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Paradoxes Of Infinity (Infinity Part 1)

The Rest Is Science

986,456 views

Watch episode two of our Infinity series here: Two Infinities... And Beyond (Infinity Par...

Is infinity actually a real number, or just a brilliant mathematical hallucination? Professor Hannah Fry and Michael Stevens (VSauce) tumble down the numerical rabbit hole to explore the mind-bending origins of infinity. They unpick exactly how humanity managed to trap the endless void. From ancient paradoxes to endless hotel rooms, they dive into the bizarre history of our universe's most impossible idea.
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For more information about Cancer Research UK, their research, breakthroughs and how you can support them, visit ⁠⁠https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/our-...

Cancer Research UK is a registered charity in England and Wales (1089464), Scotland (SC041666), the Isle of Man (1103) and Jersey (247). A company limited by guarantee. Registered company in England and Wales (4325234) and the Isle of Man (5713F). Registered address: 2 Redman Place, London, E20 1JQ.
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Video Editors: Adam Thornton + Oli Oakley
Video & Social: Bex Tyrrell
Animations: Sam Benson
Assistant Producer: Imee Marriott
Researcher: Lucy Lipscombe
Producer: Simona Rata
Senior Producer: Lauren Armstrong-Carter
Head Of Digital: Samuel Oakley
Exec Producer: Neil Fearn
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00:00 Intro
02:05 Cancer Research UK
03:23 What is infinity?
05:15 Hilbert’s Hotel
10:45 The origin of the infinity symbol
13:50 Math with Roman Numerals
16:10 The Ancient Greeks’ inkling about infinity
16:53 Pythagoras’ fear of beans
26:49 Project Hail Mary
28:02 Calculus
33:00 Big baby Isaac Newton vs Leibniz
37:50 Mean Girls prequel?
40:43 Cancer Research UK
45:37 Infinity can’t end but a sequence can
54:15 Will the ant ever reach the end of the elastic band?
55:38 What we’ll cover in Infinity Part 2 next week
56:48 Outro

20 Comments

@DerekSmort 6 months ago

Man, infinity hotel is the worst, they keep asking you to change rooms, I'm never staying there again

@falsemcnuggethope 6 months ago

US: math
UK: maths
Michael: numbery behavior

@beastamer1990s 2 months ago

I like to think that Michael is bald because he rubs his head every time he's stressed

@shawnlilly2 6 months ago

Two episodes on infinity? That’ll just go on forever!

@stephenholmgren405 6 months ago

Since we are early and people might actually read this, Michael and Hannah together has given me a rare glimpse of brightness and hope. I cannot understate how much I LOVE these!

@kdzl4shzl 5 months ago

21:30 "Every triangle is a love triangle, when you love triangles!" - Pythagoras

@DaveVanKampen 6 months ago

Michael griping about not liking roman numerals while his background heavily features them is very funny.

@HeyDaniko 6 months ago (edited)

"Roman numerals are a joke!" XI looms over Michael's shoulder, ready to strike.

@ignorasmus 6 months ago (edited)

I always thought the infinity symbol ♾was just a 2D representation of the Mobius Strip - a surface without end.

@entity5279 6 months ago

imagine this, you choose the 5 minutes over a week, and 5 minutes later it asks you if you want to live for another 5 minutes or a week

@cl0p38 6 months ago

Hearing Hannah say bitch was so funny 😭

@baronvonlichtenstein 5 months ago

My mother lived till 97 and let me tell you, when all your friend and relatives are gone, you're in pain, in a wheelchair, you may think differently. If you could stay 30 forever, maybe it would be different. But like a used car, we tend to fall apart. My mother believed in heaven and wanted to go there.

@TheTerribleNothing666 6 months ago

If we had an infinite number of toilets the drunk guy would still piss in the sink.

@LewisJohnMusicProducer 6 months ago

6:10 was expecting the vsauce music to kick in

@KnottyBuoy 5 months ago

Them: “Live for five more minutes, or another week?”
Me: “5 more minutes…”
They asked me at 4am

@phillipjohn4800 6 months ago

The best description for infinity I've heard was from my high school math teacher who said 'infinity isn't a number, it's a direction on the number line' and it really helped me grasp the concept of it being unending

@aGonkEnjoyer 6 months ago

The “Or is there?” hit so hard.

@kdaesung 7 days ago

As someone with aphantasia, I really appreciate the low poly 3d animations to help actually visualize these concepts. I've seen the previous video on this hotel, and the 3d render really does help me visualize it.