- [Narrator] There's
nothing more satisfying than taking a great idea
and making it a reality. But what about those
ideas that seem so crazy, they couldn't possibly work? Well, sometimes those
crazy ideas wind up working way better than expected from
mind-controlled video games, to pooping for profit,
prepare to be blown away as we take a look at some
of the wackiest ideas, that actually work. (bright melodic music) Musical Madness. No matter where you are in the world, drivers racing down roads at
speeds far over the legal limit remains a dangerous problem. However, in 2014, the New Mexico Department of Transportation teamed up with National Geographic to create a whimsically, song-based solution. This strip of road on Route
333 has been modified, such that any motorist that
drives across its length is treated to a rendition
of the patriotic US classic, "America the Beautiful." ("America the Beautiful") Okay, so it's not quite Ray Charles, but it's still impressive. What's more, the mysterious
music only plays, when you're driving at
exactly the speed limit. So how does it work? Well, special grooves called
rumble strips are installed along the road at varying
intervals from one another. When driven over, these rough
strips cause cars to vibrate at very specific frequencies
generating audible tones. However, the song will
only become recognizable, when driven over at
precisely 45 miles per hour, encouraging drivers to
stick to the speed limit. Hm, despite what my inner rebel tells me, I guess following the rules can be fun. But do you know what's even more fun? Slaying hordes of creatures, leveling up heroic champions
and taking on ultimate bosses in the terrifying "Doom Tower
of Raid: Shadow Legends." On the slight chance you
haven't heard already, "Raid" is an epic fantasy RPG, that you can play on PC
or on your smartphone. It's the only reason for
having your phone out in class or at work that your
superiors will understand. Assemble your favorite
champions, grind out XP and earn heaps of Silver and Artifacts to become more powerful than your teachers or boss can ever hope to be. Not enough for you? Well, the newly added
Guardian Ring gives you a whole host of exciting new
ways to use your Champions and boost their power and that's not all. At the start of December,
one of the biggest, most anticipated feature updates ever is coming to the game, trust
me, it's going to be huge. So download "Raid: Shadow Legends" now using the link in the
description or my QR code and instantly unlock
the epic hero, Chonoru, who's super powerful in the
Doom Tower, 200,000 Silver, an XP boost, an energy refill
and even an Ancient Shard, so you can summon your first
awesome Champion straightaway. All done? Right then, let's check
out some more crazy ideas, that actually work. (air whooshing) Pet Rock? Whether it's a dog, cat or pony, there's always been a
demand for animals as pets, but no one would want a pet rock, right? Wrong, back in 1975, down
and out freelance copywriter, Gary Dahl was having a drink
and listening to his friends complain about their pets at the pub. Jokingly, he suggested
owning a rock for a pet, a rock couldn't possibly give
anyone any trouble he mused. But even as everybody laughed, the idea began to cement
itself in Dahl's mind. Days later, he found himself purchasing a load of smooth rocks
at just one cent a piece. He also bought straw,
which was even cheaper. Then putting his writing
skills to good use, Dahl drafted a full, 32-page manual with detailed instructions
for keeping the rocks as pets. The manual jokingly describes things like Pet Rock first aid and they're even instructions
on how to train your pet rock. For example, shake hands is almost impossible to teach the rock, attack, however, was very simple with the physical help
of the owner of course. The box meanwhile, had ventilation holes punched along the top and
the rock sat snugly inside nestled on a bed of straw. Dahl put the pet rock on the market in time for the Christmas rush and the response was above
anyone's expectations. Astoundingly by February of 1976, over a million of the stones
had been sold and at $4 apiece, Dahl was made a millionaire
almost overnight. Move aside, Mick Jagger, Gary Dahl is the only real rock star. Pet Rocks, what a crazy idea. What's not so crazy though, is smashing those like
and subscribe buttons. I'm always uploading amazing new content and you're not gonna wanna miss out on what I've got planned next. But where were we? (air whooshing) Waddling Warriors. Back at the start of 2020, the Chinese government
realized it was about to face a huge, potentially
devastating airborne problem and no, I'm not talking about COVID-19. A 400 billion-strong swarm
of ferocious flying locusts were heading straight
towards China's border. Swarms of the pests had
already ravaged their way through eastern Africa,
South Asia and Pakistan, destroying crops at an alarming rate, crippling the countries' economies. Eastern Africa lost a
whopping $128 million fighting the critters in 2020. So, what was China's plan
to stop the onslaught? Ducks and I mean lots and lots of ducks. The quirky quackers had
proven themselves once before, fighting off a similar
horde 20 years earlier. Back then, each duck chowed down on an average of 200 locusts a day. So, China's government
enlisted a colossal legion of 100,000 of them in 2020, gathering at China's Pakistan
border, ready to block the 400 billion locusts
approaching through Pakistan in an epic battle. Tense quacks filled the air, but this time, it wasn't meant to be. Experts had warned China
to call off the attack and use pesticide instead, which they did. Although the ducks had
excelled back in 2000, when they were fighting in China, in 2020, they would've
been fighting in Pakistan. With soaring temperatures that can exceed 117 degrees Fahrenheit
and bone-dry deserts in some parts of the country, it could've been a disaster
for the water-reliant ducks. Pulled back from the frontline,
they waddled wearily away. However, next time China's
crops are threatened, maybe they won't require
a quack-tical retreat. (air whooshing) Transparent Toilets. Let's be honest, nobody
enjoys using public toilets, but these toilets in Tokyo, Japan take public pooping anxiety
to a whole new level. That's because the cubicle walls are made from transparent glass. Part of the Tokyo Toilet Project, they're designed to combat
the stereotype in Japan of public toilets being dark,
dirty, smelly and scary. If you ask me though, a
see-through toilet cubicle is as scary as it gets. But despite how exposed it
appears, there's little chance of anyone actually seeing
you do your business, the glass walls aren't
made of any old glass, no, they're smart glass. When the cubicle door is unlocked, an electric current is
passed through the crystals in the glass panel,
making them transparent. When locked, the electricity is cut off and the panels become opaque. So even in the event of a power failure, the walls won't suddenly turn see-through. Why does this make Tokyo's toilets any better than regular
public toilets then? Well, they let you see
exactly what the state of the cubicle is before you even enter, which could save you a nasty surprise. You'll be discouraged from
leaving any nasty surprises too, because when you're finished,
everyone will be able to see exactly how you've left the place, blaming the person before
you won't cut it this time, you filthy animal. (air whooshing) Frying Flyers. When you think of protests,
you probably imagine a mass of people holding signs with impassioned messages
of change on them. But back in 2019, thousands of
people protesting inequality in Chile held laser pointers
and for an ingenious reason. You see, when protests or riots
break out, police use drones to accurately assess the
situation from above, so they can prepare an
appropriate ground response. However, protestors in Chile theorized, that if they all brought laser
pointers to the gathering and shone them together
on one drone at a time, the concentrated light might
disrupt the drones somehow. So, they tried it. (protesters shouting) (protesters cheering) Astonishingly, the lasers really did work! About 40-50 of them were aimed
at the flying police robot, but theories varied as to
what actually caused it to crash to the ground. Some people think the
combined power of the lasers generated enough heat to
melt the plastic on the drone and cause it to malfunction. Others think it overloaded
the drone's optical sensor, so the operator couldn't
see through the camera, forcing them to land. After checking out the view from above, this is the theory I'm leaning towards. But what do you think? Let me know in the comments down below. (air whooshing) Backwards in Bhatinda. Way back in 2003, taxi driver Harpreet Dev was driving home late one
night in northern India, when his Fiat Padmini got
stuck in reverse gear. Without the money to get it repaired, Harpreet turned his head behind him and began driving backwards towards his hometown of Bhatinda. The longer he reversed,
the more confident he got and by the time Harpreet
had returned home, an idea had formed in his head. Instead of getting his car fixed, what if he modified the gearbox
to have four reverse gears and only one forward gear? The talented taxi driver
had always wanted to do something unique in his life
and this was his opportunity. As time went on, tales
of the backwards taxicab spread throughout Bhatinda and Harpreet became something
of a local celebrity. He even managed to get a
special government license allowing him to drive backwards in any state in northern India. In fact, the daring driver became so adept at his unique mode of transportation, that in 2005, he reversed all
the way from Rajasthan, India, 350 miles to Lahore in Pakistan to promote peace between
the two countries. Unfortunately for Harpreet,
all the time spent looking over his shoulder has given him some severe back and neck problems. But does he let that
stop him? Of course not. According to Harpreet, "Achieving something
special is never easy." True, but personally, I'm gonna
stick to driving forwards. (air whooshing) Geese Police. If you're ever out
wandering the rural parts of China's Xinjiang Province
and pass a police station, you might see a very strange sight indeed. That's because in this
notoriously crime-ridden region of China, police have
begun using guard geese instead of guard dogs. As crazy as it sounds,
the geese actually have several distinct advantages
over their canine counterparts. For one, they're incredibly
loud even whilst eating. If a thief breaks into your house and throws a steak on the floor, your hungry hound might be too distracted and fail to alert you
of the coming danger. However, if you own a goose,
they'll still honk loudly, whilst gobbling up their meal. What's more, intruders could
throw a piece of drugged food and take out the standard,
solitary guard dog in one fell swoop and
their numbers and noises will make that bewildered
burglar wish they'd never come. Of course, owning a
personal goose battalion has its challenges, but for
the Chinese police force, it's been a startling success. Back in 2013, a man tried to
break into a police station in Xinjiang to steal back
his confiscated motorbike. It was the dead of night and he'd successfully
drugged the two guard dogs. Confidently, he climbed over the wall and was met with a terrifying sight, 20 geese all eyeballing
him, fanning their wings and aggressively shrieking. Cops that had been sleeping
in the station overnight were awoken and the criminal was caught. So, next time you're considering
a new animal sidekick, why not go for a goose or 10? (air whooshing) Beaver Butt Juice When you're chowing down on a
delicious vanilla ice cream, the last thing you want to imagine is that it came from the
rear end of some wild animal. But if you lived in
the early 20th century, chances are you'd have
tried beaver butt juice at least once in your life. Turns out beavers have a gland
just beneath their tails, that secretes the sticky brown goo. This sludge is not poop, but smells and tastes just like vanilla, so much so, in fact, that
folks 100 years ago used it to flavor ice cream, cakes and
anything else they fancied. While it's best not to ponder how people figured out how this stuff tastes, the secretion is actually called castoreum and its puzzlingly
pleasant smell and taste are by-products of the
beavers' plant-based diet. Castoreum is made from a
bunch of chemical compounds, several of which work as
pheromones and beavers use it to mark territory and
communicate with one another, which is pretty far removed
from our use for it. Extracting castoreum from
a beaver is no easy task, you can't just hold an
ice cream cone under there and hope for the best. First, the beaver has to be anesthetized, then someone has the unenviable job of manually milking its castor glands. Given how impractical, not to
mention gross that process is, castoreum only accounts
for a tiny fraction of all vanilla flavoring nowadays, though you can still find
it in alcoholic beverages and premium ice cream. Guess I'll stick to the cheap stuff then! (air whooshing) The Great French Potato Ploy. Way back in mid-18th century France, a terrible fear had gripped the nation. It wasn't a fear of death
or war, but rather potatoes. Spanning from unfounded suspicions about the fact that
potatoes grew underground, people saw the tubers
as spreaders of disease and even the cause of leprosy. Although there was no evidence
supporting these views, in 1748, the French Parliament went so far as to declare the potato illegal. But after being captured by the Prussians during the Seven Years War,
French army medical officer, Antoine-Augustin Parmentier's
opinion drastically changed. Parmentier was fed potatoes
during his imprisonment and to his disbelief, he was totally fine. So upon his release,
Parmentier made it his mission to spread the good word. After years of tireless
work, he eventually succeeded and the ban was lifted in 1772. But still, many people wouldn't touch the much-maligned vegetable. Then one day, Parmentier had an idea, people didn't want to eat them, because they saw them as undesirable, therefore he just had
to make them desirable. So Parmentier turned a
piece of land he owned into a potato patch, hiring
several heavily-armed guards to make a great show
of defending the spuds. His thinking was that
people would see the guards and assume the potatoes
were worth stealing. Parmentier waited and sure enough, people began stealing the potatoes. From then on, demand began to increase and widespread opinion of
the root vegetable changed all thanks to one man's impassioned ploy. I'm sure Parmentier would
be smiling in his grave, if he knew there was now
such a thing as French fries. (air whooshing) Zero Zebras. A trip to the zoo can be fun, but without interesting animals, there's no reason to go, right? The owners of Marah Land Zoo
in Gaza knew this all too well, when they lost their two
prize zebras in 2009. The most popular animals in the park, their loss had the potential
to be devastating for business. With no money to buy more zebras, the zookeepers wracked their brains, until they hit a crazy idea. They still had two donkeys,
so wasting no time, they got hold of some
black hair dye and used it to paint dark stripes on the white donkeys and they didn't do a bad job. Despite zebras being almost
a foot taller than donkeys, none of the visitors
seemed to notice or care. although this guy definitely saw those tell-tale smudge marks. Regardless, the fake zebras
were far more popular than they had been as donkeys and quickly became the
zoo's main attraction. You could say they really
earned their stripes. (air whooshing) Poop to Paper. If someone told you there was a way you could turn your poop into cash, you'd probably think they
were pulling a prank. But at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology in South Korea, this doodie-fueled dream
has become a reality. Cho Jae-Weon, a professor
at the university, wanted to design an energy-efficient way of running one of the buildings on campus. His answer? This toilet. Ordinarily it's not sat on a desk, but within the Science Walden
Pavilion at the university. The toilet has a vacuum pump, which draws waste into an
underground bioreactor, where it's broken down, producing methane. This methane is then used to provide power to the whole building. As if that wasn't crazy enough, any student that chooses to
poop on the high-tech toilet gets a set amount of virtual currency. Nicknamed Ggool, the currency can be spent at the university shops on
things like books or coffee. The scheme has been so popular, that one student is quoted to have said, "I'd only ever thought of feces as dirty, but now it's a treasure
of great value to me." Which is fine, as long as they don't start carrying it around in a jewelry box with them wherever they go. (air whooshing) Deer Dilemma. The bitter winter months in Finland plunge the north of the
country into a darkness, that can last up to 18 hours a day. As inconvenient as this
is for most people, it's potentially disastrous
for reindeer breeders, who lose around 4,000 deer
per year in traffic accidents caused by the unending darkness. So back in 2014, some
bright breeders teamed up to think of an even brighter solution to their problem. They tried sticking
reflective tape to the deer, but it just got ripped off. They thought of spraying reflective paint on the animals' fur, but
this too proved ineffective. Finally, they realized that by spraying reflective
paint on the antlers, car headlights were reflected
back startlingly well. I've got to say, if I
was driving down the road and saw this staring at
me through the darkness, I'd start reversing, pronto! Unfortunately for the
breeders and the deer, they'd forgotten to consider that reindeer annually shed their antlers, so the solution was only a temporary one. But still, if you've
got any better i-deers, share them in the comments below. (air whooshing) Green Tangerines. Most prisoners dream of escaping prison and very occasionally, one manages to. But nobody has ever escaped
in the same insane manner, that the French inmate,
Michel Vaujour did. Back in 1986, Michel was partway through serving an 18-year sentence in the Parisian prison of Le Sante. But his wife, Nadine had other ideas and hatched a plan to
bust her husband out. On a routine visit in March 1986, she slipped him a note with
the exact date and time she intended for him to go
free, May 28th at 10 a.m. So what was the plan? Nadine figured that the
best way of getting over the huge prison walls
to break her husband out was to fly over them,
specifically in a helicopter. The only problem was she'd never flown a helicopter in her life. The plan then, simply enough, was to spend the next
three months learning. If all went well, she'd get her personal heli-pilot's license by May 27th. Then, at 10 a.m the very
next day after graduating, she'd fly a chopper onto a
pre-agreed roof of the prison, where she'd meet Michel and fly him out. To avoid anyone shooting
her out of the sky, she bought a toy pistol
and painted it black, so she could brandish it threateningly from the chopper. But how would Michel get
passed all the guards and onto the roof to meet her? Incredibly, the answer
lies with green tangerines. Michel was to slyly steal
tangerines from the canteen and paint them grenade green. Then on the day of the escape, he'd pretend they were real grenades to scare the guards from shooting at him. So the big day came around. Amazingly, Nadine had done
exactly as she'd intended, passing her helicopter
exam with flying colors and Michel was equally
prepared for his daring escape. He'd enlisted the help of
fellow inmate, Pierre Hernandez and together the pair began
their mad dash for freedom. Waving the green tangerines
around in the air like fruit-loving madmen, they bolted through the
prison towards the rooftop. Miraculously, none of the
prison guards opened fire. Fooled by the frightening
fruit, they were all too scared to shoot and risk blowing the
whole place into smithereens. Michel reached the rooftop
in the nick of time. His wife was hovering above the rooftop, from which point she slung a rope down and Michel began climbing. As he neared the top, Nadine hit the gas and the pair flew away, ruthlessly abandoning Pierre
still on the roof below in one of the most unbelievable
prison escapes ever and all thanks to some painted fruit. (air whooshing) Monkey Mind Pong. Eccentric billionaire, Elon Musk is well known for his wacky ideas, but none have been as crazy as one of his latest projects, Neuralink. Neuralink's aim is to strengthen the connection between man and machine by increasing the rate at
which information can flow from the human brain to a computer. Basically, Musk wants us
all to become cyborgs. To achieve this, he's
developed a tiny computer chip, that can be implanted into the brain, where it can accurately
track brain activity, theoretically allowing
wireless interfacing with computers and it's already
been tested on Macaques. The result? Incredibly, the monkeys are able to play a game of Pong with their minds! Neuralink released footage of one such macaque, called Pager. So, how does this utter madness work? Well, after the chip was
installed in his brain, Pager was sat down in front of a computer. Initially the monkey played a game with a traditional joystick. To initially teach and
encourage him to play, he was given a banana-based treat every time he completed a level from a straw attached to the machine. But as he played, the
chip recorded the patterns of electrical activity in Pager's brain, then it mapped those signals
to in-game movements. This meant that when the
joystick was disconnected, the chip continued to wirelessly send information to the computer As if by magic, Monkey Mind Pong was born. In time, Musk hopes the
technology will allow people to control their phones and
computers just by thinking. Eventually, it could even
allow paralyzed people to talk again, pretty amazing stuff! Just so long as Musk's final
plan isn't using the chips to take over the world or anything. (air whooshing) Surprising Swordsmanship. Picture the scene, it's the Middle Ages and you've just got into a heated argument with your arch-rival, your
nemesis unsheathes their sword and charges at you, ready to swing. Right now, it would be a terrible idea to grab the blade of
your sword, wouldn't it? Despite how it sounds, it might not be. The practice of holding
a sword by its blade was not uncommon in Medieval Europe and is depicted in many
illustrations of the time. It's called half-swording
and if done correctly, could be crucial to winning a fight. For example, if your
opponent has a short sword and runs in close, but you
only have a long sword, they have the advantage. To get around this, you can
hold the blade of your sword with one hand and the
handle with the other. This gives you more precision,
allowing you to retaliate. Another technique requires a firm grip of the blade with both hands. Not only can you defend
against big strikes like this, but you can also bring the sword down on an opponent like a hammer. Named the Mordhau or murder stroke, this attack is super
effective against armor. But wouldn't grabbing a
blade with your bare hands cause some pretty nasty cuts? Not if you do it correctly. First, you have to push your palm into the side of the blade,
then if you're careful, it's possible to wrap your
fingers round the blade and grip the sword, while leaving space between the sharp edge and your fingers. As long as you hold the blade
with a strong enough grip and whatever you do, don't let it slide, you won't injure yourself. Like this, it's even
possible to grab the blade of your opponent's sword
just as long as you do it after they've swung and not
while they're mid-strike. With all this knightly knowledge, I guarantee you'll be fighting
at a cut above the rest, you know, next time
you're in a sword fight, which is super common these days. Well, that's just about
all the crazy ideas I can handle for now. Have you ever had an insane
idea that actually worked? Let me know down in the comments
and thanks for watching. (bright upbeat music)
