Recreational Science

Scientafic
  • 5.0 (2)
  • SCIENCE

RecSciPod: the podcast where laughable scientists discuss laughable science. Hosted by Lu and Tirth, physician-scientists who love to talk science and make each other laugh. In each episode, the two tell each other about one of the funniest, wackiest, and most provocative studies they stumble upon. Come along on this exploration of scientific creativity, because the silly experiments of today might just lead to the great discoveries of tomorrow! New episodes EVERY OTHER TUESDAY! Visit our website for transcripts, episode and article archives, and more: https://scientafic.com/recscipod

  1. 4D AGO

    Strip club economics and hot sauce aggression

    How do economics work in a strip club? What are the factors that go into how much a stripper makes in tips? Do strippers earn more tips when they’re ovulating? Men are prone to doing some dumb, poorly planned, and aggressive stuff. Is testosterone to blame? Does testosterone make men serve more hot sauce to other people? In this episode, to celebrate the supposed end of Tirth’s bachelorhood, Lu and Tirth discuss surprising factors that affect how much money lap dancers make and how testosterone levels in men make them more aggressive with hot sauce. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 1:34 Tirth’s “not” bachelor party 8:37 Stripper study 20:51 Testosterone study 31:13 What did you learn today, outro Article links: Miller et al., 2007. Ovulatory cycle effects on tip earnings by lap dancers: economic evidence for human estrus? Evolution and Human Behavior. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1090513807000694 Klinesmith et al., 2006. Guns, Testosterone, and Aggression: An Experimental Test of a Mediational Hypothesis. Psychological Science. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01745.x You can find Recreational Science (#RecSciPod) everywhere great podcasts are found! Follow us on social media @RecSciPod! YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@RecSciPod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/recscipod TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@recscipod BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/recscipod.bsky.social Theme music by Dasein: https://open.spotify.com/artist/77H3GPgYigeKNlZKGx11KZ Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)

    33 min

  2. JAN 20

    Recognizing butts and using clowns as anesthesia

    Humans recognize each other’s faces. Chimps recognize each other’s butts. However, do chimps recognize human butts? Do humans recognize human butts? Do humans recognize chimp butts? All these questions must be asked. Getting surgery, even minor procedures, triggers anxiety. Do clowns help kids relax pre-surgery? Is there room for clowns in pediatric operating rooms? In this episode, Lu and Tirth discuss historic science gaffes, how human faces are quite similar to chimpanzee butts, and whether clowns can be good anxiolytics for children. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 0:55 Dave talk 5:27 Historic science gaffes quiz 19:22 Chimp butt study 36:49 Clown studies 50:29 What did you learn today, outro Article links: Kret & Tomonaga, 2016. Getting to the Bottom of Face Processing. Species-Specific Inversion Effects for Faces and Behinds in Humans and Chimpanzees (Pan Troglodytes). PLoS One. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0165357 Vagnoli et al., 2005. Clown doctors as a treatment for preoperative anxiety in children: a randomized, prospective study. Pediatrics. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2005-0466 Golan et al., 2009. Clowns for the prevention of preoperative anxiety in children: a randomized controlled trial. Pediatric Anesthesia. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1460-9592.2008.02903.x You can find Recreational Science (#RecSciPod) everywhere great podcasts are found! Follow us on social media @RecSciPod! YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@RecSciPod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/recscipod TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@recscipod BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/recscipod.bsky.social Theme music by Dasein: https://open.spotify.com/artist/77H3GPgYigeKNlZKGx11KZ Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)

    53 min

  3. JAN 6

    Pâté vs dog food and smoochy woochy poochy

    Dog food quality has risen over the years, and its ingredients are not too different from that of pâté, or liver mousse, a French delicacy. The question, then, must be asked: can people taste the difference between dog food and pâté? Driving under the influence of marijuana is dangerous and illegal, but what about bicycling? Is it safe to ride bikes after cannabis use? Happy 2026! In this episode, Lu and Tirth discuss whether blind taste testers can tell the difference between dog food and pâté, liverwurst, or SPAM, and whether cannabis users can safely navigate through traffic on a bicycle while stoned. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 1:45 New Year’s celebrations and resolutions 8:04 Dog food study 20:17 Weed study 30:16 What did you learn today, outro Article links: Bohannon J et al., 2009. Can people distinguish pâté from dog food? AAWE Working paper No. 36 – Economics. https://wine-economics.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/AAWE_WP36.pdf Hartung et al., 2016. The effect of cannabis on regular cannabis consumers’ ability to ride a bicycle. International Journal of Legal Medicine. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00414-015-1307-y You can find Recreational Science (#RecSciPod) everywhere great podcasts are found! Follow us on social media @RecSciPod! YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@RecSciPod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/recscipod TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@recscipod BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/recscipod.bsky.social Theme music by Dasein: https://open.spotify.com/artist/77H3GPgYigeKNlZKGx11KZ Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)

    32 min

  4. 12/19/2025

    Eating Legos (for kids) and the fighting prowess of bearded men

    Kids swallow little toys and other things they’re not supposed to all the time. Is it dangerous to swallow Legos? How long does it take for a swallowed piece of Lego to pass? There’s only one way to find out. Why do some men have beards? Do beards signify virility and manliness? Do bearded men have higher power levels? In this episode, Lu and Tirth discuss the rich history of self-experimentation in medicine, how long it takes Legos to pass through the digestive tract, and whether bearded men fight better. Please vote for our show on the pod radar before Monday 12/22! https://thepodradar.com/ Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 3:12 Hate caller follow-up 7:59 The rich history of self-experimentation 16:42 Lego swallowing study 23:23 Beard study 36:11 What did you learn today, outro Article links: Tagg et al., 2018. Everything is awesome: Don’t forget the Lego. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/jpc.14309 Dixson et al., 2018. Contest competition and men's facial hair: beards may not provide advantages in combat. Evolution and human behavior. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1090513817302660 Beseris et al., 2020. Impact Protection Potential of Mammalian Hair: Testing the Pugilism Hypothesis for the Evolution of Human Facial Hair. Integrative organismal biology. https://academic.oup.com/iob/article/2/1/obaa005/5799080 You can find Recreational Science (#RecSciPod) everywhere great podcasts are found! Follow us on social media @RecSciPod! YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@RecSciPod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/recscipod TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@recscipod BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/recscipod.bsky.social Theme music by Dasein: https://open.spotify.com/artist/77H3GPgYigeKNlZKGx11KZ Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)

    38 min

  5. 12/09/2025

    The Batman effect and how octopuses spend their free time

    Would you give up your seat to a pregnant woman on the train? Would you be more likely to give up your seat to a pregnant woman if Batman was also on the train? What do octopuses do during their free time? Are they smart, curious, and bored enough to play catch by themselves? In this episode, Lu and Tirth discuss how the presence of Batman makes people more kind to one another and whether octopuses play with toys. Beef man origins: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc-5StGiCb4 Octopus playing video: https://figshare.com/articles/media/An_adult_i_O_bimaculoides_i_Octopus_H_playing_with_test_tube_cap_/29494452?file=56034531 Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 1:25 Lu has a hater 10:39 Batman study 21:53 Octopus study 31:41 What did you learn today, outro Article links: Pagnini et al., 2025. Unexpected events and prosocial behavior: the Batman effect. npj Mental Health Research. https://www.nature.com/articles/s44184-025-00171-5 Jarmoulk et al., 2025. Evidence of play behavior in captive California two-spot octopuses, Octopus bimaculoides. PLoS One. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0326379 You can find Recreational Science (#RecSciPod) everywhere great podcasts are found! Follow us on social media @RecSciPod! YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@RecSciPod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/recscipod TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@recscipod BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/recscipod.bsky.social Theme music by Dasein: https://open.spotify.com/artist/77H3GPgYigeKNlZKGx11KZ Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)

    34 min

  6. 11/25/2025

    The ethics of ethicists and making turkeys exercise

    Are ethicists ethical? One would think that people who spend their careers studying ethics must be more ethical than others. But are people with looser morals more likely to become ethicists, so that they can understand what they lack? Why do some ancient human bones have larger enthesis (sites on the bone where tendons and ligaments attach)? Did the individuals these bones belong to run or exercise more than their peers? How can we study this using Thanksgiving dinner? In this episode, Lu quizzes Tirth on the science of Thanksgiving dinner. The two then discuss how you can evaluate the ethics of ethicists by going to a library and how forcing turkeys to walk on treadmills can teach us about human history. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 0:57 Thanksgiving science quiz 10:39 Ethics study 24:15 Turkey study 32:40 What did you learn today, outro Article links: Schwitzgebel, 2009. Do ethicists steal more books? Philosophical Psychology. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09515080903409952 Wallace et al., 2017. Physical activity alters limb bone structure but not entheseal morphology. Journal of Human Evolution. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0047248417300647 You can find Recreational Science (#RecSciPod) everywhere great podcasts are found! Follow us on social media @RecSciPod! YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@RecSciPod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/recscipod TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@recscipod BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/recscipod.bsky.social Theme music by Dasein: https://open.spotify.com/artist/77H3GPgYigeKNlZKGx11KZ Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod) Video - never deep fry a frozen turkey: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/KqtVCqFJsu0

    34 min

  7. 11/11/2025

    Mansplaining explained and dedicating a brain cell to Jennifer Aniston

    Mansplaining is when a someone explains in a condescending, oversimplified, and often inaccurate manner, without regard to the fact that the explainee knows more than the explainer, usually done by a man to a woman. Why do men do it? Does mansplaining actually even exist? Brain processing and recognition of visual imagery, such as people and objects, is thought to involve complex neuronal pathways with lots of connected brain cells each playing a role. But are multiple brain cells really necessary for this? Why don’t we just dedicate one brain cell to recognizing each important person in our life? In this episode, Lu and Tirth discuss whether mansplaining is real and why it might occur and examine evidence showing that the visual recognition of certain people and objects may be the job of one specific brain cell. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 1:13 How was your week? 5:04 Mansplaining study 21:38 Neuron recognition study 35:25 What did you learn today, outro Article links: Fokkema & Pollmann, 2024. Mansplaining explained: The role of the better-than-average effect and the interpretation bias in acts and accusations of mansplaining. Psychology of Language and Communication. https://sciendo.com/article/10.58734/plc-2024-0021 Quiroga et al., 2005. Invariant visual representation by single neurons in the human brain. Nature. https://www.nature.com/articles/nature03687 You can find Recreational Science (#RecSciPod) everywhere great podcasts are found! Follow us on social media @RecSciPod! YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@RecSciPod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/recscipod TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@recscipod BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/recscipod.bsky.social Theme music by Dasein: https://open.spotify.com/artist/77H3GPgYigeKNlZKGx11KZ Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)

    37 min

  8. 10/28/2025

    Fear is sexy and using zombie arms to carve pumpkins

    Why do we sometimes seek out and enjoy fear? Could it be that fear promotes sexual attraction? Is it a good idea to take your date to a horror movie or on a rollercoaster? Carving pumpkins into Jack-o’-lanterns is dangerous and often leads to hand injuries. What’s the safest pumpkin carving tool to use this Halloween? How do you even determine this? It’s Halloween! In this episode, Lu and Tirth discuss why some houses are thought to be haunted, how situations that arouse fear also arouse other feelings, as well as how to use reanimated cadaver arms to study pumpkin carving best practices. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 3:35 Why are some houses haunted? 8:35 Sexy fear study 23:29 Pumpkin carving study 34:54 Let’s read some mail 40:04 What did you learn today, outro Article links: Dutton & Aron, 1974. Some evidence for heightened sexual attraction under conditions of high anxiety. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1975-03016-001 Marcus et al., 2004. The safety of pumpkin carving tools. Preventive Medicine. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0091743504000374 You can find Recreational Science (#RecSciPod) everywhere great podcasts are found! Follow us on social media @RecSciPod! YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@RecSciPod Instagram https://www.instagram.com/recscipod TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@recscipod BlueSky https://bsky.app/profile/recscipod.bsky.social Theme music by Dasein: https://open.spotify.com/artist/77H3GPgYigeKNlZKGx11KZ Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)

    42 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

RecSciPod: the podcast where laughable scientists discuss laughable science. Hosted by Lu and Tirth, physician-scientists who love to talk science and make each other laugh. In each episode, the two tell each other about one of the funniest, wackiest, and most provocative studies they stumble upon. Come along on this exploration of scientific creativity, because the silly experiments of today might just lead to the great discoveries of tomorrow! New episodes EVERY OTHER TUESDAY! Visit our website for transcripts, episode and article archives, and more: https://scientafic.com/recscipod

Information

  • Creator
    Scientafic
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    23
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Scientafic
  • Show Website
    Recreational Science