Hello, Wowzers! It's me, Dennis!
And before we start the show, I wanted to invite you to a special, spectacular, super -secret event!
Okay, fine, Reggie, maybe it isn't a super -secret anymore, but can I get a drumroll anyway?
Thank you. Introducing the Make It Wow Listening Party!
That's right On Saturday, February 15th At 7pm Eastern I will be hosting the second ever Members Only Live Listening Party And this time We'll be listening to the never heard before Recorded performance Of the Make It Wow Live show in New York City From last November Isn't that cool?
Yes Reggie All of our members will be there And we can all chat together as we listen to it It'll be like reviewsies But in real time If you want to join the party Grownups, you can sign up to become a member Of the World Organization of Wowzers Today Just visit tinkercast .com Slash membership That's
tinkercast .com Slash membership Every membership Helps support our podcasts And Tinkercast's mission to spread Wow!
To families and teachers Around the world That's right, Reggie Our members also get birthday cards From Mindy and Guy Quarterly mailings from you, Reggie And so much more Members We'll see you there on Saturday February 15th Just go to Tinkercast .com Slash events To get the secret password To join my
live stream At 7pm Eastern that's it now let's get back to my show i mean our show i mean the show go on the extra mile to hit your goals let kodiak help you hit the ground running discover protein -packed flapjacks oatmeal granola bars and more kodiak's got the easy whole grain options that help you go
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We wow on the weekend.
We wow on the weekend.
We wow on the weekend.
Cause this is what we do on the weekend.
Talkin', laughin', me and Reggie singin', laughin', and then we...
Oh wait, no, I said laughing twice.
Uh, whatever. Wee Wow on the Weekend Wee Wow on the Weekend Wee Wow on the Weekend Cause this is what we do on the weekend Hello and welcome to Wee Wow on the Weekend I'm your host, Dennis And that's my co -host, Reggie We're here in my mother's basement Chillin' out, hangin' loose And straight up, just
like, vibin', you know?
Vibing, Reggie, vibing It's slang, so that the cool kids think I'm cool Reggie, no, I'm cool I mean, I'm cool Okay, let's get rolling and answer some questions with a Q &A segment The Q &A segment Alright, let's just get the old answering machine pulled up here Okay, here we go Hi, you've reached Dennis from Wee
Wow on the weekend.
That's me. Do you have a question?
Well, I do too. Lots of them.
And who's going to answer all my questions?
You? Probably not. But I guess I can answer yours.
Leave me a message.
Hi, my name is Hazel and I live in St.
Louis, Missouri. Oh, hi, Hazel.
I have a question for Dennis.
Are there fires on another planet?
Oh, good question that I have no idea what the answer might be Reggie, do you know?
Are there fires on other planets or fires on moons or fires on asteroids or comets?
No? What do you mean no?
There aren't fires on any other planets that we know of?
Well, that's no fun Well, what about the sun?
Ah, right, that's not a planet But it is on fire, right?
Plasma? Okay, this is getting too complicated Next question Hey Dennis, what's up?
My name is Stefan And I'm from Seattle, Washington My wow question is How do pianos work?
Wow, great question Stefan I have no idea how pianos work Because I don't have a piano But I do have a keyboard Which is very similar to a piano And I wrote a song about how they work And it goes a little something like this Keyboards have no tree boards But they make cords Just for me to sing Yeah!
Keyboards give me rewards That I put towards my bills and mortgage Keyboards, I decree boards I'm for free boards And they make the best voices Keyboards Reggie, what?
No, I have another 14 verses to go Fine, but I'm playing you the whole song later And you can't leave until the end Next question Hi, Dennis My name is Juliana And I'm from Cincinnati, Ohio Hi, Juliana I do not have a question, but I do have a riddle Oh, yes, let's hear it We know 7 is an odd number
So how do we make 7 an even number Without subtracting, adding, multiplying, or dividing?
Oh, no, a math riddle?
I'm not good at these.
Okay, no adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
Are there any other math operations left we can use?
Exponentiation and square roots?
Reggie, no, those are too advanced.
Oh, boy, this is a real toughie.
Okay, Juliana, I give up.
The answer is you take the S away.
What? What S? Oh, the letter S.
So then it spells even.
I get it. But wait, is it taking an SOA technically subtraction?
I said technically, Reggie.
Next question. Hi, Dennis.
My name's Charlie and I'm nine years old and I'm from Barnabal, Wisconsin.
My question is, what's your 38th favorite country?
Wow, Charlie. Great question.
My 38th favorite country is Tajikistan.
Because it's fun to say.
Next question. Hi, Dennis.
This is Evan from California, and I have a riddle for you.
Oh, boy. Two riddles in one day.
What do you got, Evan?
Throw away the outside and cook the inside.
Then eat the outside and throw away the inside.
What is it? Oh. It's, it's, it's, let's see.
It's a, oh, yeah. It's like a food that comes in a package probably, like pizza rolls.
Oh, that's not right.
Um, it's a. Oh, yeah, good thinking.
It's a banana. No, wait, you don't cook the inside.
Banana bread? Do you give up?
Yes, Evan, I give up.
What is it? What is it?
Tell me. It's corn on the cob.
You throw away the husk, cook and eat the kernels, and throw away the cob.
Bye. Oh, corn on the cob.
Of course. Well, I didn't guess it because I don't throw away the cob.
I eat them. What? Reggie, you don't eat your cobs.
Well, you're missing out.
Lots of fiber in corn cobs.
Thanks for your calls, everyone.
If you've got a question for me, call and leave me a message.
The number is 1 -888 -7 -WOW -WOW.
I just might answer your question on WeeWow on the weekend.
Okay, that takes care of that Alright, what's next?
What's next? Oh yeah, let's listen to an episode Thanks, co -host Next up is a little segment I like to call Inside Tinkercast Studios Inside Tinkercast Studios This is the part where we revisit an episode Of one of my favorite Tinkercast Episode 21 Called A Case for the Giggles Yeah!
It's a story about why laughter is good for us!
I know! I love laughing!
Okay, fine. I'll hold my laughter until the end of the show.
Let's play the episode!
All right, here we go.
And play. Wow in the World will be right back.
Grownups, this message is for you.
That's it. Back to the show.
Okay bye! I'll see you tomorrow!
Hey! Watch out for that pile of breakable stuff at the end of the driveway!
Oh... Going inside...
Hey, hey! What in the world?
G -Gay... Guy Ross? Guy Ross?
Oh, he he he he... What?
Um, hey Gayrods, what is going on in here?
Oh, hey Mindy, you caught me in the middle of my new morning exercise routine This is not exercise, you're just standing here laughing to yourself like you've gone bonker balls What in the...
This is not funny, Gayrods, it's getting weird Okay, well, maybe this will help Here, here, come watch this video.
Video? Man, I've been trying to be all eyes up, screens down.
Okay, what's the video about?
Oh, it's a video of the laughing yogi.
His name is Ramesh Padni, and he lives in India where he's known as the world's greatest laugh teacher.
A laugh teacher? Gairaz, who needs to be taught how to laugh?
Well, grumpy people for one thing, Mindy.
Well, I'm not grumpy, but I'm also not in a laughing mood because I came over here to tell you about this serious science story that I learned.
And you're just acting like life is one big joke, laughing and giggling all over the place.
I don't even know what's going on anymore.
Well, Mindy, let's make a bet.
You want to make a bet?
Yeah. Well, Mindy, let's make a bet.
You want to make a bet?
Yeah, a bet. I will bet you that this video of Yogi Ramesh Padni will make you laugh within 30 seconds.
And Mindy, if I'm wrong, I will fill up your swimming pool with gummy bears.
Okay, first of all, that's not a swimming pool.
That's a tunnel that I'm digging to China.
But second of all, I'm intrigued.
What happens if I lose?
Well, if this video makes you laugh, you have to clean up my cat Alice's litter box for a whole week.
What, that's a... Oh, man, I've been using that as a tiny sandbox.
You mean she popes in there?
Well, so what do you say?
You want to shake on it?
Your video of some guy trying to get me to laugh on command?
Good luck with that, Guy Raz.
You sure about that?
I am so sure I'll win this bet that I've already sent out a telegram to all of the gummy bears in the world instructing them to march toward my house.
Well then, it's a bet.
You ready? Lay it on me.
Okay, so here goes.
Here is yogi Ramesh Padini doing his laughing exercises Laughing exercise for the heart and mind Very easy And I'm happy, I'm the next I'm happy, I'm the next I'm happy, I'm the next Now you can do full laughter Mindy, if we don't stop laughing We're not going to be able to get on with our lives Mindy,
Mindy, we just experienced a phenomenon known as contagion Contagion?
Wait! Contagion? Everyone, quick!
Cover your mouths! Put on your germ mask!
Mindy, Mindy, don't worry, there's nothing to worry about.
Oh, nothing? Communication or spread of a disease by a direct or indirect contact.
I mean, did you even see the movie Contagion?
I didn't! Too scary!
But Mindy, you're right that that is one definition of contagion.
But there's also another one, and a little less scary.
Well, I'm not taking this mask up until you can convince me and stay.
Mindy, the contagion I'm talking about is also about the spread of something, and in this case, the spread of an emotion or a behavior or an action.
Wait a minute. So you're saying that when you were laughing, it spread to me and made me laugh?
Yes, contagion. Laughter is one of those things humans do that spreads to other humans.
It's contagious. Oh, so that explains why when I go to the movies I always wind up laughing a lot more than when I watch a movie at home by myself.
Right, because when you hear other people laughing around you like you do at the movies, it triggers something in your brain that makes you want to laugh too.
Wait a minute. So there are other things that we humans do that are contagious too like when we yawn.
Okay, that's enough.
How does it work? If you see someone else yawn, there's a good chance you will yawn as well.
Pretty sure we just experienced that, Guy Raz.
But you know what? I think that smiling might be contagious, too.
Yep. See my pearly whites?
Ooh, you are smiling with teeth I didn't even know you had.
But, yeah, your smile kind of makes me want to smile, too.
And amazingly, Mindy, when you see another person shiver from the cold, even if you see them through a window, like, you know, say inside your warm house, Just seeing someone else shiver can make you feel colder.
Wow, that is some serious contagion.
It's all called mirroring behavior.
Okay, so like when you look in a mirror and you see your own reflection, or when you see someone laughing or yawning or shivering and your body wants to mirror their behavior or copy it.
Yes, isn't it incredible?
Yeah, it really is.
And even more amazing is that these behaviors, especially laughter, can spread from one person to the next, to the next, to the next, almost like a cold or the flu.
Oh, alright, so this reminds me of this crazy video that I saw once, where all of these people were stuck together on a train.
And then one person started laughing, and then another person started laughing, and another and another, until before you knew it, the entire train was laughing their brains out.
I thought the whole thing was going to fly off the rails.
Yes, I love that video.
It's hilarious. And you know, Mindy...
Know what? There's a cognitive neuroscientist from the University of London named Sophie Scott.
Time out! A cognitive neuroscientist is a person who studies the brain and thinking.
Time in! And Sophie, well, she's one of the world's experts on laughter.
You know, why we do it and why it spreads.
And what she does is she takes groups of people into her lab and, well, she asks them to laugh.
What? For science? This is my kind of experiment.
And what she's trying to figure out is how our laughter spreads and how laughter affects us.
Well, I know I always feel a lot better after I laugh.
Me too. And Mindy, what's so cool is that when we laugh, our bodies release natural chemicals Happy chemicals called neurotransmitters with silly names like dopamine and serotonin Sorry And these neurotransmitters help keep us smiling and also focused So now I'm starting to understand those weirdo laughing
exercises you were doing, Guy Raz Well, Mindy, I was inspired by some research that was done by a team of scientists at Georgia State University.
And they wanted to find out if laughing while exercising could actually be even better for certain people than just exercising alone.
And guess what? Chicken noop!
Well, Mindy, what these scientists found that when people laugh and exercise together, not only do they get stronger, but if they're older, it helps their memory.
No way. How does that work?
Well, Mindy, for six weeks, a group of older adults, so maybe even older than some grandparents listening, exercised for 40 minutes.
And during that time they were told to laugh for up to 60 seconds 10 different times And whatever exercise they were doing they had to laugh while doing that What?
That's nuts! So what happened?
Well laughter forces the muscles in your body to strengthen and relax Strengthen and relax And by repeating this the researchers found that it actually helped this group of older adults become healthier Wait, so this worked like they were healthier and stronger afterwards?
Yes, and not only stronger, but the researchers found that the laughter helped this group remember things longer and stay happier.
And the most interesting thing, Mindy, is that it didn't matter if it was real laughter or fake laughter.
Our bodies can't really tell the difference, so all laughter is good.
Wait, so they were just tricking their bodies into laughing?
Yes! And the more they laughed, the more others around them laughed.
Contagion! Yes! Oh boy, here we go again.
Skyras, I am not going to fall for it.
No, I know what you're trying to do.
I know that I lost the bet and I'm going to have to clean your cat Alice's litter box.
But I will not start laughing just because you're trying to beep.
I can't hold it anymore.
Oh boy. Reggie! Help!
I can't stop! Weren't you listening?
It's Contagion! Hurry!
Hurry! Say something sad!
Oh, that is sad. Oh, Reggie.
No, it's okay. It's okay.
I need it to stop laughing.
Thank you. Well, yeah, now I'm too sad.
Okay, we gotta balance back out and get a little happier than this.
Oh, good idea. Let's go out in the backyard and give new names to all my azaleas.
Okay, let's think of some names quick.
How about Francis? Well, what's your favorite name?
No, your favorite name can't be Reggie.
Because that's your name, and I don't want you getting confused when I water the garden in the...
Thanks for joining us for this edition of Wee Wow on the Weekend.
Our show is written by Ruth Morrison and Jed Anderson.
Original sound design and production is done by Henry Moskell and Marion Lozano with help from Jed Anderson and Tyler Thull.
Original music for We Wow on the Weekend is composed and performed by Tyler Tholl.
Special thanks to Steph Sosa, Rebecca Caban, and all of the other Tinkerers at Tinkercast HQ.
There's still time to share your We Wow Crafternoon challenges with us.
Grownups, you can upload pictures and videos of your projects to us at tinkercast .com slash share or call us at 1 -888 -7 -WOW -WOW.
Our website is tinkercast .com.
There, you can learn more about becoming an official member of the World Organization of Wowsers, learn about upcoming events, shop our shop, and pick up a copy of the latest edition of our number one New York Times best -selling book series, Wow in the Wild.
Thanks again for thinking, tinkering, experimenting, and exploring with us this week.
Meet us back here on Monday for Wow in the World.
And remember, who wows?
We wow! Wow in the World Wow in the World Wow in the World was made by Tinkercast and sent to you by Wondery Grownups, if you like Wow in the World you can listen early and ad -free right now on Wondery Plus Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Wondery Kids Plus on Apple Podcasts Prime members
can listen ad -free on Amazon Music And before you go, tell us about yourself じゃあ
