Special Episode: Dr. Lindsey Fitzharris and Adrian Teal & Dead Ends!

This Podcast Will Kill You

Exactly Right and iHeartPodcasts

Health & Fitness, Science

4.8 • 17.1K Ratings

🗓️ 28 October 2025

⏱️ 57 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Science doesn’t always get it right the first time (or the second, or the third, or even the ninety-ninth!). And while we may chuckle at the outlandish things people believed or the goofy experiments they tried, we forget two things: 1) those failures helped us get where we are today and 2) a hundred years from now, people will probably be laughing at the “cutting edge” medical knowledge of today! In this week’s book club episode, Erin and I chat with two of our all-time favorite science communicators, Dr. Lindsey Fithzarris and Adrian Teal to discuss their newest book Dead Ends!: Flukes, Flops & Failures That Sparked Medical Marvels. This hilarious and insightful book, geared towards middle-school readers (but enjoyable for all ages!), frolicks through some of the strangest stories in the history of medicine, accompanied by delightfully grotesque illustrations. There’s learning, there’s laughter, but most importantly, there’s a lesson: failure is okay. Not just okay but a necessary part of science. Tune in for all this and more!

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Transcript

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0:00.0	This is exactly right.
0:06.3	Two rich young Americans move to the Costa Rican jungle to start over,
0:11.0	but one of them will end up dead and the other tried for murder three times.
0:16.2	It starts with a dream, a nature reserve and a spectacular new home.
0:20.6	But little by little, they lose it. They actually lose it.
0:23.6	They sort of like nuts.
0:25.1	Until one night, everything spins out of control.
0:32.3	Listen to Hell in Heaven on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
0:41.2	The Girlfriends is back with a new season, and this time I'm telling you the story of Kelly
0:46.1	Harnet. Kelly spent over a decade in prison for a murder she says she didn't commit. As she
0:52.0	fought for her freedom, she taught herself the law.
0:54.9	He goes, oh God, her in that jailhouse lawyer.
0:58.0	And became a beacon of hope for the women locked up alongside her.
1:02.0	You're supposed to have been faith in God, but I had nothing but faith in her.
1:05.0	I think I was put here to save souls by getting people out of prison.
1:09.8	The Girlfriends, Jailhouse Lawyer.
1:12.4	Listen on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
1:30.3	You know, The The Hi, I'm Erin Welsh, and this is This Podcast Will You.
2:07.0	Welcome to another episode of the TPWKY Book Club series, where I interview authors of popular science and medicine books about their latest exciting work.
2:18.2	So far this season, we've gotten to showcase some fascinating books and topics,
2:23.6	and we still have more to come over the next months.
2:26.6	If you'd like to see what books we'll be featuring on upcoming episodes,
	...

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