WeWow on the Weekend (5/31/25)

Ha ha ha ha! No I said laughing too. Uh whatever.

Hello and welcome to Wee Wow on the Weekend. I'm your host, Dennis. Also, that's my co-host, Reggie! And listen to Tinkercast podcasts. Hey Reggie, wanna play a game? Okay, good. Let's play Would You Rather? What? You don't know what would you rather is? Well would you rather is when I give you two kind of horror No, Reggie, you don't actually have do the thing. It's hypothetical. Like imaginary. Okay, so here's one. Would you rather eat a cockroach?

Or eat a worm. Both Reggie! Oh wait, I forgot you eat bugs sometimes. No, they don't come with dipping sauces. Okay. Rather be a cockroach or be a worm. Well yeah, I know you'd rather just be yourself, Reggie, but That's not the game! Okay, fine. You think of one for me. What? Would I rather stop snooping forever or get rid of my prize-winning Azaleas?

Reggie! Well I could never get rid of my prize-winning azaleas! They're prize-winning! What am I supposed to do? Get rid of my Azalea regalia too? But on the other hand, if I stop sno- I won't have any gossip! And my prize winning is aliens need gossip to grow! That's the secret of their prize winning! Now, Reggie, I can't choose. Possible game. No, no more hypothetical. I wanna go back to reality!

Oh good idea, Reggie. Let's get into our Called Reading Reviews! Uh uh. This is the part where people write us comments. Okay, this first review Z comes to us from username. CC and Ezra. And they ask, why are catfish called catfish if they don't have cat ears? That's a good question. But now I want to see a catfish. Reggie, get your phone out. Okay, now let me see.

Oh, you're right, Ezra and CeCe. Catfish don't have cat ears. And they don't have kitty cat paws or kitty cat noses. And they don't have a c tail. It's just a regular fish. Uh, but they do have whiskers like a cat, and maybe they meow like cats. Reggie, now I'm not gonna go stick my head in a river and find out. Next question! This next one. From username Max and the message says How do you fart? Huh. How do I fart? I guess I fart like this!

No, Reggie, I'm just kidding. That was a whoopee cushion! What? Uh-uh! It does not- It wasn't a real fart! Reggie, no! Not listen to Reggie. I don't fart. No, I don't, Reggie. I boof, which is much more polite. Thanks, Reduzzi. This last review Z comes from username Reggie's number one fan. The title says, Lose the mustache, Dennis. What? And the message says Please shave your mustache, Dennis. It's freaking me out because your voice does not match your mustache. Shave my mustache!

But I love my mustache! Reggie, why does your number one fan want me to get rid of Stash Gordon? That's what I call my mustache, Stash Gordon. Okay, well, if that's what the fans want, I have an electric razor down here somewhere. Oh, here it is. Okay, here I go. Do it! I love my mustache! And I'm proud to be a mustache boy! I forgot to turn the razor off before I started pretending it was a microphone. Reggie, does my mustache still look okay? Well hand me that mirror. Thank you.

Oh no! I shaved it right down! It looks like it looks like Actually, it looks kind of good. I like it. Yeah, it's like I have two mustaches now. I'm gonna name them. Milky and mustard. Uh because I can see that this one has a little milk in it and this one has a little mustard in it. Thanks for all your listeners, keep them comin'! Apple Podcast.

Podcaster Spotify, I just might read it on Wee Wow on the weekend. Five stars or more, please. Because Reggie, we're number one, we're number one, we're number one, right?

Yeah, I suppose we don't have to be number one. I just like chanting. Okay, next up is a little segment I like to call Inside Tinkercast Studios. This is the part where we revisit an episode of one of my favorite Tinker Cash shows. And today, we're listening to Wow in the World Season 2. Episode 14 called Antisocial Animals. Awww, why are the animals antisocial? Do they just need a little me time? You know? Recharge? Yeah, let's find out. Okay, here we go.

We Wow will be right back. Grown-ups, this message is for you. That's it! Now back to the show! World. Okay, let's see here. Rappling hook. My Dry-Tech waterproof hiking boots. And my one, two. Three, four. Let me just get it. Backpack on here.

Oh uh hi hi Mindy. Good morning, Gyros. Hey, nice rock climbing hooks. Oh, thanks. That is one man. Bad pack. It sure is, Mindy. Ninety liters. Which is like a bajillion gallons. Uh twenty-four gallons. Same difference. So what's all this stuff for anyway? Uh light bulb. You're not about to go run off and live in the woods, are you? No, Mindy, I Because I know my cooking can send some funky smells over here sometimes. No, Mindy, it's not that And to be fair, my inventing can get pretty loud.

Four o'clock in the morning. Yeah, and I know the light and water fountain show in my front yard keeps you up all night. I just don't understand why you want all those people coming to your front lawn every night. Get out of my yard, Jerry! Well, you don't have to worry, Mindy. I'm not running away to the wilderness. Yeah, that was a close one. I'm actually going to visit my Aunt Helga. You know, the one that lives up in the Rocky Mountains and the only way to get there is uh to well hike.

Oh, wasn't she the one who DJ'd your last science theme house party? Man, that party was galactic. Especially Aunt Helga's famous E equals MC squared lemon squares. Delish! You know, we should totally introduce her to Grandma G Forrest. They'd get along so well. Yeah. Guy Roz?

Yes. Could we be related? No. Man. Anyway, ever since Ann Helga moved to the Rockies, well just read this letter I got from her. Hmm, let me see here. Um She says, there aren't many people that come to visit me in my cabin these days. The only company I have are the mountain goats. Oh man, Kairaz, that sounds really lonely. That's why I thought I'd

Pay her a visit. Oh, that's a great idea, Gyroz. We should definitely go and see her. After all, studies show that being social and hanging out with friends is really good for your health. Wait. Good for your health? Yep. Let me get on my hiking boots and I'll tell you all about it on our way there. I know they're in my backpack here somewhere. Now if only I could find my backpack. Hmm, you lost your backpack? Well, no, I mean I know it's in my closet. Okay. Now if only I could find my closet.

You can't find your closet? Yeah, so the problem with living in a gingerbread mansion is that every time you eat it and then rebuild, you forget where you've put all your rooms. Right. Okay, so I'm just gonna head back home and see if I can find that closet. Don't go anywhere. Uh um Mindy? I mean it's gotta be in there somewhere, right? Mindy. Come to think of it. I even rebake a closet. Indy What's that on your back? Oh, that's just my back p Oh that's my back.

Ah, there it is! Thanks for helping me find it! No worries. Now let me just see what we've got in here. Um you know, Mindy, it's usually polite to ask people if you for joining them on a hike. What are you talking about? You weren't just gonna go by yourself, were you? Well I mean all that peace and quiet ugh yeah who would want that? Exactly. Oh here they are Ugh! Ugh! There we go. Mindy, what on earth are those? What do you mean what are those? Well Those hiking

Fur and have two massive cow horns poking out of the sides. Oh, yeah, that's because they're my Viking boots. Thanks, Jed! Andy. Don't worry, Gyroz. They're still waterproof and they provide a surprising amount of ankle support. Okay, let me just lock up here. Security laser grid. Alright, good to go. Ah, the great outdoors. Peace. Quiet, serenity. I know. Imagine if I wasn't here. You'd have to put up with all of that peace.

Quiet and serenity all by yourself. Yeah. So anywho, about this research I mentioned. About how being social makes you healthy? Yeah. So these researchers at the University of Michigan. Found that people who had a lot of friends and hung out with their family more often lived longer than those who didn't. Yep. And the researchers surveyed almost 5,000 people for this. And a survey is kind of like a scientific list of questions used to collect information from people. Exactly.

So they got almost 5,000 people from Alameda County near San Francisco to fill out a list of questions that would show how social they were. So questions like: are you Married, how often do you stay in contact with your family? What kinds of friends circles do you hang out with? So what happened? Well those 5,000 people told the researchers to mine their own beeswax. What really? Nah, they answered all the questions. Mandy. And then the researchers

took their answers and assigned each person with a number. So a low number meant that you weren't very social, and a high number meant that you had friends coming out your ears. Wow. And then the researchers followed the health of these 5,000 people over the next nine years. And Gyraz, you'll never guess what they found. What? The researchers found that those people they gave a high number to? You mean the people that had lots of friends and spent more time with their families?

Right, so those people were twice as likely to live longer than those who weren't very social and were given a lower number. Wow, that's incredible, Mindy. I guess being a social butterfly really does have an effect on how healthy you are. It's probably why Reggie's lived so long. He's the most popular pigeon I know. It's also the only pigeon I know. You know, come to think of it, he does have an awful lot of people over to his birdhouse for seeds and spa water on Saturdays.

I know, and we've never been invited. Hmm. Oh, it's starting to get kinda cold out here, isn't it? Well yeah, I mean the closer we get to the Rocky Mountains, the colder it's gonna get. Okay, let me just get out my hat here. Ah, here we go. Mindy, I I told you to bring a hiking hat. Not a Viking hat. I like to dress in themes. Huh, I see. Crochet the horns myself. Yeah, nice touch.

What was that? Well But what? If we're where I think we are Where are we? I would make an educated guess that that was A gray wolf. A gray wolf? Those terrifying top-of-the-food chain predators that skulk around by themselves attacking farm animals and howling at the moon? Well, actually, Mindy, I just learned that The whole idea of a lone wolf is kind of a myth because wolves are species we know of, and they often hunt and travel in packs. He here, listen.

Do you hear it? Yeah, that's a lot of wolves. And it's not just wolves, Mindy. There are actually a whole bunch of animals that, like us humans, thrive on being social. Really? Really? From dolphins to gorillas to wolves. All of these animals survive because of the connections they make with other members of their species. And these types of animals are called social animals. Social animals, huh? And Mindy

We can learn from these social animals. Like what? Well, take one of the most social animals we know. Which is the ant. The ant? They don't even make sounds. Well, I know, but Bees and even some waste. Well, they belong to a group of social animals called U social species. Uh who social species? You social species. And in you social species, each member of the group is given a specific job to perform.

And each of those jobs helps contribute to the group as a whole. Everyone pitches in. Exactly. So like in an ant's nest. For example, there's the queen, then there are the worker ants, and then there are the soldier ants. That's right.

Everyone has a job. And so what are we learning from these ants? Well, Mindy, scientists from Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. have been studying ants to try and figure out the best way to evacuate a building. And by evacuate you mean getting everyone out of a building when there's an emergency. That's right. Well, um, Gairaz? Yeah. I don't mean to point out the obvious, but um, how do I put this? Um Ants don't live in buildings. They live in anthills.

I know that, Mindy, but what the scientists at Monash University were studying was how these ants evacuated their anthills when they were in danger. What did they want to find out? Well the scientists wanted to see if there were any lessons that we humans might be able to take away from these ants. and then use those lessons in how to evacuate buildings.

So is the idea that ants are better at evacuating than us humans? Well that's the idea, yes. So what makes them so much better? Well when ants evacuate an anthill, they're able to keep a rule in their minds that We humans tend to forget when we're panicking. Oh no, what's the rule? Because I can tell you right now, Gyroz, I probably break that rule every time I freak out. Well, the rule is that sometimes Slower is faster. Sometimes slower is faster. Ah yeah.

I definitely break that rule. So you mean like the tortoise and the hare? Yeah, kinda like that. And the researchers found that when ants are evaluated. They stay calm. Politely let other ants pass around them and in front of them. Exit. Wow, I had no idea that ants were so civilized. and shove and butt each other in line trying to get there first? No, they don't rush to try and save their own lives, but

They move slower for the good of the group. Huh, interesting. And Mindy, the scientists observed that the slower the average speed of each ant meant that the group of ants As a whole was evacuated. Faster. So in this case Slower really is faster. Yeah. How exactly are the scientists using this information to help evacuate our own human buildings quicker? Well, for starters, by experimenting with a technique to actually block part of an exit in a building.

Whoa whoa whoa. Hold phone guy, Roz. You're telling me that in order to evacuate a building Quicker? Yes. These scientists are saying that you've gotta block the exits of the building with something? Well, I know it sounds crazy, Mindy, but after studying these ants for two years, That's the conclusion that these scientists came to. By putting something front of the exit to block part of the exit

Forces people to slow down. And in turn, it gets the group as a whole out a lot quicker. Wow, I never would have thought of that. I mean you have to admit, Mindy, it's kind of Brilliant. Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant. Ooh, whoa, whoa, whoa. Kairaz, did you just make a pun? Maybe I did, Mindy. I'm so proud of you. Before you know it, you're gonna be a Okay, hold on, let me just Check my map and compass to actually see where we are right now. Ooh, kicking it over.

School paper map, huh? Yeah, we should be getting pretty close to Aunt Helga's house right about now. Really? It only feels like we've been walking for like ten minutes and we didn't even start in Colorado. Ha, I know, right? Time flies when you're talking social science. And being a social animal having fun equals spending time with your best

Friend. That's right. If only Reggie could be here. What? But you know, Gyroz, not all animals are social like us. What do you mean? Well, some animals actually prefer spending time alone as opposed to hanging out with other members of their own species. You know, like how you get after one of our big adventures where you just need a little time, but without me. Well, I uh do enjoy solitude with my stack of London Review books. Exactly, and And slowly watching Kombucha Brew. Yeah, and and

No, sorry, Mindy. I was just thinking about all the things I was Back from this adventure. Anywho, as I was saying, some animals prefer to live alone. These animals are called solitary animals. Solitary animals, huh? Yep. So for example, tigers are solitary? So are And even pandas. Huh, so I can understand the benefits of being in a Where everyone can help each other out.

What possible benefit could an animal get from going it all alone? Well, there are a few reasons why scientists think that these animals actually prefer to go solo. Really? What are they? Well, the most common reason is that they want to avoid competition with each other. Huh, so you mean they're not competing over the same food in the same area, for example. Exactly. Doritos. But even these solitary animals

Do spend some time in groups or pairs. What for? Well, usually because they want a mate or they want some help taking care of the babies. Ha, well that makes a lot of sense. You know, you gotta teach That little tiger cub how to hunt before he can fend for himself. Yep. And as it turns out, being antisocial might even mean living longer for some of these animals. Like, um, like the marmot. The marmot? Yeah.

So as it turns out, this cat-sized furry little rodent lives way longer when it decides to go its own way and fly solo. Only it doesn't fly. Oh yeah, I know marmots. They kinda look like big guinea pigs and live in the mountains. Yeah, and so this biologist a scientist who studies life on Earth. So this biologist, Daniel Bloomstein from the University of California.

He spent the last thirteen years tracking these furry little marmots. And what was he doing? He was just taking notes on how they interacted with each other and how long they lived for. So what did he find? Well the first thing you have to know is that marmots Are neither social nor a solitary animal. What? You can't put everything in a box.

Skyros, the marmot is what's known as a socially flexible animal, meaning that they usually live alone, but if their population grows too large or their habitat Get too small, well, they'll team up to help each other out. Oh, that's so nice. So this research team followed eleven different colonies or groups of marmids right here in the Rocky Mountains for 13 years.

Well thirteen years is a long time, so what were they looking for? Well, they were spying on the marmots to see how they acted with each other. You know, like how they groomed each other, how they foraged for food to And what do they find? Well, Daniel and his team of researchers found that marmots that went their own way lived for two years longer than the marmots. Who lived in colonies or groups? Which for a marmot is a pretty big chunk of time. Exactly.

So marmots usually live for about 15 years or so, so living two extra years would be like you or me getting an extra 10 or 12 years added on to our lives. Oh man, I mean imagine how many hundred thousands of London reviews I could get through in that time. I'm not going to imagine that, Gairoz. So why do these marmots live longer, Mindy? Well, it's hard to know for sure, but Daniel and his team of researchers believe that it

Could be for a whole bunch of reasons. Such as such as when marmots live in larger groups, it's easier for them to pass things like diseases on to one another. Oh yeah, like when someone at school has the flu and then a week later everyone has the flu. Exactly like that. But another reason might be the fact that they are terrible snorers. Terrible snores? Okay, well not exactly, but these researchers did point out that nor

Patterns could wake up other members of the colony during hibernation. Hibernation being that big Animals do through the winter. You got it, but once you wake up from hibernation, it's really hard to nut off again. And I imagine there's not a whole lot of food around in the winter either. Nope. So they just go hungry. Yikes. Yikes is right.

Spending some quality time alone could be so good for you. Well if you're a marmot. Glad we're not marmots. Why's that? Because then we wouldn't be best friends and you'd have to do this hike all by yourself. Oh yeah, r right, right.

Forgot about that. Ugh, are we almost there, Gyroz? I feel like we've been walking forever. Well, let's see, Bindy. According to our map. Yeah, what does it say? And these instructions Aunt Helga gave me what did she tell you? We should be almost there. Okay, she wrote right here If you do decide to visit me, you can find my cabin on the tallest peak.

Of the tallest mountain range in North America. Huh. She couldn't have just given you a zip code or something. I guess not, but in the Rockies, Mindy. How are we gonna get all the way up there? Uh well you didn't think this far through, did you? Uh not really. Well don't you worry your pretty little head about it, Gyros. I'm just gonna ask those mountain goats over there for some help. Mountain goats? Kids Excuse me, sir. Sorry, uh Billy Wait, Billy the kid? Really?

No relation. Yeah, gotcha. You must get that all the time. Wow, two or three times a day? You gotta be kidding me. Sorry, bad joke. Indy. Oh yeah, right. Sorry. Um, Mr. Kid, I have a favor to ask you. You see, me and my buddy Guy Roz over here are visiting his Aunt Helga on the top of this mountain, and we were hoping for a ride up. Yeah, Aunt Helga. Wait, you know Aunt Helga? They know Aunt Helga? You're going there now? Oh, well that's great news! Ah, thank you so much.

Goats no Aunt Helga? How? I don't know. You don't know. You you were just speaking goat. What? No, I don't speak goat gyros. That would be ridiculous. What? Now hop on that one over there. They're gonna give us a ride. What is it with you and riding animals that are obviously Too small to be ridden. Don't think about it too much, Gyroz. Now, let me just get my goat riding saddle out of my backpack here. Goat riding what? Saddle. You brought yours, right?

You know what? It must have slipped my mind. No worries, buddy. I brought a spare. Well, you always do have my back, Mindy. Well that's what social animals do, Gyroz. We look out for each other. That's true. Now put that saddle on Billy's goat friend over there, and I'll saddle up on Billy. Come on, we gotta get going. Alright, let me just see here. Yep, easy does it, just like you'd ride a dolphin. Okay.

There we go, now just to hop on and come on, catch your balance. Careful, careful. Okay, Billy and Gyroz, I think we're ready. Whoa! Please don't do it and really move, huh? Wait a minute, Kairan! Do you hear that? Wait, wait. I think I do, Mint. It sounds like it sounds like a wild party going on. Look, I think it's coming from up there. In that cabin? Yeah. Wait a minute, Mindy. That's Aunt Helga's cabin. I recognize it from the photos she sent. Well I Guess we're here.

Thanks for the ride, Billy. And thanks um oh I'm sorry, I d I didn't catch your name. Seriously? Billy the Kid and Vincent Van Gogh? Come on, Mindy, we gotta go. Uh thanks, thanks Billy, thanks Vincent. What on earth is happening in this- I guess we're about to find out. you to say that again.

Wow, that was so cool! All those animals like ants and dolphins and gorilla. Longer because they're so social. No, we should get out of the basement and go be social and hang out with other people too. How about we go outside? And then pop out of the bushes at Guy Raz's house when he comes out to get the mail. And then we'll all be like

Surprise guy rush! Can we come in for coffee and scrumpets and social time so we all live longer? Yeah, he'll love that! Let's go! All right, let's wrap up the show first. Thanks to all you listeners out there for tuning in to Wee Wow on the weekend. If you have a question for me, call and leave me a message at 1-888-7YY. That's one eight eight. Seven? Wow wow. I just might answer your question on Wee Wow on the weekend. Okay, should we do the goodbye song? Bad. Bye!