This Podcast Will Kill You

Riots over inoculations. Large-scale quarantines and lockdowns. Criticisms of government action (or inaction) during disease outbreaks. The spread of mis- and disinformation about the safety of immuni...

In early February and late March of this year, separate outbreaks of Marburg virus were declared in Equatorial Guinea and in the United Republic of Tanzania. For several months, news of these outbreak...

Are viruses the “great equalizers” that some people claim them to be? Are we all similarly susceptible not only to infection from viruses but also to the consequences from infection? The short answer ...

An entire generation probably first learned the word “mesothelioma” and its link to asbestos from those ubiquitous commercials in the 1990s and 2000s. You know the one: “if you or a loved one has been...

Where can you find banana-stealing macaques, dumpster-diving bears, flower-destroying gulls, and dangerously-exploding trees all in the same place? In a book by Mary Roach, of course. In this TPWKY bo...

This just might be our itchiest episode yet, and for that we sincerely apologize. But it might also be one of our most fascinating and fun episodes yet, and for that we are proud. Whether or not you h...

Menstruation. Is there any other biological process that is so widely experienced yet is still discussed in hushed tones or with an air of disgust? Period product commercials that never mention menstr...

Even if you haven’t watched the TV show House MD, you’re probably familiar with the phrase “it’s never lupus”. But have you stopped to consider why it’s never lupus? Or why lupus is so often suspected...

In our episode on the bends, you joined us as we explored how low we can go. Now we’re back with a similar invitation: come along to learn how high we can fly (and what happens to our bodies when we g...

Listeners of this podcast are likely no strangers to the horrifying history of eugenics, a topic that has made an appearance in our episodes on epilepsy, Huntington’s disease, hemophilia, sickle cell ...