Skip the commercials support star talk on patriarch to listen to every episode, Commercial free, welcome to start off your place in the universe where science and pop culture collide. Dartle begin right now. What have we got? A silvery? Did it all the time? I didn't know that I don't know the topic, you call came not even known a topic, the topic is poisons parasites and infectious disease The enthusiasm of you expect to bring my special

as for this believe it or not there, people in the world who are experts at this stuff he's a colleague and friend from the American Museum of Natural history, Gimme, a warm brook, Belle House Welcome for remarks, Mark curated and exhibit poison at the American Museum of Natural history, so Mummy Ludibria. We all. Can you do better, certainly not in the world the poison, but I will break to competing

that one is a bit of a father and a bit of a spy from Bob's mergers and archer like you tonight I will be playing the part of the parasite, I'm jewish oh by the way, just every night that we do this. We create a special drink just for that evening, themed by that and so came the bartender earlier Sheen Ike concocted a parasitic poison drink. That's what it's called special drink just for this evening. That did not exist.

Before tonight, but really found in the name of that one. You didn't even Gopher like Paris, a teenager that everything will be all right are vital, guess she's awesome is associated you'd make it from the deal so, ladies and gentlemen, Jessica well yeah, let's get this portal started so which is clarified so mark your curator and Professor Sakhalin instituted comparative genomics and the division of Invertebrate Zoology at the Americans, even natural history, his professional expertise. These leeches

In effect, his twitter handle is the leech guy. I am the leech guy and I can tell the near the grass ties and could never possibly get that name, because when we were in the field with no science. Now, yes, where we profound some of his work back when I was hosting nowhere there is now at an age when leech bond and they wouldn't they feed knew that none of the letters I felt unloved because they ve got out and reaches all known reaches army at all their efforts at that FED here and I swelled from. I need my ankle. That's what I did this for you. So that's really creepy. How do you get It's no. Is that what it says on your dinner you

I don't need data, have a charming and lovely wife who actually illustrated the book. I wrote that gets you I guess. There's a book is not about leeches we'll do at least book next. Ok, these are the stories about poison that we couldn't put in the exhibition, so sinister species with deadly consequences. Yes, indeed, it's not an allegory for our marriage. I just want to make clear in your like illustrated the book. Yes, I believe she's in the audience, aren't you Megan over. There you couldn't get a receipt. Apparently, ok, She said Lily S? Remark which start off? Isn't it true that almost anything will kill you given a higher dose? So how we do know what's poison, and what's just someone being stupid, was the most amount of regular blood. You can drink before his like do much. Did you

it blighter alcohol, I'm sorry! I didn't know that poisonous palazzo points. So funny concept? If you eat enough hammers they'll kill you right, I mean hammers. Poison is now so with the way we tend to think about it, to do with whether or not their screwing with our physiology so saw you all need salt or your nerves. Don't work, sodium chloride, olive your nerves, you sodium to get their staff done if you eat, like a cup of salt it'll, set that down that's poisonous water you drink too much dilutes everything. Is it really a poison? If you, you know it's, it's not really solid concept as to what is a poisoner. What is not, it has a lot to do with field has yet to define poison. Is that what you're telling me I I think I am in fact when we were working on these ideas in theirs. It yeah the internet. And between the concept of poison and toxin

in Vietnam, and so it was really a very english language, centred kind of some man thick argument, and we just give up on it. So auctions inventor, I mean how many please have extracted venom from a frog worth snake, put it in a bullet and there's a lot of this seven. You know your movies name them. So I go no. I would rather be cut off where very, very reserved sector, so boys ineffectual chemically. That's what you're saying It affects you. Physiologically invariably is chemically yes, and so, when I think of some poisons they're, just chemicals that you might find out there like arsenic right, yes,

die. Hydrogen oxide. You mean water, water. You killed you sweetie You mustn't women who do you think you're talking to No, it is actually the people think that things are poisonous. Go the rear, complicated done. As you know, the story about how does not know you terms, ray of water, that's a good story. God there is the result of you might want to leave. There's a kid who was sort of testing the girl ability of the public, or at least their fear of science and things that sound bad set up a petition in the street to ban die hydrogen oxide because, if inhaled, it creates suffocation, it is the biggest greedy and in acid rain. And you go down the list- equity sign a petition. I am

definitely sign. So this is something that we get at. The museum right is: what's it like? living on a planet with poison gas is ass, gotta be terrible, yeah, Kate, thereby way, so far. I love and that's why I had only vote, so it turns out you're living on one one of the most destructive elements? Dear body is oxygen. I mean all of the things that oxygen dustier dna is absolutely terrible. This is a point. This planet where surviving it's amazing. So gonna room with no oxygen and will be healthy lives. Letters of the desert? all we need a bag of hammers and get it over please. Collaborate on all the things that are soon does to my body, because I am a hypochondriac This is really a wonderful episode in Romania, but also of right there with suffice it to say ripping your dna airports, probably not a good thing. It is obviously takes its time well over when we compare

ripping your dna apart, eventually and dying within three minutes? now, there's only one thing: they will kill you in three minutes global duty. What, then, is not a bad joke by John Oh, oh, I don't know, I don't care, Well, what's the John Stewart good I'm, never, maybe a as if from big daddy you do you wanna, dig deeper into is a film about oxygen. If you don't have any oxygen at all, you will die sooner than whatever bad things the auction did. Your dna would kill you right now. Is that a fair statement to make? Probably

so the thing is is that what we're doing in our own bodies is ripping electrons off of things and giving them do oxygen in the end, that's how we get energy, but that's a pre caustic thing to be doing we got enzymes and other things in our body to make that happen, and we control all the free radicals and so on, but it doesn't mean that ox, isn't toxic, is wicked toxic. Its horribly talks, it there's a huge cottage industry on any oxidants. What do you think? That's a bow wherever they answer or even thought about the word, but I was buying. I say of all the animals out there. How many are poisons So poison involves a funny thing. So I like to say that there is no such thing as the poison a snake. There isn't a single snake. You can't eat you kid. Well now way he's looking at you MA am their boatloads of snakes and, of course, the eyes. These are the Australians in the audience.

Why is that so wisely and australian loved to say? Oh well, we ve got eighteen of the most venomous snakes on the planet and twelve of the most venomous spiders in eight of the most venomous fashion, yadda yadda, very fine, but You'Re- really veered idea of the druggist maybe you're right unlikely extremely unlikely to die of any of those things in Australia because Austria, as western medicine, like we, have an end, your problem, drive to place where you're going to die from a snake bite is where you can't get here at, like Burkina Faso from a snake? That's not nearly as venomous but you're just not going to find care. So you're cool with venomous animals out there, just as long as you have a snake bike it next to you. I want to get a sense of how dangerous it really is out there. I don't make sense

how long would it take that snake to kill you the one they just mention, I didn't actually stake that where you're somewhere and it takes a while and whilst also there was in Australia, the inland type and there's a guy named Kevin Button. Who was make no with their name, one by what I asked of any big market. So this guy Kevin Herbert Jollies. It turns out that most people die of snake by its probably are because of the ones are here. Thanks, you don't want study snakes college. I can help you with little study herpes. They study snakes, x x, have let her be means creeping, creeping, so so we're in the same place, a good guy cat in were in the

If these he found this inland type ban any grab it with his arm and wrapped around certain spitting all over many, he couldn't hold onto it. Some guy drives up in a pickup truck and sees this guy in distress at all on the cat so gets. A cabin explains. He's got this incredibly venomous like the most than was taken the planet, the guy who's driving the charter's like canoe, if you get out, but he takes them down to the museum, unfortunately, snake gets away bites Kevin burden. The point we have taken a museum, museum of natural history. These are great places where lovely things happen. I work at one. I thought the story, so it was bit by a place to stay and then taken do a museum. I got one it seems are great. That's where you get back then doing a little story, contraction of gate now?

follow the so, unfortunately, Kevin died. He was bidden because they territories aim is that of a hospital. What year was this was it was in fact These are good. That's you waited know the difference between hospital. So anyone who has been bitten by this, we venomous. Snake in Australia has given to thank, because that very snake was the source of the anti venom which we can create. If, if we have a lion, and he insisted that then will never be killed so that it could be used to create lifesaving. I do have a question: how did my aunt event em from eleven, so that's a great story, especially It concerns the origins of it, the United Fruit. Company, which you all know, is dole. I didn't know United Fruit company was don't did anybody else was I the only one? Is now don't now great somebody for months centre?

they're everywhere logical progression, nuclear forest. Plant banana trees, the cell bananas, the people United States got a lot of people who are working in those banana plantations and Oliver setting out a lot of road. It's in there that are in the bands that are not being sold to American. So the snakes come in start eating the roads. But then people are working in the place of a lot of snakes and people start dying, getting bitten so far to the United Fruit company created serpent terrorism, in places like a Honduras in all. Down in Brazil in order to find ways to create anti visions for the workers, so that if they got bit, you could say their life? I have a little for you.

I'm gonna to consider singing all of the ads on this shell there's just one and where to get out of hearing there go to patriarch arms last star talk and support Where does at the five dollar level or higher to listen? The star talk ad free, You can download all current episodes into your favorite podcast player and never we're here, another commercial on star talk ever again. You will definitely not have to hear me saying if you support us at Patria, dark coms. Last our talk, radio, I mean I'm just thinking I mean just saying

as well as the least biologist, my aunt em by the thing I've decided? The study is biodiversity scientists working on wages there there attracted to me, so I dont really go looking all that was clever, guess why and how does it definable? all that we can. Finally, just can't we're not gonna bring it, but when I can to lead, that's all, no doubt it bring us advance. You will be a long way What just happened to know something just you're, not the kind of each who studies the leeches that large inside of a hippopotamus rectum or you get what kind of elites guy. Are you our colleague guy realise so also in so yes, I, Yes, I am that least guy. You are away, but I notice that you just brought back call him leeches into the same sentence with the hip erect dumping, because this

our role Joe just so you know I'm the kind of hippopotamus I got an undergraduate for you. Have you got a forum for me here's. What I want to understand they're. All these. All these way, Is animals and plants poison you or or its dick venom anew at out. Dick do asked: do you have a? Could you give us an overview on what their poison envenom does to your by? Because there is a whole recitation in kill bill? with where, as as DOW Hendershot watches the guy as she's, coming through her her Google notes and path. So could you give us some whenever the flag, Mamma and black might very well. She was black. That was heard, of course, that there was a black mama snakes, actually typically with a snake, theirs

cocktail tail? Similarly, like your cocktail, lots of poisons in things like snake victims and in plants and so forth. Very rarely will you find any animal that has only one or plan when I said that I love plants is a camera and away they are defending their. Cells with something nicotine caffeine, thier bromine in cocoa. All of these things are actually insecticides that learning meaning insects body like caffeine plants, the demanding a lighter and a hammock and go I need more or that our self defense right away? Ok, so so that the ingredients that just insects we find other uses for them, Absolutely gentlemen: vanilla all of those things are insecticides, their delicious which is your job and insects, which means you're, not an insect yeah. That's just sell that

The test evidence will give someone vanilla unabated, unlike not an insect, would you like to get dinner sometime so aren't so I get so so this fascinating to me that there is a mere chemicals out there that the plant uses to protect itself it doesn't work when humans come in because we, the recreational drugs for us right well, It sometimes does work in the sense that things in the Belladonna family, for example, about Madonna, that's a famous sure- had an actor we get knights of it only a porn stars

which is flying. Arrangements were basically plans ground up and smeared on the skin. Now that it's a very bad idea to do this, that we have this thing that we call a therapeutic index which is the difference between the effective dose and the lethal dose, and you really want those to be very very very far apart, because if the effective those is very close to the lethal those, then you could overdose easily and that's death. Dismay sure you with us not that one could not only before a lot of it there it's why people warn you about Heroin Herald a very good example and by the way, yes, well, I give an example: By the way you act immediately, what do you mean mushrooms, yeah suicide,

I confirm what I just wanna wrap up or in I just learn this year. I learn. Please confirm for me that humans are mushrooms are more genetically alike than either humans are mushrooms are to green plants, are clearly, of course, they're sperm is this: Well, I didn't get that combating get that in the similarity whip. He was as the others. Their sperm is the same. You'd want to go. There did you No it I was a place to go and what it sperm were part of it. What are you sure another eight open following nothing other than that just science has worked, so you got a bail out of this one. Ok, maybe related you're talking about spur, ok they're, not exactly the same, but they looked the same so mushrooms. Let's go back to suicide and I think we're say please, ok, just for that. Guy XO!

which of you three have ever done now. Am I can ask you that unless you want to answer the altogether, just what three people like when I was nineteen, so some asylum, the effective doves, the dose to get whatever The fact that you might possibly wine is measured in Pham toe Grams, now you're the astrophysicist, how many zeros that's a man prefix of a very small number right so facto, so we have arrow centre that might be a tender, the minus fifteen, tell them, I swear, I fourteen zero in them is something no mice, twelve so being out like NATO one, which to answers right now you ve to figure out. Felt that you want a smiley face, or do you want the rainbow? Please don't drawn myself so is measured in forward just just to be clear, so so now

as in a nanotechnology? That's one billions thing. I think Santos, like a mill I think it's yet. No thousands of that gets you have no firm to pick up. Thank you. All right isn't already go empty arrow and we agree that it's a very small number. I was asked what I'm good ever there's nobody says: don't go to so much so fair appeared, the guy are appearing. Riddick, Garbutt, again x, the ratio of what is effective for what you want and what is lethal. The lethal dose of magic mushrooms is fifteen pounds, will. We have to eat fifty kid you either. I was closed, I feel as if I was like Now it is these hounds would be in. It's a mound much.

Firstly ere? I play your walk in front of a bus before that and So if any, if your list there's a So we're just this week this this message he's not endorsed by the American Museum of Natural history. Just by those who were so and aware in the back, I get my mushrooms so some of these things people do recreational, but other things we come next to and smuggle with. Knowing it'll kill us like in Japan have the perfect what they call it, that figure FU people eat tat and then I'll kill you yet they eat. It sure why I don't know it's tasteless, a real its turn. Em look! Ok, so I think that, because of the

the risk of dying like kabuki actor. What was his name remember, there is a cubic kabuki. Accurate might have had my total recall applicability actors. Is I brought some poison? Would you like some that's a book? whereas the poison inside it it's a rosy allowing those things when you bought in a book. It's really the away to hide poise, reliable our weaknesses, the basic points, a sorry! That's none about you really by poison. You walk around with this, but one of them salt and peppers are those that here, if you, if you will allow me to clarify this, for everyone really quickly, birds, ennoble was fooled and early on security. The Bell House was built entirely. So this couple things Would you pass on to the gentlemen on your right carefully at our

passing around poisons among the passing cinnamon bark. Do I have to wash my hands veto like the smell, a sermon, so when I arrived As we said earlier, a lot of things need all that now quickly and it'll be over soon usually, why you licking something of a box or poisoned poison. Are you angry words of all? You will pay Second of all, it tastes like cinnamon. Thirdly, you didn't trust me here, some curare. What's that look. It is. I want to tell you what really, when you said, cinnamon bark that I'd start being scared, but when you say the other word? I am a little scared, but it does it does razor Your point. Is a plant scant runaways other producing things to protect themselves, from insects or or or herb of oars, and we being thoughtful thinking human beings most the time to figure out a leverage leasing for our benefit, sometimes, for example, for hunting, sometimes for medical purposes,

seeing as in tipps of arrows, that would sure yeah there's a there's, a bug, shouldn't call it by its a beetle larva bug. The sign in South Africa would grind up and put on arrows in order to take down big mammals, it turns out that whole myth ology of elephants chewing under rule of fruit and getting high and getting a little bit drunk, there's not enough out oh Marilla, fruit, make them director getting a high off at the talks in from the Beatles in the Marilla tree. Which is the same one, the somber using for like killing things because of elephants and began to eleven. Can get drunk off of beet. Beetles penal juice reappear say that three times what's in here out all number one cause of poisoning in the world now just to clarify what you're saying is what we call poison is in some sense of biologically arbitrary. Could just the thing that ok

at a particular dose, but other doses could be just fine. We recreational and we'll have fun and medicinal and all the rest. So for everything we just we measure weary kills us. Then we call point. So, I meant to say, I'm gonna pull anneal digress Thyssen on you, ADA! It's not it's not biologically arbitrary. It's actually biologically Mary We can actually measure, though, how did I really mean it mean arbiter? I meant it was you don't know in advance, Do you have something is poisoned until it kills you, then you back all format if you do not have any say recreation now, it's actually worse than that, so The way this is measured whose elder fifty lethal those city of what that means is that you get at least a hundred things. They ve killed, fifty of them with some those men. You know what that is so yeah yeah, it's bad say that again, but Clicker, no elderly, fifty lethal. Those fifty you actually at ever like a hundred mice and at what those two half of them die.

Nice. Why is nice that we don't do it with comedians? We do with yeah it's imagine be illegal. My guess is usually takes a higher dose for comedians yeah, wrap this segment limit. So just for the rapid tell us what your favorite poisonous and you can buy whatever metric you choose your fate. Could you the man whose the poison man, so you can tell us all? What's your favorite poison, psych ass? document. It's a poison acts on neurons, but was amazing about it as it does not affect your heart. So you get to stay alive, I gotta say it's probably to try to tax and which is the poison in the paper fish that you were dogma, its poison, axon neurons, but was amazing about it as it does not affect your heart, so you get to stay alive as your dying.

Grilled toward its total. Totally it hurt, or is it just upsetting- Actually, you don't feel much pain, You don't feel they are lying. Your brains, work in your hearts, working in your zombie find whelps. That's your brain is working differently than right, Well, I don't know what you're saying: how do you know what you have? You have an awareness, yes of your death and there's nothing. You can do about it. Well, Was it like the diver, you boys? What about you? You haven't? We are not kiss at a dragon. Did you see me of awareness of all the people my miss seven hundred thousand green one that is currently it is a classic with the bid positively french, it's ok, you ever we're in a small, the people saving your life because you asked see them near to hear them whenever, but to troll toxins kind

interesting, because we we know from puffer fish. We know it from blue ringed, octopus peanut from the rough skinned Newt in Oregon. And we only know that, because some guy decide to eat his own pet debar people's shouldn't eat their pats. It's a bad idea because their problem, toxic. That's why you shouldn't each year path, because it? we talk. Ok, that's today. Every animal out their tasks.

Parasite that just love sucking its body fluid. But given that most of the animals out there are parasites, because every animal there's not a parasite has about five two hundred pairs. Autism is the most successful the strategy for animals all over the place, we more than sixty percent of all animals are parasites. What are we parasite right. Ok, going to the Meda repass what you say: if it's easier evolution airily speaking, to figure out how to live, off the nutrients, derive from the fluids of another creature than to get a job here, that's what you're saying part of the problem is that we consider things like tapeworms to be parasites

Consider malaria, considered tapeworm city parasites that we now real judges. We consider tapeworm through parasites, polarity parasites, and they don't physiologically. Do the same thing. We call them parasites that this just a semantic argument about what is a parasite in certain respects. There's there's a test. Written by a friend of mine, John John Genova Junior, and if you like, in the glossary under no really value made up that negative, say definitely struggle through it John John Georgia, Jeremy Junior last name Junior, if they knew Junior Junior You know, he's gonna, listen to this, he's gonna do is now put

I am already you have no friends by that I mean I'm ok, so the definition of parasite is the results that are a parasite challenges than if you go to the glacier under parasol. Just as is its it's, a quaint old fool who sits on ones do a while looking at another, but seriously, though this is our great, but how many parasites to humans we armor can already lad. What do I have? What parasites do we have it, and what do you want? None of them paradise on a right now, we're sure she's, goddammit, explicable, Erin, probably up and I live rang, and I can I grant you can write Aconite, which one of these classes of sore organisms, which shows up a lot like when we read about worms like me. The toads and things so how many of them are worms in our body

How many worms do you Actually now, ok, you just go at New York? Yes, yes, sure Can you mean there's like a lot like Boston Saigu? You don't hear about that. They have other. Bridge were, and I was there. Anybody out there who had an energy, but when they were a kid, raise your hand, Kate. You all of you are lying, raise your hand so pin worms, pin What about now, like right now is apparent arms are very common nematode in that, even in the developed world, the females lay their eggs in the in your butt,

intense itching, it's actually adapted for the organism because because, as it, scratch and that lost the variable. Wait eggs into the inner and everyone gets infected. Incredibly wonderful way to transmit thing, don't give you all gaudy it look, it was the third previous nerves. A person is an island of themselves. You're never alone, if your paracetamol, but how do I have like there you're real ten thousand there are ten thousand Sites are there like eighty five, its argument, a number of individual parasites or species yeah speak so were were host. To somewhere in the hundreds, the low thousand Gunnar range that are now. These are just thing. That are strictly things are only in humans are not in any other. Animal join.

I would like to share my word with tat. No, this is great really so these are living organism where their universe and we are either they thrive within us. Only I, unless they're getting between us, then they're kind of the kind of nor do we need them to? Please say: yes, that's a good! Oh yeah, yeah, great question now, maybe ooh, cleaner air and give us moustaches swear, yeah the words how many do we have a symbiosis, symbiotic relationship with the good is the word: symbiosis just means living together, and that includes Paris, it ism so you're thinking of command socialism or You jack what I meant testing you on that one! Yes, so so how many tonight lashing yea? The question was: how many things live, what we used to call symbiotic, but I forget the new word

on on me little screw up kindest thing, something. That's like hey. Thank God. It's there is little lead all your right. So what will it do? You know I do that. I don't know, but you get it the extra rights that you will not he torso. We do know that your immune response is educated by some of the things you might get when you're young, including parasites, weed You understand that some allergic, related things, some asthma, not all asthma- is correlated with environments where you dont get exposed to Paris, when you're younger. We also know that that, for some people with things like crowns and a few other remain illogically related disease, you gotta, give them parasites and it makes them better. It makes the disease it makes you better. What makes you want Milman, logs groans, it makes you reopen. It makes you feel better. So when you're young,

closure to some classes are parasites, help out your immune system for later so that you become stronger, we think more resistant. We think. Ok, it's hard to do. Controlled studies on humans, yeah yeah completely there, the other big, basement. Culpable come up malaria now we're screwed. How many people die? I mean what's up with that. I'll fix that malaria is theoretically erratic bow, because only humans get a bore. A ball is light years. Just forget it. You cannot get a bullock as its in its in all the bushmeat the people eat and then get the bullet by eating bushmeat. So don't push me or you'll, get a bullet and kill. Hundreds of me,

What what is exactly bushmeat. I find it very like a low grade. I mean what do you mean like a low grade ground beef gather. Some of your major change? Will you You can eradicate Ebola like night eradicate we're like incidentals legates in possums in the forest, it sucks. We now know, what's in fruit, that's for bats. Do you think we would have to vaccinate flute bats as well as ourselves. In order to get rid of Ebola, you would have to either eat all the footpath or eat all humans and I'll get it. You would not eat all the food bats, murder them right I saw a malaria. Malaria is different, whereas the malaria species that, in fact us only in fact I sense a theoretically- we can give river, but we had two hundred million people who die. That's too so to undermine people big number rainbow it yes

That'd be rate. There has to be a time you did in there. So you Diana two hundred it like her habit, this seven forty, seven jack crashing every minute and a half and that's all full of children, that's malaria! Ok comedians work with areas to get them to be teenage so marked. So so, if an actual seven forty seven asked every ninety seconds then one day ever no one would travel and they ground all your for the rest of the EU. First right! Yet this is going on with malaria

and what are we doing about whether a lot of people doing a lot of things? In fact? What's interesting, and can you get it from a mosquito? get it from other human and its transmitted by a mosquito. So was interesting as it exists in places where people are infected and then other people get infected. Some mosquitoes are not the cause they're the vector. So what does that mean? Meaning you get it from a person. Animal skitter or the mosquito will bring it from one person to another. But if you, if you, if you actually kids like a terrible train or flying or taking the train, so you you catch malaria from another person, because the mosquito got it from the other person and brought it to U absolute, woe Ok, so so malaria, we associate with the tropics by the way there cute. You must know this back at the turn of the previous century, there's a big

David on malaria. Mosquitoes brought about by all the effort to make the Panama canal. We have the huge model, that's out of things and display of this mosquitoes like big here's. A funny thing is a hint in our inner museum. We ve got a mosquito and display that's cause, it's this big. So let's get malaria mosquito. It's a male and the males don't feed on blood. Idiots I knew that is the aim was wrong. Ok, so I never knew so. I didn't know that. So let us not, as does the daily show, having the planet go in the wrong Oh my god, am I right only words. There are nobody, show your sites view, but both can be corrected with

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