And now, it's time for Who Smarted.
Surprise! Oh, trusty, what a nice surprise.
It's so good to see my favorite grandson.
But grandma, I'm your only grandson.
Then it's a good thing you're my favorite.
Uh, good point. Ooh, and I see you're wearing the meat cake sweater I knit for you.
Yes. Oh, and smarty pants, before you get the wrong idea, the sweater has a picture of meat cake on it and says, meat cake in big red letters.
It's not made of meat cake.
What? No, meat cakes are for eating, not wearing.
This sweater is made of the finest alpaca yarn and grandma's love.
Aw, thanks, grandma.
I must say, it is my favorite sweater.
But... But? What but?
I keep getting little fuzzies from the sweater stuck in my belly button.
Oh, well that's what belly buttons are for.
For collecting sweater fuzz?
Sure. Well, they do other things too.
Like what? Psst, Smarty Pants, do you know?
What's the point of belly buttons?
Do they serve a purpose?
And why do some people have innies and other people have outies?
Oh, hey honey girl.
I'm so happy to see you.
Say, does honey girl have a belly button?
And what about other kinds of animals?
Oh, wow. Sounds like today's visit is gonna be all about belly buttons.
Luckily, I'm a retired nurse, so I know all about them, including what they're for.
Great, Smarty Pants.
It looks like we're in for another whiff of science and history on...
Who smarted? Who smarted?
Who's smart? is it you?
Is it me? Is it science?
Or history? Listen up, everyone!
We make smarting lots of fun on Who Smarted?
Hey there, smarty pants parents.
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the sky, and you weren't quite sure of the answer.
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I mean, they have whole episodes about poop and making paint from spit and rocks.
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You can find But Why wherever you get your podcasts.
Some nut milk for your tea, dear?
Yes, please, Grandma.
Oh, and if you get hungry, you can help yourself to the fruit bowl filled with navel oranges.
Did you say navel oranges?
Yep. Did you know they're called that because they look like they have belly buttons?
In fact, the proper term for belly buttons is navel, though the scientific term is umbilicus.
Whoa. So wait, are you saying a belly button can be called a navel or an umbilicus?
Yes, I just said that.
If you weren't so busy picking meat, cake, sweater, fuzz out of your belly button, you would have heard me.
Sorry, there really is a lot in there, But enough about my belly button problems.
Smarty Pants, does the word umbilicus remind you of another word you may have heard?
In fact, I'll give you a hint.
The word I'm thinking of is usually followed by the word cord.
Did you say the umbilical cord?
Great job if you got that, Smarty Pants.
Yes, very good smarting, Smarty Pants.
And in fact, your umbilical cord is why you, me, and trusty all have an umbilicus or belly button in the first place.
Trusty, stop picking.
Sorry, my fuzzy navel was itching.
Also, are you sure this sweater isn't made of meat cake?
I smell meat cake. Yeah, that's because I have six meat cakes in the oven.
They should be ready by the end of this episode.
Oh, that's great. Anyway, Smarty Pants, does everyone know what an umbilical cord is and what exactly it does?
Grandma, maybe you can tell them.
Well, when a mother is pregnant with her baby, the umbilical cord is like a long string attached from the baby's abdomen, or tummy, to a nutrient -rich organ called the placenta.
The point of the umbilical cord is to carry important nutrients and oxygen from the mommy to the baby, while the baby is still inside the mommy's tummy.
Wow, so in other words The cord acts almost like a straw Bringing food and oxygen from mommy to baby Yep Then, as soon as the baby is born A doctor or nurse, like me Cuts the umbilical cord Since the baby no longer needs it Ouch, does it hurt?
Not at all The umbilical cord doesn't contain any nerves so neither mother nor baby feels a thing.
Trust me, I must have cut hundreds of umbilical cords.
Would you like a biscotti, dear?
Uh, no thanks. I lost my appetite.
That's okay. Save room for meat cake.
Anyway, after the umbilical cord is cut, a small stump remains on the baby's belly, which is secured with a small clamp.
After a few weeks, the stump falls off on its own.
And voila! you're left with your very own totally unique belly button for the rest of your life.
Totally unique? You mean, like, no two belly buttons are alike?
Like, snowflakes or fingerprints?
That's what I said.
Whoa. Some people have innies, which look like someone dug a little hole in your tummy, while other people have outies, which look like a mound of skin.
But beyond that, there is so much variation to belly buttons.
Oh, you got deep ones, shallow ones, some are oval, some are tiny, some are big, some are hairy, some are smooth, some are...
Well, you get the picture.
Trusty, stop picking.
Sorry, do all sweaters do this?
Anyway, smarty pants, true or false, the way your umbilical cord gets cut determines whether you end up with an innie or an outie.
Go ahead, shout out your answer.
If you said true, you're wrong.
A lot of people think that's what causes an innie or outie belly button, but that's not the case.
The answer is false.
Aha. So what does determine whether you wind up with an innie or an outie?
Well, I'm afraid it's a bit of a boring answer.
Once your umbilical cord is cut and the remaining stump falls off on its own a few weeks later, Your belly button is really just the result of how your skin healed So technically, your belly button is actually a scar My belly button is a scar?
Yep, just like mine And all the meat cake loving smarty pants listening Uh, first of all, I don't think all the smarty pants love meat cake And secondly, Grandma, that's not a boring answer at all The fact that every single human being on the planet has a gnarly scar in the middle of their body, and we collectively, as a society, decided to give it the cute name, Belly Button.
That's adorable. Oh, I guess you're right.
I hadn't thought of it that way.
But I do think you're wrong about them not loving meat cake.
Oh, and I have a plant -based meat cake in case any of you don't eat meat.
Oh, thanks, Grandma.
That's very thoughtful of you.
But I do think some of the Smarty Pants might be scared of the words meat and cake right next to each other.
Wow, that's strange.
Almost as strange as the fact that some people are afraid of belly buttons.
Afraid of belly buttons?
Who? How? Why? I'm not saying it's a completely rational or reasonable fear, trusty.
I'm just saying that there's some people who are afraid of their own belly button or someone else's or maybe both.
Hmm. Smarty Pants, what do you think the name is for the fear of belly buttons?
Is it A. Navalophobia, B.
Umbilicalophobia, or C.
Omphalophobia? If you guessed C, Omphalophobia, you're right.
But don't worry, Smarty Pants, your belly buttons cannot hurt you.
You can trust Grandma.
I'm a retired nurse, remember?
Ooh, you know what that means.
Meat cake's ready. So wait, Grandma, while we wait for the meat cake to cool, I need to know.
After we all lose our umbilical cords, do our belly buttons exist just to collect sweater fuzz for the rest of our lives?
Do they serve any other purpose?
Well, the short answer is not really.
But for certain surgeries, when a doctor has to make an incision, they may do it through the belly button so they don't risk creating a new scar on a person's abdomen.
For example, a gallbladder surgery.
Or when removing an appendix.
Oh, that's kind of cool.
Why make more scars when the belly button is technically already a scar?
Precisely. What about Honey Girl?
Oh, she loves meat cake.
No, no, I'm not asking about meat cake.
I'm asking if she has a belly button.
What do you think, Smarty Pants?
Do dogs and cats have belly buttons?
The answer is coming up right after this quick break.
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Now back to Who Smarted?
Smarty Pants, have you ever taken a look at your dog or cat's belly to see if they have a belly button?
Hmm, let's check. Hey, honey girl, come here.
Come here, girl. That's right.
Who wants a belly rub?
Oh, yes, you do. Yes, you do.
Hmm, it doesn't look like honey girl has a belly button.
I'm going to say that's a no, Grandma.
Sounds like you've offended her, trusty, because you're wrong.
What? Huh? Dogs, cats, and most other mammals have belly buttons.
But I didn't see one.
Where is it? Well, sometimes they're just hard to see.
Belly buttons on dogs and cats don't look like human belly buttons.
First of all, they're a bit higher up on their abdomens, closer to the bottom of their rib cage.
And they're much smaller than human belly buttons.
Not only that, many people don't notice their pet's belly button because they're covered in fur.
Why don't you take another look?
Okay. Come here, honey girl.
You know what? Maybe I'll try later, Grandma.
But I'll take your word for it.
But smarty pants, next time your dog or cat is in a good or playful mood and shows you their belly, take a little peek and see if you can spot their belly button.
Be gentle, of course.
Oh, I love you too, honey girl.
Here, girl. Go fetch.
say grandma if dogs and cats have belly buttons does that mean they also had umbilical cords as kittens and puppies why yes trusty that's a very wise deduction that's why you're my smartest grandson right still your only grandson but anyway when it comes to dogs and cats i guess the vet cuts off their umbilical cord just like a doctor or nurse does with a baby oh another excellent deduction, my darling grandson.
Except this time, you are 100 % wrong.
Oh. Veterinarians don't need to cut off umbilical cords on puppies or kitties.
That's because the mother dog or cat actually chews off the umbilical cord.
Oh, wow. I did not see that coming.
Another navel orange, dear?
Uh, no thanks, Grandma.
I think I just lost my appetite.
right. Well, I sure hope you get it back soon.
Those seven trays of meat cake aren't gonna eat themselves.
Nom, nom, nom, nom, nom.
Oh, can we please talk about something other than eating?
Sure. What else do you want to know?
Well, other than physiology, do belly buttons have any other significance like in society or pop culture?
They sure do. Belly buttons have become very fashionable with belly rings.
And before that, the belly shirt was invented just to show off belly buttons but you have to remember in many parts of the world including the United States showing your belly button was considered taboo for a long time.
Smarty pants do you know what taboo means?
Is it A something that is banned or looked down upon in society?
B something that is celebrated by society?
Or C a three -sided boomerang?
If you said A you're right.
For a long time women weren't allowed to show their belly buttons on television.
But guys could? Doesn't seem fair.
You're telling me it wasn't until 1964 that an actress named Yvette Mimou became the first woman to show her belly button on American television on a show called Dr. Kildare.
Really? She just showed her belly button randomly?
No, of course not. She was in a scene at the beach riding a surfboard.
But it sure made waves.
Get it? Yeah, Grandma.
Good one. I just can't believe they made such a big deal out of a belly button.
I know. Then again, some parts of the world make a big deal out of belly buttons in a good way.
Like in Japan, where they celebrate belly buttons in an annual event called the Hokai Hetsu Matsui Festival.
A belly button festival?
How? Why? It all started in 1969 in the town of Furano.
People figured, since Furano is in the middle of the region of Hokkaido and the belly button is in the middle of the body, let's celebrate our town by celebrating the belly button.
Every year, thousands of people attend the festival and dancers paint their bellies with elaborate designs featuring the belly button.
That sounds very fun and very weird, Grandma.
But after learning so much about belly buttons, I feel like I'm part of the innie crowd.
Get it? Innie crowd?
Yeah, I got it. Not your best, but you're still my funniest grandson.
Right. Anyway, thanks for the informative chat, Grandma.
But now, I'm outie.
And leave without having any meat cake?
Oh, no. Nobody's allowed to visit Grandma and leave with an empty belly or belly button.
Ha -ha. See, that's a good one.
Oh, boy. I'd rather eat my umbilical cord.
Hey, I heard that! A super shout -out to Everett in Fox River Grove, Illinois.
We're so glad to hear how engaging and educational you find Who's Smarted and that your whole family is learning science from you, Everett.
Well done, smarty pants!
This episode, Belly Buttons, was written by Phil Jeremy and voiced by Adam Meatcake Davis and Jerry Kolber.
Technical direction and sound design by Josh Hahn.
Our associate producer is Max Kamasky.
The theme song is by Brian Suarez, with lyrics written and performed by Adam Tex Davis.
Who Smarted was created and produced by Adam Tex Davis and Jerry Kolber.
This has been an Atomic Entertainment production.
