Curiosity Weekly

These days, discovering a new species of dinosaur looks a lot different than it does in the movies. Technology enables paleontologists to search for dino bones with care and precision. Here to discuss his recent discovery of the Spinosaurus mirabilis is Dr. Paul Sereno. Host, Dr. Samantha Yammine also looks into Humanity’s Last Exam which is a test designed for AI to fail and a study that shows how repeated exercise rewires our brains. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. Terms apply. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The brain is a complex and adaptable organ; one that can be transformed by a multitude of external factors. This episode, Dr. Samantha Yammine investigates the ways the brain can be altered from the outside in. First, she looks into new research on the brain’s response to consistent meditation practice. Then, she sits down with Dr. Ishrat Husain to discuss the efficacy of psychedelics in medical settings on mental health. And lastly, she digs into how modern football helmets utilize science and engineering to better protect the brain from concussions. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. Terms apply. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The trees are talking about us… but not the way you think. Almost thirty years ago, Dr. Suzanne Simard discovered a vast network of fungal threads beneath the forest floor that functions as a complex communication network. This episode, Dr. Simard joins Dr. Samantha Yammine to discuss how trees connect with one another and how that discovery changed the way we think about forest ecosystems. Sam also looks into an Austrian cow who’s learned how to use tools and a new study that claims to be able to regrow cartilage. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. Terms apply. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s hard to imagine just how much misinformation lives online and it turns out that people are only able to identify it a fraction of the time. To speak more on developing the essential skill of recognizing misinformation online, Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Professor Timothy Caulfield. Sam also investigates a new study on motivation that might help us all tackle tasks we’ve been avoiding and explains how artificial snow is made. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. Terms apply. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

They say it’s better down where it’s wetter… but is it really? Aquanauts have more in common with astronauts than they do with singing marine life. In fact, NASA conducts research into the biological and psychological effects of space on the ocean floor. This episode, Sam is joined by Dr. Dawn Kernagis, an aquanaut and neuroscientist who spent 16 days living underwater for NASA’s NEEMO 21 Mission. Sam also digs into the recent updates on NASA’s Artemis Mission and how AI is being used to standardize pain classification. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If everyone wants happiness, why does it so often seem hard to achieve? This episode, host Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by psychologist Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky to talk about positive psychology and what science tells us about how to be happy. Sam also explores a new study that says swearing can give you a physical boost and, to celebrate the Olympics, she digs into the physics behind curling. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s not a stretch to say that everyone suffers from unwanted body odor from time to time. Whether it’s stress, exercise, or heat, there are plenty of reasons why we sweat and there is a lot to learn about our bodies from the odors they create. To learn more about the science of body odor, Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Dr. Chris Callewaert, aka Dr. Armpit. Before that, Sam also digs into a new skin patch that might help out our friends with peanut allergies. Then, she explores a new theory into how the Black Death pandemic was able to spread so easily way back in the 1300s. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s easy to think that every major scientific breakthrough in history was met with acceptance and enthusiastic fanfare, but that is not the case. Many modern scientific truths were discovered by researchers who were punished for their ideas at the time. To discuss this topic, Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Matt Kaplan, author of the book I Told You So: Scientists Who Are Ridiculed, Exiled, and Imprisoned For Being Right. Then, Sam takes a look into a new study that may have cracked the code on why women are more likely to experience symptoms of IBS. And, just in time for Valentine’s Day, she also explores the history and anthropology of kissing. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Exploring the science behind pet ownership is a more complicated process than you might think. This episode, Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by the author of The Science of Pets, Jay Ingram. They talk about the relationship between animals and humans and how we may not always see eye to eye when it comes to interpreting certain behaviors. Sam also looks into the history of species variation in dogs and how human emotions make it difficult to decipher dog emotions. Puppy Bowl XXII simulcasts across Animal Planet, Discovery, TBS, TruTV, HBOMax, and Discovery on Sunday, February 8, 2026 at 2PM ET/11:00AM PT. Watch it after on HBOMax and Discovery+. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We know that the health of the planet affects human health but what about the other way around? This episode, Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Dr. Kaylee Byers to discuss how human and animal health is interconnected, particularly in urban environments. Sam also investigates new research that looks into the largest spider colony in the world and the biology of addiction. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There are always constraints when it comes to conservation. Finances, logistics, population dynamics, medicine, and general care all need to be considered when asking: how do we best care for our planet? This episode, Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Forrest Galante, a wildlife conservationist and biologist to discuss his new series Vantara: Sanctuary Stories, now streaming on HBOMax and Discovery+. Sam and Forrest talk about the peaks and valleys of modern conservation and how the animal sanctuary Vantara is unique in the way it cares for the hundreds of thousands of animals that live there. Sam also explores a new study that provides evidence that helping others slows cognitive decline and recent research on how elite performers reach the pinnacle of their fields. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

To understand how our universe might end, scientists often have to go back to the beginning. This episode of Curiosity Weekly, Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by astrophysicist Dr. Katie Mack to discuss theoretical cosmology, astrophysics, and what scientists are thinking might happen to our universe in the distant future. Sam also explores a newly discovered fire amoeba and a recent study exploring how exercise slows cancer growth. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s a new year which means many of us are focusing on resolutions designed to take better care of our bodies as we age. But, even those conducting research on healthy aging find it a complicated concept to define. To help navigate the topic, Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Dr. Paul Robbins, a professor and co-director of the Masonic Institute on the Biology of Aging and Metabolism at the University of Minnesota. Then, Sam investigates what researchers learned from studying the biology and lifestyle of a woman who lived to the age of 117 and how manipulating the mitochondria in a cell can prevent degeneration. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Allergies are estimated to affect upwards of 30% of people globally, so why are they so often swept under the rug? People in restaurants lie about their allergies, food labelling is difficult to understand, and those with the allergies are often forced to be their own advocate to avoid a potentially life-threatening medical situation. On this episode, senior producer Teresa Carey interviews allergist Dr. Samira Jeimy to discuss the day-to-day realities of allergies, new potential medications, and why better societal support is needed for those with severe allergies. Host Dr. Samantha Yammine also explores how multilingualism can slow brain aging and a new study that is trying to cleanse wine from the taste of wildfire smoke. Link to Show Notes HERE. Curiosity Weekly is off for the holidays! Tune in on January 7th for a new episode. Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Language has always evolved but it seems like technology has sped that process up to a staggering degree. Memes, algorithms, AI, and social media are altering the words we use and the way we use them. To speak more about the phenomenon, host Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Adam Aleksic, an etymologist and author of the book Algospeak. Sam also explores a new search engine that’s being called the Google of DNA and how a fungus once thought to be an Egyptian curse, might just have cancer-fighting properties. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Climate change is one of the most powerful forces shaping our world today. With an uptick in extreme weather events, it’s time to focus on how to adapt to this new normal from a public health perspective. Senior Producer Teresa Carey speaks with Dr. Georges C. Benjamin about the health impacts of climate change and how people can support their communities during climate events. Then, host Dr. Samantha Yammine explores two new studies: one that may provide a welcome treatment for those suffering from vision loss, and the other that explores just how much energy our bodies are able to expend when we exercise. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We spend about a third of our lives sleeping, so you’d think we’d know more when it comes to understanding what is going on in our bodies and brains when we’re doing it. But studying sleep is surprisingly complex and there are a lot of ideas trying to untangle why we need sleep. This episode, host Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by Dr. Jeffrey Iliff from the University of Washington School of Medicine to talk about how sleep affects our brains. Sam also explores what we can learn about human sleep from animal sleep patterns and a new study that sorts people into five distinct sleep profiles. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Meteorologist and storm chaser Dr. Reed Timmer doesn’t just study extreme weather, he drives straight into it with a custom build, storm proof vehicle. Host Dr. Samanthat Yammine talks with him about the science of surviving the planet’s increasingly volatile storms, the data he’s able to collect up close, and what it takes to study a storm system from the inside. Watch him put science to the test on Discovery’s In the Eye of the Storm on HBOMax. Then, meet Ice XXI: a form of ice that researchers were able to create at room temperature that might just tell us more about how ice is formed in space. After that, Sam explores a groundbreaking new study that shows how mRNA COVID-19 vaccines have the potential to extend the lives of certain cancer patients. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Will eating mint cancel out the feeling of spice in your mouth? How do you manipulate aroma compounds to mimic the taste of lemon? When it comes to the science of flavor, there is no shortage of questions to ask. On this episode, Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by renowned flavor scientist, author, and co-founder of Noma’s Fermentation Lab, Dr. Arielle Johnson. Together, they discuss how food and science intersect and the fascinating ways our bodies distinguish flavor. Then, a new study looks into how UV light can destroy airborne allergens and Sam digs into the ins and outs of ultra-processed foods. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If sitting down to solve a math problem is your personal nightmare, you’re not alone. On this episode, host Dr. Samantha Yammine is joined by drag queen and math communicator Kyne Santos to talk all things math and how it fuels our everyday lives. Sam also digs into how caffeine can make us persist in impossible tasks and, thanks to listener submissions, she follows up on a previous story about microplastics in our brains. Link to Show Notes HERE Follow Curiosity Weekly on your favorite podcast app to get smarter with Dr. Samantha Yammine — for free! Still curious? Get science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.