Learn why you wake up hungry after overeating. Then, Travel Channel’s “Lost Secrets” host and historian Justin Jampol discusses what state gifts and other artifacts can tell us about the past. You’ll also learn why birds have hollow bones — and it’s not to make them lighter. Plus: hosts Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer discuss a story about why birds have hollow bones — and it’s not to make them lighter. Additional resources from historian and “Lost Secrets” host Justin Jampol: “Lost Secrets” official website — https://www.travelchannel.com/shows/lost-secrets Like Travel Channel on Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/TravelChannel/ Follow @TravelChannel on Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/travelchannel/ Follow @TravelChannel on Twitter — https://twitter.com/travelchannel Follow Justin Jampol on Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/justinjampol/ The Wende Museum official website — https://www.wendemuseum.org/ Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to learn something new every day withCody Gough andAshley Hamer. Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers.
Learn why you wake up hungry after overeating. Then, Travel Channel’s “Lost Secrets” host and historian Justin Jampol discusses what state gifts and other artifacts can tell us about the past. You’ll also learn why birds have hollow bones — and it’s not to make them lighter. Plus: hosts Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer discuss a story about why birds have hollow bones — and it’s not to make them lighter.
Additional resources from historian and “Lost Secrets” host Justin Jampol:
Follow Curiosity Daily on your favorite podcast app to learn something new every day with Cody Gough and Ashley Hamer. Still curious? Get exclusive science shows, nature documentaries, and more real-life entertainment on discovery+! Go to https://discoveryplus.com/curiosity to start your 7-day free trial. discovery+ is currently only available for US subscribers.
Find episode transcript here: https://curiosity-daily-4e53644e.simplecast.com/episodes/historys-extravagant-gifts-w-justin-jampol-why-you-wake-up-hungry-after-overeating-and-why-birds-have-hollow-bones
CODY: Hi! We’re here from curiosity-dot-com to help you get smarter in just a few minutes. I’m Cody Gough.
ASHLEY: And I’m Ashley Hamer. Today, you’ll learn why you wake up hungry after overeating. Then, historian Justin Jampol will tell us about what state gifts and other artifacts can tell us about the past. You’ll also learn why birds have hollow bones — and it’s not to make them lighter.
CODY: Let’s satisfy some curiosity.
Listener question — Why do I wake up hungry after overeating? (Ashley)
ASHLEY: It’s the day after Thanksgiving, and we thought that instead of a listener question, we’d tackle the science behind something many Americans probably experienced this morning. Tell me if this sounds familiar: you ate a ton of food last night, yet you woke up hungrier than normal. What’s the deal with that? Well, it turns out that there’s science to it — and a way to avoid it when your next big holiday meal comes around.
So after you eat any meal, your blood sugar, or blood glucose, rises. In response, your pancreas doses your bloodstream with insulin, which travels around to your cells and tells them to let that glucose in. The cells either convert that glucose to energy, or store it to (hopefully) use it later. When you consume a whole lot of sugar and starch, like in the form of mashed potatoes, stuffing, rolls, and pie, your glucose levels spike, leading to an emergency response from your pancreas. It floods your bloodstream with insulin, forcing all that sugar into your cells and dropping your glucose levels in what’s infamously known as a sugar crash.
Here’s the thing. All of this is more pronounced at night. Research suggests that your blood glucose is naturally higher after an evening meal than a morning meal, and that level also fluctuates a lot while you sleep — which means your insulin levels fluctuate a lot, too. So if you flood your system with sugar before bed, you’re likely to have one mother of a sugar crash by morning. Combine that low blood glucose with dehydration from too much salt and alcohol, and it’s no wonder you wake up ready to go for round two.
It’s too late to stave off the morning munchies this time around, but there are more holidays around the corner, so here are a few tips for next time. First, try to go heavier on the protein and lighter on the carbs at dinner. Protein has a less pronounced effect on blood glucose, and tends to make you feel fuller, faster. Second, try going for a 15-minute walk 15 minutes after dinner. Studies suggest that light to moderate exercise after a meal can help level out blood sugar levels. Then, you can go to sleep feeling good — and wake up feeling normal. Good luck!
Justin Jampol #2 — Artifacts and gifts from history [2:18] (Cody)
What can tell us more about the past: an extravagant weapon gifted to a world leader, or a menu from a mom-and-pop restaurant? You might be surprised to learn that both can tell us a lot, and that’s according to historian Justin Jampol. He’s the host of Travel Channel’s new show “Lost Secrets,” which you might remember from our last conversation with him. And it turns out Justin is also the founder and executive director of The Wende Museum of the Cold War, which is an art museum, historical archive, and educational institution in Culver City, California. Here’s what he told us about what the artifacts in museums like his tell us about history.
[CLIP 2:18]
So looking at a jewel-encrusted sword doesn’t just show us an oddity from history; it actually tells us a story about how diplomacy used to work. History rules. Again, Justin Jampol is the founder and executive director of the Wende Museum in Culver City, California. Stop by if you’re in the area! [Ashley did!] And you can catch Justin on “Lost Secrets,” the new series on Travel Channel, where Justin journeys around the world unearthing objects and revealing new truths about our history. “Lost Secrets” airs Sundays at 11 p.m. Eastern, only on Travel Channel.
[MOVA GLOBES]
ASHLEY: Today’s episode is sponsored by Mova Globes: rotating globes powered by light.
CODY: Mova Globes don’t use any batteries or messy cords; instead, hidden magnets provide movement. These globes turn on their own when they’re exposed to ambient light, using a technology that’s the first of its kind!
ASHLEY: There are 40 different designs of Mova Globes, including world maps, outer space, and even famous works of art. No matter which design you choose, Mova Globes are a great conversation starter for your home or your desk at the office.
CODY: Mova Globes like this are a great gift for the person who has everything — even a ruby-encrusted sword. And if you love history as much as Justin Jampol and I do, then you should check out their antique terrestrial map design. It’s a vintage map from 1790 that shows the three voyages of Captain James Cook, and has a red ecliptic line to show the sun’s position each day of the year. There’s no Antarctica, though — because James Cook didn’t believe it existed!
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CODY: This is their biggest deal of the year. So please visit Mova Globes, M-O-V-A-globes, dot-com-slash-curiosity and use coupon code CURIOSITY, that’s C-U-R-I-O-S-I-T-Y, for 15 percent off your purchase, PLUS free shipping.
ASHLEY: One more time, that’s Mova-globes-dot-com-slash-curiosity, code CURIOSITY.
Why Do Birds Have Hollow Bones? It's Not to Make Them Lighter — https://curiosity.im/2ql9qgC (from 11/30 — Freelancer due 11/14) (Ashley)
Ask any elementary school student why birds have hollow bones and they'll have an easy answer for you: It's to help them fly! Gold star, kid. But contrary to popular belief, it's not because it makes them lighter. Birds have hollow bones because they need so much oxygen to fly, their lungs actually extend into their bones!
In fact, those hollow bones don't make birds any lighter at all. Bird skeletons don't weigh any less than mammal skeletons of the same size. After all, bones that are hollow and thin are also more fragile, so they'd need to be made of much denser material to keep from breaking all the time.
That density also helps with flying. According to researcher Elizabeth Dumont, increased bone density means increased bone stiffness and strength, which improves flying performance. We use the same strategy when we design man-made airframes: as in, we maximize stiffness and strength relative to weight.
It's because birds need so much oxygen to fly that their lungs actually extend into their bones.
Bird bones aren't even just hollow — they're pneumatized. That is, they're full of spaces for air. (You have some pneumatized bones, too, mostly around your sinuses). As a baby bird grows, the air sacs that make up its lungs kind of "invade" its bones, and that forms a bunch of tiny hollows. The air sacs stay attached to these hollows for a bird's life. And the forward-and-backward arrangement of those air sacs helps give birds a little-known superpower: They can take in oxygen while both inhaling and exhaling. (We'd love to see them play the saxophone). So the next time someone says birds have hollow bones to help them fly, you can tell them they're right — but you'll know the real reason why.
45
CODY: Before we recap what we learned today, here’s a sneak peek at what you can catch this weekend on curiosity-dot-com.
ASHLEY: This weekend, you’ll learn about why blue light isn’t damaging your eyesight;
The beautiful mosaic that NASA’s new telescope captured of the southern sky;
Why sound carries farther in cold weather;
How to break a bad habit;
And more! Okay, so now, let’s recap what we learned today.
[ad lib optional]
CODY: Today’s stories were written by Ashley Hamer, who’s the managing editor for Curiosity.com.
ASHLEY: Scriptwriting was by Cody Gough and Sonja Hodgen. Curiosity Daily is produced and edited by Cody Gough.
CODY: Have a great weekend, and join us again Monday to learn something new in just a few minutes.
ASHLEY: And until then, stay curious!