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Continents are Dumb

2015-09-24 · explainer · Hank, Charlie McDonnell · 3:55 · watch on YouTube

Topic: History & curiosities · mode: Explainer · tags: self correction, guest or collab

In a bonus video correcting his claim that most Muslims live in Asia rather than the Middle East, Hank argues that continents make little geographical sense, are partly a European cultural choice, and should be discarded by adults.

What is said

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

00:00:00 — Bonus video correcting his last video: Muslims in Asia versus the Middle East; most people live in Asia

  • ★★ Hank makes a special bonus video, responding not to John's last video but to his own, because he said something that didn't make sense. — 00:00:01
  • ★★★ Hank had said most Muslims live in Asia, not the Middle East, which makes no sense since most of the Middle East is in Asia; still, excluding it, far more Muslims live in Asia. — 00:00:07
  • ★★ The real problem with his statement, Hank says, is that Asia holds most people: more than half of the world's people live there. — 00:00:25

00:00:32 — The seven continents and how the ocean-border definition breaks down; Europe and Asia as one continent

  • ★★ Thinking about this, Hank says, the entire concept of a continent broke down in his head and went away. — 00:00:32
  • ★★ In America, at least, people are taught there are seven continents: North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa and Antarctica. (hedged) — 00:00:38 · United States, Europe, Australia
  • ★ Hank calls Antarctica the continent everybody forgets because nobody lives there, then apologises to the people currently on it. (playful) — 00:00:49
  • ★★ A continent is supposed to be a large contiguous landmass defined by ocean borders, but that breaks down: North and South America are connected, and Africa is connected to Asia. — 00:00:56 · United States
  • ★★ Hank says the definition makes some sense for Australia, but doesn't know whether it is a really big island or a really tiny continent. (unsure) — 00:01:16 · Australia
  • ★★ Antarctica is an archipelago under the ice, and its biggest island is smaller than Australia. — 00:01:23 · Australia
  • ★★★ Europe and Asia are by any geographical definition the same continent; Europe is separate only because Hank was taught by culturally European people who wanted it to be. — 00:01:29 · Europe
  • ★★★ If any part of the definition is cultural, there is no excuse for one continent containing Russia, Indonesia, Japan, China, the Middle East, India and Pakistan. — 00:01:44 · China

00:02:02 — The Mercator projection hides Indonesia's real size

  • ★★ Hank says the confusion is made worse by the common Mercator projection map, which makes lots of very big things look tiny. — 00:02:02
  • ★★ Indonesia seemed small to Hank, but moved onto Europe it stretches from Northern Ireland to Kazakhstan; it has the land area of the UK, Germany, France, Spain and Italy combined. — 00:02:11 · United Kingdom, Europe

00:02:35 — Hank's solution: continents are fine for grade school, adults should discard the concept

  • ★★★ Hank doesn't want to merge continents: they are useful in grade school, but adults should move past this massive oversimplification, which causes lifelong misunderstandings, and discard the concept. (hedged) — 00:02:35

00:03:06 — Tomorrow's Global Goals video; study up at globalgoals.org

  • ★★ Hank tells John he will post his video about the Global Goals tomorrow (25 September 2015), which he is very excited to share. — 00:03:06
  • ★★ Hank asks everyone to go to globalgoals.org and study up before that video, because they will want to know. — 00:03:12

00:03:20 — End clip from Cereal Time

  • ★ The video ends with a comic clip from Cereal Time featuring Charlie McDonnell. — 00:03:20 · Cereal Time

In the description and comments

  • ★ The description recommends CGP Grey's video on continents and The True Size of Places website. — video description

Threads in this video

Where the stories that moved here went next

Mentioned

Central: Asia · continent

Also: People: Charlie McDonnell

Concepts: Eurocentrism · Islam · Mercator projection

Places: Africa · Antarctica · Australia · China · Europe · France · Germany · India · Indonesia · Italy · Japan · Kazakhstan · Middle East · North America · Northern Ireland · Pakistan · Russia · South America · Spain · United Kingdom · United States

Policies: Sustainable Development Goals

Only in the description or credits: Cereal Time · CGP Grey

Replies to

  • corrects · Muslims Aren't Dangerous — “in response to my last video, because I said something that didn't make any sense”

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