Time for adorable learning? It sure is!* Like most sane people, I think the Earth is a pretty amazing place. The solar system too. If you don't agree, you're probably part of the reason our incredible life-sustaining planet is going through some uncertain times and you should reconsider quickly. Perhaps if you'd had more approachable and intriguing science education, we'd have more in common today.

To that end, I offer the adorable and informative videos of Kurzgesagt. Kurzgesagt is a science-obsessed video series, run (in their own words) by a team of underpaid birds who figured out some computers and video stuff. A very impressive origin story, but even more so when you look at their scope and aesthetics. Kurz gesagt means "to make a long story short" in German, and they deliver on it. Their subjects range from evolution, to fracking, to how our moon stacks up against the many other moons nearby (hint: we bagged a big one).

Portrait of the artists as young birds

Discussing climate change or astrophysical relationships in quick and understandable jargon is a rare and beautiful thing, and I love them for it. The accompanying animation drives even complex information home in clean, compelling bursts of color. They provide moving infographics that don't get bogged down in too much data visualization, and do a great job stimulating the imagination. It may seem unfathomably distant from our immediate lives, but I believe that keeping an eye on developments in astrophysics and trying to think in terms of geologic timeframes gives me better perspective and stimulates creative and ecologically aware design. Are you a little uncomfortable thinking about human existence as a tiny fragile blip on the cosmic radar? Hold on to that feeling and I bet you'll be more likely to do work that matters. Check out Kurzgesagt on YouTube and some of my favorites here, starting with winning ways of killing the universe:

*It is always time for adorable learning. Always.