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by smt88 1770 days ago
The problem with YouTube as an alternative to formal education is that it doesn't tell you what you don't know.

YouTube should warn people that its content shouldn't be mistaken for a comprehensive education on a dangerous topic.

1 comments

> YouTube should warn people that its content shouldn't be mistaken for a comprehensive education on a dangerous topic.

You mean like those hundreds of safety warnings even for trivial appliances like smartphone chargers, which nobody ever reads? Do you think someone who builds a helicopter in their garage will be deterred by a warning "This video doesn't teach everything there is to know about mechanical engineering"? Come on.

At least one person did need to know that YouTube was not an alternative to an engineering degree...

But no, I was referring to the more general problem: how to keep people safe without withholding educational information.

Also I have no idea what warnings you're talking about. I've watched hundreds of YT videos on topics like chemistry experiments, woodworking, etc. A very small fraction of videos have warnings, and none are provided by YouTube.