Episodes

  • How to Map Your Taste Buds
    Jul 3 2026

    A famous biology textbook diagram. A Harvard psychologist called Edwin Boring. And somehow... netball. This episode explores the mad history of the tongue map, and why taste exists in the first place.

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    12 mins
  • So You Think You Want a Six-Pack?
    Jun 24 2026

    If you thought doing sit-ups would give you a six-pack, think again. This episode explores the gruelling reality of competitive bodybuilding, and how a 19th century circus strongman used a tape measure, Greek statues, and a little mathematics to define the ‘perfect’ physique. (Do you measure up?)

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    13 mins
  • How Long Can You Go Without Sleep?
    Jun 14 2026

    In one experiment, a man who didn't sleep for a week ended up sobbing about an imaginary gorilla. This episode explores what science has uncovered about the effects of sleep deprivation, from hallucinations to frank psychosis – and whether the brain recovers afterwards.


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    13 mins
  • The Doctor Who Invented Corn Flakes
    Jun 8 2026

    The inventor of Corn Flakes believed cinnamon was morally suspicious and flavour was a threat to virtue. This episode explores the strange story of John Harvey Kellogg, his wellness empire, his obsession with chewing, vibrating chairs for constipation, and why evolution made flavour far too appealing for his crusade to succeed.

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    13 mins
  • When Flight Attendants Started Sweating Blood
    May 31 2026

    In 1980, flight attendants began apparently sweating blood on flights between New York and Florida. The CDC investigated. The explanation was not what anyone expected. Also featuring blue sweat, pink sweat, and the only diagnostic dilemma ever solved by a dermatologist ringing a snack-food manufacturer.

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    13 mins
  • Why Do We Itch? The Itchy and Scratchy Show
    May 24 2026

    This episode explores the biology of itching. Including NASA’s emergency Velcro patches, exploding lice in World War I trenches, contagious scratching, "amphetamites", mosquito mouth-javelins, and the imaginary insects produced by the human brain itself.

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    13 mins
  • What Does Your Urine Say About You?
    May 17 2026

    This episode explores what urine can reveal about you — from pregnancy and diabetes to drugs, disease, and genetic disorders. Including ancient Egyptian pregnancy tests, beetroot-induced panic, blue urine pranks, and why IKEA once asked women to wee on their catalogue.

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    12 mins
  • The Strange Science of Sneezing
    May 10 2026

    This episode examines the odd biology and even odder rituals surrounding sneezing. Including sunlight sneezes, chocolate sneezes, and why on earth we feel compelled to bless them.


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    16 mins