HN Explorer

Ask HN: Favorite teachers on YouTube?

770 points by akudha ↗ HN
Currently I am watching Daniel Shiffman (example : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_p5IH0L63wo) and I really like his enthusiasm. I've watched a whole bunch of high production, paid courses (udemy, udacity etc) and somehow Shiffman's free videos are more fun to watch and learn.

Any other teachers you like? Doesn't need to be math or computers, other subjects welcome too

193 comments

[ 3.7 ms ] story [ 257 ms ] thread
srinathkrishna
Let me be the first of many many people who would vouch for 3Blue1Brown's Grant Sanderson - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYO_jab_esuFRV4b17AJtAw

It's one of the best channels to learn math and his amazing style of explaining concepts in simple to put terms and visually appealing graphics is mindblowing. This is one channel that is worth supporting on Patreon for sure.

mindcrime
Agreed. FWIW, I support two creators on Patreon:

Professor Leonard, and 3blue1brown.

Both are great if you are interested in learning math.

laythea
I second that. The effort that goes into the visualisations are great.
3PS
I can't recommend 3Blue1Brown enough. I essentially had to learn linear algebra three times between high school and college, and his Essence of Linear Algebra series still managed to teach me new things. What particularly sets him apart is his phenomenal visualizations of tricky problems involving higher dimensions, mappings, and the like.
markatkinson
His videos on neural networks are also great. Current Patreon supporter too! My t-shirt is in the mail ;)
pixelperfect
Pavel Grinfeld (MathTheBeautiful) has a wonderful Linear Algebra course that is imo underwatched. He also has courses on Vector Calculus and Tensor Calculus. [1]

Sandy Bultena has a great series on Euclid's elements with beautiful visualizations made from software she wrote [2]

For learning Mandarin Chinese, Mandarin Corner is my favorite channel. [3]

[1] https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCr22xikWUK2yUW4YxOKXclQ

[2] https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnHh6XeLupJ5FHSKDh9eIMw/pla...

[3] https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2fAiRQHRQT9aj9P_ijYeow

MattGrommes
Dan Shiffman of The Coding Train is one of my favorites: https://www.youtube.com/user/shiffman/featured

He does creative coding tutorials mostly using Processing and P5js.

type-2
That's what inspired OP to create this post in the first place
pronouncedjerry
wow. i am blown away, this is what i've been looking for for the past few months. thank you so much. i was trying to figure out how to build and deploy and app ant he "Build a Full Stack Twitter Clone with Coding Garden" was extremely helpful. If you have similar suggestions for tutorials on how to build and deploy apps (ideally to AWS) please send them my way!
superplussed
I partnered with a Youtube teacher to create my video-based German language learning app.

She has a unique format of asking native Germans topical questions on the street and mixing in some grammar videos. And she is seriously beloved by language learners here in Berlin! We can barely walk down the street with her and her husband being recognized:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbxb2fqe9oNgglAoYqsYOtQ

My app: https://seedlang.com

fiftyacorn
That looks pretty good - how times have changed since I used Lohnes and Strothman at uni
Treegarden
Im gonna guess here that shes not the founder of "easy german" so shes just part of that format, she didnt come up with it. The "easy langauge" is simply a bigger brand/ org and they offer many languages with many "teachers".

I checked out you app and its pretty generic flashcard learning and video lectures which is what every language learning app is doing (zero innovation on your part). And you demand 12 or 15 eur for "advanced features". Makes me depressed if you earn any money on that.

I am 90% done developing a really good language app which is better then duolingo (which is the Marktleader) and my goal is to integrate it with actual language classes by cooperating with language schools.

The work is hard but I believe in increasing efficiency of learning by a factor of 10x - then people like you pump out these apps that dont even do anything new and demand 12 eur for it.

PacifyFish
If your app is as good and parent comment’s is as shit as you claim, you shouldn’t have any problem succeeding in the open market.

Dare you share the name of your app on HN, or are you afraid of someone taking a big steamy anonymous dump on it like you just did?

Treegarden
Posted a Prototype on reddit, and I plan on posting it on HN in a month or two. I learned programming to build that platform, I have a job and I had to do it in parallel to my university. I hope some day I can work full time for it.

But to respond to you, I already showed it to real people, who took a dump on it, and the redesigns are partly what I am working on right now. After that is finished I will try to do a cooperation with my universities language department and do a test roll out.

There is a woman who did multiple Kickstarter campaigns for a language learning app and she raised like 100k, but 5 years later the app is horrible. My goal is not the money but to build a perfect learning platform, so critique is welcome.

splatzone
Your comment comes across as quite bitter, why not share your app and let your work speak for itself rather than degrading someone else’s efforts. If it’s as good as you say you won’t struggle to find users
hirundo
AvE (arduinoversusevil). He's a Canadian engineer of some kind that mostly does tear downs of various equipment, commenting on their construction. He's also a foul mouthed master of malapropism, but those things just add spice. The engineering content and commentary are really fascinating and keep me coming back. He has the great teacher's ability to convey joy and astonishment at things I didn't even know were things and make me want to learn more. He's also taught me a lot of things that turned out to be of great practical use, like how to drill through steel, which brands of tools to avoid and which to pay through the nose for.

Keep your dick in a vice! (I don't know why. Maybe if I keep watching I'll find out.)

https://www.youtube.com/user/arduinoversusevil/about

agumonkey
One of the most joyful dude to watch, the constant stream of crummy puns rarely gets old IMO. Not a lot on the theoretical side but you'll learn things for sure.
geomark
Yep, enjoy watching him. He has an interesting combination of knowledge about materials, electronics, machining and general tools know-how.

I got a kick out of an episode when his young daughter came into the workshop while he was filming. Clearly he has had an effect on her because she wanted to "make some metal". He told her she had to leave because otherwise he can't swear. She replied "That's OK."

While I sometimes chuckle at his vulgarities, I'm a little disappointed that I can't let my young kid watch him because of the language. It would be a great way to help instill a love of tools and making stuff.

maroonblazer
FWIW, I have a 12 yr old boy and had to reconcile my and the culture’s proclivity for swearing when he was old enough to know what was going on. I decided to treat it like other things in the category of “for adults only”. I.e it’s ok to watch adults doing it and when you’re an adult you can too, but until then, no swearing.

For the most part it’s worked. On the few occasions where he’ has sweared (sworn?) there have been consequences. So far he’s stayed on the straight and narrow.

zhengyi13
Identical situation. Two boys; I swear frequently in front of them. They don't speak similarly.

In my case, I've emphasized the fact that if they start speaking as I do in public, they will face consequences from their teachers and the other adults around them. I think it helps that there are people, times, and places for which I distinctly modify my tone and vocabulary, and I think they have absorbed that along with everything else.

geomark
The subject of using profanity around your kids is a subject I have definite opinions about. But it is a whole other topic that I'm not sure belongs in this thread. I will, however, mention something Paul Graham says in one of his essays, that the only reason we teach our kids not to swear is because we want them to remain cute - that is just so off, in my opinion. I like what the comedian Jerry Seinfeld said, that if you have to use profanity when telling a joke then you didn't nail it. I think that applies more broadly than just joke telling.
taejo
> that the only reason we teach our kids not to swear is because we want them to remain cute

I disagree with that. For swearing to be useful as swearing, it must be taboo. Avoiding it in certain places and teaching children not to do it is part of preserving the taboo; it's preserving the cultural heritage for your children to enjoy when they grow up.

xfitm3
I like having content that is specifically not kid friendly. I find vulgarity to be quite entertaining and I wish there was more of it.
ObsoleteNerd
I can listen to him talk for hours (and do). He has absolutely mastered the English language, in the sense that it sounds like he's talking gibberish half the time, but you still know exactly what he means. That to me is a skill in itself, but then he also REALLY knows what he's talking about, to an incredible depth, so the puns and unique expressions actually complement some quite serious knowledge and teachings.

I wish I was half as good with words and explaining things.

lozaning
His video on using hair shampoo to whiten his wife's dimmer cover was bordering on spoken word poetry.
kevas
I don't believe that was shampoo, rather bleach for hair.
[dead] simooooo
The 5 minute monologue about changing a light switch cover was great
milkmiruku
I love AvE, though do grimace every time they start a clip with "Gentlemen!".
pimmen
So many of my favorite ones in math, CS and statistics are already mentioned that I’ll mention one in English; Gabby Wallace. If you’re like me working with English speaking people daily and want to work on your accent she’s the best.

https://www.youtube.com/user/GoNaturalEnglish

pk78
I'm surprised no one has mentioned smarter everyday's destin. Great guy! Has excellent content and would probably be an amazing teacher at a school/uni.
dharmab
ChrisFix is an excellent channel for home auto repair. He has a format that both explains concepts with the appropriate level of depth and encourages the viewer to learn by doing. Any tutorial maker could learn a lot from his style.

His recent videos (last 2 years) have really taken the camera work and narration to a new level of quality, too. The contrast with other auto videos with poor framing and lighting is stark.

https://www.youtube.com/user/PaintballOO7

Bonus: Around the Corner (1937) is probably the greatest educational video ever made. The method of defining the problem and then building and iterating on the solution is extremely effective.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYAw79386WI

wcunning
In that vein, fordtechmakuloco is wonderful for pretty much anything Ford, up to and including some pretty tricky stuff in the middle of the engine. I'm sure there are similar channels for other make/models, but that's a great one for Ford.
yoodenvranx
When it comes to car channels you also need to mention Project Binky from Bad Obsession Motorsport. They are building a 4 wheel drive classic mini cooper and it's both high quality metalwork and high quality very dry British humour. If you are even remotely into project cars (or British humour) then this is a must watch!
myself248
For lathe and mill stuff, I really love Abom79's approach: https://www.youtube.com/user/Abom79 He takes a single project at a time and just works through it step by step. The pacing and time it takes to do the work is part of getting a feel for it, IMHO.

For ham radio stuff and electronic test equipment, W2AEW is excellent: https://www.youtube.com/user/w2aew

zrobotics
For machining, it's hard to beat tubalcain (Mr. Pete). Retired high-school shop teacher, very educational and entertaining.

Edit: spelling

shampto3
Not a math or cs subject, but I love The Recording Revolution by Graham Cochrane. It's for learning how to record and mix music, but he also teaches principles that you can use to help manage your time better. Sincere guy, professional videos, and quality content.
e_carra
Walter Lewin, I passed my physics exams thanks to him. His lessons are really engaging and full of experiments!
open-source-ux
A non-computing recommendation: 10 Minutes to Better Paintings

This playlist of 6 videos by Canadian artist Marco Bucci is excellent. Even if you can't draw or paint, or you have no interest in doing so, you'll still learn so many surprising details about visual design and colour. All presented with no fluff. I highly recommend it

(Note: the playlist is not ordered correctly but if you prefer you can watch only the only the videos you're interested in)

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLmXZMqb_9sbNLM83NrM0...

brox
I find Ben Eater's 8-bit computer from scratch series really wonderful, mainly because of his skills as an educator and the effort he puts into the material: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HyznrdDSSGM&list=PLowKtXNTBy...

Check out his latest videos on low-level data transmission techniques as well.

TangoTrotFox
Leonard Suskind and Walter Levin are both phenomenal for physics.

Just checked and was also happy to see YouTube now also has the original Cosmos with Carl Sagan available [1]. It's more of a general interest series, but simultaneously also one of the most inspiring and thought provoking things I've ever watched. I couldn't recommend it more to anybody who's never seen it.

[1] - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfCc7ZJjHiM&list=PLKSi40WEKt...

ardim
Jeremy Howard with hosts his video's of the fast.ai deep learning courses on youtube. They're great!