Aeon Video has a monthly newsletter!
Get curated editors’ picks, peeks behind the scenes, film recommendations and more.
To understand how an animal sees the world, start with the shape of its pupils
If you’ve ever peered into the eyes of a cat or a goat, you’ll have noticed that pupils can come in quite a few shapes and sizes. And those are just two among a great many animals – including geckos, toads, stingrays and cuttlefish – that demonstrate the diversity of pupil shapes in nature. With stylish and clever animation, this video from TED-Ed takes a brief dive into animal vision, detailing the wide range of pupil types in the eyes of the animal kingdom, as well as the fascinating ways they can shape perception and indicate a creature’s place in their ecosystem.
video
Physics
Groundbreaking visualisations show how the world of the nucleus gives rise to our own
10 minutes
video
Earth science and climate
There’s a ‘climate bomb’ ticking beneath the Arctic ice. How can we prepare?
8 minutes
video
Physics
To change the way you see the Moon, view it from the Sun’s perspective
5 minutes
video
Ecology and environmental sciences
GPS tracking reveals stunning insights into the patterns of migratory birds
6 minutes
video
Space exploration
The rarely told story of the fruit flies, primates and canines that preceded us in space
12 minutes
video
Neuroscience
This intricate map of a fruit fly brain could signal a revolution in neuroscience
2 minutes
video
Computing and artificial intelligence
The ‘cloud’ requires heaps of energy to stay aloft. Could synthetic DNA be the answer?
12 minutes
video
Biology
Brilliant dots of colour form exquisite patterns in this close-up of butterfly wings
3 minutes
video
Genetics
Why it took a century to work out that humans interbred with Neanderthals
22 minutes