Hey friends. It's Moment of Um producer Anna Goldfield. I want to just take a minute to talk to the adults listening about public media. You may have heard that public media is facing federal budget cuts, and that includes Moment of Um and all your favorite Brains on Universe podcasts. If you want to protect your favorite public media programming and podcasts, like this one, visit Americanpublicmedia.org slash action to learn how you can help.

One more time, that's Americanpublicmedia.org slash action.

Thanks so much for standing up for public media.

From the brains behind brains on, this is the moment of um.

Moment of um comes to you from APM Studios. I'm Candice, owner of Candace's Candle Emporium.

Um...

Here at Candice's Candle Emporium, we specialize in the finest and rarest candles in the world.

Like this one, it's our signature first day of summer vacation candle.

Hints of warm sunshine, swimming pool, and melted ice cream cone.

Our Who Let the Dogs Out candle?

With notes of wet fur, drool and kibble, this candle will have all your friends wondering,

what is that smell?

Plus, we make specialty candles for the sophisticated sniffer who won't settle for just any scent.

We can make them out of anything your heart desires.

Coconut wax, soy wax, beeswax, just not earwax from your ears.

Wait, could you make earwax candles?

My friend River wants to know too.

Let's ask a fellow candle connoisseur.

You could make a candle with ear wax, but I don't think it would burn very well. My name is Todd Wambach, and I am the laboratory and science manager at candle science.

The primary component of earwax is actually skin cells.

The sebum portion of it, which is a smaller portion, would burn, but the skin cells themselves would not really sustain flame.

So sebum is an oil that's created by your body.

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