Every Little Thing
166 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 2 years ago - ★★★★★ - 4.4K ratingsWhy do we cry? Did cavemen really carry clubs? Can swearing make you stronger? On ELT, you call with a question, we find you an answer. Our helpline is open 24-7. Call 833-RING-ELT or send an audio message to [email protected].
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Episodes
What Did People Eat 10,000 Years Ago?
December 13, 2021 16:33 - 22 minutesAfter unearthing a 10-year-old bottle of maple syrup in his pantry, listener Taylor wants to know: What sorts of ancient foods do archaeologists find? Pothead and biomolecular archaeologist Julie Dunne cracks the case on ancient diets and tells us how we know what people ate thousands of years ago. Warning: the answers are NSFL (not safe for lunch). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Jeremy’s Muscle Car: An Update
December 10, 2021 20:42 - 3 minutesOn our “I Did it For Love” episode, listener Jeremy told us about a 1968 AMX that he was buying to surprise his dad. This week, they go for their first ride. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
I Did It for Love
December 06, 2021 16:46 - 36 minutesWhat have you done for love? Hear about the impulsive, expensive, inspired and illegal things our listeners did for love. Thanks to Erica, Mario, Beth, Jeremy and everyone who called in with a heart-felt tale. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Kangaroo Pouch: A Four-Star Hotel of Horrors
November 22, 2021 16:29 - 26 minutesCaller Sophia needs to know: What’s it like inside a kangaroo pouch? We get the inside scoop from marsupial expert Robin Beck. Plus, should Flora’s sister Ruth fear her squash? Professional pumpkineer Steve Reiners has a tip: if it smells like cat urine, beware. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Auctioneers: Why Do They Talk Like That?
November 15, 2021 15:26 - 24 minutesThis week, an episode from the archives: Why do auctioneers talk the way they do? And what are they actually saying? Professional auctioneer Junior Staggs tells us about the psychology behind auction-speak, and gives caller Katie some tips for developing her own auctioneer chant. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Important Message from Flora
November 10, 2021 22:13 - 1 minuteFlora is back with some news, and a request. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Can I Bury a Body in My Yard?
November 01, 2021 15:00 - 28 minutesListener Jake wants to know if he can bury a body in his tiny, suburban backyard. Grave expert and archaeologist Hal Hassen has the scoop on how we went from burying grandpa out back to the giant park-like cemeteries we have today. Plus, local zoning officer Sonya Abt walks Jake through the red tape. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Worms and Pelicans: Dentistry’s Rotten History
October 25, 2021 14:00 - 27 minutesThis week, we brush off an ELT favorite on the gory history of tooth care. For most of human history, chomper maintenance has been bloody and brutal. So how'd we go from charlatans yanking teeth in a public square to the soft light and high-tech of the modern dentist's office? ELT asks retired dentist and dental historian J. Henry Clarke and historian Richard Barnett to open up and say how. Plus Chris Lyons tells us his secrets for making movie stars' teeth look terrible. Learn more about you...
What the Flock Is in My Chimney?
October 11, 2021 14:00 - 25 minutesEvery evening at dusk, listener Tara watches clouds of tiny birds dive-bomb into her boyfriend’s chimney. What are these creatures, and are they going to destroy the house? Ornithologist Margaret Rubega introduces us to these notoriously mysterious birds, and to the stubborn 19th-century artist-turned-scientist who was determined to study them. Special thanks to Barbara Boyle. Thanks also to songwriter Jay Ungar for the use of Ashokan Farewell, ©1983 by Swinging Door Music. Learn more about y...
How Squirrels Track Their Nuts
September 27, 2021 14:00 - 18 minutesThis week, we dug up a favorite episode on the secret life of squirrels. The average tree squirrel can bury up to 10,000 nuts every fall. How do they keep tabs on that stash? Animal behaviorist and pro squirrel watcher Mikel Maria Delgado exposes the secrets of squirrel pantry maintenance. Thanks to caller Cayra. This episode of Every Little Thing was produced by Stephanie Werner, Emily Forman, Phoebe Flanigan, Annette Heist and Flora Lichtman, with help from Nicole Pasulka and Doug Barron. O...
Symphony Secrets: Dirt from the Pit
September 13, 2021 15:24 - 27 minutesThis week, an encore of a favorite episode: What happens behind the scenes at the symphony. Does a triangle player get the same pay as a violinist? Do conductors ever fall off their podiums? Which section do the other musicians love to hate? ELT dishes symphony secrets with violinist Akiko Tarumoto and conductor Rob Kapilow. Special thanks to Nathan Cole and danke schön to caller Laszlo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When Astronauts Come Home
September 06, 2021 14:18 - 29 minutesThis week, we’re revisiting an intergalactic favorite: Preparing for a mission to space takes astronauts years, but listener Daniel wants to know — what does the other end of that journey look like? Record-holding NASA astronaut Christina Koch tells us what happens when space travelers come home. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How Do Streets Get Named?
August 30, 2021 14:00 - 24 minutesCaller Jessica lives on a street with an unwieldy name, and she wants to know: Who gets to name the streets? Deirdre Mask, author of “The Address Book: What Street Addresses Reveal About Identity, Race, Wealth, and Power,” tells us about a project to name all the streets in rural West Virginia, and why having a street address matters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
ELT Presents: Not Past It
August 23, 2021 14:00 - 32 minutesHey ELT fans! There’s a new Gimlet podcast that we think you’ll love. It’s called Not Past It, and it’s the kind of deep-dive into history that we live for at ELT. This episode, Rated PG-13 for Sex and Violence looks at the birth of the PG-13 rating, and how the movie rating system came to be. It’s a story about Indiana Jones and Gremlins, and hidden Puritan agendas. Enjoy! And don’t forget to follow Not Past It on Spotify. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Is It Weird to Be Nice to Alexa?
August 16, 2021 14:00 - 21 minutesThis week we’re hitting repeat on one of our favorite episodes: Listener Elizabeth wants to know if it’s weird to say “please” and “thank you” to her Google voice assistant. ELT talks to former Alexa insider Daren Gill (now senior director of product at Spotify), and human-robot interactions expert Leila Takayama to find out whether people are typically polite to machines. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Do Any Animals Dance?
August 09, 2021 14:56 - 23 minutesAfter trying (and failing) to start a dance party with her dogs, listener Heather wants to know: are there beasts that can boogie? Irena Schulz and Ani Patel break it down. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Cheese: Why Do We Worship Rotten Milk? A NSFW History
August 02, 2021 14:00 - 21 minutesThis week, we’re re-heating one of our ooey-gooey all-time favorite eps: We re-trace the delicious and X-rated history of... cheese, with cheese biochemist and historian Paul Kindstedt. Plus, tips on how to make the most of the dairy aisle from processed cheese expert Lloyd Metzger. And a cicada killer update from cicada killer wasp biologist Chuck Holliday. Thanks to callers Kurt and Judy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Why Is This Goose Out to Get Me?
July 12, 2021 15:32 - 22 minutesListener Corey needs to know if a goose named Dave is targeting him. Goose expert Tony Fox tells us why Dave’s feathers may have gotten ruffled, and offers his advice for dealing with unhappy geese. Special thanks to Casey Williamson, Steve Davis, and Dan Potoczak. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Why Is This Toy Talking?
July 05, 2021 14:00 - 23 minutesListener Megan wants to know who writes the bizzaro lyrics for her son’s talking toys. Talking humans Jay Elkinton and Patrick Feaster tell us all about these earworm emitters — from modern plastic jabber-jaws to the nightmare-inducing doll who started it all. Special thanks to Toby Phillips. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Sand: What's It Really Made Of?
June 28, 2021 16:08 - 20 minutesWe’ve dug up one of our favorite episodes this week: Caller Hank wants to know where the sand on his central California beach came from. Beach buff Kiki Patsch gives us the surprising scoop on how beaches are born. Special thanks to Gary Griggs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Why Is the Ocean Glowing?
June 21, 2021 13:40 - 23 minutesWhile Flora is away, we're shining a light on some of our favorite episodes. Listener Erik saw a mysterious glow in the water during a trip to the beach, and he wants to know more. ELT talks to the “Jacques Cousteau of glow,” a scientist who has spent decades deep diving for answers. Guest: biologist and ocean researcher Edie Widder. Thanks to Eelke Dekker for the seagull and ocean sounds we used in this episode. Thanks also to Steven Haddock, Michael Latz, Matt Davis, Vincent Pieribone, and ...
Hummingbirds: Magical Fairies or Vicious Little Drones?
June 14, 2021 15:40 - 28 minutesCaller Makaila needs to know about the hummingbirds that frequent her father’s feeders. Hummingbird expert Alejandro Rico-Guevara fills us in on their feeding, flying, and fighting feats. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Is My Cat Trying to Murder Me?
May 31, 2021 13:35 - 22 minutesWhile Flora’s out, we’re revisiting an old favorite — caller Megan’s cat has zero empathy and tries to trip her on the stairs. Could he be a psychopath? Jon Ronson, author of The Psychopath Test, and cat psychologist Eva Waiblinger help Megan assess if she's got a killer just a whisker's length away. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Ever Felt Someone’s Pain… In Your Butt?
May 24, 2021 14:56 - 29 minutesWhile Flora's out on parental leave, we're unswaddling some of her favorite babies. Favorite podcast babies. Like this one: Caller Lisa wants to know why her butt hurts whenever she sees someone else get injured. Neuroscientist Stuart Derbyshire shares the cold hard truth about whether some people really can feel your pain. Thanks to queen of Chapped Cheeks Lisa, and to researchers Natalie Bowling, Melita Giummarra, Helena Hartmann, Marina López-Solà, Bridget Rubenking, Jamie Ward, Scott Vran...
Memory Game: Did This Meal Really Happen?
May 10, 2021 15:48 - 24 minutesCaller Liz has a cherished childhood memory about a special meal with her great-grandmother. But she isn’t sure it really happened. How can she tell? Memory researcher Charan Ranganath, director of the Dynamic Memory Lab, fills in the blanks about the memory in question. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When a Million Ants Come Marching In
May 03, 2021 16:18 - 22 minutesListener Gĩtaũ has a serious problem: every so often his home in rural Kenya is invaded by an army of ants. They coat the floors, climb the walls, and rain down on Gĩtaũ and his family while they sleep. Gĩtaũ wants to know: Why are these ants torturing us? Entomologists Dino Martins and Piotr Naskrecki have ant-swers. Special thanks to Caswell Munyai, Caspar Schöning, and Daniel Kronauer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
A Message From Flora
May 03, 2021 15:46 - 1 minuteFlora has a 6- to 9-pound piece of news to drop! She’ll be out on parental leave for a little while. Meet the hosts who’ll be filling in while she’s away. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dog Show Drama: Is There an Anti-Dachshund Conspiracy?
April 19, 2021 15:51 - 28 minutesTerriers have won Best in Show at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show 48 times. Dachshunds? Never. Listener Yona wants to know why terriers triumph but dachshunds don’t get their due. Dog show judge Laurie Williams and dachshund-diehard Kim McCalmont take us behind the scenes of the dog show world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Chasing Ghosts: Searching For Endangered Animals
April 12, 2021 15:20 - 22 minutesListener Diksha wants to know: when an animal species is endangered, how do we know when it’s really gone? Professional frog counter and disease ecologist Jamie Voyles has answers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Skewed Smells: A Weird COVID Mystery
April 05, 2021 15:12 - 22 minutesCaller Leña had COVID-19 last October and temporarily lost her sense of smell. As it started to come back, she noticed something strange — fruity things smelled like burnt hair and condoms. Where are Leña’s mystery smells coming from? Rhinologist Simon Gane fills us in on COVID-related smell loss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Embarrassing Little Tales: The Finalists
March 15, 2021 15:25 - 24 minutesWe asked you to share your fail tales, and you delivered. Now we need your help picking a winner. Thanks to Erica, Dallas, Ryan, Mary, Nasja, David, Samantha, and everyone who called to share their worst moments. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Space Trash: Is It Coming For Us?
March 08, 2021 16:41 - 20 minutesThe Earth is surrounded by a halo of trash — defunct satellites, discarded fuel tanks, one of Elon Musk’s Teslas. Listener Ryan wants to know: Does any of it ever fall down to Earth? ELT talks trash with Lottie Williams, the only person known to have been hit by falling space debris, and Ted Muelhaupt, director of the Center for Orbital and Reentry Debris Study at The Aerospace Corporation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Vodka, Spit, and Coke: How to Spring-Clean Like an Adult
March 01, 2021 16:29 - 24 minutesIt’s spring-cleaning time! To help get you in the mood, we’re dusting off an episode from our archive. Cleaning expert Jolie Kerr tells us when it’s OK to use your own saliva as a cleaning agent, and addresses some listener “cleanspiracies” like: Will vodka clean my clothes? For more cleaning tips, check out Jolie’s podcast Ask a Clean Person. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
A Nasal-Gazing Mystery Solved
February 15, 2021 15:10 - 24 minutesListener Paige heard a rumor: we only breathe through one nostril. Can it be true? ELT gets an answer from someone in the nose — rhinologist Simon Gane. Plus, Science Vs. host Wendy Zukerman joins Flora for an important wombat-butt update. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How Did Dogs Land in Our Laps?
February 01, 2021 16:47 - 26 minutesListener Malik wants to know how wolves became pugs, poodles, and chihuahuas. Zooarchaeologist Angela Perri digs up the answers. Special thanks to Michael Worboys. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Hollywood Punches: How to Make a Knockout Sound
January 18, 2021 14:54 - 23 minutesListener Charlotte has been rewatching “The Sopranos” and the punches keep hitting her ear. Why do Hollywood wallops sound so punched up? Foley artist and Emmy Award-winning sound editor Joanna Fang shares her punch recipe. Plus, do real-life investigators actually connect the dots with red string and thumbtacks? Retired FBI agent Jerri Williams solves the evidence-board mystery. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Scrabble’s Scramble to the Top
January 11, 2021 16:53 - 20 minutesListener Malenia wants to know how her favorite word game came to be. It turns out it took a while for Scrabble to score big. Stefan Fatsis, author of Word Freak, fills in the blanks. Plus, can you beat Flora's most embarrassing story? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How Old is Winnie-the-Pooh?
December 28, 2020 16:08 - 25 minutesWe’re revisiting one of our favorite episodes this week. A few years ago, listener Annie asked ELT to settle a longstanding family debate: exactly how old is Winnie-the-Pooh? To hunt down an answer, we consult with professional age-guesser Ben Ramey, bear biologist Rae Wynn-Grant, and Sarah Shea, a professor who has studied this question. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How Potatoes Took Over the World
December 21, 2020 15:14 - 21 minutesListener Taylor was making a medieval stew when she noticed a prominent ingredient was missing from the recipe: potatoes. Potato biologist Maria Scurrah and journalist Charles Mann explain the potato’s twisting route to stewpot domination. Special thanks to Graham Thiele, Bruce Owen, Alan Covey, and Gary Urton. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Why Does the Wind Make Me Angry?
December 14, 2020 15:59 - 24 minutesListener Christina gets ruffled by a stiff breeze and wants to know if she’s alone in her wind rage. Atmospheric science historian Vladimir Jankovic introduces Christina to her people, and iconic couples therapist Esther Perel, host of “How’s Work” and “Where Should We Begin,” helps Christina rethink her relationship with the wind. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Essential Workers 8 Months Later
December 07, 2020 16:46 - 30 minutesHow are essential workers doing now? We check in with some of the essential workers we talked to back in April and hear what it’s been like to teach, fly on planes, ship packages, and drive a truck during a pandemic. Thanks to Rob, Justin, Tamasha, Lucy, Jacob, Kaleb, Ian, and Dawn. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
How To Be Less Clumsy
November 23, 2020 17:01 - 21 minutesListener Gab is clumsy — white sweaters, stemmed wine glasses, and sharp edges are off the table. Can Gab learn to be less clumsy? Professional steady hand Bryan Berg and kinesiologist Priscila Tamplain share tips for foiling fumbles. Special thanks to Carl Gabbard and Michael Wade. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Dirt on Houseplants
November 16, 2020 17:12 - 23 minutesAttention all you #hortihotties, this week caller Esther asks about houseplants: When did we start keeping them, and has there ever been another houseplant heyday? Guests Catherine Horwood, author of Potted History, and Charlotte Salter-Townshend of the National Botanic Gardens in Dublin sift through the facts and expose the shady side of houseplant history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Crashing Your Most Memorable Meals
November 02, 2020 17:07 - 25 minutesThis week, some comfort food. For a lot of us, the holidays won’t be the same this year. Instead of arguing around the table with our extended families, we’ll be stuck at home with a single-serving of mashed potatoes, face-timing the people we love. So we invited ourselves to your place. We asked you to tell us about a meal you can't forget. And you delivered. Your stories made us laugh, cry and get very hungry. Thanks to callers Margaret, Janae, Brandon, Johnny, Jameson, and Oz, and all of y...
WTF Happened to My Pumpkins?
October 26, 2020 15:21 - 27 minutesFlora’s sister Ruth claims last year’s jack-o’-lantern seeds sprouted... a litter of decorative gourds. ELT gets to the bottom of this pumper stumper. Plus, a spooky Face ID mystery, and a peek under the husk of corn mazes. Guests: professor of horticulture and pumpkin expert Steve Reiners; farmer and corn maze designer Angie Treinen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
A Meal You Can't Forget: Tell Us
October 14, 2020 22:09 - 51 secondsMaybe it’s the spaghetti you ate sitting on the kitchen floor in your first real apartment. Or the congee your best friend made you when your heart got broken. Call and tell us the story about a home-cooked meal that you can’t forget. 833 RING ELT. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
What Sparked That Wildfire?
October 05, 2020 14:42 - 23 minutesCaller Sadera has a burning question: When there’s a wildfire, how do we figure out what caused it? Fire investigator Paul Steensland tells ELT what he searches for in the burnt landscape, and the clues that can lead him to the cause. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Why Do We Cry?
September 28, 2020 15:19 - 24 minutesListener Lily called in about a crying shame: She thinks she cries too much. ELT investigates why we cry, and whether wet cheeks were once très chic. Ad Vingerhoets, crying researcher and clinical psychologist, and Tom Lutz, author of Crying: The Natural and Cultural History of Tears, talk through tears. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Is Your Pet a Righty or a Lefty?
September 21, 2020 15:06 - 25 minutesCaller Juanita wants to know if her cats are southpaws. ELT calls in animal behavior researcher Deborah Wells and neuroscientist Sebastian Ocklenburg for an answer. Plus, why would slugs ditch the shell? Biologist Robert Cowie fills us in. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Frozen Food: How Long Is Too Long?
September 07, 2020 14:20 - 25 minutesAfter their dad served 4-year-old fish for dinner one night, listener Max wants to know how long you can safely keep food in the freezer. Food safety expert Haley Oliver serves up the juicy details. Plus, can tiny eyes see things we can’t? Spider expert Sebastian Echeverri takes us behind some of the most impressive peepers in the animal kingdom. Thanks to listener Miles. In the original version of this episode, we made an error about the types of light jumping spiders can see. All jumping sp...