Killer Demon Core, Victorian Theater-Kid Ghosts, Louis Pasteur's Secrets

The Weirdest Thing I Learned This Week

Popular Science

Society & Culture, Science, Education

4.6 • 2.2K Ratings

🗓️ 25 March 2026

⏱️ 76 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Jess brings adef and jacksonparodi on the show this week to discuss how one sphere killed two men in a matter of days, why folks in Victorian Australia used glowing paint to transform into ghosts, and how Louis Pasteur had more aura than ever imaginable. adef on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@adef adef on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/adef Jackson on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@JacksonParodi Jess on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@JessCapricorn Jess on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/jesscapricorn The Weirdest Thing I Learned This Week is a podcast by Popular Science. Share your weirdest facts and stories with us in our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook group⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tweet at us⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Click here to learn more about all of our stories! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Links to Rachel's TikTok, Newsletter, Merch Store and More: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/RachelFeltman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Rachel now has a Patreon, too! Follow her for exclusive bonus content: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.patreon.com/RachelFeltman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Link to Jess' Twitch: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.twitch.tv/jesscapricorn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Link to all of Jess' content: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.jesscapricorn.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ -- Follow our team on Twitter Rachel Feltman: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.twitter.com/RachelFeltman⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Produced by Jess Boddy: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.twitter.com/JessicaBoddy⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Popular Science: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.twitter.com/PopSci⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Theme music by Billy Cadden: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/artist/6LqT4DCuAXlBzX8XlNy4Wq?si=5VF2r2XiQoGepRsMTBsDAQ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Right now, our listeners get an additional 15% off any annual membership at https://MASTERCLASS.com/WEIRDEST Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	You might think that you don't have time to learn something new right now, but you're probably wrong.
0:05.2	Because with Masterclass, you can fit in a session on your commute while drinking your morning coffee,
0:10.2	or even doing cardio at the gym. I've been doing that last one, a good incline walk on the treadmill
0:15.3	accompanied by, say, the learn how to tell a great story with Big short and moneyball author Michael Lewis class unmatched.
0:23.3	Perhaps the best way to do it.
0:24.6	Right now, our listeners get an additional 15% off any annual membership at masterclass.com slash weirdest.
0:31.6	That's 15% off at masterclass.com slash weirdest.
0:36.8	Masterclass.com slash weirdest. Masterclass.com slash weirdest.
0:43.0	At popular science, we report and write dozens of science and text stories every week.
0:48.5	And while a lot of the fun facts we stumble across make it into our articles,
0:52.1	there are lots of other weird facts that we just
0:54.4	keep around the office. So we figured, why not sure those with you? Welcome to the weirdest thing I
0:59.6	learned this week from the editors at Popular Science. I'm Jess. I'm Adiff. And I'm Jackson.
1:06.4	Woo! Welcome. This is awesome. You be hooray. Yeah. So obviously listeners, you guys know, I've been
1:14.2	bringing on my creator friends for while Rachel's on parental leave. This is the last one of those.
1:20.3	Rachel will be back soon, I think, in about, I think we have one more vintage episode to run,
1:24.4	a rerun after this in two weeks and then two weeks after that.
1:29.1	Rachel's back, which is very exciting.
1:33.7	But today, Adda and Jackson are joining, which is so great.
1:40.8	And we all just hung out a whole bunch at the Kaiser Coliseum event, which ruled.
1:53.0	And that's a cool charity event sponsored by Red Bull, where we go play video games and raise a bunch of money for spinal cord injury research. We raised a lot of money. Like what, over 130,000? I believe that's correct. With the Red Bull matching, it'll be double that.
1:56.0	Oh, yeah.
	...

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