A big update about Moment of Um and the Brains On Universe

We're moving the Brains On Universe Headquarters, and that means we have to stop putting out new episodes until we get settled. We know: not cool. But, our new home is going to be bigger and better and the absolute BEST. We can't wait until it's ready for you to visit.

We're moving the Brains On Universe Headquarters, and that means we have to stop putting out new episodes until we get settled. We know: not cool. But, our new home is going to be bigger and better and the absolute BEST. We can't wait until it's ready for you to visit. In the meantime, we still have some live shows planned this fall. Brains On Live will be in Dallas, TX on September 13. And Smash Boom Best will bring the debate heat to Princeton, NJ on October 26. Head over to https://www.brainson.org/events to get tickets. We can't wait to high five you all in person! And, if you want to be the first to hear about our shiny, new home, sign up for our newsletter. There will be six more bathrooms, 10 more water slides and, we're finally going to fix the doorbell! And if you have any questions or want to reach out to us, you can still head to brainson.org/contact to get in touch.

How do braces work?

They come in cool colors, catch popcorn kernels and sometimes even have spacers - it’s braces! Ever wondered how braces magically straighten teeth? We asked Dr. ArNelle Wright - a real life dentist! - to help us break down the science of these tiny metal wonders.
Bracing for a tough question? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll help uncover the tooth.  

How did the solar system and all the planets get their names?

The Milky Way! Neptune! Uranus! Halley’s Comet! There are so many cool features in our solar system – but how did they get their names? We asked space scientist and communicator Maggie Aderin-Pocock to help us find the answer.
Got a question that’s out of this world? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll make space for an answer.

How do stoplights know when to change?

Waiting for a stoplight to turn green can be really annoying, especially when you’re running late. It would be awesome if you had a magic wand you could wave to get the light to change. But alas, such things don’t exist. But how do stoplights know when to switch colors? We asked Jerry Kotzenmacher with the Minnesota Department of Transportation to help us find the answer.
Got a nagging question that just won’t yield? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll put you in the express lane to answersville. 

Can you control your dreams?

Have you ever had a scary or weird dream and wished you could switch your brain-television to another channel? Great news! You can learn to use “lucid dreaming,” a technique that helps you realize when you’re in a dream. Once you know you’re dreaming, you can teach yourself to shape your own storyline. So how does that work? We asked Dr. Ketema Paul, Professor, Integrative Biology And Physiology at the University of California, Los Angeles to help us find the answer.
Got a question that’s keeping you up at night? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll help put it to bed. 

How did people figure out how to make yogurt?

There are all different kinds of yogurt: Greek, vanilla bean, blueberry, even sheep’s milk yogurt! But how did people first figure out how to make this yummy food? We asked journalist Allison Conroe to help us find the answer.
Got a question that’s whey cool? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll find a legen-dairy answer.

How did people discover how to make yogurt?

Why did snakes lose their legs?

Happy Snake Week! Every episode this week explores a different question about our slithery friends. Here’s a mind blower for you: did you know the ancestors of snakes used to have legs?   Somewhere along the zigzag path of evolution, they traded in their lizardy legs for a more streamlined look. But why did snakes go legless? We asked biologist and snake researcher Emily Taylor to help us find the answer.
Got a question that’s snaking around your brain? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll find a fangtastic answer!   

Why did snakes lose their legs? 

How do snakes make venom?

Happy Snake Week! Every episode this week explores a different question about our slithery friends. Did you know that, out of the roughly 3,000 total species of snakes, only about 10-15% are venomous? But how do those snakes make venom in their bodies? We asked snake scientist Emily Taylor to help us find the answer. 
Got a question that’s biting at you? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll search for the answer-dote!

Why are snakes shaped like a stick?

Happy Snake Week! Every episode this week explores a different question about our slithery friends. Snakes come in all sizes and colors, but they have one thing in common: no arms or legs! In fact, one might argue they kind of look like sticks. We asked snake expert Emily Taylor why our reptilian neighbors are twig-shaped. 
Got a question that’s slithering around your brain? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll promise we won’t throw a hisssss-y fit!

What do zoos feed big snakes, such as pythons?

Happy Snake Week! Every episode this week explores a different question about our slithery friends. Zoos have to have all kinds of foods available to feed the different species that they care for. Animals like elephants, zebras and buffalo eat plants. Predators like lions, foxes and bears have a much meatier diet. But what’s on the menu at the snake house? Snake cake? Snake steak? Snake grapes? We asked biologist Emily Taylor to help us find the answer.

Got a question snaking throughyour brain? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll help squeeze out an answer.

Zoos have to have all kinds of foods available to feed the different species that they care for. Animals like elephants, zebras and buffalo eat plants. Predators like lions, foxes and bears have a much meatier diet. But what’s on the menu at the snake house? Snake cake? Snake steak? Snake grapes? We asked biologist Emily Taylor to help us find the answer.
Got a question snaking through your brain? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll help squeeze out an answer.

What do zoos feed big snakes, such as pythons? 

What do snakes do when they hibernate?

Happy Snake Week! Every episode this week explores a different question about our slithery friends. Did you know snakes hibernate in the winter just like bears, chipmunks and geckos? But what do they do while they’re hibernating? Do they have dreams? Do they wake up for mid-hibernation snacks? We asked snake scientist Emily Taylor to help us find the answer! 
Got a question you just can’t ssssssleep on? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and maybe we’ll bite!

Why am I allergic to raw egg but not cooked egg?

Some people have allergic reactions to foods like peanuts, sesame, and raw eggs. But when people with egg allergies eat cooked eggs, there’s no reaction. What’s up with that? We asked pediatrician Liz Placzek to help us find the answer.
Have you hatched a really great question? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll help find EGG-xactly what you need. 

Why am I allergic to raw eggs but not cooked eggs?

How do mood rings work?

Have you ever heard of a mood ring? It’s a little piece of jewelry that supposedly tells you what kind of a mood you’re in. But how the heck can it know? We asked scientist Edwin Thomas to help us find the answer.
Got a question that’s getting you in the mood to learn? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll help w-ring out an answer.

Why do we have weird dreams when we’re sick?

When you’re sick, it’s important to get plenty of rest to help your body heal. But it can be hard to sleep when your brain keeps showing you bizarre fever dreams (Like being chased by a giant fireball! Or swimming in nacho cheese!) Why do we have strange dreams when we’re sick, anyway? We asked dream researcher Michael Schredl to help us find the answer.
Got any burning questions? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll search feverishly for the right answer!  

Why do we have weird dreams when we're sick?

Are brains really pink?

Quick, picture a brain! Did you imagine a rosy-colored little meatball? Us too! But are brains actually pink when they’re inside our skulls? We asked brain expert Gwenaëlle Thomas to help us find the answer.
Got a question that’s giving you a real headache? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll wrap our brains around it!

Where does the waste go on airplanes?

Have you ever used an airplane toilet? You go in, do your business, press the flush button, and WHOOOOSH! Everything disappears in a split second. But where does all the waste disappear to? We asked Shannon Baldioli from the National Air and Space Museum to help us find the answer.
Got a question that’s too good to waste? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll make it our number one priority!

Where do poop and pee go on airplanes?

Could you make a candle out of earwax?

There are all kinds of candles out there: beeswax candles, soy candles, and of course – birthday candles! But what about … earwax? Could you make a candle out of that gunky yellow wax in our ears? We asked candle expert Todd Wambach to help us find the answer.
Got a question that has you waxing poetic? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact – we’re all ears! 


Does space affect an astronaut’s digestion?

We chew our food, swallow it, and our stomach goes to work on digesting! Our bodies absorb the nutrients they need and then we poop out the rest. Here on Earth, the whole process takes somewhere between one to three days. But what about in space? Do astronauts digest food as quickly as they do on Earth? We reached out to space scientist and science communicator Maggie Aderin-Pocock to get the answer!

Got a question you’re chewing  on? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we'll spit out the answer.

We chew our food, swallow it, and our stomach goes to work on digesting! Our bodies absorb the nutrients they need and then we poop out the rest. Here on Earth, the whole process takes somewhere between one to three days. But what about in space? Do astronauts digest food as quickly as they do on Earth? We reached out to space scientist and science communicator Maggie Aderin-Pocock to get the answer!
Got a question you’re chewing  on? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we'll spit out the answer.

Why are some dogs so small and some so large?

Dogs come in so many different sizes, from the tiniest teacup terrier to the giant Great Dane. How did we get such a delightful assortment of these furry best buddies? We asked Brains On producer and archaeologist Anna Goldfield to help us find the answer.
Got a question that’s been hounding you? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll make sure to bark up the right tree! 

Why are some dogs so big and some dogs so small?

How does the earth support heavy buildings?

Did you know the tallest building in the world is a skyscraper in Dubai called the Burj Khalifa? It has 163 floors and weighs as much as 100,000 elephants! But how can the Earth even support such a huge building?! Why doesn’t the ground just collapse underneath it? We asked geologist Rónadh Cox to help us find the answer.

Got a question that’s weighing heavily on your mind? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact and we’ll help build you up with a great answer! 

Did you know the tallest building in the world is a skyscraper in Dubai called the Burj Khalifa? It has 163 floors and weighs as much as 100,000 elephants! But how can the Earth even support such a huge building?! Why doesn’t the ground just collapse underneath it? We asked geologist Rónadh Cox to help us find the answer.
Got a question that’s weighing heavily on your mind? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact and we’ll help build you up with a great answer! 

Why is the moon white and why does it have different shapes?

Some planets have lots of moons. Others have none. Earth has just one moon, but it’s a really great one. It can glow bright and white and sometimes it’s shaped like a big round ball. Other times it’s skinny like the white tip of a fingernail. Makes you wonder, why does the moon look the way it does? We asked Preston Dyches from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to help us find the answer.
Got a question orbiting around your brain? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll illuminate an answer.


Did dinosaurs fart?

You fart. I fart. Your dog farts. We all fart! Or do we…? Birds don’t fart, and they’re the closest living descendants of the dinosaurs. So, did dinosaurs fart? We asked paleontologist Kallie Moore to help us find the answer.
Got a question rumbling around in your brain? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we'll find you an answer TOOT-suite!

What was the very first dinosaur?

Dinosaurs went extinct around 65 million years ago after an asteroid crashed into Earth. So we know when dinosaurs disappeared from the planet, but when did they appear? What was the first dinosaur, and how long ago did it live? We asked paleontologist Kallie Moore to help us find the answer.
Got a question that’s got you full of veloci-RAPTURE?  Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll TRY(ceratops) to answer it!

How do we know what dinosaurs sounded like?

Happy Dinosaur Week! Every episode this week explores the ancient marvels that walked the Earth millions of years ago. Fossilized bones and footprints help scientists figure out what these prehistoric creatures looked like – but how do we know what they sounded like? We asked paleontologist and science journalist Shaena Montanari to help us find the answer.
Got a question that makes you want to roar in frustration? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact and we’ll find a dino-mite answer.    

All Episodes

A big update about Moment of Um and the Brains On Universe

How do braces work?

How did the solar system and all the planets get their names?

How do stoplights know when to change?

Can you control your dreams?

How did people figure out how to make yogurt?

Why did snakes lose their legs?

How do snakes make venom?

Why are snakes shaped like a stick?

What do zoos feed big snakes, such as pythons?

What do snakes do when they hibernate?

Why am I allergic to raw egg but not cooked egg?

How do mood rings work?

Why do we have weird dreams when we’re sick?

Are brains really pink?

Where do poop and pee go on airplanes?

Could you make a candle out of earwax?

Does space affect an astronaut’s digestion?

Why are some dogs so small and some so large?

How does the earth support heavy buildings?

Why is the moon white and why does it have different shapes?

Did dinosaurs fart?

What was the very first dinosaur?

How do we know what dinosaurs sounded like?