Vsauce

Vsauce
Presentation
Hosted by Vsauce1 - Michael Stevens
Vsauce2 - Kevin Lieber
Vsauce3 - Jake Roper
WeSauce - Various, either Stevens, Lieber, or Roper.
D.O.N.G - Various
Genre Education, Information, Science, Gaming, Technology
Language English
Length Varies (Usually about 10-24 Minutes)
Publication
Debut Vsauce 1
24 June 2010 (2010-06-24)
Vsauce 2
7 December 2010 (2010-12-07)
Vsauce 3
24 December 2010 (2010-12-24)
WeSauce
25 July 2012 (2012-07-25)
D.O.N.G
29 October 2015 (2015-10-29)
Ratings Average of 2-8 million viewers per episode
Provider YouTube
Website vsauce.com

Vsauce is a YouTube channel brand created by internet personality Michael Stevens.[1] The channels feature videos relating to various scientific and philosophical topics, as well as gaming, technology, culture, and other topics of general interest.[2][3][4][5][6]

History

On June 24, 2010, Michael Stevens launched the main Vsauce channel.[7] Initially, the channel's programming focused on video games and featured a number of different hosts.[8] However, certain segments such as "IMG!" slowly took over and Michael Stevens became the sole host. The channel then graduated to a mix of information and online activities, and solely educational segments popped up. The educational segments became more popular, and since September 9, 2012, only the educational segment (known as DOT) has been presented.[9] According to episode #18 of "LÜT" on the original Vsauce channel, the name "Vsauce" was generated using the fake website generator portion of a site called Fake Name Generator. After Stevens generated the fake website "Vsauce.com" he registered it and began uploading videos.[10]

In December 2010, the Vsauce2 (on December 7), and Vsauce3 (on December 24) channels were opened.[11][12] On July 25, 2012, the WeSauce channel was opened.[13]

Vsauce was one of the fastest growing channels during September 2012.[14] During that month, the main Vsauce channel reached 1 million subscribers.[15][16] In the same month, Bill Nye appeared in one of the main channel's videos, which focused on the joke, "Why did the chicken cross the road?"[17]

The former logo, based on Guinta's designs.

Stevens details in the video A Defense of Comic Sans that the text font Alsina was used by the Vsauce channels because of the close resemblance it has to the handwriting of Nik Guinta, the creator of the original Vsauce logo.[18] A new branding scheme designed by Natasha Jen was adopted in December 2014 in order to bring a new, 'grown-up' feel to the channels. It utilizes the Din Next Rounded font as well as fluid designs in order to convey the idea of sauce that the name "Vsauce" implies.[19]

Statistics

Channel statistics as of April 17, 2016.

Channel Subscribers Total Views Ref.
Vsauce 10,351,153 992.410.200 [7]
Vsauce2 3,606,295 533,853,641 [11]
Vsauce3 2,840,632259,703,670 [12]
D.O.N.G. 288,1655,258,885 [20]
WeSauce 180,2784,046,809 [13]

Channels

Vsauce

The main Vsauce channel, also known as Vsauce1 to distinguish it from the series as a whole and the other channels, is presented by the founder, Michael Stevens, and features videos about facts on various aspects of science, mathematics, anthropology, and philosophy. The primary series, DOT., features Stevens discussing a topic or question in a tangential manner, with various interpretations of the question and including related facts and observations.[21][22] Stevens has stated he researches on Wikipedia and academic papers to find information for his videos.[23]

Videos by Vsauce have been featured on several online news publications,[24][25] such as The Huffington Post,[26][27] CBS,[28][29] and Gizmodo.[2][30][31][32]

Vsauce2

Vsauce2[33] is a channel that has eight recurring segments which cover unusual knowledge and technology:[34] MindBlow, FAK, BiDiPi, Thought Glass, WAC, 54321, BOAT, and Weirdos of the Month. Vsauce2 also includes The Vsauce2 Leanback. Kevin Lieber is the main host of the Vsauce2 channel.[35]

MindBlow is a segment where Lieber showcases current inventions that are useful, of significant value to society, or are simply humorous. FAK (which stands for Facts And Knowledge) is a segment about trivia always consisting of one main topic. BiDiPi (which stands for Build it, Draw it, Play it) is a segment where things that were built and drawn by people from all around the world including Vsauce fans are submitted to Vsauce and the best ones are showcased on the show. 54321 is a segment where Kevin covers four topics, each having one, two, three, or four things related to each other according to order shown, giving a short summary of each, and then ending with five word problems or riddles. WAC (Weird Awesome Crazy) is a segment that focuses on people who participate in unusual activities from around the world.[36] BOAT stands for Best Of All Time, a segment in which Kevin presents lists of, as the segment name implies, the best word plays, best flash mobs, best pranks, etc.[37] Weirdos of the Month display's people with habits Kevin finds weird, using the tagline "Everyone has a little weird in them."

Thought Glass is another recurring segment where several topics within a theme, such as school facts or ancient medical practices, are posted to a glass pane and discussed. In earlier episodes, assorted topics were posted to the pane and a final subject was revealed through a rebus.[38] GRUB is a segment detailing strange and unusual foods.

Vsauce2 also created three April Fools joke segments. PAB, which stands for People Are Boring, was released in 2013; in which Kevin treated normal, everyday events like they were unusual. Noggin' Blow was uploaded in 2014, parodying the Mind Blow segment by showcasing items popularized in the 1940s and 1950s. In a parody of BiDiPi, titled BiDiPiGiFiTiWiPiBiCiMiFiDiFiTi and released in 2015, Kevin shared a mixture of parodic nonsense and actual scientific studies and phenomena.

Vsauce3

Vsauce3[39] is a channel that is dedicated to fictional worlds, as well as video games.[34][40] There are currently 5 recurring segments: HeadShot, Game LÜT, App All Knight, 9bit, and Fact Surgery. This channel is hosted by Jake Roper.

HeadShot is a segment that discusses video games and how they are connected to real life, and the science that is in these games. Game LÜT displays merchandise pertaining to video games. App All Knight talks about new apps that can be bought on the App Store or Google Play. 9bit details facts about video games. Fact Surgery dis-assembles a video game system as trivia about said system is shown.

Vsauce3 has collaborated with many well known Youtubers, including Joe Hanson from It's Okay to be Smart and Vanessa Hill from BrainCraft.

WeSauce

WeSauce[41] is a channel that shows off works from the fans of the Vsauce channels. The channel features the segments Your BiDiPi, JAM, Music LeanBack!, Riddle Challenge, This World of Ours, and ITVS.

D.O.N.G

D.O.N.G[20] (Do Online Now, Guys) is a spin-off channel by Vsauce that features pages, apps, and games from around the Internet, which the presenters consider interesting. D.O.N.G was formerly featured on the main Vsauce channel and then the Vsauce3 channel before its own channel was launched in 2015, with the first video being uploaded on October 29, 2015. D.O.N.G also features LÜT, a segment formerly featured on the Vsauce2 channel, which shares various products that can be found and bought online.

Others

Michael, Kevin and Jake all have their own personal YouTube channels: pooplicker888 , KevinLieber , and OFFICIALjakeroper , respectively. However, Michael's channel has been inactive for over 5 years, most likely because he gave up on vlogging and focused solely on making Vsauce videos.

As of November 25, 2015, Jake revealed he has sarcoma, a rare type of cancer.[42][43] On December 19, Jake announced that he had begun treatment and a tumor on his lower leg had been successfully removed by surgery.[44]

Music

Except for BiDiPi and some of Vsauce's older videos, the music has always been composed mostly by Jake Chudnow,[45] not be confused with the host of Vsauce3. Since mid 2014, Vsauce also uses music from the public domain music site audionetwork.com. Since early 2015, Vsauce2 also uses music by Aiur,[46] notably the song FoxTrot.

Jake Chudnow

Jake Chudnow and Michael Stevens are friends, and have known each other from when they both worked at BarelyPolitical, and Jake also made much of the music in the earlier "The Key of Awesome" music videos. Because of this, Chudnow gives Vsauce exclusive rights to all his music, and all three Vsauce channels use his music in their videos. One of the most recognizable pieces of his music is Moon Men, it is used in the original Vsauce channel and is often played whenever Michael Stevens poses a mysterious question or makes a mysterious statement, often the main question of the episode. Other pieces of music used in the main channel (and some in the others) include "145-(Poodles)", "Sunday", "It's Good to be D", "Hydrogen", "Darwin", "Carlin Dream", "Lions Tigers and Apes Part II", and "Shona", and are often played when the audience are encouraged to think. "Turqoise" is often used, usually when big, astonishing, or otherwise significant facts or ideas are mentioned. "Flan" is often used for sad or abstract facts. "Rainstorms and Rainbows (I Am the Hero)", "Going Down", and "Flan" as well, are common songs played at the closing of videos. "192-1", "White", "For You", "Meet Men and Party (All Night)", "Banana", "Ducking", "Buildings and Bikes", and "Muff Mittens" are also often used in Vsauce 2 & 3.

In the video "The Moon Terminator Illusion", Chudnow's vinyl album "Shona EP", was the focus object against the wall when showing the visual effects of zooming and moving on near-objects (a Vsauce mug), and distant ones (the album).

It is thought that much of Chudnow's fan base (~70%+) found his music strictly through Vsauce, or are at least viewers of Vsauce, or BarelyPolitical in the past.

Notable collaborations and other appearances

Vsauce has collaborated with Henry Reich of MinutePhysics on two videos: Guns in Space[30] and What if the Earth were Hollow?.[47] Vsauce has also collaborated with Periodic Videos[48][49] and Sixty Symbols,[23] chemistry and physics based channels both created by the video journalist Brady Haran. Vanessa Hill, of BrainCraft has appeared on the video, "Math Magic". As aforementioned, Bill Nye appeared on a Vsauce video in September 2012.[17] On February 28, 2013, Michael Stevens appeared on James May's "Head Squeeze" YouTube Channel.[50] Stevens also spoke about the main Vsauce channel and topics he presents on the channel during a TEDTalk at TEDActive 2013.[51]

Stevens has also appeared on The Mythical Show and Ear Biscuits where he was asked random questions by Rhett and Link.[52] He also has appeared in a few Barely Political videos and is well recognised as the Bearded Nun.[53] Michael Stevens also made an appearance in Travel Channel's "America Declassified" for "The Quiet Zone" episode[54] and on the "Joe Rogan Experience" podcast.[55]

In 2014, Jake of Vsauce3 had narrated two episodes of the series Did You Know Gaming? covering the Game Boy.[56][57] Vsauce3 has collaborated with AsapSCIENCE on the video Can You Genetically Enhance Yourself,[58] with BrainCraft on Is Mario Really Evil?[59] and with Matthew Santoro on What if Quicksilver Ran Past You?[60] Vsauce3 has featured celebrities such as Paul Rudd,[61] Jack Black[62] and The Muppets.[60]

Awards

Vsauce won a 2014 Webby for People's Voice award for best news and information.[63]

In 2014 and 2015, the channel won the Streamy Award for Best Science and Education Channel, Show, or Series.[64][65]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "What is Vsauce?". THNKR TV. YouTube. November 20, 2012. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
  2. 1 2 Eric Limer (September 30, 2012). "What Is the Hottest Temperature Anything Can Be?". Gizmodo. Retrieved October 1, 2012.
  3. ↑ Rocco Penn (August 19, 2012). "If everyone jumped at once, not much would happen". Techi. Retrieved September 18, 2012.
  4. ↑ Phil Plait (August 25, 2012). "Jump!". Discover Magazine. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  5. ↑ Mark Russell (November 6, 2011). "How Much Does the Internet Weigh?". Newser. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  6. ↑ Sean Ludwig (July 22, 2012). "The spacebar is pressed 6M times a second & other crazy typing facts (video)". Venture Beat. Retrieved September 18, 2012.
  7. 1 2 "Vsauce about". Vsauce. YouTube. Retrieved April 18, 2013.
  8. ↑ Ed Carrasco (September 14, 2012). "YOUTUBE’S VSAUCE HAS THE SPECIAL INGREDIENTS TO MAKE SCIENCE VIRAL [INTERVIEW]". New Media Rockstars. Retrieved April 18, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Vsauce videos". Vsauce. YouTube. Retrieved April 18, 2013.
  10. ↑ "MAKE YOUR CAT A DJ – and more! LÜT #18". Vsauce. Youtube. Retrieved July 24th, 2013
  11. 1 2 "Vsauce2 about". Vsauce2. YouTube. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  12. 1 2 "Vsauce3 about". Vsauce3. YouTube. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  13. 1 2 "WeSauce about". WeSauce. YouTube. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  14. ↑ Elayna Seguin (September 15, 2012). "Top 5 Rapidly Growing YouTube Channels". East Side Newspaper. My High School Journalism. Retrieved September 15, 2012.
  15. ↑ Ed Carrasco (September 14, 2012). "YouTube’s Vsauce Has The Special Ingredients to Make Science Viral [INTERVIEW]". New Media Rockstars. Retrieved September 15, 2012.
  16. ↑ Simon Usborne (January 30, 2013). "How to explain absolutely anything: Academics pick apart mysteries of the cosmos on YouTube". The Independent. Retrieved February 3, 2013.
  17. 1 2 Amanda Walgrove (September 17, 2012). "Vsauce And Bill Nye Dissect The Classic Joke, ‘Why Did The Chicken Cross The Road?’". What's Trending. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
  18. ↑ "'A Defense Of Comic Sans': Vsauce Gives History Of The World's Most Hated Font (VIDEO)". Huffington Post. February 13, 2013. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
  19. ↑ "Pentagram’s New Grown-Up Logo for Vsauce’s YouTube Stars". WIRED. February 9, 2015. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  20. 1 2 "DONG About". D.O.N.G. YouTube. Retrieved October 29, 2015.
  21. ↑ Paul Sawers (April 15, 2013). "Beyond dogs on skateboards: How Vsauce is building a YouTube business and brand". The Next Web. Retrieved April 17, 2013.
  22. ↑ "Michael Stevens: YouTube educator". TED-Ed. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
  23. 1 2 Brady Haran (March 2, 2013). "Meet Vsauce – Sixty Symbols". Sixty Symbols. YouTube. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
  24. ↑ Daniel Hurwitz (April 16, 2013). "TV on the Web: Why are there limits on human size?". USA Today. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  25. ↑ "The 5-second rule for dropped food is dangerously optimistic". MSN. December 2, 2012. Retrieved April 18, 2013.
  26. ↑ Jacqueline Howard (August 26, 2012). "What If Everyone On Earth Jumped At Same Time? (VIDEO)". The Huffington Post. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  27. ↑ "'A Defense Of Comic Sans': Vsauce Gives History Of The World's Most Hated Font (VIDEO)". The Huffington Post. February 13, 2013. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
  28. ↑ Bailey Johnson (October 1, 2012). "How hot can it get?". CBS. Retrieved October 10, 2012.
  29. ↑ "Watch: Why do humans have two nostrils?". SciTech. CBS. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
  30. 1 2 Kyle Wagner (August 27, 2012). "Guns in Space, and How to Kill Our Sun". Gizmodo. Retrieved September 22, 2012.
  31. ↑ Eric Limer (November 10, 2012). "How Many Pictures Have Ever Been Taken?". Gizmodo. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
  32. ↑ Casey Chan (January 10, 2013). "The Science of Being in the Friend Zone". Gizmodo. Retrieved February 3, 2013.
  33. ↑ "Vsauce2 channel". YouTube. Retrieved April 2, 2013.
  34. 1 2 Dave Metzener (March 31, 2013). "Vsauce, Vsauce2 & Vsauce3 – YouTube Channels". Metzener. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  35. ↑ "About". Julius Bloop. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
  36. ↑ Lieber, Kevin (January 27, 2013). Unborn Baby Handshake – WAC #1. Vsauce2 (YouTube). Retrieved April 2, 2013.
  37. ↑ Lieber, Kevin (December 28, 2010). BEST Flash Mobs of ALL TIME – BOAT 1. Vsauce2 (YouTube). Retrieved January 25, 2014.
  38. ↑ Lieber, Kevin. "Waterfalls Make You Pee?". Thought Glass. YouTube.
  39. ↑ "Vsauce3". Vsauce3. YouTube. Retrieved April 17, 2013.
  40. ↑ Dan Van Winkle (November 25, 2013). "Vsauce and a Stop Motion Animated PlayStation Bring You Six Awesome PlayStation Facts [Video]". Geekosystem. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
  41. ↑ "WeSauce". WeSauce. YouTube. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
  42. ↑ Roper, Jake (Nov 25, 2015). "I Need to Tell You Something.". Youtube. Jake Roper.
  43. ↑ "VSauce3’s Jake Roper Tells Fans He Has Cancer". What's Trending. Retrieved 2015-12-27.
  44. ↑ Roper, Jake (Nov 25, 2015). "What defines you?". Youtube. Jake Roper.
  45. ↑ Michael Stevens (April 23, 2013). "How Much Money is There on Earth? (Chudnow's name appears in video's description)". Vsauce. YouTube. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
  46. ↑ "Aiur's YouTube. Channel".
  47. ↑ Keith Shaw (August 27, 2012). "Science Monday: MinutePhysics teams with VSauce for a What-if-a-palooza". IT World. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  48. ↑ "Vsauce Visit – The Periodic Table of Videos". Periodic Videos. Retrieved September 18, 2012.
  49. ↑ "Standard Weight (feat. Vsauce) – Periodic Table of Videos". Periodic Videos. YouTube. November 17, 2011. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
  50. ↑ "How Does Glue Work?". HeadsqueezeTV. YouTube. February 28, 2013. Retrieved April 6, 2013.
  51. ↑ Kate Torgovnick (April 24, 2013). "How much a video weighs and why the chicken crossed the road: 13 great questions from Vsauce creator Michael Stevens". TED-Ed. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
  52. ↑ "The Mythical Show Ep 12 (Vsauce, Key & Peele, KassemG, ChesterSee)". The Mythical Show. YouTube. July 11, 2013. Retrieved August 14, 2013.
  53. ↑ "YouTube Complaints!". Barley Political. YouTube. June 30, 2012. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
  54. ↑ "The Quiet Zone". Travel Channel. Travel Channel. November 3, 2013. Retrieved December 29, 2013.
  55. ↑ "Joe Rogan Experience #528 - Michael Stevens, from VSauce". PowerfulJRE. YouTube. July 30, 2014. Retrieved March 19, 2015.
  56. ↑ Vincent, Brittany (May 19, 2014). "Check out the inner workings of a Game Boy and learn something while you're at it". Destructoid. Retrieved May 25, 2014.
  57. ↑ Fahey, Mike (May 25, 2014). "The Vanishing Modem And Other Surprising Game Boy Advance Trivia". Kotaku. Retrieved May 25, 2014.
  58. ↑ "Can You Genetically Enhance Yourself?". Vsauce3. YouTube. 30 March 2014. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  59. ↑ "Is Mario Really Evil?". Vsauce3. YouTube. 14 August 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  60. 1 2 "What if Quicksilver Ran Past You?". Vsauce3. YouTube. April 4, 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  61. ↑ "What Would Happen if You Were Shrunk?". Vsauce3. YouTube. 14 July 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  62. ↑ "4 STRANGE Paranormal Phenomena". Vsuace3. YouTube. 12 October 2015. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  63. ↑ Seikaly, Andrea (April 28, 2014). "Jay Z, Google, Netflix Among Webby Awards Winners". Variety. Retrieved April 30, 2014.
  64. ↑ Blas, Lorena (September 4, 2014). "Seinfeld series, Obama's 'Ferns' episode win Streamys". USA Today. Retrieved October 12, 2014.
  65. ↑ "5th Annual Winners & Nominees". The Streamy Awards. Retrieved 2015-11-17.

External links

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