Episodes

  • How to Actually Stop Hiccups
    Mar 29 2026

    Over the centuries, doctors have tried everything to cure hiccups — from sugar to shock to what modern medicine would classify as controlled drugs and poisons. This episode looks at what hiccups actually are, why they happen, and which cures have at least some chance of working.


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    14 mins
  • The Point of That Groove in Your Upper Lip
    Mar 22 2026

    Many animals use chemical signals — pheromones — to find mates, mark territory, and warn of danger. Humans, despite popular belief, can’t detect them. This episode examines these signals — including the anatomical relic of our pheromone-sniffing past, still sitting in the middle of your face.


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    9 mins
  • The Man With a Window Into His Stomach
    Mar 15 2026

    A strange accident in 1822 left a man with a window through his chest into his stomach. What followed was one of the most unusual series of experiments in medical history — revealing how digestion really works, and why your stomach doesn’t digest itself.


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    11 mins
  • Why Some People Sweat Blood
    Mar 12 2026

    Can stress really make someone sweat blood? In rare cases, yes. This episode explores the strange condition known as hematidrosis — and why hippos seem to have it too.

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    12 mins
  • The Truth About Cracking Your Knuckles
    Mar 7 2026

    People have long warned that cracking your knuckles causes arthritis. But does it? And what actually makes the sound? This episode explores the surprisingly contentious science behind one of the body’s most divisive noises.

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    10 mins
  • What Your Muscles Would Taste Like
    Mar 5 2026

    When you eat meat, you’re eating muscle — the same tissue that moves your own body. This episode explores the anatomical overlap between butcher’s cuts and human muscles, and what cannibals and curious journalists have reported about the smell and taste of human flesh. A brief lesson in comparative anatomy, with some unsettling culinary implications.


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    9 mins
  • The Tiny Oceans Inside Your Ears
    Mar 2 2026

    Within each of your ears is a fluid-filled shell left over from our aquatic past. This episode examines how hearing depends on that miniature ocean, and why excessive noise — from jet engines to blank rounds on the Die Hard set — can permanently damage it.

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    13 mins
  • How Locking Humans Underground Revealed Our Body Clock
    Feb 27 2026

    No windows. No watches. No TV. When humans were sealed underground for weeks at a time without clocks, their biology kept time anyway. This episode explores the bunker experiments that revealed the brain’s internal clock — and why it’s so stubborn.

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    10 mins