
Dr Karl Podcast
Join Dr Karl Kruszelnicki, Lucy Smith and their scientific guests, with a bunch of curious triple j listeners for a weekly injection of science, myth-bashing and answers!
Latest episodes

Feb 8, 2024 • 38min
Synthetic meat, collagen and sperm races
Can drinking apple cider vinegar improve gut health? Is it okay to put chicken in the fridge while it’s still hot? And how does the carnivore diet affect the body?Dr Karl and special guest, Professor Clare Collins, answers these questions and more on triple j Mornings with Lucy Smith.

Feb 1, 2024 • 39min
Healing heat, barefoot skiing and dominant hands
In this podcast, the hosts discuss topics such as feeling cold after exercise or orgasm, the effects of leaded fuel on the brain, the healing effects of heat therapy, understanding vision problems, using newspaper for cleaning, and measuring rainwater in a bucket.

Jan 25, 2024 • 37min
Fizzy poop, cold orgasms and hand drying hacks
How does a shark smell blood in water? Does jet lag feel worse when travelling east to west? Should we be worried about the bacteria between our toes? Dr Karl answers these questions and more on triple j Mornings with Lucy Smith.

Jan 18, 2024 • 40min
Lightening balls, parallel galaxies and soda water
Explore topics such as lightning striking water, binary star systems, nystagmus, using ocean water to cool the earth, the possibility of other Milky Way galaxies, and the effects of gravity on non-magnetic objects.

Jan 11, 2024 • 38min
Min Min lights, wet swimmers and antibiotics
Does sex impact sporting performance? What is antibiotic resistance? Should we give plastic trees the axe?Dr Karl answers these questions and more on triple j Mornings with Lucy Smith.

Dec 14, 2023 • 38min
Fish gills, earwax and bio-luminescent algae
How do we remove earwax safely? Why is it cold at the peak of a mountain if hot air rises? Why don't scars tan?Bianca Nogrady answers these questions and more on triple j Mornings with Lucy Smith.

Dec 7, 2023 • 38min
Sticky skin, thunderstorms and funnel-web spiders
Can thunder hurt you? Why is my skin sticky? Why do I have the exact same dream every night?Dr Karl answers these questions and more, on triple j Mornings with Lucy Smith.

Nov 30, 2023 • 42min
Synesthesia, goosebumps and music taste
Why do certain tracks make us cry?How can a song take you back to a specific moment in time?What influences your music taste?Dr Karl & Dr Solange Glasser, Senior Lecturer in Music Psychology at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, answer these questions and more on triple j Mornings with Lucy Smith.

Nov 23, 2023 • 43min
Cortisol, histamine and toe nails
If I hold my nose when i sneeze, will my eyes pop out? Why can't we grow arms and legs back? Why do we cry?Dr Karl answers these questions and more, on triple j Mornings with Lucy Smith & Dr Theresa Larkin, Associate Professor at the University of Wollongong.

Nov 16, 2023 • 40min
Christmas Beetles, Venus and farts
Discover why Christmas beetles are missing, the importance of preserving insects for the ecosystem, the relationship between gold rings and stars in eyes, the impact of Christmas beetles on grasslands, the temperature difference between Venus, Earth, and Mars, and the fascinating process of cell renewal and tattoo maintenance.