The Tangents crew needed to get out and enjoy some summer sun, so this week we're reposting our classic Bees episode! Tune in next week for a new episode!

Do you ever just wonder, “are the bees doing okay?” They’re so important to our food industry and native ecosystems, and every couple of years it seems like something horribly bad is happening to them. So this week, we’re taking a look at the fascinating lives and deaths of bees! Can they recognize human faces or understand the concept of zero? Why are blister beetles mimicking sexy bee pheromones? And what do nightclubs and honeybee hives have in common? 

Follow us on Twitter @SciShowTangents, where we’ll tweet out topics for upcoming episodes and you can ask the science couch questions! 

While you're at it, check out the Tangents crew on Twitter: Stefan: @itsmestefanchin Ceri: @ceriley Sam: @slamschultz Hank: @hankgreen

If you want to learn more about any of our main topics, check out SciShowTangnets.org!

[Poem]

https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/03/120316-hot-bee-balls-hornets-insects-brains-animals-science/

http://jeb.biologists.org/content/jexbio/206/2/353.full.pdf

[Truth or Fail]

1. Handedness in bees
2. Bees understanding zero
3. Bees recognize faces

[Fact Off]

Blister beetles: 

Drunk bees:

[Ask the Science Couch]

CCD: 

https://www.epa.gov/pollinator-protection/colony-collapse-disorder

Glyphosate:

http://jeb.biologists.org/content/218/17/2799

https://www.glyphosate.eu/glyphosate-mechanism-action

https://www.pnas.org/content/115/41/10305

Native bees:

https://www.wired.com/2015/04/youre-worrying-wrong-bees/

http://www.xerces.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Xerces_policy_statement_HB_Final.pdf

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5722319/

[Butt One More Thing]

Isopentyl acetate:

https://www.extension.entm.purdue.edu/beehive/pdf/Breed_et_al.pdf

https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/isoamyl_acetate#section=Top