How Acne Works

The angry magician. No, that's a great idea. Yeah, there you go. The angry comics. Ye. Yeah, there are plenty of them. Yeah, and for good reason too. Yeah. Yeah. Um. Do you remember a while back we were writing a lot of articles that seem to share a common theme a skincare Yeah, I remember that too. I didn't write too many of those. I wrote a lot of skin care NICs, Yeah I did. Um, And I learned that I'm fascinated by the skin. That's good. Yeah, it turned

out to be very good. Like, um, you don't want to take too many showers in a day. You don't want the water you use in your shower to be too hot. Um, Like I learned these things definitively. Um. Also, the skin on your lips, um, there's three layers thick, whereas the rest of the skin on your face is about sixteen layers thick. And they're actually translucent, which is why your lips are reddish, because it's just the mucous

membrane underneath. Ye look at that. Yeah, And you don't want to lick your lips too much because You're saliva contains a digestive enzyme which starts to break down the very thin and fragile skin on your lips. I got chopped lips a lot from licking them. Stop licking your lips. I'm constantly just I have oral stuff. Bite my nails, bite my cheeks, bite my lip, all that stuff, all that good fun, stressy stuff. But you don't smoke cigarettes, so good for you. Yeah, I guess I chewed my

face off instead of doing that. It's a good looking face, thank you. Um. Well, anyway, Chuck, I just wanted to say all that to say that I will be um very interested in what we're talking about today, which is acting. I'm glad you are. I am too, although I've never really got at me, so I'm a little less like enthused. It's so unfair. Let's look at this right here, right now. Yeah, I have a big old white head rust to my nose. It won't go away. Like I was pressing it with

my pinkies like I can. I can pop as it I get them. That's a tough spot, though. Josh is talking about the area right under the nostril that no man's land the nose kind of prohibits access, like you want, Well, it's not just that. It's very, very sensitive and like I was pressing it like my eyes are water ring and it still wouldn't pop. So I'll have to have

you do it. Yeah, yeah, But um, I guess that's method podcasting, following in your footsteps, Chuck, So, um, you want to talk about acne first, I guess we should talk about the skin a little bit, right And in the process of how, well, let's talk about the skin. Did you like Tom's description? I did? Actually, I think think most people know by now it's the largest organ.

But um, Tom takes a step further in a very buffalo bill way, and he says that if you skinned an adult human, there would be enough material to make a four by five foot area rug of skin waistin founds. I'm glad he didn't say how many like skin suits or lamp shades that would make, because that'd be really creepy. Creepy enough, So, yeah, ten pounds of skin on the on an adult body, right, and then um, most of the skin. There's three layers. Is the epidermis, the dermis,

and the subcutaneous layer. Right in the sub cutaneous layer. I think the dermist is the fattiest layer and the subcutaneous layers like the nastiest layer. It's like, um, she just have you ever seen hall Razor, remember the woman, and she was coming back regenerating. She regenerated from like the inside out. So at one point she's just like muscles and blood. Just above that is the subcutaneous layer. I think the epidermisis kind of grows too, though, because

it's all dead. It is dead. This is one of the things that fascinates me about skin. All the skin I'm looking at right now, and you're like that I can see dead. Dead is disco you know. Yeah, so chuck your Your skin grows like beneath the outer layer and it grows as crat in the sights which your

new skin cells. Yeah, and it just your your skin is a constant Uh, it's constant motion pushing that dead skin up, up and up and out through the pores where they flake off into your bed, making your mattress heavier from like the moment it's born, when it cell divides, it starts making its way outward and it takes what does it take about a month for a skin cell to be born and then make it out to the outer later layer. That sounds about right right to the

tune of forty to sixty million skin cells per day. Yeah, forty thousand a minute. That's crazy. Are reaching the surface right, um. And so they reach the surface, and they don't just fall right off. Um. Along the process they die and there they become cornified um, which is and become kratina sites or cornea sites. Sorry. Um. And when they reach the surface, they provide a function for a while. They mix with sebum, which is the oil we produce that

I really really produce. Yeah, and uh some fats what kind uh lipids Josh leno leic acid. Okay, So they mix all together and they form waterproof skin that keeps out water. That's huge, is why we don't soak up water when we walk around in the rain exactly, and keeps bacteria, which is why the skin is your first organ of um resistance for immunity. That's right. Um, So

you've got all this process going on. Skin cells eventually do fall off and jump off and are sloughed off, and then um, beneath all that, you have the subcutaneous layer, and that's where the hair starts growing. Right, Yeah, that's where you're gonna find your hair follicle, which looks sort of like just a little uh, little tube with a little uh, a little rounder end. I would say it looks like a sperm, a sperm going inward towards drop.

Sure maybe uh. And that is where the hair begins to grow from the bottom up, and it grows out of this follicle and collects on the way out. See them, and which we said was oil. That's why, like when you don't take a shower, your hair is gonna look all oily. And actually men I think have more see them than women. Yeah, and teenagers have lots of see them. Yeah, it's almost equal for amongst the genders. And in Yeah,

because that's why you get acne most often. An adolescence because we're taking you up through where acne starts, which is really see them right. Well, that has a lot to do with it. At least. The hair follicle is connected to a sebaceous gland, like you said, which is why your hair seems oily when it comes out. Um. And so you've got this whole um, you have this whole house of cards I guess, just waiting to screw up. Well, they're trying to squeez through this little poor soe those

dead skin cells that migration they make. The way they get out is through the poor, through the follicle, through the sebaceous gland. Right. So when you have a lot of them coming together at once, all these dead skin cells are trying to get through the same door. It's like, um three stooges syndrome from the Simpsons. Remember Mr Burns had everything, but nothing could kill him because they couldn't all get through the door of his health. That's exactly right.

So when you have too many skin cells, things start getting blocked and things back up behind it, and you've got trouble. Yeah, I mean that's one way it can happen. Uh. And they don't know why that The body would overproduce skin cells. But hey, it happens. Yeah, do we need to know why exactly. Another thing that can happen. You can have too much sebum, like we talked about in and puberty. In puberty is when that's gonna happen. Most

likely bacteria, specifically propione Bacterium Acnes p acnes. That's uh found in acne lesions and in every type of acne that we're going to talk about. They're all lesions, right and and um then inflammation right, Yeah, the bacteria causes inflammation. When there's back up and there's bacteria, you're gonna get inflammation. Yeah. Tom put it like these were different things that could happen, and I'm sure they are, but it also seems to happen like a sequence of event. It's kind of like

all of them. You've got too many skin cells backing up, right, so the sea bum backs up behind it. Well, this bacteria loves to eat see bum, which causes an infection which makes you infernt. Yeah. I saw it as a sequence of events to alright, So Chuck, there is a very long standing debate over what is worse a white head or a black head. What's the difference between the two. Well, one is an open comie dough and one is a closed comy dough. Do you know what a comito is? Okay,

do you know what the word is? Coming down? Is plural? What do you mean what the word is? The word is Latin for gluttony. Yeah, and it was. It's named after a worm. You know how when you like, do you poposit and the stuff comes out and like it's like kind of a thin worm like tube. Well, there was a apparently a worm that looked very similar to that that loved to feed, a parasitic worm that loved

to feed on humans that was considered particularly gluttonous. So the block came to be called the commodo, which means glutton Wow, isn't it weird and gross? And true? Yeah, pretty much everything about this we're looking at acting on this sub dermal level. Yes, it's gross. It is kind of gross. Uh So white heads, you might think, like I just woke up and there's a white head on my nose. That just happened last night. Not true. It could have been a couple of months in the making

before you finally see it, like you might. You know, Emily calls them underground construction when you can feel it and you know it's coming, but you can't see it or do anything about it yet, that's infection, essentially underground construction. Yeah, at some point your your skin cells started backing up. They didn't make their way out of the poor and you're in trouble. So white heads anyway, have an open

comy dough black head. I'm sorry, closed comy dough. Black heads are open and the black that you're seeing is just melon and it's just our skin pigment. It's oxidized, it's not dirt. The reason it's black is being because, um, it's been exposed to air, whereas with a closed comito, um, there is no exposure to air, so everything stays white

just beneath the surface of the skin. And I had you you'd stopped me in the hall earlier and said, you know, I can't tell the difference between like a white head and a pustule what I found because you did find something well that the American Academy of Dermatology says that it's really confusing, So like, don't feel bad, it is confusing, thank you. A They're they're all lesions.

But I think a white head what we typically see as a pimple, and a Z is the pustule, because in here it says the A D says a white head is typically a raised bump that's the same color as the rest of your skin, whereas the zip as clearly has pus the pus. But apparently that's not the hallmark of a white head. So I'm even more confused. Now, Thank you a D. Thanks for nothing. Yeah, because I thought a white head meant it was the white you know, pimples.

It looking thing says here that the same color is the rest of your skin. Okay, well, well let's go with that though, I mean that the white head is uh just it's just pressing your skin up, so it's a raised bump. Whereas if it looks white, if there's like a clearly a white part, what has happened is your this this white head or black head um has collapsed under the skin and all that bacteria ridden sea bum is now causing an infection. That's what a ZiT is,

that's right, also called a pustule. That's a pustule. There's also a papule, and they are a little small bumps um, little firm, small bumps and they don't have any kind of white right center, but they do feel like sand paper apparently if you rub your fingers across them. Yeah, I get like little dry skin bumps in the back of my arm. I don't know if that's the same thing. That's not. I don't think so. Okay, No, that's um, I mean it's or it's got a name. What is

that called? What's what's really severe dry skin called exima? Yeah, it's a it's a mild alright, Maybe I have exima. Their nodules which are larger and hard. Uh, it's um. A nodule is the kind of thing where you mash it and you mash it and nothing ever happens, and then it comes back and comes back because you're just breaking it down and it stays in there. That was

That was definitely a nodule, wasn't it. Yeah, Because I would I would be like and then like it would go away, or first it would go and then it would come back. That thing was there for a while. Yeah, Man, it kept coming back, and they did stay for a really long time and to come back, and I was wearing like turtle necks. I brought turtlenecks back intain flapping was uh, and then superative nodules. Josh, you may think her sister boils, and they might look like that, But

cists have different traits, one of which is uh. The ability to contain a trapped gas, which I thought was pretty interested, is nuts and pretty awesome. So that means that's not a cyst. I'll bet that guest stinks too high heaven when it's finally released. Can you imagine? Yeah again baby acne? Uh? Yeah, um, what is it called? Mila? Milia? Milia? Sorry, Mela is the niece. I think the point here was you can get acne from cradle to the grave. Yes, sadly, yeah,

I mean most people. Um, Tom cited something like eight of people get um acne, and we should say everything we just said was a form of acne. Vulgaris. Yeah, yeah, I don't think he said that vulgaris is a Latin I think for um common yeah, right, Um, most of us get it. Attend people get it at some point in their life, he said, Um, most people, it starts stirring puberty and ends ac your puberty. For other people like me, it keeps going on here there and I mean, like,

I take care of my face. Dude, I got a regiment and it's still I mean, I can imagine it would be much worse if I didn't take care of Simpson. Here are you over regimenting? No, I know what I'm doing. Okay. I'm going to see a dermatologist soon. I need to find one, but I'm gonna go see one just to make sure I'm doing everything right. Yeah, that's not other

steps I can take. But no, I mean I'm I know what I'm doing, Okay, because the only reason I say that is later in the article they point out that over washing and I remember that as a kid. I I I think I went through a brief period where I got like a ZiT or two in high school and so I got out like the buff puff and then neut regina for the first time ever and just scrub the crap out of my face. Started bleeding started breaking out, and I was like, well, I don't

get it. I'm watching my face and it's breaking out. But all these years later, I have an explanation. Yeah, you're agitated your skin. Yeah, I think, um, I just have sensitive skin. Um. Yeah, but no, I don't use like soap or harsh stuff right face. It's like, I take care of it. So milia. Back to the babies. Babies can get milia. It's around the eyes or nose, little white bumps. It's really common. If you're a new parent and your kid has this, don't worry about it.

In fact, the doctor is probably gonna tell you the same thing, like, don't even do anything. It'll clear up on its own, right in most cases. Uh. And you can actually get that as an adult as well. Really, sometimes you have milia. It's far more common in infants and I mean like newborns too. Um. The cause generally is that the skin cells are already dividing and dying off. But um, the sebacious claims aren't developed enough to carry

the skin cells to the surface. So basically, when the doctor says just way, they'll clear upon its own, he's saying, just wait, your baby will grow produce more sabacious claims to handle this, right. That's that. Well, that's good news. It's great news. Uh. Pre pubertal acne uh forms and children. This is this is basically when you're producing your your androgen's your sex hormones before you should be Yeah, like from drinking milk. Is that what we'll do it too?

Probably bovine growth hormone would do it. And that is that is when it's pre puberty, and that's and younger children, and that's something you probably should go to a doctor about. Yeah, because it's I think they take it more. It's like a sign like, okay, you you've got this other stuff coming down the pike to like breasts and you're six, you know kind of thing. So it's just a big

androgen dump in your body and your sabacious glance go. Oh, we're supposed to start working now, I guess, and you're gonna block little Timmy's only eight, right, I said six? It does it happen that young? I don't know. I'm sure it could. Yeah. I would imagine the younger, the more potentially problematic it is. That's the kid who ends up having the mustache when he's like in the third grade. The six year old boy with the breasts and the mustache.

Would you call him Timmy? Actually I have a friend named Timmy. But my other friend, Jim. You actually know, Jim did have a mustache when he was like in the eighth grade. Yeah, it was pretty funny, Yeah, swarthy Jim. Yes, Um, so what else, Chuck, Oh, there's rosatsia. This is the one that that is pretty awful on Google images. Really yeah, yeah, it can affect the nose, and you know, it's everything from just redness of the nose too, horribly misshapen, bumpy nose.

They can get really bad. Is that the nose where you see like divi it's missing from people's noses. Yeah, it can't, it can't get that bad. But it occurs in bouts. Right, so you have, um, you can kind of tell that you're about to have about of rose asia because as you find that, you flush more easily, and it's because your veins and the veins in your face are dilating more more, um wider. I guess that's it. Yeah, it's triggers acne. Well, it triggers acne vulgaris or or

a lot like acne vulgaris, they said. And then I also got the impression from Tom that it's problematic that uh, and that people suspect that maybe you're like a raging alcoholic because your nose looks like that, like you have the gym blossoms. But it's really just rosation. Yeah, and if you look up pictures of it, it looks like

a gin blossom or worse. There's I don't encourage anyone to type in like plus dules into Google images because it's like that body parts come up that are have these things on them and might not be something you want to see, you know what I'm saying, Well kind of body parts. Oh, they just they had pictures of of like just out of nowhere, just like feet, penises with bumps on them. And I don't recommend it. Okay, Well that's fair warning if I've ever heard it. Anybody

who does go Google image what rosatsia? Any of them? Really, then you've been warned by Chuck himself. You're a dummy if you do it, yes, or you're on your own at least. Um. So those are generally the different types of acne, right, and their causes. Um, but we missed at least one. Chuck Pizza, Pizza causes acne. No, it does it. I know it doesn't. That was play acting. Um, that is a is a And I actually did a

little more research on this and diet and acne. Um. That's sort of been one of the old things they say it's like a greasy food and elite to acne. But most doctors say that that's pretty much a myth end of story. Although this this one thing I found says that theoretically there could be some impact, like diet has a direct effect on insulin level, and that insulin is the master hormone and it has to do with hormone you know, production anyway, So in theory, insulin spikes

could affect acne. And also things that you eat, it can affect it in a good way if you eat positively like veggies and fruits and seafood, and potentially if you eat good foods that are rich and like omega three fats like fish oil, it can be an anti inflammatory and so part of the problem is inflammation. In theory,

it could help with that too. But you want to watch um like shellfish, they're they're high and I had died because that apparently can inflame activul garis Yeah, So here as we say that it doesn't impact acne, r saying it does, right, Yeah, I just can't believe that what you eat doesn't have any impact on the function of your cells. That's what I think. It's got to have some impact. Um Genetics is another big one that is I think probably um it's over estimated the impact

it has. Yes, the the genes that you inherit from your parents and how they express, um, the proteins that tell your sabacious clans to function in this way or that way or whatever. It's going to have an effect, but not as much as you know, if your dad broke out a lot, you're not necessarily going to write or vice versa. I don't know about my parents in Acne's not a conversation that you normally have with your parents, you know. More it's like, um, it was your dad bald.

That's the big question. That's what I don't care about. As men. Dirt is not gonna affect if you have a dirty face. I mean, it's not great for your skin probably, but pimples and zip's happened from the inside out, So dirt on top of your epidermist isn't gonna really affect that. They say and then make up this one. I don't know. I could see makeup definitely making your break out. Yeah, the wrong kind quite using that kind. Well,

there's different kinds. There's a hYP hypoallergenic, which means low allergenic. There's a non comedogenic which supposedly says like this won't make you break out, so possibly cheap makeup. Yeah, and if you have Yeah, if you have skin issues already, then you should probably be aware of the types of

makeup that you're getting. If you're a young lady or if you're a dude that's into that um and leaving makeup on without removing it at the end of the day, that can definitely cause you to break out because you're going ahead and blocking the pores from the outside in causing backups. Yeah, Stevie Nicks said that on might have been Oprah. Yeah verbatim, I was quoting really now, she said.

They asked her why she always looks so great, and she said that she's through all Like even her drug days of being on tour, she never ever failed to acker makeup off at the end of the night. Stevie Nicks the drugs, Oh yeah, back in the day, big time, I know. So she said, even if she was on a bender, she would still manage to take her macup off. That is that's pretty good. Yeah, Well she's the Belladonna. Um, So chuck, let's say you want to get rid of

the acne that you do have. Right right there, I'm good. Um, there's really just two things that regular old acne vol garris and not persistent, not a superative nodule type acne, but just plain old acne volgaras um can be treated with. One is benzol peroxide and one is salacilic acid. Right, and those are pretty much it. Almost all of the over the counter acne treatments that you're going to find anywhere are going to have one or both of those,

probably just one. And anyone who's ever seen like an oxy commercial has heard the word benzol peroxide. Know what were those pads? Were the oxy pants? Uh? Yeah, there was another company because the pads sea breeze came in like that was like an astringent. Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah, no, there are pads. I guess it was oxypos come in like a little like yeah, I'm taking careless And then you would look at it and say, look at all

that stuff. The commercial Ben's oil peroxide specifically kills the p agnos bacteria and it'll dry out your face, which can be bad. Yeah. People, that um moisture in your face is what breaks you out. Uh, your face. Being too dry can break you out as much, if not more. Yeah, um, you want to keep your face moisturized. Cuts down a breakout kid, you know. Uh, tea tree oil. Emily uses tea tree a lot to dry out a pimple, and that's a good natural way to do. So cell is

silic acid. Um basically goes in and it's like um liquid plumber for your pores. Like it just goes in and destroys everything that's in that blockage and there you go. It also takes off a healthy amount of the horny layer, which is the most external layer of your dead skin cells. Horny layer. Really, look at you. Uh. The other thing that you can do, I mean those are medications you can take. What you really want to do is to gently wash your face with soap and warm water. But again,

you can't just use any soap. I mean maybe you can if you have like completely insensitive skin. Yeah, uh then sure maybe you can. And you'll find out pretty quick what kind of soaps you can and can't use. Well, most of the soap you get and the store is pretty crappy anyway, right, Like, you you get what you pay for it with soap, especially with face soap. It's worth the extra few bucks. Uh. If you're exercising, you want to shower right afterward. You don't want to let

sweat be under skin for too long. Yeah, you got ackney. You're subacius. The reason backney is so prevalent because that that part of your body is lousy with sebaceous clans. Where is it head or face, back and chest? I think so those are three areas because yeah, zit's it's what about the butt? That's something entirely different. Those are Those are just red bumps that no one knows what they are. Okay. Uh. They recommend loose clothing, and they

recommend chilling out not being stressed. Be a type L personality, which is L. The long allele on the SLC six A four gene, which UM basically creates this protein that ferry serotonin out of the synaps basically turns it off, which is so that if you have the L allal, it makes you you're a more laid back person because

you have more of this trans support protein. If you have the S version of of that gene, then you make less of the transport, meaning the serotonin stays in the snaps longer, which makes you high, strong and kind of angry because it activates your amygdala. So type A personality Type B is actually type S and type L. It sounds like somebody destrote a blog post. Isn't that cool? Though? Yeah? That is cool. I like to think I'm a L, but I'm probably less L than I really want to admit.

I don't know. Somebody posted a comment on on Facebook when I put that blog post up, and they're like, not everything can be explained so succinctly. But the point of the blog post was is like this one explains it tocinctly. Yeah, you just remove the comment and went about your day and A banned him from Facebook forever. What else can you do? Let's see you guy at me check and what can you do to treat it? Um? You can take antibiotics, either oral or topical al and

topical meaning like their current event type antibiotics. What about a chemical peel that works too? I would think that would not be a good thing if you were breaking out. Is it's a good idea If you're going to do that to again, show out the extra money and go to a professional who can tell you, now, this is the chemical peel I've done on your face. This is what's safe, this is what your skin can handle. And then you know, here's a product that that will do

the same thing at home. So don't go to the place where they have to add on the subway. John's Upstairs Chemical peel and Chicken processing Plant espresso. Have you ever done a chemical peel? Really interesting? Yes, I've been known to get it. You come out like it is

your face all red and stuff. No, it feels red, but it's more also like very refreshing, Like it's just oh, it's so nice to just kind of rub like the back of your fingers along your face afterwards, because your skin is just like what you're doing is just tearing that horny layer right off. You're getting closer and closer to that new layer of skin cells is just like but it's still it's yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I think you'd be in big trouble. Of themis like that's a

that's a third degree burn. I think you know a second Apparently birth control pills can can help treat acne. Yeah. There. If you watch the ads form a lot of them will say like and prevents breakouts like an extra bonus, yeah, because it probably cuts down on the androgens, which cuts downs on the production of um sea bump, which cuts down on pimples. Yeah. I didn't know they had ads for birth control pills? Sure did they? Am? I just am I living in the in uh Amish country here?

Why am I not seeing any There's this one and I saw several years ago. Yeah, it was really weird. Um first they had this version of it was like the cartoon version of this ad, and then that one went away, and then they had a live action version of the same ad, same everything, same everything. But for some reason they did a cartoon version and then they

did a live action version. They released them one after another, but they were they were supposedly in no way related, and it was like, I think that company was like, just how much are you paying attention? How much TV are you watching? Yeah? Yeah, And at the time I was watching a lot of TV. So I noticed, what about lasers? You can get them lasered, right, And I guess that's if you have if it's really bad, then

they can actually laser your sebaceous glands. They say not to squeeze them though, which I think is kind of laughable. What do you mean, like not pop them? Yourself. They is tom sive pal. You can take that with a grain of salt. Yeah, I mean show me someone who it doesn't pop their own zets and and it says, in't here to make an appointment with the dermatologists so

they can pop your pimples. Really well, that's the only thing too, when you get like a chemical peel or a facial or whatever the the the U not anestheticist, oh estheticiansan um will pop all the zips on your face. And what's crazy is like, when you do it right, it doesn't hurt. I guess yeah, but I mean like this, the pressure they apply is minute and they're doing it like off to the sides of the zip and like you you're like, that was it. It didn't hurt at all.

Like I didn't cry at all. So it's it's kind of good too, not necessarily good. At the Dirham Tall. Just you could go do an esthetician and they'll do the same all the same things. You'll learn a bunch just by paying attention while they do it. I couldn't. Emily would never let me do that. Why because she loves to do it herself. Oh yeah, I mean she could have been an that she has that gene to where she just gets a lot of satisfaction out of making that white snake come out. Yeah. In fact, she's

a little disappointed at my lack of pimple production in life. Yeah, she would love me, you guys, actually you me loves me. She does it. Um, she does it a lot too. She's kind of hooked. Yeah, a lot of girls are into that for some reason. I'm glad, I know, always not nuts and that that's a normal for some reason too. I've never been a guy who's into that. Yeah, it's always girls for some reason. I don't understand. Maybe they're more into skin, skin care or gross stuff coming out

of your skin. Maybe. So well, let's say, all right, yeah, seventeen million people in America every day on a given day have is it? Is that? Right? Yeah? I think more than that. You go, alright, alright? Which one? Well, I mean it's acting as the big word pimples. I just like saying pimple. I don't like saying pimple. I think it's a gross word. You like pustule, I prefer pustule over. I don't likes it either. Yeah. Where we yeah, we were on we were featured in the like strip zits.

Remember that was very nice? Yeah, yeah, and then you know what I need to find out. And I don't think they're black heads. Emily calls them seeds because that it's like a little watermelon seed almost. It's like a little white spike comes out. I wonder what that is. I didn't find that in here. I guarantee it's the same thing you think. Yeah, all right, I think there's

a very limited amount of acne. It just happens and it just kind of looks different or comes out in different ways, or if it sits in there long enough, it comes seed. I know you're talking about. Um, well that's acne. If you want to learn more about it and see some cool cutaway illustrations of the skin, Yeah, that was a good part actually. Yeah. Um you can type in acne A C N E in the search bar at how stuff works dot com. And now, friends,

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the super Stuff Guide to the Economy. You can get them both there. But UM check out the super Stuff Guide to Happy is. It's awesome interviews, in depth investigation of what is happiness? What makes us happy? How do we study happiness? Great sound design. My niece starts the whole thing off with a nice quote from the Dalai Lama. It's just a great little whirlwind ride that you want to listen to over and over again, all for the price of a of a latte that's your favorite. You're lucky.

It's your favorite coffee place that you're gonna have to probably go through your your couch cushions to come up with a difference to get the latte. This thing is so cheap, that's true. Yeah. So UM, there's our plug and uh it's time now for listener mail. Josh, I'm gonna call this email from an author that we actually reference. Okay, he listens to the show. Uh Mengalaba Josh, Chuck, and Jerry,

I hope you're having a good day. About three weeks ago, I was flying from Minnesota to yangone mean mar how you pronounced it? Yeah, me and Mare, but it's post Unta ba look at you. I really had a pretty surreal moment involving your podcast. After downing as much free booze as I could, I was listening to episodes of your podcast trying to fall asleep over the Pacific Ocean. Imagine my surprise when I was coming out of my nap. To the end of How Shrunken Heads Work, you were

finishing the story of your dentist friend. When Josh said, you've also received a Juma and Other Stories by Tyler Davis, which is a self published book and pretty awesome. I couldn't believe it. Thanks for much, but so much for the shout out from Tyler David. Yeah, okay, it is good. Well, I've been needing to write an email and thank you guys for a while. We've been busy settling in the Internet.

Here isn't exactly the Information super Highway. It's more like an Amish buggy teaching English and an international high school. And I've already taught my kids what hinky means. I have no idea. How do you define that specifically? I would say hinky means uh, suspicious? Okay, see, I would say stranger, unusual. Yeah, okay, so it could be three. There's three definitions. That's right, That's what hinky means everything.

It's like, yeah, what the cuss? I had time to write you today becase I'm homesick from food poisoning, which reminds me you should do a podcast and whether or not you can poop your own skeleton. Girl, I feel awful you and the rest of the gang. How stuff works to keep me entertained, educated and in high spirits. Thanks again, Tyler Davis, but thank you Tyler. Thanks for the books too. You have your so I think he

sent us to Yeah Aduma and other stories. Yeah, if you want, you can go onto the Stuff you should Know facebook page and post an Amazon link or something like that to your book if you like um. And also, I want to take this time to correct myself. We've got several corrections. A fail safe Yeah, fail safe is not something that you put that that's designed into something to prevent it from failing. Like one prong being bigger

on a two pronged plug. It's it's I guess parts of the design that make it so when it does fail, it fails as safely as possible. So there's a bunch of different systems maybe that are redundant that that provides safety when it does fail. Like the one guy said the lawnmower, that you have to hold the thing to keep it going. Like if you have a heart attack and fall over, it will cease to run. Right, that's

a failsafe. So you have failed, but you are safe from the mower exactly, but you don't care because you're having a heart attack. Anything else. Bread but the bread butter side up, No, that you know. I think the MythBusters are great, and I'm glad that they've had this incredible juggernaut run that they've had so far and continue to have. But I don't I just don't say yes. I don't think you can say, well, the MythBusters proved it. Well, shut up. Yeah. I think you have to also include one,

maybe two um peer reviewed studies as well. That's show that this is right. Here's what I think, and I was not able to articulate it. I think you spread the butter side up, so it's sitting face up, and when it falls off the you know, the table stomach high counter, then it only has time to rotate half a turn and it will fall side down. If the counter were eight feet high, it might rotate fully and then it's butter slide up. It's nothing to do with weight.

In other words, I disagree. I just don't see how it can have nothing to do with white, especially if you have if one side is clearly heavier than the other and the butter spread evenly across, then it's not going to turn back over. You if if it does turn back over, then there was more butter on one side that caused the bread to flip over again. It's just not it just makes calm, it's common sense. You're gonna battle this one, I am. So that's why I

didn't bring that one up. They'll safe. I mean, when you're wrong, you're wrong, you know, all right? Boy? That was good? Well? Yeah, if you have any corrections, we don't want to hear about your acne um. If you have any corrections for us, or you just want to say hi, you can tweet to us any time you like.

S Y s K podcast is our Twitter handle where on Facebook Facebook dot com slash stuff you Should Know, or you can go on any of the other Facebook stuff you Should Know side their fan driven They're awesome too, agreed, Or you can send us a regular old email at stuff Podcast at how stuff works dot com. Be sure to check out our new video podcast, Stuff from the Future. Join how Stuff Work staff as we explore the most promising and perplexing possibilities of tomorrow, brought to you by

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