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Why are Barns Red and Kardashians Famous

2011-11-23 · list · Hank · 4:00 · watch on YouTube

Topic: Science & nature (also: Internet & YouTube, US politics & society, Pop culture) · mode: Curiosity & trivia · tags: calendar ritual

After a Thanksgiving list of what he is thankful for, Hank answers Google's top autocompleted 'Why are…' question for each letter of the alphabet, mixing short science explanations with jokes and push-back on loaded or stereotyping questions.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — Thanksgiving: by Green family tradition Hank says what he's thankful for (brother, viewers, family, wife)

  • ★★ By Green family tradition, Hank tells John what he's thankful for this Thanksgiving: his brother, his viewers, his family and his wife, fulfilling an obligation to their mother. — 00:00:03 · John Green, Katherine Green, Sydney Green

00:00:24 — Premise: answering the top Google 'Why are…' search for every letter

  • ★★★ Hank types 'Why are' into Google and answers the most-searched question for every letter of the alphabet as a service to Google searchers. — 00:00:24 · Google

00:00:38 — A: 'Why are Asians so smart?' — positive stereotypes are still stereotypes; culture shapes values

  • ★★ Answering 'Why are Asians so smart?', Hank says even positive stereotypes are stereotypes and the asker should be ashamed. — 00:00:38
  • ★★ Hank thinks Asian-American culture generally values smartness, and that individual and cultural values strongly shape who people become. — 00:00:46 · United States

00:00:57 — B–M: barns, Cuban cigars, Dina and Caroline, enzymes, flamingos, grapes and dogs, Jews, Kardashians, leaves, manhole covers

  • ★★ Hank says barns are red because farmers hundreds of years ago put rust, a fungicide, in paint to stop wood rotting, which colored it red-brown. — 00:00:57
  • ★★ Hank explains Cuban cigars are illegal because fifty years ago Cuba's communist government took Americans' land and the US stopped buying anything from Cuba. — 00:01:12 · United States
  • ★ Not knowing who Dina and Caroline are, Hank guesses they are fighting because they're not imagining each other complexly. (playful, speculative) — 00:01:29 · imagine others complexly
  • ★★ Hank says enzymes matter because every living thing is basically a series of chemical reactions, and enzymes facilitate those reactions. — 00:01:37
  • ★★ Hank says flamingos are pink because the food they eat is pink. — 00:01:48
  • ★★ Hank says no one knows why grapes are bad for dogs, but they are: don't feed dogs grapes, and take a dog that eats many to the vet. — 00:01:52
  • ★★ Hank dismisses the loaded autocomplete questions 'Why are Jews liberal?' and 'Why are Republicans stupid?' with exasperation rather than answering. (playful) — 00:02:01 · Republican Party
  • ★★ Asked why the Kardashians are famous, Hank says audiences decide who is famous and he has decided they aren't. (playful) — 00:02:04 · celebrity
  • ★★ Hank says leaves are green because they are packed full of chlorophyll. — 00:02:14
  • ★★ Hank says manhole covers are round because sewers are round and so the covers can't fall into the sewer. — 00:02:18

00:02:31 — N–Y: noble gases, oceans, plants, Q-tips, Republicans, significant figures, carpetbaggers, unions, veins, why we are here, yawns

  • ★★ Hank says noble gases are unreactive because their electron orbitals are filled. — 00:02:31
  • ★★ Hank explains oceans are salty because rivers carry small amounts of salt to the sea, the water evaporates and the salt stays behind, building up over eons. — 00:02:37
  • ★ Hank says the Q in Q-tips stands for quality. — 00:02:55
  • ★★ Hank says significant figures matter because a measurement is useless without knowing the precision at which it was measured. — 00:03:02
  • ★★ Asked why unions are bad, Hank questions the premise: who told you unions were bad? (playful) — 00:03:14
  • ★★ Hank says veins and deoxygenated blood aren't blue; subcutaneous fat blocks red light from escaping, so only the blue light from the veins is seen. — 00:03:18
  • ★★ Hank says no one has any idea why yawns are contagious. — 00:03:33

00:03:37 — Z: why zombies are popular (a metaphor for battling disease, decay and death); sign-off

  • ★★★ Hank argues zombies are popular because the zombie myth lets us do metaphorical battle with what we can't fight in life: disease, decay, violence and death. — 00:03:37

In the description and comments

  • ★ In the description Hank answers letters he missed: hydrocarbons are non-polar so don't dissolve in polar water; why insects seek light is unsettled; X-rays can damage DNA. — video description

Humor (significant)

  • Listing what he's thankful for, Hank thanks his loving wife. — 00:00:16

    “who will carry my dead weight through all of Super Mario Brothers Wii.”

  • Answering why the Kardashians are famous, Hank says we decide who's famous and he has decided they aren't. — 00:02:11

    “Cardassians are famous”

  • Hank gives two real reasons manhole covers are round, then a third. — 00:02:27

    “To give douchebags an annoying and meaningless question to ask in job interviews.”

  • The W question Google suggests is 'Why are we here?' — 00:03:32

    “You're asking Google?!”

Threads in this video

Mentioned

Central: Google · Google Autocomplete

Also: People: Katherine Green · Sydney Green

Works: New Super Mario Bros. Wii

Organizations: Republican Party · YouTube

Groups: Kardashian family (“Kardashians”)

Terms: imagine others complexly

Concepts: carpetbagger · celebrity · chlorophyll · contagious yawning · enzyme · noble gas · significant figures · stereotype · trade union

Places: Cuba · United States

Events: Thanksgiving

Characters: Cardassian (“Cardassians”)

Products: Q-tips

Policies: United States embargo against Cuba

Myths: zombie

Also centred on Google Autocomplete: Is bronchitis contagious? Is black a color? · Why Does My Dog Eat Poop? · What's the Difference Between A and Z · Why is There an Egg Shortage (And More)

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