Hey there, it's Steven Dubner.

We just finished publishing our series on rats, which reminded me of an episode from the archives that I thought you might like to hear.

You will understand within the first few seconds why I was reminded of this episode.

It was first published in early 2021, although we began making this episode in

early 2020 and put it aside when the pandemic struck. Anyway, we have updated facts and figures

as necessary. I hope you enjoy it. As always, thanks for listening.

If you sat down at my kitchen table and I put an insect in front of you, maybe a cricket or grasshopper, would you eat it?

If you answered no, and I'm guessing you did, then why not? Your answer, like, there's something to do with disgust.

But you've ever wondered why eating an insect is disgusting?

You ever wondered why disgust exists?

And what else do you find disgusting?

Are there any universal disgusts? Fecal material, for example, is inherently disgusting.

Every person on the planet, with a few strange exceptions,

finds fecal material something they want to stay away from.

But once you get past poop, absolutes are hard to find.

There are enormous variations in disgust. Consider,

for instance, the animals we eat and don't eat. I'm a massive dog lover, but I would eat dog

out of curiosity. In California, you cannot eat horse, whereas in many European countries, you have

horse but I've never eaten you have horse butcheries.

I've never eaten roadkill, but I would eat human flesh.

From an evolutionary standpoint, disgust has often served us well.

There is good reason to not eat poop, as well as other disgusting things that might harm us.

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