Condensed Soup

Nothing can replace live performance, and the science is starting to catch up. A series of studies have found that audiences at live performances often sync up their body processes. After all, art can move you.

CONDENSED SOUP: 10 minutes of cozy curiosity

• Live Music Synchronizes Audience's Heart Rate, Breathing: Study (Aristos Georgiou, Newsweek, Oct 5, 2023)
• New study finds audience heartbeats and breath rates synchronize during a classical concert (Maddy Shaw Roberts, Classic FM, Aug 28, 2024)
• Waseda University clarifies that audiences synchronize their emotions during live music (Science Japan, Aug 21, 2024)

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*This episode was recorded in my bedroom.

It could be a goose on a porch, a flamingo on a lawn, or a gnome in the garden -- sometimes you need a little whimsy at your house.

CONDENSED SOUP: 10 minutes of cozy curiosity

• Porch Goose Club of America (accessed May 26, 2026)
• A 1980s midwestern trend is back: The porch goose (Kate Morgan, The Spokesman-Review / Washington Post, May 5, 2025)
• 'I need a porch goose' | From grandma's stoop to Gen Z's patio, these concrete creatures are making a comeback (Kristen Skovira, WCPO-ABC, May 8, 2026)
• Pink Flamingo Lawn Ornament (National Museum of American History, The Smithsonian, accessed May 26, 2026)
• The Tacky History of the Pink Flamingo (Abigail Tucker, Smithsonian Magazine, September 2012)

Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast

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*This episode was recorded in my bedroom.

An EasyJet flight from Egypt to the UK was forced to divert overnight after crews found a contraband portable power bank. Should you start leaving your power banks at home? And doesn't that defeat the purpose of a portable power bank?

CONDENSED SOUP: 10 minutes of cozy curiosity

Power bank in passenger's luggage forces easyJet flight to divert (Nathan Diller, USA Today, May 25, 2026)

Southwest Airlines announces new onboard battery policy. Here's what to know. (Zach Richter, USA Today, May 23, 2025)

Why do power banks keep catching fire on planes? (Briley Kenney, MSN, May 25, 2026)

Recent Spate of Lithium Battery Fires On Planes Concerns Aviation Pros (Suzanne Rowan Kelleher, Forbes, Aug 26, 2025)

Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast

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*This episode was recorded in my bedroom.

Indian farmer Ukabhai Bhatti has succeeded in growing 14 separate varieties of mangos on a single tree, thrilling fruit enthusiasts and horticulturists alike.

CONDENSED SOUP: 10 minutes of cozy curiosity

• This farmer grows 14 mango varieties in a single tree; this is how he does it (TOI Lifestyle Desk, Times of India, May 12, 2026)
• Mango Facts (National Mango Board, accessed May 24, 2026)

Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast

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*This episode was recorded in my bedroom.

In 2017, Abraham Poincheval, a French performance artist, launched an attempt to hatch chicken eggs by sitting on them in an art museum. After three weeks, he succeeded.

CONDENSED SOUP: 10 minutes of cozy curiosity

• French artist turns chicken for three-week egg hatching (BBC / Reuters, Mar 29, 2017)
• An Artist Incubating Chicken Eggs Is No Joke. But Is It Art? (Scott Simon, Weekend Edition Saturday / NPR, Apr 1, 2017)
• After three weeks, French artist succeeds in hatching eggs (Reuters, Apr 21, 2017)
• Human Artist Hatches Ten Chicken Eggs (Ruben Baart, Next Nature, Apr 28, 2017)

Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast

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*This episode was recorded in my bedroom.

If you're a lucid dreamer, you could already be controlling your dreams. And it turns out you may be able to talk to other lucid dreamers while dreaming.

Maybe.

CONDENSED SOUP: 10 minutes of cozy curiosity

• Bay Area startup claims it developed 2-way communication between people via dreams (Zach Fuentes, ABC7, Oct 17, 2024)
• Can lucid dreaming be harmful? (Jocelyn Timperley, BBC, Apr 25, 2023)

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Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast

*This episode was recorded in my bedroom.

If you find yourself longing for the heady days of band camp (IYKYK), you can recapture them! Adult band camps are a thing. No word on whether you have to buy white sneakers.

CONDENSED SOUP: 10 minutes of cozy curiosity

• Adults relive the musical camaraderie of their youth at band camps reprised for grown-ups (Kathy McCormack, AP, May 12, 2026)

Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast

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*This episode was recorded in my bedroom.

Harvard has announced that going forward, fewer "A"s will be given in class.

... Do you remember your college GPA? (I don't.)

CONDENSED SOUP: 10 minutes of cozy curiosity

• Harvard College will limit the number of students who can receive A grades (Edward Helmore, The Guardian, May 20, 2026)

Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast

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*This episode was recorded in my bedroom.

Billie Jean King, 82, has broken glass ceilings, been honored by presidents, and has forged the path for countless American athletes. And now, she's a high school graduate.

CONDENSED SOUP: 10 minutes of cozy curiosity

• Billie Jean King graduates from college at age 82 after leaving for tennis: 'Yeah baby, only 61 years!' (Roque Planas, The Guardian, May 19, 2026)

Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast

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*This episode was recorded in my bedroom.

Piggy banks are showing up on the Texas shore. We know what happens when pigs fly, but swimming?

CONDENSED SOUP: 10 minutes of cozy curiosity

• The mystery of floating piggy banks washing ashore along the Texas coast (CNN Newsource, May 16, 2026)

Instagram: @condensedsouppodcast

[email protected]

*This episode was recorded in my bedroom.