Hey, Wowzer fans.
Mindy here.
And before we start the show, did you know that Dennis shouts out the name of every new member of the World Organization of Wowzers every month?
That's right, Reg.
On the first Wednesday of the month, Dennis holds a meeting of the World Organization of Wowzers where he shares the latest news about what's going on in the world of wow.
Oh yeah, and Reggie's there too.
In each meeting, Dennis welcomes all of our new members by name.
Hit it, Reg.
The following members are new.
And I would like to welcome you.
Welcome to the club.
Welcome to the crib.
Nolan and Evelyn from California.
Elsa and Jonah from Connecticut.
Henry from Georgia.
Hope from Rhode Island.
Arthur and George from New York.
Grownups, want to surprise your wowsers with a shout out from Dennis?
Sign up for a membership today to support our podcast and have their name added to Dennis' list next month.
Just search WeWow wherever you get your podcasts and press the follow button so you don't miss out.
And now, a quick ad break, and then we'll get on with the show.
We'll be right back.
We'll see you next time.
And then I said, this is the last time I share my hot dog with the raccoon.
That is not where I thought this story was going.
Yeah, never trust a trash panda.
Yeah, but at the same time, raccoons are so cute that they, um, they... Is that...
Dennis?
Dentist?
Where?
No, not dentist.
Dennis over there on his rollerblades.
Hi, Mindy.
Hi, Guy Raz.
Oh, that fella.
I didn't know he was a dentist.
I should have him take a look at my chompers.
Does this look like a cavity to you all or just a normal tooth hole?
That's nasty.
Dennis, come over here.
We're just hanging out in front of my gingerbread mansion.
Coming.
Hey, everyone.
Oh, hey, Tommy.
Is that a new cavity?
I knew it was a cavity.
Also, thank you for noticing, fella.
Close your mouth, fingerling.
Hi, Dennis.
Where are you coming from?
Well, I could tell you.
Yes?
But I'd rather take off my helmet and let you see for yourselves.
Huh?
Check this out.
Ta-da!
Oh, wow.
Yeah, cool.
Maybe keep that helmet on, fella.
So what do you think of my new haircut?
Do I look like a little prince?
A little prince?
Yeah, all handsome.
Like a little prince from a storybook.
Well, it certainly looks like something all right.
Boy, your hair is shaped like your helmet.
I know.
Isn't it so cool?
Oh, well, so round.
Yeah, it sure is cool, Dennis.
Check it out.
Not only is it shaped like a helmet, my stylist put a bunch of hair gel in it, so it's also hard like a helmet.
Ooh, can I see?
Uh-huh.
Oh, yeah.
That's CPSC certified.
That's what that is.
Certifiably strange.
Oh, that's the name of the salon.
Certifiably strange.
Well, I think it looks very nice, Dennis, even if it is shaped like your rollerblading helmet.
Thanks, Mindy.
Let's just say my hairstylist understood the assignment.
So, uh, what'd you do with all the hairs you cut off?
Oh, I just left them there on the floor.
They're probably in a dumpster by now.
Chicken slippers, not the dump.
Huh?
What?
That's what I do with all my hair clippings.
And my toenail clippings.
And my... Huh?
Don't do that.
You gotta put the clippings under your pillow for the hair fairy.
Hair clippings?
Yeah.
And toenail clippings, too.
And scabs.
No, that's the scab, Jeannie.
The hairy fairy and the toenail goblin are only in the business of hairs and toenails.
Oh, right.
I'm sorry, hairy fairy?
Toenail goblin?
I've never heard of these.
Yeah, me neither.
Me too.
Can you believe this, Fingerling?
They never heard of the hairy fairy or the toenail goblin.
No, I can't.
Listen, you youngsters, it's real simple.
When you get a haircut, you take the clippings and you put them under your pillow.
All right, there we go.
And the hairy fairy breaks into your house.
The hairy fairy's here.
And he squeezes his way through a tiny keyhole.
Ouch!
And then he creeps into your bedroom while you're busy sleeping and sawing logs.
The hairy fairy loves to go find hair under your pillow.
And he steals all your hair out from under your pillow.
Oh yeah, so much hair.
But never off your head.
Yep, swipes it right there from under the pillow while you're sleeping.
Yeah, this is all my hair now.
You wouldn't even know that he was there.
Except for the fact that if your hair clippings are nice and strong, he'll leave you a special treat.
Like a yacht.
What hush boys?
But if your hair is all weak and damaged and full of split ends, it'll leave you a boiled egg.
A Boiled egg.
Why?
I don't know.
Why don't you ask all the stinking eggs under my pillow?
You've been leaving the eggs under your pillow?
Isn't it, like, kind of... That is very lumpy.
And what does the hairy fairy do with all the hair clippings he steals?
Oh well, he wads the hair up into a little ball and shoves them in his mouth and uses them to scrub his teeth.
The hairy fairy scrubs his teeth with hair from those who believe in the hairy fairy.
You ever scrub your teeth with a ball of hair garage?
What?
No.
Wait a minute.
This is all starting to make sense.
It is?
It is.
Say more.
Well.
I just read this fascinating new scientific study on how hair could be the future of dental care.
Well, wrote me up and called me doggy.
I knew that.
The hairy fairy was on to something this whole time.
No, really.
I just read about it in the journal Advanced Healthcare Materials.
A scientific study on how the hair on our heads can help the teeth in our mouths?
Bonker balls, I know.
Yeah.
See researchers from King's College in London discovered that the stuff that makes up our hair and our fingernails could one day be used to fix our teeth.
Really?
What kind of stuff makes up my hair?
Dandruff?
No, the stuff inside your hair.
Ah, keratin.
Yes, exactly, Guy Raz.
I knew there was a carrot in my hair.
Probably why it tastes so good.
Yeah.
No.
Carrots.
Carrotin.
With a K. It's a protein.
Basically the building blocks of hair and nails and even skin.
Someone better tell the toenail goblin and scab genie about this.
Boop.
Anywho, these scientists discovered that this keratin that makes up our hair can also help to repair the enamel on our teeth.
I do not know who that is.
No tooth enamel.
It's that super hard shield on the outside of our teeth.
Yeah, and it's the hardest material in our bodies.
And we have it on our teeth to protect them.
And while it may be a super hard protective shield for our teeth, it can still be damaged.
Yeah, things like drinking too much soda and eating too much candy and grinding our teeth at night while we sleep.
These things can all wear our enamel down over time.
And once that protective enamel is gone, it can never grow back.
And that is bad news for teeth.
Oh, hey, maybe that's what happened to your teeth, G-Force.
You know, I don't think I've ever seen G-Force's teeth.
Oh, that's because she doesn't smile.
Yeah.
G-Force, say cheese.
Show me a little corn cob smile.
My teeth are just corn now.
You really do need to see a dentist.
Or maybe eat a bag of hair.
Oh, that's a good idea.
I don't think that eating hair is the solution that these scientists found.
Yeah, definitely not.
Well, what did they find, Mindy?
Well, what these scientists discovered was that, on the teeth, when keratin, that protein found in hair mixes with the minerals in our saliva or spit, it begins to form this protective crystal coating.
Oh, wow.
And this coating keeps pulling in other good stuff like calcium, to help it to continue to grow stronger and harder.
And so I'm guessing that this crystal coating works a lot like real tooth enamel, right?
Patching up the weak spots and stopping cavities before they start.
Yes, and not only that, but when these researchers tested it in their labs, they discovered that this crystal keratin coating was five to six times stronger than the plastic resin coating that dentists use now.
So strong, like my hair helmet.
Yeah, it's definitely not strong enough to protect your whole head, but eventually, when it's added to things like toothpaste or mouthwash or a tooth shield gel polish, it could be strong enough to protect our teeth.
Or my mouth corns.
Your what?
Her corns.
G-Force wants to know if milk and hair for this carrot juice can make a shield for her little corncob mouth.
Yeah, again, you really need to see a dentist about that.
Whatever.
Mindy?
Yes, Dennis?
I have a question.
Okay, let's hear it.
Mother says that if I get fluoride at the dentist and also brush my teeth with fluoride, I'll keep my teeth nice and strong.
Well, it's true that fluoride does help to strengthen and protect your tooth enamel, but it can't completely prevent it from wearing down over time.
So Mindy, you're saying that this keratin can help to stop damage to our tooth enamel and prevent cavities or holes in our teeth once and for all?
Well, that's what the findings in this study suggest.
And what's even more wow is that, instead of using plastic or chemicals on our teeth, like dentists have to do now, they'll soon be able to use a material found on our own heads.
Wow.
Hair toothpaste.
Ew, I don't like that.
Well, if brushing your teeth with hair is good enough for the hair fairy, I say it's good enough for old Fingerlings.
I already brushed my teeth with my hairbrush.
Oh, why?
No, no, no, no.
These scientists are not suggesting that they plan to put real human hair directly in our toothpaste.
Oh, well, what about if they put raw hair clippings in the mouthwash?
Yeah, I mean, how do scientists plan to get keratin from hair to toothpaste, Mindy?
Well, the process itself is pretty complicated, but basically the plan is to use special chemical and heat treatments to break down hair and release the keratin proteins.
Aha!
And then I assume they'll purify it by cleaning and filtering it.
Exactly.
And then they'll refine the keratin protein into a safe, usable powder or gel.
And then that keratin powder or gel can be added as an ingredient to toothpaste or mouthwash or an enamel sealer for dentists to use.
So, no clumps of other people's hair in my mouth?
No clumps of hair.
Just the secret ingredient found in hair.
I'm ready to go milk some hair.
So, Mindy, how soon could we start seeing this keratin-infused toothpaste?
Well, optimistically it could be as little as two to three years, if all goes well when they test it for safety and taste and know for sure that it works.
But realistically?
Realistically, probably five to ten years before we see actual keratin toothpaste on the shelves in stores.
Hold still, fingerling.
Quit wiggling.
What now?
What is happening?
Uh, looks like Granny G put Tommy's head in a juicer to squeeze all the keratin out of his hair.
What?
Did you listen to anything Mindy just said?
Good thing you had your pocket juicer, G-Force.
You getting anything out yet?
No.
How about now?
Maybe you have to...
Cut the hair open to get the magical teeth carrots out.
Again, it's keratin.
And it's not magic.
It's science.
Well, tell that to the hairy fairy.
Ouch.
Gee, horse, you're scary.
Wow in the World will be right back.
Grown-ups, this message is for you.
Hey, grown-ups, summer is here, so bring on the activities.
Between travel, camps and family time.
You can still keep learning as a part of the routine in a flexible, low-stress way with IXL.
IXL is an award-winning online learning platform that fits seamlessly into homeschooling.
It offers interactive practice in math, language arts, science, and social studies.
Here at Tinkercast, we love going on summer adventures, and we love learning too.
That's why we like that IXL is available year-round.
A few games here, a video lesson there, and your child can keep up their learning momentum.
Make an impact on your child's learning.
Get IXL now, and Wow in the World listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ixl.com slash wow.
Visit ixl.com slash wow to get the most effective learning program out there at the best price.
That's it.
Back to the show.
Hi, thanks for calling Wow in the World.
After the beep, get ready to record.
Hi, my name is Josie, and I'm from Chicago, and I'm eight years old.
And my word on the world is that there's more insects than animals and people combined.
Bye!
Hi, my name is Sage.
And my name is Foya.
And we live in Oakland, California.
Our wow in the world is that monkeys can go bald at old age.
Hi, Mindy and Guy.
My name is Taylor Treville.
And my wow in the world is that fossilized poop is called coprolite.
Again, fossilized poop.
It's called Copperlight.
Thank you.
Bye.
Hi, my name is Harper.
I am six years old and I live in New Orleans.
My fact is the moon actually isn't a perfect sphere.
It's more shaped like a lemon.
This is because the gravity of the Earth It's pulling the moon towards it.
I want to say hi to Thomas Fingal, Reggie, Baby Dennis, and Grandma G-Force.
Oh, yeah.
Bye-bye.
Hi, Mimi.
Hi, Ross.
My name is Dex.
I'm from Kansas City.
My wow is that there are Rainbow Cups.
This rare thing happens when sunlight reflects off tiny ice crystals in a cloud.
Bye.
Hi, Wendy and Guy Rise.
My name is Jordy.
And my name is Elena.
And we live from Malaga, Spain.
Our wow in the world is that we have a little bit of gold in our bodies.
It's mostly in our blood.
Say hi to Grandma G-Force.
Booyah!
Thomas Fingerling.
Who do I like?
Reggie.
The Sleigh Cat.
And Dennis, we told everyone that you are Static Man.
What?
No, I'm not Static Man.
We just look alike and sound alike.
Bye.
Bye.
My name is Wyatt.
I am from Davidson, North Carolina.
Did you know that some fish cough?
They do it to clear the particles and bacteria from their gills.
Hi, Mindy and Guy Ross.
My name is Octavia, and I live in Brooklyn, New York.
My wow in the world is that slugs can have more teeth than sharks.
Say hi to Tom the Sink, Grandma G-Force, and Reggie for me.
Oh, snap.
Oh, and don't forget the sleigh cat.
Love your show.
Hello, my name is Ziggy.
I'm in Los Angeles California, and my wow in the world is that lightning is five times hotter than the surface of the sun.
They had the Dennis, Grandma Dee, First Reggie, and Thomas Fangling.
Ahoy there!
Woo!
Woo!
Hi, I'm Emma from Missouri, and I'm 11 years old.
My wow in the world is that manatees control their buoyancy, or how they balance, by releasing and holding in farts.
Tell Reggie hi for me.
And say hi for my brother to Grandma G-Force.
Oh, isn't that nice?
Bye.
End of messages.
Thanks for listening to this episode of Wow in the World.
If you're a kid with a big wow to share with us, call our wow hotline at 1-888-7wowwow for a chance to be featured at the end of the show.
We'll see you next time.
Visit us at Tinkercast.com and become a member of the World Organization of Wowzers.
With that, you'll get year-round mailings in your mailbox weekly activities, birthday cards and more.
On Tinkercastcom.
You can also shop our Wow Shop, get tickets for upcoming live events, find our books, toys and science kits and learn all about the other amazing podcasts from Tinkercast.
Once again, that's Tinkercast.com.
Wow in the World is written by Mindy Thomas and Tom Van Kalken with contributions from me, Guy Raz.
Original sound design and music editing is done by Tyler Thole, with help from our senior production director, Jed Anderson, and audio producer Henry Moskal.
You can also hear Jed Anderson in the voices of Dennis Thomas Fingerling, Reggie and many of the other silly characters you hear on our show.
Jessica Bode keeps our facts straight as our fact checker.
Steph Sosa keeps our heads on straight as our executive producer.
And Meredith Halpern-Ranzer powers the wow at Tinkercast.
Our theme song was composed and performed by three-time Grammy nominees, the Pop-Ups.
Find them at thepopups.com.
Special thanks to our team, including Kristen Yang Thuy Mac, Ali Paksima, Linda Rothenberg and Anna Zagorski, and all of the other tinkerers at Tinkercast HQ.
Grownups, you can follow Wow in the World on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at Wow in the World.
And our email address is hello at Tinkercast.com.
Thanks for listening.
Find episodes of Wow in the World every Monday to What's in the Wow every Friday, right here and on YouTube.
And don't forget, we wow on the weekends with Dennis every Saturday and Sunday right here in the Wow in the World podcast feed.
Until then, keep on wowing!
Wow in the World was made by Tinkercast.
