Derek Muller

Derek Alexander Muller (born 9 November 1982[2]) is an Australian-born Canadian science communicator, filmmaker, television personality and inventor, who is best known for his YouTube channel Veritasium. Muller has also appeared as a correspondent on the Netflix web series Bill Nye Saves the World since 2017.

Derek Muller
Veritasium YouTube channel logo
Muller in May 2012
Personal information
BornDerek Alexander Muller
(1982-11-09) 9 November 1982
Traralgon, Victoria, Australia
NationalityAustralian
Canadian
EducationQueen's University (BSc)
University of Sydney (PhD)
OccupationScience communicator
Spouse(s)Raquel Nuno
Websiteveritasium.com
YouTube information
Channels
Years active2010–present
GenreScience, education
Subscribers8 million+ (Veritasium)
559,000+ (2veritasium)
294,000+ (Sciencium)
Total views941.02 million+ (Veritasium)
21.03 million+ (2veritasium)
4.22 million+ (Sciencium)
100,000 subscribers 2011 (Veritasium)
2014 (2veritasium)
2017 (Sciencium)
1,000,000 subscribers 2013 (Veritasium)
TelevisionCatalyst, Bill Nye Saves the World, Uranium – Twisting the Dragon's Tail,Vitamania
Awards
  • First prize, Science Online Cyberscreen Science Film Festival (2012)
  • Australian Webstream Awards for Best Educational & Lifestyle Series (2013)
  • Eureka Prize for Science Journalism (2016)
  • Richtmyer Memorial Lecture Award for outstanding contributions to physics and effectively communicating those contributions to physics educators (2016)
  • Australian Department of Innovation Nanotechnology Film Competition
  • Streamy Award for Best Science and Education Channel, Show, or Series (2017)[1]
Updated: 4 January 2021

Early life and education

Muller was born to South African parents in Traralgon, Victoria, Australia and moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, when he was two years old.[3] In 2000, Muller graduated as the top student from West Vancouver Secondary School.[4] In 2004, Muller graduated from Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Engineering Physics,[5] and, after moving back to Australia, completed a PhD in physics education research from the University of Sydney in 2008 with a thesis, Designing Effective Multimedia for Physics Education.[6]

Career

Muller has been listed as a team member of the ABC's television program Catalyst since 2008.[7]

Since 2011, Muller has continued to appear on Catalyst, reporting scientific stories from around the globe,[8] and on Australian television network Ten as the 'Why Guy' on the Breakfast program.[9] In May 2012, he gave a TEDxSydney talk using the subject of his thesis.[10] In 2015, he presented the documentary Uranium – Twisting the Dragon's Tail, which aired in July/August on several public television stations around the world and won the Eureka Prize for Science Journalism.[11][12]

On 21 September 2015, Muller hosted the Google Science Fair Awards Celebration for that year.[13]

He has recorded a podcast with Henry Reich of MinutePhysics, which was released on 26 November 2015.[14]

Muller has also won the Australian Department of Innovation Nanotechnology Film Competition and the Australian Webstream Awards for Best Educational & Lifestyle Series 2013.[15]

Starting in April 2017, he appeared as a correspondent on the Netflix series Bill Nye Saves the World.[16]

Muller presented in film Vitamania: The Sense and Nonsense of Vitamins, a documentary by Genepool Productions, released in August 2018.[17] The film answers questions about vitamins and the use of dietary vitamin supplements.[18]

Muller's works have been featured at Scientific American,[19] Wired,[20] Gizmodo,[21] and i09.[22]

YouTube

In January 2011, Muller created the educational science channel Veritasium on YouTube,[23] the focus of which is "addressing counter-intuitive concepts in science, usually beginning by discussing ideas with members of the public".[24] The videos range in style from interviews with experts, such as 2011 Physics Nobel Laureate Brian Schmidt,[25] to science experiments, dramatisations, songs, and—a hallmark of the channel—interviews with the public to uncover misconceptions about science. The name Veritasium is a combination of the Latin word for truth, Veritas, and the suffix common to many elements, -ium. This creates Veritasium, an "element of truth", a play on the popular phrase and a reference to chemical elements.

In July 2012, Muller created a second YouTube channel, 2veritasium. Muller uses the new platform to produce editorial based videos that discuss such topics as film making, showcasing behind-the-scenes footage, and for viewer reactions to popular Veritasium videos.[26]

In 2017, Muller began uploading videos on his newest channel, Sciencium, which is dedicated to videos on recent and historical discoveries in science.[27]

Reception

Veritasium videos have received critical acclaim. At Science Online 2012, "Mission Possible: Graphene" won the Cyberscreen Science Film Festival[28] and was therefore featured on Scientific American as the video of the week.[29] A video debunking the common misconception that the moon is closer than it is was picked-up by CBS News.[30]

Two early successful Veritasium videos demonstrate the physics of a falling Slinky toy. The videos explain the following: when a slinky is held dangling vertically and then released, it can be observed in slow motion that the bottom end does not begin to move until the entire slinky has collapsed, making it look as if the slinky was defying gravity (i.e., floating). This counter-intuitive phenomenon inspired a wealth of media coverage, including the Toronto Star,[31] NPR,[32] and a segment on the BBC show QI.[33] Muller also created a segment on the topic for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation show Catalyst.[34]

Opinions

Muller is a Facebook critic, and has denounced the ability to buy likes for a Facebook page illegally from "like farms" or "click farms" in developing countries or pay Facebook to promote a page.[35]

See also

References
  1. "24 Winners Announced at the Streamys Premiere Awards". The Streamy Awards. 25 September 2017. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  2. "My Life Story". Veritasium. 18 June 2018. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
  3. Muller, Derek (6 February 2013). "Why Do Venomous Animals Live in Warm Climates?". Retrieved 22 September 2013 – via YouTube.
  4. Muller, Derek (4 May 2017). "Why I'm Not a Scientist". Retrieved 6 May 2017 – via YouTube.
  5. "Physicist, educator, and filmmaker Derek Muller, Sc'04". Alumni Career Spotlights. Queen's University. 15 November 2012. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  6. Muller, Derek (2008). Designing Effective Multimedia for Physics Education (PDF) (PhD). University of Sydney. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  7. "Meet the team". Catalyst. 14 February 2008. Archived from the original on 19 July 2016. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  8. Muller, Derek (11 October 2012). "Higgs Boson". Catalyst. Retrieved 22 September 2013.
  9. "The Why Guy". Breakfast. Network Ten. 8 March 2012. Retrieved 22 September 2013.
  10. "Derek Muller: The key to effective educational science videos". TEDxSydney. 27 May 2012. Archived from the original on 10 August 2013. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  11. Gay, Verne (27 July 2015). "'The Bomb' and 'Uranium' review: Two PBS documentaries, one insufficient, one engaging". Newsday. New York. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  12. "2016 Australian Museum Eureka Prizes winners". The Australian Museum. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
  13. "Google Science Fair 2015 Awards Celebration". Google Science Fair. 21 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2015 – via YouTube.
  14. Muller, Derek (24 November 2015). "Derek Muller revealing podcast in an AMA". Reddit. Retrieved 26 November 2015.
  15. "About". Veritasium. 28 April 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2016.
  16. Harwood, Erika (14 October 2016). "Karlie Kloss Is Teaming Up with Bill Nye". Vanity Fair. Retrieved 8 February 2017.
  17. "Dr Derek Muller – Presenter". Vitamania. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  18. "Home". Vitamania. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
  19. Bondar, Carin (15 March 2012). "Meet Derek Muller – Winner of the Cyberscreen Science Film Festival". Scientific American. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  20. Allain, Rhett (13 July 2012). "Veritasium Video Homework". Wired. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  21. Condliffe, Jamie (20 February 2013). "What is light anyway?". Gizmodo. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  22. Gonzalez, Robbie (9 October 2012). "This levitating barbecue is the coolest thing you'll see today". i09. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  23. Muller, Derek (2011). "Veritasium". Veritasium. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  24. "The Element of Truth: an interview with Derek Muller". The Royal Institution. March 2012. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  25. Muller, Derek (23 October 2011). "Physics Nobel Prize 2011 – Brian Schmidt". Retrieved 13 February 2013 – via YouTube.
  26. Muller, Derek (17 July 2012). "An Isotope of Truth". Retrieved 23 January 2014 – via YouTube.
  27. Muller, Derek. "Sciencium". Retrieved 6 March 2017 – via YouTube.
  28. Bondar, Carin (24 January 2012). "Winners of the Cyberscreen Science Film Festival at Science Online 2012". Scientific American. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  29. Zivkovic, Bora (25 January 2012). "Video of the Week No. 27 January 25th, 2012". Scientific American. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  30. Goodman, Will (23 February 2011). "Guy asks "How far away is the Moon from Earth?"". CBS News. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  31. Taylor, Lesley Ciarula (27 September 2011). "The secret truth behind a dropping Slinky". Toronto Star. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  32. Krulwich, Robert (11 September 2012). "The Miracle of the Levitating Slinky". NPR News. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  33. "Just The Job". QI. Season 10. Episode 18. BBC.
  34. Collins, Adam (19 April 2012). "Slinky Drop". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  35. Matthews, Cate (11 February 2014). "Is Facebook Making Money Off Fake 'Likes'?". HuffPost. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
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