Whether you hum in the shower or yodel on stage, you can make music with your voice! But what’s going on inside of your body when you do it? And are there ways to change how your voice sounds? Molly and co-host Kate will explore these questions and more in this episode all about singing. They’ll join Marc to watch a famous opera star do her thing and learn about what happens in our bodies when we sing. They’ll hear samples of everything from throat singing to rock and roll. Plus they'll chat with voice teacher and opera singer Mikalia Bradberry about all the ways we can learn to control our v ..read more

Curious about cats? Us too! Join Molly and co-host Lynx as they sniff out the answers to some of your most pressing cat questions. They’ll head to a chaotic cat café to learn the history of house cats, they'll hear a song all about cat breeds, and chat with cat expert Mikel Delgado about catnip, cat naps, and why cats love to lick themselves! Plus a purr-plexing new mystery sound. Subscribe to Smarty Pass for ad-free feeds, bonus episodes, and ticket discounts! Today’s episode is sponsored by: - Indeed.com/brainson - Receive a $75 sponsored job credit with code brainson ..read more

Molly is working on a musical about trees that live in cities. But she can’t finish her rhymes! So she enlists Ruby and Anna to help. Molly gives them some of her unfinished lyrics and it’s up to them to help her turn a single sentence into a fact-filled musical couplet ..read more

Did you know that more than half the people in the world lives in cities? The hustle and bustle of a city can be awesome, but cities can also be hot and polluted. Luckily, there’s a solution we can all get behind – trees! Join Molly and co-host Nallini as they learn how these magnificent towering giants make our cities better places to live and help fight climate change. They’ll also visit an urban orchard that grows fruit in the middle of Philadelphia. All that plus a tree-mendous mystery sound! Subscribe to Smarty Pass for ad-free feeds, bonus episodes, and ticket discounts! Toda ..read more

98.6 degrees is hot. If it were that hot outside, you’d be sweaty and want to go jump in a nice cold pool. But the insides of our bodies are that hot all the time! And that’s because there’s a lot going on in there that creates heat. In this episode, Molly and co-host Saathvik find out how our bodies keep our insides at a nice steady temperature (and why that’s harder to do when it’s hot outside!). And we’ll talk with Dr. Joe Alcock about why humans and lots of other animals get fevers. Plus, a new mystery sound guaranteed to make you sweat! Subscribe to Smarty Pass for ad-fre ..read more

Looking for some sneaky sound puzzles to solve? Tune in to our all-new mystery sound extravaganza! Join co-host Maggie as she listens to recordings of sounds from Brains On listeners – and tries to figure out what they are. You’ll hear Maggie and her brother Sam go head-to-head in a sibling mystery sound battle and listen to podcast producers Nichole Hill and Yowei Shaw struggle to solve some sonic stumpers. Get your listening ears ready for this one! Subscribe to Smarty Pass for ad-free feeds, bonus episodes, and ticket discounts! Today’s episode is sponsored by: - Poshpeanut.com/brain ..read more

Vacuums are full of surprises! Did you know that they blow air out to suck things up? Or that old-fashioned vacuums were so huge, they had to be hauled from house to house by horses?! Join Molly and co-host Baker as they learn all about these awesome appliances. They’ll dig into vacuum history, shrink to the size of air molecules and explore the inside of this curious contraption, and even check out a vacuum museum in Missouri. All that, plus a tricky new mystery sound that will blow you away! Subscribe to Smarty Pass for ad-free feeds, bonus episodes, and ticket discounts! T ..read more

Have you ever wondered why a guitar sounds different from a violin? Or why a banjo is twangy and a cello is mellow? Then this episode is for you! Join Molly and co-host Ellie as they explore the ear-tickling world of string sounds! Together, they’ll learn about sound waves, and visit the Brains On instrument petting zoo, where they'll learn about all the amazing sounds that stringed instruments can make. Plus, a shiny new mystery sound! Subscribe to Smarty Pass for ad-free feeds, bonus episodes, and ticket discounts! Today’s episode is sponsored by: - Poshpeanut.com/brainson - Receive ..read more

Looks like Marc has a beautiful new plant but doesn’t know where to put it. Direct sunlight or indirect sunlight? It’s too hard to figure out! But you know what’s not hard to figure out? Whether or not you should play Molly’s new game, Radical Design! Grab your Smarty Pass to see what producers Marc Sanchez and Rosie duPont think homes would look like on other planets ..read more

Humans have visited the Moon but we’ve never lived there. Could we build a home on our lunar neighbor? Join Molly and co-host Ira as they find out why the Moon can be a dangerous place, and what it would take to live there. We’ll imagine a visit to a lunar hotel, hear about all the stuff humans have left up there and even hear a song sung by the Moon herself! Featured Expert: Phil Plait, astronomer, journalist and author of several books, including, Under Alien Skies: A Sightseer’s Guide to the Universe, which uses science and imagination to paint a picture of what it would be like to va ..read more