WeWow Creepy Crawly Week - Day 3: Dennis’s Pest-aurant (10/29/25)

Summary

Wow in the World – WeWow Creepy Crawly Week, Day 3: Dennis’s Pest-aurant

Release Date: October 29, 2025
Hosts: Mindy Thomas & Guy Raz
Special Guests/Characters: Dennis, Reggie, Mindy's pet cockroach Smokey McDougal, Mr. Fingerling
Episode Theme: Exploring “creepy crawly” insects with a focus on the fascinating talents of the glassy-winged sharpshooter, and discovering the science behind its unique “pee propulsion” superpower.

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Episode Overview

Day 3 of “WeWow Creepy Crawly Week” brings comedy and science together as Dennis and Reggie attempt to care for Mindy’s pet cockroach—culminating in a wild culinary adventure and an imaginative trip to a movie theater. The group learns all about a peculiar insect, the glassy-winged sharpshooter, whose claim to fame is its supernatural ability to propel droplets of pee at world-record speeds. The hosts share the real-life science behind this, blending fun storytelling, fact-finding, and the usual Wow in the World zaniness.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Dennis’s Pest-aurant: “Feeding the Cockroach”

[02:09 – 06:35]

• Dennis and Reggie realize Mindy’s cockroach ('Smokey McDougal') needs to be fed.
• They decide to invent a fancy dish: “Beef Wellington,” made from scavenged old snacks like cracker crumbs, a dried carrot stick (“the beef”), and mushy fruit snacks (“the pate”).
• Quirky cooking segment highlights Dennis’s wild imagination and resourcefulness.
• “Ta da! Beef Wellington.” – Dennis ([05:43])
• The cockroach accepts the meal, inspiring Dennis to imagine opening a “roachstar-aurant.”

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2. The Movie Theater Escapade & Insect Heroes

[08:09 – 13:01]

• The gang goes to a movie theater, bringing snacks from home, and causing chaos with their noise and antics.
• Hilarious banter occurs as they await a movie. Dennis drinks from a bucket-sized lemonade and quickly needs a bathroom break.
• They see a (fake) movie trailer: “Super Propulsion: Rise of the Glassy Winged Sharpshooter.”
• Theater staff evict them for noise and outside food, eliciting a classic pun:
  • “Well, we’re inside, so it’s inside food.” – Smokey McDougal ([11:22])
• The concept of insects as superheroes is introduced.

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3. Real-Life Science: The Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter

[13:02 – 22:04]

A. The Search for the Insect

• Guy Raz reveals the glassy-winged sharpshooter is a real bug, sparking a group bug-hunting trek armed with “magnifying goggles.”
• “Let’s get into the forest so we can start looking.” – Mindy ([14:31])

B. Science of the Sharpshooter

• They spot the insect: “A bug landed on me! ... It’s trespassing on my shoulder!” – Dennis ([15:56])
• Description: Small and brown, clear “glassy” wings with yellowish base, about 12 mm long.
• The bug’s “superpower” is real: “Not only do they pee…but this particular bug can pee with more power than any other known creature on Earth.” – Mindy ([17:11])
• Science intro: The phenomenon is based on a real study by biophysicist Saad Bamla of Georgia Tech.

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4. Story Time Style: The Science in Narrative Form

[18:42 – 25:16]

A. Meet the Biophysicist & the Pee-Shooting Bug

• Mindy and Guy tell the story of Saad Bamla, who discovers the bug’s talent in his backyard.
• “She was peeing.” – Mindy ([20:18])
• Sharpshooters drink xylem sap from plants, which is 95% water; they consume up to 300 times their body weight daily—thus, they “pee” nearly constantly.

B. The Evolution of ‘Butt Flicker’ Propulsion

• Instead of a continuous stream, the bug accumulates droplets, then uses a “butt flicker” (a real anatomical structure) to flick pee away from its body:
  • “When it was time to pee, she would open her butt flicker… twist her butt and produce a single droplet of pee.” – Guy Raz ([22:14])
  • “And just as the droplet grew…the butt flicker would launch that little pee droplet into the air and away from her body.” – Mindy ([22:36])
• Pee droplets travel at super-high speeds, demonstrating “super propulsion”—moving faster than the part flinging it!
• This method is 4-8 times more energy-efficient than a continuous stream.
• “Super propulsion happens when the thing being launched moves faster than the launcher itself.” – Mindy ([25:02])
• Notable quote: “Butt flicking pee is the only way for me.” – Smokey McDougal ([24:36])
• This is the tiniest known case of animal super-propulsion, and it may someday inspire new technology.

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5. Science Wrap-Up & Cartoonish Banter

[25:17 – 27:37]

• The real scientific study is dramatized; the bug becomes “rich and famous” ([26:08]).
• The gang jokes about sequels and movie franchises.
• “I want to do the voiceover: Once upon a time, butt-flicking super-propulsion pee became super-duper popular…” – Dennis ([27:13])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “I’m the best chef in the world! Reggie, we should open a roachstar-aurant!” – Dennis ([06:14])
• “She may be small, but she never cowers. For the Glassy Winged Sharpshooter is loaded…” – Theater Usher/Staff ([09:46])
• “With pee pee power!” – Reggie ([09:53])
• “Bugs go pee?!” – Dennis ([17:10])
• “Super propulsion happens when the thing being launched moves faster than the launcher itself.” – Mindy ([25:02])
• “Butt flicking pee is the only way for me. Hey!” – Smokey McDougal ([24:36])
• “Hey everyone, get a load of this pee flinging bug. Okay bug, do your trick.” – Reggie as scientist Saad Bamla ([25:44])

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [02:09] — Dennis’s “Pest-aurant” segment
• [06:35] — Cockroach dines / start of “restaurant” comedy
• [08:09] — The group heads to the movie theater
• [09:07] — Theater superhero bug trailer and chaos
• [13:02] — Transition to real science, start of forest bug hunt
• [15:56] — Discovery and description of the glassy-winged sharpshooter
• [17:02] — Introduction of the bug’s “pee powers”
• [18:42] — Science story time: Saad Bamla and research
• [22:14] — Explaining the “butt flicker” and pee propulsion
• [25:02] — Definition and explanation of “super propulsion”
• [26:05] — The bug’s rise to fame, wrap-up

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Tone and Style

Playful, pun-filled, and energetic, with the show’s trademark mix of slapstick humor and accessible scientific facts. The hosts and characters shift seamlessly between silly roleplay and real science, keeping the tone light and engaging for kids and adults.

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Summary

On Day 3 of Creepy Crawly Week, Dennis’s attempt at fine dining turns into a chaotic, comedic, and surprisingly educational journey featuring a cockroach, a fake superhero movie trailer, and a deep dive into the amazing abilities of the glassy-winged sharpshooter insect. The team learns how this bug uses its “butt flicker” to launch droplets of pee at incredible speeds—an amazing real-world example of super propulsion, now inspiring scientists everywhere. Perfect for bug-lovers, junior scientists, and anyone who likes their science with a healthy dose of glee and giggles.

Transcript

[Guy Raz]

Grown Ups Wondery subscribers can listen to wow in the World early and ad free right now. Join Wondery in the Wondery App or Wondery Kids plus on Apple Podcasts.

[Mindy Thomas]

Hey wowzer Fams. Mindy and Guy Raz here. And before we start the show, did you hear that we are on YouTube.

[Guy Raz]

That's right Mindy Wowzer Fams. You can find full episodes of wow. In the World and more of your favorite Tinkercast podcasts on our YouTube channel, WowTube.

[Mindy Thomas]

Plus on WowTube, you can also watch me explode some watermelons and test out Bonkerball's experiments in the laboratory of bad ideas.

[Guy Raz]

Or you can dance along with Dennis for music videos featuring music from WEW on the weekend.

[Mindy Thomas]

There is so much in store made just for you on WowTube. Visit Tinkercast.com YouTube to watch. Now that's Tinkercast.com YouTube.

[Narrator/Announcer]

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[Guy Raz]

Ew.

[Dennis]

Slimy squiggly little icky buggies Flies and beetles and ants are so yucky Nasty critters scurrying and squirming and wriggling and slithering and I'm gonna barf black Creepy Crawly Week Creepy Crawly Week Things with win too many legs grows Creepy Crawly Week Creepy Crawly Week Crawly Week Crawly Week Crawly Week hello and welcome to day three of Wee Wow. Creepy Crawly Week. I'm your host Dennis and that's my co host Reggie. And we're also joined by Mindy's pet cockroach, Smokey McDougal. No Reggie, Smokey is not a cool guy. He's slimy and scuttly and creeps Me out. I know, I know. We have to take good care of him because we told Mindy we would. Or rather, Mindy told me I would. By the way, did she send me more instructions today? Okay, let's see him. Dear Dennis, please make sure to feed Smokey every day. Feed him. Feed him. What? Well, it looks like all the food Mindy put in his tank is gone. No, Reggie, I didn't see what he was eating. I was busy being gross. Well, now what are we gonna do? Oh, good idea. Let's do a cooking segment.

[Reggie]

Ahem.

[Dennis]

Dish it up on a dish. Anything that you wish. Take a bite. That's delish. Dishing it up with Dennis and Reggie. Today on Dishing it up with Dennis and Reggie, we're making a delicious, nutritious dish for Mindy's pet cockroach. Oh, I was thinking beef Wellington. No, I don't know what beef welling. I picked it because it sounds fancy. And if I make a fancy dish, Mindy will think we did a really great job of taking care of Smokey McDougal. Well, do you know what beef Wellington is? Okay. It's a big piece of beef with mushroom pate on it. And mushroom pate is mushrooms mushed up into a spread. Right, I knew that. And then that's wrapped in pastry dough. Ooh. Oh, yeah, I can make that, no problem. Let's just see what we have in the pantry. And by pantry, I mean couch cushions. Alright, what do we got under here? Ooh, so many ingredients. We got a lot of cracker crumbs, a super dried out carrot stick with a bite out of it, and oh, look, some limited edition fruit snacks. They don't even make this flavor anymore.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Mmm.

[Dennis]

Teriyaki grape. Okay, I think this is gonna work. Let me just grab all this stuff. All right, so this old carrot stick can be the beef, and we'll mush up the fruit snacks. Like this. Ew, sticky. No, Reggie, this is the pate. We're just gonna kinda wipe it on the beef carrot and then we just roll the sticky beef carrot around in the cracker crumbs. I mean, puff pastry. There we go. Ta da. Beef Wellington. Oh, yeah. We need a teeny tiny plate for it. Um, how about one of my static man buttons? Just lay that like that and this goes on there. Oh, wow. Is that restaurant quality or What? Okay, Smokey McDougal, dinner is served. Or no wait, what time is it? I mean, lunch is served. Okay, Reggie put it in his tank. He's looking at it. He's going up to the beef Wellington. Oh, he's sniffing it, I think. Do cockroaches have noses?

[Mindy Thomas]

He is. Yes.

[Dennis]

He's eating it.

[Mindy Thomas]

Hooray.

[Dennis]

I'm the best chef in the world. Reggie, we should open a roachstar on hurry. We need ambiance. Go dim the lights. I'm gonna put on an episode of wow in the World for lunchtime entertainment. Let's see this. Oh, thank you, Reggie. Okay, just gotta check in on my guest, Smokey McDougal.

[Reggie]

Ahem.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Ahem.

[Dennis]

Good afternoon, sir. Are you enjoying your meal? Very good, sir. Very good. Our podcast special tonight is wow in the World, Season 8, Episode 17, called the Rise of the Glassy Winged Sharpshooter. Okay, very good, sir. Here we go. And play.

[Reggie]

Wee.

[Mindy Thomas]

Wow. We'll be right back. Grown ups, this message is for you. Hey, grownups, what happens when you bring a great white shark and a baby octopus to your house? A whole lot of wow. Hey, it's me, Mindy from Wow in the World, the number one science podcast for curious kids and their grown ups. And we are so excited to bring the wows of sharks and sea creatures to your home without having to turn your house into an aquarium. Our jumbo great white shark is 24 inches long and comes with an exclusive wow fact card. Our baby ocean animals are perfect for the little ones in your life. Featuring exclusive audio that will leave the whole family saying, aw. These wow in the World toys make for fin tastic gifts for the kids in your life who love science and even the ones who don't. Yet grown ups visit Tinkercast.com Toys to shop the wow. Now that's Tinkercast.com Toys. That's it. Now back to the show.

[Dennis]

What in the world?

[Mindy Thomas]

These are our seats right here.

[Guy Raz]

Okay, everyone get settled carefully. Careful. Sorry.

[Mindy Thomas]

Oops.

[Dennis]

Sorry.

[Guy Raz]

I am so excited. The movie trailers are about to begin.

[Mindy Thomas]

My favorite part. Everyone got their popcorn?

[Reggie]

I brought corned beef.

[Mindy Thomas]

What? Where did you get that?

[Reggie]

From the deli.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

It's got the juice.

[Dennis]

No, I've got the juice.

[Guy Raz]

What?

[Dennis]

I bought an extra extra extra large lemonade.

[Guy Raz]

What the Is that a five gallon bucket of lemonade? Dennis.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Mm?

[Mindy Thomas]

You're not gonna make it past the first trailer without having to go to the bathroom.

[Dennis]

I have to tinkle.

[Reggie]

Quiet.

[Mindy Thomas]

Shh.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

You shush.

[Guy Raz]

Everyone, please stay quiet. The trailers are about to begin.

[Theater Usher/Staff]

In our world, insects are seen as pests.

[Mindy Thomas]

Ew.

[Dennis]

An ugly bug. Get it. Get it.

[Theater Usher/Staff]

But in another reality, bugs are heroes.

[Dennis]

Look, it's Bumblebee, the pollination chapter.

[Theater Usher/Staff]

And among the Bug superheroes. One tiny creature stands out from the rest.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Look.

[Dennis]

That little bug stands out from the rest.

[Reggie]

Could it be?

[Mindy Thomas]

That's right. It's me. The Glassy Wing Sharpshooter. Wow.

[Theater Usher/Staff]

She may be small, but she never cowers. For the Glassy Winged Sharpshooter is loaded.

[Reggie]

With pee pee power.

[Dennis]

Oh, now I really have to go hurt my life.

[Theater Usher/Staff]

From the masterminds at the Journal, Nature Communications, and scientists at the Georgia Institute of Technology comes Super Propulsion. Rise of the Glassy Winged Sharpshooter.

[Mindy Thomas]

Get ready to get super soaked.

[Dennis]

This is gonna be amazing.

[Mindy Thomas]

Psst.

[Reggie]

Tommy.

[Dennis]

Where's the bathroom?

[Mindy Thomas]

What?

[Reggie]

I don't know.

[Dennis]

You're no help. Excuse me, random stranger. Can you please direct me to the nearest restroom?

[Guy Raz]

Random stranger? Dennis, it's me, Guy Raz.

[Dennis]

Well, I'm sorry. It's very dark in here.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Just do like I do and super soak your pants, boy.

[Dennis]

I don't want to super soak my pants. I want to know where the bathroom is.

[Guy Raz]

None of us know where the bathroom is. Dennis, go out and look for one.

[Dennis]

But what if I get lost?

[Mindy Thomas]

Shh. Dennis, you're not gonna get lost.

[Dennis]

Just go out.

[Theater Usher/Staff]

Excuse me. We're getting a lot of noise complaints. And so now you all have to leave.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

No, thank you.

[Theater Usher/Staff]

Uh, but why?

[Mindy Thomas]

We just got here.

[Reggie]

Can I offer you some corned beef, sir?

[Theater Usher/Staff]

Um, no. And where did you get that?

[Reggie]

From the deli.

[Theater Usher/Staff]

You're talking during the movie, and you brought in outside food?

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Well, we're inside, so it's inside food.

[Theater Usher/Staff]

You all need to leave right now. Come along, please.

[Mindy Thomas]

But.

[Guy Raz]

Come on, Mindy. Come on, everyone. Let's go.

[Dennis]

We'll be back.

[Reggie]

And with even more corned beef for.

[Mindy Thomas]

The premiere of Super Propulsion. Rise of the Glassy Winged Sharpshooter. Coming to this theater this summer, ma'. Am. Okay, sorry, we're leaving.

[Guy Raz]

Well, that was embarrassing. What?

[Mindy Thomas]

What?

[Dennis]

What are we gonna do now?

[Reggie]

Yeah, I'm bored.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Yeah. Entertain us, Mandy.

[Reggie]

Yeah, Mandy.

[Mindy Thomas]

Well, we have a pretty long hike through the woods to get back home, so maybe we could.

[Guy Raz]

Wait, I have an idea.

[Mindy Thomas]

What?

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

You do this better. My God.

[Dennis]

Yeah.

[Guy Raz]

Remember how we just watched a movie trailer for the Glassy Winged Sharpshooter?

[Mindy Thomas]

Yeah.

[Guy Raz]

Well, I know, I know it was a superhero movie, but did you know that the Glassy Winged Sharpshooter is, in fact, a real insect?

[Dennis]

Tell us more, Guy Raz.

[Mindy Thomas]

Why tell you when you can show us?

[Guy Raz]

Yes. I mean, maybe.

[Reggie]

Maybe.

[Guy Raz]

Well, like Mindy said, we do have a long hike home through the forest, so Maybe we could find one.

[Mindy Thomas]

Find a Glassy winged sharpshooter in the wild?

[Guy Raz]

Sure, why not?

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Nope. Too small.

[Mindy Thomas]

What?

[Reggie]

Can't you hear? Nothing. She said it's too small.

[Guy Raz]

Huh?

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

The glassy winged whatchamacallit is too small. They only average about 12 millimeters in length. How am I supposed to see that?

[Mindy Thomas]

It's okay. Don't you worry. Because here in my adventure tool kit, I've got.

[Reggie]

I've got.

[Dennis]

Cats.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Mindy's got cats?

[Dennis]

Yeah, and Mindy needs to come up with a new joke.

[Mindy Thomas]

No, no. I've got magnifying goggles.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Ooh. Well, well.

[Mindy Thomas]

Here's a pair for you, Guy Raz.

[Guy Raz]

Thank you.

[Mindy Thomas]

And here you go, Dennis. Grandma G Force a pair for you, Mr. Fingerling.

[Dennis]

Kuwa. How do they work?

[Mindy Thomas]

Okay, well, let me help you here. Dennis. First of all, you put them on like this.

[Dennis]

Ow.

[Mindy Thomas]

And then you switch them on with this button here. Ah.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Okay, so what are we looking for? Garage.

[Guy Raz]

First of all, it's Guy Raz. And second of all, the Glassy winged sharpshooter insect we're looking for is a small brown insect about as big as the tip of my pinky finger.

[Reggie]

All right, let's have a look at this pinky finger everyone's talking about.

[Mindy Thomas]

What?

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

No.

[Reggie]

Okay, fine. Sheesh.

[Mindy Thomas]

Okay, come on, everyone. Let's get into the forest so we can start looking.

[Guy Raz]

All right.

[Dennis]

Oh, boy. Let's sing songs. Over the river and through the woods To Grandmother's house we go Sky Ross knows the way to Chesapeake Bay and Mindy has tennis elbow over the river.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Don't why don't you know any other sounds?

[Mindy Thomas]

Um.

[Dennis]

Now.

[Mindy Thomas]

Okay, so. Oh, Guy Raz.

[Guy Raz]

Yes?

[Mindy Thomas]

This glassy winged sharpshooter, it's small and brown, no bigger than the size of a fingertip.

[Reggie]

Pinky fingertip.

[Mindy Thomas]

Right. And its wings are clear and glassy with a yellowish tint at the base.

[Dennis]

Okay, so it looks like a bug.

[Guy Raz]

Yes, yes, exactly. It looks like a bug.

[Dennis]

But it's not actually a bug, right?

[Mindy Thomas]

What?

[Guy Raz]

No. I mean, yes, Dennis. It's actually a bug.

[Dennis]

Ah. Ew.

[Mindy Thomas]

Searching, searching, searching, searching.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

I'm tired.

[Guy Raz]

What? Grandma G Force, don't just sit down in the middle of the trail.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Why not?

[Reggie]

Yeah, Mr. Rossi, why not?

[Guy Raz]

Well, because you'll block them.

[Mindy Thomas]

It's fine, Guy Raz. We'll just leave a trail of breadcrumbs. They'll find their way back home.

[Guy Raz]

Dennis.

[Mindy Thomas]

What is it? Dennis?

[Dennis]

A bug. A bug landed on me. Get it off. Get it off. Mindy, help.

[Mindy Thomas]

Where is it?

[Dennis]

Right there. It's trespassing on my shoulder.

[Mindy Thomas]

Okay, hold still. Wait a minute. That's not just any bug. That's a.

[Guy Raz]

A glassy winged sharpshooter.

[Dennis]

Well, tell it to go creepy. Crawl around somewhere else. My shoulder is private property.

[Guy Raz]

This is incredible. I've never seen one so close up before. I have to admit, I'm feeling a little starstruck.

[Mindy Thomas]

Yeah, she's a little movie star. Too bad we'll never see your movie. Little glassy winged sharpshooter. We've been kicked out of the movie theater for the last time.

[Guy Raz]

Wait a minute, Mindy.

[Mindy Thomas]

What? Guy Raz.

[Guy Raz]

What if we didn't have to see her superhero movie to witness her powers to in action?

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

You mean her pee pee powers?

[Dennis]

Well, bugs don't really have pee pee powers, Granny G. That was just made up for the movie.

[Guy Raz]

Actually, Dennis, it wasn't.

[Dennis]

What? You mean this glassy winged sharpshooter actually has pee pee powers?

[Mindy Thomas]

Uh huh.

[Dennis]

Bugs go pee.

[Mindy Thomas]

Not only do they pee or urinate rather, but this particular bug can pee with more power than any other known creature on Earth.

[Dennis]

Oh, wow.

[Guy Raz]

Yeah, Mindy and I were doing a little scientific research before the movie.

[Reggie]

Brag.

[Dennis]

Why were you doing research on a movie?

[Mindy Thomas]

Because the movie was based off of a real life scientific study published in the journal Nature Communications.

[Dennis]

Huh.

[Guy Raz]

And in this study, a biophysicist from the Georgia Institute of Technology named Saad Bamla.

[Dennis]

Hold on, hold on.

[Guy Raz]

What?

[Dennis]

Dennis, did you say a biosynthesist?

[Guy Raz]

No, no, no, no. A biophysicist.

[Dennis]

Oh, what's that?

[Mindy Thomas]

I got this guy Raz. Dennis, a biophysicist is a scientist who studies the way living things work using physics.

[Guy Raz]

Ah, right. So a biophysicist might study the mechanical way that humans or plants or animals move and make energy.

[Dennis]

Got it.

[Mindy Thomas]

And to do this, they might zoom all the way into the most basic cel.

[Dennis]

They zoom in, like with magnifying goggles?

[Guy Raz]

Well, they've got their own ways of magnifying in the form of microscopes and other tools, but essentially, yes.

[Mindy Thomas]

Huh.

[Dennis]

Okay, continue.

[Guy Raz]

All right, now where was I?

[Dennis]

You were at the beginning. I interrupted you after, like, four words.

[Guy Raz]

Oh, right, you did.

[Mindy Thomas]

You know what, Guy Raz, maybe it's best that we do this story time style.

[Guy Raz]

Story time style?

[Mindy Thomas]

Yeah, yeah, like this.

[Dennis]

Ooh.

[Mindy Thomas]

Once upon a time, a young biophysicist named Saad Bamla was walking around his backyard enjoying a sunny day.

[Reggie]

Ah, I just love the sun and my yard and croquet.

[Mindy Thomas]

What? No. Saad Bamla. Does not like croquet.

[Reggie]

Huh? How do you know?

[Mindy Thomas]

Just pick something more science y.

[Reggie]

Fine. I just love the sun and my yard and complex systems.

[Mindy Thomas]

That's better.

[Guy Raz]

Then when, much to his surprise, he came upon a small brown insect with beautiful glassy wings and big red eyes.

[Reggie]

What big red eyes you have? What even are you?

[Mindy Thomas]

It was a beautiful glassy winged sharpshooter.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

That's me.

[Guy Raz]

Now, he had seen this bug many times before. But this time there was something different about her. Something unusual. Something he'd never seen a bug do before.

[Reggie]

What in the World Wide Web are you doing? G force? I mean, mystery bug?

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Sweet relief.

[Mindy Thomas]

She was peeing.

[Reggie]

That is both gross and amazing.

[Guy Raz]

You see, this sharpshooter bug had been drinking from a plant that provided her with endless amounts of a gooey substance called xylem SAP.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Yum, yum, yum. Get it in my tongue.

[Mindy Thomas]

And while this SAP was full of nourishing minerals and nutrients, it was also full of a little something called water.

[Dennis]

Oh, water. I've heard of that, Dennis. Oh, sorry, sorry, sorry. Continue.

[Guy Raz]

Now, this SAP was actually 95% water. And the little sharpshooter had been drinking up to 300 times from her body weight in a single day.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Glug, glug, glug. I'm a thirsty little bug.

[Mindy Thomas]

Which meant that when she wasn't drinking, she was.

[Dennis]

Oh wow.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Sweet relief.

[Guy Raz]

In fact, she spent so much of her day peeing that she had to come up with an energy efficient way to do it.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

I'm not gonna waste all my energy going to the bathroom all day long. Pee, pee. You're gonna work for me.

[Mindy Thomas]

You see, while other SAP drinking insects preferred to pee jet stream style, the glassy winged sharpshooter was not like other insects.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

You got that right.

[Guy Raz]

Over time, she and her ancestors had evolved to pee a little, a little.

[Mindy Thomas]

More efficiently with a little help from a tiny tail like appendage that Saad Bamla later nicknamed the Butt Flicker.

[Reggie]

Huh?

[Guy Raz]

When it was time to pee, she would open her butt flicker, Butt flicker activates, twist her butt and produce a. A single droplet of pee.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

That's a lot for little old me.

[Mindy Thomas]

And just as the droplet grew to the perfect size, her butt flicker would wind up and launch that little pea droplet into the air and away from her body.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

So long, little pee pee.

[Reggie]

Right into my eye.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Oh snap. My bad.

[Reggie]

I forgive ya.

[Guy Raz]

Thomas Fingerling. I mean, Saad Bamla the scientist, invited her to come back to his lab so he could get a closer look.

[Reggie]

Okay, little Buggy, you're coming with me.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Wow. So you can watch a little bug pee.

[Reggie]

Yeah, but with all my fancy science microscopes and high speed video equipment and laboratory stuff.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Okay, let's go.

[Reggie]

Okay.

[Guy Raz]

And off they went back to Saad Bamla's laboratory at the Georgia Institute of Technology. And using high speed video and magnification tools, he continued to observe this little sharpshooter and her unusual peeing style.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Sweet relief.

[Reggie]

Hoopie again.

[Dennis]

Again.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Ah, sweet relief.

[Reggie]

Okay, cool. Now let's watch that back in slow motion. All right. There goes the butt flicker. Looks to be moving pretty fast. And here goes the p droplet to the air.

[Guy Raz]

And sweet.

[Mindy Thomas]

What Saad Bamla discovered was that the little little pee droplets were whizzing through the air almost twice as fast as her butt flicker was flinging.

[Reggie]

You mean flicking.

[Mindy Thomas]

Whatever.

[Guy Raz]

He also discovered that this particular way of peeing used four to eight times less energy than if she were to produce a jet stream of pee.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

But licking pee is the only way for me. Hey.

[Reggie]

Wow. Look at her go.

[Guy Raz]

It didn't take long before Saad Bamla realized that this was the case of super propulsion.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

You got that right.

[Mindy Thomas]

Super propulsion happens when the thing being launched moves faster than the launcher itself.

[Guy Raz]

And while we know that other animals have spring loaded appendages to help them jump or fly, this was the the first time an animal this small had ever been known to use super propulsion.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

I'm the best at super propulsion.

[Mindy Thomas]

And what makes it even more wow is that a creature this small could fling a heavy pee droplet the size of a bug sized beach ball away from its body so fast.

[Reggie]

By golly, I've never seen anything like it.

[Guy Raz]

It was a new discovery.

[Reggie]

It was. Oh boy.

[Mindy Thomas]

So Sod Bomble ran outside and blabbed about it to all of his scientist friends.

[Reggie]

Hey everyone, get a load of this pee flinging bug. Okay, bug, do your trick.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

I anchor monkey.

[Mindy Thomas]

What?

[Guy Raz]

Eventually his discovery was published in the scientific journal Nature Communications.

[Mindy Thomas]

And soon everyone was was talking about the glassy winged sharpshooter.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

I'm rich and famous now.

[Reggie]

You sure are.

[Guy Raz]

And the glassy winged sharpshooter and the biophysicist lived happily ever after.

[Mindy Thomas]

The end.

[Dennis]

Hooray. Okay, now roll the credits.

[Guy Raz]

The credits?

[Dennis]

Yeah, the credits for the movie we just watched. I want to see who did what.

[Mindy Thomas]

Dennis, we didn't watch a movie. We just told a story.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Well, I played the role of the pay flecking bug.

[Mindy Thomas]

Ooh.

[Reggie]

And I played the role of the handsome young scientist.

[Dennis]

Oh wow.

[Mindy Thomas]

Dennis.

[Dennis]

And Now I'll play the role of the film critic. 5 stars. A must see.

[Guy Raz]

Well, I guess maybe it did feel a little like a movie.

[Mindy Thomas]

Yeah, and we didn't even get kicked out.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Oh.

[Dennis]

Okay. Now let's talk. I'm thinking trilogy.

[Reggie]

Yeah, speak to my agent.

[Guy Raz]

You know, maybe the sequel will be how scientists take what they've learned from this discovery and use it to create.

[Mindy Thomas]

An invention that will save the world.

[Dennis]

I want to do the voiceover.

[Guy Raz]

What?

[Dennis]

Once upon a time, butt licking super propulsion pee became super duper popular. Oh.

[Guy Raz]

Ooh.

[Dennis]

And the tiny bug that started it all.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

That's me.

[Dennis]

Became super best friends with a handsome young scientist.

[Reggie]

I'm de aged with cgi, but my muscles are real.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Oh, well.

[Dennis]

Well, coming this summer to a theater near you. It's a movie narrated by me, Dennis, the greatest narrator in the universe. What is what.

[Mindy Thomas]

Grownups if you like wow in the World, you can listen early and ad free right now on Wondery.

[Guy Raz]

Join Wondery in the Wondery app or on Wondery Kids on Apple Podcasts prime members can listen ad free on Amazon Music.

[Mindy Thomas]

And before you go, tell us about yourself by filling out a short [e-mail].

[Guy Raz]

Wow in the world is written by Mindy Thomas and Tom Van Kalkin with help from me, Guy Raz.

[Mindy Thomas]

Original sound design and music editing is done by our supervising producer, Jed Anderson and Tyler Thole. You can also hear Jed Anderson in the voices of Dennis Thomas, Fingerling, Reggie and many of the other silly characters you hear on our show.

[Guy Raz]

Jessica Boddy keeps our facts straight as our fact checker and Meredith Halpern Ranzer powers the wow at Tinkercast.

[Mindy Thomas]

Our theme song was composed and performed by three time Grammy nominees the Pop Ups. Find them at thepopups.com Special thanks to.

[Guy Raz]

Steph Sosa, Henry Moskal, Ruth Morrison, Rebecca Caban, Kit Ballinger, Sana Ali Mohammed, Anna Szigorski and all of the other tinkerers at Tinkercast HQ.

[Mindy Thomas]

To keep the wows rolling, visit [e-mail] There you can learn more about becoming an official member of the world organization of wowzers, learn about upcoming events, shop our wow Shop, find our best selling books and learn about all of our other amazing podcasts from Tinkercast grown ups.

[Guy Raz]

You can follow wow in the World on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. At the end wowintheworld and our email address is helloinkercast.com and if you're a.

[Mindy Thomas]

Kid with a big wow to share with us, call us at 1-888-7wow. Wow. For a chance to be featured at the end of our show or an upcoming episode of two. What's in a wow.

[Guy Raz]

Thanks again for listening, and until next.

[Mindy Thomas]

Time, keep on W's all in the World.

[Smokey McDougal (Mindy's pet cockroach)]

Wow in the World was made by.

[Mindy Thomas]

Tinkercast and sent to you by Wondery.