Crash Course: Ecology

2012, Environment  -   29 Comments
7.68
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Ratings: 7.68/10 from 31 users.

With a solid understanding of biology, it's time for the long view - how the living things interact with and influence each other and their environments.

Life is powerful, and in order to understand how living systems work, you first have to understand how they originated, developed and diversified over the past 4.5 billion years of Earth's history.

Population ecology is the study of groups within a species that interact mostly with each other, and it examines how they live together in one geographic area to understand why these populations are different in one time and place than they are in another. How is that in any way useful to anyone ever?

If being alive on Earth were a contest, humans would win it hands down. We're like the Michael Phelps of being alive, but with 250,000 times more gold medals.

Interactions between species are what define ecological communities, and community ecology studies these interactions anywhere they take place. Although inter-species interactions are mostly competitive, competition is pretty dangerous, so a lot of interactions are actually about side-stepping direct competition and instead finding ways to divvy up resources to let species get along.

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29 Comments / User Reviews

  1. Dario

    Please jump out of a window, do humanity a favor! Maybe the THEORY OF GRAVITY is another B.S. made up by the B.S. community (scientists). Thanks!

  2. Hodd

    I love Crash Course, especially psychology and big history. I really hope young people enjoy them as much, a great tool for education.

  3. Tobias MacRobie

    Great series! Very modern. It is mostly narration by one guy with some animated graphics, but the information is very academic and amusing at the same time.

  4. Jacqueline Althoff

    This is a great doc. Very intelligent and also funny. Host rivals me in how fast a human being can talk but I find it refreshing. I always tell people its not that I talk fast its that you listen slow.lol

  5. saturn

    Excellent presentations. Thank you Hank and all who? made these possible.

  6. Paul Gloor

    Wow, I've been missing a bit on crash course !

  7. Mary Shamblin Rotio

    Anyone who likes this should check out: Vlogbrothers, SciShow, and the rest of CrashCourse (world history, biology, and literature... chemistry and U.S. history are still in progress). DFTBA.

  8. Unity

    To all those criticizing Patrick:
    I don't agree with Patrick Adrien Varencaus's view or his attitude, but antagonizing him will only hinder any attempt to make him reason or change his mind, which I believe would be your goal. Such comments only raise Patrick's defenses and impede any openness on the subject. Why criticize? It doesn't accomplish anything, except showing that you think he/she is a douche, which means you don't respect them. If you don't respect them, why should they respect you, or your comments on the subject for that matter?

    DEBATE... DON'T ATTACK

    1. Emergency Stop

      I agree with what you say but not in this case, if you check out Patrick's profile you will see he receives the respect he deserves. None. His past comments and replies proves his close mindedness.

    2. robertallen1

      Ditto Emergency Stop and Achems_Razor. Actually his past comments and replies prove his wilful ignorance which deserves no respect and considering his lack of knowledge of the subject in which he posts, who cares whether he respects those who've responded to him?

    3. Achems_Razor

      Debate what? debate with someone who appears mentally challenged? no thanks!

  9. Christian Klinckwort Guerrero

    rubish

    1. robertallen1

      What's rubbish, your spelling?

    2. Emergency Stop

      Care to elaborate?

  10. john Palermo

    Very informative and for us "ADHD" types (or geniuses as I like to put it) it is fast paced with out the usual fluff. ;-)

  11. brianrose87

    I highly recommend the "SciShow" channel on youtube. Its all the videos from Hank Green (this shows host). He is entertaining, accurate, and covers the actual college level material in a fluid, accessible fashion in subjects such as chemistry and biology as well.

    1. over the edge

      not only do i completely agree but his brother also hosts as well and equally as good .

    2. john Palermo

      Thanks for the info brianrose87, Looks like you led me to a few good nights of new media. after 4 years off broadcast tv it's great to find new stuff to fill the mind. Always afraid I'll be tempted to turn the i*iot box on due to lack of online media of my choice and slip back into that zombie trance of stupidity.

    3. Mary Shamblin Rotio

      The Brainscoop is another great YouTube channel initiated by (but not staring) Hank. It's about taxidermy, and museum specimen prep... it gets pretty graphic, but there are gross-o-meter warnings before any video with skinning, etc.

  12. Patrick Adrien Varencaus

    B.S. based on evolution wich is A THEORY NOT SCIENCE ! all those must have ,? might have? maybe this way or that way ? logical!! you take part of a cadillac + had t.n.t. = big bang = a brand new cadillac! Ya that is how everything happens here on eartth, no disingner , no intelligence , perhaps,maybe this paf ACCIDENT ! men will become a fool to avoid wath he really his a m*ron , brainless dah accident !!!? on the world i live on, an accident usualy= to stress,pain, disaster, and always requires a minimum of knowledge,intelligence someone that know that a hough, tried , SOMEONE worked is a** of findding a solution! to solve the problem THE ACIDENT made doooooooooooh! God , The creator ! does not exist and i m bugs bunny !!

    1. over the edge

      um...yeah...wow. i am not sure how to address this but i will try
      you state
      1 "based on evolution wich is A THEORY NOT SCIENCE" writing in all caps does not make something more right. you are just making a nonsensical statement very loudly. if science is not based on theories then what is it based on? while we are at it please define what a scientific theory is?

      2 "you take part of a cadillac + had t.n.t. = big bang = a brand new
      cadillac! Ya that is how everything happens here on eartth" where in science is that statement made?

      i will stop there as i feel that the answers to these two questions will suffice in showing your lack of understanding of the basic foundation of science. thanks for your comment Mr Bunny big fan

    2. Jeffari

      Please.. for the love of god, please tell me that English isn't your native language..

    3. pwndecaf

      lol - No one but an American can speak/spell so badly.

      I arr won, two.

    4. john Palermo

      pwndecaf, please be easy on us. It's actually a small miracle we can wipe are own asses after the US Federal school system gets done with us. After all it was hijacked by the Rockefeller s early last century and transformed into a system that's intent is to destroy critical thinking ability and just turn out good factory and later on office workers who have 0 ability to see their own enslavement. LOL but true...

    5. robertallen1

      Why don't you try writing intelligible English--but in light of your ignorant statement on evolution, you probably lack the intelligence to do so

    6. Imightberiding

      It might be time to check/moderate the alcohol intake.

    7. oQ

      There's a way to get attention...lol
      Hey Achems, you say i make you laugh...how about Patrick?
      1i

    8. Richard H. Pratt

      I was waiting for the damaged brain post...and here it is.

    9. Jacqueline Althoff

      Just an fyi...Try proof reading before posting. I'm assuming you'd intended to take the opposition in this open forum edcated debate but by almost impulse-like typing you only managed to make Creationists, and it would appear all Americans, look like uneducated i*iots. I'm sure you can see how this inturn led to a complete disregard for your views and instead just became a personal attack. Be careful especially when you are sharing on a topic WHICH is so obviously close to your heart. Peace