What is the biggest single-celled organism? - Murry Gans

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  • Опубліковано 27 січ 2025

КОМЕНТАРІ • 780

  • @carolineboisvert-storey7121
    @carolineboisvert-storey7121 8 років тому +61

    How is it that you always seem to publish exactly what I need for my classroom days/hours before I need them?!? You are fantastic! Keep up the great work!

  • @Hakasedess
    @Hakasedess 8 років тому +1454

    The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell.

    • @isham2044
      @isham2044 8 років тому +99

      My mom is the powerhouse of my house

    • @justinyueh4777
      @justinyueh4777 8 років тому +11

      +iSham2044 because they are both microscopic?

    • @leonelc29
      @leonelc29 8 років тому +6

      Hold on, i heard this somewhere. Previous Ted-Ed?

    • @abelhuang2527
      @abelhuang2527 8 років тому +1

      Justin Yueh 😂. well, my respect for your mother, iSham2044​ 😁. mitochondria does no easy work, so does your mother 💪

    • @Democracy-is-non-negotiable
      @Democracy-is-non-negotiable 8 років тому +33

      ( ͡͡ ° ͜ ʖ ͡ °) So it's the mightychondria.

  • @violet_cat.
    @violet_cat. 6 років тому +483

    We interrupt "What is the biggest cell" to bring you "Why cells are small"

  • @sophiag2403
    @sophiag2403 8 років тому +63

    I love the narrators voice!! Sometimes I listen to him before going to bed so I can fall asleep faster, it really works!!

  • @carsonjl2539
    @carsonjl2539 8 років тому +503

    The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell

    • @ranybitrology3753
      @ranybitrology3753 8 років тому

      True

    • @bagandtag4391
      @bagandtag4391 8 років тому +9

      False. Debate me.

    • @ranybitrology3753
      @ranybitrology3753 8 років тому

      +Combinemon ooops i replied to the wrong comment

    • @ssalamander2134
      @ssalamander2134 8 років тому +1

      It uses gluecose (sugar) and other charbs to produses ATP which is a molicule which can esaly be comined to produse energy.

    • @bagandtag4391
      @bagandtag4391 8 років тому

      According to who exactly? You'll need some scientific proof on that.

  • @ProSad.d
    @ProSad.d 5 років тому +71

    3:00 is when the real topic begins.....and sadly ends too🙁

    • @Empenguin
      @Empenguin 4 роки тому +2

      What do you mean "sadly"?!? This entire video was incredibly helpful and interesting!

    • @strange_and_magnificent
      @strange_and_magnificent 4 роки тому

      @@Empenguin
      I agree!

    • @Marcy53Volkswagen
      @Marcy53Volkswagen 2 роки тому +1

      @@strange_and_magnificent thats because the topic changes. and we dont get to know more about the original topic

  • @-.._.-_...-_.._-..__..._.-.-.-
    @-.._.-_...-_.._-..__..._.-.-.- 8 років тому +275

    We have a neuron that stretches from the spine to the foot??

    • @tenorsaxophone2012
      @tenorsaxophone2012 8 років тому +59

      I believe it...that would explain why I suck at soccer

    • @ObjectiveZoomer
      @ObjectiveZoomer 7 років тому +1

      David S. obviously

    • @mythreepants
      @mythreepants 7 років тому +31

      Super Noodles. Motor neuron bodies in the spinal cord extend axons directly out to distal skeletal muscle. Some neurons of the sciatic nerve extend all the way down the leg. Don't confuse the man. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpha_motor_neuron?wprov=sfla1

    • @mythreepants
      @mythreepants 7 років тому +2

      We have many, see above.

    • @harshpreetmundi3535
      @harshpreetmundi3535 4 роки тому

      shut up

  • @TheJaseku
    @TheJaseku 8 років тому +242

    0:10 metric system..., please, please use it.

    • @TheJaseku
      @TheJaseku 8 років тому +85

      The hole wolrd uses the metric system. It's just the USA which lives in the past.

    • @benjaminlehman3221
      @benjaminlehman3221 8 років тому +18

      +TheJaseku The United States, Liberia, and Myanmar (Burma) don't use the metric system.

    • @TheJaseku
      @TheJaseku 8 років тому +62

      So almost nobody.

    • @BrMiller
      @BrMiller 8 років тому +45

      Liberia and Myanmar are switching to metric as being metric is better than imperial. It always goes up by a base ten number and you can tell by the name of the units how big the unit is. Millimetre, milli means 1/1000 so a millimetre is 1/1000 metres.

    • @ForeverDunking
      @ForeverDunking 8 років тому +43

      Runos9999 ...... 375 million people out of almost 7,445,189, 250 people, thats like 5% of the world pop. compared to the 95% who does abide to the metric system, this is nobody

  • @KnakuanaRka
    @KnakuanaRka 5 років тому +19

    As for that bit about the surface area and volume of a cell, I’ve heard it called the square/cube law; basically, an object’s surface area scales with the square of its length, but the volume scales with its cube, so the latter increases more when an object is scaled up. Just thought they could have explained that better.

  • @nick.t1243
    @nick.t1243 8 років тому +347

    Wait, isn't 1,000 trillion a quadrillion or something

    • @LazGav
      @LazGav 8 років тому +9

      yes

    • @nick.t1243
      @nick.t1243 8 років тому +22

      Lazertazer Why didn't they say that then lol

    • @LazGav
      @LazGav 8 років тому +85

      ItsTangy
      Because most people have heard the word "trillion", but if you say "quadrillion", many people will think it's a made up word.

    • @nick.t1243
      @nick.t1243 8 років тому +13

      Lazertazer True but they could have said 1,000 trillion or a quadrillion

    • @ted7538
      @ted7538 8 років тому +13

      1,000 trillion sounds bigger than 1 quadrillion, even though it's the same thing.

  • @raghu45
    @raghu45 5 років тому +28

    Interesting! So the limit to the size of a cell is essentially a trade-off between it's sustenance and waste excretion! 🙂

  • @_snowowl3333
    @_snowowl3333 3 роки тому +4

    Short answer: It's Kirby.

  • @Elliandr
    @Elliandr 8 років тому +5

    What about the pseudoplasmodium of coenocytic slime mold? The aggregate form has a single cell wall, and it's capable of basic learning about it's environment (remembering, somehow, interval conditions as an example) and while these usually don't get very big, they can, and they can also subdivide back into separate smaller units.

  • @usermdejfjsnhdxdxnd
    @usermdejfjsnhdxdxnd 4 роки тому +1

    Thanks my class had to take notes on this and your voice is very clear so I can hear everything and take notes down. :)

  • @Bankstercide
    @Bankstercide 8 років тому +12

    There are actually some rather large single celled protozoa dwelling on the Abyssal Plain. Apparently the environment down there is stable (and hostile) enough to allow such fragile creatures to survive.

  • @greennin
    @greennin Рік тому +2

    Fun fact, MurryGans are also the heaviest multi-celled organisms

  • @HisRoyalStignes
    @HisRoyalStignes 7 років тому +9

    Finding out that I have a metre long neutron running down my leg kind freaks me out. Oh fuck, I just realised, there's one in the other leg too

  • @spidermanm.0
    @spidermanm.0 2 місяці тому +1

    Guys what advantages do multi cellular organism has over unicellular organisms?

  • @pbmann69420
    @pbmann69420 6 років тому +2

    Why is it that Ted-Ed always ends their videos with some of the most beautiful sentences ever.

  • @KnakuanaRka
    @KnakuanaRka 5 років тому +1

    Another aspect you didn’t mention is the radical difference in how things move in the microscopic and macroscopic world’s (I think there’d a Ted-Ed about Reynolds numbers, great additional material); the way animals like the elephants and grizzly bears you mentioned eat and move and reproduce involves a whole mess of rigid skeletons and muscles and specialized cells that likely would be impossible for a unicellular creature to mimic, while a cell’s tricks with microtubule “skeletons” and flagellae would not work at macroscopic scales.

  • @deejay902
    @deejay902 5 років тому +6

    I’m lost the moment he calculated the cube 😂

  • @toribbit36
    @toribbit36 5 років тому +5

    *Bio Exam:* What’s the biggest single cell organism?
    *Me when I don’t know the answer:*

  • @jayank-tyagi
    @jayank-tyagi 7 років тому +2

    **Opens the video just to comment "Ostrich egg" and leaves without watching it.**

  • @intervein1
    @intervein1 3 роки тому +1

    Now that I know how incredibly thin and delicate my spine to leg nerve cell is, I feel like I’ll be paralyzed any second.

  • @lukasobi
    @lukasobi 8 років тому +137

    What is the biggest organism only with a single nuclei?

    • @EndQuarkConfinement
      @EndQuarkConfinement 8 років тому +27

      An ostrich egg?

    • @claeshenriksson5702
      @claeshenriksson5702 8 років тому +21

      My guess is an ostrich egg, since all eggs are single celled

    • @g_glop
      @g_glop 8 років тому +66

      But an egg isn't an organism, more like a disposable womb.
      The embryo is the only living part.

    • @claeshenriksson5702
      @claeshenriksson5702 8 років тому +2

      So it isn't seen as an organism until it hatches?

    • @g_glop
      @g_glop 8 років тому +22

      Claes Henriksson No, the embryo inside is live and grows from the "dead" yolk.

  • @d962831
    @d962831 7 років тому +14

    3:07 for the answer

  • @nickgushard8948
    @nickgushard8948 4 роки тому +2

    Fascinating how it convergently evolved fronds like a fern to increase surface area

  • @strange_and_magnificent
    @strange_and_magnificent 4 роки тому +1

    The animator’s voice is amazing. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

  • @1DInciner
    @1DInciner 4 роки тому

    valonia ventracosa?

  • @elshroomness
    @elshroomness 7 років тому

    can someone give this man a glass of water? his voice sounds like needs some.

  • @marlonmarcello
    @marlonmarcello 8 років тому

    Loved the cell illustration and animation.

  • @tombrown32a
    @tombrown32a 3 роки тому

    Haven't watched the video but can't believe the world's biggest single cell is called Murry

  • @ElTutelFai
    @ElTutelFai 8 років тому +2

    0:31 To find out, we have to pee into a cell's guts.

  • @dtschenz
    @dtschenz 7 років тому +1

    Physarum polycephalum, a 'true slime mould', is but one example of a single-celled organism that can easily become 'larger' than 30cm. It can cover up to 1sqm under the right conditions.

  • @floweridragon
    @floweridragon 5 років тому +1

    Wait ...
    I expected that the slime mold might be the largest single cell. I mean … That is like an giant amoeba!

  • @djdastidar6640
    @djdastidar6640 6 років тому

    Wonderful clip.I will be delighted if you upload a clip telling how we think or work even we many different cells?

  • @stfkonbr3578un
    @stfkonbr3578un 7 років тому

    @ 00:30 "Because we don't want to be killed, absorbed, and dissolved by a unicelluar organism!" 😂

  • @nustada
    @nustada 8 років тому

    Wake me when you make a mega-elephant make out of thousands of elephants.

  • @biophile2
    @biophile2 8 років тому

    How long is a motor neuron from the sacrum to the tip of the fluke of a blue whale?

  • @xzelpelonia3622
    @xzelpelonia3622 8 років тому

    The only thing that i learn to this video is that, elephant is the answer to the title.

    • @mlgesuschrist5518
      @mlgesuschrist5518 8 років тому +6

      you learned wrong, brother

    • @patrickhodson8715
      @patrickhodson8715 8 років тому

      I'm beginning to think these "Jesus" youtube commentors aren't authentic...

    • @mlgesuschrist5518
      @mlgesuschrist5518 8 років тому

      Patrick Hodson
      oh yeah? i know exactly where you live so dont test me peasant!

  • @Gingenus
    @Gingenus 8 років тому

    I've been looking for a video like this! thanks TED-Ed

  • @amredswordcalice23
    @amredswordcalice23 4 роки тому +1

    2:58 you came for this.

  • @beathan99
    @beathan99 8 років тому

    wouldnt a fertilised ostrich egg before the first division be the largest single cell organism?
    sorry for the bad english, and sorry if this stops the prochoice movement for orstriches.

  • @김정현-b8y
    @김정현-b8y 8 років тому

    Why he used a word 'hack' in 3:10? I have to translate it to Korean, but I can't find what 'biological hacks' means.

  • @GamerRusith
    @GamerRusith 8 років тому

    The reason why there aren't many uni-cellular big organisms is that like it said in the video it doesn't matter if one cell for us gets destroyed (we loose like 37mill everyday) but it will matter for the un-cellular organisms

  • @chhunkoungseng9364
    @chhunkoungseng9364 8 років тому +1

    perfect! two cell videos in a row cuz I'm studying it atm.

  • @sandrawong6787
    @sandrawong6787 3 роки тому

    What if the cells crenated and extended outwards?
    Would they be able to expand forever?

  • @ShelLuser
    @ShelLuser 8 років тому +2

    I'm surprised you didn't mention the yolk of an egg as an example of a very large cell.

  • @MeariBamu
    @MeariBamu 3 роки тому

    if there is a huge cell large as the elephant, that would be one punch world

  • @TheInselaffen
    @TheInselaffen 8 років тому

    Anakin Skywalker was full of Micromeders.

  • @nabbster94
    @nabbster94 6 років тому

    The cell body of a motor neuron is approximately 100 microns (0.1 millimeter) in diameter and as you now know, the axon is about 1 meter (1,000 millimeter) in length. So, the axon of a motor neuron is 10,000 times as long as the cell body is wide.

  • @jerryanderson6217
    @jerryanderson6217 3 роки тому

    Phenomenal animation!!!!!!

  • @s.d.966
    @s.d.966 6 років тому

    Fantastic explanation!

  • @paradoxward2533
    @paradoxward2533 4 роки тому

    2 things. it is this kind of instantaneous access to info that makes the internet the greatest achievement of all time. (for now) and I suspect that the origin of life had many starts and stops before there was a Universe that was perfect enough to be copied endlessly....,

  • @samiamrg7
    @samiamrg7 5 років тому +8

    I remember an experiment we did in science class once to demonstrate the difficulty presented by volume increasing faster than surface area. We cut 2 cubes of some kind of gel, one big and one small, and out them in a colored water solution and left them over night. When we cut them open the next day, the smaller cubes were mostly saturated but the larger ones were not.
    This applies to cells because they rely a lot on the passive diffusion of water (osmosis) in order to save energy. It would take a lot of energy to speed up the transfer of chemicals by using a process other than osmosis.

  • @ullumini7538
    @ullumini7538 8 років тому

    I'm supposed to be studying this for a test but I got lazy and watched this instead. Turns out I'm supposed to be studying the same topic ha

  • @penand_paper6661
    @penand_paper6661 8 років тому

    What about retrovirus?

  • @kylaking4649
    @kylaking4649 7 років тому +1

    I love it when he says micrometer xD

  • @eaminyashed7799
    @eaminyashed7799 5 років тому +1

    But what is the biggest rock?

  • @georgewithey1689
    @georgewithey1689 8 років тому +2

    Would that mean there is a universal volume and surface area limit to every single cell organism using the same math ratio law you stated in the video?

  • @spongee9676
    @spongee9676 Рік тому +1

    Aren't jellyfish single-celled organisms

  • @despawn7663
    @despawn7663 3 роки тому

    2:58 i know its a short video, but i just wanted to know the answer quick. And even then there a few * asterisk about the awnser. :)

  • @vilmavaitonyte2451
    @vilmavaitonyte2451 5 років тому

    "what is the biggest single-celled organism?" is now interrupted by "W0W0W0W0W0 ELEPHANTS ARE HUUGEEEE CHECK OUT THE CELLS ON THIS THING W 0 0 0 W"

  • @johnslaught29
    @johnslaught29 8 років тому

    My biology teacher once told me that the largest single-celled organism is an ostrich egg.

  • @drinkme976
    @drinkme976 8 років тому +9

    Last time i was this early, Keemstar had more subs than Scarce

  • @evilsharkey8954
    @evilsharkey8954 5 років тому +3

    You know, you could just say “micron”. It’s the same as a micrometer.

  • @TheReaverOfDarkness
    @TheReaverOfDarkness 8 років тому

    A cell can be large if it's flat. That makes it fragile, though.
    There are some algae with cells several feet long.

  • @stevez2158
    @stevez2158 7 років тому +4

    I still have no idea why this Square-cube law exists. If you just measure in larger units, then the cube will always have a 6:1 surface to volume ratio.

    • @drdca8263
      @drdca8263 6 років тому +3

      Steve Zukley Sure, but the ratio between the two will be in a larger unit as well.
      Suppose a "doublemeter" was a name of a unit twice as long as a meter.
      The ratio between a cubic doublemeter and 6 square doublemeters, would be 1/6 doublemeters, while the ratio between a cubic meter and 6 square meters would be 1/6 meters, and 1/6 doublemeters is twice as much as 1/6 meters.
      Does that make sense?

    • @alphaamoeba
      @alphaamoeba 6 років тому

      Because the universe don't want to humans to discover resizing

    • @minhn.ng.8557
      @minhn.ng.8557 5 років тому +1

      If x is the side of cube then volume is (x.x.x), total surface is 6.x.x) ratio volume/surface is x/6. The ratio changes as x changes, not constant as 1/6 as you think.

  • @Sina-xh3gp
    @Sina-xh3gp 5 років тому +1

    Who expected him to mention the cell theory?😂

  • @cpt_nordbart
    @cpt_nordbart 8 років тому

    large organisms could be trees or mushrooms too... ans they can get way heavier than old Bluewhale here.

  • @profishercrab6714
    @profishercrab6714 7 років тому

    I look away from this video and found math. I did not know this could happen. I think a few Brian cells ded

  • @TheMihig
    @TheMihig 8 років тому

    wait, but wouldn't the ratio always be the same, if you just change the scale? like the length of an edge would always be "one" "scale unit"?

    • @KohuGaly
      @KohuGaly 8 років тому

      except it isn't. The cell grows = it bets bigger than a single scale unit.

    • @TheMihig
      @TheMihig 8 років тому

      KohuGaly yeah but the surface to volume ratio of a cube of any size should always be the same. let's put it like this: cube1: 6a^2/a^3 and cube2: 6b^2/b^3
      right? or should i also take the thickness of the membrane into the account?

    • @KohuGaly
      @KohuGaly 8 років тому

      TheMihig now look at the ratio. It contains a variable that has different exponent in numerator and denominator. It means the value will be different for any value of that variable. I understand what you are trying to say, but it simply is not how it works.

    • @TheMihig
      @TheMihig 8 років тому

      KohuGaly can you simplyfy those math terms for me i'm not a native english speaker

    • @KohuGaly
      @KohuGaly 8 років тому

      TheMihig Let's consider a ratio of volume/surface [x=V/S]. Both depend on a size factor (length of one side) [x~r^3 / r^2] (I've left out factors, because they depend on specific shape).
      which can be simplified to x~r. As you can see, as size factor (length of one side) grows, the ratio V/S rises proportionally. When length of the size doubles(2x), surface quadruples (4x) and volume octuples (8x). Which means V/S ratio doubles too. Volume rises faster than surface when object grows.
      For similar reason you can't build infinitely big structures, because mass grows proportionally to volume, while base grows proportionally to surface.

  • @Salel_M
    @Salel_M 2 роки тому

    تصحيح الترجمة : اكبر كائن حي أحادي الخلية في العالم 3:09
    Translation correction: the largest single-celled organism in the world 3.09

  • @ru4758
    @ru4758 4 роки тому

    me in a jail cell: call me mitochondria !
    literally anyone: why would i call yo-
    me: because im the powerhouse of the cell!

  • @konee0
    @konee0 7 років тому +8

    Wait, but the"reason" you gave for cells to be small is entirely invalid. Since a cell isn't a cube, it's not true that the ratio of the growth of volume to the growth of surface area will be linear. If your cell was cylindrical and the cell would only grow longer and not broader, then the ratio would be nearly constant (read as, if the cell is shaped like a cylinder and grows longer, the whole problem the video is about doesn't exist).
    Also, if the cell membrane would be more "folded", looking more like a fractal, you could have huge surface area compared to the volume.
    I mean, essentially, 3/4 of the video makes no sense because of oversimplification :I

    • @f59101
      @f59101 6 років тому +1

      Cylindrical unicellular organism can't only continuously grow longer but not broader at all, because the chemical structure of cell membrane is lipid bilayer. It is mobility, and the strength can't bear force in giant scale.

    • @evilsharkey8954
      @evilsharkey8954 5 років тому +1

      They explain how the largest single cells organism, that multinucleate alga, does exactly that. It’s size is still limited by the surface to volume ratio, though.

    • @thehiddenninja3428
      @thehiddenninja3428 5 років тому

      Which is exactly what happens in the nerve cell

  • @2nd3rd1st
    @2nd3rd1st 8 років тому

    I always thought Daredevil's Kingpin was the biggest single-celled organism. It's a luxurious cell, too.

  • @RamblinPhoenix
    @RamblinPhoenix 8 років тому +1

    What about large eggs, like ostrich eggs? Those are technically huge single cells. They may not be as tall as 30 cm, but I would think they would have more mass.

  • @SEB1991SEB
    @SEB1991SEB 4 роки тому

    He should've mentioned like how large an elephant would be if all of its cells were the size of the largest cell in the world.

  • @stevendern2543
    @stevendern2543 8 років тому

    Elephants, Whales and Bears!

  • @someweebwatchingcartoons4456
    @someweebwatchingcartoons4456 8 років тому

    Thanks

  • @johnmoone8013
    @johnmoone8013 7 років тому

    The answer is on 3:00

  • @valken666
    @valken666 8 років тому

    So, you didn't answer the question... That plant still has more than one nucleus. Acetabularia has one nucleus, and can reach 10cm.

  • @jacobfu4453
    @jacobfu4453 8 років тому

    What's the smallest cell in the world?
    YOUR MOM

  • @kra4is
    @kra4is 8 років тому +52

    Thats a weird way to pronounce micro meter lol

    • @yyangcn
      @yyangcn 8 років тому +2

      Micrometer can also called micron. I guess the guy basically just combined them into micron meter.

    • @dogedoge4547
      @dogedoge4547 8 років тому +1

      It sounds more like "microm meter"

    • @andyyin7455
      @andyyin7455 8 років тому +4

      How do you say 'speedometer' or 'pedometer?'

    • @patrickhodson8715
      @patrickhodson8715 8 років тому +3

      it's just like thermometer and kilometer. except it's weird to hear someone say micrometer instead of micron.

  • @GUBBS5
    @GUBBS5 4 місяці тому

    man imagine the powerhouse on that

  • @geordonworley5618
    @geordonworley5618 8 років тому

    Whatever happened to slime molds? They might not be as "big," but I think they have more volume.

  • @hagalathekido
    @hagalathekido 8 років тому

    ostrich egg, all eggs are one cell and ostriches have huge eggs, ez

  • @savanname7282
    @savanname7282 7 років тому

    But if millimetre is mm why is micrometer also mm?

  • @joshuachhakchhuak1097
    @joshuachhakchhuak1097 8 років тому

    I've been asking this question ever since i had knowledge of cells

  • @xpndblhero5170
    @xpndblhero5170 2 роки тому

    Anyone else get the subliminal message that our universe is inside of a cell or was it just me¿?
    😂

  • @zenaidatelan4435
    @zenaidatelan4435 3 місяці тому

    Sino st. Mary Magdalene dito?

  • @ck1894
    @ck1894 8 років тому +2

    but slime molds can get even bigger and their just one cell

  • @mata8038
    @mata8038 8 років тому +1

    unicelular organisms: bear , elephant and whale rly?

  • @MrRedIsHere
    @MrRedIsHere 6 років тому

    The powerhouse is the mitochondria of the cell 😂

  • @F1A1N1
    @F1A1N1 8 років тому

    aw I thought bubble algae would be mentioned but still cool.

  • @VoidHalo
    @VoidHalo 7 років тому

    If the answer is some sort of an egg I'm going to be very pissed off...

  • @Nesapoe
    @Nesapoe 8 років тому +3

    To compensate for its length it's really thin. that's a shame ;)

  • @lordlin
    @lordlin 4 місяці тому

    Within cells interlinked

  • @edithcraig171
    @edithcraig171 8 років тому

    You should make a vid on scoliosis

  • @bazookallamaproductions5280
    @bazookallamaproductions5280 5 років тому

    isnt an ostrich egg a single cell? i win.