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Hey, Wowzer fans, Mindy here.
And before we start the show, I got to let you know that this November, with a special new episode featuring our friends at Circle Round and Terrestrials on Radiolab for Kids,
And don't miss when Elmo from Sesame Street stops by Wow in the World to make us all belly laugh on November 24th.
Oh, but that's not all, Reg.
On December 1st, we are sharing our 250th episode of Wow in the World with all of you.
We think this one is going to be music to your ears.
Literally.
Did I mention it's a musical?
And if you're a member of the World Organization of Wowzers...
Oh boy, do I have a surprise for you.
You can listen to our 250th episode early with me and other members from around the world on Saturday, November 22nd, at 7 pm.
Eastern.
That's right, we are throwing another listening party.
Join us as we dance along to our new songs.
React to the episode with other members in the chat and more.
Grownups.
If you want your wowzer to join this members-only listening party, you can sign up to become a member today at Tinkercastcom.
Slash wow.
Already a member?
Well, you can find the link and password to join the event when you sign in at Tinkercastcom.
Slash wow.
That's it.
It's going to be a November to remember.
But for now, let's get on with the show.
Woo!
Ooh, look at that rain.
It's wetter than a slip and slide in Seattle out there.
And so spooky and mysterious.
Well, now who could that be?
I'm a coming, I'm a coming.
Hello there.
Can I help you?
Say now, what's with the mask and the funky looking pajamas?
Nothing to say, eh?
Well, that's awfully mysterious, have you?
Listen, mister, Halloween's over.
I ain't got any candy.
Hey, why are you wiping your feet on my welcome mat?
I mean, I suppose that's what it's for, but that mat is 100% wool.
By the look of them pajamas you're wearing.
Oh, easy there.
You're building up quite the static charge.
Hey, no, don't you dare touch me.
I hate static shock.
It kind of hurts and it's super annoying.
Wait, no!
No!
I don't know what you've been doing.
In that little piggy went wee-wee-wee-wee all the way home.
In other news, a masked villain known only as Static Man has been tormenting a local neighborhood.
According to officials, victims number into the tens of people.
Yes, my baked beans and banana raviolis are ready.
I'm coming, you little pockets of joy!
The individual in question has been using the power of static electricity to intimidate, shock and generally annoy residents of the small community.
Reporter Samantha Squirrel is on the scene.
Samantha?
I'm here with Thomas Fingerling, a local resident and business owner who claims he was a victim of one of the static man's shocking visits.
What?!
!
That's right.
I'm a resident and business owner and surfing champion and country music star.
And I sum the static man.
Good morning, Mindy.
Who's ready for the kale bowl?
Shhh.
Guy Raz, check it out.
Thomas Fingerling is on TV.
Thomas Fingerling?
Now, there's two things in this world I don't like.
Being touched and mildly electrocuted, and this static man has got to be stopped.
Ha!
Powerful words from a shocking development.
What is the mystery behind this masked menace, this jolting jokester, this charged-up troublemaker, this electrifying agita- Pyraz?
Do you know what this means?
That you're ready to get your bib on and head on out to the Kale Bowl!
No, it means we have a mystery to solve.
A mystery to solve?
But, Mindy, what about Kale Bowl?
I've been looking forward to this for over a week.
Guy Raz, how can you expect me to just go out there and shove my face full of kale when there is a masked menace on the loose?
How would I even concentrate?
But, Mindy... But, Guy Razzy... Look, I'll tell you what.
You help me track down this neighborhood nuisance and then...
Afterwards we'll go to the kale bowl and I'll even buy you one of those signed photographs of Christian kale.
From the dark bite?
That's the one.
Okay, Mindy, fine.
Let's go solve a mystery.
Booyah!
Okay, buddy, let's suit up.
We've got some investigating to do.
Uh, suit up?
Well, yeah.
I mean, you're not going to go investigating in that, are you?
What's wrong with my sustainable, organic, hand-loomed hemp 100% fair trade blazer.
Oh, boy.
Okay, let's just see what I have in my closet for you.
Come on, Guy Raz.
Follow me.
Reggie.
Walk, walk, walk, walk, walk, walk, walk.
Open.
It's fine.
You're fine.
Everybody's fine.
All right, let me see here.
Cockroach costume.
Nope.
Flamingo onesie.
Never again.
Exploding ant suit?
Only have the butt.
Oh, here we are.
Trench coats and thinking caps.
Here, catch.
Hey, these are actually really nice, Mindy.
I know, right?
Go ahead, try on the trench coat.
It's a little big, Mindy.
You'll grow into it.
And now for the cap.
Ow.
Perfect.
Oh, wait, one more thing.
Here you go.
A magnifying glass?
Wouldn't be much of a detective without one, would you?
Yeah, I guess that's true.
So where should we start, Mindy?
Well, the news report said that the masked menace had been wreaking havoc all over the neighborhood.
So it goes to reason that someone around here must have seen something.
Yeah.
Who do we know who likes to snoop?
Who do we know that likes to keep tabs on people?
Who do we know who doesn't let anyone slip past them?
Hmm.
Dennis!
Come on, Inspector Roz.
Follow me.
Walk, walk, walk, walk, walk, walk, walk.
Hi, Guy.
Hi, Mindy.
Ooh, classic detective costumes.
Are you two on your way over to SleuthCon?
Actually, Dennis, Doing some investigating.
Oh, what are you investigating?
Oh well, we're trying to get to the bottom of who this mystery person is.
Who's been going around town zapping people?
Oh, yeah.
You mean, dun, dun, dun, Static Man.
Static Man?
Wait, so you've seen him?
No, but I heard some things.
Oh, yeah?
What have you heard?
Well, it's a very long and tedious story.
It begins at the dawn of time.
Dennis!
Okay, fine.
He looks for homes with a carpet welcome mat, rubs his feet on it to build up static electricity and zaps people after they answer the door.
Happy?
That explains why he's called Static Man, Mindy.
Static electricity.
Of course.
Good detecting, Inspector.
I have one more thing that may interest you.
What other information do you have?
A clue.
An old receipt?
No, not a receipt.
It's Static Man's calling card.
Calling card?
Yes, it's classic.
The criminal leaves something like this behind at the scene of the crime to taunt detectives and claim responsibility.
Well, I mean, zapping people with static electricity is kind of annoying, but I don't know if it's technically a crime.
Look, do you want the clue or not?
Yes, yes, we will take that.
Here you go.
Thank you very much.
Now is the dramatic moment of fate.
The game is afoot.
Au revoir.
Au revoir!
Bye, Dennis.
Bye, Dennis.
What was that all about?
What does it say, Mindy?
Well, hang on.
I'm going to need to borrow that magnifying glass.
It says, I know what you're up to, Guy and Mindy.
Marvel at my command of tribo electricity.
Ever since the time of Thales and Meletus...
Modern scientists have been at a loss.
But a new study did just reveal how this power became so real.
What does it mean, Inspector Roz?
What does it mean?
Well, we're investigators, aren't we?
Uh-huh.
Well, let's investigate, Mindy.
Let's break down this clue and see if we can figure out where to go next.
Great idea, Inspector Rozzy.
Okay, let's see here.
What does the first line say again?
I know what you're up to, Guy and Mindy.
Hey, that's us.
Okay, keep reading.
Marvel at my command of triboelectricity.
My command of triboelectricity?
What in the wow can that mean?
Well, triboelectricity is a scientific name for static electricity that is generated from particles.
Ah, like the kind of friction caused by rubbing your feet on the carpet or a balloon against your noggin.
Exactly.
Friction is a type of energy that's generated when two things are rubbed together.
Okay.
So when this person says, marvel at my command of triboelectricity, They're saying look at how I'm able to control the static electricity.
They're mocking us.
Hmm, okay.
All right, go to the next line, Mindy.
Okay, um... Ever since the time of Thales and Miletus, modern scientists have been at a loss.
Miletus?
What in the wow is that?
Miletus is a town from ancient Greece Mindy, and if my knowledge of Greek philosophy serves me correctly, I mean it hasn't let us down yet.
Thales of Miletus was the ancient Greek philosopher who first observed static electricity caused by friction, all the way back in 600 BC.
Whoa, that's like 2,600 years ago.
And what about this next part?
Modern scientists have been at a loss?
Well Mindy, my guess is that, even though we've known about static electricity for a long, long time now, scientists have never really fully understood why rubbing two objects together creates electricity.
Until now!
Well, what do you mean?
It's right here in the next part of the clue, Guy Raz.
Look more closely.
Here, do you need my magnifying glass?
Sure, thanks.
Let me just...
What does it say?
But a new study did just reveal how this power became so real.
Wait, Mindy, this says there's a new study that reveals how static electricity works.
Yes, I was just... reading about this.
Okay.
So this group of researchers from Northwestern University in Evanston Illinois.
They just recently solved the 2600-year-old mystery of how friction becomes static electricity.
Huh.
Well, how?
What did they find?
Well... Get your little flabbo-electrical fingers off of me!
Get out of here!
Grandma Jeepers?
Quick, Guy Raz.
It's coming from inside Grandma G-Force's house.
I'm coming, Mindy, but it's really hard to run in this oversized trench coat.
Run, run.
Kicking down the door.
Hello?
Grandma G-Force?
Are you in here?
Did somebody call my name?
Grandma G-Force, we can hear you all the way from outside.
What happened in here?
I'll tell you.
You're trying to give me the business.
The static man?
Uh-huh.
That's what he called himself.
Man, Guy Raz, we must have just missed him.
Where did he go, Grandma G-Force?
I don't know.
All I know is he left with his tail between his legs after we got to scrapping.
Oh, rats.
But not before I got a chunk of this.
Grandma G-Force, what is that?
What does it look like?
It's a chunk of his face.
It is?
Yeah, we can analyze this piece of material, find out for certain if it's from the static man and then, And then trace it back to its owner.
Exactly.
All right, Detective Mindy, how are we going to figure out whether this material is the same sort of material that the Static Man's onesie is made out of?
Well, if you want to catch a supervillain, you've got to start thinking like a supervillain.
Huh?
Well, just think about it, Guy Raz.
If you were trying to make a costume that harnessed static electricity, wouldn't you want it to be as zappy as possible?
Yeah, I'd Guess so.
Well, if we study this material, just like those researchers did at Northwestern University, Then we can find out whether this material is able to generate static electricity.
You know it.
Okay, Mindy, let's get started.
So what did these scientists do to unravel this 2,600-year-old mystery?
Well, Guy Raz, if you hand me your magnifying glass again, I can show you.
Okay, here you go.
Right, now where did I...
Put the button on this thing.
Uh, what button?
Ah, the magnify button.
Where is it?
Why does a magnifying glass need a magnify button?
Because to see how static electricity is made, we need to magnify this material about one million times.
Whoa, a million times?
Mindy, my regular old microscope at home can only magnify stuff up to 40 times.
Well, this electrical reaction happens on a really small scale called a nanoscale.
A nanoscale?
Yeah.
So you know how a meter is pretty long?
Yeah, just a little over three feet.
Uh-huh.
And you know how a centimeter is pretty small?
Yeah, it's about a third the size of an inch.
And a millimeter is even smaller than that?
Yes, yes.
Mindy, what are you getting at?
Well, a nanometer is even smaller than that.
Whoa, so how small is it?
Well, a single human hair is about 80,000 nanometers wide.
Whoa, that is tiny, Mindy.
And we have to look this closely at the material in order to see the static reaction?
You know it, Guy Raz.
And look, I found the button on this magnifying glass.
Whoa.
Oh, yeah.
Mindy, look at that.
This piece of fabric this close up looks like a forest.
It's like a flat surface with all of these little bumpy looking three things poking out of it.
Yeah, but when I touch it, it still feels so smooth.
Well, when you magnify something this much and look at it this closely, almost everything looks like this.
Huh.
Okay, so how does rubbing this material against, say, Grandma G-Force's carpet create electricity?
Well, let's take a look.
Uh, hey, Grandma G-Force, mind if we borrow your carpet for a second?
What for?
Oh, we're just gonna do a little science experiment.
Well, I guess.
Yes.
OK, Guy Raz, you hold the magnifying glass while I rub this material on the carpet.
And then tell me what you see.
You got it, Mindy.
All right.
Do you see anything?
Yes, Mindy.
I do.
All those little tree things that were poking up from the material are now bending and flexing all over the place.
Perfect.
That's exactly what those researchers at Northwestern University found when they were studying static electricity.
Oh, yeah?
Yeah.
They discovered that when these little trees flex and bend back and forth, they actually generate electricity.
Really?
Yeah.
It's a phenomenon known as the flexoelectric effect. flexo-electric, huh?
Now, of course, you can't see this electricity because it's stored in those little tree-like looking bumps.
But and this is a big but you can feel it.
You can?
Uh-huh.
Mindy!
Yep, definitely works.
Wait a minute.
What is it, Mindy?
A breakthrough.
What do you mean?
I
I've seen this fabric before, Guy Raz.
Really?
Where from?
That discount fabric store down the street.
The discount fabric store?
Mindy, what were you doing there?
Well, I needed some extra burlap for these underpants that I was making Grandma G-Force for her birthday.
And I guess while you were there, you saw this exact same material?
Yeah, and it's the only place in town that sells this stuff.
Huh.
I bet that's where our masked menace is heading right now to repair his costume.
Maybe we can still catch him.
Better hurry up.
Race ya!
Big coat!
Big coat!
Come on, Inspector Roz.
Follow me.
Hello.
Welcome to Mr. Maverick's Fantastic Fabrics.
We've got all your favorite fibers.
Corduroy, silk, cotton, hemp.
Gingham, leather, wool, linen.
Actually, we're here on official business.
Of course you are.
I can tell by the music.
And your official business fedoras.
How can I help you, detectives?
We found this material at the scene of a crime.
Gasp!
My specially formulated flexo-electric wool blend.
In midnight black.
And who did you last sell it to?
A peculiar young man.
Fussy and opinionated.
With a voice that cut the air like a dentist's drill.
Wait a minute.
Hello, Mr. Maverick.
I need some more of that super zappy black fabric.
Gadzooks!
Detective Mindy and Inspector Guy, private eye!
Dennis?
You may have discovered my secret identity, but you'll never catch me!
Ow, my nose!
And face!
Who closed this door?
Dennis?
You're the neighborhood's masked menace?
You're the static man?
Dennis the menace?
Yes, t'was me, Dennis!
But Dennis, why?
You two are always learning about cool scientific stuff, testing things out for yourselves, going on wacky adventures filled to the brim with hijinks and tomfoolery.
What?
And did you ever stop to think that maybe Dennis would like to have a fun science adventure?
What with all the antics and shenanigans?
Uh... No!
Instead, I'm left behind with nothing to do except tend my prize-winning azalea bushes.
Come up with comments to say out loud during a movie.
Or practice my recorder.
Or... Dennis, you're more than welcome to join us on any of our adventures.
We love having you around.
Right, Guy Raz?
Yeah, we love having you around.
All you have to do is ask us.
Guy, Mindy, no.
Quit being nice.
You're ruining my brooding villainous monologue.
Oh.
Ahem.
So I decided to go on my own scientific adventure.
In zapping people with static electricity?
Excellent question, Detective Mindy.
You see, I read a new scientific study that said scientists discovered how static electricity is created.
And with all of that scientific knowledge, what else was I to do?
Well Dennis, those researchers at Northwestern University plan to use what they learn from their study to make devices like printers and air filters safer.
You know, to help people.
Oh.
See Dennis, with every single new scientific discovery that comes along, people have a choice to make whether to use that knowledge for good or for evil.
Oh, woe is me!
You're right!
What have I become?
Take me away.
Lock me up and throw away the key.
Again, zapping people is not technically a crime.
Dennis, you're not going to jail.
I'm not?
Of course you're not.
But you have to promise to stop zapping people all the time.
Oh, I promise, Mindy.
I cast aside my life as a notorious supervillain.
I don't know if I'd say notorious.
Good call, Guy Raz.
I cast aside my life as a famous supervillain, and begin my new life as a superhero!
Oh, boy.
Defender of the innocent, sapper of the guilty, the triboelectric champion of humanity!
With my two detective sidekicks.
What?
Sidekicks?
With the power of mild electric shock and the ability to static cling like no one has static clung before.
Dennis!
No!
Not Dennis.
I am Static Man!
Wow in the World will be right back.
Grown-ups, this message is for you.
Hey, grown-ups.
It's Mindy and Guy Raz here from Wow in the World.
Mindy and I have some brand new Wow in the World toys out in the world just in time for the holidays.
Made for the kids who love science and for the ones who don't.
From our 100 experiments, that wow kit to the telescope and astronomy kit.
Our wow in the world toys help your wowzer learn about their world through play.
Plus, you can hear exclusive audio content from me and Guy Raz to help your wowzer discover even more wows.
Grownups.
Give the gift of wow and wonder this holiday season with our latest wow in the world toys designed with your curiosity.
That's Tinkercast.com slash toys.
Hi, Mindy and Guy Roz.
My name is Asha and I live in Potomac Maryland, Washington DC, and I have a special wow in the world for Mindy.
The biggest gingerbread mansion was made with 7,200 eggs and 1,800 pounds of butter.
Bye.
Hi, Mindy and Guy Roz.
My name is Jude, and I live in Glenside, Pennsylvania.
My wow is once Mount Vesuvius erupted in Pompeii.
People were under 60 feet of volcanic ash.
Thank you.
Bye.
Hi, Mindy and Guy Ross.
My name is Imogen.
And my name is Harper.
And we live in St.
Paul, Minnesota.
Our wow in the world is that kids can hear better than parents.
Say hi to Reggie for us.
And Dennis.
We think he's awesome.
Aw.
My name is Emma.
I live in Clifton Park, New York.
And my wow in the world is when you break a bone, the bone makes new tissue to bind with the other part of the broken bone almost immediately.
Say hi to Grandma G for some Dennis and Reggie.
Bye.
Talk louder.
Bye.
Hi, Mindy and Guy Ross.
My name is Isaki.
I live in Kobe, Japan.
My wow in the world is starfish have eyes on the end of their legs.
I love your show.
Bye.
Hi, Mindy and Guy Ross.
My name is Joon, and I live in Keene, New Hampshire.
And my wow in the world is that when octopuses dream, they change colors.
Say hi to Reggie and Grandma Geek was for me.
Bye.
Hi, Mindy and Guy Ross.
My name is Sydney from Sydney, Australia.
My vow in my world is that Australia's dingo fence is longer than the Great Wall of China.
Bye, Mindy and Guy Ross.
I love your show.
End of messages.
Hey, everyone.
Thank you so much for hanging out with us this week on Wow in the World.
And to keep the wow rolling, check out this week's scientific conversation starters at our website wowintheworldcom.
And grownups.
There you can find more info on how your kids can become members of the World Organization of Wowzers shop, our wow shop.
Upload photos and videos to us and check dates for our upcoming live events.
That's wowintheworld.com.
Our show is produced by Jed Anderson.
Who provides the bells, whistles, and silly characters.
Say hello, Jed.
Hello.
Our show is written by me, Guy Raz, and Thomas Van Kalken, who also provides silly characters.
Tom?
Hello there.
Thanks also to Jessica Bode, Anna Zagorski, Rebecca Caban, Kit Ballinger, and Alex Curley.
Meredith Halpern-Ranzer powers the wow at Tinkercast.
Our theme song was composed and performed by The Pop-Ups.
For more on their three-time Grammy-nominated all-ages music, find them at thepopups.com.
And grown-ups, you can follow Wow in the World on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at wowintheworld.
And our email address is hello at wowintheworld.com.
And if you're a kid with a big wow to share with us, call us at 1-888-WOW.
Thanks again for listening, and until next time, keep on wowing!
Jinx!
And before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a short survey at wondery.com slash survey.
