Destin Sandlin
Destin Sandlin is the engineer behind Smarter Every Day, exploring science through experiments, slow-motion video and visits to the people who make things work.
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Latest
Destin’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus his backstory and Starbook, where fans write.
Known for
YouTube
YouTube
YouTube
YouTubeOverview
- Based in
- Alabama, USA
- Work
- Engineer, science educator and podcast host
- Education
- Mechanical engineering at the University of Alabama; aerospace engineering at UAH
- Started
- YouTube in 2007; the numbered Smarter Every Day series in 2011
- Fan favorites
- The Backwards Brain Bicycle and close-up slow-motion experiments
Mini bio
How it started.
Destin’s early videos grew out of engineering curiosity. On his website, he recalls filming a rocket-lit bonfire for friends, then making more videos because they enjoyed his teaching. His channel launched in 2007, and the first numbered Smarter Every Day episode, “Detonation vs Deflagration,” arrived on April 24, 2011.
The engineer behind the camera.
He studied mechanical engineering at the University of Alabama and aerospace engineering at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. His background includes missile and aviation flight testing at the Army’s Redstone Test Center. That experience feeds a channel built around experiments and questions about how things work.
Videos fans come back to.
The Backwards Brain Bicycle turns a familiar skill into a puzzle about learning. His close-up tattooing video uses slow motion to reveal a process most people never see in detail. In January 2016, his work also took him to the White House to interview President Barack Obama.
Room for more questions.
Since 2017, he has co-hosted No Dumb Questions with Matt Whitman. Alongside that conversation series, his recent Smarter Every Day work follows nuclear power, disc flight and the practical challenges of making a product in America.
Creditschronological, newest first
Online video
- 2026INSIDE a Nuclear Reactor CoreCreator and host
- 2025The Smarter Scrubber ExperimentCreator and host
- 2016President Obama’s YouTube interviewsInterviewer
- 2015The Backwards Brain BicycleCreator and host
- 2011–presentSmarter Every DayCreator and host
Podcast
- 2017–presentNo Dumb QuestionsCo-host with Matt Whitman
Awards
- UAH Outstanding Young Alumni2021 · Alumni of Achievement recognition from the University of Alabama in Huntsville.
- Sally Ride Education Award2016 · American Astronautical Society, recognizing his use of science to inspire young minds through Smarter Every Day.
- Shorty Awards: Education finalist8th Annual Shorty Awards · Finalist recognition for Smarter Every Day.
Quotes
I explore the world using science. That's pretty much all there is to it.Destin Sandlin, SmarterEveryDay.com
His own description of the curiosity behind the channel.
Trivia
- For The Backwards Brain Bicycle, he spent eight months trying short rides to the end of his driveway and back, exploring how he learned.
- He made a National Geographic pilot but says he declined a series because of the time it would require.
- One of his original reasons for making videos was to help fund his children’s education.
Find Destin
Follow Destin’s experiments, field trips and conversations.
Are you Destin Sandlin?
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