How Do Oysters Make Pearls?

Tales of some great shock or fright suddenly turning a person's hair white go back thousands of years. Learn what researchers think is really going on -- and how our hair normally goes grey and white -- in today's episode of BrainStuff, based on these articles: https://science.ho ...  Show more

Brown recluse spiders rarely bite humans, and when they do, it only causes a reaction in about 10 percent of cases. Learn how to identify brown recluses and what their bites do in today's episode of BrainStuff, based on this article: https://animals.howstuffworks.com/arachnids/br ...  Show more

Pearls are super cool. And humans figuring out how to make them is even cooler. Learn all about the most interesting gemstone today!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 

If we at Gastropod were asked to name a perfect food, the oyster would be at the top of our list. Oysters are pretty much always our answer to the question of what we'd like to eat this evening—but are they also the answer to the slow-motion disaster of disappearing coastlines wo ...  Show more

These common marine shellfish help protect shorelines, are a good environmental indicator, produce threads that can be woven into cloth – and happen to taste great in a garlic sauce. Anney and Lauren dig into the science and history of blue mussels.See omnystudio.com/listener for ...  Show more

Pearls are the most chameleon-like of jewels: they can sell for millions or for just a few dollars, they have been used to symbolize both chastity and debauchery, they have been conspicuously worn by men and women. The production methods of both cultured and natural pearls have b ...  Show more