Getting kidney stones can be painful and debilitating. Exercises like walking, light cycling, and yoga can help pass kidney stones. Are there any other activities that might help too? Driving in the middle of the night while sleep deprived is dangerous. Does drinking coffee, taking a nap, or listening to music help? In this episode, Lu and Tirth celebrate some of the latest Ig Nobel Prize laureates, discuss whether sex is effective in passing kidney stones, and learn about the best ways to prevent drowsiness while driving late at night. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 1:07 Ig Nobel Prizes 6:17 Kidney stone study 19:25 Drowsy driving study 27:02 Let’s read some mail (the Bouba-Kiki effect) 30:16 What did you learn today, outro Article links: Croy et al., 2017. Babies Smell Wonderful to Their Parents, Teenagers Do Not: an Exploratory Questionnaire Study on Children’s Age and Personal Odor Ratings in a Polish Sample. Chemosensory Perception. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12078-017-9230-x Alves-Nunes et al., 2024. RETRACTED ARTICLE: Study of defensive behavior of a venomous snake as a new approach to understand snakebite. Scientific Reports. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-59416-6 Doluoglu et al., 2015. Can Sexual Intercourse Be an Alternative Therapy for Distal Ureteral Stones? A Prospective, Randomized, Controlled Study. Urology. https://www.goldjournal.net/article/S0090-4295(15)00347-7/fulltext Bayraktar & Albayrak, 2017. Sexual intercourse as a new option in the medical expulsive therapy of distal ureteral stones in males: A prospective, randomized, controlled study. International Urology and Nephrology. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11255-017-1677-9 Abdel-Kader, 2017. Evaluation of the efficacy of sexual intercourse in expulsion of distal ureteric stones. Urology. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11255-016-1448-z Xu et al., 2019. Meta-analysis of the efficacy of sexual intercourse for distal ureteric stones. Journal of International Medical Research. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0300060518814116 Turgut, 2021. Evaluation of the efficacy of sexual intercourse on distal ureteral stones in women: a prospective, randomized, controlled study. International Urology and Nephrology. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11255-020-02661-1 Philip et al., 2006. The Effects of Coffee and Napping on Nighttime Highway Driving: A Randomized Trial. Annals of Internal Medicine. https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/0003-4819-144-11-200606060-00004 Sheibani et al., 2022. The effect of listening to Iranian pop and classical music, on mental and physiological drowsiness. Sleep and Biological Rhythms. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41105-021-00369-y Loconsole et al., 2026. Matching sounds to shapes: Evidence of the bouba-kiki effect in naïve baby chicks. Science. https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adq7188 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 Threads https://www.threads.com/@recscipod Theme music by Dasein: Spotify https://open.spotify.com/track/5fNAhYtrSM9nW9GpCiDpST?si=ea49670388f24e5c YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-WQ6G62lfM Apple Music https://music.apple.com/us/song/cas/1706824849 Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)
Allergies are annoying, but maybe getting rid of them can be fun? Does a 30-minute make-out session help alleviate allergy symptoms? What matters in a battle between two armies? Army size? The strength of individual soldiers? Or does it depend on the battlefield? In this episode, Lu and Tirth take a quiz on classic scientific studies, investigate whether smooches ditches itches, and discuss how Age of Empires 2 and ants can be used to test out real world battlefield strategies. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 1:21 Classic scientific studies quiz13:48 Allergy study 24:55 Battlefield study 34:54 Let’s read some mail (argumentum ad baculum) 38:18 What did you learn today, outro Article links: Kimata, 2003. Kissing reduces allergic skin wheal responses and plasma neurotrophin levels. Physiology & Behavior. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0031938403002956?via%3Dihub Lymbery et al., 2023. Complex battlefields favor strong soldiers over large armies in social animal warfare. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2217973120 Wreen, 1995. Knockdown arguments. Informal Logic. https://informallogic.ca/index.php/informal_logic/article/view/2421 Studies from the quiz:Chau et al., 2011. Chemical processes in the deep interior of Uranus. Nature Communications. https://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms1198 Frey et al., 2016. Four hot DOGs in the microwave. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article/455/2/2058/1114769 Thomson, 2007. Children crying at birthday parties. Why? Economic Theory. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27822533 Eck, 2006. When is a bologna sandwich better than sex? A defense of small-n case study evaluations. Journal of Experimental Criminology. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11292-006-9014-9 Paynter, 2008. Practice makes perfect: Rectal foreign bodies. Emergency Nurse. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18372783/ Galuzzi et al., 2025. What if my left hand wants to grab a cookie but my right one disagrees? A single case study of chronic anarchic hand syndrome rehabilitation. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09602011.2026.2620568 Black et al., 2013. Are Children “Normal”? The Review of Economics and Statistics. https://direct.mit.edu/rest/article-abstract/95/1/21/58040/Are-Children-Normal?redirectedFrom=fulltext 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 Threads https://www.threads.com/@recscipod Theme music by Dasein: Spotify https://open.spotify.com/track/5fNAhYtrSM9nW9GpCiDpST?si=ea49670388f24e5c YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-WQ6G62lfM Apple Music https://music.apple.com/us/song/cas/1706824849 Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)
In this bonus RecSci Quick Bites episode, Lu and Tirth discuss the weight of a pound of lead and a pound of feathers, the swimming ability of fruit fly sperm after a trip to space, the force it takes to pluck nose hair, the amount of bugs that splatter on car windshields, the horsepower of a horse, the antibiotic properties of ear wax, and scrotal asymmetry in ancient sculptures.Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 2:30 Lead vs feathers study 6:04 Fruit fly sperm study 8:02 Nose hair study 10:41 Bug splatter study 13:12 Horsepower study 15:19 Ear wax study 17:26 Scrotal asymmetry study 21:23 Outro Article links: Wagman et al., 2007. Which feels heavier – a pound of lead or a pound of feathers? Perception. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1068/p5854 Ogneva et al., 2022. Sperm of Fruit Fly Drosophila melanogaster under Space Flight. International Journal of Molecular Science. https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/23/14/7498 Prinz & Murray, 2021. On the pullout strength of human nasal hair. Materialia. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2589152921001058?via%3Dihub Ball et al., 2021. The Bugs Matter Citizen Science Survey 2021. Kent Wildlife Trust. https://www.kentwildlifetrust.org.uk/sites/default/files/2022-05/Bugs%20Matter%202021%20National%20Report.pdf Stevenson & Wassersug. Horsepower from a horse. Nature. https://www.nature.com/articles/364195a0 Tsenogu et al., 2024. Investigation of Bactericidal effect of Earwax on Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus isolated from skin and stool samples of undergraduate students, Federal University of Agriculture Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria. Journal of Surgery and Medical Case Reports. https://www.surgery-medical-casereports.com/1/article/view/6/4 McManus, 1976. Scrotal asymmetry in man and in ancient sculpture. Nature. https://www.nature.com/articles/259426b0 McManus & Humphrey, 1973. Turning the Left Cheek. Nature. https://www.nature.com/articles/243271a0 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 Threads https://www.threads.com/@recscipod Theme music by Dasein: Spotify https://open.spotify.com/track/5fNAhYtrSM9nW9GpCiDpST?si=ea49670388f24e5c YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-WQ6G62lfM Apple Music https://music.apple.com/us/song/cas/1706824849 Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)
Why do some people enjoy looking at beautiful art? Why do some people enjoy looking at ugly art? Could it have something to do with how much they enjoy pain?Are goldfish as dumb as we think they are? Can they learn to drive cars to forage for food?In this episode, Lu and Tirth discuss the effects of looking at paintings on physical pain tolerance and how goldfish are perhaps as smart as a 16-year-old human. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 1:33 Tirth’s interesting wedding 8:09 Pain study 19:29 Goldfish study 29:48 Let’s read some mail (toilet flushing) 32:58 What did you learn today, outro Article links: de Tommaso et al., 2008. Aesthetic value of paintings affects pain thresholds. Consciousness and Cognition. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1053810008001177 Giveon et al., 2022. From fish out of water to new insights on navigation mechanisms in animals. Behavioural Brain Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbr.2021.113711 Goforth et al., 2024. Impacts of lid closure during toilet flushing and of toilet bowl cleaning on viral contamination of surfaces in United States restrooms. American Journal of Infection Control. https://www.ajicjournal.org/article/S0196-6553%2823%2900820-9/fulltext 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 Threads https://www.threads.com/@recscipod Theme music by Dasein: Spotify https://open.spotify.com/track/5fNAhYtrSM9nW9GpCiDpST?si=ea49670388f24e5c YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-WQ6G62lfM Apple Music https://music.apple.com/us/song/cas/1706824849 Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)
Urinal etiquette is sacred. Why do men always leave an empty urinal as buffer space when peeing in a public restroom? Could it have an effect on how well they pee? Why do people enjoy hiking in the woods so much? Can you get the same enjoyment from touching a piece of wood? In this episode, Lu and Tirth discuss the physiologic reason behind men’s well-established urinal etiquette and how touching wood affects your brain and heart activity. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 0:26 Tirth’s upcoming wedding plans 3:17 Urinal study 18:14 Touching wood study 28:44 Let’s read some mail (bird talk) 31:05 What did you learn today, outro Article links: Middlemist et al., 1976. Personal space invasions in the lavatory: suggestive evidence for arousal. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0022-3514.33.5.541 Ikei et al., 2017. Physiological Effects of Touching Wood. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5551239/ Zongker, 2006. Chicken chicken chicken chicken chicken. Annals of Improbable Research. https://improbable.com/airchives/paperair/volume12/v12i5/chicken-12-5.pdf 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 Threads https://www.threads.com/@recscipod Theme music by Dasein: Spotify https://open.spotify.com/track/5fNAhYtrSM9nW9GpCiDpST?si=ea49670388f24e5c YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-WQ6G62lfM Apple Music https://music.apple.com/us/song/cas/1706824849 Recreational Science is produced by Scientafic (https://www.scientafic.com/recscipod)