BrainStuff Classics: Why Are Some Americans Cancelling Columbus Day?
Some U.S. cities and states have officially changed Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples' Day. Learn why -- and why some Americans disagree wi...
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BrainStuff
Whether the topic is popcorn or particle physics, you can count on BrainStuff to explore -- and explain -- the everyday science in the world around us.
Episodes
20 of 2,727 episodesAmerican Versus British English: What Are Biscuits, Muffins, and Pudding?
The English-language terms for different baked goods vary based on where English is being spoken. Learn why an American cookie is a British...
How Do Sunspots Work?
When dark spots appear on the surface of the Sun, we're actually seeing the result of massive distortions in solar magnetic fields caused by...
Did the 'Lost Continent' of Lemuria Really Exist?
A sunken continent called Lemuria was first proposed as a scientific explanation for lemur populations in the mid-1800s, but it quickly beca...
BrainStuff Classics: How Did a Mad King Design Disney's Castle?
Walt Disney based Sleeping Beauty's castle -- the centerpiece of Disneyland and the Disney logo -- on a real castle in the Bavarian Alps of...
Could the Bird Flu Cause a Human Pandemic?
Since the early 2000s, the H5N1 bird flu has sickened wild and domestic birds around the world -- and sometimes humans and other mammals, to...
Where Do Butternut Squash Come From?
Humans started domesticating edible gourds thousands of years ago, but one of today's most popular varieties has been around for less than a...
How Did the Great Stink of London Work?
In London in the summer of 1858, a Great Stink settled over the city. The sewage from its growing population was baking in the streets -- an...
BrainStuff Classics: How Do Blue Whales Work?
It's a good question. The blue whale is the largest known animal to ever grace the planet (they may be twice as big as Megalodon was! Their...
Do Political TV Ads Really Change Minds?
Every U.S. election cycle, political campaigns bombard American televisions with advertisements for candidate X versus Y. But can these ads...
How Does Myasthenia Gravis Work?
What happens when your immune system attacks the point of communication between your nerves and muscles? That's an autoimmune condition call...
What Is It Like In Our Asteroid Belt?
The asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter is made up of sparse, tiny bodies of rock, ice, and metal that give us a window into our solar sy...
BrainStuff Classics: How Did Fish & Chips Become England's National Dish?
Light and tender fried fish plated with crisp fried potatoes is a classic English comfort meal, but it's only a little over a century old. L...
Do Lemmings Really Jump Off Cliffs?
Lemmings are small, fierce rodents that make their home in Arctic environments -- and (spoiler alert) the idea that they kill themselves by...
What Would Happen If You Drank Saltwater?
Our bodies need salt and our bodies need water, so why is drinking saltwater not good for you? Learn what salt does in our bodies and why se...
How Is Tungsten So Hard and Heat-Resistant?
Tungsten's boiling point is over 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit, and as tungsten carbide, it's one of the hardest materials we know. Learn how it...
BrainStuff Classics: How Does the Hippocampus Work?
Without the hippocampus, our brains have serious trouble recalling and recording certain types of long-term memories. Learn how this brain s...
What Happened During Agatha Christie's Mysterious Disappearance?
In 1926, detective novelist Agatha Christie disappeared for 11 days under strange circumstances. Learn about her life and record-setting, be...
How Does Escargot Work?
Escargot is just one of many ways that humans enjoy eating land snails -- and we've been eating them for 30,000 years. Learn about the snail...
How Does a Geiger Counter Work?
The Geiger counters we use to detect harmful radiation today are 100-year-old technology that works based on simple behaviors of electrons a...