HTDE: Don't Get in the Fridge, with Jesse Eisenberg

Summary

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! Episode: HTDE: Don't Get in the Fridge, with Jesse Eisenberg
Release Date: January 1, 2025

NPR's beloved weekly news quiz, Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!, takes a delightful detour in this episode titled "HTDE: Don't Get in the Fridge," featuring the multifaceted actor and filmmaker, Jesse Eisenberg. Hosted by Peter Sagal, the show blends humor, celebrity insights, and intriguing discussions, all while testing listeners' knowledge on current events and quirky questions. Below is a comprehensive summary capturing the episode's key moments, notable quotes, and engaging dialogues.

---

1. Welcome and Introduction

The episode kicks off with a brief greeting from Ian Chillock, one of the show's producers, who humorously mentions a past incident where Jesse Eisenberg "stole his identity about a decade ago" (00:23). This lighthearted banter sets the tone for the episode's blend of comedy and informative content.

2. The Bees and the Key Question

The first segment addresses a fascinating listener question posed by Maureen (01:05). Maureen recounts a conversation where her acquaintance, Caitlin, whimsically suggested that bees could carry her misplaced key back to her. This sparks a debate on the feasibility of bees performing such a feat.

Maureen's Question:

"How many bees would it take to carry a house key?"
(Maureen, 01:05)

To provide an authoritative answer, the hosts consult Dr. Kirsten Trainor, a honeybee biologist from the State Institute of Bee Research in Stuttgart, Germany. Dr. Trainor explains the complexity of the task, highlighting that honeybees typically don't coordinate to move objects like keys.

Notable Insights from Dr. Trainor:

• Weight Calculation: A house key weighs approximately 6700 milligrams. Given that a single honeybee can carry about 100 milligrams, it would theoretically require 67 bees to transport the key (03:09).

  "It's not so easy to answer because honeybees normally wouldn't coordinate to move a key... So it would take about 67 bees."
  (Dr. Kirsten Trainor, 03:09)

• Behavioral Patterns: Honeybees exhibit fascinating behaviors, such as carrying their dead to prevent disease within the hive. Dr. Trainor elaborates on how bees efficiently remove dead members, using propolis—a natural antibacterial agent—to entomb parts they can't carry (03:53).

  "They carry out all their dead... They basically mummify anything too big that they can't move."
  (Dr. Kirsten Trainor, 03:53)

This segment not only answers Maureen's whimsical question but also delves deep into the intricate social behaviors of honeybees, providing listeners with both factual information and entertaining anecdotes.

3. Jesse Eisenberg Takes on How-To Questions

With the bees' mystery unraveled, the spotlight shifts to Jesse Eisenberg, who steps in to tackle a series of listener-submitted "how-to" questions. Despite his humorous disclaimer about not being prepared, Eisenberg infuses the session with his characteristic wit and honesty.

a. Over-Commenting and Self-Love

Listener Scenario: Sharon struggles with over-commenting in conversations, often rambling and regretting her long-winded responses.

Eisenberg's Advice:

"Maybe self-love, Sharon. Maybe find some self-love and then you won't feel the need to kind of ramble like I am now."
(Jesse Eisenberg, 07:52)

Eisenberg shares a personal anecdote about his nighttime regrets over past comments, illustrating his advocacy for self-love over self-hatred as a means to curb excessive talking.

"What I find myself doing is walking around the streets in New York or biking around the streets screaming what I said."
(Jesse Eisenberg, 08:35)

b. Minimal Effort Christmas Cards

Listener Scenario: Tyler is concerned that the effort put into annual Christmas cards isn't appreciated and seeks advice on simplifying the gesture.

Eisenberg's Insight:

"I find that to be actually quite sweet and lovely that the family is creating this kind of sweet tradition... Maybe people are appreciating it more than you suspect."
(Jesse Eisenberg, 10:53)

Despite his cynical views, Eisenberg acknowledges the sentimental value of such traditions, encouraging Tyler to recognize the underlying appreciation.

c. Removing Mildew Smell from Jeans

Listener Scenario: Reagan seeks effective laundry hacks to eliminate mildew odors from jeans.

Eisenberg's Suggestions:

"Maybe give it a whirl and then baking soda."
(Jesse Eisenberg, 11:55)

Though humorous about his own struggles, Eisenberg provides practical advice, albeit briefly, demonstrating his approachable nature.

d. Cleaning the Refrigerator and Freezer

Listener Scenario: Inquiry about maintaining a clean refrigerator and freezer.

Eisenberg's Response:

"I just like cleaning my house so much. It gives me a sense of control and comfort."
(Jesse Eisenberg, 12:21)

He elaborates on his cleaning habits, sharing a quirky yet relatable habit of entering the fridge to clean more thoroughly, offering both humor and insight into his personality.

"Do it with another person. Put all the stuff on the counter and get in that fridge."
(Jesse Eisenberg, 13:37)

e. Addressing Food in Facial Hair

Listener Scenario: Wayne is traumatized by a past experience of seeing food stuck in someone's facial hair and seeks advice on addressing it.

Eisenberg's Solution:

"I just reach my dirty paws into her mouth and take that spinach. It's a sweet moment between two people."
(Jesse Eisenberg, 14:46)

He shares his affectionate method of gently removing food from his partner's facial hair, emphasizing the importance of sweet gestures in relationships.

4. Special Segment: Living Under Polar Darkness with Denis Barkatz

The episode takes a riveting turn as hosts Mike Danforth and Ian Chillock introduce Denis Barkatz, an astrophysicist who wintered over in Antarctica. Denis shares his harrowing and enlightening experiences living through months of darkness at the South Pole.

a. The Transition to Darkness

Denis explains the gradual shift from continuous daylight to complete darkness, a process spanning an entire month.

"The transition is so smooth... It spirals down until March 21st."
(Denis Barkatz, 20:58)

b. Psychological Impact and Coping Mechanisms

He delves into the psychological challenges faced during this extended period of isolation and darkness, highlighting the importance of routine and introducing unique coping strategies.

The 300 Club: Denis narrates the creation of the "300 Club," an extreme method to adapt to the harsh cold by alternating between a superheated sauna and the frigid outdoors.

"What we do is we have a sauna heated to plus 200 Fahrenheit... and then go outside into minus 100, making a 300-degree difference."
(Denis Barkatz, 23:33)

Despite the seemingly perilous practice, Denis shares a sense of exhilaration and accomplishment in overcoming bodily instincts against extreme temperature changes.

"Your body has an amount of heat capacity... I actually don't feel cold."
(Denis Barkatz, 24:51)

5. Humorous Wrap-Up and Final Thoughts

As the episode nears its end, the hosts and Jesse Eisenberg engage in playful banter, reiterating the humorous yet informative nature of the show.

Ian Chillock:

"Bees will take extreme lengths to get a mouse out of their hive."
(Ian Chillock, 25:25)

Mike Danforth:

"Please don't get in the fridge."
(Mike Danforth, 19:08)

The episode concludes with the triumphant resolution of Maureen's bee question and a final humorous reminder about the dangers of fridge exploration.

---

Notable Quotes and Timestamps

• Dr. Kirsten Trainor on Bees Carrying a Key:
  "It's not so easy to answer because honeybees normally wouldn't coordinate to move a key... So it would take about 67 bees."
  (03:09)

• Jesse Eisenberg on Over-Commenting:
  "Maybe self-love, Sharon. Maybe find some self-love and then you won't feel the need to kind of ramble like I am now."
  (07:52)

• Denis Barkatz on the 300 Club:
  "What we do is we have a sauna heated to plus 200 Fahrenheit... and then go outside into minus 100, making a 300-degree difference."
  (23:33)

• Eisenberg's Humorous Advice on Fridge Cleaning:
  "Do it with another person. Put all the stuff on the counter and get in that fridge."
  (13:37)

Concluding Remarks

This episode of Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! masterfully balances humor with educational content, featuring insightful discussions with Jesse Eisenberg and an extraordinary account from Denis Barkatz. Whether delving into the intricate lives of honeybees, navigating human social quirks, or surviving months of perpetual darkness, the show offers listeners a rich tapestry of information wrapped in comedy. As always, Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! continues to entertain and inform, making it a must-listen for fans of witty, knowledge-driven radio.

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Timestamp Reference Guide:

• 00:23 – Introduction of Jesse Eisenberg
• 01:05 – Maureen's bee question
• 03:09 – Dr. Trainor on bees
• 07:52 – Eisenberg on over-commenting
• 10:53 – Eisenberg on Christmas cards
• 11:55 – Eisenberg on mildew smell
• 12:21 – Eisenberg on fridge cleaning
• 13:37 – Eisenberg's humorous fridge advice
• 14:46 – Eisenberg on food in facial hair
• 20:58 – Denis on polar darkness transition
• 23:33 – Denis on the 300 Club
• 24:51 – Denis on not feeling cold
• 25:25 – Wrap-up on bees' efforts
• 19:08 – Humor on not getting in the fridge

---

Note: Timestamps correspond to the moments within the podcast transcript where the quoted statements occur.

Transcript

[Sponsor]

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[Ian Chillock]

Hey, happy new Year, you listeners. You. We are rigging in 2025 with a new episode of how to Do Everything, hosted by Wait.

[Sponsor]

Wait.

[Ian Chillock]

Producers Mike Danforth and Ian Chillock. Now this episode, Mike and Ian sit down with actor and filmmaker Jesse Eisenberg, who just happened to steal my identity about a decade ago.

[Sponsor]

Whatever.

[Ian Chillock]

It's fine. I'm clearly over it. I mean, really. I mean, it's fine.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

It's fine.

[Ian Chillock]

I don't mind. They have just a few episodes left in this season, so make sure to follow them at their own feed and enjoy the latest how to Do Everything.

[Mike Danforth]

This is how to Do Everything. I'm Mike.

[Ian Chillock]

And I'm Ian. Coming up, writer, director, and actor Jesse Eisenberg joins us to answer all of your how to questions.

[Mike Danforth]

But first, hey, Maure, what can we help you with?

[Maureen]

Well, let me take you back about two weeks ago, sitting out on my back porch with my husband and a girlfriend of mine, Caitlin, and she works for this hyperlocal honey place here in Atlanta, and she is only about a mile from my house, and she accidentally left a key at her office, and she just made some offhanded comments. It's like, oh, wouldn't it be so nice if the bees could just fly over my key and I wouldn't have to go get it? Yeah. And so I am thinking immediately, well, this is ludicrous because it would take an insane amount of bees to do this.

[Mike Danforth]

Yeah.

[Maureen]

So I'm imagining, like, a lot of bees in this huge mass, like a swarm of bees carrying this key. So I asked her, how many bees do you think this would take? And she's like, oh, well, you know, a house key is small. Like, imagine if you could just stick their little feet to the key and then they could all fly up, Right? Then maybe it would only take like seven bees. And I'm thinking, no, this is like a 50 bee situation, like a ton of bees. And every single person I have asked seems to think it would take less than 20 bees. My husband was like five bees. Caitlin says, Seven. You know, so I've dug my heels in pretty hard and. And I have come to y'all for some answers.

[Ian Chillock]

Okay. We have someone on the line who can definitively answer this question. But we should say in the time since we talked to Maureen, this question has taken over her friend Group people.

[Mike Danforth]

Are placing money bets. We have a range of guesses for what the possible answer is.

[Ian Chillock]

The stakes are very high. It could tear them all apart.

[Mike Danforth]

So let's get the answer. Dr. Trainor, can you start by telling us how you're qualified to answer Maureen's question?

[Kirsten Trainor]

Sure. So my name is Kirsten Trainor. I'm a honeybee biologist at the State Institute of Bee Research here at the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart, Germany.

[Mike Danforth]

Wow.

[Kirsten Trainor]

So I spend my whole day working with honeybees.

[Mike Danforth]

So what do you think, Dr. Trainor? What's the answer?

[Kirsten Trainor]

It's not so easy to answer because honeybees normally wouldn't coordinate to move a key. You wouldn't need to get quite a bunch of them to work together. But honeybees do have a really cool behavior that they carry out their dead. And a honeybee. So one honeybee can pick up another honeybee and carry her out of her hive. And a Honeybee weighs about 100 milligrams.

[Mike Danforth]

Okay. Okay.

[Kirsten Trainor]

So. So if we look at how much a key would weigh, which I looked it up online, it's about 0.25 ounces, which is 6700 milligrams. So you would need about 67 bees coordinating together to move a house key.

[Mike Danforth]

67 bees. Okay.

[Ian Chillock]

When you say they will fly out their dead, move out the dead, what's the explanation for that behavior?

[Kirsten Trainor]

Sure. So a Honeybee Hive is 20 to 40,000 individuals living together in a hot, humid environment where microbes would normally flourish. And so having decaying dead individuals in your hive is not a wise decision, because they have the potential to make the other sick. And so they, on a nice warm winter day, when it's warm enough to fly, they will carry out all their dead. And so if it's been snowing, you will actually see a trail of dead bees in front of your hives. And this is a good sign because it means the colony is still alive and well and strong enough to carry out their dead.

[Ian Chillock]

And it's just with the. With the dead bees, it's one to one. One bee carries one bee.

[Kirsten Trainor]

So I'm not sure how you'd get all 67 bees to work together to move one key. That would be another trick. But theoretically, it would be about 67 bees.

[Ian Chillock]

Is there anything that they collaborate on?

[Kirsten Trainor]

Yeah, they collaborate on a lot of things. So the bees will cluster in this winter cluster, and that leaves their entrance undefended. And a honeybee hive is, of course, warm and dry and quite cozy and so field Mice, if a beekeeper hasn't put a mouse excluder on the front of their hive, will try and sneak in and chew their way through the comb that's undefended down below. And then come spring, when the bees notice, ooh, we have an unwanted visitor living in the bottom of our hive, they will sometimes sting that mouse to death. And they can't carry it out because it's too big. So they'll remove the parts they can, and then they will propolize and entomb the rest of the mouse, the skeleton, so that it doesn't make the hive sick.

[Mike Danforth]

Oh, yuck.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

What?

[Kirsten Trainor]

Yeah, they basically mummify anything too big that they can't move.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Whoa.

[Mike Danforth]

How. Wait a minute though. You said the parts they can't remove. What parts can they remove?

[Kirsten Trainor]

Well, beekeepers have actually tested this, I think in American Bee Journal. There was actually a beekeeper who had attached mice in on dead mice on the bottom of the hive to see how quickly they removed them. And they chew off their, their fur. And anything that they can remove with their mouth parts, they will. But of course, the skeleton, they can't break apart. And so that they propolize and entomb.

[Mike Danforth]

So it's like a little propolis is a. No, go ahead.

[Kirsten Trainor]

A propolis bees gather from tree buds. It's an antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal substance that plants produce to protect the new buds on the tree. And the bees collect that and will mix it with beeswax and they'll use it as an antibacterial doormat and for other things in their hive.

[Ian Chillock]

Basically, they make a mouse sanitizer themselves.

[Kirsten Trainor]

Correct.

[Mike Danforth]

All right. Thank you, Dr. Trainor, for helping settle this for Maureen. This is fantastic.

[Kirsten Trainor]

You're very welcome. I hope it's been useful.

[Ian Chillock]

Happy New Year.

[Mike Danforth]

Happy New Year.

[Ian Chillock]

Our mailbox, thanks to you, is overflowing with emails desperate for help. And our resolution, our shared resolution, is to clear it out.

[Mike Danforth]

So joining us now to answer as many of your questions as we can get to is a very qualified expert. It's Jesse Eisenberg. He's a writer, director, co star of the new film A Real Pain.

[Ian Chillock]

So, Jesse, we thought we'd just throw a bunch of these how to questions at you. See what. See what you can do for our listeners.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Great. Okay, great. But I didn't prepare anything. Is that okay?

[Mike Danforth]

That's not a problem.

[Ian Chillock]

Totally. Okay, so let's just. We'll start off with this question. This is from Sharon. Sharon says she can't resist the Urge to over comment. In many situations, when someone asks her a question, she starts talking but doesn't know when to stop and often finds herself going on longer than she should and regretting later the things she said. Do you have any advice for Sharon?

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Yeah, I'm worse. Yeah, my advice would be. God, what would my advice be? No, I mean, you can't take advice from somebody who's far worse at it than you are. Maybe some kind of. I was gonna say maybe some kind of self hatred so that, you know, you could. It'll stifle you more. But actually self hatred for me makes me ramble further because I'm trying to apologize for the initial thing that I said and then apologize for the apology. So actually maybe self love Sharon. Maybe find some self love and then you won't feel the need to kind of ramble like I am now.

[Mike Danforth]

Do you. Do you, Jesse, have an experience or a memory of a specific time that woke you up in the middle of the night when you remember, like, oh, man, why did I keep talking like that?

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Yes, yes. But that's each night. And yes, it's when I've said something that I worry offended somebody. What I find myself doing is walking around the streets in New York or biking around the streets screaming what I said. Like, I once said something that was mean. I was 10 years old and I said a mean thing to somebody else. And it just so destroyed me that still I find myself on my bike still yelling the thing. I can't even say it here. Gets too traumatic because, yeah, I felt so embarrassed because it wasn't me. I don't know who it was. I mean, it was me, but it didn't feel like me. Anyway, my wife and I always joke that, you know, each one of us will walk around saying the thing that we feel guilty for saying about 10 years ago, just blurting it out on the street.

[Mike Danforth]

Wow. Okay, so. But as a thera, as a type of therapy, that doesn't work, I guess, because you still. It still sticks with you.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Right. So this concept of trying to help this person immediately took a nosedive into making things worse.

[Denis Barkatz]

Okay, good.

[Ian Chillock]

But at least we. We also brought up trauma for you, so we at least accomplished that.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Like, the hours are long, but it doesn't pay anything.

[Ian Chillock]

Here's a question from Tyler, and this is holiday related. Tyler is. Every year sends out Christmas cards but worries the great effort that they put into the Christmas cards is not appreciated by the people who received them. So Tyler wants to know the minimum effort they can make in those Christmas cards, I guess the minimum thing they can say to make people feel thought of without doing too much work.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Got it. A noble pursuit and a great aspiration from Kyle. You know, I don't know. I have these kind of very ambivalent feelings about receiving Christmas cards from families where they all talk about the things they did this year. Yeah, I'm like, I have such deep shame about my life, and so does my wife, who's like a. My wife is like an amazing, amazing woman who should feel nothing but great feelings. And yet both of us just kind of marvel at the confidence that families have by putting these things out. And I'm such a cynical person. So I assume when I'm getting these cards with their family achievements, I'm assuming this is a family that's about to get a divorce, because this must be a band aid for the thing that's happening darkly, darkly underneath.

[Ian Chillock]

That's right.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

I have a little bit of a cynical attitude, however, when I read them and I kind of get rid of, like this, my cynical knee jerk reaction. I find that to be actually quite sweet and lovely that the family is creating this kind of sweet tradition. So this is all to say to Tyler that actually maybe people are appreciating it more than you suspect. You've come to the conclusion that they don't. But I guess I would investigate that more.

[Ian Chillock]

Okay, there's something. This is touching to me. I mean, I feel like two thirds of our questions so far have circled back to just finding self love.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Exactly. Unexpectedly. And at the same time, I haven't slept in 24 hours, so perhaps that's where I am right now.

[Mike Danforth]

All right, let me find another question here. That is again, shouldn't have any trauma associated with it. Okay, this is from a listener named Reagan. How do I get the mildew smell out of jeans? Do you have any good laundry hacks?

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Sure. I mean, as a person who kind of struggles every day to just get out of bed. No, I'm kidding. Wait, how do I get the mildew smell out of jeans? I don't know. Don't people freeze their jeans? I don't know what that does, but maybe give it a whirl and then baking soda.

[Mike Danforth]

Let me ask you this question. How clean. Again, this is not meant to be a personal question, but do you regularly clean your refrigerator and freezer? Like, is your freezer in pretty good shape?

[Jesse Eisenberg]

I do clean my refrigerator and freezer. I. Yeah, I just like cleaning my house so much. I don't know. It gives me actually A sense of control and comfort, and I just love it so much. And after my kid goes to sleep, I clean the house, and my wife is happy with me. And so it has all these wonderful ripple effects. And to that point, I clean the refrigerator, and it's just a very comforting part of my day.

[Mike Danforth]

Yeah. Okay. So it's a way to. It's kind of a meditative practice of yours.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Yes. And I like a clean fridge. You know, I used to do a really dumb thing, which is that I would take out everything in the fridge, including the shelves, and go inside of fridges. And I really liked it. I liked that small space, and I liked that it was kind of, like, fun to do and. And the slight danger of it with the fridge. You know, luck. And so I. I'm really familiar with the fridge and how to take out shelves. And, you know, because I did it recreationally for a while.

[Ian Chillock]

When you say you as an adult, you would enter the fridge.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Only in my 20s and 30s. That's right.

[Ian Chillock]

The flexibility required.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

I had big bridges. It's incredibly fun. And for people listening, it's incredibly fun. Do it with another person.

[Mike Danforth]

Okay.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Put all the stuff on the counter and get in that fridge.

[Mike Danforth]

Hey, just interrupting the interview real quick to say, absolutely, do not get in that fridge. That is a terrible idea. Whatever you do, don't get in that fridge. I just have. We just have to kind of explore this. So do you just push and the door and it opens, or does it. Are you ever trapped in there?

[Jesse Eisenberg]

I've never been trapped.

[Mike Danforth]

Okay.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

I've never been trapped. But I will say the immediate feeling is claustrophobia and terror.

[Mike Danforth]

It would seem that that would. That makes sense. That fits.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

But it answers a question we've long held, which is, does the light turn off when you close the fridge? And I know the answer to that. I don't want to reveal it today, but I just want to say you can find out if you go in your fridge.

[Mike Danforth]

Good.

[Ian Chillock]

Can we do one more? Is that all right? This is from E. Wayne Williams. Call him Wayne. Wayne wants to know advice about telling someone they have food in their facial hair. Wayne was traumatized 30 years ago by seeing someone with a ramen noodle flapping around in their mustache and didn't know what to say.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Okay, I have a great solution for this. My wife thinks it's odd but lovable. But I am just constantly picking food out of her teeth. I just reach my dirty paws into her mouth and take that spinach. And I find there's something very sweet and affectionate of just. Especially if it's in the guy's beard. Just take it. Just take it. He'll be appreciative. It's a sweet moment between two people we never touch enough. And you know what? We could use some self love.

[Mike Danforth]

There we go.

[Ian Chillock]

We've done it.

[Mike Danforth]

We've done it.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Yeah. I like to create a theme at the beginning of this game I never played before. Carry it through.

[Mike Danforth]

Well, Jesse, thank you so much for all your help today.

[Jesse Eisenberg]

This is an absolute honor and I'm so happy that you guys are doing this show.

[Mike Danforth]

For anyone listening who's who's heard what Jesse has to say, we want to tell you, please don't get in your fridge. Don't, don't go in there.

[Ian Chillock]

It is one of our founding principles as a podcast. We want to bring you quality programming and we want you never to get inside a refrigerator.

[Mike Danforth]

That's right. That's right.

[Ian Chillock]

It's dangerous. It's cold.

[Mike Danforth]

Jesse Eisenberg is a. He's great. You love his movies. Terrific director. He's terrible at suggesting places to go inside.

[Sponsor]

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[Maureen]

Edu on the Embedded podcast from npr, what is it like to live under years of state surveillance?

[Mike Danforth]

So many people have fear of losing their families.

[Maureen]

For years, the Chinese government has been detaining hundreds of thousands of ethnic Uyghurs. This is the story of one family torn apart. Listen to the Black Gate on the embedded podcast from npr. All episodes are available now.

[Mike Danforth]

Hey, if you have a question you'd like us to answer, you can send it to us. We have one show left, one episode left. To answer your questions, send them to [e-mail] One episode left.

[Ian Chillock]

This season we will be coming back after a break. So if your question was how do I save this pinnacle of podcasting, how do I save this show? It's going away. That question is unnecessary.

[Mike Danforth]

Don't worry about it.

[Ian Chillock]

We're already coming back. It's been solved. But any other question, send it to [e-mail] and if you're still considering it.

[Mike Danforth]

Please don't get in the fridge.

[Ian Chillock]

The northernmost town in Alaska, a town full of refrigerators you should never climb into. That town is in the middle of two months of darkness.

[Mike Danforth]

The sun set there on November 18, and it won't come up again until January 22.

[Ian Chillock]

We were curious what it's like to live in that kind of darkness and to see if somebody who's done it might have some tips to help.

[Mike Danforth]

Denis Barkatz is an astrophysicist who wintered over in Antarctica. Denis, can you tell us what your experience was like?

[Denis Barkatz]

Sure. I guess the easiest way to put it is that in 2006, I earned a year's worth of salary in one day and one night. So that's one way to put it. And essentially I did that by wintering over at the South Pole, which means you get one day that lasts six months and then one night that lasts six months.

[Ian Chillock]

What is the feeling on that last 24 hours of daylight when you know you're about to enter this six month without ever seeing the sun?

[Denis Barkatz]

So, I mean, that's a good question. But the reality is that because the transition is so smooth, it's such a smooth transition from daylight to darkness here, you're used to the transition being rapid, right? When the sun sets, it's dark and it's getting darker and it's really quick. At the South Pole, you have to realize that that transition, instead of being over the course of one hour, it's over the course of one month.

[Ian Chillock]

I hadn't even fathomed that that there was. There would be this month where every, I guess day is the wrong word, but every 24 hours, it's a little darker than it was before until finally it's black.

[Denis Barkatz]

Exactly. Yeah. Because the sun, when it's up, right, instead of going up and then down, up and then down, it's essentially just turning around you. And over the course of three months, it just spirals up until its highest elevation, and then it's going to spiral, down, spiral down until March 21st. And on March 21st, if it's not cloudy, it eventually crosses that line of the horizon and. All right, well, good luck. Six months of darkness.

[Ian Chillock]

I didn't realize this, but no planes will risk landing in the dark in Antarctica. So I guess at the very end of that daylight period, those six months, the last plane takes off and you do not have a choice. You cannot, after two months, decide, you know, I can't take this anymore.

[Denis Barkatz]

So it's even. It's even a little bit worse than that because the planes don't wait for the dark periods. The planes are really limited by the temperature at the South Pole. So the last plane will leave around February 10th and will not come back until the first week of November, or when the temperature gets above 50 degrees, minus 50 degrees Fahrenheit. You see, I made that mistake at the South Pole because the temperature never breaches zero. We don't even say, oh, it's minus 40, minus 50. We say, oh, it's 50, because everybody knows it's minus 50. Right?

[Ian Chillock]

Oh, wow.

[Denis Barkatz]

And so in reality, although the night's time, the winter night's time is six months, obviously the time when you are isolated, when you don't have a contact, is a little over, is a little nine months. It's close to nine months. And so that last plane leaving, you're right, is a really big moment. And I remember it super clearly, because when that last plane leaves, you're like, did I really make the right choice? This life choice that I'm making.

[Ian Chillock]

Thinking about this town in Alaska and other towns that are entering this period where the sun is not going to come up, did you come up with certain techniques or ideas of how to handle it that we might want to pass on to people there?

[Denis Barkatz]

I Mean, so I felt like I needed newness. Things were always routine, right? It's the same weather. It's cold, dark, and windy. Same people, the same buildings, the same everything. And so anything that sounded quirky or new or fun, I would just say, all right, let's give it a try.

[Mike Danforth]

One quirky thing we read about is the 300 Club. Are you in the 300 Club?

[Denis Barkatz]

Yeah, I am. Of course. Right, the 300 Club. Do you want me to explain what the 300 Club is?

[Ian Chillock]

Yes, please.

[Denis Barkatz]

What we do is we. When the temperature outside drops below minus 100 Fahrenheit, what we do is we have a sauna, which is a really nice thing. We have a sauna. We push the sauna temperature to plus 200 Fahrenheit. And so then you go in the sauna and you warm up. And you warm up, and you get your body really, really warm. And you have to mention you do this without any clothes on. So you get the sauna really, really warm on. And when you think you can't stand it anymore, because plus 200 Fahrenheit is quite warm. But when you think you can't stand it anymore, you wait another five minutes until you get your body temperature really warm. And then just with shoes on, because you really can't step on ice without anything, just with shoes on. With everything else, no clothes, you go outside, and so you go from plus 200 to minus 100, and that's 300 degrees Fahrenheit difference, therefore, the 300 Club. And you go outside, and you might think, well, you guys are crazy. That must be terrible. You must be really cold. And that's the amazing thing. Your body has an amount of heat capacity, so it actually accumulated heat. And to my own exhilarating surprise, I went outside, and you actually don't feel cold.

[Mike Danforth]

Wow.

[Denis Barkatz]

And for three, four minutes, you can actually walk around outside. Don't run, because if you run, you're gonna breathe in really cold air and burn your lungs. So you walk gently outside, and so your brain is telling you something is wrong, you should be cold, and yet your body is okay. And to me, it was actually so incredible and so mind bending to say that your brain should tell you you're. But your body was okay. That I just, you know, said, all right, let me go back for another roll. I just did it a second time.

[Mike Danforth]

Well, that does it for this week's show. What'd you learn, Ian?

[Ian Chillock]

Well, I learned that. That bees will take. Go to extreme lengths to get a mouse out of their hive.

[Mike Danforth]

Yeah, yeah, it makes sense, because. Gross.

[Ian Chillock]

You know, you hear about people who have a mouse in their house, and so they get a cat to take care of it.

[Mike Danforth]

Yeah, sure.

[Ian Chillock]

Sounds like you could also just fill your home with bees.

[Mike Danforth]

You'd bring in a beehive in your house.

[Ian Chillock]

Honestly, you don't even need the hive. You could just have the loose bees, and that way they're ready, ready to strike.

[Mike Danforth]

Oh, the classic honey trap.

[Ian Chillock]

I mean, there's, you know, Tom and Jerry, except It's. It's actually 60,000 toms.

[Mike Danforth]

Yeah, yeah.

[Ian Chillock]

Who. Who are willing to sacrifice their own lives to get this mouse out of there.

[Mike Danforth]

That is not as funny of a cartoon.

[Ian Chillock]

Yeah, especially when the bees start tearing off parts of the mouse to remove it.

[Mike Danforth]

Again, only the parts they can carry. How to Do Everything is produced by Hina Srivastava with technical direction by Lorna White.

[Ian Chillock]

Our intern is Father Time. Great work, Father Time.

[Mike Danforth]

Happy New year, Father Time.

[Ian Chillock]

2024 was fantastic. Get us your [e-mail] I'm Ian.

[Mike Danforth]

And I'm Mike. Thanks.

[Ian Chillock]

Happy New Year. Well, I think we got a call. We gotta call Maureen back and give her the news.

[Mike Danforth]

Okay. I love it.

[Maureen]

Hello?

[Mike Danforth]

Hello, Maureen.

[Maureen]

Hello?

[Mike Danforth]

Hey, it's Mike and Ian calling. How are you?

[Maureen]

I'm so happy to hear from y'all. And here is Caitlin. Hi, guys.

[Mike Danforth]

Hey, there.

[Ian Chillock]

Hey, Caitlin.

[Mike Danforth]

Well, we have an answer.

[Maureen]

Hey.

[Mike Danforth]

Okay, okay. Do you want to restate what your guesses are?

[Jesse Eisenberg]

Okay.

[Maureen]

My original guess was 50 bees.

[Mike Danforth]

50 bees.

[Ian Chillock]

Mine was seven.

[Maureen]

And Carl's. My husband's was five.

[Ian Chillock]

It would take 67 bees to carry a key.

[Mike Danforth]

Seven. Congratulations, Maureen.

[Kirsten Trainor]

I'm lying.

[Maureen]

I can't handle this. This is amazing. This is the best news I've had in a while.

[Ian Chillock]

Well, Caitlyn, you still. You can still lord it over Carl. Who?

[Maureen]

This is true. I was closer than Carl. And we know someone who guessed three. Yeah, it was much closer than her.

[Mike Danforth]

Wow.

[Maureen]

Yeah, I think we were all a little low. Except you. Except me and my perfection.

[Ian Chillock]

Now you're just spiking the football, Maureen.

[Mike Danforth]

Come on, Maureen. Act like you've been there before. Don't go in the fridge.

[Sponsor]

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