Category: Retired

When a fly hits a spider’s web the web sends vibrations to the spider crouched at its edge. This is known as remote sensing. The webs may help us design sensors to detect vibrations in the earth and the built environment. These vibrations could be turned into electricity. This could lead to small scale energy harvesting. With Patrick Aryee. #30Animals www.bbcworldservice.com/30animals

What if we told you that every fad diet, fashion editorial, and #fitspo post on social media could all be traced back to racist pseudoscience? In this episode, Brittany is joined by Sabrina Strings, sociologist and author of Fearing the Black Body: The Racial Origins of Fat Phobia, whose groundbreaking research parses the intersection of thinness, whiteness, and beauty ideals.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1881, James Bonsack developed a machine that made it far easier to mass-produce cigarettes. But at the time, other tobacco products were much more popular – so manufacturers had to find new ways of getting people’s attention. Tim Harford explains why the methods they devised are still working on consumers today.

The wings of one of the most beautiful butterflies could transform paints and textiles. Scientists are fascinated by how the blue morpho produces its shimmering blue effect. With Patrick Aryee. #30Animals www.bbcworldservice.com/30animals

When the US outlawed the manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages, it inadvertently created one of the most successful black markets in the world. Tim Harford considers how much it costs to make something illegal, and what a failed law reveals about the way criminals make their money.

Unlocking the secrets of the dazzling colours in the tail of the peacock. It is designed to attract females but has caught the eye of scientists, as they mimic it to develop high-resolution reflective colour-screen displays. With Patrick Aryee. #30Animals www.bbcworldservice.com/30animals

John Green reviews the QWERTY keyboard layout and a bird species called the Kauaʻi ʻōʻō.

Household Name will be back with brand new episodes soon! But in the meantime, check out "Lost at the Smithsonian," a new podcast from Stitcher. Comedian and pop culture fanatic Aasif Mandvi gets up close and personal with the most iconic artifacts at the National Museum of American History.

Sign up for our newsletter

Subscribe to "Lost at the Smithsonian" in Apple Podcasts

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this episode misstated the name of Jim Henson, the creator of "The Muppets."