Stuff To Blow Your Mind

Robert and Joe explore the origins and impact of roads...

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Robert and Joe explore the origins and impact of the saxophone...

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Robert and Joe explore the origins and impact of toothpaste...

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We all know snake-haired Medusa, the gorgon of Greek myth whose very gaze turns mortals and titans alike to stone. But where does this iconic monster come from and why has she lingered so very long in our art, minds and culture? In this Stuff to Blow Your Mind two-parter, Robert and Joe venture to the Gorgade isles in search of answers.

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We all know snake-haired Medusa, the gorgon of Greek myth whose very gaze turns mortals and titans alike to stone. But where does this iconic monster come from and why has she lingered so very long in our art, minds and culture? In this Stuff to Blow Your Mind two-parter, Robert and Joe venture to the Gorgade isles in search of answers.

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Why is it so hilarious when robots and artificial intelligence fail? What does it reveal about comedy itself and our technological anxiety? Robert Lamb and Joe McCormick explore in this Stuff to Blow Your Mind two-parter. (originally published 3/28/2019)

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At least giant spiders are not trying to eat us. Right? Right? Let's close out Halftober Monsterfest with 2016's episode about what it would be like to be eaten by a giant spider.

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Demogorgon wasn't enough for you? Fine. Here's our 2016 episode on Dungeons and Dragons' fantastic mindflayer monster and how it matches up with the natural world.

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Halftober Monsterfest is about to get even weirder. Explore the basics of incubus and succubus myths, a few international variants and the possible biological, psychological and neurological explanations for these paranormal encounters.

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Are you a werewolf? You have to tell me if you're a werewolf. It's the law. Up next on the Halftober Monsterfest Playlist is the 2017 episode "A Game of Werewolf" about the deep psychology of a beloved social game.

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Halftober Monsterfest continues with Stuff to Blow Your Mind's 2016 episode about carnivorous plants in nature and myth.

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Let's go back to 2017. Heck, let's go back 500 million years to the monster-haunted waters of the Cambrian period. Halftoberfest now.

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The most recent Friday the 13th holiday was kind of a bummer, so let's play catch-up with this 2018 episode about masked killers in reality, fiction and culture.

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What is a curse and how does the concept factor into the human experience? The playlist continues with this 2018 Halloween episode from Robert and Joe.

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Haftober Monsterfest continues with Robert and Joe's 2019 discussion on the origins of Dungeons and Dragons’ ultimate demon lord, the interdimensional beast from “Stranger Things” and an enigma of translated texts and gnostic mysticism.

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Halloween in March? It's happening. Here's our episode "I Drink Your Blood Type" from 2019. Drink up.

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For many futurists, the long term survival of humanity depends on its ability to become a true interplanetary and even interstellar species. But what is the potential moral cost of such a great technological and cultural leap forward? In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe consider the potential for astronomical suffering in the wake of Earth’s outward expansion.

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We’re all probably using a lot more soap these days, but… what is it exactly? How does it work? Who invented it and how has it changed the world? Join Robert and Joe as they explore the invention of Soap. If you enjoyed the podcast Invention, stick with Robert and Joe as they continue to explore these same topics as part of Stuff to Blow Your Mind’s regular offerings.

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Why is it so hilarious when robots and artificial intelligence fail? What does it reveal about comedy itself and our technological anxiety? Robert Lamb and Joe McCormick explore in this Stuff to Blow Your Mind two-parter. (originally published 3/26/2019)

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As the Invention podcast ends, discussions of techno-history become part of STBYM again. So let's explore some past episodes of Robert and Joe's other series. Here's their episode on the x-ray.

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As the Invention podcast ends, discussions of techno-history become part of STBYM again. So let's explore some past episodes of Robert and Joe's other series. Since we're already talking about optics, let's consider the telescope...

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As the Invention podcast ends, discussions of techno-history become part of STBYM again. So let's explore some past episodes of Robert and Joe's other series. Let's finish their three-part look at motion pictures...

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As the Invention podcast ends, discussions of techno-history become part of STBYM again. So let's explore some past episodes of Robert and Joe's other series. Here's their sidebar with Scott Benjamin about a mysterious death in the history of motion picture technology...

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As the Invention podcast ends, discussions of techno-history become part of STBYM again. So let's explore some past episodes of Robert and Joe's other series. Let's continue with the history of motion pictures...

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As the Invention podcast ends, discussions of techno-history become part of STBYM again. So let's explore some past episodes of Robert and Joe's other series. Let's move on from the camera to motion pictures...

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As the Invention podcast ends, discussions of techno-history become part of STBYM again. So let's explore some past episodes of Robert and Joe's other series. Enjoy their three-part look at the camera...

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As the Invention podcast ends, discussions of techno-history become part of STBYM again. So let's explore some past episodes of Robert and Joe's other series. Enjoy their three-part look at the camera...

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As the Invention podcast ends, discussions of techno-history become part of STBYM again. So let's explore some past episodes of Robert and Joe's other series. Enjoy their three-part look at the camera...

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As the Invention podcast ends, discussions of techno-history become part of STBYM again. So let's explore some past episodes of Robert and Joe's other series. Up first, the camera obscura...

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Theoretical Physicist Brian Greene’s new book “Until the End of Time” contemplates the entirety of human history and the known universe in a single volume. In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert and Joe chat with the author about the cosmos, the human experience and science communication during a global pandemic.

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What exactly is space? In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, physicist Daniel Whiteson, co-host of the podcast Daniel and Jorge Explain the Universe, drops by for another chat with Robert and Joe.

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Belief in UFOs is very much like a religion. It can fulfill the same purpose in an individual's life, give them a community of believers and provide grander framework for mundane life. In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert Lamb and Joe McCormick consider the similarities between the so-called “men in black” and the devil. (Originally published 3/21/2019)

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Now they will know why they are afraid of the dark. Now they learn why they fear the night.

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I thought I'd gone to the limits. I hadn't. The Cenobites gave me an experience beyond limits. Pain and pleasure, indivisible.

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You're afraid to dive into the plasma pool, aren't you? You're afraid to be destroyed and recreated, aren't you?

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Contemplate this on the tree of woe.

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If you listen closely, you can hear the numbers. There's a cosmic flowchart that dictates where you can and where you can't go. I've given you the knowledge. I've set you free. Do you understand?

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It calls back a time when there were flowers all over the Earth... and there were valleys. And there were plains of tall green grass that you could lie down in - you could go to sleep in. And there were blue skies, and there was fresh air... and there were things growing all over the place, not just in some domed enclosures blasted some millions of miles out in to space.

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Ladies and gentlemen, just a word of warning. If any of you are not convinced that you have a tingler of your own, the next time you're frightened in the dark... don't scream.

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Most people have a full measure of life... and most people just watch it slowly drip away. But if you can summon it all up... at one time... in one place... you can accomplish something... glorious.

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End, begin, all the same. Big change. Sometimes good. Sometimes bad.

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Dave, I can see you're really upset about this. I honestly think you ought to sit down calmly, take a stress pill, and think things over.

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From an imagined palace constructed out of bone to the curious ways in which animals and humans use bone for tools and construction materials, take a stroll through halls of bone with Robert and Joe in this pair of episodes from Stuff to Blow Your Mind.

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From an imagined palace constructed out of bone to the curious ways in which animals and humans use bone for tools and construction materials, take a stroll through halls of bone with Robert and Joe in this pair of episodes from Stuff to Blow Your Mind.

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Ever feel like there are bugs crawling around in your body? In this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Robert Lamb and Joe McCormick explore alleged incidents, medical publications and the reality of delusional parasitosis. (originally publsihed 3/19/2019)

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From myth to biology, the hydra hungers and grows.

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Explore tales and traditions from Taoist sorcery, alchemy and Chinese folktales.

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What is the meaning of Poseidon's divine weapon?

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Discover the power and symbolism of the unicorn.

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Who is the slayer and why is this figure so important to our ancient and modern myths?

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