蜜芽传媒

How big can animals really get before they collapse under their own weight or run out of snacks? Could a 12-foot comedian survive their first punchline without snapping in half? Listener Andrew sends Hannah and Dara on a deep dive into the science of supersized species.

With evolutionary biologists Ben Garrod and Tori Herridge as their guides, they explore the quirky rules of scaling: why giant bones need air pockets, how pressure stockings aren鈥檛 just stylish but essential, and why massive creatures have to choose between inefficient chewing or letting dinner ferment in their cavernous stomachs.

Discover why scaling up a mouse would turn it into a blood-boiling disaster and learn the curious logic behind whether the meat bear should eat the two meat dogs, or vice versa (it鈥檚 a maths thing鈥�you鈥檒l have to listen). Oh, and here鈥檚 the weird constant: whether you鈥檙e a mouse or an elephant, everyone takes roughly the same time to pee!

Join Hannah and Dara for a colossal romp through the wild world of ancient giants and the gross super blobs of the (possible) future.

Contributors:

Tori Herridge - Senior Lecturer in evolutionary biology at the University of Sheffield
Ben Garrod - Professor of Evolutionary Biology and Science Engagement at the University of East Anglia
Martin Sander - Professor of Palaeontology at the University of Bonn

Producer: Ilan Goodman
Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem
A 蜜芽传媒 Studios Audio Production