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In this Volcano Minisode, Laura and Katy dive into the dramatic, deadly, and never-quite-dormant history of Mount Vesuvius, one of the most iconic volcanoes on Earth. From burying Pompeii in ash and pyroclastic waves to raining debris across the Mediterranean during WWII, Vesuvius has earned its title as the angriest volcano in history.

🌋 What makes Vesuvius so volatile?
 🏛 What actually happened in 79 AD—and why didn’t anyone leave?
 🔥 How has it erupted 31 times since forming only 17,000 years ago?
 🌲 And why might trees be our new secret weapon in predicting eruptions?

From Roman cities turned to ash to trees tipping us off from space, this episode is a molten-hot blend of science, history, and nature’s chaos.

👉 This is episode 5 of 6 in our Volcano Minisodes series—bite-sized, bizarre, and bubbling with explosive facts.

🎧 Listen now and meet the volcano that refuses to hit snooze.

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In this Volcano Minisode, Katy introduces one of the most extreme animals on Earth: the scaly-foot gastropod, a deep-sea snail that literally builds metal armor from volcanic hydrothermal vents. Found over a mile below the ocean’s surface, this snail survives crushing pressure, toxic heat, and total darkness—all thanks to a symbiotic relationship with bacteria and its one-of-a-kind iron shell.

🧪 How does a snail use volcanic metals to build armor?
 🌋 What makes hydrothermal vents so hostile—and so essential to life?
 🧫 And who’s really in charge here… the snail or the bacteria living inside it?

This episode is a deep dive into extreme evolution, powered by volcanoes and gut flora. It’s weird, real, and one of the coolest stories in nature.

👉 This is episode 4 of 6 in our Volcano Minisodes series—bite-sized, bizarre, and bursting with molten-hot science facts.

🎧 Listen now to meet Earth’s most metal mollusk.

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In this third Volcano Minisode, Katy digs into one of the coolest things a volcano has ever made: obsidian—a rock so sharp it's been shaping human history for 30,000 years and is still used in modern surgery. 🔪🖤

🌋 What exactly is obsidian and how is it formed?
⚡ How can lava turn into volcanic glass in a flash?
🩺 Why are obsidian scalpels sharper than steel—and still used today?
🛡 How did ancient people turn this into tools, weapons, and even mirrors?

From Stone Age scrapers to eye surgery scalpels, obsidian proves that volcanoes don’t just destroy—they create tools that changed the course of human evolution.

👉 This is episode 3 of 6 in our Volcano Minisodes series—bite-sized, bizarre, and bursting with molten-hot science facts.

🎧 Listen now to discover why this rock deserves way more credit.

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In this second Volcano Minisode, Laura dives deep (literally) into one of Antarctica’s strangest secrets: how volcanic heat has carved out entire networks of hidden ice caves—warm, alien worlds tucked under the frozen surface. 🧊🔥

🌋 Why does Antarctica have 18 volcanoes?
🌡 How can you go from -30°F outside to 70°F inside a cave?
🧬 What strange DNA have scientists discovered in these hidden spaces?
🚪 And could these caves hold more life—or ancient secrets—than we realize?

From steaming caves to undiscovered species, it’s a chilling (and thrilling) glimpse into one of Earth's least understood frontiers.

👉 This is episode 2 of 6 in our Volcano Minisodes series—bite-sized, bizarre, and bursting with molten-hot science facts.

🎧 Listen to find out why you’ll never look at Antarctica the same way again.

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In the first Volcano Minisode of our season break, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole uncover one of the wildest stories you've probably never heard: how an active volcano in Mexico accidentally buried—and preserved—the world’s largest pyramid. Yes, really.

🌋 What is Popocatépetl, and why is it still puffing smoke? 

🏛 How did the Great Pyramid of Cholula disappear beneath volcanic ash? 

📜 What ancient secrets were hiding under a grassy hill with a church on top? 

🔥 And how can something as destructive as a volcano also protect history?

From drinking murals and five miles of hidden tunnels to short-stocky "unit pyramids" (you’ll get it), this minisode has all the chaos, science, and sarcasm you’ve come to expect.

👉 This is episode 1 of 6 in our Volcano Minisodes series—bite-sized, bizarre, and bursting with molten-hot science facts.

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Subscribe and unleash your inner science goblin. We see you. We respect it.

In this Season 11 finale of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole blow the lid off volcanoes—literally and figuratively. From earth-shaking eruptions and blue lava to the creation of entirely new islands, this episode dives into the molten madness of how volcanoes destroy, preserve, and even give life.

🌋 What exactly is a volcano?
🌎 Why do they erupt, and where can you find them?
⚡️ What’s up with volcanic lightning, blue lava, and weather eruptions?
🌱 And how do these fiery monsters build ecosystems in their wake?

Plus, the duo kicks off a new miniseries: all things found in volcanoes—from fossilized creatures to ancient civilizations.

👉 This episode is your launch point into that deep, explosive world.

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In this out-of-this-world episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole tell the incredible—and deeply emotional—story of Ham the Chimp, the first hominid to survive spaceflight.

🧠 How was Ham trained to perform tasks during a rocket launch?
 🚀 What made his 1961 mission so important to Project Mercury?
 💔 And what did it cost to send an intelligent animal into space?

Ham wasn’t just a passenger—he was a pioneer who proved humans could survive and function in zero gravity. But his journey, from capture in the wild to high-speed spaceflight and life in a cage, raises profound questions about ethics, science, and the legacy of animal astronauts.

Whether you're a space exploration buff, an animal lover, or just someone who appreciates the messy intersection of science and humanity, this final episode of Cosmic Critters is one you won’t forget.

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In this out-of-this-world episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole unravel the story of two unexpected astronauts: Anita and Arabella, the garden spiders launched aboard Skylab 3 in 1973.

🕸️ Can spiders spin webs in zero gravity?
 🕷️ How do they adapt without gravity to guide them?
 🛰️ What can eight-legged astronauts teach us about behavior and resilience in space?

Anita and Arabella weren’t just part of a quirky science experiment—they were pioneers in understanding how instinctual behavior and motor coordination function in microgravity. From chaotic silk chaos to stunning symmetrical webs in just two days, these space spiders proved life can adapt in the most alien environments.

Whether you're an arachnid enthusiast, a space nerd, or just love weird science history, this episode is for you.

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Why do we sleep? What’s going on in our brains while we dream about flying bagels and dolphin taxis? In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole stay up late to explore the science of sleep, REM cycles, lucid dreaming, and why getting less than 5 hours can mess with your memory, mood, and metabolism.

🧠 From brain waves and neurotransmitters to memory formation and emotional resets
 😴 The truth about sleep deprivation, circadian rhythms, and why you might be hallucinating
 💭 Plus: weird dreams, sleepwalking, dream interpretation, and the neuroscience of it all

Whether you're curious about why sleep matters, how your brain detoxes overnight, or what dreams really mean, this episode has you covered—with science, laughter, and a few too many dolphin references.

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Before astronauts, there were monkeynauts. In this episode of Wildly Curious, Katy Reiss and Laura Fawks Lapole dive into the bizarre and often tragic history of the first primates sent to space—Albert I, II, III, and IV.

The U.S. was determined to test the limits of space travel, and what better way than by strapping a rhesus macaque to a rocket? Unfortunately for the Alberts, early spaceflight engineering wasn’t exactly foolproof (seriously, how hard is it to pack a working parachute?!). From launch failures to unexpected explosions, these monkeys became unwilling pioneers in the quest to understand weightlessness, high-altitude survival, and just how many things can go wrong in a single mission.

Join us as we unpack the history, science, and ethics of these doomed primate test pilots. If you love space history, weird animal experiments, and questioning past scientific decisions, this episode is for you!

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