Listener Mail: The Color of the Fire
Once more, it's time for a weekly dose of Stuff to Blow Your Mind and Weirdhouse Cinema listener mail... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Stuff To Blow Your Mind
Deep in the back of your mind, you’ve always had the feeling that there’s something strange about reality. There is. Join Robert Lamb and Joe McCormick as they examine neurological quandaries, cosmic mysteries, evolutionary marvels and our transhuman future.
Episodes
From the Vault: Of Humans and Squids, with Martin Wallen
In this classic episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert chats with Martin Wallen about his 2021 book “Squid,” which covers the history of humanity’s scientific, folkloric and literary interest in cephalopods – from Aristotle’s understanding of the creatures to their treatment in weird fiction of the 20th and 21st centuries. (originally published 06/21/2022) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Weirdhouse Cinema: The Maze
In this episode of Weirdhouse Cinema, Rob and Joe venture into 1953’s “The Maze,” a 3-D haunted castle film with an incredibly weird twist. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Oil and Troubled Water, Part 2
The interaction between oil and water has fascinated us since ancient times, and it has factored into practices as diverse as divination rituals and attempts to calm turbulent waters at sea with storm oil. In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe explore the effect of oil on troubled waters. (Part 2 of 2) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Monstrefact: DC Comics' Killer Croc
In this episode of STBYM’s The Monstrefact, Robert discusses one of the most monstrous characters from Batman’s rogues' gallery: Killer Croc… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Cave of Bones, with Lee Berger
In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert chats with paleoanthropologist Lee Berger about his team’s amazing discoveries in South Africa's Rising Star cave system and previously unknown extinct species of hominin named Homo naledi. His new book is “Cave of Bones” and it’s also the subject of the Netflix documentary “Unknown: Cave of Bones.” See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Listener Mail: White Cyclosa
Once more, it's time for a weekly dose of Stuff to Blow Your Mind and Weirdhouse Cinema listener mail... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
From the Vault: Fantastic Numbers, with Antonio Padilla
In this classic episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert chats with theoretical physicist and cosmologist Professor Antonio Padilla, author of the new book "Fantastic Numbers and Where to Find Them." Strap in for big numbers, fantastic numbers, black holes and more. (originally published 07/28/2022) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Weirdhouse Cinema: The Chronicles of Riddick
In this episode of Weirdhouse Cinema, Rob and Joe return to the 21st century to discuss the 2004 space opera sequel “The Chronicles of Riddick,” starring Vin Diesel and a powerhouse supporting cast. It was a Flash Gordon for a new generation, even if they weren’t ready for it. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Colossus of Rhodes, with Michael Denis Higgins
In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert chats with Michael Denis Higgins, Professor Emeritus of Earth Science at the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi and author of the new book “The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World Science, Engineering and Technology.” What was the Colossus of Rhodes, why did it impress the ancient Hellenistic world and how might we recreate it in the modern world? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
The Monstrefact: DC Comics’ Mister Mind
In this episode of STBYM’s The Monstrefact, Robert discusses the Mister Mind, a Venusian supervillain mind-control worm from the pages of DC Comics… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
From the Vault: The Atomic Scar
The creation of atomic weaponry changed human civilization forever, but it also left its mark on the Earth itself -- in both obvious and subtle ways. In this classic episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe discuss some of the ways in which the world would not be the same. (originally published 9/24/2020) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Listener Mail: Aloysius Devadander Abercrombie
Once more, it's time for a weekly dose of Stuff to Blow Your Mind and Weirdhouse Cinema listener mail... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
From the Vault: The Fall of Valerian, Part 2
History. Science. Dethroned emperor. In this classic episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe travel back to the third century CE to discuss the Battle of Edessa, in which the Sasanian Empire not only defeated the Roman army but also took its Emperor as a prisoner of war. How did the emperor’s capture impact the already crisis-ridden Roman Empire, what do scientists make of his alleged grisly fate and how was Valerian’s fall possibly mythologized by Christian historians? Find out… (ori...
Weirdhouse Cinema: Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
In this episode of Weirdhouse Cinema, Rob and Joe discuss Hayao Miyazaki’s 1984 masterpiece “Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind,” an environmental post-apocalyptic anime fantasy full of weird bugs, warring factions and terrifying, technological remnants of humanity’s greatest mistakes. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Oil and Troubled Water, Part 1
The interaction between oil and water has fascinated us since ancient times, and it has factored into practices as diverse as divination rituals and attempts to calm turbulent waters at sea with storm oil. In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe explore the effect of oil on troubled waters. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Monstrefact: Marvel’s Ulvar the Giant
In this episode of STBYM’s The Monstrefact, Robert discusses Ulvar, a most peculiar giant from the Marvel Comics universe… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mud, Part 4
What exactly is mud? Where does it occur and how does it factor into animal behaviors and human activities? In this multi-episode Stuff to Blow Your Mind exploration, Rob and Joe immerse themselves in the mysteries of mud. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Listener Mail: SquareHouse Cinema?
Once more, it's time for a weekly dose of Stuff to Blow Your Mind and Weirdhouse Cinema listener mail... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
From the Vault: The Fall of Valerian, Part 1
History. Science. Dethroned emperor. In this classic episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe travel back to the third century CE to discuss the Battle of Edessa, in which the Sasanian Empire not only defeated the Roman army but also took its Emperor as a prisoner of war. How did the emperor’s capture impact the already crisis-ridden Roman Empire, what do scientists make of his alleged grisly fate and how was Valerian’s fall possibly mythologized by Christian historians? Find out… (ori...
Weirdhouse Cinema: Night of the Werewolf
On this episode of Weirdhouse Cinema, Rob and Joe return to the world of Spanish horror with another Paul Naschy movie: 1981’s “Night of the Werewolf.” This time, Naschy’s tragic werewolf character Count Waldemar Daninsky goes up against vampire Countess Elizabeth Báthory! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mud, Part 3
What exactly is mud? Where does it occur and how does it factor into animal behaviors and human activities? In this multi-episode Stuff to Blow Your Mind exploration, Rob and Joe immerse themselves in the mysteries of mud. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Monstrefact Omnibus: The Tyranids of Warhammer 40K
In this special episode of STBYM’s The Monstrefact, enjoy an overview of the alien Tyranids of Warhammer 40K, the Tyrannic Wars and the threat of the Genestealer Cults... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mud, Part 2
What exactly is mud? Where does it occur and how does it factor into animal behaviors and human activities? In this multi-episode Stuff to Blow Your Mind exploration, Rob and Joe immerse themselves in the mysteries of mud. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Listener Mail: Gotta Dream Them All
Once more, it's time for a weekly dose of Stuff to Blow Your Mind and Weirdhouse Cinema listener mail... See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
From the Vault: The Skybridge, Part 2
In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe discuss the architectural element known as the skyway or skybridge – typically an enclosed bridge connecting the upper stories of two buildings or skyscrapers. (originally published 07/14/2022) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Weirdhouse Cinema: Creature with the Atom Brain
Why is he acting so strange? Do you think he's one of them? In this episode of Weirdhouse Cinema, Rob and Joe experience 1955's "Creature with the Atom Brain," starring Richard Denning and Angela Stevens. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mud, Part 1
What exactly is mud? Where does it occur and how does it factor into animal behaviors and human activities? In this multi-episode Stuff to Blow Your Mind exploration, Rob and Joe immerse themselves in the mysteries of mud. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Monstrefact: Marvel’s The Thing
In this episode of STBYM’s The Monstrefact, Robert discusses the Fantastic Four’s own Ben Grimm from Marvel Comics… See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
From the Vault: The Invention of Fireworks
Fireworks are a staple of celebrations around the world, but where does this invention come from and what’s the basic chemistry of their combustion? In this classic episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe light the fuse and find out. (originally published 6/23/2020) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.