Footless Goose Murder, Sex in Space, Viking Sicko Mode, Sports Bra Tech

Behold: our LIVE show from earlier this year at Caveat in NYC! Rachel, Jess, Moiya McTier and Claire Maldarelli each bring a weird fact to the stage. Topics run the gamut this week. We've got an avian murder mystery, why having sex in space sucks, how preworkout is kind of like being a Viking Berserker, and how the sports bra is shockingly new. Tune in for a very special episode! The Weirdest Thing I Learned This Week is a podcast by Popular Science. Share your weirdest facts and stories with us in our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook group⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tweet at us⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to learn more about all of our stories! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Links to Rachel's TikTok, Newsletter, Merch Store and More: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/RachelFeltman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Rachel now has a Patreon, too! Follow her for exclusive bonus content: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/RachelFeltman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Link to Jess' Twitch: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.twitch.tv/jesscapricorn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Link to all of Jess' content: ⁠⁠https://www.jesscapricorn.com/⁠⁠ -- Follow our team on Twitter Rachel Feltman: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.twitter.com/RachelFeltman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Produced by Jess Boddy: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.twitter.com/JessicaBoddy⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Popular Science: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.twitter.com/PopSci⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Theme music by Billy Cadden: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/artist/6LqT4DCuAXlBzX8XlNy4Wq?si=5VF2r2XiQoGepRsMTBsDAQ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Speaker 00

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• 0:31Speaker 01

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• 1:00Speaker 02

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• 1:33Speaker 03

  Hello, weirdos. It's Jess, your producer here. I just wanted to give you a quick heads up that you're about to hear our live episode from back in February of this year. It was recorded at Caveat in New York City. As always, the audio might sound a little different, and you'll hear the lovely audience, including friends of the show like Ryan Mandelbaum, shouting bird facts from the audience, and you'll hear us reference some visual aids once in a blue moon. But it's the same old weirdest thing with four super mega excellent weird facts, including one from yours truly. Okay, that's it. I just wanted to let you guys know ahead of time. Enjoy.

• 2:09Speaker 04

  Welcome to the weirdest thing I learned this week. Please put your hands together for Rachel Feltman.

• 2:26Rachel Feltman?

  Hey, everybody. How are we doing?

• 2:31Rachel Feltman?

  We are so excited to be back at Caviar, our favorite place in the world, for another Weirdest Thing live show. I have some amazing co-hosts. I'm gonna welcome them up to the stage now before we get started. First of all, our incredible producer, audio engineer extraordinaire, and Twitch superstar, Jess Bodie.

• 2:58Rachel Feltman?

  Up next, we have longtime Weirdest Thing favorite, and incredible science journalist and marathon runner Claire Maldarelli.

• 3:12Rachel Feltman?

  And last but not least, a fan favorite Weirdest Thing guest, and someone who I want to be when I grow up, Dr. Moya McTeer.

• 3:27Rachel Feltman?

  So, who here has been to a Weirdest Thing live show before? Great. Who's their first time? I guess everybody who didn't raise their hands. Oh, my gosh, first timers! Oh, my gosh, a lot of first timers. We love to see that. Is there anyone here who doesn't listen to the Weirdest Thing I own this week?

• 3:45Rachel Feltman?

  Oh, wow, I see a few hands. Well... You will now. Yeah. Welcome to the party. So, the Weirdest Thing I own this week is a show where we talk about weird history, science, all of the above. And we go on little curiosity spirals together, and it's a whole lot of fun. So, we are gonna roll right into it, because I forgot to write down the intro so that I can say it here live. So, when we play this in our feed later, Jess will help me figure that out. I'll fix it. Yeah, Jess will fix it. Also, welcome everybody who's joining us via livestream. There are a whole bunch of you, which is very exciting. Thank you so much for joining us.

• 4:30Rachel Feltman?

  I am not monitoring your comments because I am here on stage doing this other thing. But if you shoot me an email at rachel@popsci with the subject line weirdest thing, and let me know where you're viewing from, whether you would like us to do a live show there, I will pick a couple of you to send some fun treats to in the mail. So again, thank you so much. We love to have you here, even if you're not here physically. And with that, we can get started.

• 5:02Speaker 06

  We can get weird.

• 5:03Rachel Feltman?

  We can get weird. I also, as some of you may know, if you listen to the show, I came basically straight from my improv 201 graduation class. So you might say, Rachel, don't you have a debilitating chronic illness that causes incredible fatigue when you overexert yourself? And you could say that, but you could also say, wow, Rachel, you really limbered up comedically today. So you won't pull any muscles, you're gonna be great. And I'm really psyched to be here. So thanks, everybody, for joining us. And we're gonna get started. And there will be some trivia and prizes throughout. So you have that to look forward to. So first, we're each gonna say our teases. Because this is totally spontaneous,

• 5:46Rachel Feltman?

  and definitely, we could go in any order based on how exciting the teases sound, and we don't have a PowerPoint that already dictates who is going when. Jess, what's your tease?

• 5:56Speaker 06

  My tease is, "Winnies me!"

• 6:03Rachel Feltman?

  Wonderful, as always. Claire, what's your tease?

• 6:05Speaker 07

  My tease is not that. That's so different than normal teases, I wasn't ready.

• 6:10Speaker 06

  Come on, you gotta spice it up, and we're live!

• 6:14Speaker 07

  Okay.

• 6:17Speaker 07

  My tease is, I am gonna talk about the connection between breathing, jockstraps, multiple of them, weird physics, and running.

• 6:29Rachel Feltman?

  Wonderful.

• 6:30Speaker 06

  So on-brand.

• 6:33Rachel Feltman?

  And Moya, what's your tease?

• 6:35Speaker 06

  My tease is that black holes aren't the only holes in space we should be studying.

• 6:40Speaker 03

  Ayo!

• 6:42Rachel Feltman?

  Wow, love that. My tease is that I'm gonna talk about the unsolved mystery of a famous bird's murder.

• 6:53Rachel Feltman?

  Wow, good thing that got such a response because it's what we're starting with.

• 6:57Speaker 06

  You have to go first.

• 6:59Rachel Feltman?

  So, longtime listeners will know that I have a lot of feelings about the true crime genre. It's like, you know, inherently exploitative, pretty much. No offense if you like it. I like a lot of things that are inherently exploitative. We live in a society. Because like, every victim has a family somewhere, and frankly, every alleged perpetrator has a family somewhere, and it just kinda makes me feel gross. But, of course, longtime listeners also know, there are exceptions to this rule of mine. For example, if a crime was committed hundreds of years ago, and feels kinda quirky and old-timey to me. Or, if it's a crime primarily involving geese.

• 7:36Rachel Feltman?

  We are here today to talk about an inspiring and beloved goose, and a murder most foul.

• 7:46Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah, he died with his boots on. We're gonna get into it. So, when I heard a little snippet of the story of Andy the Goose, I decided I really had to give it the full true crime pasty treatment because all I knew was that this footless goose had been beloved and then had been murdered. And that was the word that everyone used. And the killer had never been brought to justice. So, with that, let's dive in. Also, I was gonna have a little app on my phone that made the Law & Order "Dun Dun", and it wouldn't load, and also that was probably, I was over-engineered anyway, and it was doomed to fail. But, if at any point anyone wants to chime in with a "Dun Dun" when it feels appropriate, ask the spirit moves you, please.

• 8:32Rachel Feltman?

  So, um, the story starts in 1987 with, uh, on the farm of one Donna Mae Shook in Harvard, Nebraska, um, when a great goose was born without feet. His name was Andy, though I don't think she named him, but eventually his name would be Andy, which means his name was always Andy. Um, Andy apparently spent a couple of years, like, hobbling around on the farm, not having a great time, really having, you know, a lot of mobility issues, this farm was not built for him. Um, and, but, don't feel too sorry for him because he had enough game to bag a mate named Polly. And that's Polly, I think, she's, she's a very comely goose. Um, that's Andy. Uh, but, you know, again, he really, he had a lot of, he had a lot of charisma.

• 9:16Rachel Feltman?

  He's a beautiful cock. But, again, you know, he was living in this world that was not built to accommodate him. And, um, after a couple of years, he had a fateful encounter with Donna Mae's brother-in-law, uh, Gene Fleming. So Gene visited the farm, he was from, uh, nearby town of, um, I think Hastings, Nebraska, and he was like, "We got, we can do better for this guy." Like, "I, I can do better." And so he traded his sister-in-law a pair of two other geese to take both Andy and Polly, because he was not gonna, uh, break up that pair. Um, and he took them home to Hastings with him. And luckily, Gene wasn't just a good Samaritan with a bleeding heart for footless geese, he was an inventor.

• 10:00Rachel Feltman?

  He, uh, this is, I believe, not actually an ad for the thing he made, I think it was a competitor, but, look, I had to include this, the injector rub oiler. What? Yeah. So, um, a few decades before, Gene had crafted this device that allowed cows to scratch itches on themselves, um, without damaging their skin, and while also depositing soothing oils and, um, uh, insecticides, you know, to keep them from getting bit. I want that. Yeah, right. They had a rub on it, over its straddle it, really use it. Oh. Uh, and, and they did. Um, anyway, so Gene, this, Gene had been very successful, and he loved to tinker, he apparently had like a whole-

• 10:42Rachel Feltman?

  Whole workshop for, you know, coming up with ways to make animals' lives better, among other things. And so his first attempt in fixing Andy's mobility issues was apparently a little skateboard. His plan was that one of Andy's legs would fit into a groove in the skateboard. And then the other one, Andy would spontaneously, you know, intuitively know to skateboard with it. And which, you know, does seem like a bit of a reach. I imagine it would have looked like this. But the problem is that Andy was a 40-pound goose.

• 11:17Speaker 06

  Wait, 40 pounds?

• 11:19Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 11:20Speaker 06

  Is that big for a goose?

• 11:21Rachel Feltman?

  I feel like that's like for a...

• 11:23Speaker 06

  I don't know.

• 11:24Rachel Feltman?

  You know, I can't say I know. I can't say I know.

• 11:26Speaker 06

  I don't know.

• 11:27Rachel Feltman?

  But it's a hefty bird.

• 11:28Speaker 06

  Yeah, I want Andy to be extraordinary. So let's say it's...

• 11:31Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah, yeah. Is Ryan here? Ryan, is that a normal size for a goose? I don't know, it's pretty big. Okay, thank you.

• 11:37Speaker 03

  Ryan said, "I don't know, it's pretty big."

• 11:40Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah, yeah. Ryan said, "I don't know, it's pretty big." And Ryan is the foremost bird expert I know, so I'll take their word for it. Shockingly, this did not work, but Gene landed a better solution soon enough. The goose needed shoes. Oh. Yeah. Oh. They will soon. Someone asked if they have Nike swishes. And I'm not... That pair might be a pair of Nikes, but that's... We're getting ahead of ourselves. So he bought a pair of $13 size, zero white leather shoes. You know, baby shoes, never worn, if you will. And he packed them with foam rubber so that they... He wouldn't like wiggle around in them. And he was like, "I think this is gonna work."

• 12:21Rachel Feltman?

  And he even put holes in the soles of their shoes to... So that when Andy went for a swim, they would drain. He really thought of everything. And he... There are all these quotes where Gene like remembers what it was like to teach Andy how to walk in shoes, which as you can imagine was a process. And he said, "I held Andy upright for three hours before he figured out what to do with those shoes. But when he got the hang of them, he just took off. Now he struts around like a peacock."

• 12:50Rachel Feltman?

  There was a great love between this man and this goose. It's a beautiful story. And, but those shoes wore out super fast. Turns out geese aren't really conscientious about the care and keeping of their baby shoes. So Gene ended up switching Andy to sneakers, though he apparently also tried to get him interested in custom flippers and cowboy boots. Yo, yee-haw! But, yeah.

• 13:15Speaker 06

  Ready for the cowboy Carter Tour.

• 13:19Rachel Feltman?

  But, no. Sneakers ended up being the name of the game. And then actually, once Nike learned that Andy was particularly fond- What? -of their brand, they sponsored him. And they would send him custom baby shoes every month. Oh my god, that's a dream. That's so cool!

• 13:37Speaker 06

  And the article starts with "take a gander."

• 13:39Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah. Yeah, there's a lot of good, people really enjoyed writing articles and headlines about Andy the Footless Goose, as you can imagine. This one reads, "A Footless Goose Becomes a Foot Loose Goose in Sneaks."

• 13:54Rachel Feltman?

  So, meanwhile, Andy was becoming a real superstar. The local news loved him. I love this picture of him with Gene where he says, "Dr. Gene Fleming, the Quack Doctor."

• 14:08Rachel Feltman?

  And they took, they took Andy to loads of events, at schools and libraries. There is a story I read that once apparently Fleming was with Andy in a motel, I guess they were on their way to an event, and Andy took off down the hallway, and he caught up with him as the goose was running into a ballroom. And there, a local organization was meeting to announce the winners of its annual election of officers. And just as the guy at the podium was saying like, "And our new president is someone you all know very well," and then Andy ran in. And in fact, everyone there did know who Andy was and laughed, thinking it was like an amazing joke that had been set up by the organizers. They were especially into doing events for kids who had mobility issues. This one, I feel like he was angling for Coca-Cola sponsorship personally- Big time. -but I don't know if that ever worked out.

• 14:54Rachel Feltman?

  Because, you know, Gene really hoped that, you know, Andy's use- of a prosthetic and the like very rich life he was living would provide some inspiration. And according to many people who have spoken about Andy over the years, it did. In 1989, he even appeared with Andy on The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson with a fellow guest being Martin Short. Now, I did look for any images or clips of Andy the Goose on The Johnny Carson Show. Unfortunately, I couldn't find that, but I did find a clip of Martin Short's appearance from that same night,

• 15:32Rachel Feltman?

  where he made a rather tasteless joke involving presenting Johnny Carson with a...

• 15:42Speaker 03

  No!

• 15:43Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah. With a cooked bird with sneakers on.

• 15:48Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah, duh, duh, indeed.

• 15:51Rachel Feltman?

  Because then, in 1991, Martin Short really felt like an asshole, probably, because tragedy struck.

• 15:57Speaker 03

  I forgot this was about murder.

• 15:59Rachel Feltman?

  I know, don't worry.

• 16:01Rachel Feltman?

  I was writing and I was like, people are gonna forget.

• 16:05Rachel Feltman?

  I promise we'll have an uplifting ending about Andy. So unfortunately, a goose foot wearing shoe was found in a local park.

• 16:14Speaker 07

  Wait, how old is Andy at this point? I just like, he's had such a life.

• 16:17Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah, he really did have such a life. So this would have been, he would have been four years old at this point. I know, he had a lot of life left in him and when somebody called Gene saying, you know, "We've found these suspicious remains in the park, is Andy okay?" He went out and unfortunately, the pen was empty. Polly and Andy were both gone and there were some like adult-sized sneaker footprints. It's important to note, because if there had, you know, he could have just run away, there could have been very little sneaker footprints, but...

• 16:51Rachel Feltman?

  And people, you know, were very upset about this. There was a local first grader with Spina Bifida who was quoted saying, "He was my favorite goose because he had no feet. Why did they do it?" There were many tabloid headlines about foul deeds. And folks rallied to find the murderer. They raised thousands of dollars to aid in the cause. It even became... It even became part of the infamous satanic panic of the day with a special investigations unit from all the way in Colorado reaching out saying, "We've found some mysterious bird remains. Do you think this is the work of a satanic cult?"

• 17:34Rachel Feltman?

  And strangely, no one accused known goose, known goose sicko, Martin Short. Yeah. But the case went cold. Dun-dun. So that's the part that I heard about that got me all excited. I was like, "No one's ever solved this. There's gotta be like something we can do to figure this out." Then I read a recent piece in Alice Obscura that focused on Jean's granddaughter, Jessica Fleming. She recently decided to dive into this cold case and what she found is both unsatisfying and very complicated. Basically, after years of the police department saying this had just gone cold, they got

• 18:16Rachel Feltman?

  somebody to admit that just two years after this event, they had figured out the person they think is responsible, but they did not want to release their name because they were someone who they considered not responsible for reasons of cognitive impairment. So obviously, it would not be any kind of celebration of Andy's legacy to, you know, name and shame someone who was cognitively impaired as a perpetrator of this crime. And Jessica shared that same sentiment. She actually pivoted from doing like a documentary about this to having a one-woman show called Andy Interrupted. No way. Yeah. Which I hope to see someday. Plug, go see their show if it's anywhere near you.

• 19:00Rachel Feltman?

  So actually, maybe there's no such thing as a victimless true crime story.

• 19:05Speaker 06

  Not for kids?

• 19:06Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah, I think there's cursing, probably. Well, I don't know. I mean, I don't know how graphic it might get, but... Did this become a meta-commentary on true crime? Yeah, I guess, sorry.

• 19:20Rachel Feltman?

  But even though there's no satisfying end to this caper, we can still celebrate Andy's remarkable life. He was a picture-perfect role model and celebrity goose. Also, one question that's been raised for me, that is a case I will be chasing for the rest of my life, is that this picture is captioned with his compatriot Peg Leg Pete, who I could find no other information about.

• 19:46Speaker 06

  What?

• 19:46Rachel Feltman?

  So, who was he? What was his deal? What was he like? And I want to know that. But Fleming told the Chicago Tribune that geese are generally mean creatures who like to sneak up on you when you're bent over and give you a good bite and then you know what. But Andy was the nicest, sweetest guy you ever met. He also said that he seemed to understand that Gene had helped him out, that he was devoted to Gene. He said, "He's a one-man goose."

• 20:26Rachel Feltman?

  And we can celebrate Gene, who was always keeping a lookout for ways to broaden Andy's horizons. Apparently, at one point, he attached some little cleats to a pair of sneakers because Andy had never successfully mounted poly, which is fine. You don't need that to have a loving relationship. But Gene wanted to make sure he knew he had the option, and he wanted to help him get a better grip, better traction.

• 20:53Rachel Feltman?

  So, he made him these cleats. Apparently, Andy was not into it. He never even tried to make that work. So then he got them a pair of Goslings to adopt.

• 21:04Rachel Feltman?

  And then he also decided he needed to make a little vehicle for Andy. He made this little two-wheeler bike.

• 21:14Rachel Feltman?

  And Andy loved like being pushed around on his little bike. And, um, you know, I just think this is a lovely story about two creatures finding each other in the great big world against all odds and definitely making each other's lives better. And also, true crime kinda sucks. But that's just me. Dun dun. Yeah. But anyway, that's the story of Andy the Goose. That's the whole story.

• 21:44Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 21:45Rachel Feltman?

  Thanks, guys.

• 21:52Speaker 00

  This episode is brought to you by Indeed. You're ready to level up your business, but the pressure to find the right person to make that happen is intense. Indeed sponsored jobs can help carry the load. It boosts your job post to help it reach quality talent fast. Cut through the chaos with Indeed sponsored jobs. Get a $75 sponsored job credit at indeed.com/podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Hiring now? Then this is a job for Indeed sponsored jobs.

• 22:22Speaker 01

  Low energy, unfocused, foggy? You might be dehydrated. Gatorade Zero powders have been scientifically designed to help improve hydration balance in the body. With a clinically proven electrolyte blend and no artificial colors or flavors, great tasting hydration no matter where you're going. Shop now online or at retailers nationwide. Gatorade: Hydrates Better Than Water. Is it in you? Symptoms noted are signs of mild to moderate dehydration. Consult a healthcare professional if symptoms persist.

• 22:57Rachel Feltman?

  Next up, we have Claire's fact.

• 23:00Speaker 07

  Yay. Yay. Woo hoo.

• 23:06Speaker 07

  Just the middle button, right?

• 23:08Rachel Feltman?

  The middle button's the pointer, and then the arrows.

• 23:10Speaker 07

  I see. The subway failed me today, and I was late to our orientation to the buttons.

• 23:17Speaker 07

  I'm good. Okay. Aha, nope.

• 23:21Speaker 03

  It's just the right arrow, right?

• 23:22Speaker 06

  Yes, the right arrow.

• 23:22Speaker 07

  I'm doing the right arrow. Aha.

• 23:24Rachel Feltman?

  You're doing great.

• 23:25Speaker 07

  Thank you. Um, okay. So, like I mentioned, I will be talking about sports raz, jock straps, and non-Newtonian goo.

• 23:37Rachel Feltman?

  My favorite kind of goo.

• 23:40Speaker 07

  Um, alright, so, I'm going to start my rabbit hole of all of this. I'm going to switch my hands, because I'm left-handed, and, yeah. Okay.

• 23:50Speaker 07

  Moving on. Now, uh, this is a study that came out in the Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, and it astonished me, and I'm hoping it will astonish you too, because it's the basis for the entirety of my segment, so if it doesn't, then, uh, just relax, I guess.

• 24:11Speaker 07

  This study, uh, was funded by the athletic apparel company Lululemon, so take that with a grain of salt, as you do as science journalists. And it was conducted by researchers at the University of British Columbia, and one of the researchers that did this is a former elite athlete. So she was an Olympian in the steeplechase, which is this weird, bizarre...

• 24:31Speaker 06

  Intense.

• 24:32Speaker 07

  Yeah.

• 24:32Speaker 06

  The worst.

• 24:35Speaker 07

  Uh, yeah, it could be, it could be by some, considered the worst.

• 24:40Rachel Feltman?

  Sorry, what is that?

• 24:41Speaker 06

  The worst for my survival.

• 24:42Speaker 07

  Uh, oh, you don't know the steeplechase?

• 24:43Rachel Feltman?

  I don't know this.

• 24:44Speaker 03

  I don't know the details, but it's involved.

• 24:46Speaker 07

  Um, I'm gonna get, oh, everyone who has run the steeplechase is gonna hate me, because I don't, I wasn't ready for this question. It involves running over hurdles into giant puddles of water, and then not drying off, and keeping going on the track for a couple laps, a many laps, until you're done.

• 25:07Speaker 03

  It's like a structured obstacle course, kind of.

• 25:10Speaker 07

  Yeah, okay, okay, got it.

• 25:11Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 25:11Speaker 07

  Involves water and hurdles, and...

• 25:14Speaker 06

  Yeah, and sprinting, yeah.

• 25:17Speaker 07

  It is, it would be my least favorite one, for sure. Okay, so, why is this hitting me?

• 25:26Speaker 07

  Yeah, so she did the study. Back to this, I was not meaning to spend all this time on the staple case. Staple case. So she followed the breathing and lung function of nine elite runners as they ran on a treadmill. And the crux of this story of the study was that they wore this custom sports bra that had a, like the, what do you call this? Like the band. The band, yeah. It was extremely adjustable in a way that sports bras that you would buy at the store or not. Like, some are adjustable, some aren't, but this one was like made to be weirdly adjustable, such that they could tighten it and loosen it. And so they told the athletes that tighten this sports bra to whatever you feel comfortable at, and then run on a treadmill.

• 26:11Speaker 07

  And I won't go into the details of how they tracked how much oxygen they took in into their lungs, because it's gnarly and weird, and it gives me the queezies. So, but involves tubes down your nose and... Oh! Yeah, so we're gonna pass on that. Even though I do feel like I love science and health and medicine, but whatever. Yeah, so they found that when the athletes tightened it themselves and said like, "This is a comfortable positioning for, like, if I were to go out for a run right now," that

• 26:51Speaker 07

  they, their lungs were so constricted that they consumed less oxygen than if they had loosened it to like the loosest setting. And so that makes you think like, "What the heck is up with sports bras? Why are they constricting my lung functioning when I'm supposed to be running?" And so there has been a couple of other studies. Obviously, this one is very small, it's only nine people. There have been other ones that found similar conclusions, but all of this is to say that sports bra research and innovation is like very bad. Like, it could get like a D, like barely past the class.

• 27:35Speaker 03

  What about a double D?

• 27:43Speaker 07

  So that is going to take me to the rest of my talk, which is how did we get there? How do we have so much innovation in every other area of science, tech, whatever? Even in running, why do we have $300-plus marathon running shoes? But yet, we don't have a sports bra that doesn't constrict our lung functioning? So that takes us to the OG bra, the jog bra. I just jumped all of my slides, so now I'm going to find where I am. Okay, the sports bra.

• 28:23Speaker 07

  It was invented by Lisa Lindell, Hinda Miller, and Polly Palmer-Smith, I want to get their names right, in 1977, and it was a fairly pivotal moment for women's sports. So up until this time, the jogging era, which is like just fun to look at all the weird outfits, we were like, we're going to jog in this in the 70s. It was taking off, but for women, at least on the official stage, they were largely left out of this. And that was all the way up until June 23, 1972, when President Nixon signed the Education Amendments of 1972, which included Title IX, which stated that no person in the United States shall,

• 29:07Speaker 07

  I just think that we should say it, like what is Title IX? It's boring, but on the basis of sex, but excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any educational program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. So this act essentially required that grade schools and universities provide equal access, and perhaps more important, most importantly, the resources for women, including athletic scholarships, equipment, and facilities. As such, Title IX exponentially increased the number of women in sports across age ranges. So in 1972, about 30,000 women participated in college sports. And now in 2020, there are...

• 29:51Speaker 07

  Two hundred and twenty-two thousand nine hundred and twenty female athletes. So incredible.

• 29:58Speaker 07

  But here we still have a problem. Women didn't have the proper tools to run with. For one, shoes at the time, and still now, that's a whole nother topic. My god, I love doing segments on this. But they're still unisex and designed with men's feet in mind. And second, perhaps most importantly, and the point of this talk, I'm going on way too many tangents, there was no such thing as a sports bra. In 1972, no such thing.

• 30:25Speaker 07

  So, yeah, I'm just gonna stay on that slide. A short biology lesson here. There are no muscles within breasts. Breasts are made up mostly of fat, connective tissue, lymph nodes, and of course, blood vessels. And their form and structure are headed together by fibrous elasticy bands of tissue called Cooper's ligaments, which was named after some dude named Cooper.

• 30:51Speaker 07

  And that helps create this network of mammary glands and fatty tissue, but they do absolutely nothing to control how breasts move. And that's why breasts themselves can literally cause a variety of health issues from shoulder, neck, and back pain to headaches and other conditions.

• 31:09Speaker 07

  So athletes with breasts up until this point had a really huge challenge at the time that Title IX was passed, because the majority of bras, no sports bra existed, and then if they had to choose, these bras had underwire, and the majority of them had hooks and clasps that essentially provided the opposite of holding breasts in place while you were exercising. So it was like, well, I'm guessing here, but it was potentially even worse to be wearing a bra while running than wearing no bra at all. It was truly that bad. So, enter three women.

• 31:46Speaker 07

  Lisa, Hinda, and Polly. And they had all recently taken up jogging for a variety of reasons. I think they were in their twenties. Perhaps one of them was their late twenties, early thirties. And some of them were trying to get in shape. And others were just doing it for mental health reasons. But they were all frustrated by the same thing, that they had no good bra to run in. So they essentially created a sports bra from scratch. And the idea, which was reported in a variety of publications, from Runner's World to Defector, as well as the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, has a whole section on how the jog bra came to breed.

• 32:27Speaker 07

  But I'm going to quote from Defector, who interviewed all three of these women for an article on the oral history of the invention of a sports bra and how it came to be. Quote, "My breasts were flopping all over the place, Lisa remembered. My bra straps would flip off my shoulders and I would always pull them down. And sometimes it would get very hot and sweaty under my breasts. I figured that was the price I had to pay. Until my sister Victoria started jogging. She called me and said, 'What do you wear for a bra?' I said, 'I don't really have a good solution. I've tried wearing a bra that was a cup size too small, but that doesn't really help.' Then, 'But that doesn't really help.' Blah, blah, blah."

• 33:11Speaker 07

  And I totally cut off the best quote in this whole thing in my clips of this. So basically, she says, "I just wish that there was a jock strap for women." And then her sister's like, "Oh, my God, you're brilliant." The light bulb went off after Lisa said herself, "Wait a minute, that's a really good idea." So after numerous iterations, a painful process of navigating a business, and just for a side note here, you should look up this Defector article, because it really goes into like extreme detail of how incredibly challenging it was to start a business as three women in the seventies for something that essentially no company wanted, no one wanted. Wanted to sell.

• 33:56Speaker 07

  So the early design of the product really does resemble to a jockstrap strapped together because they were taken by the utility of the design of the jockstrap, which actually, like, it's, you know, it's a really good product. So, I get it. I really do get it. But they really transformed this idea into a really innovative, at least in my opinion, product that was so drastically different from any of the bras available at the time. So, this is the original design, and it's actually in the Smithsonian, which is cool. And then, this was like, the first one that kind of made it to big sales. So their business grew, and they eventually employed nearly 200 workers and created a variety of bras, including the sport shape bra for people with larger breasts, and a

• 34:41Speaker 07

  bra top that covered the midriff of the abdomen, very trendy, I guess, I don't know. And then eventually, other sports bra companies started taking note and coming up with their own takes on the design. And so, companies like Nike started coming out with sports bras, Reebok, and they were up against competition. So, once that happened, they eventually decided that at that point, it was time for them to bow out. They all had different careers. I think one of them, that was like, the main designer of the three, she literally worked on the Muppet Show, and she was like, "I'm having way too much fun on the Muppet Show, I'm like, done with bras. Let's just like, let's sell out here.

• 35:24Speaker 07

  Game over." And, so, they eventually sold in 1989 their company to Playtex Products, which is, I think Playtex is known for their tampons, but, I don't know, maybe you know it as something, I don't know, what else they make. And, in the Defector article, it quotes Hinda saying, "Back then, it seemed like a huge amount of money that they sold it for, but quote, 'Now it's nothing. They got so much value for what they bought.'"

• 36:01Speaker 07

  And Lisa and Hinda have found that they agree on one aspect of the story, that there was no time when I knew this was not going to be an iconic product. She said, "It was a daily grind. We weren't visionaries for the future, but we were on the ground. It was the time of our life. We were taking a chance." And I will say, the defector article goes way into detail. Lisa and Hinda were just so into it. And then the other woman who was on the Muppets show, she was like, but she was key because she created the design. They were just like, "I don't know how to put two jog straps together. You do." And she was like, "I have a full-time job here." So it's truly an amazing article.

• 36:46Speaker 07

  So that's the origins. And then I skipped over a slide because this one, I don't think you can see that well. And it is like an advertisement for how to put on a sports bra from, I believe it was the 1996 U.S. Olympic team. So I have nothing to say about this other than like, I'm surprised that even in 1996, we still did not have...

• 37:14Rachel Feltman?

  They were like, "Can we introduce you to the concept?"

• 37:17Speaker 07

  Literally.

• 37:23Speaker 07

  Okay, moving on. So, sorry, I lost my place. So that was the origins of the original sports bra. But where are we now? So that was like 1970s. We are now in the year 2025. Where are we at? Unfortunately, there have been very few significant advances in sports bra design and innovation since the jog bra. That tracks. Literally, yes. Almost nothing. And its competitors really haven't done all that much in this space as well. There is one that I do want to highlight that I'm obsessed with. It's the Reebok PureMove bra,

• 38:05Speaker 07

  which I wrote about for Popular Science back in 2018. And it contains a substance that is very similar to the physics in Ublak, which is a non-Newtonian goo, fluid, whatever. I like goo.

• 38:27Rachel Feltman?

  Jess is like, "Oublak." I'm in. Yeah.

• 38:29Speaker 07

  And what oublak is essentially is just like a combination of cornstarch and water. But when this happens, it takes on, the substance takes on properties that are not quite a liquid and also not quite a solid. So, uh, my, that's my niece in the top right.

• 38:46Rachel Feltman?

  Aww.

• 38:48Speaker 07

  She, yeah, we, we made oublak on Christmas and it was mad fun. Um, so I had, I had to include it. I'm obsessed with her. I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm an obsessed aunt.

• 38:59Speaker 03

  She's so old now. Remember when your sister was pregnant? I love that.

• 39:05Speaker 07

  So this phenomenon, the oublak, what it does, um, it does this weird physics phenomenon called shear force thickening, where when you apply significant rapid force, the viscosity increases so quickly that the substance actually acts like a solid instead of a liquid. And then when it's at rest, it acts like a liquid. Just crazy cool.

• 39:28Speaker 03

  It's like where you can like smack it and it's like solid, right?

• 39:30Speaker 07

  Exactly.

• 39:31Speaker 03

  But then if you like pour it slowly, it's liquid.

• 39:32Speaker 07

  Yeah, exactly. So that's what they're doing in that, in that bottom right picture. And a lot of the research for shear force thickening and, and oublak is, um, in creating helmets and other like, uh, like protective equipment. Um, but sports bras could use it as well. So what Reebok did was create a material that contains this shear force thickening properties, such that if you move rapidly, the material will act like a solid. I just, brilliant. Now, is it perfect? No, I own the bra. I had the original version of it. Like I said,

• 40:13Speaker 07

  I wrote about it for Popular Science back in 2018. And it's like, it's good. I just think it needs improvements and, um, Reebok has not done, like, has not done any improvements on it since. And they're still selling the original version. I don't think that it's going to be out for that much longer. And it just doesn't seem like there is a big innovation in that space. And this all relates back to the original peg for doing this whole story, is that there's this... Issue with sports bras and why can't we solve it? Why can't two jock straps strapped together solve it?

• 40:54Speaker 07

  Why can't strange bizarre physics solve this? And I, I mean, I think everyone has their opinions, but for me, I just truly think there's not enough money and there are not, not enough awareness of this problem. And unfortunately, a study funded in, funded by Women in Sports, published in March 2022, found that one in two teenage girls right now, about 43%, stop participating in sports, starting at age 14. What? And I know, crazy statistic. That's so sad. So, yeah, I'm bringing, this is supposed to be like, let's all, let's all leave here and start making sports bras right now. But I think I'm bringing, wow, I'm bringing it down. Okay, we're gonna bring it back up.

• 41:39Speaker 07

  So there is a problem. We should solve it. And there's just so many ways that we can do it, including weird physics and already in use products. And we should make a better sports bra. Agreed.

• 41:55Rachel Feltman?

  Woo!

• 41:56Speaker 07

  Yeah.

• 41:56Speaker 06

  Yeah.

• 42:03Speaker 00

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• 42:33Speaker 01

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• 43:18Speaker 06

  Yes, like I said, black holes, not the only holes we should be paying attention to. When we're talking about studying things in space. And so I wanted to talk to you all because this week I learned that astronomers are surprisingly prudish when it comes to studying sex in space. Are any of you surprised? No, you're not surprised that NASA doesn't want to study sex? Okay, well then let me tell you why I am surprised. I am surprised because I am an astrophysicist. I have known many astrophysicists. I've gone to conferences with them. I've gone to conference after-parties with them. I've had to sit in lectures where they tell me the things that they have named in space. And I'm here to tell you that we're all a bunch of horny little freaks.

• 44:03Rachel Feltman?

  Astrophysicists [BLEEP].

• 44:04Speaker 06

  They, yes, we do. I corrected myself. I was like, "They," no, "we." That's right. Yes, we do. No, astronomers have looked at galaxies out in space and they've assigned different words to different parts of galactic anatomy. So when I was in grad school taking a galactic astronomy course at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursday mornings, the way that I would stay awake was when the professor would say, "The Milky Way's bulge is so dense."

• 44:35Speaker 06

  Wake me right up. We've developed software packages called SexTractor.

• 44:43Speaker 06

  It ostensibly stands for "source extractor", where you're supposed to be able to take an astronomical image and extract the source from it? No. No, they've named it after an amorous farm tool. This is ridiculous. We have the PP chain. In one of my galactic astronomy classes, we learned about the kink instability. So we really are just thinking about sex all the time as astronomers. And it's not just that. We also study, I think, the most romantic science. In my opinion. Because really, are you gonna go on a first date to a wet lab? Are you gonna go dissect a pig for a first date? Are you gonna go do some titrations? No. You're gonna go stargazing.

• 45:28Speaker 06

  You're gonna go out in a field, you're gonna get some bubbly, and you're gonna look up at the stars. It's gonna make you all hot and bothered.

• 45:33Rachel Feltman?

  No kink shaming to the titration folks.

• 45:35Speaker 06

  Yeah. No. You're valid. No. Like, be safe, though.

• 45:40Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah, oh, so true.

• 45:42Speaker 06

  Titration is all about being careful.

• 45:46Speaker 06

  But, you know, sometimes people just get into it. They don't know the protocols.

• 45:49Rachel Feltman?

  Titrate responsibly.

• 45:52Speaker 06

  Yet another piece of evidence to show that astronomy is the most romantic, the sexiest science. We had a bachelor who was an astrophysicist. Really? Yes, we did. I don't know anything about him. Should I watch The Bachelor?

• 46:05Rachel Feltman?

  No, I should have really made more hay out of that.

• 46:08Speaker 06

  Yeah. Well, the astronomy community was quite proud. I think this was in 2019? Are there Bachelor fans in the audience? No, it's... No. No. Silence.

• 46:20Rachel Feltman?

  Thank you. Thank you, friend, 2018.

• 46:22Speaker 06

  Thank you. So, yeah, I don't know anything else about him other than that he was able to convince 20-plus women to try and vie for his attention, based on the fact that he looked like this, I guess, and studied space.

• 46:36Speaker 06

  So despite the fact that astronomers should be quite horny and we should be thinking about how sex in space works all the time, NASA's official stance is very quiet. They're going for like a don't ask, don't tell type of policy. But almost 700 people have been in space. The last time I checked, the number was like 681 people have been in space. The International Space Station has been continuously occupied since Halloween of 2000. And Butch Williams and SUNY... No.

• 47:09Rachel Feltman?

  Butch Wilmore and SUNY Williams.

• 47:11Speaker 06

  Yeah, thank you.

• 47:12Rachel Feltman?

  I've had to talk about them a lot. They've been stuck a long time.

• 47:14Speaker 06

  They've been stuck there a long time.

• 47:15Speaker 07

  They're still there.

• 47:16Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah, they're still there.

• 47:17Speaker 06

  And you're trying to tell me they haven't exchanged some flirty glances? Nothing? All of these opportunities for space sex have occurred and yet NASA's trying to tell us that there have been no, no events of intercourse up in space. I just don't, I don't buy it.

• 47:34Rachel Feltman?

  It's like being in a Catholic high school.

• 47:36Speaker 06

  Yes. Yes. Or working at a Girl Scout camp. You know? I say as someone who worked at a Girl Scout camp called Camp Red Wing. I heard some people in the audience, some people in the audience reacted to that. Thank you. Okay, so NASA's official stance is that no one has had sex in space, although we've studied animals, non-human animals, having sex in space. And we have had a few hoaxes. We've had a few rumors started that NASA has studied sex in space. One rumor was started in 2000 when this guy, Pierre Coller, although he's French, so it's probably like Pierre Coller. He, he published this book in 2000 called The Final Mission.

• 48:21Speaker 06

  And in it, he talked about this space shuttle report from 1996 that NASA tried to bury. And they said that NASA sent up a space shuttle, STSXX was the mission code. And they were going to study 20 different sexual positions that a bunch of scientists had come together and... There it is.

• 48:49Speaker 06

  Had come together and decided those were the 20 we should try. In the report that Collet talked about in his book, they said that only four of these 20 sexual positions were possible without mechanical help.

• 49:04Rachel Feltman?

  I mean, they literally need to be strapped in to use a treadmill.

• 49:08Speaker 06

  Yes.

• 49:09Rachel Feltman?

  They use mechanical help for everything.

• 49:10Speaker 06

  For everything, yeah. You're trying to tell me this is the one type of exercise that doesn't need bands? No, I don't buy it. And so, I think all types of lovers in the audience might be interested to know that missionary sex, the missionary position, was deemed impossible by this 1996 report. Good, get creative. Exactly.

• 49:31Rachel Feltman?

  You're in space.

• 49:33Speaker 06

  Yeah, you gotta leave the low-hanging fruit on the ground. You can't reach it up in space. And so, for like 10 years, this rumor kind of proliferated until it was discovered that Pierre Collet had completely made this up. NASA did not in 1996.

• 49:52Rachel Feltman?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 49:54Speaker 06

  I said hoax before. I was distracted. You're right. I'm just such a good storyteller. Yeah, so it was a hoax. The community was kind of outraged and also, I guess, their faith in the conservative nature of NASA had been restored for some people. And we kind of went on from there, not studying human sex in space, but definitely studying some animal kingdom sex in space.

• 50:20Speaker 07

  Wait, why did he make it up? Why would you joke about sex in space?

• 50:26Rachel Feltman?

  Sex cells, sex cells.

• 50:28Speaker 06

  Exactly, that's the reason. But I think Collet's hoax, Collet's little prank, does point at some interesting things that we should be studying in space. There are some people who want to like colonize other planets, some people who are thinking about the long-term sustainability of humanity and what we're going to do if we need to go to another planet to survive. We would need to [BLEEP]. We would need to make babies out in space, and we need to know how viable that is. It turns out to be pretty difficult because, first of all, just the mechanics of it, like how do you physically stay together in microgravity when every action has an equal and opposite reaction?

• 51:12Rachel Feltman?

  Pingin' around.

• 51:13Speaker 06

  And if one thrust is just bouncing you all around the ISS.

• 51:18Speaker 06

  And so brilliant minds came together to think about how they could solve this problem. And what they came up with was something called the two suit. Hopefully you can see that picture a little bit. But it is just like a flight suit with strategically placed holes and Velcro to keep people strapped together.

• 51:35Speaker 03

  The sexiest sound known to man, Velcro.

• 51:43Speaker 06

  Does that not get you in the mood, Jess?

• 51:45Speaker 03

  It does now.

• 51:48Speaker 06

  This has been tested, not actually in microgravity outside of Earth's atmosphere, but during a parabolic flight where you can kind of simulate microgravity. The inventor, Vanna Banta, did test this out. She invented it in 2006 and it has been touted as one of humanity's best inventions that could help us in the future.

• 52:13Rachel Feltman?

  I do have, I like, I would love to have like binoculars on the wall for when they try to test it. Because it looks, from the picture, it looks like they're in one of those like things where you get little parabolic, like brief zero-gravity. So it's like that you get like maybe half a minute.

• 52:30Speaker 06

  Uh huh.

• 52:30Rachel Feltman?

  So.

• 52:30Speaker 04

  Oh, a quickie.

• 52:32Rachel Feltman?

  So I could just see them like rushing to get something done and then like falling on the floor and then being like, we have, we have T minus two minutes until our next endeavor. So I bet that was just goofy and fun.

• 52:45Speaker 06

  Yeah, a barrel of laughs, I'm sure, this whole endeavor. But that's not the only issue we have to face when we're thinking about having sex in space. Sex in space is probably going to be pretty soft. It's going to be real hot and wet in all the wrong places. That is because your blood pressure is lower when you're up in space. We depend on gravity a lot to make our blood fall to the lower parts of our body. And our heart has to work to get it up to our head, but that doesn't happen in space. And so it might be difficult for blood to rush to lower parts of the body, which is kind of essential for sex to happen.

• 53:21Rachel Feltman?

  For a certain kind of sex, yes.

• 53:23Speaker 06

  For, for most sex.

• 53:24Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah, no, it's true, because arousal.

• 53:26Speaker 06

  Because arousal. I'm not just talking about erections. I am talking about all kinds of arousal. It depends on the flow of blood to certain parts of the body, and that's going to be difficult up in space. You know what's not hard up in space? Aside from dicks. It's sweating. Sweating is really easy up in space because convection isn't as efficient at carrying heat away from your body. So if you're getting hot and heavy, you're gonna get really hot, and you're not gonna be very heavy.

• 53:54Speaker 06

  But it's just gonna be very sweaty, and the sweat's going to stick around and just float around you when you're having... Exactly. Just really picture it. Really let your imagination run. So sex is not gonna be great because when the fluids do eventually come out... They're gonna go everywhere. It's gonna be really hard to keep things contam... Contamination's gonna be a huge issue with bodily fluids and with any sorts of viruses that people may be shedding. Did you know that NASA has spent about $100,000 over the last few decades trying to study herpes in space? What? Yeah. Super-space mutant herpes is a problem

• 54:41Speaker 06

  because it's easier for the virus to move around. It is a high-stress environment, which makes reactivation a bigger problem. Actually, 60% of astronauts have had herpes infections reactivate while they're up in space. Oh, wow.

• 54:57Rachel Feltman?

  And most people have herpes.

• 54:58Speaker 06

  Most people do.

• 54:59Rachel Feltman?

  Don't be weird about it.

• 55:00Speaker 06

  Including astronauts. Yes. And so, also, the cosmic radiation can add some mutation effects. So not just herpes that's very easy to spread and come back, but it can mutate thanks to extra-space radiation.

• 55:14Rachel Feltman?

  Right, well...

• 55:15Speaker 06

  Big problem that NASA's looking out for. And then, like I said, we're interested because we want to have babies, potentially, on some interstellar faring thing going on. But how can we have babies grow to full-term under extreme radiation environments and with microgravity? Apparently, gravity plays a pretty big role in later development stages for human embryos. And so, this is just like a very rife place for curiosity and questions. And like, we wanna know a lot that's going on here, but we're not willing to study it in humans. So we've been studying it in other things.

• 55:54Speaker 06

  We did try studying some rats. Russia set up rats. They did get pregnant in space, but the babies did not survive. They were not born live. It's very sad. We did try... Oh, no. Oh, no, roaches. Russians also tried roaches. They did. In 2007, they sent up a roach, Nadejda, I think was her name. And she... They sent up two roaches, Nadejda and a male lover. And... Okay, so I spent a long... R.I.P. to my search history, because I spent a long time looking for pictures of cockroaches having sex. I was just gonna ask, is that how they do it? Butt to butt? Yes. I did not expect that. Me neither.

• 56:38Speaker 06

  Of all of the animal copulation pictures that I looked up for this talk, they had the most variation in terms of position. Oh, really? So, good for the cockroaches. Oh, my God. Yes. Nadejda did get pregnant up in space, and then she came back to Earth and gave birth to 33 little roach-lit babies. Wow. And they all seemed very healthy. Yes, they all seemed very healthy, but they didn't seem very normal. All of the space-conceived roach babies were born with a red coat on their little, like, butt thing instead of a dark brown coat, like all of the Earth-born cockroach babies. Scarlet letter.

• 57:20Speaker 06

  You space harlot, you... America has tried to send up salamanders. We've tried to send up tadpoles. It has not been successful. But the very first instance of successful reproduction in space was in 1994, when Japan sent up two... The ISS, I think. Or on a NASA space shuttle. They sent up four rice fish. And they videoed these rice fish having fish sex. And then they left the fish up there long enough for the eggs to hatch. They laid 43 eggs between these four fish. And eight...

• 58:03Speaker 06

  Eight of them hatched up in space and were totally fine. And then by the time they came back, I think it's something like 30 of them hatched on Earth, and they were also totally fine. So we've seen some varied success. The fish do it great. Sometimes, sometimes the cockroaches can do it. But we have never successfully seen a mammal reproduce in space. In 2022, the Chinese Space Agency floated out an idea that they would send monkeys up into space to see if they could reproduce naturally. And there was a huge public outcry. PETA was not happy. People who looked at these adorable monkeys' faces and saw reflections of the human face

• 58:47Speaker 06

  staring back at them were also not very happy.

• 58:49Rachel Feltman?

  How do you know the monkeys don't want to go to space and have sex in space? That's so valid. Really presumptuous, honestly.

• 58:53Speaker 06

  Right? Right? Like, if there are humans who would want to do that, then there are definitely monkeys who would want to do that. But the outcry won. People called it cruel and unusual punishment, so China did not send monkeys up into space yet. Yet. We'll see what happens there. But it does seem like the international professional space community is not willing to do this type of research. However, this research needs to be done. So what's going to happen next? I think there's just going to be a bunch of informal, peer-reviewed studies happening with the proliferation of private space exploration.

• 59:32Rachel Feltman?

  You know those people, one of the up there [BLEEP].

• 59:34Speaker 06

  Yes. I'm sure that people will spend many millions of dollars to go have sex in space if they have the opportunity. We see that it's just getting bigger. By 2032, we expect it to be a 17-plus-billion-dollar industry, the private space, commercial space thing. So people will be having sex in space. We'll see, we'll see what studies we can do with that information. But until then, until we know more, the next time you are knocking boots, be grateful that it's here on Earth where things are the right textures and the right humidities. Yeah, thank you.

• 1:00:18Speaker 00

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• 1:00:52Speaker 07

  Okay, and now Jess, take it away.

• 1:00:56Speaker 03

  I will. This is my effect. So, oh wait, this is, okay, that's spoilers. Okay, something about me. I like to exercise. Namely, I like, I have my notes on my phone, forgive me. I like to lift weights. I like how it makes me feel. I like that it is utilitarian. I can navigate my life better. I love that it makes me be able to let, I can make toxically masculine men feel inferior.

• 1:01:23Speaker 06

  Absolutely.

• 1:01:26Speaker 03

  Which I already get to do because of my height, but if I have muscles too, they hate me and that's great. So, ruining gender norms rips, especially in our increasingly patriarchal society. Can, you know, can I get a hell yeah?

• 1:01:37Speaker 06

  Hell yeah.

• 1:01:38Speaker 03

  Great. So, the last year or so, I've been wanting to kick it up a notch for no reason in particular. So, I've been experimenting with pre-workout.

• 1:01:48Speaker 07

  Oh, boy.

• 1:01:49Speaker 03

  Yeah, see, mixed reaction from the crowd. I know, it's contentious. For those that don't know, pre-workout is a supplement that you chug for hitting the gym. It helps you-

• 1:01:59Speaker 07

  Wait, is that literally what it's called? Pre-workout?

• 1:02:01Speaker 03

  Yeah, that's what it's called. What would you call it?

• 1:02:04Speaker 07

  I don't know, just like, yeah, okay. Makes sense.

• 1:02:08Speaker 03

  Well, I don't know if that's like a term that's been, like, you know, created by the community and then now like brands use it, which is my guess. But yeah, you drink it before you hit the gym and you can lift heavier, you have more energy, that kind of thing. And like hardcore gym goers, the gym bros, they like, you know, argue about the nitty gritty details about which one like, you know, has the best micronutrients, which one gives you the best supplement, whatever. If you're like me, you would just like to pick the one that has the prettiest packaging and it tastes good like a slushy. And, you know, isn't like a scary... You know if it has like a number in the word? You just don't take that one. Don't take that one.

• 1:02:50Speaker 03

  So, yeah, you know, also non-spawn, but I love Alani Nu. And if you're listening...

• 1:02:56Rachel Feltman?

  Alani, call us.

• 1:02:57Speaker 03

  Call us. So, yeah, pre-workouts, they can have a whole bunch of weird compounds, you know? All that stuff to make you work out better, grow bigger muscles, whatever. But mainly, in most pre-workouts, it's carbs, like sugar for energy. Caffeine, it's a lot of caffeine. It's usually like 200mg of caffeine, which is like a Red Bull or a Celsius, basically. And a lot of them have this compound called beta alanine, which looks like this. Oh, my God, you guys are best oohing and aahing for a picture of a molecule. You guys rule. So this thing, it does, this is like, a lot of, you know, a lot of supplements and stuff don't have a lot of like scientific proof that they work.

• 1:03:37Speaker 03

  This thing does, and it helps delay muscle fatigue by kind of impeding lactic acid. So it doesn't let lactic acid build up and bind and all that stuff. It has a side effect. It creates something that I like to call the creepy crawlies. Which is like, it feels like there's a bunch of little friendly bugs crawling around your skin, and they're kind of itchy and...

• 1:03:58Rachel Feltman?

  As long as they're friendly.

• 1:03:59Speaker 03

  They're friendly. So I like the creepy crawlies. Like, I... I'm horrified. I like it. I think it's like fun. It's like, ooh, it's time to go to the gym. They're encouraging. You gotta run away from the bugs. Yeah, right. Well, the only way to make it go away is to have a really good workout. If you don't want the bugs, you can get a pre-workout that doesn't have beta alanine, if you're boring. Or if you're afraid of bugs, that's also valid.

• 1:04:27Rachel Feltman?

  I'm not afraid of bugs.

• 1:04:29Speaker 03

  You just don't want them under your skin.

• 1:04:30Rachel Feltman?

  Yeah.

• 1:04:31Speaker 03

  Yeah, that's fair.

• 1:04:31Rachel Feltman?

  Which is valid.

• 1:04:32Speaker 03

  That's valid. So, yeah, you know, physical benefits of pre-workout, they're there. They're definitely there. Also, be careful if you're gonna use pre-workout...

• 1:04:40Rachel Feltman?

  Potent.

• 1:04:41Speaker 03

  Potent. If you have a heart condition, if you have underlying medical conditions, use caution, talk to your doctor, etc. This is my disclaimer. And, you know, when I started taking it, I like, started slow. Like, start with half a dose or a quarter dose and work up to the full thing. Because I took it for the first time and I was like, oh, this is drugs. And it is. It literally is.

• 1:05:03Speaker 07

  I mean, caffeine's a drug.

• 1:05:03Speaker 03

  It is, yeah.

• 1:05:06Speaker 03

  Let's see, where was I?

• 1:05:10Speaker 03

  So yeah, physical benefits are there. They're apparent, but it goes so much deeper than just the physical benefits. When you take pre-workout, you are actually partaking in a ritual. You're mentally committing and preparing yourself to go get really buff. You know, to totally pump iron, so to speak. So it's kind of like when you're playing Elden Ring, you know, and you chug... Wait, where am I pointing? You chug your physic flask before you... Who's played Elden Ring? Okay, yes, great, there's a handful of us. So this potion, you can formulate with your own little buffs, like, you know, more health, or faster stamina regen, or more damage, whatever.

• 1:05:52Speaker 03

  You formulate that, it only lasts 60 seconds, so you chug it before you go fight a boss. But, you know, if you're taking it, you gotta go through that fog door, because you can't let it run out when you're in the boss fight. So this is essentially the gamer pre-workout. But yeah, you're like, you know, it's a psychological thing. You are committing to go in there and do your thing. But, you know, this idea of this mental commitment, it goes back way farther than Planet Fitness, Alani New, and the Lands Between. This goes back to the Vikings!

• 1:06:23Speaker 07

  Yay!

• 1:06:24Speaker 03

  Yeah. So there were these legendary Viking warriors called Berserkers. And they would imbibe a certain concoction, we don't know what it was. But they would imbibe something before performing a feat of strength, probably going into battle. Berserkers were known for their ferocity, and allegedly fighting in this trance-like state of blind rage, howling like wild animals, biting their own shields, and sometimes not even being able to distinguish friend from foe. So this 13th-century Icelandic historian, his name was... Snorri Sturlußen. Very Icelandic name, I'm probably not pronouncing it correctly. But this person described berserkers as being, quote, "strong as bears or wild oxen,

• 1:07:08Speaker 03

  killing people with a single blow," and that they were not affected by, quote, "edged weapons or fire." So, sharp weapons or fire, they did not care at all.

• 1:07:17Rachel Feltman?

  That's very like D and D.

• 1:07:19Speaker 03

  Totally. It's very much barbaric.

• 1:07:21Rachel Feltman?

  They're immune to fire damage.

• 1:07:22Speaker 03

  It's so funny, because berserkers in D and D, and now in a lot of JRPGs, like, they are like Viking berserkers, which is so cool. Because they have their own resistances, and it is just like games. But accounts of Viking berserkers, you know, they're kind of here and there. We know a lot from stories and sagas and stuff. But they all agree on one thing, which is that they were notorious for operating in this blind, ferocious rage. We don't know what they were imbibing to kick off this berserker state. Oh yeah, this slide. This is Final Fantasy VIII?

• 1:07:56Speaker 07

  Yes.

• 1:07:58Speaker 03

  Oh, some fans, yes. I'm streaming this on Twitch. If you follow me on Twitch, you know that I've been playing this for a long time now. I'm almost at the end. So, Squall here is in berserker state, which is, he's all red and angry, like a berserker from the Viking times, too. So, a lot of what we know, oh yeah, I said this comes from myths and sagas, but there is a new study out in the last couple of years in the Journal of Ethno-pharmacology, which, that is so cool. So, these researchers say it could have been this hallucinogenic plant called henbane. I'll get back to that in a moment. But, prior to this, people thought it was just like funny mushrooms, you know? Particularly, this one.

• 1:08:36Rachel Feltman?

  It's called emanita mustaria.

• 1:08:39Speaker 03

  You know it. It's a famous one. It's the Alice in Wonderland mushroom, it's the Mario mushroom.

• 1:08:45Rachel Feltman?

  Not good to eat.

• 1:08:46Speaker 03

  Don't eat it.

• 1:08:47Rachel Feltman?

  You'll duel a lot and vomit, maybe have a trip, but like, primarily be dueling and vomiting.

• 1:08:52Speaker 03

  Yes.

• 1:08:53Rachel Feltman?

  So, if you're looking for a trip, that's not the one to go for.

• 1:08:55Speaker 03

  Don't. Yeah, and, yes, that was my next point. No, thank you, thank you.

• 1:09:01Rachel Feltman?

  I can't help myself when we're talking about mushrooms.

• 1:09:03Speaker 03

  I know, it's partial to your interests. So, yeah, like Rachel mentioned, "it induces a drunken state with auditory illusions and shifts in color vision. It can also induce vomiting, hypothermia," this is a pharmaceutical commercial. "It can also induce vomiting, hypothermia, sweating, reddening of the face, twitching and trembling, dilated pupils, increased muscle tone, delirium, and seizures, all of which is not unlike a Viking berserker."

• 1:09:27Speaker 03

  However, did I not put a slide transition? I didn't. Oh, past dress is not getting points today. Okay, this is henbane. This is the other plant they think that is actually more likely that it probably was. So it was, you know, around longer. So it was around since ancient Greece. It's been used in various cultures throughout history as a narcotic, a painkiller, a cure for insomnia, and an anesthetic. So the new study that came out, the researchers were like, this probably accounted for the increases in strength, altered consciousness, delirium, jerking and twitching. I wrote jerking and twitching in here, and I really wanted to make a jerking my peanuts joke, but I can't fit it in, so just pretend that I made a joke with it. And also, red face commonly associated with berserkers.

• 1:10:10Speaker 03

  So all these things that come from this plant, they were like, okay, the Viking berserkers could have just been doing a little henbane before going into battle. And also, it dulls pain. So that's maybe like why they were invulnerable, basically. And also, you'll like this, contributes to inability to recognize faces.

• 1:10:27Rachel Feltman?

  I do have that problem.

• 1:10:29Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 1:10:30Rachel Feltman?

  And I haven't even been doing the henbane.

• 1:10:34Speaker 03

  Yeah. The other thing that researchers said that henbane can do is that it can cause removal of clothing.

• 1:10:41Rachel Feltman?

  That sounds like, that is so specific.

• 1:10:47Speaker 03

  I know.

• 1:10:48Rachel Feltman?

  That it really sounds like someone just needed to excuse away their things.

• 1:10:52Speaker 03

  Yes, it's just the henbane. It's just the henbane. And finally, this plant can also lower blood pressure, which we're talking a lot about today.

• 1:11:01Rachel Feltman?

  It's important.

• 1:11:02Speaker 03

  It's important. But that's why, apparently, they're saying like, oh, that's why Viking berserkers were immune to edged weapons, because their blood pressure was so low they don't bleed a lot. I'm like, okay, maybe. And also that, you know, the mushroom doesn't give you a Hangover for like the next couple of days and Viking Berserkers were known to like be down for the count after battle like hangover wise and this one does give you a hangover. So it also grows rapidly as a weed and is known to have flourished in Scandinavia during the Berserker era and they found a grave in Denmark dating back to 980, the year 980, which had a pouch of henbane seeds. So and yeah, so like, you know, maybe there's other

• 1:11:44Speaker 03

  plans involved, who's to say this doesn't account for stuff like the biting of shields and the chattering teeth, which is such an image.

• 1:11:52Speaker 07

  Wait, so none of this stuff has made it into pre-workout?

• 1:11:55Speaker 03

  No, but this is like their version. This is their version.

• 1:11:59Rachel Feltman?

  Also, who hasn't bitten a shield at least once?

• 1:12:02Speaker 03

  I'm saying, come on. So, you know, this is a hypothesis. It's plausible. Who's to say? We can't really go back and ask the Vikings. But anyway, you know, hundreds and hundreds of years later, even before I started taking pre-workout to make my own version of going Viking sicko mode at the gym, even folks engaging in more modern wars kind of had their own, you know, rituals around this kind of stuff. So the Japanese kamikaze fighters would take a like a ceremonial sake shot before that they would go on their missions, for instance. Before I didn't research this, but my dad, I was telling my dad about my fact before I left and he was, he said that like five people, he said Hitler gave his soldiers meth?

• 1:12:47Rachel Feltman?

  They were on meth. Yeah, that your dad is correct.

• 1:12:49Speaker 03

  Oh, go dad.

• 1:12:50Rachel Feltman?

  Not these.

• 1:12:50Speaker 03

  Hi dad. Hi dad, my dad's watching. And

• 1:12:55Rachel Feltman?

  Like in their lunchboxes.

• 1:12:56Speaker 03

  Oh, no way. It's also seeped into pop culture, this idea of like, you know, your pre-combat, pre-workout, like imbibing. This is Mad Max for your road, which is why I yelled witness me as my tease when they, you know, are going into what they presume to be their death battle. They spray their mouth chrome and yell witness me, which I maybe I should start doing before I go to the gym, before I pound out a really hard set. But it's cool because these are these war boys, you know, they, a lot of their character design is inspired by Norse mythology, which is kind of cool because it's like a Viking Berserker thing. But yeah, it all comes back to this idea of taking the time to prepare yourself

• 1:13:36Speaker 03

  before you set out to do something physical. You know, it has a lot of psychological power. So no matter what your pre-workout is, it could be just water. It could be like saying I'm It could be anything. Use it to harness that power. I think it's valuable. Find the ritual that works for you. I'm gonna stick to my bugs who tell me to pick something really heavy up and put it back down again. I like my bugs. But, yup, that's my fact. Witness me. Oh, and there's a lot of new in there.

• 1:14:09Rachel Feltman?

  Incredible. Jess, thank you for sharing that. So, listeners know that on The Weirdest Thing Ever This Week, we no longer decide what the weirdest thing we've done this week was. It's no longer a competitive show. But that's because when we have three people on the line who all did really good stuff, it just always ended up being a three-way tie. And here we are with a bunch of people who can make some noise for the fact they like the best. Do I have a prize for the person who wins? No. But we will be doing that. So, whose favorite fact was about Andy the Goose? Oh, thank you. That's really nice. Thank you so much.

• 1:14:52Rachel Feltman?

  What about learning about the wild history of sports bras? Wonderful. How about the shocking science of sex in space? I agree. That's really good. And the Viking origins of pre-workout? Okay. That was very close. That was very close. But I do believe that, Muay, you have taught us the weirdest thing ever this week.

• 1:15:25Speaker 06

  It's weird, because we should study it a lot.

• 1:15:31Rachel Feltman?

  Everybody, thank you so much for coming. This is our show. We have a little bit more breathing room than normal because we got that Saturday afternoon slot. Thanks, Kaviat. So, we do have to be, like, fully out the door a few minutes before 6:00. But, like, please, you know, wrap up your business at the bar, say hello. We would love to meet as many of you as possible. And again, folks who are joining us via livestream... I am so grateful that you tuned in and feel free to shoot me an email, [email protected], subject line, weirdest thing. You can tell me where you're tuning in from and whether you want to be in the running for getting some stickers or something.

• 1:16:16Rachel Feltman?

  But everybody, thank you so much. This is amazing. We love doing these shows. It is always such a joy to be able to get in the same room with some of you. And it means so much that you come out to share this with us. So, thank you again. And everybody, have a great Saturday evening.

• 1:16:38Rachel Feltman?

  The Weirdest Thing I Learned This Week is produced by all of our hosts, including me, Rachel Feltman, along with Jess Bodie, who also serves as our audio engineer and editor extraordinaire. Our theme music is by Billy Cadden. Our logo is by Katie Bellhoff. If you have questions, suggestions, or weird stories to share, tweet us at weirdest underscore thing. Thanks for listening, weirdos.

• 1:17:12Speaker 02

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• 1:17:41Speaker 06

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