Moment of Um

American Public Media

Moment of Um is your daily answer to those questions that pop up out of nowhere and make you go… ummmmmmm. Brought to you by your friends at Brains On at APM Studios.

  • 4 minutes 8 seconds
    Does space affect an astronaut’s digestion?

    We chew our food, swallow it, and our stomach goes to work on digesting! Our bodies absorb the nutrients they need and then we poop out the rest. Here on Earth, the whole process takes somewhere between one to three days. But what about in space? Do astronauts digest food as quickly as they do on Earth? We reached out to space scientist and science communicator Maggie Aderin-Pocock to get the answer!


    Got a question you’re chewing  on? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we'll spit out the answer.

    15 May 2025, 8:00 am
  • 6 minutes 22 seconds
    Why are some dogs so small and some so large?

    Dogs come in so many different sizes, from the tiniest teacup terrier to the giant Great Dane. How did we get such a delightful assortment of these furry best buddies? We asked Brains On producer and archaeologist Anna Goldfield to help us find the answer.


    Got a question that’s been hounding you? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll make sure to bark up the right tree!

    14 May 2025, 8:00 am
  • 3 minutes 50 seconds
    How does the earth support heavy buildings?

    Did you know the tallest building in the world is a skyscraper in Dubai called the Burj Khalifa? It has 163 floors and weighs as much as 100,000 elephants! But how can the Earth even support such a huge building?! Why doesn’t the ground just collapse underneath it? We asked geologist Rónadh Cox to help us find the answer.


    Got a question that’s weighing heavily on your mind? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact and we’ll help build you up with a great answer!

    13 May 2025, 8:00 am
  • 6 minutes 31 seconds
    Why is the moon white and why does it have different shapes?

    Some planets have lots of moons. Others have none. Earth has just one moon, but it’s a really great one. It can glow bright and white and sometimes it’s shaped like a big round ball. Other times it’s skinny like the white tip of a fingernail. Makes you wonder, why does the moon look the way it does? We asked Preston Dyches from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to help us find the answer.


    Got a question orbiting around your brain? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll illuminate an answer.




    12 May 2025, 8:00 am
  • 8 minutes 5 seconds
    Did dinosaurs fart?

    You fart. I fart. Your dog farts. We all fart! Or do we…? Birds don’t fart, and they’re the closest living descendants of the dinosaurs. So, did dinosaurs fart? We asked paleontologist Kallie Moore to help us find the answer.


    Got a question rumbling around in your brain? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we'll find you an answer TOOT-suite!

    9 May 2025, 8:00 am
  • 6 minutes 56 seconds
    What was the very first dinosaur?

    Dinosaurs went extinct around 65 million years ago after an asteroid crashed into Earth. So we know when dinosaurs disappeared from the planet, but when did they appear? What was the first dinosaur, and how long ago did it live? We asked paleontologist Kallie Moore to help us find the answer.


    Got a question that’s got you full of veloci-RAPTURE?  Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll TRY(ceratops) to answer it!

    8 May 2025, 8:00 am
  • 5 minutes 4 seconds
    How do we know what dinosaurs sounded like?

    Happy Dinosaur Week! Every episode this week explores the ancient marvels that walked the Earth millions of years ago. Fossilized bones and footprints help scientists figure out what these prehistoric creatures looked like – but how do we know what they sounded like? We asked paleontologist and science journalist Shaena Montanari to help us find the answer.


    Got a question that makes you want to roar in frustration? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact and we’ll find a dino-mite answer.   

    7 May 2025, 8:00 am
  • 7 minutes 49 seconds
    How did Megalodon sharks go extinct?

    Megalodon was the biggest shark species that ever lived. The biggest ones were almost 60 feet long, which is longer than a school bus! These gigantic sharks went extinct millions of years ago, but why? We asked paleontologist Kallie Moore to help us find the answer.


    Got a question that you megalo-don’t know how to answer? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll hunt down an expert to explain!

    6 May 2025, 8:00 am
  • 6 minutes 13 seconds
    Did dinosaurs lay colorful eggs?

    Dinosaurs were reptiles, which means they laid eggs! But what did these eggs look like? Were they big? Small? Speckly? Colorful? We asked paleontologist Kallie Moore to help us find the answer.


    Got a question you just can’t egg-nore? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, and we’ll help unscramble the answer!

    5 May 2025, 8:00 am
  • 6 minutes 41 seconds
    How does an immortal jellyfish go back to being a baby?

    Way out in the deep blue sea, there is a remarkable creature called the immortal jellyfish. This buoyant little blob can deal with being hurt or stressed by going from its adult form back to a baby!! Then it grows up all over again. Holy moly. How does that work? We asked science writer Christina Couch to tell us all about it. 


    Got a question that’s a ten out of TENtacles? Send it to us at BrainsOn.org/contact, ‘cause we are READY for that jelly!

    2 May 2025, 8:00 am
  • 3 minutes 25 seconds
    Why can you hear the ocean in a seashell?

    The sounds of the ocean are so relaxing… the waves crashing on the sand, the gentle roar of the surf. And if you pick up a big seashell and put it to your ear, you can almost hear the ocean there too! One of our listeners wanted to know why, so we asked physicist Steve Errede to help us catch that wave. 


    Do you have a great question for Moment of Um? Surf on over to BrainsOn.org/contact and share it with us.

    1 May 2025, 8:00 am
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