Grownups, Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to Wow in the World early and ad-free right now.
Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or Wondery Kids Plus on Apple Podcasts.
Hey, Wowzer fans, Mindy here.
And before we start the show, I gotta 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!
Okay, Reggie, let's take it from the top.
All right, camera rolling.
Is the sound okay?
All right, count me in.
Hello, I'm Guy Raz, and welcome to Faster Class, the online courses that help you learn faster.
In my Faster Class, I'll be teaching you the art of dramatic pauses.
Dramatic pauses have been used by some of the greatest orators of all time to emphasize meaning, intention and suspense.
Over my six-week course, you'll learn how dramatic pauses can... Cut!
Sorry, Reggie, I put a sign on the door saying that we were filming.
But someone's obviously very eager to see me.
Coming!
Coming!
I have to guess.
I'd say it's probably... Mindy!
Guy Razzi!
Mindy, we're right in the middle of recording.
Recording?
Yes, I even put up a sign on the door that says, do not disturb.
See?
I don't let signs tell me what to do.
Anywho, I need Reggie.
What?
Why?
Oh, he's supposed to help me paint some new decals on the side of the wow machine this afternoon.
What?
Why do you need Reggie for that?
Um, because I don't have a master's in fine arts.
Uh-huh.
So, is he almost done?
Yeah, I guess.
We were just wrapping up.
Come on in.
Thank you.
Ooh, so much fancy filmmaking equipment.
What does this thing do?
Please, don't touch anything.
It's mostly Reggie's stuff.
Hey Reg, you still good to help me paint the wow machine?
What are you guys filming in here anyway?
Oh, it's a trailer for my new faster class.
Ooh, a faster class.
The online classes that help you learn faster?
That's the one.
Oh, I love those things.
I took one last year on the art of joke construction but never finished the last class on punchlines.
And let me tell you, the teacher was so old.
Uh, how old was she?
What's your faster class on?
Oh, it's on the art of... Dramatic pauses.
Of course it is.
But I'm a little nervous, Mindy.
I've never taught before.
I don't know what I'm doing.
I just wish there was someone who could give me a couple of pointers.
Oh, well...
Maybe there is.
There is?
What do you mean?
Well, maybe we should go take a couple of lessons on teaching from some of the greatest teachers on the planet.
That's a great idea, Mindy.
Who did you have in mind?
Sal Khan of the Khan Academy?
Temple Grandin?
Oh, or maybe we could use the Wow Machine and visit Marie Curie or Carl Sagan or Einstein.
Psst.
We don't need the wow machine, Guy Raz.
Reggie can fly us straight to the best teachers in the world right now.
Really?
Yep, because the greatest teachers in the world aren't found in the past or in some stuffy college library.
They're found in Sumatra.
Sumatra?
You mean that Indonesian island in Asia?
That's right.
And you think the teachers there can give me some hints on how to set up my class?
Sure.
Well, that is if we can find them.
Uh... find them?
Well, these teachers can be a little elusive.
You know, hard to find.
Okay.
So, what do you say, Guy Raz?
Quick trip out to Sumatra?
Well, sure thing, Mindy.
I mean, I'll take all the help I can get.
Yes!
Hey, Reg!
Looks like we're gonna have to take a rain check on that paint job, buddy.
You up for taking Guy Raz and me out for a quick trip to Indonesia instead?
Hmm?
Oh, you don't need a raincoat.
It's beautiful this time of year.
We'll meet you outside, Reg.
Come on, Guy Raz.
All right.
Walk, walk, walk.
Opening the door.
What a beautiful day for an adventure.
You ready, Reg?
All right.
Come on, Guy Raz.
Let's hop on.
Okay, Mindy.
Oh, here.
I'll give you a boost.
Okay.
Careful, Mindy.
Almost there.
All set?
I think so, Mindy.
All right, now give me a hand and pull me up.
Feels good to be back in the saddle again.
Huh, Reg?
Howdy y'all and welcome aboard this here Reggie Air Flight flying.
Please ensure that all tray tables are up and that your seat is in the upright position before we take off.
And here we go! successful landing, Mindy, I think you hit about 15 trees on the way down.
Are you okay, Reggie?
Yeah, he's fine.
Ah, breathe in that fresh air, Guy Raz.
Mindy, I thought we were here to visit some teachers.
What are we doing in the middle of the jungle?
Oh, well, these teachers are more of the homeschooling type.
And their homes are in the middle of the Sumatran jungle?
Uh-huh.
Wait a minute, Mindy.
I think I see what's happening here.
Uh, what do you mean, Guy Raz?
Mindy, are these teachers human?
Yes, of course they're not human, Guy Raz.
But they're not far off.
Well, what do you mean?
They're orangutans.
What in the...
Orangutans?
Yeah, and orangutans share about 97% of their DNA with us humans, so we're basically cousins.
And exactly how are we supposed to find these orangutans, Mindy?
I mean, these trees must be 30 feet tall.
Don't worry, Guy Raz.
I've got the perfect costume to help you find them.
It should be right here in my adventure toolkit somewhere.
Let's see here.
Cats!
Oh, wait.
Nope.
Uh, nope.
Oh, boy.
What is it this time?
A giant monkey costume?
A safari outfit?
Ah!
Ah!
Oh, a climbing harness.
That's actually a lot less ridiculous than I thought it would be, Mindy.
Ridiculous costumes.
What do you take me for, Guy Raz?
Now, quick, put this on.
All right.
Ah!
What do you say we go find some orangutan teachers?
Oh, right.
Come on.
Trudge after me.
Trudge, trudge, trudge, trudge, trudge, trudge, trudge.
So Mindy, what exactly makes these orangutans such great teachers?
Oh well, it all has to do with this study.
I was reading the other day in the journal Scientific Reports
It was about how orangutans, and particularly Sumatran orangutans, their cute little orangutan babies
You mean their offspring?
Sure.
You see, baby orangutans actually spend a lot of time with their parents growing up.
Some of them don't leave the home until they're almost 12 years old.
Huh.
And while 12 years old might not seem very old to us humans, in the animal kingdom, it's super old.
Yeah.
Most animals are ready to take on the whole world after only a few months with their parents.
Wow.
So why do these apes hang around the house for so long?
Well, a lot of it comes down to learning.
Learning?
Yeah.
See.
These little orangutans spend most of those years learning how to identify, gather and prepare over 200 different food items.
What?
I didn't even know there were 200 things you could eat in this jungle.
Oh, yeah.
This place is a real buffet if you just know where to look.
Oh, yeah?
Yeah.
The first thing these apes learn to forage for are plants and flowers that are usually easy to find and ready to eat.
And foraging is when you search for food in the wild, right?
Yeah.
So after they've learned to forage for these easy-to-find flowers, then they move on to something a little harder.
Exactly.
The next thing they're taught how to forage for are fruits.
Which presumably takes a little bit more skill, because you have to figure out when it's ripe and which parts of it are edible.
Yeah, and then there are some foods that require tools.
Tools?
You mean like a can opener?
Well, yes, but not exactly.
See, for some foods like honey.
These little orangutans have to learn how to pick a stick that's just the right size and shape to get inside of a beehive without breaking it apart.
And then I suppose they probably have to spend time perfecting their technique of scooping out all of that honey.
Yeah, and then, finally, they learn how to forage for the most difficult food of all.
Oh yeah, what's that?
Squirrels.
Squirrels?
They eat squirrels?
Well, any small mammal, really.
They have to learn how to trap and hunt these smaller animals.
And it's these mama orangutans that are doing all the teaching?
Yep.
And they're who I'm trying to get these teaching tips from as well?
That's right.
Okay, uh, got it.
Wait, what was that?
What was what, Mindy?
Shh, that sound.
It sounds like it's coming up from the treetops, Mindy. see anything, Mindy.
All I see is a big pile of branches all clumped together.
It looks like a giant bird nest up there.
Yeah, except it's not a bird's nest.
It's an orangutan nest.
Orangutans have nests?
Yep, and they make a new one almost every night.
It turns out they're not just great at teaching, they're also pretty good at construction, too.
Huh.
Come on, let's climb this tree so we can get a closer look.
Uh, I think I'm okay here on the ground.
Why do you think you're wearing that ridiculous seatbelt diaper?
I mean, it's not for looks.
Anything for science?
Well, there are always exceptions to the rule, but I guess in this case, anything for science.
Yes.
Now, come on.
Last one to the canopy is a rotten egg.
Mindy, wait up.
Clank, clank, clank, clank, clank.
Climb.
And anchoring myself to the tree.
Mindy, this is really high up.
Uh-huh.
Hey, look.
It's a mama orangutan and her little baby.
Oh!
Something like that.
Come on.
Want to get a closer look?
I've got my magnifying goggles and my adventure toolkit here.
You brought your adventure toolkit all the way up this tree?
Oh, yeah.
You don't want to be stuck up a tree without an adventure toolkit, Guy Raz.
Trust me.
Oh, there they are.
Here.
Uh, Mindy, those are just binoculars.
Yeah, that's what I said.
Here, take a look.
Okay, let's see here.
Yup.
Definitely a mother and her baby.
I wonder how old these two are.
Oh, that's super easy to find out.
Just press that button on the side of the magnifying goggles.
This button?
Self-destruct in three, two... Not that button.
How about this one?
Analyzing viewfinder.
What is it doing, Mindy?
I upgraded my magnifying goggles to give me fun facts about what we're looking at.
Makes bird watching with Reggie more fun.
Huh.
Species, orangutans.
One, age 17.
The other, age two.
Favorite foods, durian fruit, rambutan.
Okay, we don't need to know that.
Wow, so I guess the 17-year-old orangutan is the mother and the 2-year-old is the little baby.
Oh, yeah.
Orangutans usually start having babies around 16 or 17 years old, so that would make sense.
And presumably this little guy probably doesn't know that much about foraging yet.
Yeah, probably not.
And look, it looks like it's almost dinner time.
Oh, yeah.
It looks like that mom orangutan is picking something up to eat.
Looks like a bushel of flowers.
Whoa.
What do you see, Guy Raz?
What just happened, Mindy?
It looks like that baby orangutan just swiped that flower food right out of its mama's hands.
Oh, yeah.
This is exactly what those researchers from that study I was telling you about before found.
What was it?
Well, after studying around 1400 orangutans in the wild, they found that when orangutan babies are really young, Like this one here,
Yeah, the mama orangutan...
We'll let the baby take whatever food she finds.
Because the baby is too young to fend for itself.
Exact Doritos.
This baby doesn't even know how to forage for flowers yet.
Which, looking around, is probably the easiest thing to find out here in the jungle.
Exactly.
But as this little baby orangutan gets older and learns more, The mama orangutan will stop letting it take her food because the baby, the baby is able to find it by itself.
Exactly!
Huh.
Wait a minute, Guy Raz.
I think something else is coming.
Do you hear that?
Yeah, it looks like another orangutan, Mindy, but this one looks a little older.
Yeah.
Oh, here.
Use the magnifying goggles again.
Wow, look at that, Mindy.
Just as expected.
When the older orangutan tried to grab the flowers out of his mama's hand, she didn't let him because he's old enough to find that kind of food for himself now.
Yeah, and notice there's no whining or crying or temper tantrums.
She simply tells him that he's old enough to find his own flowers with a firm and calm no signal, and then turns away from him.
That's true, Mindy, and a great teaching tip.
I'm going to write that down.
Let me just get a guy phone here.
Be patient.
Don't yell.
Just demonstrate.
Oh, looks like they've finished up dinner now.
Well, I hope that older orangutan still gets something to eat.
I'm sure he'll be just fine, Guy Raz.
If his mother's taught him well, he should be able to forage for most of his food by himself at this age.
And this mother does seem like a pretty great teacher.
She does, doesn't she?
Wait a minute, Mindy.
It looks like the mama orangutan is...
They're reaching for something else now.
Oh, yeah.
I guess they're still hungry, but... What is that thing?
Let me see those magnifying goggles.
Mindy!
Kairos!
It looks like... Look at this!
A squirrel!
Yikes.
Okay.
Wait a minute, Mindy.
It looks like the mama orangutan is sharing, caught squirrel with both the two-year-old and the eight-year-old.
Yeah.
Do you think she'd share with us?
Uh, I hope not.
Oh, come on, Guy Raz.
I'm starving.
Let's go see if she's got enough squirrel for us, too.
What?
Mindy, they're all the way over on that other tree.
How on earth do you plan on getting over there?
Oh, by swinging.
Look, you just clip your harness in here, and then...
With a single push... No, no, no, no, no, no, no!
Don't worry, Gyros!
I'm right behind you!
I made it!
Uh, Mindy?
Uh-huh?
Orangutan for you?
Oh, yes!
Sorry for just dropping in on you like this.
Literally.
But we are...
Weary travelers, Miss Orangutan.
And, you know, just hoping for maybe a scrap of food.
You know, that squirrel you have over there looks awfully tasty.
I don't suppose that my traveling companion and I here could trouble you for a.
Okay, I'll be quiet.
Oh, thank you.
You see that guy, Raj?
She's giving me some of her squirrel.
You want some?
Uh, I'm good, Mindy.
Thanks.
Ugh. best squirrel I've ever had.
You guys got any hot sauce?
Well, looks like you're not the only one who's getting some squirrel here tonight.
Yeah, looks like everyone's eating.
Mama, baby, older baby.
But you know, I thought that the older orangutan was old enough to forage for himself now.
Well, it goes back to all of the different types of foods that these orangutans eat.
Huh.
Remember how I was saying before, that they'll eat everything, from flowers to honey, to even some small mammals.
Uh-huh.
Well, some of those foods take a lot longer to learn how to forage for than others.
Ah, right.
I think I get it.
You're saying that this older baby orangutan is old enough to find some foods for himself, but still hasn't mastered the art of squirrel foraging yet.
Exactly.
In fact, Mama Orangutan over here might be kind enough to share some of the hardest to find foods.
You know, like squirrels with her babies all the way up until they leave the nest.
Wow, another great teaching tip.
Portion out your learning in manageable and digestible steps.
Digestible.
I get it.
This is great, Mindy.
I think I might have everything I need to start teaching now.
Perfect.
And it looks like that squirrel feast put our friends here in the mood for a long nap.
Been there.
Come on, Guy Raz.
Let's get out of here and give these orangutans some peace and quiet.
Mindy, a little help? of her babies.
And I can't get out of it, Mindy.
Help me!
Oh, it's so cute!
I gotta take a picture.
Hang on.
Mindy!
Another camera's in this adventure toolkit somewhere.
Uh, nope.
Nope, that's not it either.
Uh, what's that?
Sorry, Guy Raz.
I'll find it here in just a second.
Mindy!
Sorry.
Sorry.
Loud in the World will be right Hey, grownups, 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 yet.
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 curious wowzer in mind.
You can shop our Wow in the World toys at Tinkercast.com slash toys.
That's Tinkercast.com slash toys. to record.
Hi, my name is Silas and I live in Rochester, Illinois.
My wow in the world is that a king cobra has enough venom to kill an African elephant.
Say hi to Reggie.
Dennis.
Howdy.
Grandma DeForest.
Ah, hush puppies.
And Thomas Fingering for me.
Ah, heavens.
Thanks.
Hi, my name is Jack and I'm from Newbridge, Indiana. from Japan can go up to 200 miles per hour.
Isn't that bonker balls?
Say hi to Dennis and Reggie for me.
Ahoy there!
Bye!
Hi, my name is Adeline, and I live in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
My wow in the world is that people used to make violin strings with spider webs.
Say hi to Reggie, Grammar G-Force, Thomas Fingaling, and the Slycats for me.
Bye.
Hi, I'm Clara, and I'm from Salt Lake City, Utah.
My wow in the world is dirty snow melts faster than clean snow.
Say hi to Reggie and Grandma D-Force for me.
Oh, I'm sorry.
I couldn't hear that.
Hi, my name is Vera and I'm And my round world is that the sun is bigger than all the planets piled up together.
Say hi to Reggie.
Grandma G-Force.
Oh, yeah.
Thomas Fingerling.
Static Man.
Dennis.
Well, obviously.
And Baby B. Hi, Mindy and Guy Braz.
My name is Mel.
I'm nine years old.
And I live in Washington, D.C.
My vow in the world is that whale blubber was used as soap, leather, and cosmetics.
Whale oil was used in candles as wax and in oil lamps as fuel.
Say hi to Reggie for me.
Bye.
End of messages.
Wow in the World is written by Mindy Thomas and Tom Van Kalken with help from me, Guy Raz.
Original sound design and music editing is done by our senior producer, Jed Anderson and Tyler Tholtz.
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 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 the rest of our team of tinkerers, including Anna Zagorski, Rebecca Caban, Kit Ballinger and Henry Moskal.
To keep the wows rolling, visit us at Tinkercast.com.
There you can learn more about becoming an official member of the World Organization of Wowsers.
Learn more about upcoming events.
Shop our shop and pick up a copy of our new number one New York Times bestselling book, The How and Wow of the Human Body.
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.
And if you're a kid with a big wow to share with us, call us at 1-888-7-WOW-WOW for a chance to be featured at the end of our show or an upcoming episode of Two What's and a Wow.
Thanks again for listening.
And until next time, be fun wowing!
Made by Tinkercast and sent to you by Wondery.
