We’re hearing that weight loss drugs comes with worrisome loss of muscle. Is that true?? We talk to endocrinologist Dr. Vibha Singhal. Shots of Science Vs will be going on pause, but come find us over at Science Vs - where you can listen to our brand new episodes! Just search for Science Vs in Spotify. See you over there! Learn more about your ad c…

Today we look at an anti-aging hack that's been buzzing around the internet: the potential powers of young blood. We talk to researcher Dr. Jim White. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

MDMA is a party drug that some say should be seen as a legitimate medicine. But at the same time – there are stories of people taking this drug… and dying. So what's going on here? We talk to former DEA special agent James Hunt and public health researcher Prof. Joseph Palamar. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

Today on the show – what can science actually tell us about our personalities? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

Today on the show we find out – Will your cappuccino leave you needing more and more? How addictive is caffeine? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

There's new research suggesting that this party drug could be a promising treatment for things like PTSD… but some people say MDMA has a dark side… So let's find out – how dangerous is MDMA? We talk to neuroscientist Prof. Harriet de Witt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

DMT might be the weirdest drug in the already weird world of psychedelics. It’s the active ingredient in ayahuasca, but on its own, DMT can give you what’s nicknamed “the businessman’s trip” — a psychedelic journey that can be done and dusted inside 15 minutes. So what is this drug doing to our brains? And could it help people with depression? We c…

Personality tests like the MBTI are all over the internet, the workplace, and dating apps — but some say it’s all a bunch of baloney. So are any of these personality tests legit? We talk to psychologists Dr. Alexander Swan and Dr. Emorie Beck. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

Caffeine is a drug that tons of us take every day. How badly does that cup of coffee affect your sleep? We talk to Prof. Gregory Marcus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

Molly, ecstasy, MDMA: whatever you call it, this drug is blowing up. Some say MDMA can be a legitimate medicine to treat conditions like PTSD. But what's it actually doing inside our brains? We talk to public health researcher Prof. Joseph Palamar and neuroscientist Prof. Harriet de Witt. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/a…

We all know gossip can be bad — but some of us still can’t seem to get enough of it. So what's happening in our brains when someone spills the tea? We talk to neuroscientist Professor Josep Marco-Pallarés. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

Today on the show – we're talking about when our eyes see lies – about how when we want to believe something... we can be so easily deceived… And this tale involves a creature who has a tail! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

DMT might be the weirdest drug in the already weird world of psychedelics. It’s the active ingredient in ayahuasca, but on its own, DMT can give you what’s nicknamed “the businessman’s trip” — a psychedelic journey that can be done and dusted inside 15 minutes. So what is this drug doing to our brains? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcas…

A terrifying syndrome where everything around you appears in miniature ... Joel tells a story about when you really can't believe your own eyes, recorded live at the Beaker Street Festival in Tasmania. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

Caffeine is a drug that tons of us take every day. How does it work? What's it actually doing inside our brains and bodies? We talk to Dr. Astrid Nehlig. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

Molly, ecstasy, MDMA: whatever you call it, this drug is blowing up. Some say MDMA can be a legitimate medicine to treat conditions like PTSD. But where did it come from? We talk to psychiatrist George Greer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

We all know gossip can be bad — but some of us still can’t seem to get enough of it. So today we’re digging into the science of gossip to answer questions like: who really gossips? And why do we love it so much? We spill the tea with sociologist Dr. Stacy Torres. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

The story of a dead man with a bitten penis and perplexing DNA... recorded live at the Beaker Street Festival in Tasmania! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

A whistleblower claims that the U.S. government is covering up what it knows about aliens on Earth, and several military pilots recently testified to seeing strange objects in the sky. It kinda feels like the tide is turning on UFOs — even NASA is taking these sightings seriously. So what’s going on here? Have aliens visited? And will we ever find …

We’ve been told that foods like butter and bacon are bad for us — because they're packed with saturated fats. And top dogs in nutrition say that a better option is vegetable oil, like canola oil. But there’s a trend popping off claiming that these top dogs are barking up the wrong tree. They say that butter is better and that those vegetable oils, …

The smash hit Netflix documentary “Unknown: Cave of Bones” has kicked off an all-out science brawl. The film makes extraordinary claims about a strange ape-like creature that lived hundreds of thousands of years ago — claims that rewrite what it means to be human. But some scientists are pushing back, saying that at this point, these extraordinary …

Andrew Huberman is a skate punk turned neuroscientist, and he hosts one of the most popular podcasts in the U.S.: The Huberman Lab. Today, we talk to him about his unlikely path to becoming a scientist and his fascinating research into regrowing neurons. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

Can plunging into an ice bath make us feel happier? We’re digging into some of the quirkiest self-care hacks around the internet to find out what the science says — and whether you should add them to your routine. We talk to environmental physiologist Dr. Heather Massey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

Plants aren’t just sitting around looking cute; they’re doing all sorts of stuff, like defending themselves, and even warning other plants about danger. Today, we’re talking all about the weird and wily world of plants with Professor Beronda Montgomery from Michigan State University. She has a new book out called “Lessons From Plants.” Transcript: …

More and more people are puffing on vapes — but some governments are making moves to ban them. So how dangerous is vaping, really? To find out what vapes might be doing to our lungs, we talk with tobacco researcher Dr. Michael Chaiton. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

The latest hot new trend is: breathing. Yeah, that’s right — there are claims that so-called breathwork can cure depression and supercharge your brain. Breathfluencers reckon that we're breathing all wrong but that with the right kind of breathing, you could be living a happier, healthier life. So what's the deal here? To find out, we talk to psych…

Our mental health has taken a turn for the worse the past couple of years, and we keep hearing that therapy can help— but how does it work? We explore the origins of therapy with psychologist Dr. Jonathan Shedler. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

Internet influencers have been pushing “immune boosters” during the pandemic — especially plants like echinacea and elderberry. But can these herbal supplements truly work as a shield against colds and viruses? We speak to immunologist Shiv Pillai. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

All stars are destined to die... but there's a special kind of star that can come back from the dead! We talk to astrophysicist Dr. Moiya McTier about this cosmic phenomenon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

Not sleeping enough turning you into a monster? Can taking melatonin help? We speak with circadian scientist Prof. Russell Foster. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

For centuries, people have been looking to the stars to tell us all kinds of things — what our future holds, who we should date. So... can astrology help find you true love? We speak to Prof. Dave Henningsen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

Is it true that exercise can boost our immune system? We speak to immune aging researcher Niharika Duggal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

Today we're going behind the scenes of Christopher Nolan's blockbuster film “Oppenheimer.” Professor David Saltzberg, one of the scientists who consulted on the movie (also “The Big Bang Theory”), joins us to chat about the science behind the movie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

Many bats can live a bizarrely long time, and brush off viruses that kill people. How do they do it and what can we learn from them? Zoology Professor Emma Teeling and bat researcher and clinician Matae Ahn fly through the science. Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/ScienceVsBats This episode was produced by Flora Lichtman with help from Wend…

Today we're diving into the mysteries of the immortal jellyfish. We speak to Prof. Ferdinando Boero and Prof. Shin Kubota. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

Probiotic-crammed foods and pills are marketed as charmers of the human microbiome — and the key to immune, gut and brain health. But can they really boost your mood and help with things like depression? We talk to psychiatry professor Ted Dinan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

Tons of people struggle to get revved up about sex. It can mess with their relationships and how they feel about themselves. So enter the multimillion-dollar supplement industry with miracle solutions. Even Big Pharma has joined the battle for our libido, with drugs that claim to work wonders. But what if our ideas about sex drive are completely wr…

Many people point their finger at AirBnB for contributing to the affordable housing crisis. They say that short-term rentals like AirBnB take housing off the market and cause rents and house prices to go up. Is that true? We talk to University of Sydney prof. Nicole Gurran. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

Going gluten-free is all the rage — we hear it’s the secret hack to weight loss. Is it true? We talk to nutrition epidemiologist Dr. Natalie Riediger. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

We dig into one of the biggest problems that scientists are worried about: The ability of AI to trick us. We talk to Dr. Professor Seth Lazar about the science. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

We join forces with Sarah Marshall from You’re Wrong About to dive into a question for the ages: Blue balls — are they real? And we’ve got some BIG blue balls news in this episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

The dentist tells us to floss, brush, avoid certain food and drinks ... but what actually matters when it comes to having healthy teeth? We talk to epidemiologist and dentist Professor Philippe Hujoel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

When it comes to keeping our skin looking younger, what works? Retinol, hyaluronic acid, vitamin C? This simple question has become confused by the billion-dollar skin-care industry, which floods us with scientific-sounding claims about the chemicals they say we should put on our face. We find out the real science on what you need for healthy skin …

When a snowstorm hits, a remote hike in the Pyrenees mountains turns deadly. Rohan Schoeman and Audrey Mash take us along their treacherous trails, and we speak to Dr. Eduard Argudo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSpotify Studios

Today, we give a dam about beavers. These busy rodents don’t just chill and go with the flow — it turns out their grabby paws are actually helping hands in the fight against climate change. We dive into how this works with ecologists Dr. Emily Fairfax and Dr. Ben Dittbrenner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

For years, ketamine has been thought of mostly as a horse tranquilizer — or a street drug that puts you in a scary-sounding K-hole. But now, we’re hearing reports that it could be almost a miracle medicine, treating stubborn depression and other mental illnesses. So how good is it, really? And could using a drug like this for depression actually be…

Pit bulls have a dark reputation. And some people say the science backs this up: that they bite people more often and do more damage when they chomp down. But other people say, no way — these dogs don’t deserve their bad rap. And if a dog has a problem, it’s really the owner’s fault. So who’s right? To find out, we talk to animal behavior expert An…

Imagine getting an infection, going to the doctor, and having no little pill to make you better. Welcome to a world of SUPERBUGS. For years we've been hearing that our antibiotics aren't working as well as they used to. But recently, it feels like things have really gotten out of hand — we’re told that these super scary antibiotic-resistant bugs ar…

What actually cures a hangover? Water? Crushed up Advil? Maybe a burger, fries and a Diet Coke? We wanted to know what the science says about how to bounce back when we’ve had a few too many. We talk to psychopharmacologist Andrew Scholey to find out. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

For decades we’ve been yanked around over alcohol: one day it’s actually good for us, the next day it’s a killer. And recently there’ve been reports that even a little bit of booze is bad for you overall. We first looked into this back in 2019, and since then the research has evolved faster than a nanobrewery’s tap list. So today we’re diving back …