BrainStuff

Latest Episodes:

How Does the Thymus Work (and What Can Happen When It Doesn’t)? Nov 09, 2026

Show notes

The thymus is a small organ in the center of your chest that's responsible for getting your immune system's T cells ready to protect you from germs. Learn what we know and don't know about how the thymus works (and about some of the autoimmune conditions that can emerge when it doesn't work as expected) in today's episode of BrainStuff.

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BrainStuff Classics: How Does Venus Work? Nov 07, 2026

Show notes

Venus is the hottest planet, its years are shorter than its days, and its atmospheric pressure is 92 times greater than that on Earth. Learn how researchers think Venus got this way in today’s classic episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://science.howstuffworks.com/46009-venus-explained.htm

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Why Do We Eat Three Meals a Day? Nov 06, 2026

Show notes

The concept of eating three square meals a day only goes back about 150 years. Learn how technology, marketing, and other factors have shifted our meals and mealtimes in today's episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://recipes.howstuffworks.com/biological-reason-to-eat-three-meals-day.htm

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How Do Walkie-Talkies Work? Nov 04, 2026

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This technology is going on a hundred years old, but for reliable voice communication across relatively short distances, walkie-talkies are still relevant -- and sometimes preferable to cell phones. Learn how they work in today's episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://electronics.howstuffworks.com/walkie-talkies.htm

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Dimetrodon Wasn't a Dinosaur -- So What Was It? Nov 02, 2026

Show notes

This four-legged prehistoric animal had a bony sail on its back and was probably scaly, but it was more closely to related to mammals than it was to dinosaurs. Learn about Dimetrodon and other synapsids in today's episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://animals.howstuffworks.com/extinct-animals/dimetrodon.htm

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BrainStuff Classics: How Does Samhain Work? Oct 31, 2026

Show notes

Samhain is a pagan holiday -- celebrated between the fall equinox and winter solstice -- that helped form modern, secular Halloween celebrations. Learn about Samhain in today's episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://people.howstuffworks.com/culture-traditions/holidays-other/samhain.htm

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What Really Happened at the 'Amityville Horror' House? Oct 30, 2026

Show notes

After a tragic set of murders in 1974, the next residents at a grand old house in Amityville, New York, claimed the home was demonically haunted. Their story spawned a horror sensation. But was the whole thing a money-making hoax? Did the murderer really hear voices there? Learn what we know (and still don’t know) about what happened in Amityville in today’s episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://history.howstuffworks.com/history-vs-myth/amityville-horror-house.htm

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How Is Chocolate Made? Oct 28, 2026

Show notes

From the seed of a tropical tree to creamy candies, it takes a lot of science to turn cacao into chocolate. Learn how cacao is farmed, fermented, and processed into cocoa products -- plus its history as a drink for 3,000 years -- in today's episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://science.howstuffworks.com/innovation/edible-innovations/chocolate.htm

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Was James Dean's Final Car Cursed? Oct 26, 2026

Show notes

After James Dean died in a car crash at 24 years old, the remains of that car -- a silver Porsche 550 Spyder -- were implicated in a series of other accidents before the car apparently vanished. Learn about the truth, fictions, and remaining mysteries behind Dean's supposedly cursed car in today's episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://history.howstuffworks.com/history-vs-myth/james-deans-car-cursed.htm

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BrainStuff Classics: Does the Community of Lily Dale Reconnect the Living and the Dead? Oct 24, 2026

Show notes

Spiritualism is a 19th-century belief system that holds that the living can communicate with spirits of the dead through mediums. Learn about the community where spiritualism is famously practiced, Lily Dale, in today's classic episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://people.howstuffworks.com/lily-dale-where-living-and-dead-reconnect.htm

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