Will we ever get to rewind time, or fast forward through it? Sanden stops by to tell us all about how time works. He also has a couple ideas about how we might make time travel a reality! But one tricky thing about time travel is that it’s full of paradoxes — so we look into those, too. And science fiction expert Lisa Yaszek swings by to tell us just how long humans have been thinking about time travel (hint: a really long time).

Listen closely for the mystery sound, and the moment of um: how do clothes get dirty even though you can’t see it?

Today’s episode is sponsored by: Mathnasium: (mathnasium.com) and Sun Basket (sunbasket.com/brainson - promo code: brains on)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What's that you hear? That's right, It's an episode of nothing but mystery sounds! Are your ears up to the challenge? Plus, we'll hear an answer to the question: "How do squirrels find their nuts after they bury them?"

If you'd like to submit a mystery sound, you can share it with us here: brainson.org/contact.

And, you can support the show at brainson.org/fans.

Or, you can also buy our book, complete with Mystery Photos, at brainson.org/shop or at your favorite local bookstore.

Today’s episode was sponsored by:

Sitka Salmon Shares (sitkashares.com/brainson)

Purple (purple.com/brainson10)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Screens are everywhere these days! We’re taking a look at why smartphones are so addictive, and how our devices affect us. Our co-hosts took on a bold challenge for this episode: they went a week without phones or tablets. We’ll hear how their experiment went, then Sanden will fill us in on the brain chemical that trains us to love our screens. We'll also learn why the predictability of messages and alerts on smartphones makes them extra hard to put down. Plus, we’ll get a few tips from Catherine Price, the author of How to Break Up With Your Phone. And! A our Moment of Um answers: why are bruises blue, and how do we get them?

This episode is sponsored by Wondery’s Little Stories Everywhere (https://wondery.com/shows/little-stories-everywhere/) and the FDA (fda.gov/FeedYourMind).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Did dinosaurs roar? Or meow? And how do we know? Paleontologist Julia Clarke stops by to talk about sounds T-Rex might’ve made. We know a bit more about other dino sounds, and dinosaur expert Riley Black fills us in on those. Plus, a game about dinosaur names, and a look at how dinos might’ve moved with paleontologist Jingmai O’Connor.

Stick around for the mystery sound, and a Moment of Um that answers this head-scratcher: How does hair dye work?

This episode was sponsored by:

Sun Basket (sunbasket.com/brainson promo code: brainson)

Mathnasium (mathnasium.com)

FDA (fda.gov/feedyourmind)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

20 years ago, we pictured dinosaurs as green, scaly animals. But times have changed! Now, we know some dinosaurs had feathers. And who knows — maybe some even had stripes.

This episode looks at how we figure out what color dinosaurs might’ve been. We talk to Jingmai O’Connor, who studies fossil reptiles, about finding color pigment in fossils. And paleoartist Emily Willoughby talks to a “museum” about how her dino-depictions have changed over the years. 

Our co-host, Elyana, also brought us this important question: If dinosaurs evolved from birds and birds don’t fart, did dinosaurs fart? Wha-wha-what!?! Look no further than this episode for an extensive investigation.

Remember to keep your ears open for the brand new Mystery Sound. And break out your kilns, because today’s Moment of Um answers this question: How do you make clay for pottery?

There’s so much dino-tastic information that we decided to make a second dinosaur episode. So if you haven’t had enough (and who has?), make sure to check out next week’s show about what dinosaurs might have sounded like.

This episode is sponsored by:

Mathnasium (Mathnasium.com)

KiwiCo (kiwico.com checkout code: BRAINSON)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, we're using our zoom ray to zoom way in and answer your questions about the COVID vaccine. What's in the COVID vaccine? How does it work? And how do they make it? We'll also look at how our fight against the new coronavirus has had a huge impact on another virus: influenza. And, we'll head to a stadium to learn what 95% effective means for a vaccine. (Warning: There are seagulls overhead!)

Plus, we'll have a brand new mystery sound and a Moment of Um that answers the question: what do scientists eat in Antarctica?

Read Katherine Wu’s article about what’s happening with the flu this year: https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/02/covid-19-flu-season/617924/

Find the rest of our episodes about coronavirus here, including episodes on the vaccine, masks, social distancing, and how we’re processing this historic time: https://www.brainson.org/page/coronavirus

This episode is sponsored by: Sitka Salmon Shares (sitkasalmonshares.com/brainson) and Purple.com (Purple.com: purple.com/brainson10 promo code: brainson10)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this encore episode, we answer the questions: How does the moon control the tides? Where do waves come from? And what’s it like to live in a tide pool?

Sir Isaac Newton drops by and drops some knowledge. He helps explain why the tides ebb and flow. Then, an oceanographer/surfer tells us where waves come from and how they get their shape – cowabunga! Plus we hear about what it’s like for marine life that move to a new neighborhood once or twice a day. Sometimes it’s underwater, sometimes it’s not. Plus a brand new Moment of Um answers the question: Why don’t our ears have bones? And there’s a new group of listeners to be added to the Brains Honor Roll.

This episode was originally published on Aug. 30, 2016.

This episode is sponsored by Sun Basket (sunbasket.com/brainson and promo code BRAINSON)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

HARVEY, our omnipresent virtual voice assistant, gets a software update that makes him go bananas for bananas. And if we talk about anything except bananas, he turns the microphones off! We talk to geneticist Dr. Janina Jeff about how much DNA we share with a banana, find out why bananas make other fruits ripen, how bananas grow, and where that slipping on a banana peel joke came from. Speaking of jokes, we'll hear a bunch of banana jokes from listeners too! Plus: The Moment of Um answers the question: "Why are peaches fuzzy?"

You can hear more from Dr. Jeff on her podcast In Those Genes.

Silent film expert Lea Stans has a wonderful blog post about the history of the banana peel joke that you can read right here. You can see some of those early comics that featured the joke! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch/RMDgmHB4znc

Today’s episode is sponsored by:

KiwiCo (kiwico.com/brainson code: BRAINSON)

Purple (purple.com/BRAINSON10 promo code BRAINSON10)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In December, people started getting vaccinated against COVID-19. This is a huge scientific accomplishment and important step in making it safe for us to hang out in person again. So how did scientists develop these vaccines so fast? And how did they test the vaccines to make sure they’re safe? And how do these mRNA vaccines work?

We have answers to all your questions, plus New York Times science journalist Apoorva Mandavilli explains what scientists have found out about how long immunity lasts to this new coronavirus. And Kara and Gilly are back with a cow-side chat about herd immunity. Plus: A new mystery sound and a Moment of Um that answers the question, "What would happen if the moon fell down onto earth?"

Today’s episode is sponsored by Sitka Salmon Shares (http://sitkasalmonshares.com/brainson)

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we have a special episode featuring an old friend of ours -- scientist and inventor Gitanjali Rao. Time Magazine recently named her the first-ever Kid of the Year!

We first met Gitanjali back in 2018, when she was the co-host for a series of episodes we did all about water. Back then, she was a 12 year old who had recently won 2017 Discovery Education 3M Young Scientist Challenge.

Now, she's a very busy 15 year-old who is an inventor, STEM advocate and author. Molly and Gitanjali chat about how kids can turn their ideas into reality, and why kids shouldn't be afraid to share their viewpoints and skills with the world -- we need them!

Gitanjali has also written a book, which you can check out here.

Also, you can hear Gitanjali judge a very science-y Smash Boom Debate: Helium vs Neon!

Check out the water series that Gitanjali co-hosted:

• What’s in your water?
• The wonderful weirdness of water
• Keeping water healthy, one clue at a time
• Burning rivers of fire

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.