How do flowers get their smells?

Summary

Podcast Summary: Brains On! – "How Do Flowers Get Their Smells?"

Episode Date: March 17, 2026
Host: Molly Bloom
Kid Co-Host: Isla (Melbourne, Australia)
Expert Guest: Dr. Kelsey Byers (Flower Smell Researcher, John Innes Centre, UK)

Main Theme

This episode explores the fascinating science behind flowers’ smells: How do flowers make their scents? Why do they have scents at all? What roles do these smells play in nature, especially in attracting (or repelling) different pollinators?

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Basics of Flower Function and Reproduction

• Flowers’ Primary Role:
  • Flowers are essential for plant reproduction; they make seeds to grow new plants ([05:18]).
  • Seed-making requires pollination—usually the transfer of pollen (like a key) from one flower to the stigma (the lock) of another flower of the same kind ([05:45]).
• Pollinators’ Importance:
  • Most pollination is achieved by animals ("pollinators") such as bees, flies, butterflies, bats, birds, and even small mammals ([07:04]).
  • Flowers have evolved to attract these pollinators with color, shape, and especially scent.

2. The Chemistry of Flower Smells

• What Is “Smell”?
  • “Smell is basically little bits of chemicals floating around in the atmosphere around us.”
    — Dr. Kelsey Byers ([07:46])
  • Flowers primarily release these chemicals from their petals, though leaves and nectar can also contribute ([08:29]).
• Mystery in Science:
  • Scientists don’t fully understand how most flowers release these scent chemicals—whether it’s tiny openings or evaporation ([08:45]).
  • “Maybe one of you listening will figure it out.” — Molly Bloom ([08:59])

3. Diversity and Complexity of Flower Scents

• Simple vs. Complex Scents:
  • Some flowers (like roses) produce extremely complex mixtures:
    “Roses can make up to 200 different smell chemicals in their smell. And we call that a bouquet.”
    — Dr. Kelsey Byers ([09:09])
• Brain Perception:
  • The human brain processes these mixtures as unique scent “pictures,” not as individual chemicals ([09:50]).

4. The Purpose Behind Different Flower Scents

• Targeting Different Pollinators:

  • Different flowers create different scent profiles to attract specific pollinator species ([12:34]).
  • “If you want to attract a honeybee… you would smell like something that smells good to a honeybee; but to attract a moth, you’d want to smell good to moths.”
    — Dr. Kelsey Byers ([12:54])
  • Some flowers, like orchids, specifically target rare pollinators by mimicking scents only they find appealing ([13:05]).

• Smart Adaptation:

  • After being pollinated, some flowers change their scent to repel pollinators, helping ensure unpollinated flowers get visited ([13:30]).
  • “If you’ve already got enough pollen to make seeds, there’s no point in having an insect visit you anymore from the plant’s point of view.” – Dr. Kelsey Byers ([13:53])
  • “Some flowers even start smelling bad to pollinators after being pollinated.” – Molly Bloom ([14:01])

5. Not All Flower Smells Are Pleasant – The Case of the Corpse Flower

• Unique Stinky Flowers:
  • Some, like the corpse flower (Titum arum), use truly terrible smells (rotting meat, cheese, garlic) to attract flies and beetles who love such odors ([17:42]).
  • “I smell like rotting flesh, limburger cheese, garlic – all the dankest stinks.”
    — Corpse Flower Character ([18:42])
• Pollination Strategies:
  • The corpse flower blooms for only a short time and must attract as many pollinators as possible ([19:28]).
  • It even heats up to help waft out its scent and mimic a dead animal ([19:59]).
  • “My smell can travel around three miles.” – Corpse Flower ([19:45])
  • This adaptation ensures pollination in a brief blooming window.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Flowers are how these plants make more of themselves.”
  — Isla ([05:28])

• “Noses exist for lots of reasons. They help us breathe. Mine hold up my glasses…I like to try and wiggle mine.”
  — Molly Bloom and Isla, having fun with the sense of smell ([00:59]-[01:07])

• “Roses are actually one of the most complex smell mixtures we know of.”
  — Dr. Kelsey Byers ([01:14], repeated at [09:09] for emphasis)

• On Different Smells for Different Pollinators:
  “So flowers make different smells to attract different pollinators. Cool stuff.”
  — Isla ([13:18])

• On Flower Trickery:
  “There’s even some flowers that will start smelling bad to pollinators after they’ve been pollinated.”
  — Molly Bloom ([13:53])

• The Corpse Flower's Purpose:
  “It’s how I attract the right pollinators. Some flowers like to attract regular old pollinators, like butterflies or birds. But I specialize in attracting beetles and flies that like rotting meat.”
  — Corpse Flower ([19:00])

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Timeline of Important Segments

• [03:07] Listener Questions: Kids from around the US ask: “How do flowers make their smell?”
• [05:18] Flower Reproduction & Pollination: How pollination works, role of pollinators.
• [07:46] Chemical Nature of Smell: Dr. Byers explains smells as airborne chemicals.
• [09:09] Roses & Complexity: Roses possess up to 200 different chemical scent components.
• [12:34] Why Flowers Have Different Scents: Evolutionary targeting of specific pollinators.
• [13:30] Post-Pollination Smell Changes: How flowers may repel pollinators after pollination.
• [17:42] The “Stink Force” & Corpse Flower: Fun segment with characters, teaching about flowers that use unpleasant scents.
• [19:45] Corpse Flower Adaptations: Smell range, heating up, evolutionary rationale.

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Additional Fun & Engagement

• Mystery Sound Segment:
  • A recurring interactive game where listeners try to guess a sound ([10:05], answer at [22:29]).
• Science Cheer:
  • Isla invents a science chant: “We like science, yes we do! We like science, how about you?” ([11:24])
• Creative Mailbag:
  • Kids share fun ideas for the show’s imaginary headquarters ([14:55]).

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Episode Wrap-Up – Main Takeaways

• Flower Smells = Chemicals: All flower aromas are chemical messages released into the air.
• Purpose: Mostly to attract pollinators—and sometimes to repel them after pollination!
• Diversity: Flowers have evolved unique scents for specific pollinators; some even mimic rotten meat to attract flies and beetles.
• Science is Ongoing: There’s still mystery in exactly how many of these scents are produced and released.
• Flowers Are Smart: They can change strategies and adaptively communicate using scents.

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Memorable Quote for the Road

“What can I say? It’s all thanks to my stanks.”
— Corpse Flower ([20:48])

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This episode blends fun science facts with humor, interactive segments, and expert insight—making flower chemistry accessible and unforgettable for curious minds.

Transcript

[Molly Bloom]

Hi, friends. You might have heard that Bark Sandin and I are on the road this spring with Brains On Live. We've been to several cities so far and it has been so much fun. Our next two stops are Atlanta and Fort Lauderdale. That's at the end of March. And then we just announced that we added Lawrence, Kansas in May and Columbus, Ohio in June. We're also heading to Chattanooga, Durham, Milwaukee, Portland, Buffalo, and Ann Arbor, Michigan. We hope you'll be able to join us at one of those shows. We can't wait to see you. To get tickets and get more information, you can head to brainson.org events. That's brainson.org events.

[Isla]

Brains on Universe. You're listening to Brainzone, where we're serious about being curious.

[Molly Bloom]

Noses exist for lots of reasons.

[Isla]

They help us breathe.

[Molly Bloom]

Mine hold up my glasses.

[Isla]

I like to try and wiggle mine.

[Molly Bloom]

But one of a nose's most important jobs is to smell stuff.

[Isla]

Maybe that's why noses love roses.

[Dr. Kelsey Byers]

Roses are actually one of the most complex smell mixtures we know of. Some studies by scientists like me have shown that roses can make up to 200 different smells chemicals in their smell.

[Molly Bloom]

Roses and other flowers aren't pumping out those pretty perfumes for us though. It's for bugs and birds.

[Isla]

And some flowers make a stink so strong it'll make you wish your nose had an off button.

[Molly Bloom]

Flowers and the science of their scents coming up.

[Sandon]

Oh, hey, do you mind grabbing that bag of trash?

[Molly Bloom]

Thanks.

[Sandon]

It's my turn to take out the trash. We have a chore wheel. Sandon got removing cobwebs this week, which is my favorite. You get to use the suction shoes and walk on the ceiling. So fun. Anyway, can you hand me that bag now?

[Molly Bloom]

Thanks.

[Sandon]

When everyone pitches in, things just work. Which is why we love when people join SmartyPass. It funds our research, our writing, our sound design, and so much more. Plus, you get access to ad free versions of all our shows, invites to special online hangouts with us, merch discounts, and tons of other things. Go to brainson.org smartypass to help out. Okay, time to go back inside. You can think of joining Smartypass as you doing your part to make this show happen. Thank you.

[Brain]

Hey Mark, I saved a cobweb up there for ya. Wanna go put on the suction shoes and go get it?

[Sandon]

Oh yeah, buddy.

[Molly Bloom]

Thank you, Brain. You're listening to Brain, part of the Brainzone universe. I'm Molly Bloom and my co host today is Isla from Melbourne, Australia. Hi Isla.

[Isla]

Happy to Be here, Molly.

[Molly Bloom]

Today we're answering these questions about flowers.

[Isla]

My name is Elise from San Diego, California. My name is Griffin from Santa Rosa, California. Hi, my name is Vivian from St. Louis, Missouri. My question is, how do flowers make their smell? How and why do flowers smell? How do flowers get their smell?

[Molly Bloom]

Isla, are there lots of flowers where you live?

[Isla]

Yeah, Melbourne has lots of flowers. There's a whole botanical gardens near me that I like to go to with my sisters.

[Molly Bloom]

Oh, fun. Do you have a favorite flower?

[Isla]

My favorite flower is probably one of the native flowers called a benxia. Kind of looks like a porcupine.

[Molly Bloom]

Oh, I want to see that flower. So is there a flower that you feel like kind of like, represents you or like kind of you feel like a kinship with?

[Isla]

I think maybe a sunflower, because it's my favorite color and it's bright like me.

[Molly Bloom]

Oh, I love that. So besides flowers, what are some of your other favorite smells?

[Isla]

Probably chocolate dinner. And I have a coconut perfume that I like.

[Molly Bloom]

And how about some of your least favorite smells?

[Isla]

Dad socks.

[Molly Bloom]

Stinky socks. Yeah. No one likes that. Do you feel like your dads are stinkier than other socks you've smelled?

[Isla]

Yeah.

[Molly Bloom]

So do you have a favorite flower smell?

[Isla]

I like roses.

[Molly Bloom]

Classic.

[Isla]

They smell really nice.

[Molly Bloom]

Yeah, they do.

[Isla]

I put a new one in my room every week.

[Molly Bloom]

Oh, that's so nice. I think my favorite is probably lilac. They bloom here for only a very short amount of time, but when they do, it's very, very wonderful. Flower aroma is a terrific topic to get started. Let's review some flower basics.

[Isla]

Flowers are a part of many plants,

[Molly Bloom]

and aside from looking great and smelling great, flowers have a super important job.

[Isla]

Flowers are how these plants make more of themselves.

[Molly Bloom]

The flowers will eventually make seeds that will grow into new flowers. But for a flower to make these seeds, it needs to be pollinated.

[Isla]

That involves, you guessed it, pollen, that powdery stuff inside flowers.

[Molly Bloom]

To make seeds, that pollen usually needs to be moved from one flower to another flower of the same kind. Sort of like moving a key from your pocket to a lock. When the key and lock finally meet, it opens a door for a flower.

[Isla]

The pollen is like the key.

[Molly Bloom]

In the middle of a flower is a part called the stigma. That's like the lock.

[Isla]

When pollen from one flower makes it to the stigma of another flower, it unlocks the process of making seeds.

[Molly Bloom]

But the pollen and the stigma have to be from the same type of flower. Pollen from a rose, for instance, can't pollinate a daisy.

[Isla]

Yeah, that's like having the Wrong key for the wrong lock.

[Molly Bloom]

So what helps move all that pollen around? Most of the time, it's animals called pollinators. Let's meet them.

[Corpse Flower]

Calling all pollinators. Calling all pollinators.

[Molly Bloom]

It's the pollinator report. Pollinators are animals that visit flowers. They're usually looking for nectar or pollen they can eat. While there, they get pollen on their

[Isla]

bodies, then they carry the pollen with them when they visit the next flower. Pollination accomplished.

[Molly Bloom]

The most common pollinators are bees, flies, butterflies, and moths.

[Isla]

But other animals can do it, too, like ants, bats, birds, lizards, and even small rodents.

[Molly Bloom]

Some flowers can pollinate themselves, and even a strong breeze or water can move pollen around. But for the most part, this important work is done by tiny creatures all over the planet, working day and night.

[Isla]

Thanks, pollinators.

[Corpse Flower]

Calling all pollinators. Calling all pollinators.

[Molly Bloom]

This is what we call flower power. Since pollinators are so important, flowers have developed all kinds of ways to get them to come visit.

[Isla]

Sometimes they attract pollinators by looking exciting, but a lot of the time, they use smells.

[Dr. Kelsey Byers]

So smell is basically little bits of chemicals floating around in the atmosphere around us.

[Molly Bloom]

That's Dr. Kelsey Byers. She studies flowers and their smells at the John Innes center in the United Kingdom.

[Dr. Kelsey Byers]

So when you breathe in that air into your lungs and it travels over your nose, you can imagine breathing in all those little particles of smell are floating around in the air, and they're getting stuck to your nose.

[Isla]

So flower smells are just really small bits of chemicals released by flowers.

[Molly Bloom]

When those chemicals are in the air, animals can sense them. We sense them through our noses.

[Isla]

Kelsey says flowers often make those chemical smells in the petals themselves.

[Dr. Kelsey Byers]

But sometimes the smell can also come from the leaves, if you've ever smelled herbs or spices, for example. Or it can come from the nectar, which is what the plants use to feed their pollinators like bees. So it can come from any part of the plant, but most often, it's coming from the petals.

[Molly Bloom]

Wild mystery alert. It turns out scientists don't know exactly how most flowers release these smells.

[Isla]

Are there tiny openings on the petal, or do the smells evaporate out? Does it spray like perfume?

[Molly Bloom]

Maybe one of you listening will figure it out.

[Isla]

Some flowers have simple smells made up

[Molly Bloom]

of just a few chemicals, but not roses.

[Dr. Kelsey Byers]

Roses are actually one of the most complex smell mixtures we know of. Some studies by scientists like me have shown that roses can make up to 200 different smell chemicals in their smell. And we call that a bouquet, just like a bouquet of flowers is not just the individual flowers, but that whole beautiful bouquet you hold. A smell bouquet is not just the individual smell chemicals, but the whole picture of all of them together. And our brains actually process those, not just by going, well, that one's this smell and that one's this smell, but they actually mix together to create a unique picture in our brain of what a rose smells like.

[Molly Bloom]

So flowers make smells to attract pollinators, but sometimes they make smells to get rid of bugs. We'll explain in a minute, but first, another wild mystery alert. It's the

[Isla]

mystery sound.

[Molly Bloom]

Isla, are you ready for the mystery sound?

[Isla]

Yes.

[Molly Bloom]

Wonderful. Here it is. Hmm. What do you think?

[Isla]

Maybe it kind of sounds like someone scraping a carpet or something. Like maybe cleaning something.

[Molly Bloom]

Very good. Do you want to hear it again?

[Isla]

Yeah.

[Molly Bloom]

Okay, so you thought cleaning. What's another thought?

[Isla]

Maybe brushing something like maybe metal. Ooh, with a brush.

[Molly Bloom]

Very good. Okay, we'll hear the mystery sound again. Get another chance to guess and hear the answer after the credits. So stick around. We are working on an episode about the science of baseball. And if you've ever been to a game, you know there are some great chants like win twins.

[Isla]

But you know what doesn't have a lot of chants? Science.

[Molly Bloom]

So let's make some hilah. If you had to come up with a chant or cheer for science, what would you say?

[Isla]

Maybe something like, we like science. Yes, we do. We like science. How about you?

[Molly Bloom]

Oh, I really like that. And had a really good rhythm too. Listeners, send us your science cheers. Record them and then go to brainzon.org contact to send them our way.

[Isla]

That's also where you can send questions, mystery sounds, drawings, or tell us your favorite science themed joke.

[Molly Bloom]

Again, that's brainson.org contact we can't wait to hear from you, Brains Fun. Welcome back. This is Brains on. And I'm Molly.

[Isla]

And I'm Isla.

[Molly Bloom]

And we just learned how flowers get their smells.

[Isla]

It's chemicals. Flowers make special chemicals and release them into the air.

[Molly Bloom]

The goal is to lure in pollinators.

[Corpse Flower]

Bugs. Bugs, pollinators.

[Isla]

So if all flowers are pretty much trying to do the same thing, why do different flowers have different scents?

[Molly Bloom]

Here's flower smell researcher Kelsey Byers again.

[Dr. Kelsey Byers]

So different flowers have different smells because the smells are serving different purposes. So, for example, say that you want to attract a honeybee, and you want the honeybee to come and move your pollen from one flower to another flower. Ideally, you would smell like something that smells good to a honeybee, but let's

[Molly Bloom]

say you're a type of flower that's best pollinated by a moth, then you'd want to smell good to moths.

[Isla]

Some flowers make smells that lots of pollinators, like dandelions, for example.

[Molly Bloom]

But some flowers want very specific pollinators to visit, like orchids that can only be pollinated by a certain type of wasp. Those orchids will make a smell that's really only attractive to that wasp.

[Isla]

So flowers make different smells to attract different pollinators. Cool stuff.

[Molly Bloom]

But it gets even cooler because flowers can also change their smell over time. Here's Kelsey.

[Dr. Kelsey Byers]

So one of the biggest changes that we've noticed is that many flowers change their smell after they've been pollinated. So after an insect has come to visit them to move pollen around. And some of the idea we think behind this is that if you've already got enough pollen to make seeds, there's no point in having an insect visit you anymore from the plant's point of view.

[Molly Bloom]

There's even some flowers that will start smelling bad to pollinators after they've been pollinated. So they go from a smell that

[Isla]

says, yoo hoo, come here, come over here.

[Molly Bloom]

To one that says, ew, go away, leave me alone.

[Isla]

That way, if a fly or bee comes by, they won't pollinate a flower that's already pollinated.

[Molly Bloom]

They're more likely to keep looking for a flower that hasn't been pollinated yet and still smells good. That helps more flowers get pollinated.

[Isla]

So clever. Well done, flowers. Thank you.

[Molly Bloom]

Let's take a quick break and check out the mailbag. This is where we dive into all the cool questions, drawings, and ideas you send our way. Looks like we got some more designs for new rooms at our brand new headquarters. Let's see what these creative architects have dreamed up.

[Isla]

I think a new room for the brain. John Headquarters should be a robot room with those robots that do different tasks for you. And I think you should have a room where there's trees connected to rockets and you can send a tree into space. And my idea for a new room in Rainzong headquarters is a cosinator. So it would be a room when you walk in and there's a keypad, and then you type up something that you think is cozy, like a snack or a pillow or a blanket or a beanbag chair or a stuffy or something cozy. And then it appears when you're done typing, then you can just turn it into your cozy room and you can snuggle up.

[Molly Bloom]

That was Cyril, Benji, and Charlotte. I want to snuggle up to all these new spaces. Send us your idea for a new Brainzon headquarters room. Go to brainzon.org contact to let us know what you come up with. See you next time. Brains on is supported by you because people like you keep us going. Join Smartypast to power more episodes. Plus you'll get access to our ad free feed so you get all our shows with zero breaks. Thanks. Welcome back. Isla and I are talking about flower smells.

[Isla]

Those wisps of air that are actually invisible messages made of chemicals.

[Molly Bloom]

Flowers use these chemical messages to attract animals and sometimes to drive them away. Speaking of driving away. Shoo, fly. Shoo.

[Isla]

How did that fly get in the studio?

[Molly Bloom]

Ish. It's flying in my face. Help me get it away.

[Brain]

Did someone call for help?

[Molly Bloom]

Hey, Sandon. Ugh, what's that smell?

[Brain]

It's me. I haven't showered in two weeks. I'm wearing clothes I got from the dumpster, and I gargled expired milk before I came over.

[Molly Bloom]

Um, why?

[Brain]

So I can keep up with my team.

[Isla]

Your team?

[Brain]

Yeah. Meet the super team I assembled. We're called Stinkforce.

[Molly Bloom]

Stink Force.

[Brain]

To my left, Captain Skunketerpants.

[Molly Bloom]

Is that a real skunk? Yep, but I only stink when startled.

[Isla]

Or when the world needs saving.

[Brain]

To my right we have Titum arum, codename Corpse Flower.

[Corpse Flower]

Hello. Over here. The eight foot tall, big red flower. That's me. Hi.

[Isla]

Wow, a corpse flower. I've heard of these. They are real flowers that grow in jungles in lit off a famous flower.

[Corpse Flower]

Aw, you're making me blush.

[Brain]

Together, we save the world using the power of stink. If a bad guy's robbing a bank,

[Isla]

we put stank in that bank and leave that thief gasping for fresh air.

[Brain]

If there's a cat stuck in a

[Corpse Flower]

tree, we stink so hard, the cat takes one whiff and passes out. Then we catch it as it falls. Cat rescued.

[Brain]

And if there's an old lady who needs help crossing the street, we help her while smelling terrible Steak force.

[Molly Bloom]

Well, it worked. The fly left me alone and landed on the big corpse flower.

[Corpse Flower]

Yeah, flies love me. I smell like rotting flesh. Limburger cheese, garlic. All the dankest stinks.

[Isla]

Yeah, you sure do.

[Molly Bloom]

Yeah. Why exactly do you do that again?

[Corpse Flower]

It's how I attract the right pollinators. You see, some flowers like to attract regular old pollinators, like butterflies or birds. But I specialize in attracting beetles and flies that like rotting meat.

[Brain]

Yeah, it's kind of genius, actually. The corpse flower grows in jungles, and it can get really, really big.

[Isla]

Yeah, and looks like a giant flower that's about as tall as a school bus.

[Brain]

Exactly. It takes a lot of work to grow that big. And it can take years for the flower to bloom too. And when they do bloom, it only lasts for like a day or two. So a corpse flower needs to make sure that it can attract all the pollinators it can in a very short amount of time.

[Corpse Flower]

Yeah, that's why my stink is so strong. I want to lure in rotten flesh loving beetles and flies from all over. My smell can travel around three miles.

[Brain]

That's serious stinkage. Oh, and get this. Part of the flower even heats up during the bloom. This helps waft out that scent and it makes the flower seem more like a warm dead animal corpse.

[Isla]

That's actually so clever and sneaky.

[Molly Bloom]

Very. So a fly or beetle will come to the flower thinking they'll find a good place to lay their eggs so their larva can eat the dead meat when they hatch.

[Brain]

Yep. But instead they find a flower, they pick up pollen, move it around, and hopefully pollinate a corpse flower and help make more of these marvelous plants. There are a handful of other flowers that also use stink to attract pollinators, but in my opinion, the corpse flower is by far the coolest.

[Molly Bloom]

I agree. So cool.

[Isla]

Yeah, you are a fascinating flower.

[Corpse Flower]

What can I say? It's all thanks to my stanks.

[Molly Bloom]

But speaking of stinks, do you think you could find someone else to help? Now? It's getting a little hard to breathe in here.

[Corpse Flower]

Oh, of course. Come on, little fly. Let's leave these nice people alone.

[Brain]

Great work, team. Another day saved by Stink Force.

[Corpse Flower]

Stink force?

[Molly Bloom]

Flower smells are just chemicals that a plant releases into the air.

[Isla]

These smells help attract birds, bees, moths, and other animals.

[Molly Bloom]

Those animals pick up pollen from one flower and help move it to another flower of the same kind.

[Isla]

That kicks off the process of making flower seeds so even more flowers can grow.

[Molly Bloom]

That's it for this episode of Brains On. This episode was produced by me, Molly Bloom, Marc Sanchez, and San and Totten. It was sound designed by Mark Sanchez, who also wrote our theme music. We had engineering help from Derek Myers. Special thanks to Tom Brant, Adeline and Celeste and Fiona Clark, and special thanks to Ken Taborski at Code of the north for all of their website help. Okay, Isla, let's hear that mystery sound. One more. Earlier you thought someone's sweeping something, maybe cleaning, maybe a brush on something. Do you have new thoughts?

[Isla]

Not really. I think I might stay with the same guess.

[Molly Bloom]

Okay, I like your guess. Should we See what the answer is.

[Isla]

Yeah.

[Molly Bloom]

All right. Here is the answer.

[Isla]

Hi, I'm Charlotte, and I'm from Annandale, New Jersey. That was a sound of a paint roller going on a wall.

[Molly Bloom]

Okay. I am giving you at least partial credit, maybe even full credit, because a paint roller is essentially like a paintbrush. And you said brush.

[Isla]

That was hard.

[Molly Bloom]

That was really hard. Have you used a paint roller before?

[Dr. Kelsey Byers]

No.

[Molly Bloom]

Have you seen one? Do you know what they look like?

[Isla]

Yeah. Like the rollers with their long stick.

[Molly Bloom]

Exactly. And there's kind of like a spongy thing on the end that you roll on the wall. So it's like a sponge rolling paint on the wall. I think you did great. That was a hard one. Now it's time for the brains honor roll. These are the incredible kids who keep this show going with their questions, ideas, mystery sounds, drawings, and high fives. Vivian and Lewis from Maplewood, Minnesota. Annie from Ann Arbor, Michigan. Hayden from Lexington, Massachusetts. Hunter from Texas. Jamison and Owen from Cottonwood Heights, Utah. Anderson and Cordelia from Creston, California. Ethan from Hartford, South Dak. Annie and Patty from Gladwin, Pennsylvania. Sinwo from Baoding, China. Jerry from Mexico City. Rita from North Brantford, Connecticut. Mateo, Nova, Rio and Kota from Winnipeg. Madison from Urbana, Ohio. Momo from Japan. Inga from Burlington, Washington. Aiden from Los Angeles. Aria, Camilla and Noah from Grovetown, Georgia. Leela from Charlotte, North Carolina. Connie from London, England. Natalie from Troy, Missouri. Lucy from Kensington, California. Eli. Joshua from Rehoboth, Namibia. Agnes from St. Ives, Australia. Hetty from Tunis, Tunisia. Harriet from Washington, D.C. delilah from Brooklyn, New York, York. Charlie from Santa Cruz, California. Amelia from Stratford, Australia. Susanna from Nashville. Amelia, Micah and Felicity from Duluth, Minnesota. Philip from St. Paul, Minnesota. Felix from Union City, California. Molly and Dinah from St. Paul, Minnesota. Alex from Revelstoke, British Columbia. Mana from Osaka, Japan. Will from Simsbury, Connecticut. Henry and Sammy from Ladysmith, British Columbia. Evan from Rochester, New York. Elliot from Washington. Everett from Memphis, Tennessee. River from Annapolis, Maryland. Julian from Mission Viejo, California. Soren and Asher from Stone Mountain, Georgia. Eduard from London, England. Ora from Guelph, Ontario. Emmy from Draper, Utah. Emers from Calgary. Alba, Joshua from Massachusetts. Nandini and Shambhavi from Singapore. Ceres from Amsterdam. Jackson from Richmond, Virginia. Stella from Livermore, California. Reese from Wellington, New Zealand. Mickey from Warsaw, Poland. Jamie and Jet from Rancho Cucamonga, California. Lenny from British Columbia. Ollie and Fern from Alberta. And Emmy from Yerevan, Armenia. We'll be back next week with a new episode of Hoax Hunters.

[Isla]

Thanks for listening.