SciShow Tangents

Latest Episodes:

SciShow Tangents Classics - Sleep Dec 27, 2022

Show notes

There are no two ways about it: winter is a great time to sleep. In fact, the Tangents crew all decided to sleep this entire week, which is what this episode is a rerun! See you next week/year!

SciShow Tangents is on YouTube! Go to www.youtube.com/scishowtangents to check out this episode with the added bonus of seeing our faces!

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A big thank you to Patreon subscribers Garth Riley and Tom Mosner for helping to make the show possible!

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: Ceri: @ceriley Sam: @im_sam_schultz Hank: @hankgreen

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Cold Dec 20, 2022

Show notes

Jack frost ain't just nipping at our noses where we live, he's basically biting them off! Ouch! So we thought we'd learn a little about what "cold" even is, and you may not be too surprised to hear that the answer is way, way more complicated than you'd think. Bundle up and take a listen!

SciShow Tangents is on YouTube! Go to www.youtube.com/scishowtangents to check out this episode with the added bonus of seeing our faces!

Head to www.patreon.com/SciShowTangents to find out how you can help support SciShow Tangents, and see all the cool perks you’ll get in return, like bonus episodes and a monthly newsletter!

And go to https://store.dftba.com/collections/scishow-tangents to buy your very own, genuine SciShow Tangents sticker!

A big thank you to Patreon subscribers Garth Riley and Tom Mosner for helping to make the show possible!

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: Ceri: @ceriley Sam: @im_sam_schultz Hank: @hankgreen

[Trivia Question]

Coldest temperature - Bremen drop tower height

https://www.livescience.com/coldest-temperature-ever

[Fact Off]

Freeze dried potato made by the Altiplano

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJrOJg2a-_Y

https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20210715-chuno-the-andean-secret-to-making-potatoes-last-decades

https://www.atlasobscura.com/foods/chunos-potatoes-feet

Caloric reflex/vestibular test

https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/003429.htm

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/caloric-vestibular-test

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK10863/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4325576/

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Testing New Games with Deboki Chakravarti Dec 13, 2022

Show notes

sniff sniff... What is that awful smell? Ah, it's our stinky, old games! I mean, just look at Truth or Fail! It's all covered in mold! Good thing Deboki's here this week to try out some fresh, exciting new games with us!

scWant more Deboki? Check her out at https://twitter.com/okidoki_boki to find info on all of the many projects she works on!

SciShow Tangents is on YouTube! Go to www.youtube.com/scishowtangents to check out this episode with the added bonus of seeing our faces!

Head to www.patreon.com/SciShowTangents to find out how you can help support SciShow Tangents, and see all the cool perks you’ll get in return, like bonus episodes and a monthly newsletter!

And go to https://store.dftba.com/collections/scishow-tangents to buy your very own, genuine SciShow Tangents sticker!

A big thank you to Patreon subscribers Garth Riley and Tom Mosner for helping to make the show possible!

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: Ceri: @ceriley Sam: @im_sam_schultz Hank: @hankgreen

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Poison Dec 06, 2022

Show notes

It's said that the dose makes the poison, but that doesn't change the fact that some poison is just more poison-y than others. This week, we get a lethal dose of venomous knowledge!

SciShow Tangents is on YouTube! Go to www.youtube.com/scishowtangents to check out this episode with the added bonus of seeing our faces!

Head to www.patreon.com/SciShowTangents to find out how you can help support SciShow Tangents, and see all the cool perks you’ll get in return, like bonus episodes and a monthly newsletter!

And go to https://store.dftba.com/collections/scishow-tangents to buy your very own, genuine SciShow Tangents sticker!

A big thank you to Patreon subscribers Garth Riley and Tom Mosner for helping to make the show possible!

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: Ceri: @ceriley Sam: @im_sam_schultz Hank: @hankgreen

Sources:

[Definition]

Toxin vs. poison vs. venom

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/brv.12062

https://www.discovermagazine.com/health/whats-in-a-name-venoms-vs-poisons-toxinology-101

[Dead or Not Dead]

[Trivia Question]

Belgian musicians getting sick from botulism

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5133258/#b01

https://www.jstor.org/stable/30099331

[Fact Off]

Ants disinfect using their butt poison

https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(18)31147-3

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/736123

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982212013784

https://www2.palomar.edu/users/warmstrong/Antintro.htm

https://elifesciences.org/articles/60287

https://www.mississippientomologicalmuseum.org.msstate.edu/Researchtaxapages/Formicidaepages/genericpages/Lasius.neglectus.htm

Bacteriophage that stole spider venom protein

https://evolution.berkeley.edu/evo-news/black-widow-virus-results-from-evolution-not-genetic-engineering/

https://www.livescience.com/56443-black-widow-spider-dna-found-inside-virus.html

https://news.vanderbilt.edu/2016/10/11/virus-carrying-dna-of-black-widow-spider-toxin-discovered/

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2108671-virus-steals-black-widow-poison-gene-to-help-it-attack/

[Ask the Science Couch]

Effects of ingesting venom

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6266834/

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0273230014003419?via%3Dihub

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7985199/

https://www.jem-journal.com/article/S0736-4679(15)01377-3/fulltext

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3349795/

[Butt One More Thing]

Goats can deactivate poisonous plant compounds

https://calag.ucanr.edu/Archive/?article=ca.v046n03p4

https://agresearchfoundation.oregonstate.edu/sites/agresearchfoundation.oregonstate.edu/files/bionaz_2014-16_final.pdf

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0031938409002510?via%3Dihub

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Crystals with Tyler Thrasher Nov 29, 2022

Show notes

In a universe of chaos, one scrappy form of highly-ordered solid matter dares to be different: crystals! And crystal expert Tyler Thrasher is here to tell us all we need to know about them!

Want more Tyler Thrasher (and who wouldn't?!)? Check out https://tylerthrasher.com to learn more about his myriad of other projects!

SciShow Tangents is on YouTube! Go to www.youtube.com/scishowtangents to check out this episode with the added bonus of seeing our faces!

Head to www.patreon.com/SciShowTangents to find out how you can help support SciShow Tangents, and see all the cool perks you’ll get in return, like bonus episodes and a monthly newsletter!

And go to https://store.dftba.com/collections/scishow-tangents to buy your very own, genuine SciShow Tangents sticker!

A big thank you to Patreon subscribers Garth Riley and Tom Mosner for helping to make the show possible!

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: Ceri: @ceriley Sam: @im_sam_schultz Hank: @hankgreen

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Wings with Stefan Chin Nov 22, 2022

Show notes

It's just about Thanksgiving here in the US; a special time during which we count our blessings. And this year, Tangents is giving you an extra thing to be thankful for: Stefan's our special guest!

Our long lost co-host returns to talk to us about wings: birds love to use 'em, people love to eat 'em, and planes need them too, I guess. Sit around the table with us, won't you, as we pass out some heaping helpings of science knowledge. Pass the gravy!

SciShow Tangents is on YouTube! Go to www.youtube.com/scishowtangents to check out this episode with the added bonus of seeing our faces!

Head to www.patreon.com/SciShowTangents to find out how you can help support SciShow Tangents, and see all the cool perks you’ll get in return, like bonus episodes and a monthly newsletter!

And go to https://store.dftba.com/collections/scishow-tangents to buy your very own, genuine SciShow Tangents sticker!

A big thank you to Patreon subscribers Garth Riley and Tom Mosner for helping to make the show possible!

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: Ceri: @ceriley Sam: @im_sam_schultz Hank: @hankgreen

[Trivia Question]

Number of bird wings in the Burke Museum

https://www.burkemuseum.org/collections-and-research/biology/ornithology

https://www.audubon.org/news/behind-scenes-worlds-largest-bird-wing-collection

https://www.burkemuseum.org/collections-and-research/biology/ornithology/collections-database/results.php?l=20&o=0&n=40653&m=32557&f=&g=&s=17h%7EIymyNd1yIp&w=PfHdywfPYczv2Y01KbF0&wo=PHdywPYjdyhNdQIY1KbF

[Fact Off]

Club-winged manakins use wing feathers to chirp/sing

Video & audio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSHjhCN6NC0

Audio-only clips: https://ebird.org/species/clwman1

Picture of feathers: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PipraWing.jpg

https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2005/07/rare-south-american-bird-sings-its-feathers-attract-mate-cornell-researcher-finds

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/singing-with-his-wings-the-club-winged-manakins-display/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3440988/

[Ask the Science Couch]

Planes flying upside down

https://www1.grc.nasa.gov/beginners-guide-to-aeronautics/what-is-lift/

https://www.popsci.com/flying-upside-down-physics/

https://www.flyingmag.com/why-can-airplanes-fly-upside-down/

https://howthingsfly.si.edu/ask-an-explainer/how-do-planes-fly-upside-down

[Butt One More Thing]

Airplane and wing butt lines

http://www.aerospaceweb.org/question/design/q0289.shtml

https://www.aircraftsystemstech.com/p/location-numbering-systems-even-on.html

https://aviation.stackexchange.com/questions/72611/what-is-the-difference-between-a-wing-station-and-wing-buttock-line

http://www.techdrawingtools.com/24/l2402.htm

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Sight Nov 15, 2022

Show notes

Before you listen, just take a moment to think about how sight works: Light comes out of the sun, bounces off of a tree (or whatever), goes inside of your head, and hits some nerves which send signals to your brain which turns that into an image of a tree (or whatever)... I wouldn't believe it if I weren't looking at this screen and typing these words right now!

Also, what better medium to talk about seeing stuff than a podcast!

SciShow Tangents is on YouTube! Go to www.youtube.com/scishowtangents to check out this episode with the added bonus of seeing our faces!

Head to www.patreon.com/SciShowTangents to find out how you can help support SciShow Tangents, and see all the cool perks you’ll get in return, like bonus episodes and a monthly newsletter!

And go to https://store.dftba.com/collections/scishow-tangents to buy your very own, genuine SciShow Tangents sticker!

A big thank you to Patreon subscribers Garth Riley and Tom Mosner for helping to make the show possible!

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: Ceri: @ceriley Sam: @im_sam_schultz Hank: @hankgreen

[Trivia Question]

Colossal squid eye size

https://www.tepapa.govt.nz/discover-collections/read-watch-play/science/anatomy-colossal-squid/eyes-colossal-squid

https://ocean.si.edu/ocean-life/invertebrates/largest-eye-world-giant-squid

[Fact Off]

Climbing vine can mimic plastic plant leaves

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-02229-8

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/the-sneaky-life-of-the-worlds-most-mysterious-plant

Ogre-faced spider eye membrane regeneration

https://www.jstor.org/stable/77314

https://australian.museum/learn/animals/spiders/how-spiders-see-the-world/

https://entnemdept.ufl.edu/Creatures/MISC/SPIDERS/ogre_faced_spider_Deinopis_spinosa.htm

https://bionumbers.hms.harvard.edu/bionumber.aspx?id=116061

[Ask the Science Couch]

Human visible spectrum & eye evolution

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5093619/

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/12/141218210100.htm

https://journals.plos.org/plosgenetics/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pgen.1004884

https://genomebiology.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/gb-2005-6-3-213

https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2013.2995

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2002/may/30/medicalscience.research

[Butt One More Thing]

Tadpole butt eye transplant

http://jeb.biologists.org/content/216/6/1031

https://slate.com/technology/2013/03/tadpole-eye-transplants-reveal-neuroplasticity-in-tufts-lab.html

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Pain Nov 08, 2022

Show notes

This week, we investigate one of the more complicated, fraught, mysterious, and downright unpleasant ways we and lots of other living things navigate the world: pain.

From headaches to scorpion stings, there's lots of ways to get hurt, but is anything as painful as Hank's Liam Neeson impression? Let's find out!

SciShow Tangents is on YouTube! Go to www.youtube.com/scishowtangents to check out this episode with the added bonus of seeing our faces!

Head to www.patreon.com/SciShowTangents to find out how you can help support SciShow Tangents, and see all the cool perks you’ll get in return, like bonus episodes and a monthly newsletter!

And go to https://store.dftba.com/collections/scishow-tangents to buy your very own, genuine SciShow Tangents sticker!

A big thank you to Patreon subscribers Garth Riley and Tom Mosner for helping to make the show possible!

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: Ceri: @ceriley Sam: @im_sam_schultz Hank: @hankgreen

[Trivia Question]

Walking on LEGOs

https://science.discoveryplace.org/blog/ever-wonder-why-it-hurts-when-you-step-on-a-lego-brick

https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/469467-farthest-distance-walking-on-lego-bricks

[Fact Off]

Bees making motivational trade-off based on pain & sugar

https://www.science.org/content/article/bees-may-feel-pain

https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2205821119

Grasshopper mice block pain from scorpion venom

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1236451

https://www.nature.com/articles/nrn3404

https://brill.com/view/journals/beh/99/3-4/article-p275_5.xml?language=en

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0003347205004318

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=izizsAodOCk

[Ask the Science Couch]

Pain modulation & inhibition (with other pain or distraction)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL9GgdsyHtA

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0987705320301465

https://journals.lww.com/pain/Citation/2014/04000/Pain_modulation_profile_and_pain_therapy__Between.5.aspx

https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-26882/v3

https://journals.lww.com/painrpts/Fulltext/2022/06000/Conditioned_pain_modulation_is_associated_with.10.aspx

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7689692/

[Butt One More Thing]

“Bubble Butt Syndrome” sea turtle injury

https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/-/media/OEH/Corporate-Site/Documents/Animals-and-plants/Native-animals/rescued-sea-turtles-treatment-care-guidelines-210143.pdf

https://cse.umn.edu/college/feature-stories/shoring-seemore-sea-turtles-shell

https://www.turtlehospital.org/sea-turtle-injuries/

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SciShow Tangents Classics - Teeth Nov 01, 2022

Show notes

It's the day after Halloween, which means you might have a surplus of candy in your house. But before you start digging in to those sugary treat, spare a thought for your teeth, won't you? And to help you with that, today we have a classic episode all about your pearly whites!

SciShow Tangents is on YouTube! Go to www.youtube.com/scishowtangents to check out this episode with the added bonus of seeing our faces!

Head to www.patreon.com/SciShowTangents to find out how you can help support SciShow Tangents, and see all the cool perks you’ll get in return, like bonus episodes and a monthly newsletter!

And go to https://store.dftba.com/collections/scishow-tangents to buy your very own, genuine SciShow Tangents sticker!

A big thank you to Patreon subscribers Garth Riley and Tom Mosner for helping to make the show possible!

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: Ceri: @ceriley Sam: @im_sam_schultz Hank: @hankgreen

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Trick or Treat Month: Blood with Justin and Sydnee McElroy! Oct 25, 2022

Show notes

Tangents' annual descent into horror returns with Trick or Treat Month! And this time, we brought some fiendish friends along! Join us for a whole month of spooky themes and special guest stars!

Trick or Treat Month reaches it's horrific, blood-soaked conclusion! And who better to help us wade through the pools of gore than Dr. Sydnee and Justin McElroy, co-hosts of the medical history podcast Sawbones? No one, that's who!

Want more Sydnee and Justin? Check out https://www.blectar.com to find the whole McElroy family of podcasts, including Sawbones!

Get your extra-scary SciShow Tangents Halloween Decal here! Tell 'em Spooky Sam sent you!

SciShow Tangents is on YouTube! Go to www.youtube.com/scishowtangents to check out this episode with the added bonus of seeing our faces!

Head to www.patreon.com/SciShowTangents to find out how you can help support SciShow Tangents, and see all the cool perks you’ll get in return, like bonus episodes and a monthly newsletter!

And go to https://store.dftba.com/collections/scishow-tangents to buy your very own, genuine SciShow Tangents sticker!

A big thank you to Patreon subscribers Garth Riley and Tom Mosner for helping to make the show possible!

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: Ceri: @ceriley Sam: @im_sam_schultz Hank: @hankgreen

[This or That]

Round 1 - Bat tongue

https://www.livescience.com/52305-bat-tongues-move-like-human-bowels.html

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.1500525

Round 2 - Ground finch beak

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-some-darwins-finches-evolved-drink-blood-180976814/

https://www.jstor.org/stable/2408396?origin=crossref

https://microbiomejournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40168-018-0555-8