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How do oysters make pearls? - Rob Ulrich

TED-Ed
2022 ж. 14 Қар.
1 180 729 Рет қаралды
Жүктеу

Explore how oysters use calcium carbonate to create pearls, and how this chemical compound creates a vast array of other materials.
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Despite their iridescent colors and smooth shapes, pearls are actually made of the exact same material as the craggy shell that surrounds them. Pearls, urchin spines, the shells of mussels, snails and clams, even coral- all these structures are made out of the same chemical compound: calcium carbonate. So how does this single ingredient form such a vast array of materials? Rob Ulrich investigates.
Lesson by Rob Ulrich, directed by Ivana Bošnjak.
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View full lesson: ed.ted.com/lessons/how-do-oys...
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Music: www.campstudio.co
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Пікірлер

  • One day someone will make a horror movie based on giant oysters turning humans into pearls. And I'll watch every second of it.

    @unknownuser3000@unknownuser3000 Жыл бұрын

    • At least they die pretty 😂

      @ModeFin@ModeFin Жыл бұрын

    • I wouldn't be surprised at all if Japan did that, since they already have a movie where people turn into snails

      @undeadladybug7723@undeadladybug7723 Жыл бұрын

    • 🥶😮

      @smallspace7@smallspace7 Жыл бұрын

    • Men you are dark....

      @ebubechiibegbula5968@ebubechiibegbula5968 Жыл бұрын

    • This sounds like something out of Junji Ito's mind!

      @cesar.leyvag@cesar.leyvag Жыл бұрын

  • So in essence, pearls are the body reacting to an invasive material by coating with a thick substance that solidifies around it. In other words, pearls are pretty balls of hard snot. Good to know!

    @SuperSylar@SuperSylar Жыл бұрын

    • I’d argue that they might be zits ;)

      @robulrich757@robulrich757 Жыл бұрын

    • A perfect layman's terms

      @boson2916@boson2916 Жыл бұрын

    • Didn't you hear this is just the leading theory? So there's nothing to know, but to believe.

      @user-jw5cu8qk6o@user-jw5cu8qk6o Жыл бұрын

    • I do think there was too much talk over something that can be greatly simplified and shorter

      @danielcrespo9124@danielcrespo9124 Жыл бұрын

    • God this is going to blow up soon

      @annihilate2479@annihilate2479 Жыл бұрын

  • this is easily one of my favorite animation styles and I love how the content is so precise yet understandable

    @sirajummonira6874@sirajummonira6874 Жыл бұрын

    • it was actually irritating for the eye. :/

      @kirukiru5421@kirukiru5421 Жыл бұрын

    • It's dizzying :(

      @en2336@en2336 Жыл бұрын

    • it matches my bedroom, full of man stuffs. & Electronic hobby everyday until night.

      @nighthood9184@nighthood9184 Жыл бұрын

    • @@kirukiru5421 😂

      @ggstylz@ggstylz Жыл бұрын

  • 1. Calcium carbonate is common in the ocean. 2. Oysters build layers by filtering calcium and carbonate in the sea water. 3. With special proteins, there are 2 variants of crystal structure produced from this - calcite (external shell) and aragonite (internal layer), which have different qualities. Calcite is more stable as compared to aragonite, and is less prone to dissolving. 4. Nacre (the pearl) is formed as a crystalline structure eventually. This stronger and more versatile form of aragonite is formed when hexagonal bricks of proteins and aragonite are stacked so uniformly that light bounces in a cascade of rainbows.

    @tasha5741@tasha5741 Жыл бұрын

    • Wow perfect revision. Thanks❤

      @shadilnazir2001@shadilnazir20015 ай бұрын

    • ❤

      @AryaKrishnaMS@AryaKrishnaMS4 ай бұрын

  • It's worth noting that the vast majority of pearls that form naturally are not round, and most are not gemstone quality, either. Prior to the development cultured pearls, gemstone quality pearls were extremely rare and valuable, so much so that Seneca, writing of the excesses of 1st century Rome, griped about women who wore three-pearl earrings: "This womanish folly is not exaggerated enough for the men of our time, unless they hang two or three estates upon each ear."

    @micahbush5397@micahbush5397 Жыл бұрын

    • The womanish folly hasn't changed much. Modern women just hang different pretty things from their bodies.

      @bigsmall246@bigsmall246 Жыл бұрын

    • @@bigsmall246 It's womanish folly for me lol

      @fernandaabreu5625@fernandaabreu5625 Жыл бұрын

    • @@bigsmall246 And men and others. Piercings are gender neutral. Seneca might have had a heart attack, if he saw gauges XD

      @mimsydreams@mimsydreams Жыл бұрын

    • ​@@mimsydreamsstill womanish

      @GameFuMaster@GameFuMaster7 ай бұрын

    • @@GameFuMaster Really? I guess that just means women are braver than men, since we can handle the pain of a piercing and men cower because it's "womanish".

      @mimsydreams@mimsydreams7 ай бұрын

  • I come to learn about pearls but am more amazed about how an oyster came to be. I’m so fascinated to learn that it started out as a larvae, forming a shell around itself (the idea of a tiny bare oyster flesh just floating around never occurred to me before). It makes so much sense. That’s why the flesh is always joined with the shell when we eat any shellfish! Thank you TedEd for reawakening my wonders to life.

    @wancheng89@wancheng89 Жыл бұрын

    • Same with a turtle! It's part of the turtle's body, not independent from it

      @Random-sk6hm@Random-sk6hm5 ай бұрын

  • These animations look like they are created by people who love what they're doing. The narrations too

    @rinshad@rinshad Жыл бұрын

  • Oysters : "Who dare trespass my property. Thou shall be slowly petrified and incarcerated inside me for eternity ." Humans : "BEAUTIFUL"

    @CheBa.@CheBa. Жыл бұрын

    • Oh no you didnt lololololol

      @fernandaabreu5625@fernandaabreu5625 Жыл бұрын

    • $ех $3х $!х likes? Sorry mate not gonna click!

      @iseytheteethsnake6290@iseytheteethsnake6290 Жыл бұрын

    • Humans seem to ignore all signs of defense from living organisms.

      @mimsydreams@mimsydreams Жыл бұрын

    • @@mimsydreams Like mint. Or chili peppers. Or opium.

      @bluehydra2582@bluehydra2582 Жыл бұрын

    • Pearls are the oyster's version of a booger that's encased a pathogen in mucus

      @Random-sk6hm@Random-sk6hm5 ай бұрын

  • it used to be so confusing to me that people prized pearls higher than the shells when i learned that they were the same material. I still find it slightly weird, but I understand people prefer certain shapes now.

    @MrGamerCaptain@MrGamerCaptain Жыл бұрын

    • The same material in different shapes or forms can have very different values. An example off the top of my head is wood. You can have a plank of wood, which sure is nice. But you can also have a figure of that same material, which will be worth a lot more even though it's the same material.

      @fredriknumse8991@fredriknumse8991 Жыл бұрын

    • @@fredriknumse8991 coal and diamond is another set to fit into "same element, different value"

      @adwita224@adwita224 Жыл бұрын

    • @@adwita224 no?

      @aguyontheinternet8436@aguyontheinternet8436 Жыл бұрын

    • @@adwita224 The carbon structure in diamonds and coal are different, but i guess its still carbon

      @berdwatcher5125@berdwatcher5125 Жыл бұрын

    • I pretty sure diamonds are pretty cheap when they’re not cut and polished to perfection

      @dashdots@dashdots Жыл бұрын

  • They control it on a molecular level wow

    @michaellorde8404@michaellorde8404 Жыл бұрын

  • I am 37 this year and am just starting to be curious of the lifecycle of an oyster and how it produces magnificent pearls. 😂 thanks a bunch Ted-ed for always being a great lecturer ❤

    @wildakusliawanlei9709@wildakusliawanlei970911 ай бұрын

  • Woah I actually always wondered how but always forgot to ask thanks Ted ed for always giving us interesting facts and pieces of knowledge

    @B3_H0N3ST@B3_H0N3ST Жыл бұрын

  • Our minds are like oysters, we earn pearls as knowledge

    @Student-gi4lb@Student-gi4lb Жыл бұрын

  • Why is no one talking about how pretty this video looks? It’s like a neat little stop motion art/science project.

    @Silliestgooberz@Silliestgooberz Жыл бұрын

    • I agree

      @yellowstarproductions6743@yellowstarproductions674311 ай бұрын

  • this is so interesting, I grew up in the persian gulf, i dived for pearls as part of my tribal heritage using traditional boats and tools

    @NoSlaying@NoSlaying Жыл бұрын

    • How cool!!! Very interesting! 😃 May I ask what tribe you belong to?

      @dewilew2137@dewilew2137 Жыл бұрын

  • This was one of the most impressive animation styles TED-ED has ever deployed. Hats off to the animator 👏

    @earthling_parth@earthling_parth Жыл бұрын

  • I always thought that it was the build up of sand inside the clam that made the pearl. It's good to learn something new! 🦋🦋🦋🦋🦋

    @joannagipson12@joannagipson12 Жыл бұрын

    • Well, I don't consider it a wild guess if you assume that it sometimes starts with a grain of sand, 'cause maybe they can't differentiate that from something else. Just a thought...🤷‍♂

      @perpetualbystander4516@perpetualbystander4516 Жыл бұрын

    • Sand is silicone

      @max3eey@max3eey Жыл бұрын

    • Yes

      @sijam2m59@sijam2m59 Жыл бұрын

    • @@max3eey Silica (SiO2)*

      @hyperchlorite8808@hyperchlorite8808 Жыл бұрын

    • @@hyperchlorite8808 💀 ok professor

      @poggins4480@poggins4480 Жыл бұрын

  • Literally investigating nacre and shells for my masters so this ted video was a pleasant coincidence

    @handyb2000@handyb2000 Жыл бұрын

  • Ted-Ed is the best teacher.

    @someonethatexists46@someonethatexists46 Жыл бұрын

    • So true

      @yellowstarproductions6743@yellowstarproductions674311 ай бұрын

  • hats off to the illustrator /animator of this video 💯🙌

    @echa9446@echa9446 Жыл бұрын

  • OK but why is the thumbnail a picture of a pearl in a scallop

    @bunnyshy@bunnyshy Жыл бұрын

  • this channel is absolutely perfect

    @caioesteves1520@caioesteves1520 Жыл бұрын

  • As a marine biologist this took me back today undergrad days of invertebrate zoology

    @robynbrowne1277@robynbrowne1277 Жыл бұрын

    • Hi! Just curious what do you as a marine biologist usually do?

      @cronie8207@cronie8207 Жыл бұрын

  • So many oysters, so few pearls ❤

    @Closetedboogieman@Closetedboogieman Жыл бұрын

  • You know the video is good when prof. urchin teaches you about pearls.

    @QaziAbbas7483@QaziAbbas7483 Жыл бұрын

  • The animation on this one is impeccable.

    @reginateng2048@reginateng2048 Жыл бұрын

  • The production value in his video is just 😮❤

    @ahmedmunsif2110@ahmedmunsif2110 Жыл бұрын

  • amazing how perfectly spherical they make it. Nature is cool af

    @leonti0027@leonti0027 Жыл бұрын

  • YOOOO! Art direction of ted-ed vids are always on point!!!!!!!!

    @h2amster328@h2amster328 Жыл бұрын

  • One of the beautiful arts of nature ❤️.

    @zackakx5807@zackakx5807 Жыл бұрын

  • I just recently thought about this. Thanks for sharing this

    @luciddream5055@luciddream5055 Жыл бұрын

  • Thank you for this wonderful video Ted-ed.

    @williamjayaraj2244@williamjayaraj2244 Жыл бұрын

  • "Ooh, cool rock! Let me get a closer look..." *Proceeds to get turned into a pearl*

    @TristanSamuel@TristanSamuel Жыл бұрын

  • My name - Shamuka, means oyster and this vid made me so happy

    @shamuka19@shamuka19 Жыл бұрын

  • So basically pearls are deep sea kidney stones

    @Bob-je3kx@Bob-je3kx8 ай бұрын

    • 😂😂

      @EmiliaKahavila@EmiliaKahavila8 күн бұрын

  • What a pearl this video was!

    @midimusicforever@midimusicforever Жыл бұрын

  • The sound of the oyster closing like a giant door. Awesome

    @banksofbarcelona3893@banksofbarcelona3893 Жыл бұрын

  • I love this stop motion animation!

    @ookeybookey7955@ookeybookey7955 Жыл бұрын

  • Thanks for solving one if my childhood mystery !!

    @pranaypallavtripathi2460@pranaypallavtripathi2460 Жыл бұрын

  • Great Great Great & Lovely effort for explanation, thanks a lot

    @SweetWatch@SweetWatch Жыл бұрын

  • The presentation is excellent on this one!

    @humanaku9135@humanaku9135 Жыл бұрын

  • The CO3 in the water which helps build the shell, also degrades the shells when in abundance (carbonic acid).

    @Indresh2468@Indresh2468 Жыл бұрын

  • I was always curious about this!

    @strawberry_moon187@strawberry_moon187 Жыл бұрын

  • been waiting for this one!

    @xhok@xhok Жыл бұрын

  • The visuals kept remembering me of my childhood. ♥️

    @amritanshumonarch@amritanshumonarch Жыл бұрын

  • Great knowledge delivered to public. Very nice experience while searching for the formation of a pearl. I heared a myth in my childhood that when first rain drop enters a sea shell it converted to a pearl. But those all are myths anyway

    @FaizanQurashi-bc2zu@FaizanQurashi-bc2zu Жыл бұрын

  • That’s is really really cool good job

    @graceguenette2723@graceguenette27239 ай бұрын

  • woww very impressive animation style and cool chemical explanations! Thanks :)

    @hollawar1391@hollawar1391 Жыл бұрын

  • How would they react to the irritation caused by intrusive sand if they have no central nervous system?

    @MarcoMalfario@MarcoMalfario8 ай бұрын

  • Informative 🙂

    @LetsLearn_with_Param@LetsLearn_with_Param3 ай бұрын

  • Astounding information😃

    @user-bp4nv3qp4d@user-bp4nv3qp4d Жыл бұрын

  • I turned off captions to watch every inch of screen of this beautiful video.

    @jayvaghela9888@jayvaghela9888 Жыл бұрын

  • Great information and and animation

    @maxhill9254@maxhill9254 Жыл бұрын

  • There are pearl farms in different parts of the world, so it seems to be a very solid theory if the results can be reproduced so consistently.

    @claudioestevez1028@claudioestevez1028 Жыл бұрын

  • why can't our tumors be this pretty

    @dracodracarys2339@dracodracarys2339 Жыл бұрын

  • love this stopmotion animation..

    @rohanamatnor2670@rohanamatnor2670Ай бұрын

  • Another curiosity being solved by TED🙌

    @subtrue3882@subtrue3882 Жыл бұрын

  • In paradise there are homes made out of a single hollow pearl

    @Fundamental_Islam.@Fundamental_Islam.4 ай бұрын

  • So you see, when a Mommy Clam and a Daddy Clam love eachother very much...

    @klevercoolwhippy@klevercoolwhippy Жыл бұрын

    • …they make a smaller clam.

      @REALLY-EZ-PZ@REALLY-EZ-PZ Жыл бұрын

  • Well praises for the artwork of mother nature

    @rakhsingh6060_@rakhsingh6060_ Жыл бұрын

  • Wow,Beauty really is on the inside.❤

    @SingiIII@SingiIII Жыл бұрын

  • The same way we make ulcers, time and dedication

    @CoranceLChandler@CoranceLChandler Жыл бұрын

  • *There is a myth in Pakistan among the old folks that the oyster takes the 1st drop of rain and turns it into a pearl*

    @theenlightenedone1283@theenlightenedone1283 Жыл бұрын

  • ON Any Level!

    @joramarentved@joramarentved Жыл бұрын

  • Can you please tell more about gemstones and it's raw form?

    @snehapai5049@snehapai50497 ай бұрын

  • This video is a good education for me...

    @cryptocurrencytradingwarri3079@cryptocurrencytradingwarri3079 Жыл бұрын

  • I Always Wanted To Know This Thank You TED

    @CollinsPeterTz@CollinsPeterTz Жыл бұрын

  • Is there a video you have on oysters life cycle? If no it could be a nice idea^^'. Alo love this video>3

    @rainbowcake8650@rainbowcake8650 Жыл бұрын

  • Very well-researched and fine-made video this is. Keep it up Ted-ed

    @UraidTariq@UraidTariq Жыл бұрын

  • Oysters have to be one of my favorite animals now that is so metal they turn their enemies / predators into jewelry

    @GenderFluidDragonKing@GenderFluidDragonKing Жыл бұрын

  • Me and my sister opened a clam today, it was still producing its pearl so we just got a bunch of liquid

    @Anuslol@Anuslol9 ай бұрын

  • Although it looks easy but it takes sometimes years for them to make one pearl . As said 'everything can cause irritation' and hence not every pearl is round and beautiful . Hence, pearls are rare, south sea pearls are one of the most expensive ones.

    @ayushirathore05@ayushirathore05 Жыл бұрын

  • This animation style is so so beautiful♥️

    @babitamishra7840@babitamishra7840 Жыл бұрын

  • The human body does this. It calcifies foreign things in the body. A "stone baby" is a incredibly rare pregnancy that dies inside and never expelled, the body covers it in calcium and it becomes a stone. Usually found years and years later. Look up pictures, its pretty amazing, sad but amazing...

    @src3360@src3360 Жыл бұрын

    • Same with boogers. That's just a foreign invader that's been encased in mucus and later solidified. Pearls are essentially an oyster's boogers.

      @Random-sk6hm@Random-sk6hm5 ай бұрын

    • @@Random-sk6hm I can see what your saying lol

      @src3360@src33605 ай бұрын

  • More Demon of Reason, please!

    @SoulReaver@SoulReaver Жыл бұрын

  • Damn that's so cool

    @someordinaryperson6222@someordinaryperson6222 Жыл бұрын

  • This is a question that my 4th grader asked me last week 🥺

    @awena8295@awena8295 Жыл бұрын

  • One of the best science animatory channel in the world 😃👏

    @kavithakavitha990@kavithakavitha990 Жыл бұрын

  • Cute animation

    @deanab-se5op@deanab-se5op Жыл бұрын

  • so interesting

    @HangNguyen-gn7bi@HangNguyen-gn7bi Жыл бұрын

  • thanks for your time up loading vdo

    @sivasacimumporn1608@sivasacimumporn1608 Жыл бұрын

    • i don’t trading anything with yOU i don’t trading who have scambag mind set on hidden agendas and treating other badly

      @sivasacimumporn1608@sivasacimumporn1608 Жыл бұрын

  • Hey, I was wondering if I could use your images and animations for a school project, I will give credit. If not, I understand. Thank you for the high quality videos!

    @zekebuboltz4065@zekebuboltz4065 Жыл бұрын

  • 3:25 eyyy bestagons!!!

    @imoutodaisuki@imoutodaisuki Жыл бұрын

  • "The pearls beauty is made as a result of insult"

    @nirmalakarri3733@nirmalakarri3733 Жыл бұрын

    • Thats what God does with us, to make us humble

      @ritajohannessen9804@ritajohannessen9804 Жыл бұрын

  • Weeeeeeeeell damnnnn I was NOT expecting pearls to be leftovers

    @koscarlynn@koscarlynn Жыл бұрын

  • So when you get right down to it, a pearl is a shiny spherical scar.

    @jonbilgutay2@jonbilgutay2 Жыл бұрын

  • You are truly speaking 🔊

    @rekhashankhi5864@rekhashankhi5864 Жыл бұрын

  • A little confused at 1:15, I thought that adding CO2 to the atmosphere and that being dissolved into the ocean actually created carbonic acid which attacks CaCO3 in the ocean and makes it harder to build shells

    @Koltronn@Koltronn Жыл бұрын

    • There are a few steps to the chemical reactions that occur. Carbonic acid then dissolves to make a proton and bicarbonate. That bicarbonate then further dissolves to make another proton and carbonate. These different chemical components all co-exist and the proportions of each depend on the pH. "Ocean acidification" as a term isn't really accurate to describe what is occurring. Instead, what is technically happening is that the ocean is becoming less alkaline, which means that the increasing amount of CO2 going into it now, is removing the bicarbonate and carbonate that are needed for shell-forming. Does that make sense?

      @robulrich757@robulrich757 Жыл бұрын

  • human: look at this beautiful beads oyster: that's a coffin for a worm parasite trying to attack me

    @KoeSeer@KoeSeer Жыл бұрын

  • and that is amazing …

    @prashish750@prashish750 Жыл бұрын

  • Super.👍👍👍👍👍

    @hepsibaharish8509@hepsibaharish8509 Жыл бұрын

  • Pearl. Broca's area, or the Broca area is a region in the frontal lobe of the dominant hemisphere, usually the left, of the brain with functions linked to speech production.

    @1969kodiakbear@1969kodiakbear Жыл бұрын

  • wonder how this art style was made

    @dinhquan107@dinhquan107 Жыл бұрын

  • Should I tell my friend that she's wearing sand/fishbone/seaweed covered in oyster stuff for earrings?

    @kang7004@kang7004 Жыл бұрын

  • nice

    @l.am.legend@l.am.legend Жыл бұрын

  • Congratulations to myself for see this channel on KZhead ❤

    @muthnarang@muthnarang Жыл бұрын

  • Life is fascinating.

    @Anonymous-qx9hs@Anonymous-qx9hs Жыл бұрын

  • @ted-ed If I throw carbon and calcium from human bones into the water of a pool that doesn't have any, and throw in larvae From oysters, would they then create pearls?

    @cristianolopes3750@cristianolopes3750 Жыл бұрын

  • wow!

    @RobinOm27@RobinOm27 Жыл бұрын

  • So the obvious question is...why dont they just make the outter layer of their shell out of Nacre( or whatever its called) if it is the strongest material they produce? Probably takes too long or uses too much energy im assuming.

    @Brian-ux3jx@Brian-ux3jx10 ай бұрын
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