The BrainFood Show

4.9 (1.4K)
History
Updated Semiweekly

In this show, the team behind the wildly popular TodayIFoundOut YouTube channel do deep dives into a variety of fascinating topics to help you feed your brain with interesting knowledge.

20h ago

Neil Armstrong's Tale

Neil Armstrong will likely be remembered by humans as long as there are humans to remember. The first man to set foot on the moon. His first words will likewise reverberate throughout history... But what was the second thing he said on the moon. And how did Neil Armstrong die? This is the story of one of the greatest astronauts in history. Authors: Melissa Blevins, Daven Hiskey, Matt Blitz. Host: Simon Whistler Editor: Daven Hiskey Producer: Samuel Avila Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

20 min
1d ago

Who Invented the Internet and Email?

In this episode of The Brain Food Show, we start by looking at a the absolutely bizarre way bedbugs mate. Next up, we jump into the main part of the show on who invented the Internet and how it works. We also look at who invented email and the web, and what Al Gore had to do with all this. On another note, if you could do us a huge favor and rate and review this show in whatever podcasting platform you’re using (including hopefully giving us some feedback related to the new format), we would be extremely grateful. Thanks! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1h 37m
4d ago

What Happens If Parents Don’t Give Their Baby a Name? If You Donate Your Body to Science? & More

In today's compilation, we're looking at a series of "What Happens When" topics including What Happens If Parents Don’t Give Their Baby a Name? What Happens to the Bodies if a Cryogenic Company Goes Bankrupt? What Happened to Dead Bodies After Big Battles Throughout History? What Happens to Your Stuff When You Get Sent to Prison for Life? What Happens when You Ask a Surgeon For Your Amputated Limb Back? What Happens When You Donate Your Body to Science and How Do You Do This? What Happens if you Renounce Your Citizenship But Don’t Belong to Another Country When You Do It? What Happens if You Leave Your House to a Pet in Your Will? What Happens When You Freeze Water in a Container So Strong the Water Can’t Expand Into Ice? What Happens to Your Stuff When You're Declared Dead, Then Turn Up Alive like a Certain Shire Hobbit? And finally What Happens if You Commit a Crime in Space? 0:00 What Happens If Parents Don’t Give Their Baby a Name? 15:29 What Happens to the Bodies if a Cryogenic Company Goes Bankrupt? 28:25 What Happened to Dead Bodies After Big Battles Throughout History? 38:38 What Happens to Your Stuff When You Get Sent to Prison for Life? 49:30 What Happens when You Ask a Surgeon For Your Amputated Limb Back? 1:00:16 What Happens When You Donate Your Body to Science and How Do You Do This? 1:17:29 What Happens if you Renounce Your Citizenship But Don’t Belong to Another Country When You Do It? 1:30:45 What Happens if You Leave Your House to a Pet in Your Will? 1:40:54 What Happens When You Freeze Water in a Container So Strong the Water Can’t Expand Into Ice? 1:45:44 What Happens to Your Stuff When You're Declared Dead, Then Turn Up Alive like a Certain Shire Hobbit? 2:01:13 What Happens if You Commit a Crime in Space? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2h 16m
5d ago

The Real Story of Jack the Ripper

He is one of the most famous serial killers of all time, but who actually was Jack the Ripper and what actually happened during his reign of terror. Just before 4 am on August 31, 1888, on London’s seedy Buck’s Row, a cart driver named Charles Cross saw the body of a woman lying on the ground. In the early morning gloom, it was initially impossible to tell if she was drunk or dead. Cross was soon joined by another carter, Robert Paul. The two men saw the woman’s skirts were pulled above her waist. They smoothed them back over her knees and went searching for a policeman. What the two carters didn’t notice in the shifting shadows was the woman’s throat had been cut so brutally that her head had almost been decapitated. Beat officer John Neil discovered that gruesome fact on closer inspection of the body. (He later testified at the inquest that when he had passed that way just 30 minutes earlier, “there was not a soul about.”) P.C. Neil sent another colleague to fetch a local medic and soon Dr. Rees Ralph Llewellyn arrived on the scene. He quickly examined the body and found that the arms and legs were still warm. Llewellyn believed the woman had been dead for less than 30 minutes. Her killer may have still been lurking nearby when Cross and Paul came upon the body.... Host: Simon Whistler Editor: Daven Hiskey Producer: Samuel Avila Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

15 min
6d ago

What Actually Were "Foo Fighters"?

Everlong. Learn to Fly. Best of You. All My Life. The Pretender. These are but a few of the top-charting songs by American rock band The Foo Fighters, founded in 1994 by legendary former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. But what actually is a Foo Fighter? Well, it turns out the band’s name is not just merely a random string of nonsense words, but rather refers to strange phenomenon observed by pilots over Europe and the Pacific during the Second World War, one of a string of such weird occurrences throughout history through today that have caused some to point to the classic explanation when anything weird appears in the sky- aliens. But what’s actually going on here? Well, today we’ll be looking at everything from tales of ancient aliens, to what actually were the Foo Fighters of WWII and where the name came from, to that time the U.S. Military finally buckled down to take a deep look into it all to see if the Earth was in any danger from extraterrestrials, and what they determined, as well as why we are all pronouncing UFO wrong, and how the coiner of the term explicitly stated it should be said. Author: Gilles Messier Host/Editor: Daven Hiskey Producer: Daven Hiskey 0:00 Intro 2:37 Ancient Aliens? 10:44 The 19th Century UFO Craze 15:20 WWI UFO Encounters 16:57 WWII's Mysterious Foo Fighters 27:10 Why are They Called Foo Fighters? 30:30 What Were Foo Fighters? 40:14 The U.S. Military Gets Serious About the Search for Aliens 43:26 What the Military Discovered About UFOs Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

49 min
Jun 9

The Mysterious Disappearance of One of the Most Successful Recording Artists of All Time

Glenn Miller was on the top of his game in 1944. He led the most popular recording group in the world. His only rival for king of Big Band music was the great Benny Goodman. During World War II, 40-year-old Miller was serving as a major in the United States Army Air Force while performing for the troops. On December 15, 1944, he boarded a small plane for the short flight across the English Channel to do a show in Paris for American troops that had just helped liberate France. Miller and the two other men on the aircraft never made it to their destination. No trace of the wreckage or any of the passengers was ever found, and Glenn Miller is still listed as missing in action. Of course, as with any accidental celebrity death, speculation about the circumstances began almost immediately... Host: Simon Whistler Producer: Samuel Avila Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

18 min
Jun 8

Why is the Keyboard Layout What It Is and Is There a Better Version?

In this episode of The Brain Food Show, we start by looking at a quick fact surrounding what Elton John, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and Genesis had to do with Monty Python and the Holy Grail. After the sponsor spot, we then jump into the main part of the show on how the QWERTY keyboard came to be. We also dig into whether the Dvorak keyboard layout is actually superior to QWERTY or if that’s just something people say. Next up we look at who really invented the mouse and how it languished in obscurity for quite some time before Steve Jobs came along. A few links for this episode: ⁠The Mother of All Demos (1968)⁠ ⁠Remington #2⁠ ⁠Canadian First Mouse⁠ ⁠First Handheld Mouse⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1h 20m
Jun 5

Why Doesn't the U.S. Use the Metric System, Why Fingernails on Chalkboards Make Us Cringe & More

In today's compilation episode, we're covering a myriad of Whys, from Why the United States doesn't use the metric system, why fingernails on chalkboards make us cringe, why we have moles on our bodies, why doesn't the heart get tired like other muscles, and much, much more. 0:00 Why Doesn’t the United States Use the Metric System? 20:55 Why Does the Sound of Fingernails on a Chalkboard or Scraping a Plate Make Us Cringe? 35:09 Why Do We Have Moles All Over Our Bodies and What Do They Do? 42:55 Why Doesn’t the Heart Get Tired and Need to Rest Like Other Muscles? 54:25 Why Do Some People Think the Human Soul Weighs 21 Grams? 1:06:14 Why Do the Eyes in Some Paintings Follow You Around the Room? 1:11:17 Why Does Soda Taste Significantly Better When Carbonated vs. Flat? 1:14:01 Why Do We Get Allergies? 1:27:33 Why You Sometimes Get a Lump in the Back of Your Throat When Sad and Why We Cry 1:32:44 Why Coffee Makes You Poop 1:40:14 Why Can’t People Smell Themselves? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1h 51m

See All (274)

4.9

out of 5

1,375 Ratings

Love the banter

Mar 31

Champ08

I love the information you guys give. The banter and chemistry you two have is entertaining and keeps me invested.
Absolutely amazing

Feb 21

Renda6789

The hosts Simon and Daven manage to make topics you wouldn’t otherwise ever care about just straight up amusing and interesting. I think the fact that it really feels like they are learning it all along with you, instead of feeling like two guys just telling you about stuff they know, makes this podcast so unique and fun to listen to. The way the hosts interact with each other gives this podcast a very fun and banter-y atmosphere, unlike podcasts where the hosts sound like they would rather be doing literally anything else. Edited to add I’m slo glad they are back!
10/10

Jan 23

tee craine

Love these guys. Great show.
A must listen

Jan 23

Karly's cup of Jo

I always have to check out a Simon Whistler podcast! As always it’s entertaining and has good information. I enjoying listening to the banter between the two hosts.

In this show, the team behind the wildly popular TodayIFoundOut YouTube channel do deep dives into a variety of fascinating topics to help you feed your brain with interesting knowledge.