But Why: A Podcast for Curious Kids

Who decides what robots look like? How do robots work and move? How are they controlled? And are robots alive? We tackle all your robot questions in this episode, and we’re taking a field trip to a local factory that uses hundreds of robots to help humans do their jobs. GlobalFoundries, in Essex Junction, Vermont makes microchips that go in all kinds of electronics. In fact, if your adults have a smartphone, more than likely it has a chip made at this very facility. Engineers Adrien Plouffe and Lucy White work with the robots at GlobalFoundries and answer your questions about robots, including: Why are robots made of metal? Why do people like robots? Do robots cry? Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide

Why can’t animals talk to us? Are humans the only animals that can talk? Can different species of animals communicate with each other? We learn about animal communication with Arik Kershenbaum, author of Why Animals Talk: The New Science of Animal Communication. He studies wolves, gibbons, dolphins and hyrax to learn how they communicate. Also in this episode: why are parrots able to speak human words but other birds can’t? Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide | Transcript

Why do we have to poop? Why does fiber make you poop? Why is poop brown? Why does it smell so bad? Why do farts smell bad, too? Yup, we’re going there! In this episode, Mary Roach, author of Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal, answers your questions about those things that we’re told not to talk about in polite company: poop and farts. We learn how astronauts use the bathroom in space and how many germs are in one ounce of poop. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide | Transcript

Why do we worry and how can we deal with it? Why do we get anxious? Where does anxiety come from? Anxiety or worry is a hard feeling to overcome, but it’s a universal human emotion. In this episode, we explore anxiety with clinical psychologist Eileen Kennedy-Moore, also known as Dr. Friendtastic. She helps us understand why moderate anxiety is useful and necessary. But too much worry can prevent you from learning new things or doing activities that could be fun. And she has some tips for how to overcome anxious feelings. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide | Transcript

Election Day in the United States is November 5 this year and election officials across the country are already hard at work setting up polling places and processing mail in ballots. Even if you’re not old enough to vote, you can be part of the process. You can watch voting machines be tested, observe the polling places on Election Day, or even watch votes be counted once the polls close. (Sometimes there are livestreams so you can watch from the comfort of your own home!) For this episode on how voting works, But Why stopped by the South Burlington City Hall on the day vote tabulators were being prepared. Plus we meet Vermont’s top election official, Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas. Have you asked an adult to take you to the polls yet? Download our learning guides: PDF | Transcript

What is voting? Why (and how) do people vote? Why can’t kids vote? Why are there red and blue states (not to mention donkeys and elephants representing political parties)? How can someone win the most votes but still lose the presidential election? We’re answering kid questions about elections with Bridgett King, a political scientist at the University of Kentucky. Download our learning guides: PDF | Transcript

A new food-focused kids podcast is here. It’s called ChopChop and it’s part of a non-profit committed to getting kids and families to cook and eat meals together. Explore tasty recipes on their website! They also publish a quarterly magazine in English and Spanish (a good way to practice a second language). We contributed to their very first episode and we have to say, it’s the corniest episode you’re ever going to listen to! Our contribution was the science of how popcorn pops. We hope you gain some kernels of knowledge from this episode! We had an ear full.

Why do we have bones? How do they grow–and how do they know when to stop growing? How many do we have in our bodies? And when we break our bones, how do they heal? What do casts do? And how do you know if you’ve broken a bone? Broken bones are a common occurrence in kids. Up to 40% of girls and up to 50% of boys will break a bone in their lifetime. In this episode, we learn about the role of bones in our body and how to deal with a fractured bone with Melissa Raddatz, a family nurse practitioner at Duke Health System in North Carolina. The first part of this episode is all about bones in general, and we shift to broken bones for the second half. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide | Transcript

How do wind turbines work? How are wind turbines made? What will our energy picture look like in the future? We’re taking a deep dive into wind power, and trying to make the technology understandable, with Josh Castonguay of Vermont utility Green Mountain Power. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide | Transcript

Come along to learn all about the wriggling worms that live in the dirt beneath your feet. Earthworms are everywhere, and there are many species of worms yet to be discovered. How do worms communicate? Why do worms have slime? Why do worms come out when it rains? Answers to all of your worm questions with earthworm detective Sam James. Plus, we learn about worm composting with a kid who’s in charge of her family’s food scraps! Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slides | Transcript

But it’s important to know how to swim if you’re going to be around water! In this episode, Upper Valley Aquatic Center Swim School Director Kana Wyman gives us swimming tips, like how to get comfortable putting our heads in the water, how to float and more. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slides | Transcript A few tips for getting started:

We’re celebrating the Olympics and Olympic athletes with an episode chock full of the interviews we’ve done with Olympians. Plus we answer some of the Olympic-themed questions you’ve sent us, starting with: what’s all the hype about winning a big piece of metal? And are those medals really made out of gold, silver and bronze? And we speak with Paralympian Emelia Perry, who’s competing in the paratriathlon in Paris! (Other athletes we hear from: skier Andrew Weibrecht, bobsledder Elana Meyers Taylor, and mountain biker Lea Davison.) Download our learning guides: PDF| Google Slide | Transcript

Have you ever been threading one leg through a pair of pants in the morning and wondered…why do we wear clothes anyway? Or wondered why pockets in clothing designed for girls are sometimes smaller than the pockets in clothing designed for boys? In this episode we tackle questions about clothes with fashion historian and writer Amber Butchart. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slides | Transcript

How is pizza dough made? How does gluten-free dough rise? Who invented pizza? Is there pizza in every country? Is yeast alive?! Kids love pizza and they have questions! We get answers from Frank Pinello of Best Pizza in Williamsburg and Scott Wiener of Scott’s Pizza Tours. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide | Transcript

Why do oranges have peels? Why is the inside of an orange segmented? Why are lemons and limes so sour? Why do lemons have seeds but limes don’t? Why does fruit have juice? How many oranges are in a gallon of juice? How do seedless oranges reproduce? How are oranges available year-round? Why are the fruit and the color both called orange? We’re answering questions about citrus with Fernando Alferez from the University of Florida’s Southwest Florida Research and Education Center. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Drive | Transcript

Yes! In many parts of the world, insects are a regular part of people’s diets. Bugs are an efficient source of protein, and many cultures find them delicious. Some countries, like the US, don’t have a strong culture of insect cuisine, but that’s starting to change as people look for ways to feed a growing global population without using as many resources as we currently do. So insects might be an important part of our future diets as well. With all the talk about cicadas this summer, eating bugs has been making news for adults. So, in this bonus episode, But Why learns about cooking up insects with Joseph Yoon, edible insect ambassador at Brooklyn Bugs. Download transcript

This spring, trillions of periodical cicadas are emerging from the ground, where they’ve spent 13 or 17 years feeding on xylem (basically, tree juice). The two specific broods emerging this year have not come out at the same time since 1803, and kids may be hearing a lot of news about these loud insects. So today we’re tackling the cicada questions you’ve sent us: Why do cicadas come out every 17 years? What do cicadas eat? Why are there more cicadas at night than in the morning? Why do cicadas molt? How do cicadas get babies? We speak with Dan Gruner, professor of entomology at the University of Maryland, to get answers. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide | Transcript

Where is the border between sky and space? That's what 5-year-old Matthias of Durham, New Hampshire wants to know. Alesandra, 3 of Bella Vista, Arkansas wants to know why we can't hold air. In this episode from 2020, we’re joined by anthropologist Hugh Raffles, a professor at The New School, and by astronomer John O'Meara, chief scientist at the Keck Observatory. And we have special scoring by cellist Zoë Keating. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide | Transcript

That’s a question a lot of people have, honestly. But a kid named Rosie was bold enough to ask us to investigate why. So, in the latest episode, we dig in on why cockroaches get such a bad rap and why you might want to reconsider if you’re not a fan. Only two percent of the world’s cockroaches are considered pests. Those are the ones that can live in houses and potentially make us sick. But the vast majority of cockroaches don’t bother humans at all! Some, like the social cockroach species known as termites, work to decompose organic material and are hugely important to our environment. So where do people learn negative attitudes toward insects? We dig deep into insects with Jessica Ware, an entomologist and curator at the American Museum of Natural History. She’s also the host of the PBS digital series Insectarium. Answers to your questions about cockroaches, termites, dragonflies, praying mantises and more! Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide | Transcript

Why do lizards have scales? Why are reptiles cold-blooded? Why do lizards have long tongues? How do lizards grow their tails back? Are crocodiles dinosaurs? What’s the difference between an alligator and a crocodile? Why do crocodile eyes look like they have mirrors in the back? How do crocodiles chomp? Why do crocodile teeth stay sharp? Why are crocodiles green? Why do crocodiles swim? Answers to all of your crocodile and alligator questions with Venetia Briggs-Gonzalez, one of the researchers known as the Croc Docs at the University of Florida. Download our learning guides: PDF | Google Slide | Transcript