TL;DR

Derek Muller dives headfirst into evolution, starting with why poop smells bad and zooming out to the origin of life, gene mutations and a hands-on evolution simulation. Along the way you’ll see natural selection at work, discover what traits really get passed on (including kin selection) and get a fresh take on Richard Dawkins’ “Selfish Gene” idea—plus the fun twist that it’s all kind of a big simulation.

Featuring insights from top researchers like Jack Szostak, John Sutherland, Joanna Masel and Gerald Joyce, this Veritasium episode makes evolution approachable, weirdly fascinating and practically impossible not to get.

Watch on YouTube