_handle in multiple directions as well, not only are we simply going around the sun, we're also moving up or down in the equatorial plane as well.

[@ThisNoName]

In other word, slow as a snail, no?

[@grecia8599]

I would suggest people watch Contact as well, it has a very similar vibe to this movie and focuses on how the scientific community would react to the discovery of extraterrestrial intelligence versus how the governments and public at large would react.

[@extrules]

Contact is my favorite book and movie, and there is a HUGE difference. Carl Sagan had *hope for humanity.* This movie has none.

[@allenkemp3124]

@@extrules Sagan didn’t live long enough to see just how insane it has all become, who knows how he would feel today. When he died, “flat earth” was still a punchline, not a misguided belief.

[@lyl14ghost]

The part you says about Looking Up is amazing. I always feel so small when I look up in the sky and see stars, makes me humble but also makes me feel like a wonder that occured. It really also is a deeper meaning that in a world now that should been run by technology, science and logic, there are still so many people ignoring facts and turns away from logic.

[@NetAndyCz]

I love the whole "do not look up" chant, especially how frustrating it must feel to astronomers, because it is like dealing with creationsts in biology who will ignore pretty much 99.9% of the biology research just to not have to accept the evolution. You guys are lucky that flat earthers do not have the numbers to sneak into schools really.

[@KidoKoin]

So, what you are saying, is that you are not 100.0% sure yourself? )

[@NetAndyCz]

@@KidoKoin No.

[@desteny1393]

@@KidoKoin science usually don’t like to say that anything is 100% (lmao quote from the movie too)

[@isidoreaerys8745]

What he means is that the 99.9% of scientific data that contradicts the idea of a 6000 year old earth populated by the survivors of a global flood is conveniently ignored in favor of the those that can be twisted in support of their biblical view. Because even though their solitary goal is to undermine scientific understanding, science is so universally respected that they nonetheless have to employ the language of science to try to project legitimacy. Often times creationist/conspiracy grifters paint themselves as brilliant luminaries who have somehow discovered some key flaw in the theory and have some important data which will revolutionize the field. That somehow the global consensus of science is wrong and they have arrived to finally vindicate the truth of the Bible.

[@isidoreaerys8745]

Some go so far as to paint universities as Satanic Masonic societies where a massive global conspiracy to erase god is being carried out by collegiate science programs. Then you have scholarships being provided to dedicated disciples of evangelicalism who pursue PhDs in Genetics/Geology in order to renounce their scientific training and publish pseudoscientific misinformation with those scientific credentials. Never in peer reviewed journals, they often are funded by creationist foundations like the Discovery Institute and the Institute for Creation Research, which receive massive donations from the Walton family for the work they do in keeping the American public dumb, divided, and scientifically ignorant.

[@rc_19ad12]

Absolutely looove these kinds of videos combining actual knowledge with sci-fi movies.

[@godsbeautifulflatearth]

NETFLIX and NASA are both Sci-Fi.

[@solidus4prez]

As someone into AI and ML, i would love to hear you give the state of affairs on its use in astronomy. Pros, cons, its history and future, stuff like that.

[@DavidOfWhitehills]

Yes that was an interesting tangent.

[@jcinaz]

I think Dr. Becky would have to get another Ph.D to handle that properly.

[@porina_pew]

On not having the telescope control right next to the telescope, light pollution wasn't my first thought, but more the ambient conditions. Apparently right now we're looking at a day range of 18-27C at Subaru. But if you were in the UK then being exposed to sub zero temps overnight wont be as fun! Operation from a warm room is much preferable.

[@vinnyganzano1930]

Only problem with the UK is we don't have high enough mountains for worthwhile astronomical observatories. The Canary Islands are better for us, closer and with pretty decent nightlife for the days you're off duty👍🍹🥃🍸🍾🍷🥂🍻🍺

[@BlackEpyon]

Even in the old optical telescopes (with the eyepiece), you'd cover your reading lamp just to avoid contaminating your observations with light pollution. The amount of accent lighting in that room is insane.

[@porina_pew]

@@vinnyganzano1930 In modern times for sure they optimise location, but there are many historic observatories around. I mainly thought that way as I used to do astrophotography as a hobby, and the best nights tended to be freezing nights!

[@LemonLadyRecords]

When I had my 8" telescope, in the olden days, used to have to wait quite a while in the winter after setting it up on the coldest (best, i.e., driest) nights, and it's not even very cold here, but very humid (like soup in the atmosphere). Also same issue the rest of the year, in reverse (A/C to outside), although not really viewing season, due to humid, tropical weather and disease carrying mosquitos. I imagine that professional, modern telescopes have the temps all equalized and timed. Even amateur viewing is massively better nowadays with wi-fi and remote control, so you can sit in comfort inside. I would still do some eye to eyepiece viewing, though, just because it's magic. 🤩

[@alquinn8576]

i didn't know Subaru made telescopes

[@timmiller666]

I love how passionate she is about Astrophysics. I think it's very rare to see someone who actually loves their job.

[@neutchain7838]

I think scientists are usually love what they do. You don't invest all that time to get good in your chosen field if you are not passionate about it.

[@uschi414]

It's so cool that professional astronomers use FITS files. Being an amateur astronomer I'm used to FITS files from programs like APT, NINA, SGP, etc. when those programs store the data from consumer grade astronomy cams!

[@harshvardhan4771]

Doesn't it feel surreal to be an amateur in a field and finding even the smallest of similarities between us (an amateur) and the professionals in the field which we idealise to work in? 😂Eg. I used to play keyboard (now I don't get much time to), and I also used to watch some Astronomy related series on Discovery, Discovery Science, and National Geographic, and there were a lot of intro scenes where professionals like Michio Kaku were shown playing piano. I don't know why but I felt so happy seeing that I have some similarities with some professionals working in Astronomy.

[@michaelskywalker3089]

@@harshvardhan4771 Interesting, I just finished composing synthesized music and find myself still fascinated by discoveries and methods used by professional and amateur astronomers to reveal the images and data defining the night sky

[@jursamaj]

@@harshvardhan4771 It should come as no surprise. Professionals are just as human as amateurs.

[@harshvardhan4771]

@@jursamaj that was not my point.

[@jursamaj]

@@harshvardhan4771 How could it not be? You found it surreal to have even small similarities to them. Since you are all human, how could you possibly *not* have small, and big, similarities? There's nothing surreal about it.

[@freelunatwo]

I loved the movie. I appreciate your takes on the science, and how the comet discovery would’ve been shared with the rest of the astronomy community practically instantaneously, and that no astronomers would be in the telescope dome observing because of light and because Mauna Kea is frickin’ freezing at night and the telescope and dome are intentionally maintained at the outside night temp. That said. The satirical take on the politics and news was spot on. Spot on to the point of changing my “funny ha ha” experience to “funny oh crap”. To me, this was one of those movies you should definitely watch once, but no more than once.

[@electrictroy2010]

I watched it twice. I noticed things second time I didn’t see first time, especially since I knew where the plot was headed

[@juliahenriques210]

People told me this was a sad movie. When I got to watch it, in the end I was actually glad it ended like it did instead of a couple other possible alternatives. It's not the disaster movie we wanted, but it is definitely the disaster movie some people need to watch nowadays.

[@BGraves]

Those people will just take it as a personal attack on their trumpism ideology. Because it is. It was just Idiocracy 2021

[@juzoli]

Imagine it got a happy ending. It would suggest that we can be stupid as much as we want, it will be okay, and the “dontlookup” crowd was right:)

[@danielriley7380]

@@juzoli it kinda sucks to want to have that ending, cos if we do, then we have apply that rationale to other circumstances. It’s good though that I can root for global destruction because it’s just a movie, but in real life have to face the very real probability that we’re facing that in our near future.

[@juliahenriques210]

@@BGraves Those who see it as an attack instead of a hyperbolic critique are too far gone already. The message is targeted at those who might still have an ounce of rationality in their brains and might nudge some people in the right direction. In this sense, it's better than Idiocracy in the sense that it isn't rooted in The Bell Curve and other such disservice pseudoscientific works that do more to make people feel unwarrantedly superior than to raise actual issues we might propose solutions to. Scientific minded people don't finish watching this movie feeling superior, but worried, and that's a positive at least in my book.

[@juliahenriques210]

@@danielriley7380 We can only do the best we can. At least our conscience will be clear. vov

[@namstel9225]

Came for the reaction videos on movies, stayed for the science. I love how you interject these videos with references to actual scientific methods, missions and so on. :) Thanks!

[@derekwarr8567]

I really love how you explained everything in such detail.

[@Sonickrunch]

I thought it was great. I loved the General who charged them for snacks and how JLaw couldn't get over it throughout the movie. I loved when Leo went on Seasame street and yelled we are all gonna die. I just thought it was really well made comedy even though yes frustrating due to the world we actually live in(funny thing is it was written before covid, but it showed just how much farther we've moved in that direction). It's like a newer Idiocracy.

[@_PatrickO]

I say he was just hazing the newbs. It is probably a trick some people do to new people when they notice they have never been there before.

[@DrBecky]

That was my favourite bit too. The long running joke how she couldn’t get over it: “he’s a 4* general…”

[@enhydralutra]

Also, that guy is named General Themes. I love subtle jokes like that.

[@IceMetalPunk]

@@enhydralutra I didn't even catch that! So basically, the general theme is screwing people over for unnecessary personal gain 😂

[@Sonickrunch]

@@_PatrickO Probably, though I've seen rich people be cheap like that, and I've seen people who make a ton of money living paycheque to paycheque and don't know how to control themselves. It was funny either way.

[@slim_shady411]

I'm so glad I found this channel. I love learning from such well informed people.

[@ivanpetrov5255]

I love that Dr. Becky can identify telescopes in just a glance.

[@darkydoom]

This was a great film. I was so frustrated because it feels like real life would go down this path and I cried so much at the end. Leave me alone lol

[@Chronz]

dont worry, space is fake

[@Chronz]

@KhozyGAME I'm alive and well. Space is for children

[@Chronz]

@KhozyGAME yeah it was funny when I first heard it. Ps you didn't hear it but I know what you mean

[@r3doctave657]

@@Chronz What led you to believe space was fake? Not trying to put you on the spot or anything, I'm just curious of your thoughts on it. :)

[@redexsuperior5462]

@@r3doctave657 I think he’s trolling

[@LeOnIdAs162]

Loved this ! Theres something so amazingly pleasing about watching someone talk with such passion and knowledge about something they deeply care and love ❤

[@ericsaari2901]

Really enjoyed this reaction (and the film!). I went to school for astrophysics and yet mid-degree switched to art (imagine that). It was a lot of fun to see your reactions to the film and see a little slice of that life.

[@TCat-ve9qi]

That was a worse idea then not looking up

[@AbcDef-ww2gy]

Brian May switched from astrophysics to music, so it can sometimes work. (He still loves keeping in touch with his astrophysics side.)

[@lttfan9185]

completely off topic, but gotta love youtube subtitles. "Long period comment from the Orc cloud" is my new favorite thing.

[@scyberclops]

I don’t know if it’s a film you would want to comment on, but one of the greatest films on something impacting the earth I’ve ever seen was “seeking a friend for the end of the world”. You will thoroughly enjoy it

[@MitchKarajohn]

Second this

[@Tao_Tology]

LOVE that film. What do you do with......some.....time left when the usual concerns and consequences just aren't there anymore?

[@scyberclops]

@@Tao_Tology and she still hasn't commented if she's seen it. I guess JWST is keeping her busy, but she really needs to take the time

[@zerodadutch6285]

I agree. It's a great film, idk howbmuchbscience she could pull from it but it's entertaining for sure.

[@talideon]

3:40 - what pops into my mind is a balanced twisted pair in an audio or signalling cable: any interference will be applied to both, and you can use this to cancel out the effect of the interference. It's a really simple yet cool mechanism!

[@osmosisjones4912]

Every doomdayb climate change prediction over 50 years has been dead wrong

[@gabbyn978]

@@osmosisjones4912 you're repeating yourself. Do you know what a broken record is?

[@j.f.christ8421]

I find it amazing LIGO detects gravity waves sort-of the same way, but in reverse. Getting interference is the good bit.

[@malehuman]

I'm only 7 minutes or so into this video, but it's a joy to listen to someone who loves what they do, and wants to share.

[@mguerra79]

Watched the movie with my 10 years old daughter, to try to oper her mind to different stuff and to have a critical mind despite telling her that something is like that or not, specially science... Loved the «Frustration Boils over» segment at 18:34... Frustration indeed... Congrats on your channel and content!

[@jamesfv1]

A lot of people in groups I’m in, told me to look at it like they are talking about covid, but it was written about climate change too. It’s awesome learning how true it was and seeing your reaction!

[@shmeggley]

Love your honest reactions to this bizarre yet timely movie! Especially the bits about the telescope in the beginning, I would have otherwise assumed it was all just a movie set, not a real machine!

[@toychristopher]

AL Gore's documentary "an inconvenient truth" was so well named. People just would rather not think about anything that disrupts their lives and forces them to "look up".

[@jeremylohse9271]

Love your reaction and dissection of the film, but kind of wanted you to comment on why the general charged her for the snacks.

[@andreasoberg2021]

This was a great video Becky. I think people like you really help the world with making people believe in science, which sadly is very important these days!

[@sfappetrupavelandrei]

Believe in science? So science is some kind of religion? I think you meant to say "believe in scientists". And this is the biggest issue: there are a pretty big bunch of people who don't believe scientists. And they don't believe scientists because they understand that any man/woman can be corrupted. When I was a child I was raised to have a blindly faith in authorities: police, doctors, etc. But I met cases when, for example, doctors took some decisions based on greed, on their incompetency or other stupid reasons. So I don't blindly listen to what doctors say to me anymore.

[@andreasoberg2021]

@@sfappetrupavelandrei You are right that the word "believe" is not the best one since it reminds us of religion. I also agree with you that one should not blindly believe say doctors. I find it is very good to read the actual research papers about various topics. That is the most clear way to get an understanding of the topic. One of the most important things I learned in University was how to evaluate sources. It is not an easy topic, but very important and in these days maybe even more important.

[@sfappetrupavelandrei]

@@andreasoberg2021 Exactly. The comment I did was because of this misconception some people have that those who disagree with major scientific opinions don't believe in science. I hate this way of thinking. It gives no place for conversations. More productive would be to discuss with those people and understand with what they disagree and give them arguments. If only people would be very open to honest conversations (and no patronising or insulting the other) a lot more things would be done.

[@crm114.]

Great review. I’m actually collecting some FITS image files of the HorseHead nebula on my telescope as I’m watching this. Got to make use of the rare clear nights of late in the South UK.

[@caw25sha]

I'm very interested in this as I hadn't heard of it before. Sounds like the equivalent of EXIF?

[@crm114.]

Easiest to look FITS up in the wiki. They are default format output by my ZWO imaging camera and they contain load of metadata useful for image stacking and follow-on processing.

[@HairyAl1969]

@@caw25sha it's like an anally retentive EXIF on steroids.

[@DrBecky]

Nice! The horsehead is one of my favourites!

[@CYBRLFT]

I would love to see you do this with Greenland. I found it very refreshing as a disaster movie and the human response. I think you’d enjoy it. It’s definitely not satirical but quite beautiful.

[@FornaxusCrucible]

I can't believe it's taken me this long to find this channel. Dr. Becky, watching you react, listening to your passion for your field... all I can say is, you and your channel are magnificent!

[@Category5]

Thanks for that lighthearted, semi-comical, but wholly real interpretation of a film that's obviously meant to be a wake up call tucked away inside a satirical trojan horse. Unfortunately I think the existential threat these kind of problems pose will come down to whether or not the enlightened outnumber the idiots, and the trend these days has me worried.

[@rfp313]

I think part of the problem is labeling one side as enlightened vs the other side, who may disagree with the theory. The history of science is full of a minority of people holding ideas and views that contradicted the majority. Science doesn't care about political sides, if done as it should be done. Unfortunately, like in the case of "climate change", terrible science and data manipulation has been exposed by critical review and the resulting reaction has been to label people questioning the interpretation of data or the methods of data collection as "deniers." THAT is the real problem. Good theories, like relativity, stand up to scrutiny.

[@thisisntanoption702]

@@rfp313 the problem is a lot of science is becoming politically biased. Some publishers will only publish studies that push their narrative and ignore the rest.

[@rfp313]

@@thisisntanoption702, totally agree. Is there climate change? Is it being driven by humans? Those are great questions and asking them in a very critical way, to request the examination of the data, and to look at the collection methods, IS science. It's totally ok to scrutinize these things. Unfortunately, when someone starts to do that the response is to retreat and to scream "denier!"

[@a..d5518]

@@rfp313 but it was scrutiny based on real science of the time, yes there were crackpots, there will always be crackpots!

[@a..d5518]

@@rfp313 I would say if the scrutiny is being done in a true scientific way by reasonable people, then the ones crying "denier" are the real deniers.

[@chrisdpratt]

Now you have to do Interstellar. Just knowing how much it annoys you means that the reaction video would be amazingly hilarious.

[@lagrangian143]

Thank you Chris Pratt very cool

[@pikameer8325]

Agreed. I mean I love the movie so much myself, but It would be so fun to watch Dr. Becky react to it.

[@KuK137]

Interstellar was 2/3 of good sci-fi movie mixed with 1/3 of anti-intellectual new age garbage. Did we really need the idiotic time travel plot (my problem is not with time travel, but how nonsense the execution was) and comically stupid bashing of science at the start of it?

[@stealth5758]

@@KuK137 By time travel, do you mean time dilation? And I think the bashing of science at the beginning was to drive home the fact NASA had essentially been shunned underground. There's a lot of science bashing today so it's not that far off.

[@selinorkun647]

does anyone know why she specifically states she wont film a reaction to interstellar?

[@reggieziet]

Your a real scientist if you can start to give scientific information a split second after the movie started, before even there was any dialogue. LOL. Always good to see a new Dr. Becky vid.

[@godsbeautifulflatearth]

If she was a real scientist she would know that the Earth is Flat and everything NASA puts out is CGI. *REALITY CHECK*

[@olencone4005]

@@godsbeautifulflatearth A "reality check" is indeed what you are in need of.

[@wingsounds13]

@@olencone4005 This is yet another example of the Dunning-Kruger effect. There is an unfortunately significant portion of the population that is too stupid to have a clue as to how stupid they are. Their ignorance makes them think that they are really smart. :(

[@gilb_4]

@@olencone4005 Do not feed the trolls, meaning do not interact with them, not worthy the effort

[@olencone4005]

@@gilb_4 I see it like when your neighbor's dog comes over and starts bothering you while you're trying to do something. So you pick up a ball, wave it around to get the attention of the dog's walnut-sized brain, and then pretend to throw it waaaaaaaaay down the street. The dog runs off, and you chuck the ball back in a box and go about your day again. It's an amusing distraction for a minute or so, and anyone else who sees it can have a good chuckle at the dog as it runs off in its own little world ^_^

[@dannileigh6426]

I'm right there with you on the joys and benefits of looking up (or down, or just closely). I'm always looking around at things, and I can't count the number of times I've been out looking at stars/planets/satellites and pointing them out to people who respond "Oh, that's neat. Thanks. I never look up." and I'm just dumbfounded every time I hear that. Whether it's the sky (day or night), forests/gardens, or even just how the different parts of limestone walls in town are weathering there's so much to be fascinated by in the world around us and all that you can learn through simple observation of the world (and universe) that surrounds us.

[@skaibox5921]

Have you ever thought about reacting to interstellar? It’s my personal favourite film and thus I’d love to see an astrophysicist reactions as well as impressions. Thanks for always delivering good, fun and interesting content!

[@Palimbacchius]

Except that she specifically rejected that possibility.

[@pjm1005]

@@Palimbacchius wait why

[@Palimbacchius]

@@pjm1005 I don't know: at the end of the video she says she couldn't bear to watch 'Interstellar' again, but doesn't explain why.

[@charlesheyen6151]

@@Palimbacchius because it's a horrible anti science film

[@mojojojo2888]

there are videos on yt of people like Neil DeGrass Tyson that comment on Interstellar, if that's what you're looking for!

[@chrisjay6759]

Love watching you look at sci-fi films and breaking it down, especially when you see stuff that it pretty realistic and get excited about working out what the telescope was in the opening scenes. If you haven't already then you should do Armageddon or Deep Impact.

[@dtrjones]

Thank you Dr. Becky. It was fun watching your reactions. 👏 I really found the movie entertaining and can forgive the misrepresented science in these productions but it's good to know that it seemed to hit all the main marks - Amy Mainzer did you proud! 😂 plus everybody on the internet should check out this section 18:34 Dr. Becky gold! ❤

[@z-man3555]

I really understand, know and hear you as well about the climate too Becky. Thanks for the amazing video

[@caw25sha]

21:49 In the early 20th century someone caused a major panic by announcing that Earth would be passing through the tail of a comet consisting of carbon monoxide. (I think it was the 1910 Halley's Comet.) As far as I am aware no humans or intelligent lifeforms were wiped out on that occasion.

[@LeftCoastStephen]

I was just thinking the same. My grandmother (born 1900) told me about that. Scared the hell out of me at age 8!

[@amalieemmynoether992]

That's true, but humans have always had problems understanding the difference between detection and dosage. Water, at high enough doses over a short enough period is lethal. Botox is most definitely toxic but given at small enough doses and it will smooth out your wrinkles. It's the same with understanding local and global changes. A change of 2 degrees sounds like nothing when you only consider a local area where day/night temp can change by 10-20 deg (big change over small area=small dose). But a global average change of 2degC is most definitely problematic (small change over massive area=massive dose).

[@gabbyn978]

*and* hydrocyanic acid. On a technical level, this was correct, but the density was so low, and there is still the atmosphere that would tamper with the molecules, that it was'nt dangerous at any given time.

[@holdenrobbins852]

Yes. Humans are dumb. No one seems capable of looking into anything for themselves.

[@dannyr.7753]

Eh, I'm not so sure the intelligent lifeforms haven't been wiped out

[@MrConspark]

Had a good laugh at this movie, full of high budget and highly paid actors as well! :) Great review Dr Bec love it.

[@David_Vitek]

21:52 Your expression says it all. Shock, disbelief, and undertones of terror. As an expert, you know exactly what would happen. I can only hope that science wins out to open enough people's eyes to the truth. If not, then perhaps viral entertainment like this is the way to go to shock people awake?

[@definitlynotbenlente7671]

People choose to denie the truth becouse its easier than changing the way we live

[@XenoCrimson-uv8uz]

​@@definitlynotbenlente7671 Yeah, humanity taken the stand of ignorance.

[@Name-ot3xw]

The funny part is that this movie was meant to satirize climate change and was released during COVID, so people think it's a COVID response satire. Still works.

[@zachjones8085]

Honestly I just love this movie in a number of ways. it was really cool to hear the things they got right or wrong, and also someone else having the similar feelings about the whole movie and ending and all. very neat vid

[@SolGladio]

This movie was great. Rarely does a movie made me laugh, cry and get angry.

[@jajssblue]

I'm glad you were able to laugh at it more than I was able to. It's a good and funny movie, but just hit too close to home emotionally for me to laugh or feel anything but frustration.

[@osmosisjones4912]

Every doomsday climate change prediction has been proven dead wrong

[@Mr.Anders0n_]

@@osmosisjones4912 Just don't look up

[@_PatrickO]

While it does make fun of trump and republicans because that would be the main problem for us all if this were to ever be a real situation, no one in the movie is really as serious as they should. The professor was so worried about credit for his student and naming rights or the proper math, when none of that mattered, the world was going to end. He falls in love and really stopped focusing on the fact that the world is going to end. Diabiasky is sidetracked by a lot of mundane things, preventing her from being effective in advocating for any action. Even Oglethorpe loses focus and loses effectiveness. The people trying to be heroes were all still flawed. This movie is likely closer to the truth from all sides than any other attempts at speculating what would happen. Republicans do what they always do with every serious issue and deny it, everyone else is too worried about random things to effectively work together. In the end, nothing mattered because rich people just threw money around to get what they wanted at the risk of everyone else. Just like real life.

[@beardieblighter9905]

@@osmosisjones4912 Tell me more about how much more you know about climate science than actual climate scientists

[@IntrinsicPalomides]

@@beardieblighter9905 This bad troll is going and posting this same drivel comment on many comments here. Just checkout the video's it posts on their yt channel to see how deranged they are.

[@GregorySnipe]

You are one of the smartest people I've ever heard speak. Thank you for all the information!!

[@esquilax5563]

16:46 doesn't it still take a pretty significant amount of momentum and energy to give even the required "tiny nudge" to a 10km-wide comet? I was under the impression that nukes wouldn't be enough if we only had 6 months

[@alquinn8576]

this is correct. someone did the math in a comment on Astral Codex Ten and you need hundreds or thousands of massive nukes to deflect a 10km comet if detected that late

[@johnzander9990]

Dr. Becky is not wrong under certain conditions, it's just that she never mentions those certain conditions. There is NO WAY that a tiny nudge would have changed the course of this comet enough when the Peter Isherwell (the crazy business man) sent up the mission. The comet was already too close for a tiny nudge to be successful. A tiny nudge would be successful when the comet is at a much larger distance from us.

[@aaronmcculloch8326]

If the Earth moves out of the way every 7 minutes, then the most we'd have to deflect is about 3 minutes earlier or later, assuming a dead center bullseye hit. If we have 4 months then we only need to change it's velocity by 3/(4*30*24*60) which is 0.0017%. A comet close to Mars' distance from the sun should be about 20-30km/s so just slowing it by about 50cm/s (1.1mph) would be plenty. The sooner we'd hit it the slower the comet would be moving and the less force we'd need AND the less correction that would be required, so sooner is much much better in this case.

[@johnzander9990]

@@aaronmcculloch8326 You are assuming a situation that is like a dart board moving left to right across your flat wall, while you throw a dart perpendicular to the wall. Once you throw your dart at an angle, then trig will be required to patch up your calculation. But this is orbital dynamics where you have two objects traveling in an ellipse. Which is like a dart board moving across an elliptical wall with you throwing the dart in an elliptical trajectory. But let's assume your calculation has merit and that we just need to reduce the speed by 0.0017%. Assuming Halley's Comet with mass = 2.2 * 10^14 kg and (velocity initial) vi = 910 m/s, then a 0.0017% reduction in speed is (velocity final) vf = 909.984 m/s. Kinetic Energy initial is then 1/2 * m * vi^2 = 9.1091 * 10^19 Joules. Kinetic Energy final is then 1/2 * m * vf^2 = 9.1088 * 10^19 Joules. The difference in energy is then 3 * 10^15 Joules. This amount of energy is equivalent to 200 Hiroshima bombs.

[@travcollier]

I'm definitely not an expert, but yeah, I think Becky was off on that. You just need a tiny amount of delta-V, but the mass is extremely high. 6 months for something that big on a direct impact course is a game over with current capabilities. We would either need new laws of physics (warps or something) or massive infrastructure like space elevators, large orbital shipyards, ect. If this was a novel instead of a movie, it would be better to make the threat a near Earth asteroid which is coming in for a close pass in like a year or two and is calculated to impact on the next pass a decade or two later. By the time people get their shit together and see the threat as imminent, the opportunity to actually deflect it has passed. I see why that doesn't really work on for a popular film though. But not only is the science more realistic, the analogy to climate change is even stronger.

[@LilLingLing6789]

You are so great I watched your video and decided to enroll in a quantum mechanics course online I'm not the brightest tool in the tool box but I seem to be getting through it alright ❤️

[@DrBecky]

That’s amazing Siona - glad I could help inspire!

[@LilLingLing6789]

@@DrBecky I think I've found my thing thank you very much.. I'm totally obsessed with the subject 😎😂

[@klaxoncow]

Also, did you know that not even ostriches actually bury their heads in the sand? It was a mistaken observation by a biologist way, way back - which has survived as a myth ever since. They were observing ostriches and then a predator showed up, and they noticed that the ostrich saw the predator but didn't immediately run. Rather, it seemed to "bury its head in the sand" - hence the saying. And the myth floated around that ostriches would "bury their heads in the sand", as if, because they couldn't see the predator, then there wasn't a predator and all was fine. But this was a mis-observation. A misreporting of what was actually going on. The ostrich was a MOTHER ostrich and what was missing from the understanding was that she was prioritising the safety of her eggs first. She was NOT "burying her head in the sand" but rather using her beak to brush sand over the eggs (because, you know, ostriches don't have hands, so she uses her beak), to hide them from the sight of the predator. Then, once hidden, the ostrich will run from the predator... which is as much about leading that predator away from where the eggs are buried, as it is about, you know, getting away from the predator themselves. Oh, and, also, lemmings don't commit suicide. It's just the crush of the crowd, when all the lemmings are marching together. If they march near a cliff, then the lemmings behind just keep instinctively marching forward and they end up pushing the lemmings near the edge of the cliff off. It's kind of like when folks sometimes get crushed up against the barriers at a rock concert, as the crowd moves forward - because the artist has come on stage or whatever - and then a "wave" moves forward through the crowd, until the folks at the front, get crushed up against the barriers. And, yes, the crush has sometimes been so bad that it's killed people. But, like, no-one is committing suicide or intending to kill anyone, it's just a chain reaction moving through the crowd that by the time it reaches the front, is now a crush of deadly force. Same thing with the lemmings, but it's a cliff, instead of a barrier. And, yes, that Disney movie where they supposedly filmed lemmings committing suicide? It was actually staged. They created an artificial "crush" to push them all off the cliff to their deaths. In a cruel twisted bit of logic that Disney had come to film this famously suicidal animal, but then found that, like, none of them actually wanted to commit suicide. So rather than create a documentary that dispels this myth about lemmings, Disney decided that it would fake it to meet its audience's expectations. They actually murdered these animals in order to capture footage of a myth that's not even true, just because audiences think it's true. I watched a lecture by David Attenborough about the ethics of making nature documentaries and that's his example of how you absolutely 100% should NEVER do it. The textbook example of the most horrible breach of the general rule "don't interfere with the animals, just observe them and explain to the audience what's going on". Just to be clear that, actually, the one animal that really is so dumb as to "bury its head in the sand" or kill actually non-suicidal animals just because everyone expects them to be suicidal from myth... is the human being. Human beings have advanced linguistical skills. Innate ability for speech. Handling abstract concepts for words and such. But to call that "intelligence" might be a stretch, looking at how the average human actually behaves. And, you know, there's no evidence yet that this isn't an evolutionary dead end... and it turns out that our supposed "intelligence" was actually a really bad idea. There's no evidence that "intelligence" is an ultimately evolutionarily beneficial trait yet.

[@amalieemmynoether992]

I was going to blow off your post as tldr but it has some interesting info in it. I already knew about the myths but never knew how they came about.

[@wwoods66]

Also, if you put a frog in a pot and heat it up, the frog will try to get out when it becomes uncomfortable.

[@bruceingalls7964]

Such a beautiful story of a subject smarter than the scientist observing it. I'm guessing that Disney had a whistle-blower. Who uncovered the biologist's mistake, & how?

[@StormChaserEliRoberts]

I love your videos and this is such a fun way of seeing even just some of your personality, humor and passion. Plus your accent is amazing!

[@bonkonthetronk]

I loved this movie, i watched it in theatre and didn't expect the impact at all. I love that it makes you think about how we handle the climate crisis!

[@aaronmicalowe]

It totally is. Over 20% of people in the USA deny there is any such thing as "climate change". That's 1 in 5 people.

[@zualapips1638]

Aha!! Going to theaters during covid. I'm calling the police 😡

[@scribbitb.4519]

This was amazing!! I could listen to your feedback for the whole film for sure. I had a question about comets! I thought they were made from mostly water and that we were mostly safe from them since they would burn up while entering the atmosphere! As I write this I realize their tails might come from lots of other things that might not burn up in our atmosphere fast enough for us to be safe, but I'm still super curious! Are comets even a proper category or are they just one thing under asteroids? Help, I've confused myself further

[@skepticalfaith5201]

They don’t always burn up all the way and they tend to explode. Check-out the Tunguska blast in Siberia 1908. There was also a recent comet explosion in Chelyabinsk, Russia a few years ago (2013). Nowhere near Tungska, but still did a lot of damage.

[@scribbitb.4519]

@@skepticalfaith5201 That's really interesting! thanks for telling me

[@caw25sha]

Can I make a suggestion please? I am currently reading The Three Body Problem by Cixin Liu and without giving any spoilers there's a lot of actual science in it (unlike some sci-fi!) and I would really like to hear your comments on it if you have read it.

[@Paplefication]

This is such a great book! Definitely second your request for a review!

[@jook360]

Me too. Or how about The Wandering Earth film that is also on Netflix. Also a film loosely based on a novel by Cixin Liu. Great CGI.

[@michaelarmes1138]

So much yes. The signal gain solution -- I was so much like, wow, really!? But also, really???!

[@SembeiNorimaki]

I agree. I have read the trilogy and is a must!

[@Bnio]

Well now I definitely need to see Dr. Becky's thoughts about firing a minigun at Jupiter.

[@gingadom1]

Hello, thank you for everything on this channel. As requested, here’s my list of things to watch: Hidden Figures, Ad Astra, Silent Running, Gravity, First Man and Sunshine. Thanks again🖖🏽

[@sallyscrive]

I've been waiting for this reaction video since I saw this movie on Christmas Day. As you, I expected the comet not to hit Earth and I was really blown away by the finale and also frustrated by the general public not accepting the scientific data and denying the evidence. Thank you for the video, always fun and educational ^_^

[@electrictroy2010]

Deep Impact shows the asteroid hitting the planet, so not sure why everyone is shocked. It’s happened previously in Hollywood movies .

[@drnekodr]

As a scientist.. I had the exact same reaction she did when she got to the denialism part of the movie, I was so furious.

[@DavidBeaumont]

I'd love to hear your views on the original "Andromeda Strain" film. It examines what might happen if an extra terrestrial organism were discovered. The technology used in the film is very dated but it shows scientists mostly just getting on with doing science. Don't watch the trailer first though as the film comes from a time when trailers are happy to give away key plot points!

[@osmosisjones4912]

Every doom's Day climate model over 50 years has been dead wrong

[@ELEKTROSKANSEN]

This!!!

[@ehsnils]

For me the most plausible space borne alien that we might encounter are the Vogons.

[@amalieemmynoether992]

@@ehsnils yes but all the planning documents and Earth demolition orders have been on display at our local planning office on Alpha Centauri for 50 years.

[@kingmasterlord]

it has a movie?

[@gnomadD_]

8:23 I think the point of doing the maths "raw" was to teach the method to his students. Like we still teach kids basic maths even though we live in a world where everyone now has a calculator in their pocket.

[@phillbullen3776]

The storyline was just there to make a point. The whole point of the movie was to point out our apathy to climate change.

[@creativedesignation7880]

It's a pattern though. People don't just deny climate change, but any fact they don't want to be real, so while that was the main idea, sadly it can be read in many ways.

[@byrnemeister2008]

@@creativedesignation7880 totally agree that it’s much broader. Sure it’s an allegory for climate change but fits COVID and any situation where science is delivering important bad news.

[@CorridorOfMirrorsRemixes]

I would go further and say apathy to everything, but yes, I completely agree with you. 🙏

[@HalNordmann]

These "catastrophe reaction" works always exaggarate. Climate change and similar problems are really complicated, but still solvable and being solved. Don't lose hope for humanity.

[@sandpiperr]

@@HalNordmann They are NOT being solved. 2021 recorded the warmest ocean temperatures on record? Do you understand the implications of that? You probably think you do, but you don't! If you did, you would not say climate change is being solved! The ocean warming even a little bit can lead to mass extinction to the point of food chain collapse, and in food chain collapse apex predators never survive. Guess what humans are? As for is it solvable? Yes it is, we're just refusing to do it! As I mentioned before, that was the point of Don't Look Up.

[@BytebroUK]

Dr B, I've been a computer programmer, often working with digital signal processing, for nigh on 43 years. That tool to inspect FITS images is almost stupidly good and useful! (Mind you, these days I'm writing Perl code to do giant mail-merge print/mail runs. Hey ho - still cutting code at 63!)

[@mikeharrison1868]

Perl!

[@davidlane256]

I enjoyed the ending the same way you did. I didn’t expect dinosaurs on the planet, but it was just. There’s another movie called melancholia where the earth gets killed. It drags on a bit, but the ending was a blast.

[@tntristan12]

18:37 is definitely the moment the central message of the movie lands in full force and Dr. Becky's reaction is just outstanding. 😅

[@Gabriel87100]

My dream was to watch a movie that accurately depicted the depressing and terrifying scenario of an asteroid impacting the planet and pretty much ending global civilization. From Hollywood, Deep Impact (1998) was the closest one to show this, at least until 'murica saving the planet in the last minute. What they also got wrong was the impact of the smaller piece, with people staring at it without as it traveled in this really weird angle in the sky without being burned alive or blinded, not to mention it would only take seconds rather than a full minute. From international movies, These Final Hours (2013) was the almost-perfect depiction. We don't get to see the actual impact, but the debris cloud reaching Australia after an impact in the North Atlantic. Although depicted as this wave of fire, it is symbolically the same as what would likely be in real life (temperatures high enough to kill every human). Not to mention this movie has such a hopeless atmosphere throughout it's really terrifying, and so masterfully crafted, you just KNOW there is nothing they can do about it. (PS. There were some pretty neat viral ARG that never caught on, which shows even more details about the event.) Now, there were other movies over the years. Armageddon (1998) and Greenland (2020), which are just silly pro-America blockbusters with some silly "science", and then you have Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012) and now this one, and in both of these, the actual disaster and its very-much serious risk is not the main focus, but just a vessel for comedy/satire. What this leads me to believe is that an actual, scientifically-based movie about this scenario is pretty much impossible now since it has become an overused topic. It would be harder to sell for studios to pick up and give the greenlight. And as someone else said in the comments, the message of this movie is as subtle as a sledgehammer, which I dislike, because it could've easily be a very-much serious drama tackling with the same issues in a more intelligent way. I also believe The Road (2009) could be "considered" a post-impact scenario, but both the movie and the book leave the actual cataclysm ambiguous. For it to work as a post-impact scenario, the people in the movie would have have survived the "summer" first somehow, to only then experience the "winter" as shown in the movie, and that would require some obvious changes, so it's not really a post-impact story. But this is just my ramblings since no one else would hear my venting, I guess in the end what matters is to keep it simple and funny for movies nowadays. Guess tastes are tastes.

[@electrictroy2010]

Deep Impact showed the east coast of America & Western Europe/Africa get flooded by the tsunami. Basically half the humans killed. I wouldn’t call that “saved”

[@Underpar26]

Why is it silly to be pro-america?

[@piccalillipit9211]

*I LOVED THIS* brilliant allegory of how the world would and IS reacting to horrific events - and I actually thought of you Dr Becky as I was watching it...!!! I saw you as a female DeCaprio character "the pretty scientist can stay" LOL

[@osmosisjones4912]

Every doom's Day climate change prediction has been dead wrong

[@ducky36F]

@@osmosisjones4912 🙄

[@TheRealMirCat]

The Sky is Falling really IS the perfect allegory, but not the way you think

[@martinsmolik2449]

@@osmosisjones4912 Imagine thinking this, just after watching this movie. How does it feel, believing politicians over scientists?

[@feldegast]

@@martinsmolik2449 belief imo is for things that can't be proven, ie what you have to take on faith.... ever needed to prove a door exists? i can see it, i know it's there, no need to believe in doors ;-) politicians ? they lie....you can tell cos they draw breath

[@HevyGee]

From a geomorphological perspective, I am curious to know how accurate was the impact's consequences. I understand the eventual climatologist impact: would the entire planet be consumed in earthquakes?

[@LincolnDWard]

The entire planet would feel the effects of what is essentially one giant earthquake - all strong earthquakes send out waves that can be detected all over the world, and a crater-forming impact like this would do the same thing on a much larger scale, to the point that the vibrations could actually be felt on the other side of the planet. As an interesting side note, Mercury actually has mountains that are thought to have been formed by the convergence of seismic waves at the point directly opposite some of its biggest craters. A much bigger problem, though, would be the pressure wave in the atmosphere (essentially a high-intensity sonic boom), which would also reach the whole planet (remember, e.g. the 20-meter asteroid that injured 1500 people in 2013 just by breaking apart 30 kilometers up in the atmosphere)

[@ChaosCustard]

didn't expect to learn so much from this, but found it really insightful. Nice video!

[@JamesWjRose]

I caught this a week ago, and at 3 minutes into your video the doors open JUST before they run measurements. Please correct me; Aren't the doors open "far" in advance so the room temp and the outside temp don't affect the mirror?

[@Aerostar509]

I liked the flood lights inside the observatory, just like my neighbors!

[@ThisNoName]

You are going to pay top dollars watching virtual paint drying far in advance?

[@JamesWjRose]

@@ThisNoName Oh goodness no, and I get that "for effect" and drama showing the doors opening is more interesting than just data on a screen. I am only curious what the time delay from opening to gathering data where the temp change does not affect that data. ie: Can you open the doors and take pictures right away

[@jansamohyl7983]

According to Wikipedia, the domes are there to also maintain the night temperature of the telescope during the day, so they are probably already equalized when the dome opens.

[@JasonRayShute]

I had pretty much the same reaction to this movie. I liked interstellar. It's completely unfeasible but ok for a space fantasy. I also love passengers and put it on when I can't sleep, mainly because I hope that would be able to get to that point in the future where all these things are possible even though we are on track to destroy ourselves well before then.

[@theoneatyourdoor87]

When you said DS9, thought of Star Trek: Deep Space 9.

[@Its_just_rand]

22:00 is my favorite of your reactions 😆 also appreciate how informational you are!