Why do bees pollinate? How do bees make honey? Why do bees have stingers? Why do bees die when they sting you? What's the difference between a bee and a wasp? Does honey have healing properties? Vermont farmer and beekeeper John Hayden of The Farm Between answers all of your bee questions! And we learn about one curious kid's app, which he hopes will help save pollinators.
Aug 18, 2017•36 min•Ep 43•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode, we're answering some of our frequently asked questions, the questions we hear a lot from all of you: why are there so many different languages? Why do we get hiccups? Why do our fingers get wrinkly in the tub? Why are plants so many colors? Why do leaves change colors in the fall? Why is the sky blue?
Aug 04, 2017•27 min•Ep 42•Transcript available on Metacast We're answering ten questions as quickly as we can in this episode of But Why. Why do onions make you cry? How do hummingbirds hum? Why do flamingos stand on one leg? Do moths have veins in their wings? Do cats that share a home have the same meow? What was the first book? How do libraries get money if people borrow books for free? Why do people have fidget spinners? Why can't my stuffed animal get wet? And how do pigs poop? Can we do it all in 20 minutes?!
Jul 21, 2017•19 min•Ep 41•Transcript available on Metacast How is bread made? Who made the first cake? Why shouldn't you touch raw eggs? On this episode of But Why, we're talking about baking. We get a lesson in bread making on a field trip to King Arthur Flour. Later, the Botanical Society of America weighs in on a recent episode where we talked about why some berries are poisonous.
Jul 07, 2017•18 min•Ep 40•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode we're celebrating the official return of summer to the northern hemisphere by answering some summertime questions! How do fireflies glow and can they control how they blink? Why are owls nocturnal? How do they swivel their heads around? And how do they hoot? Plus a few burning questions about why bug bites itch, why poison ivy and caterpillars and berries can all be poisonous, and how come we have to wear sunscreen! We'll get answers from wildlife biologists Kent McFarland and Br...
Jun 23, 2017•34 min•Ep 39•Transcript available on Metacast How are babies made? We speak with Cory Silverberg, author of What Makes A Baby, for answers to questions about how we all come into the world.
Jun 09, 2017•24 min•Ep 38•Transcript available on Metacast We recently did an episode all about dogs. But after that came out, Nash, from Fort Dodge, IA, sent us a question wondering if dogs ever get strep throat. So we reached back out to Jessica Hekman to get an answer!
May 26, 2017•2 min•Ep 37•Transcript available on Metacast This episode may not be suitable for our youngest listeners or for particularly sensitive kids. We're discussing animal ethics with author Hal Herzog. In a follow up to our pets episodes, we look at how we treat animals very differently depending on whether we think of them as pets, food, or work animals. Why do some cultures eat cows and others don't? Why do some cultures not have pets at all? And is it okay to breed animals like dogs that have significant health problems even though we love th...
May 26, 2017•22 min•Ep 36•Transcript available on Metacast Why do dogs have whiskers? Why are dogs' eyesight black and white? Why do dogs have so many babies? Why do dogs have tails and we don't? Why are dogs thumbs so high on their paw? Why don't dogs sweat? Why do dogs roll in the grass? Why aren't dogs and cats friends? Veterinarian and dog scientist Jessica Hekman has answers. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slides | Transcript | Coloring Page | Dog Breed Quiz | Answer Key...
May 12, 2017•21 min•Ep 35•Transcript available on Metacast Why do cats purr? How do cats purr? Why can't we purr? Why do cats "talk" to people, but not other cats? Why do cats sharpen their claws? Are orange cats only male? Why do cats like milk and not water? Why are some cats crazy? Can cats see color? All of your cat questions answered with Abigail Tucker, author of 'The Lion in the Living Room.'
May 12, 2017•23 min•Ep 34•Transcript available on Metacast Who was the first person? Paleoanthropologist Adam Van Arsdale answers one of the most frequent questions we get here at But Why. Also: how does evolution work? Was there a first of every living thing? How did the first animal come alive? How did monkeys turn into people? And what did cavemen eat that we still eat today?
Apr 28, 2017•30 min•Ep 33•Transcript available on Metacast For 20 years, brothers Chris and Martin Kratt have been taking kids on adventures around the world through their TV shows, including Wild Kratts, Zoboomafoo, and Kratts' Creatures. They spent many childhood summers exploring the wilds of Vermont. In this special episode, we are sharing a Vermont Edition interview Jane did with the Kratts for her other radio show.
Apr 21, 2017•42 min•Ep 32•Transcript available on Metacast How do butterflies fly? Why are butterflies called butterflies? How do airplanes fly? If gravity pulls everything down, how do planes and rockets get up in the air? Why do planes have engines and how do they make them? We're visiting ECHO, the Leahy Center for Lake Champlain and the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum for answers.
Apr 14, 2017•28 min•Ep 31•Transcript available on Metacast Did you know pianos have strings and hammers? We're learning all about instruments and how they use strings to make noises.
Mar 31, 2017•28 min•Ep 30•Transcript available on Metacast Why are there so many plants? How are seeds made? How does germination work? How can plants grow so big if they start from such a small seed? Why are flowers different colors? Why are plants and trees green? Where does dirt come from? In this episode of But Why , we're talking about plants with garden consultant Charlie Nardozzi.
Mar 17, 2017•22 min•Ep 29•Transcript available on Metacast The discovery of seven new planets that could contain life has kids and adults pretty excited. We can't get to these planets yet but we do have tools to explore planets closer to home. In this episode, St. Michael's College astronomy professor John O'Meara answers how the Mars rover is driven from back here on earth?
Mar 03, 2017•22 min•Ep 28•Transcript available on Metacast Why are yawns contagious? Why do we hiccup? How do teeth get loose? Why do your ears hurt when you drive up over the mountains? Why do we get dizzy when we spin? Why do people slip? Why do people faint? Why do we have saliva and mucus? Why do people cry when they get hurt? How do voice boxes work? Why does your voice sound weird when it's recorded? Dr. Lori Racha has more answers to your body questions.
Feb 17, 2017•37 min•Ep 27•Transcript available on Metacast Why do your fingers and toes turn wrinkly in the tub? Why are people ticklish? How do you get freckles? Why do some people have birthmarks? How do our hands feel things? Are humans animals? Why don't humans have tails? Why do we need food and water to survive? Why do our nose and ears keep growing? How do bones connect together? We're talking about our weird and wonderful bodies with Dr. Lori Racha, a pediatrician at the University of Vermont.
Feb 03, 2017•30 min•Ep 26•Transcript available on Metacast How do popcorn kernels pop? How do salmon know where to return to spawn? How do rabbits change colors? Why does television fry your brain? How do zippers zip stuff? Who was the fastest runner in the world? In this episode, we'll tackle all these questions!
Jan 20, 2017•26 min•Ep 25•Transcript available on Metacast Why is all of the world split up into countries, states, cities and counties and more? Why can't we all just live as one big group? Which country has the least amount of people? We're talking about countries and borders with author Juan Enriquez. Also in this episode: why don't school buses have seatbelts?
Jan 06, 2017•25 min•Ep 24•Transcript available on Metacast How is chocolate made? Why can't we eat chocolate all the time? Why does chocolate melt? Why can't dogs eat chocolate? In this episode, we travel to Taza Chocolate in Somerville, Massachusetts to get some answers. Plus, we visit a coffee roaster in Maine to learn about this parent fuel that so many kids find gross!
Dec 23, 2016•25 min•Ep 23•Transcript available on Metacast We're getting answers to all of your weather questions! Where does snow come from? Why do clouds stay up in the sky? How hot is lightning? What are thunderstorms? How is wind made? Those questions and more are answered by meteorologist Mark Breen, author of The Kids' Book of Weather Forecasting.
Dec 09, 2016•29 min•Ep 22•Transcript available on Metacast On this special episode, we're going to listen to a story about how turkeys used to get from farms in Vermont to markets and dinner tables far away in Boston, a distance of a couple hundred miles. This was before refrigerated trucks. So how do you think they did it?
Nov 22, 2016•11 min•Ep 21•Transcript available on Metacast Why do we like to eat certain foods? Why do some people like to eat spicy food and some people don't like to eat vegetables? Why does pineapple hurt your mouth when you eat too much of it? Why do we taste things and how? Why do different foods taste different? Do animals have the same taste buds as people? Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slides | Transcript...
Nov 22, 2016•25 min•Ep 20•Transcript available on Metacast Are ghosts real? Why do some cultures believe in fairies and gnomes and some don't? We'll learn about how beliefs in ghosts vary in different parts of the world with Justin McDaniel of University of Pennsylvania. Then we're off to Iceland to learn about magical creatures with Terry Gunnell.
Nov 11, 2016•18 min•Ep 19•Transcript available on Metacast How do birds fly? Why do they flock? How do they not get shocked when they sit on telephone wires? The Bird Diva has our answers to all of your questions about our feathered friends. And why do chickens lay different colored eggs? We visit the hen house at Shelburne Farms to find out.
Oct 28, 2016•22 min•Ep 18•Transcript available on Metacast Who invented the president? Which country had the first president? We answer presidential questions historical in nature with author Kenneth C. Davis . Also in the episode: why do leaves change color in the fall?
Oct 14, 2016•22 min•Ep 17•Transcript available on Metacast We're heading to the coast of Maine to learn a little bit about why the sea is salty, how mussels get their shells and how model ships get in those glass bottles. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide | Transcript | Ship In Bottle Plans...
Sep 30, 2016•25 min•Ep 16•Transcript available on Metacast 7-year-old Kala wants to know why we say soccer in the United States, when the rest of the world calls the game "football." In this episode we hear from people who make their living in the game, professional players, coaches and commentators.
Sep 16, 2016•13 min•Ep 15•Transcript available on Metacast How long does it take for baby animals to grow up? In this episode, we're learning about cheetahs and horses with two questions from siblings in Australia.
Sep 02, 2016•15 min•Ep 14•Transcript available on Metacast