Season 8 Finale

PODCAST 208: SEASON EIGHT FINALE

RELEASE DATE: SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 25TH, 2022

D:  HELLO, AND WELCOME BACK TO THE CURIOUS KID PODCAST, SEASON EIGHT FINALE.

O:  YAY!  TODAY MARKS THE END OF FOUR FULL YEARS OF CURIOUS KID PODCAST.

D:  WE LOVE DOING THIS PODCAST TOGETHER, AND WE ARE SO LUCKY TO HAVE ALL OF YOU JOIN US WEEK AFTER WEEK FOR THE JOURNEY OF LEARNING.

O:  THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS WE’VE ENJOYED ABOUT PODCASTING.  ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE ABSOLUTELY LOVE TO DO IS COLLABORATE WITH OTHER KIDS PODCASTS.

D:  OVER THE YEARS, WE’VE WORKED WITH A BUNCH OF KIDS PODCASTS, AND WE HAD THE PLEASURE OF WORKING WITH THE AMAZING FOLKS AT STORIES PODCAST THIS SUMMER.

O:  THE STORIES PODCAST IS ONE OF OUR FAVORITES.  IN EVERY EPISODE, THE PODCAST SHARES A DIFFERENT STORY.  SOME OF THEM ARE FAMILIAR STORIES, LIKE SNOW WHITE AND LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD.  OTHER STORIES ARE NEW STORIES THAT YOU WOULD ONLY HEAR ON STORIES PODCAST.

D:  WELL, GUESS WHAT.  WE WROTE A STORY FOR STORIES PODCAST.  UNLIKE MANY OF THE STORIES THAT THEY TELL ON STORIES PODCAST, THE STORY WE WROTE WAS A TRUE STORY.  

O:  IT’S A TRUE STORY, BUT IT’S STILL HARD TO BELIEVE IT’S TRUE, BECAUSE IT IS SO AMAZING.  

D:  AS I’VE MENTIONED A COUPLE OF TIMES OVER THE YEARS, I’M A PHARMACIST.  THAT MEANS THAT I GIVE MEDICINE TO PEOPLE TO HELP THEM FEEL BETTER.  THAT MEANS THAT I HAVE TO KNOW A LOT ABOUT MEDICINE.  I LOVE LEARNING ABOUT MEDICINE.  SO, WHEN WE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO WRITE A STORY FOR STORIES PODCAST, I WROTE A STORY ABOUT AN INCREDIBLE MAN THAT MADE AN INCREDIBLE DISCOVERY ALMOST A FULL CENTURY AGO, AND THAT DISCOVERY HAS HELPED SAVE MILLIONS OF LIVES.

O:  THE MOST INCREDIBLE PART OF THE STORY IS THAT THE MAN MADE HIS DISCOVERY BY ACCIDENT.  HIS NAME WAS ALEXANDER, AND THE NAME OF OUR STORY IS ALEXANDER AND THE GREAT MISTAKE.

D:  WE ARE GOING TO SHARE THE STORY WITH YOU IN JUST A MINUTE, BUT STICK AROUND AFTER IT’S DONE, BECAUSE WE ARE GOING TO REVEAL OUR FAVORITE EPISODES AND FACTS FROM SEASON EIGHT, AND THEN WE ARE GOING TO REVEAL THE FIRST NINE EPISODE TOPICS FOR SEASON NINE.

O:  THAT’S RIGHT!  WE ARE GOING TO BE BACK FOR SEASON NINE.  NOT ONLY THAT, BUT WE ARE NOT TAKING ANY BREAKS.  THE FIRST EPISODE OF SEASON NINE DROPS NEXT SUNDAY.  WE’VE RELEASED EPISODES EACH AND EVERY SUNDAY FOR FOUR YEARS, AND WE’RE NOT STOPPING ANY TIME SOON.

D:  THAT’S RIGHT.  WE WILL BE BACK FOR SEASON NINE NEXT WEEK, AND WE HAVE SOME FASCINATING TOPICS TO LEARN ABOUT AND SOME VERY SPECIAL GUESTS LINED UP FOR LOTS OF LEARNING AND FUN.

O:  GRAB A SEAT AND A HOT CHOCOLATE.  IT’S TIME FOR US TO TELL YOU AN AMAZING STORY WE LIKE TO CALL “ALEXANDER AND THE GREAT MISTAKE”.  

D:  HAVE YOU EVER MADE A MISTAKE?  I KNOW I’VE MADE MANY, BUT THERE’S ONE TYPE OF MISTAKE THAT I’VE NEVER MADE, NOT EVEN ONCE.  I’VE NEVER MADE A GREAT MISTAKE.  MISTAKES AREN’T SUPPOSED TO BE GREAT, RIGHT?  I MEAN THE DEFINITION OF A MISTAKE IS AN ACTION OR JUDGEMENT THAT IS MISGUIDED OR WRONG.  BY THAT DEFINITION, IT’S HARD TO THINK THAT IT’S EVEN POSSIBLE TO MAKE A GREAT MISTAKE.  WELL, WHAT IF I TOLD YOU THAT A MAN BY THE NAME OF ALEXANDER MADE A MISTAKE MANY YEARS AGO, AND HIS MISTAKE WAS GREAT INDEED.  

O:  ALEXANDER WAS BORN A VERY LONG TIME AGO, 141 YEARS AGO TO BE EXACT, IN THE BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY OF SCOTLAND.  HE WAS BORN ON HIS PARENT’S FARM, AND SPENT LOTS OF TIME HELPING HIS PARENTS AROUND THE FARM WHEN HE WAS A CHILD.  HE STARTED GOING TO SCHOOL WHEN HE TURNED FIVE, BUT HIS SCHOOL WAS PROBABLY VERY DIFFERENT THAN ANY SCHOOL YOU’VE GONE TO.  HIS SCHOOL HAD 12 STUDENTS.  YOU MIGHT THINK I JUST MADE A MISTAKE.  MAYBE YOU THINK ALEXANDER’S CLASS HAD 12 STUDENTS, BUT BELIEVE IT OR NOT, HIS ENTIRE SCHOOL HAD ONLY 12 STUDENTS.  NOT ONLY THAT, BUT THE STUDENTS WERE OF DIFFERENT AGES, AND ALL OF THE STUDENTS WERE TAUGHT IN A SINGLE CLASSROOM.  

D:  WHEN ALEXANDER WAS A BIT OLDER, HE ATTENDED A DIFFERENT SCHOOL.  IN ORDER TO GET TO AND FROM SCHOOL EACH DAY, HE NEEDED TO WALK FOUR MILES EACH WAY.  HE WAS A GREAT STUDENT, AND HE HAD A PARTICULAR INTEREST IN SCIENCE.  HE DECIDED THAT HE DIDN’T WANT TO BE A FARMER LIKE HIS PARENTS, SO HE MOVED TO LONDON, ENGLAND TO BE WITH HIS OLDER BROTHER, WHO WAS A DOCTOR.  

O:  AS A TEENAGER, ALEXANDER WAS GOING TO SCHOOL IN LONDON, AND HIS TEACHERS REALIZED THAT HIS CLASSES WEREN’T CHALLENGING ENOUGH, SO THEY PUT HIM IN CLASSES WITH OTHER KIDS THAT WERE 2 YEARS OLDER THAN HIM.  

LIKE A LOT OF YOUNGER SIBLINGS, ALEXANDER WANTED TO BE JUST LIKE HIS OLDER BROTHER AND BECOME A DOCTOR.  HE MADE IT INTO MEDICAL SCHOOL WITH THE HIGHEST GRADES OF ANY STUDENT IN THE UNITED KINGDOM.  ALEXANDER GRADUATED FROM MEDICAL SCHOOL AND BECAME A DOCTOR, BUT THAT’S WHEN HIS LIFE TOOK AN INTERESTING TURN. 

D:  INSTEAD OF USING HIS BRAND NEW TITLE OF DOCTOR TO TREAT PATIENTS LIKE HIS OLDER BROTHER, ALEXANDER DECIDED TO STUDY SOMETHING CALLED BACTERIOLOGY.  THE WORD BACTERIOLOGY MEANS “THE STUDY OF BACTERIA”.  BACTERIA ARE TEENY TINY LIVING THINGS THAT CAN BE FOUND EVERYWHERE ON EARTH.  IN FACT, THEY CAN BE FOUND ON US OR EVEN IN US.  BACTERIA ARE USUALLY HARMLESS, BUT SOMETIMES OUR BODIES CAN BECOME INFECTED WITH BAD BACTERIA.  THAT’S WHEN WE END UP WITH A BACTERIAL INFECTION, LIKE AN EAR INFECTION.  ALEXANDER WAS FASCINATED BY BACTERIA AND WANTED TO STUDY EVERYTHING ABOUT THEM. 

O:  WHEN ALEXANDER WAS 33 YEARS OLD, WORLD WAR 1 STARTED.  HE JOINED THE ARMY AND WORKED IN HOSPITALS IN FRANCE.  HE EXAMINED MANY SOLDIERS THAT WERE WOUNDED IN WAR, AND HE MADE AN INTERESTING DISCOVERY.  HE DISCOVERED THAT THE MEDICINES THEY WERE USING TO TREAT WOUNDS DURING THE WAR DIDN’T HELP THE SOLDIERS THEY WERE USED FOR, BUT INSTEAD HURT THEM EVEN WORSE.  HE SUGGESTED THAT SALT WATER BE USED TO CLEAN THE WOUNDS INSTEAD, AND HE PROVED DURING THE WAR THAT SALT WATER WAS TRULY MORE EFFECTIVE AND LESS HARMFUL THAN THE OTHER TREATMENTS THAT WERE BEING USED.  

AFTER THE WAR WAS OVER, ALEXANDER RETURNED TO LONDON EVEN MORE DETERMINED TO FIND BETTER TREATMENTS FOR BACTERIAL INFECTIONS.  HE WORKED HARD EXAMINING BACTERIA IN HIS LABORATORY.  HE OFTEN HAD PETRI DISHES ON HIS LAB BENCH, AND EACH DISH CONTAINED SAMPLES OF BACTERIA HE WAS WORKING WITH.  IN THE YEAR 1928, HE DECIDED IT WAS TIME FOR A VACATION, SO HE WENT AWAY WITH HIS WIFE AND SON, LEAVING THE LABORATORY BEHIND.  

D:  WHEN ALEXANDER RETURNED TO HIS LABORATORY, HE WAS STARTLED TO SEE THAT ONE OF THE WINDOWS WAS OPEN.  LABORATORIES ARE SUPPOSED TO BE KEPT REALLY CLEAN, SO THAT THE SPECIMENS THAT ARE BEING EXAMINED IN THE LAB DON’T GET RUINED.  FOR THAT REASON, ALEXANDER WAS STARTLED TO SEE THAT ONE OF HIS ASSISTANTS HAD LEFT A WINDOW OPEN BY MISTAKE.  ALL SORTS OF THINGS COULD HAVE BLOWN INTO HIS LABORATORY FROM THE OUTSIDE AND LANDED ON THE PETRI DISHES HE WAS USING TO STUDY BACTERIA.  HOW COULD ONE OF HIS ASSISTANTS HAVE MADE SUCH A TERRIBLE MISTAKE?

HE RUSHED INSIDE TO CHECK ON THE PETRI DISHES WHEN HE MADE AN INCREDIBLE DISCOVERY.  IN ONE OF THE PETRI DISHES, HE NOTICED THAT A FUNGUS WAS GROWING.  THE FUNGUS ENTERED THE LABORATORY FROM ANOTHER NEARBY LABORATORY THROUGH THE WINDOW THAT WAS LEFT OPEN BY MISTAKE.  WHEN HE EXAMINED THE PETRI DISH WITH THE FUNGUS ON IT, HE NOTICED SOMETHING REALLY STRANGE.  IN THE AREA WHERE THE FUNGUS WAS GROWING, THE BACTERIA WAS MISSING.  THE BACTERIA THAT WAS ONCE IN THAT SAME SPOT WAS KILLED BY THE FUNGUS.  IN THE PART OF THE PETRI DISH WHERE THERE WAS NO FUNGUS, THE BACTERIA WAS STILL ALIVE AND WELL.  

O:  ALEXANDER HAD SPENT THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF HOURS EXAMINING BACTERIA IN HIS LABORATORY, LOOKING FOR SOMETHING THAT CAN EFFECTIVELY KILL BAD BACTERIA SO THAT PEOPLE DON’T SUFFER FROM BACTERIAL INFECTIONS.  IS IT POSSIBLE THAT THE ANSWER FLEW IN THROUGH THE WINDOW THAT WAS LEFT OPEN BY MISTAKE WHILE ALEXANDER WAS ON VACATION?  

D:  HE STUDIED THE PETRI DISH WITH THE FUNGUS GROWING ON IT, AND IDENTIFIED THAT THE FUNGUS CAME FROM A GROUP OF FUNGI CALLED PENICILLIUM.  HE NOTICED THAT EVEN TINY AMOUNTS OF PENICILLIUM WERE ENOUGH TO KILL BACTERIA.  ON MARCH 7TH, 1929, ALEXANDER FLEMING GAVE A NAME TO THE FUNGUS THAT FLEW INTO HIS LAB JUST 7 MONTHS EARLIER.  HE CALLED THE ANTIBIOTIC THAT WAS MADE FROM THE FUNGUS HE DISCOVERED PENICILLIN.  

IN THE YEARS SINCE THE DISCOVERY OF PENICILLIN, IT HAS BEEN USED TO TREAT INFECTIONS THAT PREVIOUSLY DIDN’T HAVE AN EFFECTIVE TREATMENT, LIKE DIPHTHERIA, MENINGITIS, AND PNEUMONIA.  PENICILLIN BECAME AVAILABLE AS A MEDICINE IN 1942.  AT THAT TIME, WORLD WAR 2 WAS UNDERWAY, AND MANY SOLDIERS WERE GETTING INJURED IN BATTLE.  WITH PENICILLIN NOW AVAILABLE, IT BECAME A VERY USEFUL TREATMENT FOR SOLDIERS THAT WERE WOUNDED IN BATTLE.  THANKS TO PENICILLIN, SOLDIERS WOUNDED IN WORLD WAR 2 HAD MUCH BETTER OUTCOMES THAN THE SOLDIERS THAT FOUGHT ALONGSIDE ALEXANDER FLEMING IN WORLD WAR 1.   

O:  IN THE EIGHTY YEARS THAT PENICILLIN HAS BEEN USED TO TREAT INFECTIONS, IT HAS SAVED MANY LIVES.  HOW WOULD THINGS BE DIFFERENT IF ALEXANDER’S ASSISTANT DIDN’T FORGET TO CLOSE THE LABORATORY WINDOW WHEN ALEXANDER WAS AWAY ON VACATION?  HERE’S ANOTHER INTERESTING THOUGHT.  WHAT IF ALEXANDER RETURNED TO HIS LABORATORY, NOTICED THAT THERE WAS FUNGUS ON ONE OF HIS PETRI DISHES THAT DIDN’T BELONG, AND SIMPLY THREW THE PETRI DISH IN THE GARBAGE WITHOUT THINKING TWICE?  WHAT IS IT THAT MADE ALEXANDER TAKE A CLOSE ENOUGH LOOK AT THE PETRI DISH TO NOTICE THAT SOMETHING WAS HAPPENING IN THERE THAT WOULD CHANGE THE WORLD FOREVER?

D:  IN ORDER TO LEARN WHY IT IS THAT ALEXANDER DECIDED TO EXAMINE THE PETRI DISH CLOSELY, WE ARE GOING TO REWIND HIS STORY BY 7 YEARS.  AFTER WORLD WAR 1, ALEXANDER WAS CURIOUS ABOUT WHAT DIFFERENT THINGS WERE OUT THERE THAT COULD DESTROY BACTERIA.  HE EVEN THOUGHT THAT THERE MIGHT BE THINGS ALREADY IN OR ON OUR BODIES THAT MIGHT HELP US FIGHT BACTERIA.  AT THE TIME, SCIENTISTS DIDN’T BELIEVE THAT THE HUMAN BODY HAD ANYTHING CAPABLE OF PROTECTING ITSELF FROM BACTERIA.   IN THE YEAR 1921, ALEXANDER HAD A COLD.  BECAUSE OF HIS COLD, HE HAD LOTS OF MUCUS IN HIS NOSE, IN HIS MOUTH, AND IN HIS THROAT.  MUCUS SOMETIMES GOES BY OTHER SILLY NAMES LIKE SNOT, WHEN IT COMES OUT OF THE NOSE, OR PHLEHM, WHEN IT COMES OUT OF THE MOUTH.  WELL, ALEXANDER TRIED SOMETHING INTERESTING.  HE SET UP AN EXPERIMENT TO SEE HOW BACTERIA WOULD RESPOND IF HE PUT SOME OF HIS OWN MUCUS ON IT.  TO HIS SURPRISE, THE MUCUS SEEMED TO GET RID OF SOME OF THE BACTERIA THAT IT WAS EXPOSED TO.  

O:  THIS MADE ALEXANDER EVEN MORE CURIOUS.  IF MUCUS HELPS FIGHT BACTERIA, WHAT ELSE MIGHT WORK?  HE DECIDED THAT FOR HIS NEXT EXPERIMENT, HE WOULD USE TEARS.  WOULD TEARS BE ABLE TO CLEAR AWAY BACTERIA IN THE SAME WAY THAT MUCUS DID?  WHEN PREPARING FOR THE EXPERIMENT, ALEXANDER RAN INTO A BIG PROBLEM.  HOW IN THE WORLD WAS HE GOING TO MAKE ENOUGH TEARS TO CONDUCT THE EXPERIMENT.  OUR BODIES MAKE TEARS, BUT IT’S HARD TO COLLECT THOSE TEARS AND GET ENOUGH OF THEM TO SEE WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF YOU SPRINKLE SOME TEARS ONTO BACTERIA.  HE DECIDED TO USE ONIONS TO SOLVE HIS PROBLEM.  WHEN ONIONS ARE CUT, A GAS IS RELEASED INTO THE AIR THAT IRRITATES THE EYES, LEADING TO TEARS.  THE ONIONS DIDN’T QUITE DO THE TRICK.  SURE, THEY CREATED SOME TEARS, BUT NOT ENOUGH FOR THE EXPERIMENT.  NEXT UP, HE TRIED LEMONS.  WHEN LEMONS ARE SQUEEZED IN FRONT OF THE EYE, TEARS ARE CREATED.  MAKING TEARS THIS WAY SEEMED TO WORK WELL, BUT IT WAS PRETTY UNCOMFORTABLE.  THAT’S WHEN ALEXANDER HAD THE IDEA TO GIVE A FEW LAB ASSISTANTS MONEY FOR THEM TO PARTICIPATE IN HELPING HIM MAKE TEARS USING LEMONS.  WITH THE HELP OF THE LAB ASSISTANTS, ALEXANDER WAS ABLE TO CAPTURE ENOUGH TEARS FOR HIS STUDY.  HE ADDED THE TEARS TO BACTERIA, AND MUCH TO HIS DELIGHT, SOME OF THE BACTERIA VANISHED.

D:  HE WAS OVERCOME WITH EXCITEMENT, SO HE TRIED USING OTHER BODILY FLUIDS, LIKE SALIVA AND BLOOD.  EACH AND EVERY TIME, THE RESULTS WERE THE SAME.  WHETHER IT WAS MUCUS, TEARS, SALIVA, OR BLOOD, EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THEM WAS SUCCESSFUL IN FIGHTING OFF BACTERIA.  EVEN THOUGH ALEXANDER FLEMING IS BEST KNOWN FOR BEING THE SCIENTIST THAT DISCOVERED PENICILLIN, IT TURNS OUT THAT YEARS BEFORE HE DISCOVERED PENICILLIN, ALEXANDER DISCOVERED A BACTERIA FIGHTING PROTEIN THAT CAN BE FOUND IN OUR BODIES.  THAT PROTEIN WAS GIVEN THE NAME LYSOZYME.

UNFORTUNATELY, ALEXANDER’S DISCOVERY OF LYSOZYME WAS NOT NEARLY AS IMPORTANT AS HIS DISCOVERY OF PENICILLIN.  THAT’S BECAUSE LYSOZYME DID NOT SEEM TO BE VERY EFFECTIVE IN PROTECTING PEOPLE FROM REALLY HARMFUL BACTERIA, WHILE IT WAS MORE EFFECTIVE IN DESTROYING BACTERIA THAT DIDN’T PRESENT MUCH OF A RISK.      

EVEN THOUGH LYSOZYME WAS NOT THE MIRACLE BACTERIA CURE THAT PENICILLIN TURNED OUT TO BE, IT’S POSSIBLE THAT THE DISCOVERY OF PENICILLIN WOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED IF NOT FOR ALEXANDER’S EXPERIMENTS INVOLVING LYSOZYME.  

O:  IF ALEXANDER DIDN’T STUDY HARD AT SCHOOL AND GET EXCELLENT GRADES, WOULD HE HAVE BELIEVED THAT HE COULD BE A DOCTOR?    IF HIS OLDER BROTHER WASN’T A DOCTOR BEFORE HIM, WOULD HE HAVE EVEN WANTED TO BE A DOCTOR?  IF HIS BROTHER DIDN’T MOVE TO LONDON, WOULD ALEXANDER HAVE BEEN INTERESTED IN LEAVING SCOTLAND?  MAYBE HE WOULD HAVE JUST STAYED AT HOME TO HELP OUT AROUND THE FARM.  

D:  IF ALEXANDER DIDN’T HAVE THE EXPERIENCE OF SERVING IN WORLD WAR 1, WOULD HE HAVE HAD AN INTEREST IN COMING UP WITH BETTER WAYS TO FIGHT OFF INFECTION IN SOLDIERS THAT WERE WOUNDED IN WAR?  IF HE DIDN’T HAVE A COLD, WOULD HE HAVE COME UP WITH THE IDEA TO STUDY DIFFERENT BODY FLUIDS TO SEE WHAT WOULD HAPPEN WHEN THEY WERE MIXED WITH BACTERIA?  AND, IF HIS EXPERIMENTS WITH BODY FLUIDS FAILED, WOULD HE STILL BE STUDYING BACTERIA 7 YEARS LATER, AT THE TIME WHEN HE ENJOYED A VACATION WITH HIS FAMILY?  AND FINALLY, IF ALEXANDER’S LAB ASSISTANT DIDN’T LEAVE A WINDOW TO HIS LABORATORY OPEN, IS IT POSSIBLE THAT PENICILLIN WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN DISCOVERED?  

A GREAT MISTAKE HAPPENED IN 1928, WHEN AN ASSISTANT CARELESSLY LEFT A WINDOW OPEN, LETTING FUNGI ENTER THE LABORATORY THAT ALEXANDER USED FOR HIS RESEARCH ON BACTERIA.  BUT IF IT WASN’T FOR HIS OLDER BROTHER, HIS EXPERIENCE IN WORLD WAR 1, HIS COLD, OR SO MANY OTHER THINGS THAT HAPPENED TO ALEXANDER WHEN HE WAS YOUNGER, WOULD THE GREAT MISTAKE HAVE EVEN BEEN POSSIBLE?  THE MISTAKE THE LAB ASSISTANT MADE WAS GREAT, BUT IF ALEXANDER WASN’T GREAT AS WELL, THE MISTAKE WOULD HAVE JUST BEEN AN ORDINARY MISTAKE, A MISTAKE FORGOTTEN LONG AGO.  

ALEXANDER FLEMING HIMSELF REALIZED THAT HIS DISCOVERY OF PENICILLIN WAS A GREAT MISTAKE WHEN HE SAID THE FOLLOWING: “ONE SOMETIMES FINDS WHAT ONE IS NOT LOOKING FOR.  WHEN I WOKE UP JUST AFTER DAWN ON SEPTEMBER 28TH, 1928, I CERTAINLY DIDN’T PLAN TO REVOLUTIONIZE ALL MEDICINE BY DISCOVERING THE WORLD’S FIRST ANTIBIOTIC, OR BACTERIA KILLER.  BUT I GUESS THAT WAS EXACTLY WHAT I DID.”  - THE END

O:  I LOVE THAT STORY.  IT’S AMAZING HOW A MISTAKE COULD HAVE LED TO ONE OF THE BIGGEST DISCOVERIES IN HISTORY, AND THERE ARE ALSO SOME WONDERFUL LESSONS TO LEARN FROM THE STORY.  

D:  LIKE THE IMPORTANCE OF WORKING VERY, VERY HARD, BUT ALSO KNOWING THAT IT COULD SOMETIMES HELP TO HAVE SOME LUCK ON YOUR SIDE.

O:  MAYBE NEXT TIME, INSTEAD OF TELLING ME TO CLEAN MY ROOM WHEN IT’S DIRTY, YOU SHOULD CONSIDER THE FACT THAT MAYBE I’M JUST DOING A SCIENCE EXPERIMENT, AND MAYBE I’M CLOSE TO MAKING THE NEXT BIG DISCOVERY.

D:  DON’T COUNT ON IT.  YOU STILL NEED TO CLEAN YOUR ROOM, BUT NICE TRY.  IT’S NOW TIME TO KEEP UP WITH A TRADITION WE STARTED ALL THE WAY BACK IN SEASON ONE.  WE ARE GOING TO TELL YOU OUR FAVORITE EPISODES AND FACTS FROM SEASON EIGHT.  OLIVIA, WHY DON’T YOU GET STARTED?  WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE EPISODE FROM SEASON EIGHT?

O:  MY FAVORITE EPISODE FROM SEASON 8 IS CURIOUS ABOUT SEA TURTLES.  I LOVE THAT EPISODE BECAUSE I’M CURIOUS ABOUT ANIMALS THAT LIVE IN THE OCEAN.  I’VE NEVER BEEN DEEP IN THE OCEAN, AND I’M CURIOUS ABOUT THE FASCINATING ANIMALS THAT LIVE DEEP DOWN IN THE OCEAN.

D:  MY FAVORITE EPISODE FROM THE SEASON WAS CURIOUS ABOUT MONSTER TRUCKS.  YOUR MOMMY AND BROTHER PLAYED A GREAT APRIL FOOLS JOKE ON OUR LISTENERS IN THAT EPISODE.  IT WAS SO MUCH FUN TO HAVE THEM JOIN US FOR THE EPISODE.  I ALSO LOVED THE EPISODE ON TARDIGRADES.  I DIDN’T EVEN KNOW WHAT THEY WERE UNTIL RECENTLY, BUT THEY ARE ABSOLUTELY AMAZING AND I’M THRILLED THAT WE GOT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THEM.  OKAY OLIVIA, WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE FACT FROM SEASON EIGHT?

O: MY FAVORITE FACT IS FROM THE EPISODE CURIOUS ABOUT CHICKENS.  CHICKENS ARE ABLE TO LIVE WITHOUT THEIR HEADS ATTACHED FOR A FEW MINUTES.  THAT’S JUST CRAZY.  

D:  MY FAVORITE FACT WAS IN THE EPISODE CURIOUS ABOUT SEA TURTLES.  IN THAT EPISODE, WE LEARNED THAT SEA TURTLES LAY THEIR NESTS ON THE SAME BEACH WHERE THEY HATCHED WHEN THEY WERE BORN.  THAT IS AMAZING, CONSIDERING THEY SPEND ALMOST THEIR ENTIRE LIVES IN THE OCEAN.

O:  SO MANY AMAZING EPISODES AND FACTS FROM SEASON EIGHT.

D:  AND THERE ARE EVEN MORE GREAT EPISODES AND FACTS ON THE HORIZON FOR SEASON NINE.

O:  OUR FIRST NINE EPISODE TOPICS FOR SEASON NINE WILL BE:  THE BERMUDA TRIANGLE, FRECKLES BIRTHMARKS AND MOLES, NUMBERS AND MATH, ALLIGATORS AND CROCODILES, SATELLITES, CHOCOLATE, VIKINGS, CHESS, AND GIRAFFES.

D:  I CAN’T WAIT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THOSE TOPICS, AND A WHOLE LOT MORE, IN SEASON NINE.

O:  BEFORE WE GO, WE WANT TO THANK ALL OF OUR INCREDIBLE LISTENERS.  WE LOVE DOING THIS FOR YOU.  WE LOVE YOU BECAUSE YOU LISTEN, YOU EMAIL US, YOU FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, AND TWITTER, YOU SHOP IN OUR MERCHANDISE STORE, YOU SUPPORT US ON PATREON, YOU LEAVE US WONDERFUL FIVE STAR REVIEWS.  THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO.  IT TRULY MEANS THE WORLD TO US.

D:  AND I HAVE ONE OTHER VERY SPECIAL PERSON TO THANK.  I WANT TO THANK MY INCREDIBLE DAUGHTER AND CO-HOST, OLIVIA.  HOSTING A PODCAST IS HARD WORK, BUT OLIVIA HAS DONE A GREAT JOB WITH THE PODCAST.  AND WHEN SHE’S NOT GOING TO SCHOOL AND PODCASTING, SHE PLAYS SOCCER, SHE COMPETES FOR HER SWIM TEAM, SHE RUNS IN COMPETITIVE RACES, AND SHE PLAYS PIANO.  SHE LOVES LEARNING, AND HER HUNGER TO LEARN MORE AND MORE INSPIRES ME TO KEEP LEARNING.  THANK YOU FOR BEING THE BEST CO-HOST IN THE ENTIRE WORLD.

O:  THANK YOU, DADDY.  I’VE HAD SO MUCH FUN PODCASTING AND I NEVER WANT TO STOP.  

D:  THE CURIOUS KID PODCAST TRAIN ROLLS ON NEXT WEEK, WHEN WE WILL GET CURIOUS ABOUT THE BERMUDA TRIANGLE FOR LISTENERS IN WISCONSIN, NORTH CAROLINA, AND VIETNAM.  AS ALWAYS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LISTENING AND GETTING CURIOUS WITH US.