Christmas is the biggest holiday on the American calendar -- but how did it get this way? Travel back in time with Marshall Brain as he explores the evolution of Christmas in this special holiday episode.

 Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Christmas is the biggest holiday on the American calendar -- but how did it get this way? Travel back in time with Marshall Brain as he explores the evolution of Christmas in this special holiday episode. Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com">https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com</a>

Whether the topic is popcorn or particle physics, you can count on BrainStuff to explore -- and explain -- the everyday science in the world around us.

BrainStuff

Christmas is the biggest holiday on the American calendar -- but how did it get this way? Travel back in time with Marshall Brain as he explores the evolution of Christmas in this special holiday episode.

How does Christmas work?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/0aa0d83c-28cc-4f3b-bc3f-ae32009c8779/transcript

We know rhubarb as a tart fruit that looks like pink celery, but it also has a bulbous underground storage unit that was used medicinally for millennia -- and lets it grow in complete darkness. Learn about the pie plant (and how rhizomes work) in this episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://home.howstuffworks.com/rhubarb.htm

We know rhubarb as a tart fruit that looks like pink celery, but it also has a bulbous underground storage unit that was used medicinally for millennia -- and lets it grow in complete darkness. Learn about the pie plant (and how rhizomes work) in this episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://home.howstuffworks.com/rhubarb.htm

How Can Rhubarb Grow in the Dark?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/84e495e3-29f9-476d-a451-b46b010063ee/transcript

This marine bird carries the color of the ocean in its webbed feet, was named after an insult, and uses its excrement in creative ways. Learn about the blue-footed booby in today's episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://animals.howstuffworks.com/birds/blue-footed-booby.htm

This marine bird carries the color of the ocean in its webbed feet, was named after an insult, and uses its excrement in creative ways. Learn about the blue-footed booby in today's episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://animals.howstuffworks.com/birds/blue-footed-booby.htm

How Does the Blue-Footed Booby Work?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/76e60088-fbc8-4803-8f90-b46b010063ee/transcript

Helen is a figure from Greek myth -- a daughter of Zeus with a mortal woman, and said to have been the most beautiful woman in the world. Learn more about her (and how she perhaps inadvertently started the Trojan War) in this episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://history.howstuffworks.com/history-vs-myth/helen-of-troy.htm

Helen is a figure from Greek myth -- a daughter of Zeus with a mortal woman, and said to have been the most beautiful woman in the world. Learn more about her (and how she perhaps inadvertently started the Trojan War) in this episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://history.howstuffworks.com/history-vs-myth/helen-of-troy.htm

Who Was Helen of Troy?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/23b8003e-215b-4447-b574-b46600cf6630/transcript

How does Christmas work?

In 1 playlist(s)

BrainStuff

Social links

Follow podcast

Recent clips