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Register 2024: hedges and bits

Statements from 2024 that are not plain sincere assertions: sincere claims the speaker hedged or marked as uncertain (with the hedge words quoted), and statements made as a bit. Plain sincere, unhedged statements are on the video pages. Back to the overview.

John

1206 statements · sincere 91% · playful 9% · other bits 0% · hedged or unsure 6%

Sincere but hedged (65)

Split by hedge type (derived from the quoted hedge words with a fixed word list — see the overview): epistemic doubt 31 · wish / hope 8 · opinion marker 6 · other hedge 11 · hedge words not recorded 9.

Epistemic doubt (31)

real uncertainty about whether it is true

  • 2024-01-02 · Being Old on YouTube — John says that over 17 years there have been many weeks, maybe four or five a year, when he didn't want to make a video: sometimes mental health, quite present lately, or family or writing deadlines. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:37)
  • 2024-01-02 · Being Old on YouTube — John suspects Nerdfighteria will stick around, because it somehow has amid an ocean of higher-res, algorithm-optimized content. — hedged: “I suspect” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:42)
  • 2024-01-09 · Views — John is not sure he is a views kind of person, maybe because he lacks a vivid visual imagination and has an intense fear of heights, which often comes with good views. — hedged: “I'm not sure” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:13)
  • 2024-01-16 · The Bank of Nerdfighteria — John argues the Bank of Nerdfighteria may have a secret third arm that involves no spending or receiving of money and may be the most important arm of all. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:00:14)
  • 2024-01-30 · How Vlogbrothers Will End — John thinks a lot about how Vlogbrothers will end; maybe in death, and he would be okay with that if it became an archive of what two people thought and experienced. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:43)
  • 2024-02-06 · The Truth of How Books Become Movies — John explains that an option gives a studio the right to develop a book into a film for a set period, say 24 months. — hedged: “I don't know, say” [epistemic doubt] (00:00:00)
  • 2024-02-06 · The Truth of How Books Become Movies — In a later comment John answers whether he finally has a cameo that makes it into the movie: maybe. — hedged: “MAYBE” [epistemic doubt] (creator comment)
  • 2024-02-06 · The Truth of How Books Become Movies — With Hollywood not chasing The Anthropocene Reviewed or his forthcoming tuberculosis book, John says this may be his last time seeing hundreds of people make something wonderful together. — hedged: “may” [epistemic doubt] (00:04:52)
  • 2024-02-13 · Why Doesn't ❤️ Look Like a Heart? — John says linking the heart shape itself to love is much newer: evidence goes back maybe 700 years, such as an illustration of a woman giving her heart to a lover. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:45)
  • 2024-02-27 · I Was Wrong about the Average American — Jessica has taken some college courses and may have an associate's degree, but has no bachelor's degree. — hedged: “she may have” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:27)
  • 2024-02-27 · I Was Wrong about the Average American — Jessica most likely works in one of the two largest US employment sectors, public education or health care, and gets her health insurance through work. — hedged: “most likely” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:27)
  • 2024-02-27 · I Was Wrong about the Average American — Jessica works 36.4 hours a week and spends 101 minutes a day in her car, most likely a pickup truck. — hedged: “most likely” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:26)
  • 2024-02-27 · I Was Wrong about the Average American — Jessica eats out at least weekly and drinks coffee daily, possibly more coffee than tap water. — hedged: “she might” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:55)
  • 2024-04-16 · I Already Got Paid — John guesses that a big audience for the film might sell a few more books, but not many, and the book already has a great life. — hedged: “I guess” [epistemic doubt] (00:00:00)
  • 2024-05-07 · A Secret about Art — John finds it baffling when people walk past that painting feeling nothing, except that he has likely walked past art they deeply connect with. — hedged: “likely” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:39)
  • 2024-06-04 · how it all ends — In the comment John says that before reaching the stars we face many problems, including our galaxy colliding with a nearby galaxy, which may be a Proper Emergency. — hedged: “may” [epistemic doubt] (creator comment)
  • 2024-06-04 · how it all ends — John says the Sun will later become a red giant so bright and large that it consumes Mercury and Venus and probably, though not definitely, Earth. — hedged: “probably, although not definitely” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:56)
  • 2024-06-04 · how it all ends — John concludes that we are headed to probably being part of a white dwarf. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:26)
  • 2024-06-04 · how it all ends — John says researchers found unexpected elements in a distant white dwarf and concluded it was probably once a red giant that consumed rocky planets, as Earth probably will be. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:55)
  • 2024-06-04 · how it all ends — John suggests maybe that is why we're here: to ease present suffering, solve problems for each other and for those who inherit the earth, and above all to live in brief wonder. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:04:22)
  • 2024-06-11 · BEEF DAYS — In a comment, John says beef probably makes TB less likely, but only for malnourished people, since adequate protein and fat help the immune system keep TB in check. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (creator comment)
  • 2024-06-11 · BEEF DAYS — John thinks beef days might help his family a bit. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:04:55)
  • 2024-06-25 · taking a break — John says recent video titles such as How It All Ends, A Midlife Crisis and Not Doing That Great may indicate that he has not been doing that great. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:00:00)
  • 2024-08-03 · I Love Hank. (Also I'm back.) — John used the month to reflect on what he wants from life, why his actual living has been so misaligned with it, and what long-term changes he needs to be happy and functional. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:27)
  • 2024-08-06 · What Helped Through Depression — What probably helped most was meeting his therapist and psychiatrist. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:26)
  • 2024-08-07 · Dear Hank and John Livestream! — John agrees YouTube is probably the only social platform with that solidity; he feels Facebook, Twitter and especially TikTok crumbling, Instagram maybe more solid. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:15:05)
  • 2024-08-20 · Thoughts from Places: BROMLEY! — John loves football; about AFC Wimbledon he is utterly and deliciously irrational, which may be the defining feature of love. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:27)
  • 2024-08-27 · How The Internet Is Rigged — John says he wants to explore the history of this path and why he thinks its future might not be quite as dystopian as many fear. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:00:50)
  • 2024-09-27 · Is It 2010? IT'S A PARTS VIDEO — John says the Pizzamas aprons sold out but are back in stock for a moment and will probably sell out again in a couple of days. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:20)
  • 2024-11-05 · Why Do I Still Make YouTube Videos? — John says the more people like you, the more dislike you; you fixate on them, see yourself through them, and your happiness comes to depend on those least inclined to like you. — hedged: “Or maybe that's just me” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:27)
  • 2024-11-19 · Let's Talk about Money — John tells Hank that Good Store might prove to be his best idea ever, which is really saying something. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:04:30)

Wish / hope (8)

a wish about the future, not a claim about what is true

  • 2024-03-12 · How We End TB — John says that on Thursday (14 March 2024) he hopes to announce the beginning, and only the beginning, of that bet. — hedged: “I hope” [wish / hope] (00:04:20)
  • 2024-03-19 · Our $80,000,000 Bet — John says his family puts in only about four percent of the money, which he hopes is an important four percent, and it gives them a seat at the table to see the challenges and successes up close. — hedged: “I hope” [wish / hope] (00:01:56)
  • 2024-04-30 · Not Doing That Great — John says he is aware, or hopes he is, of the wild entitlement involved in complaining about this, and has avoided talking about it before. — hedged: “at least I hope that I'm aware” [wish / hope] (00:01:27)
  • 2024-04-30 · Not Doing That Great — Life is pretty weird, and John hopes the Turtles All the Way Down film, out Thursday, captures some of that complexity. — hedged: “I hope” [wish / hope] (00:03:53)
  • 2024-05-21 · Getting Personal about Getting Personal — John hopes the benefit of talking publicly about his OCD, for him and for others, outweighs the cost, but says there is a cost. — hedged: “hopefully” [wish / hope] (00:01:14)
  • 2024-09-03 · Which is Correct? — or – ? — John has just completed what is hopefully the last big edit of his book about tuberculosis, which reminded him how much a dash contains. — hedged: “hopefully” [wish / hope] (00:00:00)
  • 2024-10-22 · My New Book: Everything Is Tuberculosis — John says it is a short book but hopes it can matter in readers' lives and accelerate the movement to make tuberculosis history. — hedged: “I hope” [wish / hope] (00:04:06)
  • 2024-11-01 · Working Through a Crisis with My Brother — John says he hopes he can make people care about tuberculosis; Hank adds that that is the goal. — hedged: “hopefully” [wish / hope] (00:00:58)

Opinion marker (6)

marks a view as the speaker's own; not doubt

  • 2024-02-06 · The Truth of How Books Become Movies — John says that had The Fault in Our Stars not become a movie he thinks he would have been paid $60,000: a lot of money, but not Hollywood fantasy money. — hedged: “I think” [opinion marker] (00:01:27)
  • 2024-08-13 · The Time a Spy Visited Me Because of P*tin. — In a comment John says the visitor's silence at the spy joke was meant to make him uncomfortable, and it worked. — hedged: “I think” [opinion marker] (creator comment)
  • 2024-09-27 · Is It 2010? IT'S A PARTS VIDEO — John says they made a vinyl of The Anthropocene Reviewed, probably no longer available; he isn't selling it, it just makes him happy that it exists. — hedged: “i don't think” [opinion marker] (00:04:45)
  • 2024-10-11 · October 11, 2024 - Goofing off with John (a Vlogbrothers Video) — John recalls Eyelash Malaria, about a malaria drug that also lengthens eyelashes, which he made on his computer because his camera was broken. — hedged: “I think” [opinion marker] (00:03:14)
  • 2024-11-19 · Let's Talk about Money — John gives two reasons sock income fell: some members cancel when their sock drawers fill up, and TikTok, which used to heavily subsidize advertising, stopped doing so. — hedged: “I think” [opinion marker] (00:01:37)
  • 2024-11-19 · Let's Talk about Money — The socks are still going well, John says, mainly because people love them; he loves them too and is wearing a pair. — hedged: “I think” [opinion marker] (00:01:58)

Other hedge (11)

a hedge that matches none of the word lists

  • 2024-02-06 · The Truth of How Books Become Movies — John says studios increasingly shelve finished, paid-for movies as a tax strategy, taking a write-off when they expect release to lose more money. — hedged: “as I understand it” [other hedge] (00:03:53)
  • 2024-02-13 · Why Doesn't ❤️ Look Like a Heart? — John says the silphium image may have been linked to romantic love and over thousands of years conflated with the heart, also linked to romantic love. — hedged: “it's possible” [other hedge] (00:02:40)
  • 2024-02-13 · Why Doesn't ❤️ Look Like a Heart? — Third theory: the shape comes from a plant or decorative origin (heart-shaped fig leaves, ivy associated with fidelity) and people tied it to love and the heart, not the reverse. — hedged: “it's possible” [other hedge] (00:02:50)
  • 2024-02-13 · Why Doesn't ❤️ Look Like a Heart? — John says the Indus Valley Civilization used heart shapes of unknown meaning, and ancient Japan used them too, apparently unrelated to romantic love. — hedged: “it appears” [other hedge] (00:03:05)
  • 2024-03-19 · Our $80,000,000 Bet — Replying to a confused viewer in a comment, John clarifies the yearly funding is spent every year for the next four years, unless USAID pulls funding. — hedged: “unless USAID pulls funding for some reason” [other hedge] (creator comment)
  • 2024-03-26 · I Own Danaher — As far as John understands Danaher's position, it feels it cannot make decisions that would harm shareholders even when they would benefit all of humanity. — hedged: “at least as far as I understand” [other hedge] (00:02:08)
  • 2024-03-26 · I Own Danaher — John hopes the cost gets high enough that Danaher lowers prices not just for the standard TB test but for all its tests in low- and middle-income countries. — hedged: “one would hope” [other hedge] (00:04:23)
  • 2024-09-23 · IT'S HERE! — John says he will try to livestream for at least an hour or two every day on his new channel, John's Channel. — hedged: “try to” [other hedge] (00:03:19)
  • 2024-11-01 · Working Through a Crisis with My Brother — John predicts something will emerge that he and Hank find interesting and use differently from most people, as community-based video did in 2005, and they will find fulfilment in it. — speculative: “That's my guess.” [other hedge] (00:06:49)
  • 2024-11-12 · BELIEVE: The Jimmy Glass Story — John says there is about a 3% chance of scoring from a corner kick. — hedged: “like” [other hedge] (00:02:55)
  • 2024-12-10 · On Writing — John used to think only made-up stories could do that job, but now believes, and hopes, that nonfictional ones can too. — hedged: “and hope anyway” [other hedge] (00:02:09)

Hedge words not recorded (9)

marked as unsure, but the hedge words were not quoted

  • 2024-01-02 · Being Old on YouTube — John never expected to be making YouTube videos at 46 and doesn't know whether he will be at 50 or 56. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:02:12)
  • 2024-01-16 · The Bank of Nerdfighteria — Supposing Nerdfighteria's share of that change were 20%, John reckons advocacy created a bigger financial win for global health equity than Good Store and the Project for Awesome combined. — speculative (hedge words not recorded) (00:04:42)
  • 2024-05-21 · Getting Personal about Getting Personal — John says he really doesn't know how much such sharing is healthy or sustainable, does not judge how others navigate their core relationships, and is still figuring it out at 46. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:03:40)
  • 2024-05-28 · A Midlife Crisis — The description says John isn't sure how to square the benefit of reading a book with the benefit of giving birth in a safe, well-supported environment. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (video description)
  • 2024-05-28 · A Midlife Crisis — Entering the second half of his life, John constantly asks what his priorities will be, and says he has no answer, hence a smidge of a crisis. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:03:24)
  • 2024-06-04 · how it all ends — John guesses ancient humans, like us, couldn't hope in forever but hoped in themselves and future generations; we embody their hope as future generations will embody ours. — speculative (hedge words not recorded) (00:04:22)
  • 2024-06-18 · The Tea — John asks, not rhetorically, whether they can support two very long-term projects, and says he doesn't know. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:03:53)
  • 2024-06-18 · The Tea — John hopes they can do both well over time but doesn't know that they can; resources are limited, including money and attention. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:06:14)
  • 2024-06-25 · taking a break — John genuinely doesn't know whether he should be making anything, or whether his work helps anyone or only raises the level of the toxic lake. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:01:56)

Satire (1)

a mock position (e.g. a fake moral panic) — the opposite of what is meant

  • 2024-11-13 · Some New Things… — After a bad eight days, John sarcastically calls Matt Gaetz becoming the next attorney general a huge relief, then flags the sarcasm. (00:26:22)

Joke (1)

a gag; not a claim

  • 2024-04-09 · Hank and John Reunited WITH RAX — Passing a sign for rent, John wants to rent it and replace its Jesus messaging with a pitch for the other gods, such as Zeus, American Gods style. (00:03:51)

Hypothetical (4)

a thought experiment or "what if"

  • 2024-10-22 · My New Book: Everything Is Tuberculosis — John says the book comes out just after the 20th anniversary of Looking for Alaska; told then he'd write nonfiction about TB, he'd first have been glad to still be writing, then surprised. — hedged: “I think” [opinion marker] (00:03:37)
  • 2024-10-29 · If Hank and John Were God for 15 Minutes — As God, John would first eliminate tuberculosis and all serious infectious diseases, maybe leaving a little of the common cold so people remember what being sick was like. (00:00:25)
  • 2024-10-29 · If Hank and John Were God for 15 Minutes — Asked about ending aging, John says he likes aging and does not want to get rid of it, though he would stop it at some point: you age until your "full handsomeness" at 47. (00:00:58)
  • 2024-10-29 · If Hank and John Were God for 15 Minutes — For world peace, John recounts Hank's proposal from last night, which he found brilliant: if you hurt someone, it hurts you the exact same amount. (00:02:22)

Playful (107)

a real point made in a joking way; the paraphrase records the meant core

  • 2024-01-02 · Being Old on YouTube — John recalls 2007: George W. Bush was president, AFC Wimbledon played in the seventh tier of English football, and neither Instagram nor the iPhone existed. (00:00:12)
  • 2024-01-02 · Being Old on YouTube — John says he was once a guy who threw himself against a wall to prove he wasn't an octopus, and later one who spoke at the United Nations; Nerdfighteria found both fitting. (00:00:38)
  • 2024-01-02 · Being Old on YouTube — John says he gets to make stuff with people he likes while never amassing, even over 17 years, as many views as Maroon 5's song Girls Like You. (00:01:34)
  • 2024-01-02 · Being Old on YouTube — John jokes that being old on YouTube means not understanding newfangled techniques like custom thumbnails, but he can say he was there when YouTube's rules were written, from reply guys to prank houses. (00:01:48)
  • 2024-01-02 · Being Old on YouTube — John asks how all the viewers fit behind the camera lens, calls it a stupid dad joke, and concludes that he is old after all. (00:02:28)
  • 2024-01-09 · Views — John had a mustache because last year (2023) everyone on the trip shaved their beards into mustaches (five mustachioed guys), but this year (2024) only he did, so he looked like a weirdo. (00:00:13)
  • 2024-01-23 · Breaking News: Complexly Signs Major Tetris Athlete — John calls Willis ludicrously, wondrously, stupefyingly good at Tetris. (00:01:20)
  • 2024-01-23 · Breaking News: Complexly Signs Major Tetris Athlete — John jokingly brags that Complexly, maker of Crash Course, SciShow, Eons and more, is now the first online media company to sponsor a world-class Tetris player. — hedged: “I believe” [opinion marker] (00:03:43)
  • 2024-01-23 · Breaking News: Complexly Signs Major Tetris Athlete — John says Willis thanks his sponsors on stream like a NASCAR driver, which they appreciate. (00:04:51)
  • 2024-01-23 · Breaking News: Complexly Signs Major Tetris Athlete — John thanks Hank for the idea: Hank's ideas are sometimes ludicrous and terrible, and sometimes ludicrous and awesome. (00:05:00)
  • 2024-01-30 · How Vlogbrothers Will End — John has said 'Good morning Hank, it's Tuesday' about 1,200 times in 17 years; Hank has said his greeting more often because he takes fewer vacations. (00:00:00)
  • 2024-01-30 · How Vlogbrothers Will End — In the athlete metaphor, John says he and Hank are among the lucky few who hang around for many years, but they are not Tom Brady. (00:02:12)
  • 2024-01-30 · How Vlogbrothers Will End — John says MrBeast is the Tom Brady of YouTube and wishes him luck, since it seems a very stressful job. (00:02:24)
  • 2024-01-30 · How Vlogbrothers Will End — John says the brothers are like second-string offensive linemen kept on as personality hires because they are good in the locker room. (00:02:30)
  • 2024-02-06 · The Truth of How Books Become Movies — John jokes that an option is nice for an author: a little money for no extra work, which is kind of the American dream. (00:00:29)
  • 2024-02-06 · The Truth of How Books Become Movies — John notes Die Hard is adapted from a book that never became a classic: nobody reads it every Christmas. (00:03:24)
  • 2024-02-13 · Why Doesn't ❤️ Look Like a Heart? — John adds that Pliny noted silphium, unlike most medicinal herbs, didn't make you fart. (00:02:15)
  • 2024-02-13 · Why Doesn't ❤️ Look Like a Heart? — Fourth theory: the shape resembles breasts or buttocks; some argue it was first associated with lust and longing and only later with the heart as the seat of emotion. (00:03:24)
  • 2024-02-27 · I Was Wrong about the Average American — John imagines Europeans puzzled that Jessica spends 15% of her income on health care despite having insurance, while Americans laugh while crying. (00:01:27)
  • 2024-02-27 · I Was Wrong about the Average American — Jessica has 1.46 pets, most likely dogs, with cats not far behind. (00:02:55)
  • 2024-02-27 · I Was Wrong about the Average American — Joking that it is widely thought abnormal, John says Jessica does sneeze: Americans report a median of four sneezes a day. (00:03:24)
  • 2024-03-05 · THE BEST DAY — John jokes Wimbledon have not been good since returning to professional football: no professional team in England has lost more games in the last five years. (00:01:08)
  • 2024-03-05 · THE BEST DAY — John assures Hank the ball boy is fine; the boy later said it was the best moment of his life. (00:03:04)
  • 2024-03-26 · I Own Danaher — John notes negative publicity for Danaher in the Washington Post and on Threads, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, including a lower-your-test-prices Flappy Bird he finds utterly addictive. (00:03:54)
  • 2024-04-09 · Hank and John Reunited WITH RAX — John says the road trip to Rax took five hours instead of four because he drove 30 minutes in the wrong direction, which he admits he does. (00:00:00)
  • 2024-04-09 · Hank and John Reunited WITH RAX — Teased by Hank for driving in the bumpier lane, John says he sees no need to pass because the other lane speeds and he is a speed limit guy, which Hank confirms. (00:00:58)
  • 2024-04-09 · Hank and John Reunited WITH RAX — Asked which brother is the Taskmaster and which is Alex Horne, John says he thinks he is the Taskmaster. (00:02:16)
  • 2024-04-16 · I Already Got Paid — John says he has cool things to do anyway: he gets to write books and professionally hate tuberculosis. (00:02:15)
  • 2024-04-16 · I Already Got Paid — John is in the film with a line, joking that he has progressed significantly as an actor since being cut out of The Fault in Our Stars film. (00:03:14)
  • 2024-04-16 · I Already Got Paid — John says Sarah described his part as the worst performance in the film, but only because the others are so good. (00:03:43)
  • 2024-04-23 · Full Hank — In a weather check, John reports blooming, sprouting and a graying sky: it must be April in Indiana. (00:00:29)
  • 2024-04-23 · Full Hank — John takes a 'potato break' with Potato, who is still a puppy and doesn't come when called, and compliments his bow tie. (00:00:58)
  • 2024-04-23 · Full Hank — Echoing St. Augustine's prayer to be made chaste 'but not yet', his favorite prayer, John asks to be made work-life balanced, but not yet. (00:03:30)
  • 2024-04-30 · Not Doing That Great — John dislikes magazines writing about the secret of his and Sarah's 18-year marriage; the secret, he says, is mutual respect. (00:01:56)
  • 2024-05-07 · A Secret about Art — John assembles a cheap step-and-repeat ordered for the film's Indianapolis premiere that didn't arrive in time, and feels like a reporter at the jankiest premiere ever. (00:00:00)
  • 2024-05-07 · A Secret about Art — In a channel comment John says he loves The Format so much he spent three hours building a step and repeat. (creator comment)
  • 2024-05-07 · A Secret about Art — John says Nerdfighteria is the best, whether fighting tuberculosis or supporting the film's turtles that represent doubt and consciousness. (00:00:57)
  • 2024-05-07 · A Secret about Art — John says many hours went into the step-and-repeat gag, which isn't even a good bit: you pour yourself into something and sometimes get the film, other times the cheap step-and-repeat; that's art. (00:03:33)
  • 2024-05-09 · We’re Here Because... Something Broke — John remarks that novelists also find this very fulfilling work. (00:00:23)
  • 2024-05-17 · John and Hank FIGHT FOR DOMINANCE!!! — John says he has no gift whatsoever for Connections. (00:02:24)
  • 2024-05-23 · The Weird Timescales of the Universe — John protests that they cannot count 10 to the negative 35 seconds and 10 to the negative 15 seconds as 'a while' and then also call several million years 'a while'. (00:01:00)
  • 2024-05-23 · The Weird Timescales of the Universe — John jokes that this is great for them, since they now look able to get through the season, and he is starting to believe in them. (00:01:30)
  • 2024-05-23 · The Weird Timescales of the Universe — Reeling from the idea, John says he is going to not panic and just listen. (00:02:48)
  • 2024-05-28 · A Midlife Crisis — At physical therapy for his chronic back pain, John told his physical therapist he was 46, 'halfway home', his standard joke when asked his age. (00:00:00)
  • 2024-05-28 · A Midlife Crisis — John says the channel usually constructs videos so they have a point, but the point of this one is that right now he doesn't know the point. (00:03:24)
  • 2024-06-04 · how it all ends — In the comment John says the universe is temporary, but if we last 300 million years we will be the most successful complex species in the known universe. (creator comment)
  • 2024-06-11 · BEEF DAYS — Replying to a viewer who reduces beef by not being able to afford it, John comments that this was also the medieval trick. (creator comment)
  • 2024-06-11 · BEEF DAYS — John says NASCAR driver Dick Trickle, his real name, smoked cigarettes live on television during NASCAR races. (00:02:26)
  • 2024-06-11 · BEEF DAYS — John describes advanced forms: also skipping dairy except on beef days, and vegetarianism, the most advanced; vegetarians should be celebrated, thanked and encouraged to feast on beef days. (00:04:26)
  • 2024-06-18 · The Tea — Needing much more money, Hank proposed partly funding the project with an Awesome Socks Club; John thought it ludicrous, but says never bet against Hank Green. (00:01:10)
  • 2024-07-09 · Is the Inside of Your Mouth a Soup? (a vidcon reunion video) — Teased by Hank for wearing suits all VidCon, John says he is 46 and doesn't want to pretend otherwise: he is signaling old. (00:00:00)
  • 2024-07-09 · Is the Inside of Your Mouth a Soup? (a vidcon reunion video) — John says he and Hank co-threw out a first pitch (actually the second of several) at the Angels game with about 12 minutes' warning, and the player who caught it signed his ball. (00:00:25)
  • 2024-07-09 · Is the Inside of Your Mouth a Soup? (a vidcon reunion video) — John swears that Hank, thanking the players who caught their balls, asked one of them whether he plays baseball. (00:01:13)
  • 2024-08-03 · I Love Hank. (Also I'm back.) — John deadpans to Hank, asking whether anything weird happened while he was gone. (00:00:16)
  • 2024-08-03 · I Love Hank. (Also I'm back.) — John cites a wise man who told him he will always struggle with not feeling productive until he accepts that his own joy can be something he produces: not the only thing he will make, but something valuable and beautiful; he then jokes the author should take those words to heart. (00:01:50)
  • 2024-08-06 · What Helped Through Depression — John makes small closed forms he calls secret keepers: you whisper secrets or traumas into them so they hold them for you; asked whether it works, he says not really. (00:00:29)
  • 2024-08-06 · What Helped Through Depression — A new logo on the back of AFC Wimbledon shorts, between left thigh and buttock, was made by Nerdfighter Jen Koch and is based on space mission patches; John loves it. (00:01:27)
  • 2024-08-07 · Dear Hank and John Livestream! — John tweeted, then deleted within minutes, that it is terrible to write a book read by 35 million people because then 70 million people have opinions about it. (00:10:34)
  • 2024-08-07 · Dear Hank and John Livestream! — John says Vlogbrothers faces the same pressure: making viewers who have seen Tuesday and Friday videos for 18 years feel this one is new. (00:21:14)
  • 2024-08-07 · Dear Hank and John Livestream! — John says his therapist counts five positive comments per negative one, but for him it is more like 500 to one. (00:26:29)
  • 2024-08-13 · The Time a Spy Visited Me Because of P*tin. — When John joked that the job title sounded like a spy's, the man stared in long silence, then said he mostly works in intelligence. (00:00:58)
  • 2024-08-13 · The Time a Spy Visited Me Because of P*tin. — The man, supposedly in town for the Indy 500, told John he would not be able to stay for the race. (00:01:35)
  • 2024-08-13 · The Time a Spy Visited Me Because of P*tin. — Asked about Russia, John said he had never been there and had criticised the Russian government, like everyone except one noted American politician. (00:02:04)
  • 2024-08-13 · The Time a Spy Visited Me Because of P*tin. — John says he told the man everything: his mortgage, the cost of his AFC Wimbledon sponsorship, his foreign tax from foreign book deals, his good marriage, every thought about the Russian government. (00:02:33)
  • 2024-08-13 · The Time a Spy Visited Me Because of P*tin. — The meeting lasted about an hour; John ended slightly drunk and drenched in sweat, having little capacity for international skullduggery. (00:03:32)
  • 2024-08-20 · Thoughts from Places: BROMLEY! — John jokingly dismisses usual English tourism, such as seeing Shakespeare's second-best bed in Stratford-upon-Avon or ancient castles, as boring. (00:00:00)
  • 2024-08-20 · Thoughts from Places: BROMLEY! — John says a great joy of following AFC Wimbledon is visiting places tourists usually miss, like Bromley. (00:00:29)
  • 2024-08-20 · Thoughts from Places: BROMLEY! — TripAdvisor's Bromley suggestions were a Christmas tree farm, two graveyards and Charles Darwin's home, which is actually a 35-minute drive away. (00:00:29)
  • 2024-08-20 · Thoughts from Places: BROMLEY! — John admires the new DFTBA logos on the Wimbledon uniform, between left thigh and buttock. (00:01:27)
  • 2024-09-03 · Which is Correct? — or – ? — John uses an en dash for ranges anyway, simply because he loves an en dash. (00:02:26)
  • 2024-09-03 · Which is Correct? — or – ? — John playfully tells London visitors to go to an AFC Wimbledon game, calling the Tate Modern's 20th and 21st century art boring. (00:02:26)
  • 2024-09-03 · Which is Correct? — or – ? — John's second example: war era rationing takes a hyphen, but civil war era rationing takes an en dash, lest the rationing seem somehow civil. (00:02:53)
  • 2024-09-17 · My Consciousness. Their Capital. — John jokes about whether he could beat a coyote: it is a seasoned predator, he a depressive Indiana resident practiced at Instagram. (00:01:56)
  • 2024-09-23 · IT'S HERE! — John announces Pizzamas: for two weeks the brothers make weekday videos back and forth as in 2007 and sell merch with John's mustachioed face for charity. (00:00:00)
  • 2024-09-23 · IT'S HERE! — John reads the game's intro: Pizzamas is an age-old holiday of togetherness, and seeing Pizza John's startled face in the grease of empty boxes is an omen of good fortune. (00:01:30)
  • 2024-09-23 · IT'S HERE! — John shows this year's (2024) t-shirts: him saying hello from his Pizzamas abode, a 'pizza fall' shirt after brat summer, a cowboy lassoing a pizza, and 'Pizza John made fresh'. (00:02:16)
  • 2024-09-25 · You have no chance to survive make your time. — The description says that however well you plan and however carefully you live, someday you will discover all your base are belong to us and will have to make your time. (video description)
  • 2024-09-25 · You have no chance to survive make your time. — Weird, decade-spanning collaborative online projects are John's jam, so Pizzamas, an annual fever dream of too many videos and merch for charity, is his ultimate jam. (00:04:48)
  • 2024-09-27 · Is It 2010? IT'S A PARTS VIDEO — The description frames the video as John making an old-fashioned parts video. (video description)
  • 2024-09-27 · Is It 2010? IT'S A PARTS VIDEO — John says the act must now pass the House, and Congress struggles to pass a law these days. (00:01:02)
  • 2024-10-01 · On Fame and Chappell Roan — John opens with an image of his mustachioed face as Chappell Roan, who he says has been publicly struggling with fame lately. (00:00:00)
  • 2024-10-01 · On Fame and Chappell Roan — John says the top of a mountain can be quite lonely and there's not much oxygen up there. (00:01:19)
  • 2024-10-01 · On Fame and Chappell Roan — John grants that fame is beyond a first world problem, a 'zeroth world problem', but still a problem for Chappell Roan and for him. (00:03:16)
  • 2024-10-03 · Broadly in Favor of Humans — John says he is of course not optimistic about humanity long term: long term we're doomed. (00:04:05)
  • 2024-10-08 · Hank Steals John's Cells — John says he greatly dislikes the idea that each of his bones is an individual organ. (00:00:31)
  • 2024-10-08 · Hank Steals John's Cells — John, whom Hank calls a pretty anxious guy, agrees but says swabbing his cheek calmed him down, as if he were removing some bacteria along with his cells. (00:04:25)
  • 2024-10-11 · October 11, 2024 - Goofing off with John (a Vlogbrothers Video) — Opening with a hug, John jokes that the brothers used to roughhouse much more when they were in their tens. (00:00:00)
  • 2024-10-11 · October 11, 2024 - Goofing off with John (a Vlogbrothers Video) — John disbelieves he ever did Peanut Butter Face on the Georgia-Russia war, saying it shows there are eras on the internet, before accepting it. (00:01:48)
  • 2024-10-11 · October 11, 2024 - Goofing off with John (a Vlogbrothers Video) — John finds it a little embarrassing that they were ever into challenges; early on they would do anything they could. (00:02:47)
  • 2024-10-22 · My New Book: Everything Is Tuberculosis — John admits he said after last time he would never again sign hundreds of thousands of books, but says he is signing only 100,000. (00:03:00)
  • 2024-10-22 · My New Book: Everything Is Tuberculosis — John says an audiobook narrated by him is available for pre-order; it is unsigned only because he hasn't figured out how to sign digitally. (00:03:10)
  • 2024-10-29 · If Hank and John Were God for 15 Minutes — John jokes that ending serious infectious diseases would be catastrophic for his new book, Everything Is Tuberculosis, which he would have to update fast. (00:00:44)
  • 2024-10-30 · Sipping the Tea with Hank — John says Newman's Own, Good Store's 'rivals', has donated hundreds of millions of dollars, so Good Store has a ways to go. — hedged: “like” [other hedge] (00:37:28)
  • 2024-10-30 · Sipping the Tea with Hank — John says he feels he is having a blinding-light spiritual awakening about tea. (00:45:02)
  • 2024-11-05 · Why Do I Still Make YouTube Videos? — John teases that Hank's extra Sunday video is like trying to get extra credit in Vlogbrothers class when he already has an A. (00:00:00)
  • 2024-11-05 · Why Do I Still Make YouTube Videos? — John jokes that it's once a week, not twice: twice a week is what Hank's channel is for. (00:05:21)
  • 2024-11-12 · BELIEVE: The Jimmy Glass Story — John jokes that rooting for Manchester United's fall would be negative rooting, which they don't do, despite the temptation, though sometimes they do. (00:01:27)
  • 2024-11-13 · Some New Things… — John jokes that Good Store hopes to get as big as its 'frenemy' Newman's Own, the only other company giving all its money to charity. (00:24:40)
  • 2024-11-13 · Some New Things… — It is noted, apparently by Sarah off-camera, that Paul Newman also went to Kenyon, John's college. (00:25:09)
  • 2024-11-13 · Some New Things… — Reading an order from Alberta, John jokes that the buyer, not living in America, has health care, which he calls phenomenal. (00:55:07)
  • 2024-12-10 · On Writing — John says the book has little romance, except the romanticization of tuberculosis in 19th-century northern Europe. (00:02:28)
  • 2024-12-10 · On Writing — Like most of his books, John says, it stars a smart teenager who loves poetry: Henry Reider, a young man who lived with tuberculosis for most of his childhood. (00:03:23)
  • 2024-12-10 · On Writing — John notes that, like most of his books, it contains the word 'deadpanned' precisely once. (00:03:37)
  • 2024-12-17 · About THAT Scene in Looking for Alaska — John says he often hears that teenagers don't understand any of this and are corrupted by the sex in the book; he answers that the sex is not sexy. (00:02:26)
  • 2024-12-17 · About THAT Scene in Looking for Alaska — John says teenagers reading Animal Farm don't fear power-hungry pigs, because they understand the book is about people, not an animal farm. (00:02:55)
  • 2024-12-31 · I Just Can't Do It Anymore — John calls his Lectrojogger, which aligns stacks of signed sheets, the greatest feat of engineering in human history. (00:00:20)
  • 2024-12-31 · I Just Can't Do It Anymore — On Amazon the signed edition of Everything Is Tuberculosis currently costs $7 less than the unsigned one, so, John jokes, his signature is technically worth negative $7. (00:03:05)

Hank

1648 statements · sincere 89% · playful 10% · other bits 1% · hedged or unsure 9%

Sincere but hedged (128)

Split by hedge type (derived from the quoted hedge words with a fixed word list — see the overview): epistemic doubt 86 · wish / hope 1 · opinion marker 12 · other hedge 15 · hedge words not recorded 14.

Epistemic doubt (86)

real uncertainty about whether it is true

  • 2024-01-05 · I'm Scared of 2024...So Here's 3 Optimistic Thoughts — Hank thinks slowing AI down is probably good: after many recent shocks, more time before the next big shock would help; he notes some disagree. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:31)
  • 2024-01-05 · I'm Scared of 2024...So Here's 3 Optimistic Thoughts — Hank believes the future will see the advent of content platforms as significant a shift as the printing press, though he might be wrong. — hedged: “I might be wrong about that” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:58)
  • 2024-01-05 · I'm Scared of 2024...So Here's 3 Optimistic Thoughts — Hank thinks that almost ten years on, some immunities to the platforms might be kicking in, though many people still post through it. — hedged: “might be” [epistemic doubt] (00:05:40)
  • 2024-01-12 · How to Detect AI Images (and why it doesn't matter) — Hank has no time now to explain why, but would like to maybe get into it in a future video because it is fascinating and important. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:04:10)
  • 2024-01-19 · The Project for Awesome is Changing! — Hank admits pooling might make metagaming the P4A a little less fun for some, but there are always trade-offs. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:04)
  • 2024-02-09 · My Favorite Climate Graph — The description says the curve guesses about the present without predicting the future, and omits unproven technologies like advanced geothermal that Hank thinks will likely be very important. — hedged: “likely” [epistemic doubt] (video description)
  • 2024-02-09 · My Favorite Climate Graph — The description adds that the curve ignores falling energy costs at sunny, windy times of day, which could substantially change the economics of direct air capture. — hedged: “could” [epistemic doubt] (video description)
  • 2024-02-16 · How Much Does it Cost to be a Nerdfighter — Hank says the community's biggest economic impact is probably pushing Danaher to lower the cost of its TB test, which took not money but time and attention. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:55)
  • 2024-03-01 · Flyana Boss Asks Hank Anything — Hank says many different car companies would make hacking all cars at once hard, though Kia and Honda this year (2024) had an easy way to steal them spread as a TikTok trend. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:03)
  • 2024-03-01 · Flyana Boss Asks Hank Anything — Hank estimates the average person knows about 10 million things. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:04:30)
  • 2024-03-01 · Flyana Boss Asks Hank Anything — Hank says ginger ale often contains no ginger, so it probably cannot heal a cold. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:11:46)
  • 2024-03-01 · Flyana Boss Asks Hank Anything — Hank says ginger probably has no huge effect on fighting off a cold, though it might give some immune boosting. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:12:44)
  • 2024-03-01 · Flyana Boss Asks Hank Anything — Hank says Pepsi is named for a prefix to do with the stomach, as in the stomach calmer Pepcid. — hedged: “i guess” [epistemic doubt] (00:12:44)
  • 2024-03-15 · The Worst Things About Not Having Cancer — Hank says a relapse would probably show up as swollen lymph nodes in the neck, armpit or groin, but could show up in many other ways. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:57)
  • 2024-03-22 · The Internet Needs to Change — Hank says keeping users on a site and making them happy are similar goals that diverge, eventually in really big ways. — hedged: “it seems like” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:51)
  • 2024-03-29 · The 17 Weirdest Things I Learned at the Zoo — Hank says this raises hopes of one day bringing back extinct species that have close living relatives, giving black rhinos as an example. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:45)
  • 2024-04-12 · Feeling Like a Failure (During an Eclipse) — Hank says being a prehistoric human was probably not as different as we imagine: they made jokes, had friends, got their hearts broken and thought their kids had it good, just with more suffering. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:00:58)
  • 2024-04-12 · Feeling Like a Failure (During an Eclipse) — Like the eclipse, Microcosmos was something beautiful he had never seen before, then it ended and he got mad; unlike the eclipse, he is somewhat responsible both for its ending and for its existing at all. — hedged: “I don't know how much” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:44)
  • 2024-04-19 · I Closed My Boob in a Door — The description says that, since some felt the tweet ruined the book, Hank probably should have made April's point another way after hearing it seemed weird, though real women do tweet that. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (video description)
  • 2024-04-19 · I Closed My Boob in a Door — Hank explains that for 10-plus years the brothers have run a yearly census in which the community says what it likes, how its life is, what to do next and its priorities. — hedged: “I don't know” [epistemic doubt] (00:04:38)
  • 2024-05-03 · Everything Wrong with Turtles All the Way Down — Hank says that outside the US the film is probably on a Max-like service. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:39)
  • 2024-05-10 · Three Whole Onions with Secretary Pete Buttigieg — Hank explains DARPA funds high-risk, high-reward research; its biggest launch was probably the internet, plus GPS, graphical interfaces and the mouse; ARPA-I would pursue far-out infrastructure ideas like self-healing concrete. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:16:36)
  • 2024-05-10 · Three Whole Onions with Secretary Pete Buttigieg — Hank says secretary birds may be named for guarding crops like a 'secretary of the field', or for quill-like head feathers and waistcoat look. — hedged: “possibly” [epistemic doubt] (00:18:21)
  • 2024-05-20 · Hang on tight, spider monkey, it's the P4A 2024 MEME REVIEW!! — Hank suggests the possum, which lost the mascot race, should come back and win next year (2025). — hedged: “Maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:07:12)
  • 2024-05-20 · Hang on tight, spider monkey, it's the P4A 2024 MEME REVIEW!! — Fans made a set of P4A cards with printable templates; Hank doesn't know if it's playable, but it's really good and they should talk to Wayward about it. — hedged: “i don't know if it's playable” [epistemic doubt] (00:19:07)
  • 2024-06-14 · Some Reasons why People Suck — Hank says he is coming out of a few weeks of brain fog, fatigue and discomfort, maybe post-chemo, maybe normal depression; in survivorship you don't know what your body is telling you. — hedged: “might be” [epistemic doubt] (00:07:24)
  • 2024-06-14 · Some Reasons why People Suck — Hank is keeping a spreadsheet of beef day suggestions and may make a proposal next week (week of 17 June 2024), perhaps in the We're Here newsletter, a podcast or a video. — hedged: “Maybe gonna” [epistemic doubt] (00:08:15)
  • 2024-06-21 · I Was So Sad that I Did Comedy — Hank watched maybe an unhealthy amount of stand-up, even stand-up he disliked, curious why it worked on its audiences. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:10)
  • 2024-07-19 · The Assassination Attempt and the Comfort of Certainty — Hank says that on Sunday everybody, including him in a text to John, said Trump would now definitely win, but the attempt does not seem to have changed polling much. — hedged: “does not seem to” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:49)
  • 2024-07-19 · The Assassination Attempt and the Comfort of Certainty — Hank's own reading: Crooks does not seem to have hated Trump in particular but to have hated everything. — hedged: “does not seem to be” [epistemic doubt] (00:05:40)
  • 2024-07-26 · Hank Green's Top 7 Best Coconut Tree Facts!! — Hank says the word cocoa (as in chocolate) comes from an indigenous word like cacao, corrupted into cocoa probably under the influence of the Spanish word for coconut. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:35)
  • 2024-07-26 · Hank Green's Top 7 Best Coconut Tree Facts!! — Hank says the definition of nut, like that of tree, is wishy-washy, so one could make the case that a coconut is a nut after all. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:05)
  • 2024-07-26 · Hank Green's Top 7 Best Coconut Tree Facts!! — Hank says it is not certain where coconuts evolved, but before people moved them (for fresh water on voyages, and taste) they were probably confined to Southeast Asia and Indonesia, maybe Australia and southern India. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:05)
  • 2024-07-26 · Hank Green's Top 7 Best Coconut Tree Facts!! — Hank says coconuts seem to have first spread beyond that area with Polynesians. — hedged: “it seems like” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:05)
  • 2024-07-26 · Hank Green's Top 7 Best Coconut Tree Facts!! — Hank says this is one reason why giving coconut water as intravenous fluid for dehydration, long claimed as a fun fact, probably isn't a great idea. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:19)
  • 2024-08-09 · Why isn't This Illegal? — Hank argues it is probably bad for the company too: he might have resubscribed later, but now never will because he no longer trusts it cares about subscribers. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:27)
  • 2024-08-09 · Why isn't This Illegal? — Hank says the good news is that hard-to-cancel subscriptions probably won't last much longer. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:50)
  • 2024-08-16 · I Have Uncovered an Olympics Mystery… — Since some sports carry more randomness, like shot put in the rain or COVID before an event, Hank thinks more athletes give some, but not much, advantage. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:26)
  • 2024-08-16 · I Have Uncovered an Olympics Mystery… — Since money and socioeconomic status usually explain most things, Hank guesses less affluent countries may invest in elite athletes but less in those further down; China fits, but the affluent US shows no pattern. — hedged: “it seems somewhat likely to me” [epistemic doubt] (00:05:58)
  • 2024-08-16 · I Have Uncovered an Olympics Mystery… — Hank's second guess: bronze placings may be more random, gold winners being truer outliers, so Europe's larger number of athletes yields more bronze medals. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:06:28)
  • 2024-08-16 · I Have Uncovered an Olympics Mystery… — Hank says a snarky tweet made him curious and he seems to have found a real phenomenon he would love someone to write a full research paper on, as he had no time to check his work. — hedged: “seemed to have” [epistemic doubt] (00:06:57)
  • 2024-08-19 · The Olympics Mystery Explained!!! — Hank proposes that Europe's excess of bronze medals may simply be due to more bronze medals being awarded. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:00:29)
  • 2024-08-19 · The Olympics Mystery Explained!!! — Hank concludes it is nice to get a solid answer: continental Europe probably gets more bronze medals almost entirely because more bronze medals are available. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:24)
  • 2024-08-23 · Is Google Training AI on YouTube Videos? — Hank says there is something in generative AI, though no one knows what; it might collapse over copyright or emptiness, but companies think something is there. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:20:52)
  • 2024-08-23 · Is Google Training AI on YouTube Videos? — Hank worries that souring his relationship with YouTube could cause him serious economic harm, though probably it won't, as YouTube seems good at siloing. — hedged: “could” [epistemic doubt] (00:24:25)
  • 2024-08-23 · Is Google Training AI on YouTube Videos? — Hank says because Google owns YouTube it apparently doesn't have to pay, and no rival can pay, since Google won't sell YouTube's data to competitors. — hedged: “apparently” [epistemic doubt] (00:28:29)
  • 2024-09-13 · My Governor is Weirder than Yours — Hank says polling suggests abortion access divides Montana's government from its people: a ballot initiative polls well, while Gianforte wants to end all abortions. — hedged: “It seems to be” [epistemic doubt] (00:32:02)
  • 2024-09-20 · Do I Regret TikTok? — Hank says algorithms, media and creators work together to keep us on websites at any cost, and the cost seems real: worse mental health, a more antisocial society, more divisive arguments. — hedged: “It seems like” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:56)
  • 2024-09-24 · The Forgotten Viral Video that Could Never be Made Today — Hank says the X-Files makers had clout in a smaller TV industry, and maybe things then were less transactional, with more room for weird stuff. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:24)
  • 2024-09-26 · Something Very Strange Has Been Happening to Me — Hank says that in college he found old textbooks in the trash at semester's end and resold them on eBay, which might explain his obsession with trash. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:00:58)
  • 2024-09-30 · Put a little bit of cinnamon in it — Hank is fairly sure he fixed the Kickstarter shipping problem. — hedged: “I'm pretty sure” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:30)
  • 2024-09-30 · Put a little bit of cinnamon in it — Hank says the Book of Good Times is linked in the description and believes all hardcovers guaranteed by Christmas have sold out, while the rest remain available. — hedged: “I'm pretty sure” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:59)
  • 2024-10-02 · What I learned from the weirdest day of my life — Using the false summit of hiking, Hank suggests John may be the kind who reaches a summit and asks what the point was, while he may be the kind who sees it wasn't the real summit. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:00:00)
  • 2024-10-02 · What I learned from the weirdest day of my life — Hank worries that his work on the internet solves problems for some people but also creates problems for others. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:53)
  • 2024-10-04 · Trees are Destroying the Earth (Again) — In a comment Hank says scientists are unsure about that extinction: it is geologically messy, mostly of ocean organisms, and may have been a very slow mass extinction. — hedged: “may” [epistemic doubt] (creator comment)
  • 2024-10-04 · Trees are Destroying the Earth (Again) — Hank says plummeting atmospheric carbon dioxide, combined with tree roots breaking up rocks and releasing minerals into the oceans, probably kicked off the late Devonian mass extinction. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:27)
  • 2024-10-08 · Hank Steals John's Cells — Hank says if he relapses he will probably need an autologous stem cell transplant, his own marrow cleaned of cancer and put back, so he would need no donor. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:00)
  • 2024-10-18 · My Ballot Made Me Angry — Replying to a viewer who looked back at the party order on their own mail-in ballot, Hank calls it extremely unfair and says it probably cost Democratic candidates for governor the race in Florida several times. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (creator comment)
  • 2024-11-01 · Working Through a Crisis with My Brother — Hank says John may be the second most banned author in America. — hedged: “may be” [epistemic doubt] (00:00:58)
  • 2024-11-01 · Working Through a Crisis with My Brother — Hank says there might be a pathological component to his anxiety. — hedged: “I think that there might be” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:52)
  • 2024-11-03 · Hank's very messy post-cancer year of mistakes, meaning… — Hank suggests he may not be that different from Logan Paul: many creators, like MrBeast, KSI, Marques Brownlee and Holo Taco's founder, launch products for a reason. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:36)
  • 2024-11-03 · Hank's very messy post-cancer year of mistakes, meaning… — Some creators with enough money scale back or stop because of the stress, which Hank calls amazing; he doubts that will ever be him, though maybe someday. — hedged: “maybe someday” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:57)
  • 2024-11-03 · Hank's very messy post-cancer year of mistakes, meaning… — Maybe Hank hasn't vlogged enough: too many of their videos are produced video, as YouTube now is, and too few just him talking for 40 minutes. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:18:57)
  • 2024-11-08 · These Maps are Lying (if you let them) — Hank says maybe maps must also correct for population, which makes them look super weird. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:04)
  • 2024-11-08 · These Maps are Lying (if you let them) — Hank says maybe he will do some analysis on Hank's channel soon. — hedged: “Maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:05:01)
  • 2024-11-08 · These Maps are Lying (if you let them) — Hank says the election was long, stressful and a long fight; it is done now, and at least we know what we're facing. — hedged: “I guess” [epistemic doubt] (00:05:49)
  • 2024-11-13 · Some New Things… — Hank says Good Store's tea and coffee only ship to the US, Canada and Europe; they might start shipping tea overseas, since tea keeps its quality far longer than coffee. — hedged: “I think we might” [epistemic doubt] (00:14:21)
  • 2024-11-15 · Whales are Fish (and Everything Else is Beetles) with Lindsay Nikole — Hank suggests you have to live in the water to be a fish, then allows that mudskippers don't always live in water. — hedged: “I guess” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:42)
  • 2024-11-22 · Populism, Media Revolutions, and Our Terrible Moment — Hank says Germany was hit hard by paying World War I reparations, though how much that contributed is apparently debated by historians. — hedged: “apparently” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:54)
  • 2024-11-22 · Populism, Media Revolutions, and Our Terrible Moment — Hank says Luther seems to have found that more inflammatory writing sold more pamphlets; he calls him a social media influencer who was not chill. — hedged: “it seems” [epistemic doubt] (00:10:05)
  • 2024-11-22 · Populism, Media Revolutions, and Our Terrible Moment — Hank does not think the destruction of trust will stop getting worse soon, would love to be proved wrong, and allows it may be less bad than he thinks. — hedged: “Maybe it's not as bad as I think it is” [epistemic doubt] (00:24:12)
  • 2024-12-06 · One of the Most Important Images On Earth — Hank realized the image is very likely religious in a context he cannot know, so posting it with his non-religious take would be almost disrespectful. — hedged: “very likely” [epistemic doubt] (00:00:23)
  • 2024-12-06 · One of the Most Important Images On Earth — Hank says Homo sapiens once shared the planet with three other species of people (Neanderthals, Denisovans, Floresiensis), maybe more, since Floresiensis was found only about 20 years ago. — hedged: “And maybe more” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:44)
  • 2024-12-06 · One of the Most Important Images On Earth — Hank says what makes the image so powerful is that parts were made by Neanderthals over 60,000 years ago and other parts apparently much later by humans: an artistic collaboration between two human species. — hedged: “it seems like” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:29)
  • 2024-12-06 · One of the Most Important Images On Earth — Hank thinks the work likely carried real significance for each individual who worked on it, whether religious or ritualistic he does not know. — hedged: “i feel like it is likely” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:45)
  • 2024-12-06 · One of the Most Important Images On Earth — Hank used to think humans killed off the Neanderthals, but says there is no evidence for that; small conflicts, rapid climate change, disease brought out of Africa or a combination could explain it. — hedged: “it could have been” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:58)
  • 2024-12-13 · TIL Some People Have an 'Inner Monologue' — Hank suggests that for people with an internal monologue, converting thoughts into words may be easier because that work is already done. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:01:45)
  • 2024-12-13 · TIL Some People Have an 'Inner Monologue' — Using the metaphor of attention as a flashlight, Hank wonders whether he is the flashlight, the one experiencing what it shows, the hand that points it, or what forces it onto unwanted things. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:02:55)
  • 2024-12-13 · TIL Some People Have an 'Inner Monologue' — Hank says the part of him that makes him focus on worries does not feel like him because he cannot control it, but maybe that makes it more him; it is definitely part of him. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:03:45)
  • 2024-12-13 · TIL Some People Have an 'Inner Monologue' — Hank says lately he thinks these may be different me's collaborating while barely aware of each other, held together loosely by his brain's pattern-seeking, perhaps where no pattern exists. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:04:37)
  • 2024-12-13 · TIL Some People Have an 'Inner Monologue' — Hank says that, like much of life, he might just be a collection of whatever works, and sometimes whatever works does not work that well. — hedged: “might” [epistemic doubt] (00:05:06)
  • 2024-12-20 · Fine, I'll Talk About the Drones… — In a channel comment Hank says the likeliest outcome is people getting Christmas presents early and trying them out without knowing the local rules. — hedged: “seems like the most likely outcome” [epistemic doubt] (creator comment)
  • 2024-12-20 · Fine, I'll Talk About the Drones… — Hank says police and maybe other agencies are sending up big drones to find the other drones, and these are then spotted and posted online. — hedged: “maybe” [epistemic doubt] (00:07:47)
  • 2024-12-20 · Fine, I'll Talk About the Drones… — Hank thinks some of these politicians should be a bit ashamed of themselves. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:10:05)
  • 2024-12-20 · Fine, I'll Talk About the Drones… — Hank says he doesn't know nothing weird is going on: perhaps a secret government project started it, though he'd expect secret tests in less populated areas. — hedged: “Perhaps” [epistemic doubt] (00:11:04)
  • 2024-12-20 · Fine, I'll Talk About the Drones… — Noting both incidents came around Christmas, Hank suggests parents may be testing their kids' new drones at night, and enjoying it. — hedged: “Possibly” [epistemic doubt] (00:12:39)

Wish / hope (1)

a wish about the future, not a claim about what is true

Opinion marker (12)

marks a view as the speaker's own; not doubt

Other hedge (15)

a hedge that matches none of the word lists

  • 2024-01-05 · I'm Scared of 2024...So Here's 3 Optimistic Thoughts — Hank is fairly certain the number of people dying in wars will increase again in 2024. — hedged: “fairly certain” [other hedge] (00:01:03)
  • 2024-02-16 · How Much Does it Cost to be a Nerdfighter — In a channel comment Hank says the Maternal Center of Excellence is not exactly fully supported, but commitments should support it fully, though things can change. — hedged: “should” [other hedge] (creator comment)
  • 2024-03-29 · The 17 Weirdest Things I Learned at the Zoo — The zoo gives its antivenom away free, since rules forbid selling it, and then buys more for itself. — hedged: “Like if there's like rules where you can't sell it” [other hedge] (00:01:27)
  • 2024-05-24 · An Ancient Apocalypse — Hank says he also does not know if he is okay, but as far as he knows he is. — hedged: “as far as I know” [other hedge] (00:00:58)
  • 2024-05-24 · An Ancient Apocalypse — Hank says that, though there is no proof, there were also people in the places the flood went. — hedged: “we don't have proof of this” [other hedge] (00:04:02)
  • 2024-06-07 · Eating an 11,000 Year Old Fruit — Hank says this makes a compelling case that the fig tree was the very first domesticated plant on Earth. — hedged: “a compelling case” [other hedge] (00:02:19)
  • 2024-06-07 · Eating an 11,000 Year Old Fruit — Hank says there's a chance the Neolithic farmers' cuttings have been propagated thousands or millions of times over 11,400 years, so people still eat figs from that same tree. — hedged: “There's a chance, we're not sure, but there's a chance” [other hedge] (00:02:19)
  • 2024-08-16 · I Have Uncovered an Olympics Mystery… — Hank says he appears to have uncovered a cool Olympic mystery that no one seems to know about and that he cannot explain, found through silly Twitter discourse. — hedged: “appear to have” [other hedge] (00:00:00)
  • 2024-08-23 · Is Google Training AI on YouTube Videos? — Hank says his company has more videos in the dataset than almost anyone: Marques Brownlee 9, MrBeast 19, Mark Rober 24, MinutePhysics 85, against Vlogbrothers 188, SciShow over 300, Crash Course 982. — hedged: “from what I can tell” [other hedge] (00:02:26)
  • 2024-08-23 · Is Google Training AI on YouTube Videos? — Hank says the hope that models could create their own training data sounds silly to him, though he is not an expert. — hedged: “I'm not an expert” [other hedge] (00:16:20)
  • 2024-08-23 · Is Google Training AI on YouTube Videos? — Hank says creators did not agree to a license allowing this use of their property, but YouTube is acting as if they did. — hedged: “as far as I can tell” [other hedge] (00:26:37)
  • 2024-09-13 · My Governor is Weirder than Yours — Hank says Trump appears to be preparing everyone for him not accepting the result if he loses this election too. — hedged: “appears to be” [other hedge] (00:38:14)
  • 2024-09-20 · Do I Regret TikTok? — Hank notes the problem that TikTok may be controlled or influenced by a government that would prefer the US to trust itself less and be more dysfunctional. — hedged: “potentially” [other hedge] (00:04:52)
  • 2024-10-04 · October 4, 2024 — Hank says he did the math once: one tree absorbing all the carbon dioxide emitted since the Industrial Revolution would need three or four times the mass of every tree on Earth combined. — hedged: “like” [other hedge] (00:00:00)
  • 2024-10-18 · My Ballot Made Me Angry — In a comment, Hank says city districts don't overlap state ones, so he guesses fewer than 1000 people got his exact ballot. — hedged: “I'd guess” [other hedge] (creator comment)

Hedge words not recorded (14)

marked as unsure, but the hedge words were not quoted

  • 2024-03-08 · I Believed These Four Lies — Hank guesses the graph began as a mistake that went viral for its dramatic divergence, then kept going viral because people saw that posting it worked. — speculative (hedge words not recorded) (00:00:48)
  • 2024-06-07 · Eating an 11,000 Year Old Fruit — Hank says that so far we can't be sure which fig variety is the one from that tree. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:03:12)
  • 2024-07-12 · My Identity Crisis — In a comment Hank agrees the roles aren't who he truly is, but says he has no idea who he truly is. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (creator comment)
  • 2024-08-16 · I Have Uncovered an Olympics Mystery… — Hank says it could be something else; he does not know, and would not know how to design the study or do the statistics. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:06:57)
  • 2024-08-23 · Is Google Training AI on YouTube Videos? — In a channel comment, Hank says no one knows whether AI training is copyright infringement; the lawsuits will decide. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (creator comment)
  • 2024-08-23 · Is Google Training AI on YouTube Videos? — Hank says no one knows whether training AI under a derivative-works license is legal; many lawsuits on it are under way. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:07:55)
  • 2024-08-23 · Is Google Training AI on YouTube Videos? — Hank knows many YouTubers don't want their content used to train LLMs, but doesn't know if they're right or what he would choose; some uses he'd favor, some would infuriate him. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:25:16)
  • 2024-09-26 · Something Very Strange Has Been Happening to Me — Hank says they kept the Kickstarter as simple and cheap as they could and he has no idea how it will go. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:03:40)
  • 2024-09-30 · Put a little bit of cinnamon in it — Hank says he has no idea what they will do for backers who got the book with the wrong shipping. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:02:30)
  • 2024-10-04 · Trees are Destroying the Earth (Again) — Hank doesn't know that humans will stop themselves, at least not as fast as needed. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:04:52)
  • 2024-10-18 · My Ballot Made Me Angry — Since Montana is a red state where Republicans are generally in power, Hank's first thought was that those in power were ordering the ballot to give themselves an advantage. — speculative (hedge words not recorded) (00:00:14)
  • 2024-11-03 · Hank's very messy post-cancer year of mistakes, meaning… — Even with no reason to be scared, Hank's anxiety searches for things to fear; he doesn't know whether they are irrational or real. — explicitly uncertain (hedge words not recorded) (00:06:08)
  • 2024-11-15 · Whales are Fish (and Everything Else is Beetles) with Lindsay Nikole — Hank imagines the first flying insect able to hide its wings as a big unlock; Lindsay bets beetles did it first, and Hank says that is what let them take over. — speculative (hedge words not recorded) (00:01:28)
  • 2024-12-13 · TIL Some People Have an 'Inner Monologue' — As an example of his wordless thinking, Hank says the idea of an internal monologue might attract the idea of aphantasia, raising the question whether people with aphantasia are more or less likely to have one. — speculative (hedge words not recorded) (00:00:58)

Fiction (1)

a story or novel read aloud; the words belong to characters

Joke (5)

a gag; not a claim

Hypothetical (4)

a thought experiment or "what if"

  • 2024-02-23 · The Juiciest Hank in the World — Asked what to take to 15th-century Europe, Hank would choose understandable, hand-made-looking mechanical technology, such as a microscope, an older telescope or a watch, not something too far ahead. (00:02:41)
  • 2024-02-23 · The Juiciest Hank in the World — Hank would rather experience death in space than in a volcano, thinking space death less painful and probably faster. — hedged: “probably” [epistemic doubt] (00:04:10)
  • 2024-10-18 · My Ballot Made Me Angry — Without trust in Montana's election officials, Hank says, he might have posted that Montana puts only Democrats last; it might go viral, the correction wouldn't, and people would lose more faith in the system. (00:04:08)
  • 2024-10-29 · If Hank and John Were God for 15 Minutes — Hank worries that in a world without aging, if a man he hired to clean his gutters fell off the ladder, he would have to feel the pain because it was his fault. (00:03:14)

Playful (172)

a real point made in a joking way; the paraphrase records the meant core

Other voices

179 statements · sincere 92% · playful 6% · other bits 2% · hedged or unsure 8%

Sincere but hedged (12)

Split by hedge type (derived from the quoted hedge words with a fixed word list — see the overview): epistemic doubt 4 · opinion marker 4 · other hedge 3 · hedge words not recorded 1.

Epistemic doubt (4)

real uncertainty about whether it is true

Opinion marker (4)

marks a view as the speaker's own; not doubt

Other hedge (3)

a hedge that matches none of the word lists

Hedge words not recorded (1)

marked as unsure, but the hedge words were not quoted

Joke (1)

a gag; not a claim

Hypothetical (2)

a thought experiment or "what if"

  • 2024-10-29 · If Hank and John Were God for 15 Minutes — both: Hank says killing someone would not kill you but would just hurt really badly; John adds that it would last forever, like chronic pain, and that ordering someone else to hurt a person brings at least as much pain. (00:02:36)
  • 2024-10-29 · If Hank and John Were God for 15 Minutes — both: The brothers note the rule spirals: it ends war because no one can kill anybody, but no one could hurt anybody or put them in prison, or do anything bad, even financially. (00:03:33)

Playful (11)

a real point made in a joking way; the paraphrase records the meant core