Brainstuff

Denver's Mile High Stadium sits a full mile above sea level -- is that distance really enough to make a difference in the air compared with other stadiums, and thus in how footballs fly there? Learn more in this episode of BrainStuff.  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the 1930s, stones surfaced that might explain what happened to the settlers of the lost colony of Roanoke. Learn their story -- plus how modern science might help determine whether they're real -- in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Honey bees are dying off due to a number of dangers, including bacterial diseases. Learn how researchers are hoping to help these important pollinators in today's episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Before the Civil Rights Act made racial discrimination illegal, black Americans faced even greater dangers while on the road. Learn how a Bronx mailman made travel safer and supported black entrepreneurs in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lobster hasn't always been a luxury -- and prices have the potential to drop again. Learn the history and politics behind these tasty crustaceans in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To create the biggest-ever airplanes, Boeing created the biggest-ever building. (Before they learned to control the temperature, clouds formed near its ceiling.) Learn more about this mammoth structure in today's episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Bruises can turn a rainbow of colors before they heal -- but why? Learn the science behind color-changing contusions in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

New legislation in the United States allows farmers to grow hemp -- cannabis's non-psychoactive cousin. Learn why this could become big business in today's episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The nail polishes popular today owe their existence to the automotive industry, but the history of nail colors and varnishes goes back millennia. Learn the history of nail polish in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Given the right depth, temperature, and access to volcanic gases, lakes can explode and kill thousands in the process. Learn how these limnic eruptions happen in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Scorpions light up a glowing green under ultraviolet light. Science isn't entirely sure how but has a few theories on why. (Y'know, aside from "Scorpions are metal.") Learn more about scorpions' fluorescence in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Some food safety charts claim that whole milk goes off more quickly than skim milk, but the scientific evidence is mixed. Learn more about milk science in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Some of you are giving this episode title serious side-eye, but believe us: some other folks think gasoline smells excellent. Delicious, even. Learn why in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Popular wisdom holds that eating before bed -- and especially eating spicy or 'strange' food, however you define strange -- will doom you to nightmares. But is there any science behind that? Learn more in this classic episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our planet Earth produces a constant hum too quiet for our ears to detect, but researchers have finally captured a recording of it. Learn more about the sound, called permanent free oscillations, in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Reptiles and amphibians have all sorts of adaptations for surviving cold weather, even in places where temperatures dip below freezing. Learn how they manage the cold in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Receiving one or more Michelin stars is one of the highest honors in the restaurant industry. Learn how a tire company started this prestigious tradition in today's episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you take a pull of air from a helium balloon, you'll sound like a cartoon version of yourself for a few seconds. Learn why helium makes you so high pitched in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Humans have been making New Years' resolutions for millennia, but we're still bad at keeping them. Learn some science behind building better resolutions in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Lots of other mammals make great use of their tales, so why don't humans have them? Learn about the science of tails in this episode of BrainStuff. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.