Vsauce#History

In 2009, Michael Stevens was asked by a company to pitch them a show about food, so he teamed up with his friend Justin-superstar from Los Angeles, CA to create a pilot episode showing them using a hammer to supposedly make a peanut butter and banana sandwich in under a second, titling the proposed show "Food Smashers", but the show was never made. The company asked him to create a YouTube channel dedicated to video games and name it “Video Game Nation.” Although he agreed, he did not like the name and eventually renamed it “Vsauce.”{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ZYxwSKBD8U0 |title=Me Before Vsauce |language=en |access-date=2024-09-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240907021653/https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ZYxwSKBD8U0 |archive-date=2024-09-07 |url-status=live |via=www.youtube.com}}

Michael Stevens came up with the name "Vsauce" in 2010 by generating available pronounceable ".com" domain names using a website called FakeNameGenerator.com until he found one he liked.{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y45aema4iyM |title=MAKE YOUR CAT A DJ -- and more! |date=October 1, 2011 |last=Vsauce |type=Video |series=LÜT |volume=18 |time=2m43s–3m21s |access-date=July 24, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140123073620/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y45aema4iyM |archive-date=2014-01-23 |url-status=live |website=YouTube}} On July 30, 2007, someone created a YouTube account named "Vsauce" but had never used it, and on April 16, 2010, YouTube granted Michael Stevens's request to claim the account, as was their policy back then; if he were not able to claim it, he might have decided to instead use his first YouTube channel, "pooplicker888".{{Cite web |last=Vsauce |date=April 17, 2021 |title=Vsauce is 11 years old today!! |url=https://x.com/tweetsauce/status/1383274722847166473 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210425154802/https://video.twimg.com/ext_tw_video/1383274026022305812/pu/vid/402x360/60jHN7ruCIZqNRlv.mp4?tag=12 |archive-date=2021-04-25 |access-date=2024-09-12 |website=X (formerly Twitter)}} Initially, the channel's programming focused on video games and featured a number of hosts.{{cite magazine|author=Ed Carrasco|url=http://newmediarockstars.com/2012/09/youtubes-vsauce-has-the-special-ingredients-to-make-science-viral-interview/|title=YouTube's Vsauce Has the Special Ingredients to Make Science Viral [Interview] |magazine=New Media Rockstars|date=September 14, 2012|access-date=April 18, 2013}} However, certain segments such as IMG! slowly took over, and Stevens became the sole host.{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}} The channel then became a mix of information and online activities, and solely educational segments popped up.{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}} The educational segments became more popular, and since September 9, 2012, only the educational segment (known as DOT.) has been presented.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/user/Vsauce/videos|title=Vsauce videos|publisher=YouTube|work=Vsauce|access-date=April 18, 2013}}

In December 2010, the Vsauce2 (on December 7) and Vsauce3 (on December 24) channels were created.

• {{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/user/Vsauce2/about|title=Vsauce2 about|publisher=YouTube|work=Vsauce2|access-date=April 19, 2013}}
• {{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/user/Vsauce3/about|title=Vsauce3 about|publisher=YouTube|work=Vsauce3|access-date=April 19, 2013}} On July 25, 2012, the YouTube channel WeSauce was created.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/user/WeSauce/about|title=WeSauce about|publisher=YouTube|work=WeSauce|access-date=April 19, 2013}} Vsauce was one of the fastest growing channels during September 2012.{{cite web|author=Elayna Seguin|url=http://my.hsj.org/Schools/Newspaper/tabid/100/view/frontpage/schoolid/4269/articleid/537094/newspaperid/4506/Top_5_Rapidly_Growing_YouTube_Channels.aspx|title=Top 5 Rapidly Growing YouTube Channels|publisher=My High School Journalism|work=East Side Newspaper|date=September 15, 2012|access-date=September 15, 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130415005846/http://my.hsj.org/Schools/Newspaper/tabid/100/view/frontpage/schoolid/4269/articleid/537094/newspaperid/4506/Top_5_Rapidly_Growing_YouTube_Channels.aspx|archive-date=April 15, 2013|df=mdy-all}} During that month, the main Vsauce channel reached 1 million subscribers.*{{cite magazine|author=Ed Carrasco|url=http://newmediarockstars.com/2012/09/youtubes-vsauce-has-the-special-ingredients-to-make-science-viral-interview/|title=YouTube's Vsauce Has The Special Ingredients to Make Science Viral [Interview]|magazine=New Media Rockstars|date=September 14, 2012|access-date=September 15, 2012}}
• {{cite news|author=Simon Usborne|url= https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/features/how-to-explain-absolutely-anything-academics-pick-apart-mysteries-of-the-cosmos-on-youtube-8473826.html|title=How to explain absolutely anything: Academics pick apart mysteries of the cosmos on YouTube|newspaper=The Independent|date=January 30, 2013|access-date=February 3, 2013}}

Stevens, in the video "A Defense of Comic Sans", notes that the text font Alsina was used by the Vsauce channels because of its close resemblance to the handwriting of the creator of the original Vsauce logo, Nik Guinta.{{cite news|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/13/vsauce-defense-of-comic-sans-video_n_2670129.html|title='A Defense of Comic Sans': Vsauce Gives History of the World's Most Hated Font (Video)|work=Huffington Post|date=February 13, 2013|access-date=April 29, 2013}} A new branding scheme designed by Natasha Jen was adopted in December 2014 to bring a "grown-up" feel to the channels. It utilizes the DIN Next Rounded font and fluid designs to convey the idea of sauce that the name "Vsauce" implies.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2015/02/pentagrams-new-grown-logo-vsauces-youtube-stars/|title=Pentagram's New Grown-Up Logo for Vsauce's YouTube Stars|magazine=Wired|date=February 9, 2015|access-date=November 2, 2015}}

{{See also|Michael Stevens (YouTuber)}}

File:Michael Stevens VidCon 2016.jpg

The Vsauce channel, also known as Vsauce1 to distinguish it from the brand as a whole and the other channels, is presented by the founder, Michael Stevens, and features videos about science, mathematics, anthropology, and philosophy.{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}} The primary series features Stevens discussing a topic or question in a tangential manner, including various interpretations of the question and related facts and observations.{{Cite web|last=Lahey|first=Jessica|date=2014-10-28|title=What Classrooms Can Learn From YouTube|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/10/what-can-teachers-learn-from-youtube/381887/|access-date=2020-08-11|website=The Atlantic|language=en-US}} In 2013, Stevens stated that he researches on Wikipedia and academic papers to find information for his videos.{{cite web|author=Brady Haran|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXnTZw_2fAI| url-status=live | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211101/CXnTZw_2fAI| archive-date=2021-11-01|title=Meet Vsauce – Sixty Symbols|publisher=YouTube|work=Sixty Symbols|date=March 2, 2013|access-date=December 5, 2013|author-link = Brady Haran}}{{cbignore}} Stevens collaborated with educator and television personality Adam Savage in 2017 for a show titled Brain Candy Live.{{Cite web |last=Liptak |first=Andrew |date=2017-03-25 |title=Adam Savage on his live science show, cosplay, and 'promoting the joy in making things' |url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/3/25/15049064/adam-savage-brain-candy-live-cosplay-mythbusters-tested-building-interview |access-date=2022-08-12 |website=The Verge |language=en}} Stevens has also collaborated with celebrities and other YouTubers like James May and Derek Muller for videos.

Videos by Vsauce have been featured on online news publications,

• {{cite news|author=Daniel Hurwitz|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/2013/04/16/tv-on-the-web-how-big-can-a-person-get/2087807/|title=TV on the Web: Why are there limits on human size?|newspaper=USA Today|date=April 16, 2013|access-date=April 19, 2013}}
• {{cite web|url=http://now.msn.com/michael-stevens-of-vsauce-debunks-the-5-second-rule|title=The 5-second rule for dropped food is dangerously optimistic|work=MSN|date=December 2, 2012|access-date=April 18, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121205005345/http://now.msn.com/michael-stevens-of-vsauce-debunks-the-5-second-rule|archive-date=December 5, 2012|df=mdy-all}} such as The Huffington Post,
• {{cite news|author=Jacqueline Howard|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/26/everyone-jumped-at-same-time-video_n_1830722.html|title=What If Everyone on Earth Jumped at Same Time? (Video)|work=The Huffington Post|date=August 26, 2012|access-date=September 9, 2012}}
• {{cite news |url =https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/13/vsauce-defense-of-comic-sans-video_n_2670129.html |title ='A Defense of Comic Sans': Vsauce Gives History of the World's Most Hated Font (Video) |work =The Huffington Post |date =February 13, 2013 |access-date=March 24, 2013 }} CBS,
• {{cite web|author=Bailey Johnson|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-hot-can-it-get/|title=How hot can it get?|work=CBS|date=October 1, 2012|access-date=October 10, 2012}}
• {{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/watch-why-do-humans-have-two-nostrils/|title=Watch: Why do humans have two nostrils?|work=SciTech|date=November 5, 2012 |publisher=CBS|access-date=November 21, 2012}} and Gizmodo.{{cite web|author=Kyle Wagner|url=https://gizmodo.com/5938089/guns-in-space-and-how-to-kill-our-sun|title=Guns in Space, and How to Kill Our Sun|website=Gizmodo|date=August 27, 2012|access-date=September 22, 2012|archive-date=September 30, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120930204329/http://gizmodo.com/5938089/guns-in-space-and-how-to-kill-our-sun|url-status=dead}}*{{cite web|author=Eric Limer|url=https://gizmodo.com/5959424/how-many-pictures-have-ever-been-taken|title=How Many Pictures Have Ever Been Taken?|website=Gizmodo|date=November 10, 2012|access-date=November 21, 2012}}{{Dead link|date=April 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
• {{cite web|author=Casey Chan|url=https://gizmodo.com/5975009/the-science-of-being-in-the-friend-zone|title=The Science of Being in the Friend Zone|website=Gizmodo|date=January 10, 2013|access-date=February 3, 2013|archive-date=November 16, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116043323/https://gizmodo.com/5975009/the-science-of-being-in-the-friend-zone|url-status=dead}}

{{main|Mind Field}}

Mind Field (a word play on minefield and mind) is an American web television series produced exclusively for YouTube Premium (formerly YouTube Red), created and presented by Michael Stevens. Three seasons of Mind Field have been released on Vsauce, each one with eight episodes. On October 1, 2019, all episodes became viewable, with ads, for free for those without YouTube Premium.{{Citation |last=Vsauce |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WHRWLnVm_M&t=1295s |title=Laws & Causes |language=en |date=2019-10-01 |access-date=2021-06-20 }}

File:Vsauce2 Kevin Lieber.png

Vsauce2, hosted by Kevin Lieber, has covered topics concerning unusual knowledge, gadgets, and people. Since 2019, Vsauce2 has largely produced videos regarding probability, paradoxes, and dilemmas, most of which are mathematical or economic in nature and visualized through real-world situations.{{cite web |first=Dave |last=Metzener |url=http://metzener.com/2013/03/31/vsauce-vsauce2-vsauce3-youtube-channels/ |title=Vsauce, Vsauce2 & Vsauce3 – YouTube Channels |publisher=Metzener.com |date=March 31, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029192207/http://metzener.com/2013/03/31/vsauce-vsauce2-vsauce3-youtube-channels/ |archive-date=October 29, 2013 |url-status=dead |access-date=April 19, 2013 }}{{cite web|url=https://www.vsauce.com/vsauce2/#/|title=About|access-date=April 11, 2020}} Before 2019, videos were released under recurring segments, such as MindBlow, BiDiPi, 54321, and BOAT.

In November 2018, Lieber and channel producer Matt Tabor launched The Create Unknown podcast, which interviews digital creators.[https://www.tubefilter.com/2018/11/02/vsauce2-podcast-the-create-unknown/ VSauce2 Launches 'Create Unknown' Podcast About The Business Of Being A YouTuber – Tubefilter] The podcast has featured interviews with Casey Neistat, Derek Muller from Veritasium, Destin Sandlin from Smarter Every Day, Dolan Dark, iDubbbz, and Grandayy.{{Cite web|url=https://trianglecontent.com/podcasts/thecreateunknown/|title='The Create Unknown' podcast|website=Triangle Content|language=en|access-date=2019-07-22|archive-date=July 22, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190722212614/https://trianglecontent.com/podcasts/thecreateunknown/|url-status=dead}}

File:Jake Roper aka Vsauce 3.png

Vsauce3 is hosted by Jake Roper and is dedicated to fictional worlds and video games.{{cite web|author=Dan Van Winkle|url=http://www.geekosystem.com/vsauce-playstation-stop-motion-facts/|title=Vsauce and a Stop Motion Animated PlayStation Bring You Six Awesome PlayStation Facts [Video]|work=Geekosystem|date=November 25, 2013|access-date=December 5, 2013}} There are currently four recurring segments: HeadShot, Game LÜT, 9bit, and Fact Surgery. Vsauce3 has collaborated with YouTubers Joe Hanson from It's Okay to be Smart and Vanessa Hill from BrainCraft. He has also presented videos with celebrity guest appearances from Bill Nye, Jack Black, The Muppets, Paul Rudd, and Neil deGrasse Tyson. On November 26, 2015, Jake revealed that he has sarcoma, a rare form of cancer.*{{Cite web|url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpqnX4Who2Q|title = I Need to Tell You Something.|date = November 26, 2015|website = Youtube|publisher = Jake Roper|last = Roper|first = Jake}}

• {{Cite web|title = VSauce3's Jake Roper Tells Fans He Has Cancer|url = http://whatstrending.com/creators/20847-jake-roper-cancer-vsauce3|website = What's Trending|access-date = 2015-12-27|date = November 27, 2015|archive-date = January 5, 2016|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160105075314/http://whatstrending.com/creators/20847-jake-roper-cancer-vsauce3|url-status = dead}} On December 19, Jake announced that he had begun treatment and a tumor on his lower leg had been successfully removed by surgery.{{Cite web|url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMCfU48vVws|title = What defines you? |date = November 25, 2015|website = Youtube|publisher = Jake Roper|last = Roper|first = Jake}}

WeSauce was a channel that compiled works from fans of the Vsauce channels. The channel featured segments Your BiDiPi, JAM, Music LeanBack!, Riddle Challenge, This World of Ours, and ITVS. WeSauce has remained inactive since October 15, 2015.{{citation needed|date=November 2022}}

D!NG, formerly DONG (Do Online Now, Guys), is a spin-off channel by Vsauce that features unusual pages, apps, and games from around the Internet.{{cite web|last=Greengart|first=Tani|title=Three Strategies of Successful Educational Videos|url=https://www.jewishlinknj.com/features/19729-three-strategies-of-successful-educational-videos|website=Jewish Link of New Jersey|date=July 13, 2017|access-date=February 18, 2019|quote=Vsauce itself explains scientific and psychological phenomena, Vsauce2 creates mind-blowing videos about new technology, Vsauce3 analyzes the junction between science and pop culture and D.O.N.G. introduces viewers to all the weirdest internet sites and merchandise.}} Some videos also focus on various topics in mathematics and science. DONG was formerly a segment featured on the main Vsauce channel and then on the Vsauce3 channel before its own channel was launched in 2015, with the first video uploaded on October 29, 2015. The channel was renamed to D!NG on May 12, 2019, seemingly due to the channel being demonetized for having a name that was not considered advertiser-friendly.{{cite web |last1=Garcia |first1=Elijah |title=Vsauce Experimental Channel Changes Name From 'DONG' To 'D!NG', Fearing Demonetization |url=https://mammothgamers.com/2019/05/vsauce-experimental-channel-changes-name-from-dong-to-dng-fearing-demonetization/ |website=Mammoth Gamers |access-date=18 May 2019 |date=14 May 2019 |archive-date=October 10, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201010164553/https://mammothgamers.com/2019/05/vsauce-experimental-channel-changes-name-from-dong-to-dng-fearing-demonetization/ |url-status=dead }}

Some people or channels Michael Stevens of Vsauce1 has collaborated with include Bill Nye, BrainCraft, Derek Muller, Good Mythical Morning, The Filthy Frank Show, and others. The following collaborations were mentioned in publications. Vsauce has collaborated with Henry Reich of MinutePhysics on two videos: "Guns in Space" and "What if the Earth were Hollow?".{{cite web|author=Keith Shaw|url=http://www.itworld.com/virtualization/291747/science-monday-minutephysics-teams-vsauce-what-if-palooza|title=Science Monday: MinutePhysics teams with VSauce for a What-if-a-palooza|work=IT World|date=August 27, 2012|access-date=September 9, 2012|archive-date=August 29, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120829001929/http://www.itworld.com/virtualization/291747/science-monday-minutephysics-teams-vsauce-what-if-palooza|url-status=dead}} In 2014, Jake of Vsauce3 had narrated two episodes of the series Did You Know Gaming? covering the Game Boy. In August 2016, Stevens served as a guest host on the show BattleBots.{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/tv/tv-highlights-killing-the-colorado-airs-on-discovery-channel/2016/08/03/4b3a762a-58cb-11e6-831d-0324760ca856_story.html|title=TV highlights: 'Killing the Colorado' airs on Discovery Channel - The Washington Post|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=August 3, 2016|access-date=March 12, 2020}} On March 24, 2018, Stevens was largely involved with a collaboration featured on HowToBasic's YouTube channel.{{cite web|last1=Katzowitz|first1=Josh|title=The HowToBasic YouTube channel finally reveals its creator—sort of|url=https://www.dailydot.com/upstream/howtobasic-youtube-face-reveal/|website=The Daily Dot|access-date=7 April 2018|date=26 March 2018}}

In 2014, Vsauce won a Webby for People's Voice award for best news and information.{{cite news|last=Seikaly|first=Andrea|title=Jay Z, Google, Netflix Among Webby Awards Winners|url=https://variety.com/2014/biz/news/jay-z-google-netflix-among-webby-awards-winners-1201165750|access-date=April 30, 2014|newspaper=Variety|date=April 28, 2014}}

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

• {{cite news|last=Blas|first=Lorena|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/web-to-watch/2014/09/04/web-to-watch-early-streamy-winners-seinfeld-galifianakis-obama/15101697/|title=Seinfeld series, Obama's 'Ferns' episode win Streamys|newspaper=USA Today|date=September 4, 2014|access-date=October 12, 2014}}
• {{Cite web|title = 5th Annual Winners & Nominees|url = http://www.streamys.org/nominees-winners/5th-annual-nominees-winners/|website = The Streamy Awards|access-date = 2015-11-17}}

{{Reflist|3}}

• {{YouTube|u=Vsauce|{{PAGENAMEBASE}}}}
• [https://youtube.com/vsauce2 Vsauce2's channel] on YouTube
• [https://youtube.com/vsauce3 Vsauce3's channel] on YouTube
• Vsauce2's podcast, [https://youtube.com/thecreateunknown "The Create Unknown"] on YouTube

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Category:Educational and science YouTubers

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Category:Science-related YouTube channels

Category:Streamy Award-winning channels, series or shows

Category:YouTube channels launched in 2007