EPISODES | SYWT Podcast

$h*t You Were Told Episodes

Episode 1

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Episode 2

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We’ve all had that earth shattering moment when you realise something your parents, teachers, friends or family have told you growing up wasn’t exactly the truth. Whether it’s your Grandma telling you that mountain goats have two legs shorter than the other, or your Dad telling you that Scruffy went to live on a farm, we all can relate to that awkward moment you find out the truth.

Using the power of storytelling we will discuss some common familial fictions and explore real-world examples from science in a light hearted podcast. Welcome to ‘$h*t You Were Told’ – a science podcast about all the weird stuff you believed, which turned out to be bullshit – or is it?

In this episode, Jen tells us about the time her Mum told her that she had a 10,000 word limit per month. How many words do we actually speak per minute, day, or even during our lifetime? Let's get our communication on and talk about lex.

Mehl, M. R., Vazire, S., Ramirez-Esparza, N., Slatcher, R. B., & Pennebaker, J. W. (2007). Are Women Really More Talkative Than Men? Science, 317(5834), 82. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1139940

Santos, R. M., Zanette, S., Kwok, S. M., Heyman, G. D., & Lee, K. (2017). Exposure to Parenting by Lying in Childhood: Associations with Negative Outcomes in Adulthood. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 1–9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01240

Episode 1 Lost for Words

In this episode, we ask the experts so you don't have to. Is there a product that changes colour when you pee in the pool? Dive into pool chemistry, as we find out once and for all, if this embarrassing summertime story is true.

Illingworth, S. (2017, March 3). A Piscine Problem. The Poetry of Science. https://thepoetryofscience.scienceblog.com/398/a-piscine-problem/

Jmaiff Blackstock, L. K., Wang, W., Vemula, S., Jaeger, B. T., & Li, X.-F. (2017). Sweetened Swimming Pools and Hot Tubs. Environmental Science & Technology Letters, 4(4), 149–153. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.estlett.7b00043

Episode 2 The 'P' in Pool

In this episode it's Christmas in July... almost. Who is Santa and could he deliver presents to all the children of the world in a single night? Join us as we take a look at Santa's science secrets and find out how and why our parents kept his story alive for so long.

LoBue, V. (2016, December 5). Why It’s OK for Kids to Believe in Santa Claus. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/au/blog/the-baby-scientist/201612/why-its-ok-kids-believe-in-santa-claus

Museum of Idaho. (n.d.). The Science of Santa Claus. Retrieved September 13, 2020, from https://www.museumofidaho.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/The-Science-of-Santa-Claus.pdf

Sánchez, H. C. (2017, December 14). The science behind Santa Claus. Chalkdust. http://chalkdustmagazine.com/blog/science-behind-santa-claus/

Siegel, E. (2020, June 29). This Is How Santa Claus Can Deliver Presents To The Entire World In One Night. Medium. https://medium.com/starts-with-a-bang/this-is-how-santa-claus-can-deliver-presents-to-the-entire-world-in-one-night-6fbf17ccb8ac

Episode 3 You Better Watch Out

Episode 3

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Intro music: 'Squares' licensed under Creative Commons Zero

Episode 4 Food for Thought

What goes in, must come out. At least, it should unless it gets stuck. In this episode we reveal what happens when gum overstays its welcome in your stomach and seeds start sprouting where they shouldn't. Some of these food fibs are even more fact that fiction.

Milov, D. E., Andres, J. M., Erhart, N. A., & Bailey, D. J. (1998). Chewing Gum Bezoars of the Gastrointestinal Tract. Pediatrics, 102(2), e22. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.102.2.e22

Rimar, Y., Babich, J. P., & Shaoul, R. (2004). Chewing gum bezoar. Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, 59(7), 872. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0016-5107(04)00162-2

Episode 5 Enlightening Laws

We shed some light on whether it is illegal to drive with the interior light on in your car and why planes dim their cabin lights when taking off and landing. Join Thanuri, Jen and Jesse as they become enlightened about the law.

Dunsäter, A., & Anderson, M. (2008). Daytime veiling glare in automobiles caused by dashboard reflectance (LIU-IEI-TEK-A--08/00376--SE). https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:18109/FULLTEXT01.pdf

Episode 4

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Episode 5

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Episode 6 The Miracle of Birth

Where do babies come from? The answer will shock you. In this episode we relive what our parents told us about how we came to be. The truth is far less miraculous, so listen in as we talk about the facts of life.

Bryce, E. (2018, June 13). What’s Behind the Myth That Storks Deliver Babies? Live Science. https://www.livescience.com/62807-why-storks-baby-myth.html

Stone, N., Ingham, R., & Gibbins, K. (2013). ‘Where do babies come from?’ Barriers to early sexuality communication between parents and young children. Sex Education, 13(2), 228–240. https://doi.org/10.1080/14681811.2012.737776

Warren-Chadd, R., & Taylor, M. (2016). Birds: Myth, Lore and Legend (Illustrated ed.). Bloomsbury Natural History.

Episode 6

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Episode 7 Pet Cemetery

We've be dying to talk about grief. Our final episode in this season explores the crap your parents told you when a pet died. Did Scruffy really go to live on that farm? It turns out well meaning parents know more than they let on.

Bekoff, M. (2009). Animal emotions, wild justice and why they matter: Grieving magpies, a pissy baboon, and empathic elephants. Emotion, Space and Society, 2(2), 82–85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emospa.2009.08.001

Bowlby, J., & Parkes, C. M. (1970) Separation and loss within the family. In E. J. Anthony & C. Koupernik (Eds.), The child in his family: International Yearbook of Child Psychiatry and Allied Professions (pp. 197-216). New York: Wiley.

Kubler-Ross, E. (1970) On death and dying. London: Tavistock.

Episode 7

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