Destin Sandlin

Destin Wilson Sandlin[1] (born September 17, 1981) is an American engineer and science communicator who produces the video series Smarter Every Day[5][6] on his YouTube channel of the same name, which was launched in 2007. Sandlin also runs the YouTube channels The Sound Traveler, Smarter Every Day 2, and a podcast called No Dumb Questions with his friend Matt Whitman.[7]

Destin Sandlin
Sandlin in 2014
Born
Destin Wilson Sandlin

(1981-09-17) September 17, 1981
Huntsville, Alabama, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
Alma materUniversity of Alabama
University of Alabama, Huntsville[1]
OccupationRocket engineer
YouTube personality
Known forEducational YouTube videos[2]
Spouse(s)Tara Sandlin
Children4
YouTube information
Websitewww.smartereveryday.com
Channel
Years active2006–present
GenreEducational
Subscribers9.3 million[3]
Total views885.9 million[4]
Associated acts
100,000 subscribers
1,000,000 subscribers
Updated: January 4, 2021

In early 2016, Sandlin was one of three YouTube personalities chosen to conduct a one-on-one interview with then-president Barack Obama[8] after his final State of the Union address.[9] The interviews were sponsored by Google and were part of a White House initiative to reach millennial audiences.

Background

Sandlin has a BS in mechanical engineering from the University of Alabama and an MS in aerospace engineering from the University of Alabama in Huntsville.[1][10] While an undergraduate, he was awarded the University of Alabama's Outstanding Senior Award.[1] He also minored in Business Administration while at the University of Alabama.[11] Sandlin was, until late 2018, a full-time Missile Flight Test Engineer at Redstone Arsenal.[12][13] He is currently a PhD candidate at the University of Alabama Huntsville advised by Kavan Hazeli.[14]

YouTube channels and podcast

Smarter Every Day
Sandlin at Skepticon in November 2015.

Sandlin began posting educational videos in 2007.[15] His first video reached one million views on July 10, 2009.[16] The video was about chicken head tracking using chickens that Destin bought for his father as a demonstration. Because of its popularity that video retroactively had the Smarter Every Day label added to it.

Sandlin formally launched the Smarter Every Day series on April 24, 2011 with a video titled "Detonation vs Deflagration - Smarter Every Day 1,"[17] which became the title format for subsequent videos and the sole focus of his YouTube channel. Episodes of Smarter Every Day feature Sandlin as the host and narrator, and revolve around scientific exploration and discovery. Sandlin's primary interest and educational background is in flight and space, which appear frequently in his videos. Other notable topics have included the effects of hypoxia on the human brain, the Prince Rupert's drop, the physics of potato guns, the usefulness of snach blocks, and a nearly-impossible to ride bicycle whose wheel steers in the opposite direction of its handle bars.[18]

The Sound Traveler

In April 2016, Sandlin started a second YouTube channel called The Sound Traveler, in which he employs 3D audio and GoPro footage to capture and convey the experience of visiting the world's most interesting places.

No Dumb Questions

In 2017, Sandlin began a podcast with his best friend from Wyoming, Matt Whitman.[7] Whitman also runs the YouTube channel The Ten Minute Bible Hour. [19]

Personal life

Sandlin was born and raised in Huntsville, Alabama,[20] and currently lives there with his wife Tara.[21] The two formerly lived in nearby Cullman.[21] The two have two daughters and two sons.[22] Sandlin's family often appears in his videos. Since 2012 Sandlin has supported and partnered with "Not Forgotten", a charity that cares for orphaned boys in Peru.[23]

Sandlin is an avid fan of the University of Alabama.[24]

Sandlin is a devout Christian.[25] Sandlin spoke at the 2015 Skepticon on his personal reconciliation of the search for scientific truth with his faith.[26]

References
  1. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on January 7, 2015. Retrieved January 7, 2015.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. "SmarterEveryDay". YouTube. Archived from the original on January 5, 2015.
  3. "About". SocialBlade. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  4. "About". SocialBlade. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  5. "Huntsville engineer's YouTube channel, 'Smarter Every Day,' in running for best entertaining, educational videos". AL.com. Archived from the original on September 14, 2014.
  6. ""Smarter Every Day" teaches science lesson by blowing things up". cbsnews.com. April 25, 2011. Archived from the original on September 14, 2014.
  7. "No Dumb Questions". iTunes. February 14, 2017. Archived from the original on February 15, 2017.
  8. Martin, Rachel (January 17, 2016). "YouTube Star Talks Space With President Obama". NPR. Archived from the original on January 31, 2016.
  9. P. Claire Dodson (January 12, 2016). "Meet The YouTubers Interviewing President Obama After The State Of The Union Address". Fast Company. Archived from the original on February 1, 2016.
  10. "UAH - News". uah.edu. Archived from the original on January 8, 2015.
  11. "Q&A with Destin - Smarter Every Day 148".
  12. "Huntsville missile engineer in YouTube spotlight for Smarter Every Day channel". AL.com. Archived from the original on October 18, 2014.
  13. "Test engineer making people Smarter Every Day". The Redstone Rocket.
  14. "Dr. Kavan Hazeli's lab group as of December 29, 2018". Archived from the original on December 29, 2018. Retrieved December 29, 2018.
  15. Sandlin, Destin. "Chicken Head Tracking - Smarter Every Day". YouTube. Archived from the original on January 6, 2015. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  16. Sandlin, Destin. "Chicken Head Tracking - Smarter Every Day". YouTube. Archived from the original on January 6, 2015. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  17. Sandlin, Destin. "Detonation vs Deflagration - Smarter Every Day 1". YouTube. Archived from the original on December 16, 2014. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  18. "The Backwards Brain Bicycle - Smarter Every Day 133". YouTube. Archived from the original on May 2, 2015. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
  19. Whitman, Matt. "The Ten Minute Bible Hour". YouTube. Archived from the original on October 17, 2019. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
  20. 'Smarter Every Day' host Destin Sandlin to interview President Obama | Tech Alabama | waaytv.com Retrieved November 19, 2016.
  21. "Marriage Advice - Smarter Every Day 181 - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  22. Sandlin, Destin. "WE HAD A BABY!! - Smarter Every Day 132". YouTube. Archived from the original on April 4, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  23. Sandlin, Destin. "OPERATION LEVERAGE - Not Forgotten - Smarter Every Day 74". YouTube. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved August 7, 2019.
  24. "Roll Tide - NASA style - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  25. Belew, Duncan. "Interview with a Rocket Scientist and YouTube Science Educator". Where were you when you were twenty-four?. Archived from the original on January 6, 2015. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
  26. Broaddus, Galen (December 1, 2015). "Riding the Backwards Bike: A Christian at Skepticon". Patheos. Archived from the original on January 13, 2019. Retrieved January 13, 2019.
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