Stuff To Blow Your Mind
Episodes
Biohacking and the Road to Transhumanism
05 Jul 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Humanity is on the road to transhumanism, but some individuals are a little farther down the technologically-evolved highway than the rest of us. In t...
Incomplete/Unfinished
30 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
How are we to process an incomplete or unfinished work? Art, literature and film all present us with partial works, yet our reaction varies. Some work...
Mystery of the Myth-Fleshed Fossil
28 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Are the fossilized monsters of paleontology and the fantastic monsters of myth one and the same? Join Robert and Joe as they discuss the realm of of g...
Pieces of a Human: The Science of Artificial Organs
23 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine a future in which much-needed transplant organs are printed on demand, grown within the bodies of humanized animals or plucked fresh and dripp...
A New Kingdom of Life: Synthetic Biology
21 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Genomic maps unfurl before us and edited genetic codes alter the expression of life. The past few decades have seen tremendous advancements in genetic...
The Forbidden Void: Cases Against Space
16 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
For most of us, space exploration seems like a no-brainer. By venturing out into the cosmic ocean, we advance our technology, unravel the secrets of o...
Colossal: The Science of Human Height
14 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
From fictional obsessions with impossible giants to questions to height psychology and the upper and lower limits of human size, join Robert and Joe f...
Wicker Men, Mock Kings and Ritualized Regicide
09 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
When you think about human sacrifice, you probably envision blood-soaked altars where the weak and defeated are massacred to a divine force. But what ...
Penile Transplants (With Special Guest Mary Roach)
07 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The year is 2016 and we officially live in the age of the penis transplant -- and while the notion may stir giggles from some, there's nothing humorou...
The Science of Necrophilia
01 Jun 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Don't run away! True enough, this classic episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind considers a most repellent sexual atrocity, but there's more to necrophil...
The Science of Coincidence
31 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
What are we to make of coincidence? From the numerological cats cradles we weave around famous events to the curious ways human lives converge through...
Unraveling the Mythic
26 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Mythology is a powerful force, but what exactly IS myth? How does it differ from legend and folklore? How do we study it?Join Robert and Christian as ...
Your Experiences With Aphantasia
24 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Following the recent episode "Aphantasia: Blindness of the Mind's Eye," a number of Stuff to Blow Your Mind listeners wrote in about their own inabili...
Akademgorodok: Siberia's Super Science Town
19 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Hidden away in the cold of Siberia's forest is an alternative to Silicon Valley, what some refer to as Russia's Silicon Forest. You can think of it as...
Organic Panic: A Dietary Dilemma
17 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
We all build our new bodies out of the foods we eat, so why not obtain the best building materials we can afford? It's a reasonable thought, but the c...
The Quest for Hollywood Acid
12 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
From the corrosive blood of the "Alien" xenomorph to the various Bond and Batman villains' use of the iconic acid vat, popular media presents us with ...
Aphantasia: Blindness of the Mind's Eye
10 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Mental images play an important role in our daily experience of reality, from thoughts of the past to daydreams, fantasies and entire worlds of the im...
Cannabis Files: Medical Marijuana
05 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
It's easy to misjudge "medical marijuana" as an attempt by cannabis advocates to legitimize their favorite herb, but medicinal use of cannabis dates b...
Cannabis Files: Humanity's THC Odyssey
03 May 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Humans have known about cannabis for thousands of years, crafting hemp textiles and consuming its psychoactive THC. In this episode of Stuff to Blow Y...
Listener Mail V: Computing the Hyper-Real
28 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Once more, the mailbot delivers the spoils of listener feedback and your loyal Stuff to Blow Your Mind hosts read and respond to them. Join Robert, Ch...
Jupiter's Children: A Voyage to the Galilean Moons
26 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Of all the moons of Jupiter, Callisto, Ganymede, Europa and Io tantalize us the most. These alien worlds of ice, fire, desolation and hidden oceans ta...
Tree Man Disease
21 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine a disease that warps and petrifies the flesh, transforming normal skin into bark-like growths that slowly consume the hands and feet. Commonly...
When We Think About Cyborgs
19 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
What began as a 1960s term for a retrofitted human space explorer has become a focal point for considerations of human and machine interaction, techno...
Tip of the Tongue
14 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Your know the feeling. You're trying to recall the name of a time-keeping musical device or the the actor who played Fredo in "The Godfather" and all ...
Algorithms In The Blood: The P vs. NP Problem
12 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
What does it mean to solve a problem in our universe? That's a trickier question than you might think, with some fairly high-stakes ramifications in t...
Vampire Physics, Mathematics & Evolution
07 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The human obsession with vampires runs deep, so deep that it survives our consistent attempts to squeeze all the mystery and fun out of the topic. Inj...
Cargoism: Science, Desire and the Cargo Cults
05 Apr 2016
Contributed by Lukas
During the Second World War, Melanesian islanders encountered the vast, commercial systems of Allied and Japanese forces. Cargo Cults sprang up in the...
The Unsettling Depths of Bird Intelligence
31 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Just what are the upper limits of avian cognitive ability? Various studies reveal how certain bird species engage in mental time travel, tool use, sel...
Hyper-Real Religion: Pastafarianism and Beyond
29 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
When does a protest religion become an actual faith? What happens when purely fictional modes of belief leak off the page or screen? Join Robert and J...
Wound Mouth of the Undying Hydra
24 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Behold a tentacled, immortal predator with a wound for a mouth. No, this isn't the product of a horror writer's fever dream, but rather a denizen of t...
Wicked Problems
22 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
How do you solve a problem like crime, poverty or climate change? The answer, like the problem itself, is elusive and amorphous. These are not "tame p...
Beekeeping, Ancient Egypt and the Tears of Re
17 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, enter a kingdom within a kingdom: the remarkable honey-and-wax monarchy within a beehive and the organizat...
Creepypasta 2: Disturbing Smiles & Lidless Eyes
16 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
You asked for it, you got it. In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Christian return to the Creepypasta files and discuss some actual...
Sex Cannibals of the Animal Kingdom
10 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Sexual cannibalism is a rarity in the natural world, and scientists are still attempting to understand the act as practiced by mostly arachnids and in...
Talking Knots in the Inca Kingdom of Fibers
08 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to the Kingdom of the Inca, where hundreds of rope bridges connect an imperial highway system and fiber-armored soldiers wield woven slings ag...
Osedax: Sex Life of an Ocean Bone Worm
03 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Enter the world of the osedax worm, where mouthless female scavengers liquefy the bones of dead whales with acid-drenched roots -- and where each fema...
The Medusa Nebula: A Monstrous Beauty of Space
01 Mar 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Join Robert and Christian as they consider the beauty and composition of the Medusa nebula in this episode of the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Le...
Listener Mail IV: The Listening
25 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
It's that time again. Join Robert, Joe and Christian for another round of robot-delivered listener mail. They're read your missives concerning everyth...
John C. Lilly: Province of the Mind
23 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The figure of John C. Lilly as psychedelic dolphin communicator burns in the collective memory as a counterculture avatar, yet his legacy embodies far...
Dreams of Orgonon: Sex, Storms & Death
18 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Do you believe there's a natural energy that permeates the universe? Wilhelm Reich did, calling it "orgone." He also thought it was generated by orgas...
Echoborg: The Computer Controls You
16 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine a future in which powerful AIs use human surrogates or "echoborgs" to speak their words and socialize with humans. The living, breathing avata...
Tractable Thunder: Early Days of Electricity, Part 2
11 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Electricity lost its magic over the course the 18th and 19th centuries. The "invisible fire" steadily transitioned from a mysterious force of wonder t...
The Holy Amber: Early Days of Electricity, Part 1
09 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Electricity lost its magic over the course the 18th and 19th centuries. The "invisible fire" steadily transitioned from a mysterious force of wonder t...
Weaponized Animals: From Fire Pigs to Bomb Bats
04 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Warfare has always played a central role in human civilization, but we've always invited to share the rest of the animal kingdom to share in the viole...
Tooth, Mind and Soul: Dental Modification
02 Feb 2016
Contributed by Lukas
When you think of body modification, you probably don't think about your teeth. Yet dental modification takes place throughout the world, from ancient...
A Six Course Feast of Dangerous Foods
28 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Join Robert and Joe for a six-course meal of culinary danger! In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, discover six foods that deliver a lethal tas...
Chinese Zodiac: Superstition, Economics & Destiny
26 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
As we celebrate Chinese New Year and enter the year of the fire monkey, join Robert and Joe for a Stuff to Blow Your Mind exploration of the Chinese z...
Humanzee: Breaking the Species Barrier
21 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Chimpanzees are humanity's closest living relative, but there's both wonder and existential horror in that closeness. A species barrier separates us f...
Space Mirrors: Weapons, Energy & Propulsion
19 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
What can you accomplish with a space mirror? Quite a lot, actually. You can use them to gaze far into the cosmos, to propel exploration craft and even...
X-Files Science Part II: Bugs, Hybrids and Hypnosis
14 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
We want to believe. With the return of The X-Files to television Joe and Christian go digging through Scully's reports for scientific answers to the b...
X-Files Science Part I: Mutants & Parasites
12 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
With the return of television's The X-Files, it's never been a better time to look at the science behind the show. Join Joe and Christian as they exam...
The Stone of Madness
07 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Madness has always intrigued artists, and medieval paintings sometimes presented this malady's treatment via the surgical removal of cranial stone. Wh...
New Year's Resolutions: Science and Moral Behavior
05 Jan 2016
Contributed by Lukas
So many of our most common resolutions for personal improvement are inherently narcissistic: Quit smoking, lose weight, get in shape. We want to look ...
Pink Snow, Black Snow, Space Snow, Weird Snow
31 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Sure, snow is one of those amazing natural wonders that we so often take for granted, but this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind is more concerned wi...
The Science of 'Ant-Man'
29 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The 2015 movie "Ant-Man" continues a long Hollywood tradition of miniaturization sci-fi, but how much real science is there in this tale of tiny super...
Holiday Monsters & Listener Mail
24 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Christmas is here again, so join Robert, Joe and Christian as they discuss a few holiday monsters and tend to your listener mail. Learn more about yo...
Brain-to-Brain: The Science of Techno-Telepathy
22 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
You've always wanted to meet a sensitive alien telepath who could understand you like no one else, but SETI is really dropping the ball on your galact...
Grand Theft Genome: Genestealers in the Wild
17 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
When it comes to gene transfer, most organisms -- yourself included -- play by the rules and stick to sexual and/or asexual reproduction. But then the...
Twinkle, Twinkle, Killer Child
15 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Due to a strange combination of nature and nurture, some children unfortunately develop into murderers. In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Ro...
MDMA: Pharmacological Healer
10 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In the form of recreational ecstasy, the psychoactive drug MDMA carries with it a stigma of wide-eyed ravers, free love and counterculture pharmacolog...
MDMA: Pharmacological Ecstasy
08 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Some of you have tried the ecstasy. Others have merely heard about the drug on a TV sitcom, or heard about it in a news report. Either way, MDMA's pow...
Better Living Through Tetris
03 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
In their previous episode, Robert and Joe explored the geometric hallucinations of Tetris syndrome. Now they're back for a serious look at the ways in...
Tetris Syndrome: A Mind Made of Blocks
01 Dec 2015
Contributed by Lukas
To play a game of "Tetris" is to invite a geometric invasion into your mind. After hours of intense block manipulation, you finally set aside your gam...
Listener Mail: Robot Thanksgiving
26 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
It's Thanksgiving in the United States, so Robert, Joe and Christian dine with their devoted mailbot Karnie to consider a selection of Stuff to Blow Y...
But, Mom! The Science of Whining
24 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Unless you've lived your life in a childless fortress of seclusion, you've likely encountered the maddening, high-pitched whine of a complaining child...
The Self-Mummifying Monk
19 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
We tend to think of mummification as either an environmental event or a mortuary act perpetrated by others, but mummification can also occur as an act...
Space Weapons: Rods From God
17 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
You may call it "rods from god," project Thor" or a glorious "hypervelocity rod bundle," but this theoretical space weapon comes down to one devastati...
The 2015 Ig Nobels: Kisses, Stings & Dino Chickens
12 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Each year, the Ig Nobel prizes honor the weirdest and wackiest contributions to humanity's scientific understanding of the natural world. In this pair...
The 2015 Ig Nobels: Unboiled Eggs & Urine Speed
10 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Each year, the Ig Nobel prizes honor the weirdest and wackiest contributions to humanity's scientific understanding of the natural world. In this pair...
The Fist Punch Theory of Evolution
05 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Did the human fist evolve to punch faces? Did our faces evolve to take punches? In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Christian explo...
Sanity/Insanity: The Rosenhan Experiment
03 Nov 2015
Contributed by Lukas
How do we know precisely what constitutes "normality" or mental illness? And if there is a difference, can anybody detect it? Even professionals? In t...
Ghouls: Myth, Fiction and... Evolutionary Heritage?
29 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
If your fictional diet contains significant quantities of horror or dark fantasy, then you've likely encountered the ghoul: a scavenging, grave-robbin...
I Drink Your Blood
27 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Global myth cycles are rife with blood-drinkers and blood bathers. Often, the tale centers around the notion of young blood as a fountain of youth. Th...
Will-o'-the-Wisp: A Light in the Swamp
22 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
There was a time when strange lights appeared in the marshlands. Commoners might have known the eerie luminescence as "Will-o'-the-Wisp" or "Hinky Pun...
Final Girls: Feminism, Slashers & Culture
20 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The "final girl" trope has become a standard horror cinema convention, in which a single strong female character outruns, outsmarts and outstabs her m...
The Creepypasta Experiments
15 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Surf the Internet long enough and you'll happen upon creepypasta: little cut-and-paste snippets of horror that blur the lines between reality and the ...
Human Remains: Past, Present and Future
13 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Humanity currently stands at a crossroads in the treatment of its dead. Forced to contend with the environmental and economic downsides to modern mort...
The Halloween Costume Made Me Do It
08 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when we slip into a costume? Be it a monster pelt, a sexy witch or a simple children's ghost mask, a psychological transformation takes p...
Egyptian Mummies: A Cosmic, Mortuary Odyssey
06 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Ancient Egyptian mummification is not unlike sci-fi space travel in many respects. The leading minds of the day preserved a chosen human within a cost...
The Science of Dune: Biology
01 Oct 2015
Contributed by Lukas
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Frank Herbert's "Dune," the game-changing 1965 sci-fi novel full of space-age feudalistic intrigue, rampaging ...
The Science of Dune: Technology
29 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Frank Herbert's "Dune," the game-changing 1965 sci-fi novel full of space-age feudalistic intrigue, rampaging ...
Poison Arrows, Chinese Medicine and Werewolves
24 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Perhaps you've heard of wolf's bane as curative or even causal agent in the mythology of lycanthropy, yet the appeal of this very real plant reaches f...
One-Armed Bandits: The Science of Slot Machines
22 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
You may call it a slot machine, a fruit machine or a one-armed bandit, but the reality is the same: an algorithmically precise machine designed to dra...
The Unlanguaged Mind: A World Built With Words
17 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
How can we even imagine a life without language when language itself plays such a crucial role in human cognition? Can you even imagine a world in whi...
The Unlanguaged Mind: Feral Children
15 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
The feral child occupies two worlds: that of lighthearted myth and depressing reality. We entertain ourselves with fantasies about wolf-reared infants...
Palimpsests: Reading History's Blank Pages
10 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Historians learn a great deal from historical texts -- and not only that which was written, but that which was unwritten. Join Robert and Christian as...
Wes Craven Tribute: Serpents, Rainbows & Zombies
08 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
With the recent passing of horror director Wes Craven, it seems appropriate to cover the science behind his 1988 film "The Serpent and the Rainbow." J...
Tail as Old as Time: Part 2
03 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Where is the human tail? Our embryos lose them in the womb and our great ape kin lost them in the shadows of evolutionary history. Join Robert and Joe...
Tail as Old as Time: Part 1
01 Sep 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Tails are a common feature in the animal kingdom, fulfilling just about every role from comfy blanket to instrument of venomous death. Join Robert and...
The Science of Necrophilia
27 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Don't run away! True enough, this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind considers a most repellent sexual atrocity, but there's more to necrophilia than ...
V2K: The Microwave Auditory Effect
25 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Voice-to-skull or V2K technology is generally the stuff of paranoid government conspiracies, and yet the microwave auditory effect is very real. In th...
Born Under the Caul
20 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
While all humans develop inside an amniotic sac, only a rare few are born with part of it enveloping their face. These membranous veils protect us in ...
Your Health as a Mars Colonist
18 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Sure, you need to get your butt to Mars, but what are the long-term health ramifications of life on the Red Planet? In this episode of Stuff to Blow Y...
The Strain: Dissecting del Toro's Vampires
13 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Guillermo del Toro's "The Strain" continues to enthrall readers and viewers -- and, love it or hate it, there's no denying the complexity and creativi...
Echoborg: The Computer Controls You
11 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine a future in which powerful AIs use human surrogates or "echoborgs" to speak their words and socialize with humans. The living, breathing avata...
Summer Reading 2015: Books to Blow Your Mind
06 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
It's a summer tradition, so once more the hosts of Stuff to Blow Your Mind share their fiction and nonfiction reading recommendations with listeners. ...
From Hell's Heart: The Science of Spite
04 Aug 2015
Contributed by Lukas
What are we to make of spite? As humans, we lash out to hurt our neighbor due to petty grudges and prejudices all the time. Yet we're also capable of ...
Listener Mail: The Mailbot Reboots
30 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
We've entered a new era of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, so it's time for Robert, Joe and Christian to reboot the mailbot with updated user data. As the fo...
The Dreams of R. Buckminster Fuller
28 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine a world where cities fly, we all drive three-wheeled cars and mainly eat Jell-O. This is where the dreams of architect and engineer Richard Bu...
Something for Everybody: The Forer Effect
23 Jul 2015
Contributed by Lukas
From palm-reading fortune tellers to professionally-administered Myers Briggs test, everyone's a sucker for a an ego-stroking personality assessment. ...