Gorillas. These chest-beating, salad-munching, communal living, thick-furred beauties have so many surprises for you. Gorillaologist (IT’S A WORD) Dr. Tara Stoinski has been a gorilla scientist for three decades and dishes on everything from forest farts, banana flim-flam, night-time nesting, gorilla laughter, playing, parenting, what those big teeth are for, and why we’re more alike than we might think.

Peach fuzz. Chin hairs. Mammalian ponytails. WHY DO THEY HAPPEN. Yale researcher and associate professor Dr. Valerie Horsley stops by California to chat with Alie about the nature of hair and what it has to do with skin and nails, stem cells, how it grows, why some of us have curly hair or straight hair or thin hair or thick hair, and why we love and hate and need our hair as animals.

Gratitude: what’s the deal? Does it really make us happier? Or is being appreciative a bunch of hokey flim-flam? Author Neil Pasricha started a blog of 1000 Awesome Things in 2008 and it led him down rabbit holes looking into the science of gratitude and how to better survive tough times. Learn about your new morning ritual, how much of happiness is genetically determined, why journaling is a good idea, simple appreciation, singing while making dinner, and how your brain means well -- but can make you miserable on purpose. Also: Why you should not only touch grass, but sniff a tree while you’re at it.

Dig in for a bite-sized episode about how native foods aren’t just a part of a past, but an essential and exciting aspect of the future. We talk flower bulbs, acorns, sunflower butter popcorn, frybread debates, mushroom foraging tips, corn magic, puffball mythology, decolonized diets, Instapots and – most importantly – food sovereignty with the WONDERFUL Indigikitchen cooking show host and environmental scientist Mariah Gladstone.

Seals. Sea lions. Walruses. What’s the difference, and how can you tell which is which? Spoiler: you’ll find out in this episode. We sit down with Dr. Luis A Hückstädt and talk about blubber, ocean currents, whisker tech, tail nubbins and what’s up with elephant seals’ faces. Also: Which seal does Luis adore the most, and why do they sound like spaceships?

Invisible but stronger than steel. Complex architectural marvels. Things that stick to your face. Spiderwebs are much more than just Halloween decor or something to feather dust from your corners. Spider silk expert Dr. Randy Lewis of Utah State University not only coined the word "spidroin" for the proteins comprising the many types of silk, but he is considered one of the foremost experts on the wonders of spiderwebs. Alie visits his lab and chats about how spiders weave them, what the silk is made of, and how realistic your favourite spidey superhero’s antics are. You'll never (not) see a spiderweb the same.

Licorice opinions! Chocolate rations! Candy corn origins! The incredibly charming author, journalist, candy historian, and Confectiologist Susan Benjamin chats about everything from the sourest of sour candies, ancient chewing gum, sugar sources from beets to grains to honey, Turkish temptations, what a sugar plum even is, and how candy became a treat made for anyone to enjoy. An instant classic.

“People fear most what they understand least." Words of wisdom from explorer, American treasure, and bat expert Dr. Merlin Tuttle. Alie headed to the bat capital of Austin and sat down with the legendary chiropterologist to discuss what a bat actually is and why we don’t need to be so frightened of them, how big they get, what's up with their smushy noses, bat chatter, echolocation, sleeping upside down, bat besties, how to spot them after the sun sets, and how it feels to get slapped by a bat.

PUMPKIN PUMPKIN! Not only a thing to scream while passing a patch, but also the name of the book by author and human delight Anne Copeland. Yes, she's so charmed by pumpkins that she dedicated a whole book to exploring their folklore, history, planting protocol, care, and cooking. Alie stops by her house in the rural hamlet of Yucaipa, California to chat about everything from creation myths surrounding pumpkins to the secret medicinal properties of pipitas, loving pumpkins (warts and all), and the big flimflam Anne needs the world to know about the pumpkin origin story. Also: who is Jack and why does he have a lantern?

Spine mysteries, face purses, limericks, flim flam, flags, divebombs, sibling rivalries, and more! The warm and wonderful pelicanologist Juita Martinez studies these glorious dinosaurs and shares what it’s like to hold a floofy baby sea bird, how these birds’ ecosystems are being restored, and what she loves about being in nature. Also: How much fish can they fit in there, anyway?

Mushrooms! Psilocybin! Humungous fungus! Black mold! Foraging! The incredibly charming and warm Dr. Tom Volk, world-renown mushroom expert, welcomes Alie into his office to dive deep into the underground world of fungal enthusiasts and touch on pathogens and medicinal therapies. Dr. Volk himself is a heart transplant patient, and shares how his life has been changed since a donor saved it. Also: Alie holds his old heart in her hands.

Classical Archaeologist and TV host Dr. Darius Arya joins us to dish about priceless garbage piles, pottery graveyards, tomb discoveries, what's under European cities, ancient spa days, ingenious construction methods, and unlikely laundry techniques. Plus, what did ancient romans use before toilet paper - and perhaps more importantly, WHY??

Fairy tales. Fables. Heroes’ journeys. Star Wars. Disney princesses. And yes, some ancient Greek and Roman myths. Professional mythologist and screenwriting consultant John Bucher spins some yarns and unravels some mysteries behind what makes a good story and why we need them. Also: why we are always re-booting old tales and what dreams have to do with mythology.

Ah, charismatic megafauna! Teeth, claws, fur, poop, hibernation, hiking, nature preserves, and living your childhood dreams with Alie’s longtime -ologist crush, Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant. The large carnivore ecologist, researcher and TV presenter tells us all about her field work, what it’s like to stuff a baby bear in your coat, carnivore microbiomes, how well carnivores can taste and smell their food (and yours), how smart the average bear really is and more. Also: Is there such thing as a vegetarian carnivore?! We love her.

Why were postcards invented and why do they still exist? Why do we fib about our vacations and say they’re better than they are? Alie stopped into the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan and talked to curator of 40+ years, Donna Braden, about her work with the postcard collections -- as well as her musings about how we create our stories about ourselves, why Americans love to hit the open road and what the biggest postcard you're allowed to mail is. Listen while riding off into the sunset or sipping tea on a porch and then send someone you love a giant postcard because you can.

This one’s got it all: teeny tiny cellular factories, mitochondrial relevancy, what big smelly vats of poop have to do with curing cancer, how many trips to the sun your unravelled DNA could make, and mysteries of the brain. Dr. Raven The Science Maven has a background in molecular biology and a Ph.D in Science Communication, which she puts to work while Alie generally does her best to suppress high pitched noises of excitement. Learn to appreciate your proteins and pick up some noodle analogies while you’re here. That’s so Maven!

Butterflies are… gross. Yes they are delightful and beautiful and part of any idyllic picnic-scape, but lepidopterologist, TV host and jungle explorer Phil Torres is here to gossip about how shamelessly disgusting our favorite bugs actually are. Learn their secrets, their feasting habits, how they turn themselves into goo and then into another creature, what flowers to plant to attract them, and what moths have to do with it all.

When were glasses invented? What happened back then if your horse stepped on them? How is the digital age changing adults’ and kids’ vision? The first half of this special episode about Optical Technology features the charmingly hilarious director of the Museum of the Eye in San Francisco, Jenny Benjamin. Then we bop over to Houston, Texas for the ultra-knowledgeable real-life optometrist, Dr. Nadia Sledge to chat about how to keep your vision healthy and your glasses intact. Also: how you would have survived in the past without spectacles.

Plumage! Dance battles! Possible holographic disco birds? Natural History Museum of LA ornithology curator Dr. Allison Shultz is a professional plumologist aka feather expert. We visit the museum’s collection of rare specimens and chat about everything from fossilized dinosaur feathers to peacock tails, the fanciest roosters, quill pens, pigments, flight feathers, the blackest black birds, and why birdwatching is like seeing tiny purple raccoons zoom overhead. Birds: like Pokemon Go but weirder.

What exactly is “fun?” How will you know when you’re having it? What’s a fun magnet? Catherine Price is an award-winning journalist and author who spent years researching the science of fun for her book “The Power of Fun: How to Feel Alive Again.” She let me lob many questions at her including: what’s the difference between happiness and laughter and fun, how can you have more of it, do animals have fun, and is it the same for everyone? It’s a fun one, I promise.