SMARTY Q: Where do hairballs go??? - Who Smarted? - Educational Podcast for Kids

Episode Summary: "SMARTY Q: Where do hairballs go???"

Podcast: Who Smarted?
Air Date: November 4, 2025
Host: Trusty Narrator (Atomic Entertainment / Starglow Media)

Overview

This lively episode of Who Smarted? celebrates the show’s fifth birthday with an extra-long edition of Smarty Qs, where the trusty narrator answers five burning questions sent in by listeners. Spanning topics from hairballs in cats and the origins of the days of the week, to the science behind sunrise, the history of pet kibble, and what makes baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani so remarkable, the episode combines fun facts, laugh-out-loud moments, and clear explanations perfect for kids, families, and curious learners of all ages.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Where Do Cats Store Hair for Hairballs?

Listener: Olivia
Timestamp: 03:18

Cats are meticulous groomers; their tongues have tiny hook-like structures called papillae that catch loose fur.
When cats lick themselves, they swallow the fur. Most of it passes through their digestive system (ends up in the litter box).
Sometimes, fur accumulates in the stomach, clumping together to form a hairball.
When the buildup is uncomfortable, the cat coughs up the hairball to clear its stomach.
Memorable line:

"When the buildup gets uncomfortable, cats cough it up to clear their stomachs. And then suddenly you, the cat owner, is doing the cleaning up." — Trusty Narrator (04:11)

2. Why Do Days of the Week Have Their Names?

Listener: Margaret and her dad
Timestamp: 04:22

The 7-day week dates back to ancient Babylonians, who based it on seven visible “planets” (including the sun and moon).
English day-names are a blend of Roman gods and Norse mythology:
- Sunday: Sun’s Day
- Monday: Moon’s Day
- Tuesday: Tiw’s Day (Norse God of war, similar to Mars)
- Wednesday: Woden’s Day (Odin, linked to Mercury)
- Thursday: Thor’s Day (like Jupiter)
- Friday: Frigg’s Day (goddess like Venus)
- Saturday: Saturn’s Day
When we say the days of the week, we're invoking ancient planets and gods!
Quote:

“So when you say the days of the week, you’re really naming them after planets and gods from thousands of years ago.” — Trusty Narrator (05:41)

3. What Makes the Sun Rise?

Listener: Robin W, AJ, Lydia, and Jasper
Timestamp: 05:48

The sun appears to rise because of Earth’s rotation on its axis (once every 24 hours).
Day and night exist because as Earth turns, different sides face the sun or face away.
The sun rising in the east and setting in the west is an illusion: “it’s Earth doing the moving.”
Quote:

“To us standing here on the ground, it looks like the sun is moving across the sky, rising in the east and setting in the west. But really it’s Earth doing the moving.” — Trusty Narrator (06:13)

4. How Was Kibble Invented and What’s in It?

Listeners: Abby & Olivia
Timestamp: 13:20

The first commercial dog biscuit was invented in 1860 by James Spratt in England, inspired by stray dogs eating leftover biscuits.
Cat kibble developed later by companies like Purina in the mid-20th century.
Kibble is made from a mix of meat/fish meal, grains, vegetables, vitamins, and minerals. Ingredients are cooked and pressed into shapes using extrusion.
The variety of shapes comes from different die cutters used during manufacturing.
Quote:

“But the goal is to make it balanced, tasty and easy to store.” — Trusty Narrator (14:10)

5. What Makes Shohei Ohtani So Great?

Listener: Vulcan
Timestamp: 14:33

Shohei Ohtani is a “two-way player”: both a top-level pitcher and an outstanding hitter.
He throws 100-mph fastballs, mixes in “nasty” sliders and splitters, and hits for both power and average.
Ohtani is known for discipline, hard work, and constant study of the game.
His unique ability to excel as both pitcher and slugger makes him stand out in modern baseball.
Memorable line:

“What makes Shohei Ohtani so good? Talent, hard work, and the ability to do what almost nobody else can as both a pitcher and a slugger.” — Trusty Narrator (15:15)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On hairballs:

"When the buildup gets uncomfortable, cats cough it up to clear their stomachs. And then suddenly you, the cat owner, is doing the cleaning up." — Trusty Narrator (04:11)
On the days of the week’s names:

"So when you say the days of the week, you’re really naming them after planets and gods from thousands of years ago." — Trusty Narrator (05:41)
On the sunrise:

“But really it’s Earth doing the moving.” — Trusty Narrator (06:13)
On kibble:

“But the goal is to make it balanced, tasty and easy to store.” — Trusty Narrator (14:10)
On Shohei Ohtani:

“Talent, hard work, and the ability to do what almost nobody else can as both a pitcher and a slugger.” — Trusty Narrator (15:15)

Timestamps of Key Segments

| Topic | Timestamp (MM:SS) | |------------------------------------------|----------------------| | Where do hairballs go? | 03:18 | | Days of the week – why those names? | 04:22 | | What makes the sun rise? | 05:48 | | When was kibble invented? What’s in it? | 13:20 | | Shohei Ohtani’s baseball greatness | 14:33 |

Tone & Engagement

The narrator maintains a friendly, humorous, and engaging tone throughout, inviting “Smarty Pants” (the audience) to think, guess, and marvel at fun facts. The balance of playful jokes, “Smarty Qs,” and sound scientific explanations make this episode as entertaining as it is informative—perfect for families or classroom listening.

Final Thoughts

This special edition makes learning a delight by answering real listener questions with stories, science, and a sprinkle of silly. Whether you wonder about cats, calendars, or baseball heroes, Who Smarted? delivers knowledge with a laugh, making it a must-listen for curious minds.

Transcript

A (0:01)

Happy birthday to us. That's right, WhoSmarted turned five years old this month. How exciting. That's not all. WhoSmarted also reached 25 million downloads. And that's because of you, our Smarty Pants listeners. And to celebrate, we want to give you a gift. What is this gift you're wondering? I'm glad you asked. If you love WhoSmarted, I'm sure you've heard us mention our WhoSmarted plus subscription. You know, the one that gives you a brand new bonus episode every week. Plus every episode of WhoSmarted. Trusty trivia and Smartyq's ad free. Not to mention subscribers directly support WhoSmarted so we can keep making the show for many more years to come. And to show our appreciation to you, we're offering a 50% discount on our annual subscription. We've never done this before. Instead of $39.99 for a full year of smarting, you can subscribe to WhoSmarted plus for just 1998 a year. That's right. Who Smarted plus is half off? Quick quiz, smarty pants. Is 1998 a year the same as A, $1.67 a month, B, 38 cents a week, or C, a nickel a day? Did you say all of the above? You're right. Just think of all the time you'll save not listening to ads while enjoying subscriber only special episodes. That's got to be worth at least five cents a day, right? Of course, in offer, this good can't last forever, so you must subscribe by November 15th to lock in your 50% off WhoSmarted plus subscription. Again, that's 50% off our WhoSmarted plus subscription, just $19.98 for the entire year by November 15th. To join the celebration, go to our website WhoSmarted.com and click Birthday Subscribe. This offer is only available directly through our website@whosmarted.com and don't worry, you can play your subscription on Apple Podcast, Spotify or any other podcast platform. But to get the special birthday price, you have to go to whosmarted.com and click Birthday subscribe in the top menu. But remember, you only have until November 15th, so sign up@whosmarted.com today. Hey there, Smarty pants. Welcome to another jam packed episode of Smarty QS where I, the trusty narrator, answer questions from you, our brilliant Smarty Pants listeners. Today we've got an extra long episode with five amazing questions. So buckle up and let's start smarting. Our first question comes from Olivia who asks where do cats store the hair for hairballs? Well, Olivia, as you might know, cats are excellent groomers. They lick themselves with their special tongues that have tiny hook like structures called papillae. Those papillae are great for cleaning, but they also pick up loose fur. When a cat swallows that fur, most of it passes right through their digestive system and comes out in the litter box. But sometimes the fur collects in the stomach instead of moving along over time, it clumps together into what we call a hairball. When the buildup gets uncomfortable, cats cough it up to clear their stomachs. And then suddenly you, the cat owner, is doing the cleaning up. Okay, next question. This one comes from Margaret and her dad who ask, how did the days of the week get their names? Ooh, history time. The seven day week comes from ancient civilizations like the Babylonians who tied it to the seven large visible objects they could see in the sky. At the time, they thought they were all planets and they included the sun, the moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn. The names we use today in English mostly come from a mix of Roman gods and later Norse mythology. Sunday equals Monday equals Moon's day. Tuesday equals Tewsday. Tew was the Norse God of war like Mars. Wednesday equals Woden's day. Odin linked to Mercury. Thursday equals Thor's day like Jupiter. And Friday equals Friggs day. She was a goddess like Venus. And finally, Saturday equals Saturn's day. So when you say the days of the week, you're really naming them after planets and gods from thousands of years ago. Next, Robin W and kids aj, Lydia and Jasper want to know what makes the sun rise. Awesome question. The truth is the sun itself isn't moving up and down. What makes the sun rise is actually Earth's rotation. The Earth spins on its axis once every 24 hours. As it turns, the side facing the sun gets daylight and the side facing away enjoys night. To us standing here on the ground, it looks like the sun is moving across the sky, rising in the east and setting in the west. But really it's Earth doing the moving. Okay, smarty pants, we've got two more fantastic questions coming up, including one about a baseball superstar. We'll get to those right after a quick break and a word from our sponsors. This show is sponsored by Wayfair. You know how the holidays kind of sneak up and suddenly your home needs to feel warmer and cozier and, you know, ready for guests? That was me. I realized our living room was looking a little tired, so I jumped on Wayfair's. Black Friday sale, and I ended up with the perfect cozy upgrades. I got a new rug that instantly pulled the whole room together. I got some great couch covers that made everything look brand new, and a pair of lamps that totally changed the mood of the space. And everything came f like, really fast. And it all looked even better in person. That is what I love about Wayfair. The selection is huge, and the prices right now are wild. Up to 70% off. Everything from rugs to cookware to holiday decor. So if you've been meaning to freshen up your space before the holidays, this is the moment. Don't miss out on early Black Friday deals. Head to Wayfair.com now to shop Wayfairs Black Friday deals for up to 70% off. That's W A Y-F-A-I R.com sale ends December 7th. Who smarted is brought to you by Squarespace. Now, you know I'm good about creating new adventures and episodes of WhoSmarted, but you don't know that I procrastinate on other stuff, like a website for one of our new projects. Oops. When the website builder Squarespace reached out about sponsoring Whosmarted, I decided to test it out. And now I feel silly for putting off building that website. Squarespace's blueprint AI thing literally built me a custom website in minutes. I just told it a few details about the project, and boom, it generated everything. And everything you need is right there. I can schedule guest interviews, send email campaigns, even sell merch, all from one dashboard. Now it's your turn to stop procrastinating. Fascinating. And start building. You can use Squarespace to launch that business site or any site that you've been dreaming about. But putting off today, there's no excuse anymore. Especially since you can head to squarespace.com smarted for a free trial. And when you're ready to launch, you can use Code smarted to save 10% on your first purchase of a website or domain. That's squarespace.com smarted code smarted and we're back with our next smarty Q. Abby and Olivia ask, when was dog or kitty kibble invented and what's in it? Kibble, the dry, crunchy pet food that you see today, was first made for dogs in 1860 by a man named James Spratt. In England. He noticed stray dogs eating leftover biscuits, so he invented the first commercial dog biscuit. Cat kibble came later in the mid 20th century when companies like Purina developed formulas just for cats. So what's in kibble. Usually it's a mix of meat or fish meal, grains, vegetables, vitamins and minerals, all cooked and pressed into bite sized pieces. The interesting shapes come from the extrusion process where the pet food is forced through a die cutter in whatever size and shape the brand wants, but the goal is to make it balanced, tasty and easy to store. And finally, my smarty friend Vulcan asks what makes Shohei Ohtani such a good baseball player? Shohei Ohtani is special because he's what's called a two way player. He's both a top level pitcher and a great hitter, something that's extremely rare in modern baseball. As a pitcher, he throws a fastball over 100 mph and mixes it with nasty sliders and splitters. As a hitter, he crushes massive home runs while hitting for both power and average. He's also incredibly disciplined, training hard and studying the game constantly. But what makes Shohei Ohtani so good? Talent, hard work and the ability to do what almost nobody else can as both a pitcher and a slugger. And there you have it. Five fantastic questions answered. If you have a question you'd like me to answer, just email me@whosmartedhoosmarted.com until next time. Keep on smarting, smarty pants. Sam.