It’s amazing, the production quality level that some YouTube channels are able to achieve. Some are really like cable documentary quality. It’s also a wellspring of casual learning opportunities.
So here’s a list of the channels I like to watch, and brief descriptions:
Answers with Joe - It’s a science/curiosity kind of channel, run by Joe Scott. He’s a super-geek. And he has a funny kind of humor about him. This guy feels like your favorite science teacher from high school. The guy is brilliant. Quirky. Hilarious. And fascinating. He also touches on a great range of subjects. Highly recommended. He pushes paid-for sites like Brilliant and Nebula, and while I’ve not yet subscribed I’m very close to doing so.
Thoughty2 - Another channel similar to “Answers with Joe,” but in a whole different kind of angle, run by Arran Lomas of North Yorkshire UK. Over 5 million subscribers. He does touch into science subjects, but he also heavily gravitates to the weird, strange, and amazing. He’s only 30 years old, but has the persona of someone older. Absolutely phenomenal production values. He’s like a mix of all the other presenters I’ve listed here. He is fast becoming my favorite channel.
Side Projects - Simon Whistler runs this, as a “side channel” to his other focus, “Mega Projects.” He’s an English chap who currently lives in Prague, Czech Republic. At just 36 years old, he feels like he could be Arran’s dad. Simon has a curious presentation style that’s a bit over the top, almost excruciatingly forced to be British. I don’t mind it at times, but for other times… he’s a bit much. Perhaps why he’s still languishing with less than 800k subscribers. The guy is brilliant. Really feels like he has a PhD in physics and other sciences as he appears to know his science subject matter intimately. His production values are very good, but I still feel Thoughty2 is the best.
Mr Ballen - Jonathan Ballen, a former US Navy Seal, has been doing this channel since 2015 from the USA (Massachusetts) and he has garnered a whopping 7+ million subscribers. He’s the “story telling” channel who will recount all kinds of scary, bizarre, and highly unusual stories for you, usually about people dying in mysterious or frightening ways, people getting lost and sometimes found, and at times expands upon historical events in ways that amaze you. His presentation style is a bit stiff and verbose, but he feels so completely honest. He grows on you. I binged on him for about a year, but then come back to him once in a while.
Scary Interesting - Run by a guy named Sean out of Canada, he’s pretty much a small-time clone of Mr. Ballen, with just over 600k subscribers. He has a moderately low, monotone kind of voice, but… his presentation skills have grown over time. Also lots of fascinating “people who went missing or died,” type stories. A good break from Mr. Ballen if you’re getting tired of that.
VSauce - Run and presented by Michael Stevens (with a full crew), this guy is one of the mega-channels of curiosity and science subjects, as most of you here probably know. He just topped 19 million subscribers! His channel has been around since 2010 and has grown tremendously. His presentation style is “cocaine riddled excitement.” Seriously, this guy feels like he’s on the border of being unhinged. But he’s not. Now, he’s the kind of guy who wants to teach you. His presentations are packed with educational info. No surprise. He’s listed as an “American educator, public speaker, entertainer, and editor,” who moved from the USA (Missouri, then New York City) to the UK (England). Yet, he never taught a class in any educational institution. He’s known as a genius “polymath.” He has since branched out and now there’s VSauce2, VSauce3, etc. For a time, he took VSauce future content behind a paywall… but I think he ultimately backed out of that. ANYWAY… he has over a decade of content that’s enough to keep any bored person busy for well over a year!
FUN FACT: “VSauce” was randomly created using a Fake Name Generator. No other reason!
SciShow - Hank Green started this channel, back around 2010. He was riding on the “Vlogbrothers” fame with his brother, the renowned author John Green. He wanted to make science related content and for quite some years it was just him. Really fun and quirky-geeky presentation style. VERY personable. You can’t help but like him. Tons of great material too. Eventually he expanded the team with more presenters. The channel now has over 7 million subscribers. I still prefer Hank over the other guys, but their awkward starts have smoothed out and they’re pretty good now. Unlike the other channels that often have very long episodes (some close to an hour), SciShow episodes typically run on an average of 5~8 minutes.
Whew! I’d taken a couple days to fill it to this point. I do watch a few other channels from time to time, but these are the top ones I keep coming back to, outside of news clip channels.
Anyway, please feel free to add any other channels that are your favorites. Would be great to see what else people are using to fill the gaps in their minds. 
