How An Igloo Keeps You Warm



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If you ever find yourself stranded in the snowy Arctic (or bored in Minecraft), you’re gonna need to know how to build an igloo. But how can building a house made of ice keep you warm? The science behind building an igloo is the same reason that otters and reindeer don’t freeze to death!

LEARN MORE:

There really ARE 50 Eskimo words for snow:

PBS Idea Channel – An Infinite Number of Words for Snow

Why there’s no such thing as cold:

How early humans settled the Arctic:

How to build a scientifically perfect igloo:

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41 Comments

  1. Regarding use of the word "Eskimo" in this video: We are now aware, thanks to many polite comments from our audience, that this is viewed as a derogatory term among many native peoples of Canada, as well as in some Arctic regions. Several of our references centered on Alaskan natives, among whom this term is more commonly accepted. Additionally, we used the term in reference to native languages, which are more commonly referred to as Eskimo or Eskimo-Inuit, and not the people, but we should have been more clear and sought out another term. We apologize to those we offended, and have learned a lot. We'll do better in the future, as we always aim to do.

  2. This below noted apology does not go nearly far enough. The use of “Eskimo” here is not some inexplicable misunderstanding that can be waved away by pointing to Alaskan usage or terminology in older references. Be Smart chose to publish a video using a term that many Indigenous peoples consider derogatory, and the fact that they only acknowledged the problem after viewers called it out makes the decision to publish it in the first place even more troubling.

    The distinction between using the word for people and using it for languages does not erase the problem. If anything, it underscores how little care was taken to consult current, appropriate terminology before presenting this material to a huge audience. “We should have been more clear” is an inadequate response to language that can carry a history of colonialism and disrespect toward Indigenous peoples.

    At this point, simply pinning an apology underneath the video is not enough. The video itself should be taken down and either substantially remade with appropriate terminology and context or removed altogether. Leaving the original video publicly available while placing an apology beneath it still allows the offensive material to circulate, be shared, and be encountered by people who will never read the pinned comment.

    If Be Smart genuinely means “we’ll do better in the future,” then the appropriate action is to demonstrate that commitment: remove the offending video, reassess the sources and terminology used, consult Indigenous voices where appropriate, and only republish material that treats the communities being discussed with the respect they deserve.

  3. Living in such a brutal environment was a CHOICE, so, what was in the minds of those humans to wandered that far north? Did they want a hard life? Did they want to test themselves to see if they could survive that kind of environment? Did they over generations forget that there was such a thing as south, where it is warmer and life was easier? It's all just really hard to fathom.

  4. The main thing is to get out of the wind. And then your body can keep you warm. If you have the right gear. A good sleeping bag. In a snow bank works just the same. But a igloo normal is large. With a hole in the roof. So you can build a fire inside.

  5. I'm very surprised there was not a documentary about how the different ways Hitler would've not started World War III I got a list of things that could've happened
    His parents die or not be born
    His mother gets an abortion or has a miscarriage
    His father was a protection
    He gets accepted into art school
    He loses the 1933 Germany presidential election
    Germany does not exist
    He is a stillborn
    Dies before 1907
    Get ass assassinated
    one of his parents comes out as LGBT
    Or they never make it love on July 20, 1888
    Different different ways Hitler could've never started World War III

  6. They don't have 50 words for snow. They have compound words that combine an adjective with the noun snow.
    In English it would be like counting "Pink" as light red. Meaning that "Pink" in this context counts as English having at least 2 words for red.

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