Hidden Science Stories

005 - Is caffeine bad for kids?

Support my work and keep it sustainable: ko-fi.com/evolio Have you ever heard that coffee and caffeine are bad for kids because it stunts their growth? Well an argument between Ryan and his wife lead him to look into this seemingly verifiable scientific fact and it turns out this super common knowledge idea is a myth. Made up for marketing purposes by C.W. Post to sell his coffee alternative product, and it worked even better than he could have ever expected. The scientific evidence directly counters this idea though. Ryan and Zach discuss how this myth took hold in the U.S. We discuss the neuroscience of caffeine and how it works to make you feel awake. Also, how does caffeine interact with an ADHD brain? Finally we move onto how to maximize the effects of caffeine and get the most out of the most commonly used psychoactive substance on the planet. If you want to have the most efficient coffee intake according to neuroscience, then follow this advice. The episode ends with a discussion on political violence in the news, then specifically the attempted shooting at the White House Correspondents Dinner. And a follow up of Ryan’s prediction from earlier in the year about the President’s apparent dementia and how it affected the events that unfolded at the dinner party. --- Created by: Ryan Pevey at evolio.org and Zach Jobe @zhjobe Concept: A science and comedy conversation about caffeine, whether it’s bad for kids, how does it work on your brain and ADHD. As well as how to maximize the effects of caffeine. Tools: DaVinci Resolve, GIMP Outro music by Maksym Malko from Pixabay (pixabay.com/music/upbeat-podcast-interview-music-254186/) The mural featured in the thumbnail is by Ryan Henry Ward Podcast streams: redcircle.com/shows/04ecc7a3-3383-4ca0-bff3-c55d04100ed5 podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hidden-science-stories/id1874450380 open.spotify.com/show/50xaIb6jjmSJv7georpfVt?si=16e6c0e030414593 music.amazon.com/podcasts/b0415a99-f209-4c66-80c5-d8eb2b490811/hidden-science-stories --- Citations: 1. Lieberman et al. (2002). "Effects of caffeine, sleep loss, and stress on cognitive performance and mood during U.S. Navy SEAL training." Psychopharmacology, 164(3), 250–261. 2. Reifman et al. (2022). "2B-Alert Web 2.0, an Open-Access Tool for Predicting Alertness and Optimizing the Benefits of Caffeine." JMIR Mental Health / Sleep. 3. Fredholm et al. — Multiple foundational papers on adenosine receptor pharmacology. 4. Lane, J. (1999). Duke University / National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute study on caffeine, adrenaline, and blood pressure in daily life. 5. Temple, J.L. et al. (2010). "Caffeine Use in Children: What we know, what we have left to learn, and why we should worry." PMC2699625. 6. Smithsonian Magazine: "It's a Myth: There's No Evidence That Coffee Stunts Kids' Growth." 7. Institute of Medicine / USAMRMC: Caffeine for the Sustainment of Mental Task Performance (NCBI Bookshelf, NBK223801). 0:00 Caffeine myths and Cereal Quacks 18:24 Health effects of caffeine 23:08 The Neuroscience of Caffeine 40:55 Optimizing caffeine with neuroscience 49:38 Point of Optimism, Caffeine isn’t bad in moderation 52:16 Political Violence and the WHCD 01:06:31 DJT in the background of a photo

004 - Cryptozoology vs. Discovery Ecology and eDNA

Support my work and keep it sustainable: ko-fi.com/evolio The bigfoot cryptid monster makes for a really fun and enlightening example of how science is not supposed to work, despite what his proponents have to say about him. While cryptid monsters can be fun and whimsical, they and the search for them, a field known as cryptozoology, are also one of the most potent examples of pseudoscience. In this episode Zach and I explore the topic of cryptozoology, why it is a pseudoscience and what legitimate science actually looks like. --- Created by: Ryan Pevey at evolio.org and Zach Jobe @zhjobe Concept: A science and comedy conversation about what philosophical bullshit is and how to detectit. Tools: DaVinci Resolve, GIMP Intro music by Maksym Malko from Pixabay (pixabay.com/music/upbeat-podcast-interview-music-254186/) Podcast streams: redcircle.com/shows/04ecc7a3-3383-4ca0-bff3-c55d04100ed5 podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hidden-science-stories/id1874450380 open.spotify.com/show/50xaIb6jjmSJv7georpfVt?si=16e6c0e030414593 music.amazon.com/podcasts/b0415a99-f209-4c66-80c5-d8eb2b490811/hidden-science-stories --- Citations: Bryan C. Sykes, Rhettman A. Mullis, Christophe Hagenmuller, Terry W. Melton, Michel Sartori; Genetic analysis of hair samples attributed to yeti, bigfoot and other anomalous primates. Proc Biol Sci 1 August 2014; 281 (1789): 20140161. doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2014.0161 Li, X., D. Yang, L. Wang, and J. J. Wiens. 2025. The past and future of known biodiversity: Rates, patterns, and projections of new species over time. Science Advances 11:eadz3071. wienslab.com/Publications_files/Li_et_al._Sci_Adv_2025.pdf Smith, J.L.B. (1956), Old Fourlegs: The Story of the Coelacanth, Longmans. openlibrary.org/books/OL6196638M/Old_Fourlegs Natural History Museum (London), "Coelacanths: The fish that 'outdid' the Loch Ness Monster" nhm.ac.uk/discover/coelacanths-the-fish-that-outdid-the-loch-ness-monster.html Natural History Museum (London) "What is environmental DNA (eDNA)?" nhm.ac.uk/discover/what-is-environmental-dna-edna.html Cornell Chronicle, Jan. 2026, "Environmental DNA breakthrough will aid conservation efforts" news.cornell.edu/stories/2026/01/environmental-dna-breakthrough-will-aid-conservation-efforts Smithsonian Magazine "The Giant Squid: Dragon of the Deep" smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-giant-squid-dragon-of-the-deep-18784038/ NPR, 2025, "Using eDNA to track world's biodiversity". npr.org/2025/05/22/g-s1-67081/environmental-dna-edna-air-track-biodiversity Hill, Sharon A. Skeptical Inquirer: "Cryptozoology and Pseudoscience". skepticalinquirer.org/newsletter/cryptozoology-and-pseudoscience/ 0:00 Bigfoot 13:13 A serious science debunking 15:42 Famous cryptids 24:27 Legitimate science efforts 31:00 The coelacanth and lazarus species 35:43 New species discoveries 39:48 The Kraken 45:10 Cyclops 50:22 Paleomythology of the PNW 58:04 eDNA 1:03:59 Point of Optimism

003 - Dog Genetics, Domestication and Breeding

In this episode I explain dog genetics to my friend, comedian Zach Jobe. The story of how dogs became what they are today is a two stage process beginning with the ancient and gradual domestication of dogs from wolves and breeding based of jobs such as herding, hunting or guarding. Then modern dog breeding practices changed the landscape completely and rapidly resulting in some weird genetic quirks that give us the lovable little sweethearts that we know today. --- Created by: Ryan Pevey at evolio.org and Zach Jobe @zhjobe Concept: A science and comedy converstion about dementia and how it impacts people and society, as well as bold predictions of event that may or may not happen this year, based on scientific skepticism. Tools: DaVinci Resolve, GIMP Intro music by Maksym Malko from Pixabay (pixabay.com/music/upbeat-podcast-interview-music-254186/) Podcast streams: redcircle.com/shows/04ecc7a3-3383-4ca0-bff3-c55d04100ed5 podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hidden-science-stories/id1874450380 open.spotify.com/show/50xaIb6jjmSJv7georpfVt?si=16e6c0e030414593 music.amazon.com/podcasts/b0415a99-f209-4c66-80c5-d8eb2b490811/hidden-science-stories --- Citations: vonHoldt et al. (2010) , "Genome-wide SNP and haplotype analyses reveal a rich history underlying dog domestication." Nature 464:898–902. DOI: 10.1038/nature08837. Bergström et al. (2022) , "Grey wolf genomic history reveals a dual ancestry of dogs." Nature 606:313–320. DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-04824-9. Savolainen et al. (2002) , "Genetic evidence for an East Asian origin of domestic dogs." Science 298:1610–1613. Thalmann et al. (2013) , "Complete mitochondrial genomes of ancient canids suggest a European origin of domestic dogs." Science 342:871–874. Parker et al. (2004) , "Genetic structure of the purebred domestic dog." Science 304:1160–1164. Parker et al. (2017) , "Genomic analyses reveal the influence of geographic origin, migration, and hybridization on modern dog breed development." Cell Reports 19:697–708. DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2017.03.079. 0:00 An ancient friend 4:47 A tale in two parts 14:00 The modern dog breeding era 21:31 Genetic bottlenecks and founder effects 27:48 An ideal genetic model 38:02 Ethics of animal research 46:23 Dog genetic testing 55:26 Addendums and errata 57:36 Donut labs prediction update 1:03:41 Outro

002 - Dementia and 2026 Annual Predictions

In this episode I explain dementia to my friend, comedian Zach Jobe. Starting with a personal story about my grandmother, we explore what dementia actually is, the different types of dementia, and how they present for patients and caregivers. We cover the latest research and why recognizing cognitive decline matters more than ever. Following that we make predictions for 2026, using only our scientific knowledge and critical thinking skills. ——— Created by: Ryan Pevey at evolio.org and Zach Jobe @zhjobe Concept: A science and comedy converstion about dementia and how it impacts people and society, as well as bold predictions of event that may or may not happen this year, based on scientific skepticism. Tools: DaVinci Resolve, GIMP Music by Maksym Malko from Pixabay (pixabay.com/music/upbeat-podcast-interview-music-254186/) ——— 0:00 Let me tell you about my grandmother 3:15 The different types of dementia 22:23 A surprising connection to dementia 27:06 Annual predictions 2026 27:55 Prediction 2: DJT has end-stage dementia 36:01 Prediction 2: the AI bubble will burst 38:22 Prediction 3: DONUT labs will be revealed a fraud 57:27 Moonshot prediction: Betelgeuse will go Supernova 63:41 Outro

001 - How NOT to give your kids peanut allergies

In this episode I explain peanut allergies to my friend, comedian Zach Jobe. Peanut allergy rates tripled over the first decade of this century, so we cover the evidence showing why, and how they were successfully brought back down to historical levels using the process of science and evidence based healthcare policy. Open data fuels open science. ——— Created by: Ryan Pevey at evolio.org and Zach Jobe @zhjobe Support my work and keep it sustainable: ko-fi.com/evolio Concept: A funny science and comedy story about how a well meaning peanut avoidance recommendation helped spike peanut allergies, and how evidence-based medicine helped bring them back down. Tools: DaVinci Resolve, GIMP Music by Maksym Malko from Pixabay (pixabay.com/music/upbeat-podcast-interview-music-254186/) ——— Citations: Du Toit G, et al. Early consumption of peanuts in infancy is associated with a low prevalence of peanut allergy. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2008 Nov;122(5):984-91. doi: 10.1016/j.jaci.2008.08.039. PMID: 19000582. Du Toit G, et al. Early peanut introduction for allergy prevention: Follow-up to adolescence. NEJM Evidence DOI: doi.org/10.1056/EVIDoa2300311 (2024). Du Toit G, et al; Immune Tolerance Network LEAP-Trio Trial Team. Follow-up to Adolescence after Early Peanut Introduction for Allergy Prevention. NEJM Evid. 2024 Jun;3(6):EVIDoa2300311. DOI: doi.org/10.1056/EVIDoa2300311. Epub 2024 May 28. PMID: 38804779. Stanislaw J. Gabryszewski, Jesse Dudley, Jennifer A. Faerber, Robert W. Grundmeier, Alexander G. Fiks, Jonathan M. Spergel, David A. Hill, Guidelines for Early Food Introduction and Patterns of Food Allergy, Pediatrics, 156, 5, DOI doi.org/10.1542/peds.2024-070516 (2025). Sources: preventallergies.org/blog/why-are-peanut-allergies-on-the-rise chop.edu/news/childrens-hospital-philadelphia-researchers-observe-significant-reduction-diagnosis-food thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5609536-rfk-jr-peanut-allergies-exposure-maha/ 0:00 A disastrous recommendation 4:23 Historical allergy rates 5:58 “Rates have TRIPLED!!!” 8:48 Delayed exposure to peanuts drives allergies 10:43 An abundance of caution turns into assumptions made 14:54 Misinformation travels faster then good info 20:30 LEAP Trial shows early exposure reduces allergies 29:30 New guidelines show success 43:18 Wrap up and look ahead