There is No Algorithm for Truth - with Tom Scott

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  • เผยแพร่เมื่อ 22 ธ.ค. 2024

ความคิดเห็น • 5K

  • @TomScottGo
    @TomScottGo 5 ปีที่แล้ว +15470

    Thank you so much to all the team at the RI for inviting me! The memory of lecturing in the Faraday Theatre is going to stay with me for a long time.

    • @333STONE
      @333STONE 5 ปีที่แล้ว +9

      It is Truth we all should seek .

    • @BazilRat
      @BazilRat 5 ปีที่แล้ว +15

      So how does it feel to stand, so to speak, on the shoulders of the giants in their own home?

    • @Th3_Gael
      @Th3_Gael 5 ปีที่แล้ว +9

      Outstanding, same with your channels.
      Thanks Tom

    • @mattd8725
      @mattd8725 5 ปีที่แล้ว +25

      And you resisted the temptation to lecture everyone about the historic lectures that took place there. Very impressive.

    • @CBG232x5
      @CBG232x5 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Congrats on this and many other achievements in the last couple of years.

  • @columbus8myhw
    @columbus8myhw 5 ปีที่แล้ว +13495

    Came for Tom Scott.
    Stayed to hear Tom Scott berate me for coming for Tom Scott.

    • @cooltv2776
      @cooltv2776 5 ปีที่แล้ว +551

      accurate description of my experience

    • @Estigy
      @Estigy 5 ปีที่แล้ว +56

      This! :-D

    • @quietkiwi7572
      @quietkiwi7572 5 ปีที่แล้ว +572

      Same let us bond over our mutual parasocial relationship.

    • @botcontador3286
      @botcontador3286 5 ปีที่แล้ว +41

      Same thought I had while watching it.

    • @ulteriormotif
      @ulteriormotif 5 ปีที่แล้ว +211

      "Came for Tom Scott." ... phrasing...
      ...but no judgement

  • @alex0589
    @alex0589 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2743

    Fact: the algo recommended this, i clicked cause i like tom’s vids.
    Tom roasted everything about that fact for an hour.
    It’s alright. Cause tom is my friend. Im convinced of that.

    • @ICountFrom0
      @ICountFrom0 5 ปีที่แล้ว +182

      Strictly speaking , we are his friends, he is not our friend. I'm okay with that.

    • @FancyNoises
      @FancyNoises 5 ปีที่แล้ว +20

      @@ICountFrom0 Brilliant, you guys. :)

    • @Animaniac-vd5st
      @Animaniac-vd5st 5 ปีที่แล้ว +70

      @@ICountFrom0 one of the harder lessons in life: Friendship is not a symmetric relation.

    • @ICountFrom0
      @ICountFrom0 5 ปีที่แล้ว +29

      @@Animaniac-vd5st And non transitive. And that sucks the big one too.

    • @Animaniac-vd5st
      @Animaniac-vd5st 5 ปีที่แล้ว +20

      @@ICountFrom0 most shockingly, it's not even reflexive for many of us.

  • @das9115
    @das9115 2 ปีที่แล้ว +806

    I will forever be jealous of Toms ability to keep an audience gripped on every word he says. And with that I now realise what he means by an authoritative voice…

    • @cerdic6305
      @cerdic6305 2 ปีที่แล้ว +60

      It’s all about how he paces his sentences and how he stresses each word. The way he’s talking purposefully builds up a kind of tension, for lack of a better word

    • @ImHeadshotSniper
      @ImHeadshotSniper 2 ปีที่แล้ว +21

      @@cerdic6305 i mean while that might be part of it, i think the most important thing is the content of what he says, because if you don't know what to say, then your ability to pace sentences won't matter

    • @steviebudden3397
      @steviebudden3397 2 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      @A Guy: You might hope so, but I'm not convinced. The content of what he says here would seem to argue against that.

    • @bellybutthole
      @bellybutthole ปีที่แล้ว

      Jealous is a bit negetive now isn't it? Try impressed insted;-)

    • @croozerdog
      @croozerdog ปีที่แล้ว +7

      I learned how to do this to an extend with media training, it's crazy how a slight difference in tone can change your whole vibe

  • @neypomuk
    @neypomuk 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4539

    Rare footage of Tom Scott not wearing a red t-shirt

    • @bragapedro
      @bragapedro 3 ปีที่แล้ว +264

      it's underneath the suit

    • @sglenny001
      @sglenny001 3 ปีที่แล้ว +9

      Lol

    • @No-uc6fg
      @No-uc6fg 3 ปีที่แล้ว +143

      White reflects the entirety of the light spectrum so he is wearing a "red" shirt.

    • @jamesramplin8124
      @jamesramplin8124 3 ปีที่แล้ว +29

      @@No-uc6fg Touché

    • @henk-3098
      @henk-3098 3 ปีที่แล้ว +26

      or gray hoodie

  • @oxybrightdark8765
    @oxybrightdark8765 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1302

    I love listening to my friend Tom Scott. He’s factual sounding, with relatable moments. And he’s my friend and I’m not his.

    • @Rfc1394
      @Rfc1394 4 ปีที่แล้ว +78

      Son: Dad, I need $45 for Bruce Springsteen!
      Dad: You can pay your friend back next week.
      I never though that sitcom joke would become literal.

    • @e7venjedi
      @e7venjedi 4 ปีที่แล้ว +8

      This is the best comment I've read in a while. :D Cheers for the intelligent laugh!

    • @JorisDekkers1
      @JorisDekkers1 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Thats what I thought.

    • @oxybrightdark8765
      @oxybrightdark8765 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      The Elven Jedi gonna assume you’re referring to Paul Robinson , cause his joke was funny.

    • @DerMeyer88
      @DerMeyer88 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@oxybrightdark8765 exactly what i thought! sad pikachu

  • @eleanorharman4566
    @eleanorharman4566 5 ปีที่แล้ว +3754

    Part of me is disappointed and disturbed that Tom is not wearing a red t-shirt.

    • @abashedstorm
      @abashedstorm 5 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      Yes

    • @belliotrungy9107
      @belliotrungy9107 5 ปีที่แล้ว +74

      For 49.95 you can call the hotline to discuss.

    • @SamVekemans
      @SamVekemans 5 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      I guess I don't need to make a new comment to say the same thing.

    • @oldm9228
      @oldm9228 5 ปีที่แล้ว +50

      Very parasocial comment

    • @laychyetan7466
      @laychyetan7466 5 ปีที่แล้ว +32

      Although due respect has to be shown to the venue, not even a red tie....
      I am so disappointed two.

  • @araw_buwan
    @araw_buwan 3 ปีที่แล้ว +458

    Tom Scott's public speaking skills are to die for. I wonder what practice or journey Tom went through to be THIS good at public speaking? He oozes charisma and authority, and audiences can't help but be captivated by him. I'd love to know how he became such a master at public speaking as an aspiring public speaker myself.

    • @kgb4150
      @kgb4150 2 ปีที่แล้ว +48

      That's more than a decade of experience for you.

    • @qps9380
      @qps9380 2 ปีที่แล้ว +59

      @@kgb4150 The only answer to the question "How can someone get so good at x?" Practice. The answer is always practice.

    • @GT-tj1qg
      @GT-tj1qg 2 ปีที่แล้ว

      Autism. He really harnessed it as a force for good.

    • @generalguilmon6719
      @generalguilmon6719 ปีที่แล้ว +59

      It's because he dressed up as a pirate and accidentally won some student elections once

    • @Suppenfischeintopf
      @Suppenfischeintopf ปีที่แล้ว +18

      So true. I accidentally clicked on the video expecting a talk about Gödel's incompleteness theorem, but then found myself captivated before even realizing this was not what I was looking for …

  • @justins7796
    @justins7796 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2877

    That moment when the algorithm summons you to learn about itself in a video.

    • @JontyLevine
      @JontyLevine 5 ปีที่แล้ว +52

      Same here. This one's been appearing in my recommendations for months.

    • @hareecionelson5875
      @hareecionelson5875 4 ปีที่แล้ว +69

      It's trying to communicate!

    • @AaronOfMpls
      @AaronOfMpls 4 ปีที่แล้ว +20

      @@JontyLevine Mine too. Though to be fair, it _is_ an hour long, so I took my time in getting around to it.

    • @alicetries5954
      @alicetries5954 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      @@AaronOfMpls but you watched it so the video about itself got a point.

    • @Mugli01
      @Mugli01 4 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      And I have a conspiracy theory that TH-cam recommendation system has a goal of applying Schema Therapy on its users. :)

  • @ReidarWasenius
    @ReidarWasenius 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2819

    Greetings from Finland. The Algorithm suggested I watch this video. I had never heard about Tom Scott. He spoke very well and the topic was interesting, so I listened to the end. I will now immediately look up other videos by and with Tom Scott. I am eagerly waiting to see what the Servers feed me...

    • @aetherarcanist4819
      @aetherarcanist4819 4 ปีที่แล้ว +117

      Which will lead you to Computerphille because of his cameos there!

    • @megatrollificus
      @megatrollificus 4 ปีที่แล้ว +91

      And hopefully you'll find "Citation Needed", which is just a bunch of smart young British men cracking jokes around a random subject. Amazingly funny,.

    • @NithinJune
      @NithinJune 4 ปีที่แล้ว +51

      The TH-cam Algorithm always has a plan.
      All hail The TH-cam Algorithm

    • @ryguy5577
      @ryguy5577 4 ปีที่แล้ว +12

      @@megatrollificus I have fond memories of this pathway.

    • @ThePikaPlayer
      @ThePikaPlayer 4 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      Thanks Mr. Finland

  • @TheFlyingSatan
    @TheFlyingSatan 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1360

    "You gotta remember, all these big companies, Google, Facebook, Twitter, they are essentially advertising compani-" (Ad cuts in)

    • @ulalaFrugilega
      @ulalaFrugilega 3 ปีที่แล้ว +35

      Same here, that exact moment! And the kind you can't click away…

    • @NatoBoram
      @NatoBoram 3 ปีที่แล้ว +30

      If you want to get less ads, use an ad blocker

    • @emberbreak2172
      @emberbreak2172 3 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      mine was half an hour long

    • @ulalaFrugilega
      @ulalaFrugilega 3 ปีที่แล้ว +32

      @@NatoBoram I feel that suffering ads is my way of paying for the content.

    • @Megatonaxe
      @Megatonaxe 3 ปีที่แล้ว +11

      This video had ads? People don't have free ad blockers running?

  • @lowstrife
    @lowstrife 3 ปีที่แล้ว +651

    It's been 2 years - EDIT: 4 years.
    And this video ages better and better. Tom just nailed both the presentation and the framing of his talk.

    • @SeganHealthHacker
      @SeganHealthHacker 2 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      *If you really like him, you almost can't see he's very pro-globalism (pro-billionaires), very left wing, anti-Freedom. Too bad... No matter how decent a presenter (even though he blatantly copies Derren Brown's persona, which I like), I can't follow anyone who spreads ideas that are diametrically against what I believe in. Much, much rather watch Jordan Peterson, a thousand times.*

    • @pretzelhunt
      @pretzelhunt 2 ปีที่แล้ว +30

      @@SeganHealthHacker LOL he's not anti-freedom. Youre confused.

    • @luker.6967
      @luker.6967 2 ปีที่แล้ว +41

      @@SeganHealthHacker you are confused if you think left-wing is pro billionaire.

    • @thanhkhiettran1473
      @thanhkhiettran1473 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@SeganHealthHacker better believe that ya weird then.
      I would recommend you watching Get Out!

    • @SwitosVideo
      @SwitosVideo 2 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      @@luker.6967 It's a broad generalization but he is not wrong when you look at what is considered mainstream left.

  • @ClintThrust-e8r
    @ClintThrust-e8r 5 ปีที่แล้ว +3807

    Very interesting talk. This chap should start his own TH-cam channel or something....

    • @GegoXaren
      @GegoXaren 5 ปีที่แล้ว +243

      I almost wooshed myself.

    • @DanFrederiksen
      @DanFrederiksen 5 ปีที่แล้ว +31

      He's a blowhard. Well spoken, intelligent yet corrupt.

    • @geammanDW
      @geammanDW 5 ปีที่แล้ว +55

      @@DanFrederiksen Why is he corrupt?

    • @arsenymakarov6961
      @arsenymakarov6961 5 ปีที่แล้ว +68

      @@geammanDW by his own admission, I guess is the joke. Do you watch Tom's channel?

    • @geammanDW
      @geammanDW 5 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      @@arsenymakarov6961 No, I never saw him before. Its just an honest question.

  • @gooball2005
    @gooball2005 5 ปีที่แล้ว +274

    I'm in awe at his ability to know what to do with his hands.

    • @androkles04
      @androkles04 5 ปีที่แล้ว +18

      I did not realise this, and now I hate you for making me watch the whole thing again while fixated on his hands.
      But I will admit you are right, he is excellent at using his hands to subtly emphasise his deliveries and points.

  • @andriypredmyrskyy7791
    @andriypredmyrskyy7791 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1367

    Somehow this lecture gets more and more relevant with each passing year.

    • @xierus
      @xierus 3 ปีที่แล้ว +21

      "Somehow" uh, social media companies still make their profits off ads and all of us would like to be making more money?

    • @possoumous7266
      @possoumous7266 3 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      Lecture was on September 27, 2019. There has only been 1

    • @pdf-file
      @pdf-file 3 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      @@possoumous7266 well 2 now but still very relevant

    • @rickeydart3040
      @rickeydart3040 2 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      Yeah it's almost like a problem from only 2 years ago is still around today.

    • @SeganHealthHacker
      @SeganHealthHacker 2 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      *He's very pro-globalism (pro-billionaires), very left wing, anti-Freedom. Too bad. No matter how decent a presenter (even though he blatantly copies Derren Brown's persona), I can't follow anyone who spreads ideas that are diametrically against what I believe in. Much, much rather watch Jordan Peterson, a thousand times.*

  • @thomasrosebrough9062
    @thomasrosebrough9062 2 ปีที่แล้ว +580

    Incredible that this came out pre-pandemic. The part about "antivax" hit especially hard.

    • @HAL9000.
      @HAL9000. 2 ปีที่แล้ว +13

      I thought that too. I had to check the date.

    • @Hi-cl7fy
      @Hi-cl7fy ปีที่แล้ว

      Where was this?

    • @crysis_averted
      @crysis_averted ปีที่แล้ว +42

      Because none of the "anti-vax" sentiment before COVID was dealing with a vaccines that skipped all the normal testing. I also don't recall anyone saying someone's life and livelihood should be destroyed for questioning any vax prior to COVID even if they disagreed with them.

    • @etymonlegomenon931
      @etymonlegomenon931 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@crysis_averted The pre-2020 antivax stuff was manufactured to get people ready to be angry later on if they ever needed to push a rushed vaccine.

    • @jpdemer5
      @jpdemer5 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@crysis_averted The diseases are very efficient at destroying lives and livelihoods ... that's why we have the vaccines.

  • @ethan-loves
    @ethan-loves 5 ปีที่แล้ว +391

    This lecture is a lot to think about. I'm noticing that I feel uncomfortable with how some of it applies to my behaviors and beliefs - this makes me even more glad to have watched it.
    Thank you, Tom Scott, and the Royal Institution, for producing and sharing this video with us.

    • @Cythil
      @Cythil 5 ปีที่แล้ว +11

      Oh yes. Tom Scott can sometimes have that effect on you. ;)

    • @aronhighgrove4100
      @aronhighgrove4100 5 ปีที่แล้ว +9

      It makes me realize how people react to content, and how a large part really do care more about people. It sounds obvious, and it's been said many times, but his examples and references were insightful, as they did relate to the non-Internet world as well.
      I suppose more people get into "payed friendship" relation since social media times, even if they weren't much into "offline" stars before.
      A lot of communication has became that way, even for people who aren't famous (yet), which is why it starts in less obvious ways. It seems more people are adopting this behavior while trying to make a living online.
      A danger that somehow was felt, uncomfortable, but had to be heard in a clear way to fully realize.

    • @Cythil
      @Cythil 5 ปีที่แล้ว +13

      @@aronhighgrove4100 Of course streaming in it self is a complex situation since the reason why some stream is to actually get friends. That is the streamer also gain a social benefit from streaming and do not expect any donations. Some feeling even bad about taking donations (and some refusing to do so).
      So the whole Parasocial relationship situation is more a grey scale in modern media then something very black and while like old broadcast media.
      This also goes for other new media like blogging and twittering where a lot of people do so at start as for social reason. Some becoming influencers later on. And some do it of course just to increase there media presence if there already known figure.
      On top of that we also have the situation where a lot of people seek out these new media, not to communicate with the Creator, but with like-minded fans. I know that when I my self use the chat function or post function in a lot of new media my comments are not aimed at the Creator but other people frequenting the chat, forum or what-have-you.

  • @WarrenGarabrandt
    @WarrenGarabrandt 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1155

    "This should exist, and I'm willing to donate money to make that happen" is pretty much why I have the Patreon subscriptions that I do. I'm happy to pay for worthy content.

    • @woutervanr
      @woutervanr 4 ปีที่แล้ว +28

      Same. Wintergatan and Standupmaths to name a few of them. I don't donate loads, I can't, but unlike some kid streaming games it's original and not self sustaining.

    • @WarrenGarabrandt
      @WarrenGarabrandt 4 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      @@woutervanr I especially like The Science Asylum's and Tantacrul's work.

    • @ganeshnimbalkar2792
      @ganeshnimbalkar2792 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@WarrenGarabrandt Me too, I think his work is too underrated.

    • @chuck1804
      @chuck1804 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      Yea that's kind of what it's for ...🤔

    • @tearsofjoyforallthispain
      @tearsofjoyforallthispain 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      Let's hope the things you are helping to fund aren't the downfall of society. Let's all bow down and praise the dystopian nightmare, total surveillance control grid, total tracking of the global population "new normal", that they are telling us all about, while we ignore and call anyone questioning it a "crazy conspiracy theorist". George Orwell's 1984 here we are.

  • @francescoghizzo
    @francescoghizzo 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1822

    So, Tom Scott is the only guy who is able to give a public speech without a Macbook. Impressive

    • @mtspace77
      @mtspace77 5 ปีที่แล้ว +268

      Can't bodge on a Mac.

    • @YawnGod
      @YawnGod 5 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      First thing I noticed.

    • @MarceldeJong
      @MarceldeJong 5 ปีที่แล้ว +130

      @@melonduofromage6058 what self respecting nerd wants to own a Mac? Most nerds run Linux

    • @davidgustavsson4000
      @davidgustavsson4000 5 ปีที่แล้ว +205

      @@MarceldeJong you can totally install Linux on a Mac. More like what self respecting nerd would pay that much extra for the hardware?

    • @HansPeter-qg2vc
      @HansPeter-qg2vc 5 ปีที่แล้ว +14

      @@davidgustavsson4000 I heard that decreases battery life a lot. Like halves it. You'll probably get the same performance and more battery life from anything else that's half the price.

  • @Cloudsurfer69
    @Cloudsurfer69 2 ปีที่แล้ว +73

    i actually emailed Tom and he replied to me. i was so stunned and he was lovely. i was just about starting content creation and bless him, i asked thee worst questions... but he replied and was super nice about it. something i am sure he has been asked a million times. i thought that really reflected a lot about what type of person he must be deep down.

    • @camleee
      @camleee 3 หลายเดือนก่อน

      I know this is two years later, but same for me. I messaged him about some freelance work maybe 6 or 7 years ago and he replied instantly

  • @flazefeeds381
    @flazefeeds381 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1477

    me: *scrolls down a bit*
    also me: "Ah, there are my people. They're the ones that are right."

    • @alezacrespublik6655
      @alezacrespublik6655 5 ปีที่แล้ว +63

      scrolled down just after he said that

    • @idaret.
      @idaret. 5 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      relatable

    • @PenguinLord10
      @PenguinLord10 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @Im this guy's Other account who are*** correct

    • @Konayo_
      @Konayo_ 5 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      @@HighestRank 56:05 why are you falsely correcting this - you are not my people

    • @the314Qwerty
      @the314Qwerty 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      *Liked the comment by a person who is right and is one of my people*.

  • @arwahsapi
    @arwahsapi 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2871

    Tom Scott's voice is getting more and more authoritative these days.

    • @mayankraj2294
      @mayankraj2294 4 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      Wot? Wdym?

    • @Floedekage
      @Floedekage 4 ปีที่แล้ว +91

      @@mayankraj2294 they mean that it might not be true or untrue. But is is definitively authoritative.

    • @t0mgr33n
      @t0mgr33n 4 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      Lololololol

    • @Stretch213
      @Stretch213 4 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      First listen. Ill take ya as a warning..

    • @matthewmargo8573
      @matthewmargo8573 4 ปีที่แล้ว +9

      Authortitiv

  • @sl1pg8r
    @sl1pg8r 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1476

    "We'll get back to that later." He's trying to make us watch the whole video! ;)

    • @ikkeolve
      @ikkeolve 5 ปีที่แล้ว +20

      Surprised to see you here😆👍 Have a nice day!

    • @misode
      @misode 5 ปีที่แล้ว +30

      @@ikkeolve You only replied that because you believe that you are Sl1pg8r's friend 😉

    • @ikkeolve
      @ikkeolve 5 ปีที่แล้ว +22

      @@misode Oh no, it went full circle 😳

    • @wolfelkan8183
      @wolfelkan8183 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      He learned that from Darren Brown.

    • @Mitaka.Kotsuka
      @Mitaka.Kotsuka 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      and got baack literally 3 min before the end of the video

  • @ПетърПетров-ъ9л
    @ПетърПетров-ъ9л 3 ปีที่แล้ว +158

    This guy is so believable. I love how cheekily honest and open he is and all the irony surrounding this.

    • @SeganHealthHacker
      @SeganHealthHacker 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      *If you really like him, you almost can't see he's very pro-globalism (pro-billionaires), very left wing, anti-Freedom. Too bad... No matter how decent a presenter (even though he blatantly copies Derren Brown's persona, which I like), I can't follow anyone who spreads ideas that are diametrically against what I believe in. Much, much rather watch Jordan Peterson, a thousand times.*

    • @amistrophy
      @amistrophy 2 ปีที่แล้ว +22

      @@SeganHealthHacker mald

    • @jwlsiee
      @jwlsiee 2 ปีที่แล้ว +26

      @@SeganHealthHacker "jordan peterson" yep the pillar of stable and wise content

    • @topsyturvy1097
      @topsyturvy1097 2 ปีที่แล้ว

      He has a bunch of channels and a new podcast called Latent :)

    • @curly7985
      @curly7985 2 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@SeganHealthHacker Why are you going to every comment then copying and pasting the same thing? Like people care so much about your opinion.

  • @TheTwick
    @TheTwick 5 ปีที่แล้ว +362

    I’m glad the RI audience was introduced to Tom - his work is of the highest caliber. Thank you, Tom, for another well done lecture.

    • @AkiSan0
      @AkiSan0 5 ปีที่แล้ว +18

      i think at this point we could plug brady harans channels and the people that are in those videos.

    • @itskdog
      @itskdog 5 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      Aki San
      a lot of Brady’s videos don’t feature Brady himself, and instead feature the experts - Brady stands in for the viewer, asking the questions to help the conversational nature of the video continue, giving that parasocial relationship Tom described.

    • @AkiSan0
      @AkiSan0 5 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      thats what i said...

  • @MrPepelongstockings
    @MrPepelongstockings 4 ปีที่แล้ว +344

    A big thanks to Tom for not wasting hours of my life with lengthy intros, theme songs, or self-indulgent monologues about how life as a TH-camr is so quirky and hard. One of the few TH-camrs I can stand to watch again and again.

  • @AKAMustang
    @AKAMustang 5 ปีที่แล้ว +299

    "The best photo that will ever be taken of me in my life"
    Was totally expecting this to be having passed out after a high G loop.

    • @LordQueezle
      @LordQueezle 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Same, though.

    • @tuesdaywithanh
      @tuesdaywithanh 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      I was hoping that too

    • @elisttm
      @elisttm 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      same

    • @billharris3650
      @billharris3650 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Was waiting for the 'passed out on a front lawn after a party' shot.

    • @maruftim
      @maruftim 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      Yeah lol, would've been funny if he put it in there

  • @virtualrealitea
    @virtualrealitea 3 ปีที่แล้ว +153

    "In more than fifteen years of publishing on the internet, Tom has visited the High Arctic, passed out in a centrifuge, and somehow got three million people to watch a video about why the British plug is a great invention."
    That last one perfectly captures the brilliance of his channel XD

  • @toatrika2443
    @toatrika2443 4 ปีที่แล้ว +524

    This is literally the most comprehensive video about why youtube works the way it does without even explicitly being about that.

    • @particleman5893
      @particleman5893 4 ปีที่แล้ว +17

      the most comprehensive take on any given issue will always be a take on the larger family of issues that it is a part of.

    • @LDawgShizzle
      @LDawgShizzle 3 ปีที่แล้ว

      @Joji Joestar l

  • @wolfelkan8183
    @wolfelkan8183 4 ปีที่แล้ว +665

    00:10 Introduction
    06:41 Part 1: The Algorithm
    23:08 Part 2: The State of Science Communication
    33:49 Part 3: Parasocial
    45:49 Part 4: Echo Chambers and Nazi Bars
    56:17 Part 5: There Is No Algorithm for Truth

  • @joewilliams5057
    @joewilliams5057 5 ปีที่แล้ว +698

    "If you want to get fewer adverts, skip them!" *advert starts*

    • @MrEvolutionable
      @MrEvolutionable 5 ปีที่แล้ว +11

      Yeah, had exactly the same thing...

    • @xCorvus7x
      @xCorvus7x 5 ปีที่แล้ว +15

      I didn't, curiously.
      Maybe your work has already paid off?

    • @gasdive
      @gasdive 5 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      Same. Ad served up.

    • @1224chrisng
      @1224chrisng 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      great advice from someone that makes money from ads /sarc

    • @ryanoftinellb
      @ryanoftinellb 5 ปีที่แล้ว +8

      Mine was unskippable, too.

  • @the_weird_one6472
    @the_weird_one6472 3 ปีที่แล้ว +331

    From all of 33:44 to 45:45 really hit me like a truck. I realised that I literally only watch Tom Scott because of how charming he is to me as a person. He's so interesting, and funny and I feel like I have a personal friendship. I am barely interested in anything he talks about - I don't care about g - force or an island that has too much power, but I am interested in him. I enjoy all the memes made about him, the community about him. Literally, even look through these comments, all most all of them are about how he doesn't age, or how he only wears red shirts or something of the like. I literally only like Tom Scott for Tom Scott, and not for anything scientific he talks about.

    • @color4795
      @color4795 3 ปีที่แล้ว +17

      It's also sort of what happened with Nikocado Avocado, where they watched him just for him and the drama

    • @SeganHealthHacker
      @SeganHealthHacker 2 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      *He's very pro-globalism (pro-billionaires), very left wing, anti-Freedom. Too bad. No matter how decent a presenter (even though he blatantly copies Derren Brown's persona), I can't follow anyone who spreads ideas that are diametrically against what I believe in. Much, much rather watch Jordan Peterson, a thousand times.*

    • @flyingsheep567
      @flyingsheep567 2 ปีที่แล้ว +56

      @@SeganHealthHacker, just out of interest, why do you think those things? I don’t think that Tom Scott has openly talked about his views on politics. Also, Peterson (from what I’ve seen) and Scott have very different genres of videos, Peterson is much more political and Scott informational, so is that a fair comparison?
      I mean no disrespect to you, and you have every right to watch what you want to watch. I’m just interested in the reasoning behind the comment.

    • @tree_tape
      @tree_tape 2 ปีที่แล้ว +78

      @@flyingsheep567 There's no use in trying to have a sincere conversation with someone like this. He looks like a total looney, but you're giving him the benefit of the doubt, which is well and all but.. if he looks like a looney, it's because he is. Go look at the rest of this comment section. He's sent this same non sequitur reply to like 15 other comments. It's not like he's trying to spark up a conversation with it or anything, he just somehow has gotten himself to think that reading this alone will convince someone. It might appear laudable to try to engage with an idea you don't necessarily agree with, but with a lot of people, engaging is really just a waste of breath because they're not here to listen. In this case, this guy's engaging in some real looney behaviour and clearly isn't the type of person you can hold an actual conversation with.

    • @greason
      @greason 2 ปีที่แล้ว +18

      Conversely I mainly watch him because I am genuinely interested in everything he talks about and his style of videos explain it in a way that I can understand.

  • @jamalcolmson
    @jamalcolmson 5 ปีที่แล้ว +183

    "It isn't about the game, it's about the person playing it."
    So true. The best let's play I ever saw featured a guy who was playing the game. Over time, he made friends with a girl because of the game and she started joining in on the videos. By the end of the series, they were expecting their first child. I wasn't watching because I cared so much about the monsters they were farming, I was watching because I had fallen in love with the human story that had grown around it.

    • @danielsjohnson
      @danielsjohnson 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      What game were they playing and who was the guy?

    • @jamalcolmson
      @jamalcolmson 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      I don't remember his name, but they were playing Monster Rancher for the original play station, I believe.

    • @danielsjohnson
      @danielsjohnson 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@jamalcolmson That was a game? I thought it was only a TV series.

    • @jamalcolmson
      @jamalcolmson 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@danielsjohnson It was a videogame before it was a TV series.

    • @clockworkkirlia7475
      @clockworkkirlia7475 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@jamalcolmson I think I may have wandered into a world where Pokemon came out on home consoles. :P

  • @biaroca
    @biaroca 5 ปีที่แล้ว +187

    I'm glad that the TH-cam algorithm knows that I like Tom Scott AND the RI !

    • @SilverMe2004
      @SilverMe2004 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      Wow! Really? Is there really much cross over between Scott And the RI?

    • @bryceforsyth8521
      @bryceforsyth8521 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@SilverMe2004 It appears so.

  • @thedanalcantara
    @thedanalcantara 5 ปีที่แล้ว +74

    An ad playing the moment Tom said “all of these platforms are advertising companies” was perfect.

  • @MLIOGJXNUYAT
    @MLIOGJXNUYAT 2 ปีที่แล้ว +91

    I watched another video titled "There is No Algorithm for Truth", which discussed the mathematics, information theory, and logic which proved that. So the misguided "algorithm" (in Tom's sense) thought I would like this one. I enjoyed a few of his videos in the past, and knew *that* sort of thing seemed an unlikely topic for him, so I clicked out of curiosity. And was surprised but not disappointed.

    • @jasonreed7522
      @jasonreed7522 2 ปีที่แล้ว +14

      I was expecting something along the lines of it being impossible to find the objective truth. (The scientific method tries, but it technically only eliminates bad answers)
      Not disappointed its about machine learning "algorithms" used to curate our content and the consequences thereof.

    • @bowieaya8594
      @bowieaya8594 ปีที่แล้ว

      link?

  • @markog1999
    @markog1999 5 ปีที่แล้ว +360

    I dunno tom, looking fly and lecturing from Faraday's desk could easily be a runner up for best photo of you.

  • @gvidasbrilius2385
    @gvidasbrilius2385 5 ปีที่แล้ว +253

    31:03 The moment I heard that distinctive laugh I knew it was Matt.

    • @Jizzrazz
      @Jizzrazz 5 ปีที่แล้ว +36

      I like how it was Only matt xD

    • @itskdog
      @itskdog 5 ปีที่แล้ว +35

      I hadn’t noticed that. Thanks for pointing it out!

    • @lauraireson6358
      @lauraireson6358 5 ปีที่แล้ว +19

      And now this makes me sad because the talk is exactly the type of thing they would have had a park bench video on.

    • @MattGrayYES
      @MattGrayYES 5 ปีที่แล้ว +21

      Sorry, not me!

    • @itskdog
      @itskdog 5 ปีที่แล้ว +11

      @@MattGrayYES Matt has a laugh Doppelganger...

  • @markusr3259
    @markusr3259 5 ปีที่แล้ว +592

    Presenting in that room... achievement unlocked.

    • @Jesse__H
      @Jesse__H 5 ปีที่แล้ว +24

      right? Mr. Scott deserves it tho, he's credible as all get-out.

  • @MaskedNozza
    @MaskedNozza 3 ปีที่แล้ว +205

    That was fantastic. As Tom explained, the algorithm is always dangerous and I think we all have a moral imperative to never believe something outright from someone on the internet. Creators have a responsibility to fact-check as much as they possibly can and be honest if something is opinion like Tom was. And we as viewers have a responsibility to double-check and cross-reference what we hear from educators, to inform them when what they say doesn't match up with the consensus or reality, and to protect others from falling into the same mistakes.

    • @DeosPraetorian
      @DeosPraetorian 3 ปีที่แล้ว +12

      The problem is that's too much work to most people

    • @eneco3965
      @eneco3965 2 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      >we all have a moral imperative to never believe something outright
      Should've ended the sentence there, to be honest.

    • @SeganHealthHacker
      @SeganHealthHacker 2 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      *If you really like him, you almost can't see he's very pro-globalism (pro-billionaires), very left wing, anti-Freedom. Too bad... No matter how decent a presenter (even though he blatantly copies Derren Brown's persona, which I like), I can't follow anyone who spreads ideas that are diametrically against what I believe in. Much, much rather watch Jordan Peterson, a thousand times.*

    • @janelantestaverde2018
      @janelantestaverde2018 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      I don't think the algorithm is necessarily dangerous, and it's definitely not _always_ dangerous. It's also most definitely not what Tom implied with his statements. He even states it as a necessity to deal with loads of information and, in the case of TH-cam, videos that can't be dealt with by people. But the human aspect shouldn't be ruled out, at least, that's what I got out of it.

    • @skilz8098
      @skilz8098 2 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@SeganHealthHacker I find the topic interesting and find the presentation to be rather good regardless of whether I agree with it or not. However, I'd rather watch George Carlin at least once a week. I think I'll find more truth there!

  • @sebimoe
    @sebimoe 5 ปีที่แล้ว +206

    "And that brings us to the start, as mentioned in the middle."

    • @Neonb88
      @Neonb88 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      I noticed it too

    • @worthstream
      @worthstream 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Wasn't he referring to Darren Brown,that magician he talks about in the middle? The one he's stealing the trick of "show something in the beginning then set it aside, let them forget, and then bring it back in the end"? He's doing that: Talking about the algorithm pof truth in the beginning, putting it aside and bringing it back in the end.

  • @whathevid
    @whathevid 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1110

    I do this game, everytime somebody says “uhm” in a video I take a shot of tequilia. I’ve now been sober for an entire hour..

    • @boiledelephant
      @boiledelephant 5 ปีที่แล้ว +199

      His oration's insane. A little too quick for my tastes, but otherwise a total master.

    • @softgender
      @softgender 5 ปีที่แล้ว +21

      4:06

    • @codingtunes840
      @codingtunes840 5 ปีที่แล้ว +42

      5:59 I've found that he's says "uhm" directly after telling a joke during the applause

    • @DaVince21
      @DaVince21 5 ปีที่แล้ว +83

      He's learned the trick of replacing uhms with a short bit of silence.

    • @danielsjohnson
      @danielsjohnson 5 ปีที่แล้ว +21

      He said "uh" at 37:46 but it fit in so naturally with the sentence I didn't notice it the first time I watched this.

  • @jlupus8804
    @jlupus8804 4 ปีที่แล้ว +229

    “When a metric becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure.”
    -Goodheart’s Law.

    • @jenniferstjames7032
      @jenniferstjames7032 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      Well said👍

    • @jlupus8804
      @jlupus8804 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @Steven Moore -Murphy's Law

    • @nmarbletoe8210
      @nmarbletoe8210 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      I recall that concept dealt with at length in W. E. Deming's great work on Total Quality Control.

    • @ulalaFrugilega
      @ulalaFrugilega 3 ปีที่แล้ว +9

      Could someone please explain that to me. It sounds profound, I'd like to get it.

    • @jlupus8804
      @jlupus8804 3 ปีที่แล้ว +17

      @@ulalaFrugilega Some scientists, engineers, and designers may focus so much on hitting a certain goal that they don't care what gets worse in the process of reaching it.
      For example: many people want black Americans to make the exact amount of money as white Americans- that's a measure of money. The issue with this is even if they were given enough money, that wouldn't account for all kinds of factors that would put them back in lower statuses. So you'd have to perpetually keep redistributing to them taxpayer money in order to make up that racial wage gap that is there. That's a huge burden on the taxpayer. That's bad science. A better way to approach the issue is to find other ways to help them out without outright redistribution.
      Does that help?

  • @PARIKSHITHM
    @PARIKSHITHM 3 ปีที่แล้ว +59

    Really amazing talk. Realizing there is no simple solution to all the misinformation being circulated out there by misinformed or ill-intentioned people is really frightening, because well informed citizenry is crucial for any democratic society.

    • @CanIHasThisName
      @CanIHasThisName 3 ปีที่แล้ว +15

      A lot of people are very opposed to that notion, but democracy indeed begins to fail when a large portion of the population is swayed by populism and misinformation. Suddenly you don't just have sides arguing about how to approach a problem, now you also have sides objectively incorrectly arguing that the problem is of a different nature, that it doesn't exist or that there's a completely different problem which needs attention.
      And the logical extreme of that is: If misinformed and emotional voters are impossible to effectively eliminate, does that make the premise of the current model of democracy in modern world unrealistic?

    • @SeganHealthHacker
      @SeganHealthHacker 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      *If you really like him, you almost can't see he's very pro-globalism (pro-billionaires), very left wing, anti-Freedom. Too bad... No matter how decent a presenter (even though he blatantly copies Derren Brown's persona, which I like), I can't follow anyone who spreads ideas that are diametrically against what I believe in. Much, much rather watch Jordan Peterson, a thousand times.*

    • @digaddog6099
      @digaddog6099 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      ​​@@CanIHasThisName
      Every weakness of people is also a weakness of a person. An individual can be swayed with misinformation just as well as ten. Populism is a tricky subject to grapple with, because although it has lead to bad outcomes, the central premises are often true: some people have substantially more power than others, this power imbalance often causes conflicts of interests, in those conflicts of interest those with disproportional power often hold the same interests, and if power is the cause of a conflict of interests, it's often a bad idea to maintain that power.
      If I had to guess, the reason that populism can lead to bad outcomes is because its a political shakeup which let's bad actors in. Like, imagine if there was a throne somewhere, and that throne gave you some sort of power if you sat in it. Populism would cause people to push the ruler out of the throne. After that, you just have to hope the next person to sit on it is there with good intentions.
      Let's talk about the misinformation part again. More specifically, let's talk about Technocracy. Under a technocracy, what you would typically expect is that the base system is that of expert appointees. Each branch of the government could deal with what's in their domain, the economists deal with the economy, the climate scientists deal with climate, and so on. They would conduct studies to find out if something is true.
      Now, what happens if theres a conflict of interests here? Something we forget now that these revolutions have been fought and won is that monarchies were supported in part just because of logistics. These logistics were, in the end, wrong. If a yes or no on a policy would make people happier, democracy will tend towards picking that option. So democracy always has that direct utilitarian benefit. A technocracy would hopefully try to have the best interests of the people in mind, but in the end there is no good particle. If you value human happiness or the word of god or doing the right thing even when it doesn't help anyone, you cant derive that from anywhere. And if the technocrats dont share the same values, you dont really have a good way of dealing with them. If a democratic majority is all it takes to get rid of technocracy, well, the line between democracy and technocracy is fuzzy. If a supermajority is required, all the technate needs to do to keep power is use misinformation to keep a minority on their side, with scientific legitimacy and much more power backing them up.

    • @stuff2008
      @stuff2008 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      The problem with misinformation is it is now the norm even in the mainstream. So when we talk about limiting misinformation were actually just talking about limiting extremes opinions (which would be desirable) and second opinions on the mainstream feeds (which is not desirable). I will give an example, all over BBC and other international government broadcasters, which you assume are the lest biased, were flooded a bunch of stories about how rent control in Sweden failed. The stories were a thinly vailed attack on the interest of renters in favor of the banking system. The articles were full of misinformation, not backed by the data, and purposefully crafted to misinform. Sweden's rent control issues are actually better for access and price even in its worse situation than in Canada in its best situations. We have professionals here that not only cannot afford house they are spending over half their income to share a basement in old single family homes. One case was 7 men in a basement two of which worked for a bank. Half were so embarrassed they refused to be filmed. In the articles on how Sweden's rent control failed, they covered a professional new graduate that had a whole apartment to themselves that was paying the same amount as the people in a shared basement here.

    • @brynleytalbot778
      @brynleytalbot778 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@SeganHealthHacker You express the real issue with social media, that it’s far too easy to find and then focus on those who share your values, meaning you become highly biased and prejudiced, lacking any impartiality. Peterson is equally extreme in his perspectives which, as Tom says, is a win win in the social media circus run for attention span and advertising revenue based on retaining viewing till the video ends.

  • @richtigmann1
    @richtigmann1 4 ปีที่แล้ว +86

    I never even realized that tom scott doesn't use any cuts for a lot of his videos. He just have spent so much time getting the monologue just right

  • @katat4649
    @katat4649 5 ปีที่แล้ว +311

    When Tom Scot says "it's up to us" my first thought is we are doomed.

    • @databang
      @databang 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      (ಠ_ರ) Well that’s a grim perspective. That seems to be an esteem issue or maybe you’re surrounded by morons? If you think you’re smart enough to identify the worst maybe use your Boolean logic to identify the best, and associate with them instead.

    • @katat4649
      @katat4649 5 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      ​@@databang I hope I am wrong but I don't see how we can change course.

    • @TheAcdcninja
      @TheAcdcninja 5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      databang thus leaving the sub-par majority to drive us off a cliff anyway? Finding ‘the best’ in your example is effectively just locking yourself in an intellectual ivory tower if you happen to be blessed/cursed with a brain capable of deeper thought. If the majority still lose the match for us, we all still go down...

    • @solgato5186
      @solgato5186 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@TheAcdcninja Sounds like a problem to solve.

    • @TheAcdcninja
      @TheAcdcninja 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      Solgato Blogopogo I spend my whole life wondering how to save the world. The only time’s I feel like I might have something even vaguely viable, I’m definitely into supervillain territory.

  • @mgd8867
    @mgd8867 4 ปีที่แล้ว +225

    Tom's face hasn't aged at all in the years that I've been watching him

    • @Kannot2023
      @Kannot2023 4 ปีที่แล้ว +19

      Tom doesn't exists :) It is an image created by the youtube algorithm :)

    • @club882
      @club882 3 ปีที่แล้ว +13

      We could make a conspiracy theory out of this!

    • @emacantsaoir
      @emacantsaoir 3 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      I realise that this is months later but:
      You've obviously never watched Only Connect series 03 ep 04

    • @Masterrunescapeer
      @Masterrunescapeer 3 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      He had to deal with more time zones.

    • @oozedinosaur2929
      @oozedinosaur2929 3 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      only his hair ages

  • @marianedmond5326
    @marianedmond5326 2 ปีที่แล้ว +10

    When you said "Google, twitter, facebook...are essentially advertising companies", you were put on hold and I was taken to a car ad. The universe has a wicked sense of humor. The timing was impecable.

    • @jasonreed7522
      @jasonreed7522 2 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      I think its related to their being a short pause at the end of the sentence, and youtube has an ad placement algorithm that tries to not cut people off mid sentence and loves to put ads at transitions in videos. (Which can be annoying, but sometimes it has perfect comedic timing)

  • @Discostew2
    @Discostew2 5 ปีที่แล้ว +431

    15:04 “these companies are essentially advertis-“
    *AD PLAYS*
    Well played TH-cam, well played

    • @LuciusC
      @LuciusC 5 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      Oh he knew. It's like clockwork.

    • @KipIngram
      @KipIngram 4 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      UBlock Origin. Check it out...

    • @omori3007
      @omori3007 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@KipIngram on mobile

    • @KipIngram
      @KipIngram 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@omori3007 Ah, sorry about that. Do help me spread the word on UBlock Origin, though - it's. a fantastic package for desktop Chrme browsers.

    • @dafoex
      @dafoex 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      Omori
      If you're on Android, try NewPipe from the F-Droid repositories.
      Alternatively, the TH-cam mobile website is a buggy piece of whatsit and just doesn't play adverts.

  • @maritrndal815
    @maritrndal815 5 ปีที่แล้ว +652

    ironically enough, i'm here because the algorithm recommended this to me.

    • @SomeFreakingCactus
      @SomeFreakingCactus 5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      @@HighestRank What came first: the chicken or the egg?
      Was it the algorithm recommending this video that brought them here, or was it this person's trust in the algorithm to provide an engaging video? Both contributed, but determining the #1 main contributor of this outcome is all a matter of perspective.

    • @ColegaBill
      @ColegaBill 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Tho, ignoring an algorithm also is an algorithm and therefore fallible.

    • @jessecatrainham6957
      @jessecatrainham6957 5 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      The machines learn from us; keep making thoughtful, intelligent choices. We can all help influence how the algorithms grow and change.

    • @baotran9572
      @baotran9572 5 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      What so ironic about this

    • @3nertia
      @3nertia 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@HighestRank Deterministic probabilities ;)

  • @topmark99
    @topmark99 5 ปีที่แล้ว +228

    You look so comfortable doing this, Tom. Your hundreds of video presentations have put you in good stead. Great presentation

    • @blinkanddie3397
      @blinkanddie3397 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      columbus8myhw lol?

    • @topmark99
      @topmark99 5 ปีที่แล้ว +16

      @@columbus8myhw You're right, I don't know Tom personally, but that doesn't mean I can't respect somebody because of their talent, and talking directly to someone in comments doesn't make us friends.

    • @jbkjbk1999
      @jbkjbk1999 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      He's been doing public speaking and master of ceremony gigs on the side for years. He's used to this stuff.

    • @Max-up8vj
      @Max-up8vj 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@columbus8myhw how would you know who scott's friends are?

    • @Joshlama
      @Joshlama 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      It should be noted that Tom has done these types of talks for nearly 10 years. Although 10 years ago he was doing graph comedy for thinking digital.

  • @Elaiden
    @Elaiden 3 ปีที่แล้ว +40

    This talk was incredibly well done. Kept me engaged all the way through and leaves me with a feeling that I've learned something.

  • @Markyroson
    @Markyroson 5 ปีที่แล้ว +629

    “...they are essentially advertising companies”
    It was at this time that TH-cam decided to deliver the first ad 😂

    • @ncandrew9159
      @ncandrew9159 5 ปีที่แล้ว +8

      Markyroson Happened to me too...😂😂😂

    • @g___________v6850
      @g___________v6850 5 ปีที่แล้ว +19

      gotta skip more. I had no ads for the whole hour

    • @fernfern0
      @fernfern0 5 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      @@g___________v6850 same for me... I guess TH-cam realised they done goofed and demonatized the video 😂

    • @lmao4982
      @lmao4982 4 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      Doesn't the uploader have control over that if they want?

    • @tithund
      @tithund 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      Do some research into Adblock Plus and/or Ublock Origin.

  • @公孙全
    @公孙全 4 ปีที่แล้ว +372

    This is my first translation work.
    The time now is 26th of Jan, 2020, during the China Wuhan outbreak
    It cause a surge of clickbait and conspericy theroy on our social media
    I wasn't able to go out in fear of getting caught by the virus so I took the time translating it.
    Thank you, Tom, for explaining this wonderful subject, the timing could not had been better.

    • @TheSpectralFX
      @TheSpectralFX 4 ปีที่แล้ว +31

      Keep up the good work fella. Translating is a core component of communication and communication is the key factor in trust between peers, its a very important yet often underplayed field of study and work. I do encourage anyone to continue in such a field of study as it is not an easy one for sure!
      politely, you did made a mistake in your comment, you wrote "conspericy" when what I think you meant is "conspiracy". You also wrote "theroy" when you probably meant "Theory".
      best of luck in your future endeavors.
      Have a good day.

    • @timotheeoliveau3568
      @timotheeoliveau3568 4 ปีที่แล้ว +8

      ​@@TheSpectralFX Hey anonymous friend and stranger, thanks for being so kind 😊

    • @blackopal3138
      @blackopal3138 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@TheSpectralFX As q layman, I am an expert pn the subject you speak of. I could fill several texts with the dynamics of relationships and casual encounters that are created or effectual through communication. It would be from a specific foundation that I've built my observations on. Its something that has always dominated my social orlentation, and I am always surprised that people havent thought about it. I believe your statement about communication relies on an assumption, that the communicating is Truthful and Honorable. That would be the foundation from which I work. Once one defines Truth,the roles of moral principles become easy to see. And a failure to communicate Honorably can easily be traced through relationships to show it picking away at it block by block..... Learning Honorable communication, that is, the spreading of Truth, is a skill, a metaphysical skill of courage, and a necessary component of learning to recognize the Truth, and of living a life of spiritual Truth.
      Peace

    • @LePetitVingtieme1
      @LePetitVingtieme1 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      公孙全, I'd love to see your translated copy if it's available. I hope you're doing well and having an interesting time thinking about information, human societies, and truth.

    • @ilexdiapason
      @ilexdiapason 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      this is a sad comment to see because it only took 2 months for the entire world to get locked down due to the virus

  • @SirLightfire
    @SirLightfire 4 ปีที่แล้ว +558

    24:20, I'm watching this because the name "Tom Scott" was in the title. This makes me uncomfortable

    • @bapanada9446
      @bapanada9446 4 ปีที่แล้ว +38

      Well I like his work. He surely did a good work here too right? I'm not in love with handsome Scott, only with his work I swear!

    • @justanormalyoutubeuser3868
      @justanormalyoutubeuser3868 4 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      Same

    • @ihdieselman
      @ihdieselman 4 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      The thing that really gets me going though is did he intend for the photo to come up or did he intend for it to not come up so he could talk about it?

    • @madensmith7014
      @madensmith7014 3 ปีที่แล้ว +9

      I didn't realize at first that this wasn't his channel in the first place. This whole lecture does seem like it's the sort of content he will upload.

    • @Ann3M4r13
      @Ann3M4r13 3 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      I'm here because I like Tom Scott. Always watched the Christmas lectures every year, same institution, more grown up. I like a good institution :-)

  • @dangerousideas
    @dangerousideas 2 ปีที่แล้ว +11

    The part about selling friendship is gold. starting 33:01 to the end.... I wish every parent(and their child) saw this, and understood it.

  • @nopushbutton
    @nopushbutton 4 ปีที่แล้ว +692

    Um... does this mean Tom isn't my friend...?

    • @DomenBremecXCVI
      @DomenBremecXCVI 4 ปีที่แล้ว +73

      It shouldn't be too hard to find a Tom to be your friend, there might even be a few Tom Scotts around as both parts of the name are quite popular.

    • @nopushbutton
      @nopushbutton 4 ปีที่แล้ว +60

      @@DomenBremecXCVI Yes, you're right. I'm sure it's even within reason to befriend a Tom Scott who is wearing a red T-shirt.

    • @hheerth
      @hheerth 3 ปีที่แล้ว +18

      "I am not your friend" -Ludwig

    • @gonzalograu8451
      @gonzalograu8451 3 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@DomenBremecXCVI ok but I live in el conurbano bonaerense

    • @soggerstheimmortal
      @soggerstheimmortal 3 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      @@gonzalograu8451 try kidnapping one. Your own personal Tom Scott

  • @uberchops
    @uberchops 5 ปีที่แล้ว +281

    I feel like the points about parasocial relationships and the points about fact-checking clash in this very messy way. Part of the very reason people crave these parasocial relationships is because they want to get their information from someone they trust; even if it's just information about drama or video games. Building trust through vulnerability and exposing your personal life including problems is how we operate in our personal lives and of course this is sinisterly manipulated for profit but I frankly don't know how else to do it. Even if you want to check someone's reputation for factual accuracy, you quickly run into a recursive "Who watches the watchmen" problem. If I'm not an expert and there's nigh-infinite content supporting every stance on every issue, how am I suppose to determine what's true? You can lecture me about how to verify things independently but you know most people aren't epistemologists, either. The simple, and deeply human solution has always been to find people you trust and that trust is built through human connection and vulnerability or at least a convincing simulacrum of it.

    • @36424567254
      @36424567254 5 ปีที่แล้ว +52

      this is a very good point. As humans, we largely function by heuristics, because time-effective decisions are vastly more important for survival than highest possible accuracy (or so I'm told by sources I trusted :D), therefore we often need to identify people we can trust on certain topics so that *we* do not have to research them ourselves. But naturally trust is largely dependent on social relationships - after all, how can we believe something someone says if we don't believe the speaker is talking in our best interest? On the other hand, if the speaker is our friend (or we think he is), that part at least is taken care of.
      Obviously the problem here is that this very basic idea doesn't work if we believe someone to be our friend when he's actually not, which is often the case for these kinds of relationships.
      Naturally, the speaker could also earn viewer trust by demonstrating sound research principles, or good ability to argue their beliefs - but I can also say I wouldn't watch someone I don't like (because of any personal information I've acquired on them) despite those things being there.

    • @Jonquil_Studios
      @Jonquil_Studios 5 ปีที่แล้ว +60

      This is a solid point. I feel this a lot when Hank Green vents about people needing to trust experts more (regarding climate change, usually, but also medical science). And I always think, "what are those experts doing to earn my trust? What are they doing to repair trust that has been broken?"
      Hank sometimes comes worryingly close to arguing that someone who is an authority figure is inherently trustworthy until proven otherwise, but that belief has obviously been shaped by his status (socioeconomic and otherwise): legal authorities, for example, tended to treat him with basic human decency and give him the benefit of the doubt. Political leaders and government authorities make laws prioritizing the wants and needs of people in his categories.
      Other people have learned from personal experience to distrust authorities until proven otherwise.
      The question of, "how can I earn and repair the trust of the public?" is a serious one, and it can be answered ethically or unethically. But it the problem won't be solved by people who hold "the public" in contempt.

    • @Joe--
      @Joe-- 5 ปีที่แล้ว +8

      I wish there was someway to save comments like yours from TH-cam

    • @uberchops
      @uberchops 5 ปีที่แล้ว +8

      ​@@Joe--Thanks! You can always screenshot it or copy/paste, I suppose.
      Sorry I uh... don't really have anything else to add to these responses!

    • @mariolappano2153
      @mariolappano2153 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      +

  • @catfish552
    @catfish552 5 ปีที่แล้ว +110

    "Candidly" reveals to audience that he'll sometimes set something up at the very beginning of a presentation and slam it down at the end... does that very thing in this very talk. Hats off, Tom.

  • @joker28666
    @joker28666 3 ปีที่แล้ว +115

    19:40 this made me pause the video, it hit home so hard, i get videos recommended about navy seal trainings, free solo climbers, the barkley marathon runners, elite powerlifters, and I've always felt like that's the real bar for success. I could never understand my mom being anti vax, while i could understand the healthy skepticism she had at the start. It is absolutely mindblowing that it applies for everything, no wonder that anxiety and insecurity are so prevelant

    • @ooferboofer
      @ooferboofer 2 ปีที่แล้ว +13

      I know I have an odd name, so it sounds like I’m being sarcastic, but legitimately thank you for your input, and for not just falling in line with the views around you, and holding on to your own opinions; because there are very few people who do that nowadays. Keep your head up and remember that your opinion about you is all that matters.

    • @willb5278
      @willb5278 2 ปีที่แล้ว +27

      In the spirit of this video, imma do a thing.
      "Your opinion about you is all that matters"
      That same sentance can be either...
      A very encouraging thing to say to someone in a vulnerable place, or alternatively,
      a horrible thing to say to someone in dire need of re-evaluating their life. Like a smoker, or homeopathic fanatic, or violently racist individual.
      Its weird how the tools to fight depression can be used to affirm the zealots of the world. Human brains are strange (and i live in one!)

    • @g80gzt
      @g80gzt 2 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@willb5278 You don't live in a brain, you *are* the brain, you're just controlling this body by giving tiny electric shocks to a system of wires that makes the muscles pull or relax.

    • @g80gzt
      @g80gzt 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      A hot tip for trying to convince her of truth over vaccines, the falsehoods of some vaccines (homeopathic ones, and ones with decreasing efficacy in just weeks) and the utter pit of detritus that are those essential oil antivaxxer groups:
      The more you attack someone, the more they will hate you. They will no longer listen to you, as you become their enemy.

    • @Robert-iu2ou
      @Robert-iu2ou 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@willb5278 nice thing ya did there

  • @benjaminolanderrasmussen3049
    @benjaminolanderrasmussen3049 4 ปีที่แล้ว +110

    I love when you hear him talking about setting up something, letting the viewers forget, and using it in the conclusion, and you then read the video title, remember what he said in the beginning, and realize that he is circumspectly talking about how he set up his own talk, which you actually forgot, leading into the realization that he used that technique to set up the technique itself. That is some beautiful meta goodness

    • @JB-1138
      @JB-1138 4 ปีที่แล้ว +6

      Just like a good comedian.

    • @yanivrubin4166
      @yanivrubin4166 3 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      What a magician

    • @beachcomber2008
      @beachcomber2008 2 ปีที่แล้ว

      Will the Earth survive such _meta goodness?_ Or will humans merely make a _meta effort?_

    • @SeganHealthHacker
      @SeganHealthHacker 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      *If you really like him, you almost can't see he's very pro-globalism (pro-billionaires), very left wing, anti-Freedom. Too bad... No matter how decent a presenter (even though he blatantly copies Derren Brown's persona, which I like), I can't follow anyone who spreads ideas that are diametrically against what I believe in. Much, much rather watch Jordan Peterson, a thousand times.*

    • @gableweeb719
      @gableweeb719 2 หลายเดือนก่อน

      @@SeganHealthHacker How can someone be both pro-billionaire and very left-wing at the same time???

  • @johnlime1469
    @johnlime1469 4 ปีที่แล้ว +255

    The way he describes Twitch subscription process puts it into a different light. It sort of sounds like a concept to a creative dystopian novel. Never thought about it like that.

    • @MissPopuri
      @MissPopuri 3 ปีที่แล้ว +30

      Yeah, it’s kind of creepy how subs and donations work on Twitch.

    • @dheatlyblaze2846
      @dheatlyblaze2846 3 ปีที่แล้ว +10

      The best dystopian is real world after all

    • @CanIHasThisName
      @CanIHasThisName 3 ปีที่แล้ว +9

      It's one of those things where I'm starting to think I'm somehow too old to get it. The idea that I'd give someone money to watch them play a videogame is completely alien to me.

    • @xerxeskingofking
      @xerxeskingofking 3 ปีที่แล้ว +23

      @@CanIHasThisName i dont do it myself, but i can sort of understand some of the reasons. After all, plently of people pay money to watch, say, their favourite footballer play, or to listen to a live performance form a singer, etc, etc. the fact that the barrier to entry to playing a video game is quite low is an added bonus, in that by watching a streamer, you can be in the position of listening to them explain their thoughts about a given tactic, or see their solution to a problem, then think "yhea, i might try that", then boot up the game to try it yourself.
      added to that the sucessful streamers are often not the most skilled players, but the most entertaining ones, ones who can blabber for hours in inane commentary, and play the game with half an eye on the chat. for some, it becomes like hanging out at a friends house while he plays a game.....just done virtually.
      like i said, i dont watch streams myself, but i can understand some of the drivers. it doesnt appeal to me, but i can see the appeal

    • @LittleRainGames
      @LittleRainGames 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      ​@@xerxeskingofking You almost have a point. Problem is 99.99% of people dont do that, they are paying for friendship and attention. So many streamers wont even talk to you if you dont donate.
      I personally have never donated, but I see it happen.
      The subs have this feeling of superiority over non subs.

  • @diarya5573
    @diarya5573 5 ปีที่แล้ว +25

    42:10 really got me because I literally saw myself being drawn into that story about childhood heroes. I just had to pause for a moment and marvel at the effect.

  • @sagadoom2
    @sagadoom2 3 ปีที่แล้ว +24

    This is still one of my favorite lectures on TH-cam. I come back every 6 months and it holds up every time

  • @holyknightthatpwns
    @holyknightthatpwns 5 ปีที่แล้ว +34

    37:10 "or ancient weapons"
    Almost got my favorite crossover episode

  • @SIX-SH00T3R
    @SIX-SH00T3R 5 ปีที่แล้ว +44

    I love your work, but also really like Tom: the way you think seeps through, you thrive for honesty and to actually fight disinformation; which is something not a lot of people do nowadays.

  • @JellyWaltzov
    @JellyWaltzov 4 ปีที่แล้ว +33

    24:45 this restored my faith in humanity a bit. I realized that there are quite a bit of people aware of and interested in this subject, at least 809K of them.

  • @doctorspockable
    @doctorspockable ปีที่แล้ว +48

    Something I learnt at university was a theory called "the spiral of silence". Basically, people who hear thoughts like theirs spoken in public - whether in the media or just on the street - are more likely to also voice their opinion. If you don't hear voices/thoughts like yours, you assume ~nobody~ thinks the way you do, and so to avoid conflict you won't voice your opinion. Which is weird because it's usually (actually) the minority who are the loudest.

    • @crazydragy4233
      @crazydragy4233 ปีที่แล้ว

      Great, another paradox making life worse 😂

    • @doctorspockable
      @doctorspockable ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@crazydragy4233 not really a paradox. People are social creatures and we like to be accepted and respected by our peers. So if we think something that we think isn't a popular opinion, we will naturally keep it to ourselves. That's all the spiral of silence is, essentially, but on a larger scale.

    • @crazydragy4233
      @crazydragy4233 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@doctorspockable I meant it in a sort of way that, it's natural behaviour that's hard to go against, but necessary to for systems to work and for everyone to live a better life

    • @rosaliebosma
      @rosaliebosma 10 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

      we talked about this in a sociology course, too, it's a fascinating phenomenon. It doesn't even have to be a 'loud' minority. People even start actively saying things they don't really agree with because they think it will make them more socially accepted, and it does, although solely because others belief the same.
      like complaining about the rain. do you really feel a few drops are so terrible? or is it just that everyone always says so, and thus you join in

  • @cryptic3460
    @cryptic3460 4 ปีที่แล้ว +65

    I will add tho, the way the algorithm pushes to extremes isnt ALWAYS bad, it drove me from watching the slow mo guys all the way to watching star talk and PBS spacetime and Nilered and tons of other more "hardcore" sciences. Even to engineering and even to something like this explaining some of the science and reasons why the algorithms works and dont work.

    • @spritemultipack
      @spritemultipack 3 ปีที่แล้ว +19

      he said as much, "you choose which way you fall"

  • @korstmahler
    @korstmahler 5 ปีที่แล้ว +288

    Walking up to a stranger you've heard of and saying "I love your work" is fine.
    Walking up to a stranger and saying "I love you" is just creepy.

    • @Asdayasman
      @Asdayasman 5 ปีที่แล้ว +24

      Just try and stop me.

    • @truthsetsusfree5096
      @truthsetsusfree5096 5 ปีที่แล้ว +11

      What if a creeper creeps up on you and says "I love you" by exploding in your face ? Is that creepy or fine or both or neither or some quantum thing like : creepy fine refined creepers that never exploded in your face for always because of creepy love reasons that were never expressed all the time ? You tell me, because you are the truth spouter here. Thanks in advance. Have a nice day by the way. You're welcome to answer, stranger.

    • @bluezz5002
      @bluezz5002 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      It very much depends on the situation

    • @truthsetsusfree5096
      @truthsetsusfree5096 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      "You are the thing ...."
      No. We are not a thing.
      I have no poínt yet I have many ....
      "Is it like the thing you speak ...."
      I don't speak a thing.
      Phony....
      Grammophony....
      Smart phony....
      *Stereo Pony*

    • @truthsetsusfree5096
      @truthsetsusfree5096 4 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@cibo889 Horse to C-3 *Beep Boop
      ~ AlphaGo Deepblue

  • @allicedee
    @allicedee 5 ปีที่แล้ว +9

    Probably one of the best speeches about youtube/social media on youtube.

  • @slashplane
    @slashplane 2 ปีที่แล้ว +7

    I just sat through a 3 hour lecture and wanted to sleep. But this was engaging enough to keep me listening to anotjer hour long lecture.
    Certainly good food for thought packaged in an engaging format.

  •  5 ปีที่แล้ว +38

    "They are essentially advertizing companies..." And comes an ad... Very well placed ad from TH-cam

    • @academicfisherman2302
      @academicfisherman2302 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      tom scott probably timed that on purpose knowing him i got the same one too

  • @givrally
    @givrally 4 ปีที่แล้ว +126

    Tom : "Videos that are not true are starting to get recommended less and less..."
    5-minute crafts : *sweats profusely*

    • @JB-1138
      @JB-1138 4 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      2 hours later.... Finishes 5 minute project.

  • @mulllhausen
    @mulllhausen 5 ปีที่แล้ว +27

    41:50 "it wasn't until i was much older that i realised that to most people, liking someone's work, and liking someone are the same thing"
    ohhhhhhhh i never knew that, but the world makes a lot more sense now!

  • @peterworrallo2046
    @peterworrallo2046 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    Thank you my friend for keeping us all safe from our lack of knowledge. This is true love.

  • @BFedie518
    @BFedie518 4 ปีที่แล้ว +65

    29:00
    I've spent a good chunk of today selecting videos to watch based on the fact that Tom Scott was in them--whether it was Computerphile, his channel, or this video. I'm also less likely to watch a video if I think someone else will be talking during it.
    ...
    I've never been called out this hard before.

    • @georgelloydgonzalez
      @georgelloydgonzalez 4 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      And now Tom has planted the doubt in me: Do I like him because he's smart, charming, honest and has a British accent? Or because he's all of that stuff but he's also white?
      I don't want the second question to be true.

  • @EmmaHollen
    @EmmaHollen 5 ปีที่แล้ว +23

    The analogy between TH-camrs' attitude towards the algorithm and Skinner's experiment is a very interesting one!

    • @EmmaHollen
      @EmmaHollen 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@HighestRank 15:45 :) Honestly, the whole lecture is a treasure trove of noggin-boggling philosophical questions

  • @KringusKrang
    @KringusKrang 5 ปีที่แล้ว +6

    I feel that this lecture is something every one who uses the internet needs to watch.

  • @DanielJohnNicholson
    @DanielJohnNicholson 2 ปีที่แล้ว +17

    I referenced this talk in my personal statement for my UCAS university application last year and now I'm studying at the University of York, of which Tom is an alumnus 😂

  • @Isti115
    @Isti115 5 ปีที่แล้ว +7

    That hand raise after 16:25 when he says "recommendations" is so perfectly aligned with where they actually are on the default desktop layout! :D

  • @joaovitormatos8147
    @joaovitormatos8147 5 ปีที่แล้ว +65

    31:02
    You can hear Matt

    • @Eli_Stevenson
      @Eli_Stevenson 4 ปีที่แล้ว +13

      Omg you generally can . We all love supportive friendship.

    • @sgnosymfoemos
      @sgnosymfoemos 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      I think I can! wow

  • @43615
    @43615 4 ปีที่แล้ว +41

    i had the exact same story with "write about your hero". still freaks me out that people think that way.

    • @GogiRegion
      @GogiRegion 4 ปีที่แล้ว +12

      (+hackingpro) I saw this done with high school students in the gifted program, and most of them did it on fictional characters. At least then you actually have all of the information on them unlike a real person. I think that doing fictional characters is always a good bet for that question unless you have someone in your life that you would regard as your hero.
      If you want to know what some people did, I remember that I saw someone do Deadpool, and someone did one on one of the characters from Shark Tale. I can’t remember the reasoning behind those ones, but I very clearly remember those being there.

    • @jawwad4020
      @jawwad4020 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      I had no TV growing up, did you?

    • @43615
      @43615 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@jawwad4020 i had access to one, but most kids' shows were dumb and most "adult" shows were boring
      never really liked watching tv, with some exceptions

    • @TheAlison1456
      @TheAlison1456 3 ปีที่แล้ว

      What's the point of asking that?

  • @makeshiftman
    @makeshiftman 3 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    We are so lucky to have Tom Scott and Hank Green and the like. They should form a society to help improve the internet and the world

  • @Banzybanz
    @Banzybanz 5 ปีที่แล้ว +30

    From wearing a red T-shirt and sitting on a park bench to speaking at the Royal Institution, you have indeed come a long way.

  • @bloodypommelstudios7144
    @bloodypommelstudios7144 5 ปีที่แล้ว +230

    I have what I believe to be a more important hypothetical:
    Imagine you have a controversial opinion. Perhaps you believe a powerful person, group, organisation or government is responsible for something atrocious. You aren't completely convinced but you think there is good supporting evidence for this position. Now imagine tomorrow Google decides to prohibit or disincentivize content sharing this opinion.
    Would this make your opinion stronger or weaker?
    Now imagine the same situation but you hold the opposite position, you think there is good reason to doubt these claims but you have heard some reasonable sounding arguments from the other side. Now your opposition is silenced.
    How can you become sure your opposition is wrong when you aren't allowed to hear their arguments?

    • @LiftedStarfish
      @LiftedStarfish 5 ปีที่แล้ว +41

      I find it interesting, Mass censorship always seems to be in an effort to prevent people from learning there's an opposition whatsoever, rather than preventing the opposition from gaining traction, because almost anybody with half a brain knows that if you're not allowed to talk about something, it's almost guaranteed to be important and/or threatening.

    • @pzyckox
      @pzyckox 5 ปีที่แล้ว +18

      @@LiftedStarfish So the question then becomes: is it a threat to the body imposing the censorship or to the mass.

    • @johntheos
      @johntheos 5 ปีที่แล้ว +20

      Opinions should not be censored, as long as they don't advocate violence. Facts definitely should not be censored, either.

    • @pzyckox
      @pzyckox 5 ปีที่แล้ว +12

      @@johntheos Then what about opinions that do advocate violence such as "overthrow the government"? Or conspiracies based on uncertainties or falsehoods? I think you are stating the blatantly obvious here but should we be censoring falsehoods and hate, by virtue of the contrapositive?

    • @jonkess2768
      @jonkess2768 5 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      @@pzyckox What about things that are just wrong? An informative video about space and the solar system but the earth is just flat in it. How should children know what is correct when there are false facts all around.

  • @johndoeanon445
    @johndoeanon445 5 ปีที่แล้ว +82

    Tom, I love yo- uh... your work.

  • @truth.speaker
    @truth.speaker 3 ปีที่แล้ว +7

    He's right! TH-cam is a gateway channel!
    I started on Tom Scott videos, and now I'm a professor!

  • @fried_3ggs633
    @fried_3ggs633 5 ปีที่แล้ว +116

    "I should do my homewo ... wait a minute an hour-long video about something I have no idea what there talking about but I'm gonna listen to it anyways since it sounds smart, sign me up!"

    • @drewtlau
      @drewtlau 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      they're*

    • @user-zu6ts5fb6g
      @user-zu6ts5fb6g 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@drewtlau they are*

    • @phyvo
      @phyvo 4 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@user-zu6ts5fb6g that's numberwang!

  • @AthAthanasius
    @AthAthanasius 5 ปีที่แล้ว +41

    15:00 - Now I'm wondering if someone at the RI tagged this spot in the video for an advert on purpose....

  • @alexfsayshi5279
    @alexfsayshi5279 5 ปีที่แล้ว +36

    I’d love Tom to do a guest lecture at my uni one day. Don’t care what on; I’d still listen

    • @fortheloveofnoise
      @fortheloveofnoise 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @J and M It's artificial intelligence.

  • @quindanning
    @quindanning ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Great video

  • @jacks5463
    @jacks5463 4 ปีที่แล้ว +81

    Somehow I didnt get a single ad in this hour long video, I guess I'm a black belt in skipping ads

    • @L0j1k
      @L0j1k 4 ปีที่แล้ว +15

      Now transcend your black belt (and the whole ad-supported universe) and join us in ad-skipping Nirvana by using uBlock Origin.

    • @unicodefox
      @unicodefox 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      L0j1k and join me in the ad skipping nirvana that doesn't starve youtubers, and buy Red

    • @wtf_is_this_handle_shit
      @wtf_is_this_handle_shit 4 ปีที่แล้ว +7

      @@unicodefox Now join me in the transcendental fold of those who have no money to throw at a corporation and just deal with the ads

    • @bodevp
      @bodevp 4 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      Join the spiritually ascended Vanced gang.

    • @unicodefox
      @unicodefox 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Vinicius Oliveira join the ethically ascended Premium gang.

  • @paulnieuwkamp8067
    @paulnieuwkamp8067 5 ปีที่แล้ว +46

    54:05 "Or in the case of YT comments, any type of discussion whatsoever" That one flew right by the audience, didn't it?

    • @jorgemtzb9359
      @jorgemtzb9359 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      What? Was there a joke I missed or something?

    • @michaelvanberkum2844
      @michaelvanberkum2844 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@jorgemtzb9359 youtube bans everything mildly atagonizing in favor of advertisement

  • @Yossus
    @Yossus 5 ปีที่แล้ว +141

    I sub to this channel but Tom Scott is the difference between "I'll watch this later" and "I'll watch this now". Feeling a bit called out now

    • @satibel
      @satibel 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      still, you know that tomscott usually produces quality content, so it may not necessarily be the man more than the content.

    • @D1vu5
      @D1vu5 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      As he said natural human reaction. Love your work Tom.

    • @EdwardMillen
      @EdwardMillen 5 ปีที่แล้ว +13

      I don't think I've ever watched anything on this channel before, but yeah, it came up at the side and I thought "Wait, Tom Scott did a lecture there? That looks interesting... but an hour long? I'll have to watch it later... but I'll just click it so that it goes into my history". Still here an hour later after watching the entire thing in one go.

    • @Megalomaniakaal
      @Megalomaniakaal 5 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Yep, this was totally a watch this later for me. I've now finally gotten around to watching this.

    • @galileogalilei9297
      @galileogalilei9297 5 ปีที่แล้ว

      So you're telling me it would be less interesting to you if someone more knowleadgable and well suitedfor the topic, but also less recognizable was the presenter?
      Yeah, same here.

  • @martinwulf8253
    @martinwulf8253 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    This was the lecture that put me on to Tom, and I’m very glad I found him, because he’s great, and also this lecture was great and remains very relevant.

    • @fullsendit292
      @fullsendit292 ปีที่แล้ว

      im confused he was talking about anti vaxers before covid? the first covid cases were in november 2019 this was uploaded in october

    • @UnknownYTName
      @UnknownYTName ปีที่แล้ว

      ​@@fullsendit292antivax isn't a new thing, although it started going haywire in 1998.

  • @qgag
    @qgag 4 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    The stuff he said about not having a hero as a kid, I really relate to that! While I can say for sure that I've had parascocial relationships since, it's something I haven't thought of in a long time, but it's nice to think that I'm not the only one who struggled with those kinds of assignments growing up, thanks Tom!

  • @badlydrawnturtle8484
    @badlydrawnturtle8484 5 ปีที่แล้ว +95

    "As long as there's a human review"
    I've seen substantial evidence at this point that there isn't an actual human review option, unless you're already a massive channel with private contacts for TH-cam employees. But I guess the topic here is algorithms, not TH-cam's mismanagement.

    • @36424567254
      @36424567254 5 ปีที่แล้ว +23

      There probably *is* human review, mostly there so they can in good faith affirm there is. It's just that is not even remotely staffed proportionately to the task and the backlog is effectively infinite unless you have means to skip the queue

    • @LuciusC
      @LuciusC 5 ปีที่แล้ว +5

      @@36424567254 I'm not sure I would call that implementation good faith.

    • @36424567254
      @36424567254 5 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      @@LuciusC by "in good faith" i meant simply without lying.

    • @LuciusC
      @LuciusC 5 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@36424567254 Well yeah, I just don't think that it's truthful unless you have a system that actually works and is used in all cases.

    • @Killius
      @Killius 5 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      this is completely true, even the humans I've spoken to, don't really even care or try to understand the issues you can face on youtube. You know having spoken to youtube employees and being there, even though I don't upload anymore.

  • @AkaiProtea
    @AkaiProtea 5 ปีที่แล้ว +32

    I had quite the interesting "Moment" while watching this.
    Shortly after the "it's a small line between liking the Creation and the Creators" (obviously paraphrasing here), I decided I wanted to share this video with someone I'm friends with.
    And during the talk I always thought, that I am certainly one of the persons who likes the Creations and doesn't really care about the creators... but what did I write my friend?
    "Damn I love this guy:" And while I still think that I am a person that values the Work>Artist, I didn't realise until that very moment how atached I grew to Tom Scott as a creator per se to the point of it almost being Creepy. I mean I watch his Channel and his creations, but I also recently got recommended an older Game show where a Young Tom Scott was a participant, and I watched it because of him, didn't watch another Episode before or since, just goes to show that for most people, an atachment to the Person seems almost inevitable, perhaps not equally as strong for everyone, but I think it's still there.

    • @qwertyTRiG
      @qwertyTRiG 4 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Only Connect? Watch the rest of it: it's brilliant.

  • @BlazarVision
    @BlazarVision 7 หลายเดือนก่อน +3

    This lecture overall has stood the test of time. The premise of this video is something I think about, and these para social relationships is something that is developed and magnified via social media. Overall, this is so important and given all the issues these algorithms create, they are attempting to solve the most complex of issues, where truly the details of it are esoteric, it's not a terrible solution at the moment. I don't think in general we give a lot of credit to the attempt at solving such a difficult problem, I appreciate the honest and different perspective.
    Great lecture Tom, its been a minute and its funny, I've always viewed you as more 'authoritative' voice probably due to how often you make it aware that you aren't. It creates more trust, and trust is a precondition to authoritative to some degree.