Quirks and Quarks - CBC - TopPodcast.com

Latest Episodes:

Listening in on fish grunts, and more… May 22, 2026

Show notes

Scientists recorded audio and video of 8 different kinds of rockfish living in the wild near British Columbia, and were surprised they could tell the species apart through their various grunts, pops and knocks, even though the fish are closely related.

PLUS:

DNA identifies four Franklin Expedition sailors — and solves a 160-year-old mystery
Immune cells that fight infection get a boost from food
Radio waves let us see the unseeable: black holes, pulsars and volcanoes on Venus
From the archives: What will the Earth look like in 2050?
Quirks Question: If chicken and fish blood is red, why are they white meats?

How dandelion seeds take flight, and more… May 15, 2026

Show notes

In a study inspired by a field of dandelions, researchers wanted to know why, when you blow on a dandelion seed head, only the seeds closest to you take flight. They found that a dimple in the seed heads where the seed attaches is larger on one side than the other, and that the seeds consistently broke off from the smaller side of that dimple. Once they take flight, each dandelion seed uses its unique shape to catch a ride on the wind.

PLUS:

Infrasound, not ghosts, may be why old buildings give us the heebie-jeebies
These arms are made for lovin'. How male octopuses find their mates
From the archives: Donald Johanson on the discovery of 'Lucy,' our missing link
Virtual hearts help doctors fix patients’ life-threatening irregular heart beats
Quirks Question: What’s the benefit for trees being evergreen?

A CN Tower-sized mega tsunami, and more… May 08, 2026

Show notes

On the morning of August 10, 2025, a landslide in a fjord along the southern Alaskan coast triggered a mega tsunami. It generated the second highest wave ever recorded that reached up to 481 metres above sea level. A new study suggests that catastrophic events like this are more likely to occur as our climate warms and glaciers melt.

PLUS:

The hantavirus at the centre of the outbreak struck Argentina in 2018. What did we learn?
Raccoons enjoy solving puzzles, just for the fun of it
What animal parents and distant humans can teach us about caregiving
From the archives: face to face with the man who killed Pluto
Quirks Question: why do my car windows make a ‘wha wha wha’ sound?

Cocaine in waterways makes salmon roam further, and more… May 01, 2026

Show notes

Cocaine and many other chemicals and drugs are found in many waterways, but especially around wastewater treatment plants. Scientists exposed wild juvenile Atlantic salmon to cocaine and its byproduct to see how it impacted their behaviour in the wild. As a result, the fish swam twice as far, which could put them in more danger.

Introducing IDEAS | How a historian found the lost women of science Apr 28, 2026

Show notes

IDEAS, hosted by Nahlah Ayed is a weekday podcast that explores how ideas shape our world.

“One of your tribe is enough.” That’s what Margaret Rossiter was told when she said she wanted to study female scientists in the ‘70s. Nevertheless, Rossiter persisted. She found and documented hundreds of women whose contributions to science had been overlooked, under-credited and misappropriated. Then she made history herself by coining the term “The Matilda Effect” to describe why those women failed to get the credit they deserved.

Who is Matilda? Matilda Joslyn Gage was a suffragist erased from history. She was known as being too radical for Susan B. Anthony. This episode of IDEAS shares her story.

You can find more episodes of IDEAS wherever you get your podcasts, and here: https://link.mgln.ai/IDEASxQQ

Seabird poop does whaaat? And more… Apr 24, 2026

Show notes

Seabird poop plays a surprising role in bringing life to barren islands, spreading nutrients throughout the ocean, and even creating wealth for an ancient human empire.

PLUS:

The precursors of written language go back a lot earlier than we thought
Dolphins exposed to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill also more likely to be hit by boats
From the archives: Canadian astronomer spots a supernova visible to the naked eye
Quirks Question: How do beavers choose their trees?
Mapping the universe in three dimensions

Why this biologist loves unpopular animals, and more… Apr 17, 2026

Show notes

We tend to think of animals like snakes, rats and even cockroaches as pests, but in her new book, biologist Marlene Zuk says there's a lot we can learn from these less than desirable creatures, if we just give them a chance.

PLUS:

A case of mistaken identity: The truth about the world's 'oldest' octopus fossil
From the archives: Carl Sagan on the worlds beyond our solar system
The evolutionary cost of our relationship with fire
We're not speaking as much as we used to — and scientists are concerned

Moving beyond animal testing, and more… Apr 10, 2026

Show notes

There's been a growing movement to develop new technologies to replace at least some of the animals used in scientific research. Researchers across Canada are working to create these tools, to usher in a new animal-free era for medical science.

PLUS:

Harbor seals can 'talk' thanks to their parrot-like brains
'Flaming hot' water ice may explain Neptune and Uranus' strange magnetism
A thigh bone that could represent the oldest evidence of our human lineage
The ravens of Yellowstone remember where wolves typically kill their prey

What we hope to see on the far side of the moon, and more… Apr 03, 2026

Show notes

On their mission around the moon, Jeremy Hansen and his crewmates will become the only four people on Earth to ever lay eyes on the entire far side of the moon. Since joining the space program, the Artemis astronauts have been undergoing intensive geological training to help train their eyes to look for lunar features that satellites can't pick up.

PLUS:

How Neanderthals skillfully hunted and butchered a giant elephant
Filming fish over their lifetime reveals behaviours that lead to longevity
How our food environment shapes our tastes — and health

Dogs have been by our side for 16,000 years, and more... Mar 27, 2026

Show notes

New research confirms that dogs were the first animal to form a domestic relationship with humans, dating back to the end of the last Ice Age almost 16,000 years ago.

PLUS:

Constructing shelters out of Martian soil may be possible with bacterial help
Male-on-male cricket 'twerking' and 'booty bumping' is not a case of mistaken identity
Narrowing down potential alien signals from 12 billion to 100, thanks to SETI
Researchers find a brain switch in mice to turn a deadbeat dad into a doting one

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Quirks and Quarks – CBC

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected