Episodes

  • Does space affect an astronaut’s digestion?
    May 15 2025

    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.

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    4 mins
  • Could you make a real-life lightsaber?
    Dec 29 2022

    A long time ago, in a galaxy far far away… we wondered, could you ever build a real lightsaber like the ones in Star Wars? A lightsaber is a glowing sword that can cut through metal – and pretty much anything else you can think of. It’s the favorite tool of heroes like Luke Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano, as well as villains like Darth Vader. That’s just in the movies, but could we make them real? We asked mechanical engineering professor Sayan Biswas to help us find the answer.

    Got more questions than Luke when he was training with Yoda? Send them to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll help use the force to find an answer!

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    7 mins
  • Why are some dogs so small and some so large?
    May 14 2025

    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!

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    6 mins
  • How does the earth support heavy buildings?
    May 13 2025

    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!

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    4 mins
  • Why is the moon white and why does it have different shapes?
    May 12 2025

    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.




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    7 mins
  • Did dinosaurs fart?
    May 9 2025

    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!

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    8 mins
  • What was the very first dinosaur?
    May 8 2025

    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!

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    7 mins
  • How do we know what dinosaurs sounded like?
    May 7 2025

    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.

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    5 mins