Sweet! Salty! Umami? What’s up with MSG? Why do you like your coffee black? Come down to flavortown and let’s talk tongues. Gustologist Dr. Gary Beauchamp is a chemosensory scientist and an expert in taste. We chat about tastebud flim-flam, celebrity grade hot wings, MSG research, excitotoxins, weaning off sugar, the worst soup on the market, what countries ... Show More
Sep 2
Deep Sea Microbiology (UNSEEN OCEAN CRITTERS) with Peter Girguis
Creatures in inky trenches. Exploring the sea floor. Mud medicine. Tube worms. Harvard professor and Deep Sea Microbiology legend Dr. Peter Girguis tells tales of ocean expeditions and answers questions about extremophiles, life on other planets, Atlantis, shark encounters, metha ... Show More
1h 24m
Jun 2025
The Chemistry of Food & Taste | Dr. Harold McGee
Dr. Harold McGee, PhD, is a renowned author on the topics of food chemistry and culinary science. He explains how cooking methods, types of cookware and temperature can be used to transform food and drink flavors and presents simple but powerful ways to improve nutrient availabil ... Show More
2h 13m
Jul 2019
Why We Like the Foods We Like (SOP86)
Why do some people scarf down anchovies by the pound while others recoil at the thought of a tuna fish sandwich? Why do the textures of certain foods, like mushrooms, turn people off? Not only is taste a biologically complex experience, it is quite psychological. Our guest is psy ... Show More
53m 17s
Jan 2025
Ep89 "Why do you love some flavors and not others?"
Why do you like the taste of things that your friend doesn't? Why do kids not like coffee but adults do? What does any of this have to do with smelling people’s armpits, whether women really synchronize their menstruation, whether your culture eats a lot of spicy foods, and how a ... Show More
35m 42s