Since your first day of kindergarten when you sang your “ABC’s” educators have used music to teach the otherwise boring lists, numbers, patterns and history of our world and universe. I don’t know if it is actually easier to memorize when put to music or simply more rewarding so you try harder – after all, it is very impressive to name all 192 odd countries in the world in 60 seconds to the tune of the Mexican Hat Dance (see number 5).
#1 The periodic table
I would love to be able to memorize this song, but even I’m not that big of a geek.
#2 The Pi Song
This could have been horrible if it was not sung so well. This is another song I have little interest in actually learning but its always fun to know PI to at least 10 places…just incase.
#3 The Universe Song – Monty Python
I really love this song and sing it all time to remember how big the universe really is. This version is sang by Clint Black (I am from Texas you know, plus the original lacks such quality visuals).
#4 The Universe…Again
A catchy tune and inspiring version, but since it lacks the numeric information of the Monty Python version it will always live in its shadow.
#5 The Nations of the World
This is one of my favorites. I have the first 2 sections memorized, but I loose it when he gets to Africa. Unfortunately, like most of these songs the information is increasingly out of date.
#6 I am the very model of a modern major-general
While not necessarily conveying a lot of scientific or practical information (that’s kind of the point of the joke), this famous scene for the play the “Pirates of Penzance” does have a lot of historical perspective on what he nerds of the 19th century where talking about. From a time when things like “beings animalcules” (microscopic organisms) were first discovered. The late great science fiction author Isaac Asimov wrote an essay about this song where he identified the meaning behind every strange and forgotten word. If you’re into retro steam punk, you’ll enjoy this vocabulary lesson.
The rest is here: Major General’s Song
#7 Parts of the Brain
#8 All the words in the English Language
A parody of this type of song sang by the animated team that gave so much to this genre.
#9 The 50 US states and their capitols
I’m pretty sure kids use this song in school today to learn the states.
#10 US Presidents from Washington to Clinton
#11 We didn’t start the fire
Billy Joel rattles through the incredents of live in the 20th century.
#12 Natural Decay
#13 How a bill becomes law – school house
A public service announcment that interrupted every cartoon marathon of my 1980′s youth.
#14 Sink the Bismarck
Learn some WW2 history.
#15 The Battle of New Orleans
Get pumped up about the War of 1812 – USA v Britan part 2, the sequel to the revolution.
On the mantle of my bed I have a planetarium (Sega HomeStar) that projects the night sky onto my ceiling. Every other night or so, I turn this on when I’m relaxing into sleep. It allows me to star up at the stars, forget about the day, and contemplate the vast, unending beauty of the universe we live in. It is hard to look at the sky without your brain searching it for patterns (after all the brain is a pattern finding machine). The brain cannot help but try to connect the dots in a futile search for meaning and familiar shapes. Seven of the brightest stars in the northern hemisphere form what we call Ursa-Major – Latin for “The big bear”. I for one, and most people I know never can see any bear shape at all in those stars, so we call it The Big Dipper instead. 
