1 00:00:03,040 --> 00:00:05,840 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff to Blow your Mind from how Stuff 2 00:00:05,880 --> 00:00:15,720 Speaker 1: Works dot com. Hey, welcome to Stuff to Blow your Mind. 3 00:00:15,760 --> 00:00:18,439 Speaker 1: My name is Robert Lamb and I'm Christian Sager. Hey, 4 00:00:18,560 --> 00:00:20,840 Speaker 1: how many times, like when you're just walking around the 5 00:00:20,880 --> 00:00:23,720 Speaker 1: city we live in Atlanta, Like you're at a park 6 00:00:23,840 --> 00:00:25,599 Speaker 1: or you're just walking around, maybe with your son or 7 00:00:25,640 --> 00:00:30,360 Speaker 1: something like that, do you see just these utterly bizarre mushrooms? Oh? Yes, yeah, 8 00:00:30,600 --> 00:00:33,120 Speaker 1: I I This is something I love about living in Atlanta, 9 00:00:33,159 --> 00:00:35,199 Speaker 1: or at least the slice of Atlanta I live in, 10 00:00:35,240 --> 00:00:38,519 Speaker 1: because there's plenty of you know, plenty of vegetation around, 11 00:00:38,920 --> 00:00:41,320 Speaker 1: plenty of you know, park areas, and then after a 12 00:00:41,479 --> 00:00:45,519 Speaker 1: rain typically so when you see these these strange fungal 13 00:00:45,560 --> 00:00:50,159 Speaker 1: bodies burst up out of the ground and take on weird, 14 00:00:50,360 --> 00:00:54,160 Speaker 1: bizarre shapes. In fact, it's something that I've I've loved 15 00:00:54,160 --> 00:00:56,960 Speaker 1: doing with with my son who's four now, but for 16 00:00:57,160 --> 00:01:00,160 Speaker 1: for years now, when we're going to the park, park 17 00:01:00,200 --> 00:01:02,280 Speaker 1: and all, if we see some sort of a weird mushroom, 18 00:01:02,280 --> 00:01:04,760 Speaker 1: like go oh, let's look at this weird mushroom and uh, 19 00:01:04,800 --> 00:01:06,080 Speaker 1: and so he'll point him out. Now I go, oh, 20 00:01:06,120 --> 00:01:07,840 Speaker 1: there's a weird mushroom over here, let's go look at 21 00:01:07,840 --> 00:01:09,120 Speaker 1: it and you guys try to figure out what it 22 00:01:09,160 --> 00:01:11,360 Speaker 1: is that you take pictures and then back home you 23 00:01:11,440 --> 00:01:13,759 Speaker 1: try to like match it to a database or something 24 00:01:13,800 --> 00:01:15,480 Speaker 1: like that. Yeah, you know, you just do a do 25 00:01:15,520 --> 00:01:19,120 Speaker 1: a search for Hey, what kind of mushroom looks like 26 00:01:19,160 --> 00:01:23,200 Speaker 1: a weird fallust? And uh And in fact, that mushroom 27 00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:25,480 Speaker 1: which frequently pops up in our in our own yard 28 00:01:25,760 --> 00:01:30,080 Speaker 1: out of the mulch, is one that's called mu tennis 29 00:01:30,440 --> 00:01:35,040 Speaker 1: caninus or dogs stink horn, because it supposedly looks like 30 00:01:35,080 --> 00:01:38,880 Speaker 1: a dog fallust and it smells really awful. Oh yeah, 31 00:01:38,880 --> 00:01:41,360 Speaker 1: that's the worst image. I don't know what a dog 32 00:01:41,400 --> 00:01:45,680 Speaker 1: stink horn looks like. The media the dog lipstick. Yeah, 33 00:01:45,720 --> 00:01:48,760 Speaker 1: that's the worst. Well, yeah, because you know, I'm from 34 00:01:48,760 --> 00:01:52,400 Speaker 1: the Northeast originally, and man, the mushrooms down here are bonkers, 35 00:01:52,520 --> 00:01:55,800 Speaker 1: like like, uh so some of our Facebook followers might 36 00:01:55,840 --> 00:01:58,960 Speaker 1: remember this, but I posted to our Facebook page maybe 37 00:01:58,960 --> 00:02:02,400 Speaker 1: six months ago. Took my dog to the dog park 38 00:02:02,840 --> 00:02:05,200 Speaker 1: and it was right after a rain like you described, 39 00:02:05,360 --> 00:02:09,200 Speaker 1: maybe a day, and there was this totally bizarre thing 40 00:02:09,320 --> 00:02:10,920 Speaker 1: growing up out of the ground. Didn't even look like 41 00:02:10,919 --> 00:02:14,880 Speaker 1: a mushroom. It looked like the egg from Alien and 42 00:02:14,919 --> 00:02:17,640 Speaker 1: it looked like the egg had opened, um, and it 43 00:02:17,680 --> 00:02:20,120 Speaker 1: was red on the inside. And so I took a 44 00:02:20,160 --> 00:02:22,120 Speaker 1: picture of it, and I was like, well, who better 45 00:02:22,200 --> 00:02:24,919 Speaker 1: to answer what this thing is than our Facebook followers. 46 00:02:25,080 --> 00:02:27,480 Speaker 1: So I uploaded the picture and said, does anybody know 47 00:02:27,520 --> 00:02:30,600 Speaker 1: what this is? And they did. Somebody figured it out. 48 00:02:30,639 --> 00:02:34,200 Speaker 1: It's the Devil's finger fungus, that's what it's called. And 49 00:02:34,320 --> 00:02:37,720 Speaker 1: like not a month later, Nurdiced did like a like 50 00:02:37,760 --> 00:02:40,320 Speaker 1: a feature on their site on the Devil's finger fungus 51 00:02:40,360 --> 00:02:43,519 Speaker 1: and how it looks exactly like a xenomorphag. But I 52 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:47,640 Speaker 1: was like, I don't this looks like some alien thing 53 00:02:47,760 --> 00:02:49,520 Speaker 1: that's in the dog park. I don't want my dog 54 00:02:49,560 --> 00:02:52,359 Speaker 1: around it. What what is this thing? You know? Um? 55 00:02:52,400 --> 00:02:53,920 Speaker 1: So I was a little worried at first, but it 56 00:02:53,919 --> 00:02:57,120 Speaker 1: turns out it's relatively harmless. Yeah. There's another one that 57 00:02:57,160 --> 00:02:59,080 Speaker 1: I can't remember what this one is called, but I 58 00:02:59,120 --> 00:03:01,240 Speaker 1: see it in our yards sometimes where it's it's as 59 00:03:01,280 --> 00:03:05,520 Speaker 1: if there is an underworld and occasionally they use cocking 60 00:03:05,600 --> 00:03:09,280 Speaker 1: to to fill to fill in holes between our world 61 00:03:09,280 --> 00:03:13,400 Speaker 1: and there, and it kind of puffs outing bubble. Yeah, 62 00:03:13,440 --> 00:03:15,480 Speaker 1: I know, exactly which one you're talking about. I've seen 63 00:03:15,560 --> 00:03:19,239 Speaker 1: that one before, like on the sidewalking your where I live. Now, 64 00:03:19,320 --> 00:03:23,320 Speaker 1: now tell me this. Uh, you're a dog owner, I'm not. Um. 65 00:03:23,400 --> 00:03:28,480 Speaker 1: In various neighborhood threads that I've seen about weird mushrooms, 66 00:03:28,840 --> 00:03:32,040 Speaker 1: I've seen some people react with wonder and off and 67 00:03:32,520 --> 00:03:37,560 Speaker 1: occasionally you know, uh uh nausea. But other people's, particularly 68 00:03:37,560 --> 00:03:40,320 Speaker 1: a few dog owners, are like, oh, I hate those mushrooms. 69 00:03:40,800 --> 00:03:42,520 Speaker 1: How can I get rid of them? Because there's this 70 00:03:42,680 --> 00:03:44,680 Speaker 1: fear and I don't know to what extent it's it's 71 00:03:44,680 --> 00:03:48,680 Speaker 1: founded or unfounded, but uh, they're afraid their dog is 72 00:03:48,680 --> 00:03:51,520 Speaker 1: going to eat the mushrooms, which of course can have 73 00:03:51,880 --> 00:03:56,480 Speaker 1: disastrous consequences. My wife worries about that constantly. Every day 74 00:03:56,520 --> 00:03:58,840 Speaker 1: when she gets home, she does a walk through the 75 00:03:58,960 --> 00:04:01,840 Speaker 1: yard and picks every single mushroom up that's growing in 76 00:04:01,880 --> 00:04:04,280 Speaker 1: the yard so that our dogs won't eat them. Um, 77 00:04:04,280 --> 00:04:06,960 Speaker 1: we have a lot of mushrooms actually, because we have 78 00:04:07,000 --> 00:04:09,040 Speaker 1: a really big We've been over to my place before. 79 00:04:09,200 --> 00:04:12,520 Speaker 1: My front yard has a really big old tree. Uh. 80 00:04:12,560 --> 00:04:16,760 Speaker 1: And our landlord is actually an arborist, and so he 81 00:04:16,880 --> 00:04:18,880 Speaker 1: told us, look, this tree is really old and a 82 00:04:18,920 --> 00:04:20,760 Speaker 1: couple of years, we're gonna have to take it down because, 83 00:04:20,800 --> 00:04:23,520 Speaker 1: like the roots are rotting. And the way you can 84 00:04:23,520 --> 00:04:27,560 Speaker 1: tell is because of the way that these bizarrely huge 85 00:04:27,680 --> 00:04:31,039 Speaker 1: mushrooms are growing up all around the tree, and so 86 00:04:31,160 --> 00:04:33,600 Speaker 1: they're fitting on the rot of the down there. Yeah, 87 00:04:33,880 --> 00:04:37,160 Speaker 1: because of course the fun guy and mushrooms are are 88 00:04:37,240 --> 00:04:39,960 Speaker 1: excellent decomposed or something. Yeah, totally that. I mean, that's 89 00:04:39,960 --> 00:04:43,680 Speaker 1: how they get by, right. Um, And uh so you know, 90 00:04:43,720 --> 00:04:45,640 Speaker 1: at first I was a little worried, and I said, well, hey, 91 00:04:45,680 --> 00:04:47,560 Speaker 1: you know, you're the arborist. Is this cool for my 92 00:04:47,640 --> 00:04:50,320 Speaker 1: dogs to be around? He said it was fine, But 93 00:04:50,480 --> 00:04:54,159 Speaker 1: my wife still worries. So yeah, she's she always cleans 94 00:04:54,200 --> 00:04:56,440 Speaker 1: up that stuff. And are you talking about like next 95 00:04:56,440 --> 00:04:59,080 Speaker 1: door dot com or like those uh you know those 96 00:04:59,120 --> 00:05:03,120 Speaker 1: like message boards. This is just like a Facebook, Yeah, 97 00:05:03,120 --> 00:05:05,200 Speaker 1: because there's a lot of that chatter on our neighborhood. 98 00:05:05,200 --> 00:05:07,760 Speaker 1: Well even I live in a fairly close proximity to 99 00:05:07,800 --> 00:05:10,239 Speaker 1: one another, so maybe it's the same neighborhood board. But yeah, 100 00:05:10,440 --> 00:05:14,279 Speaker 1: there's concerned about those mushrooms. I haven't heard anything about 101 00:05:14,360 --> 00:05:17,080 Speaker 1: like watch out for this one. It's poisonous. But one 102 00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:19,960 Speaker 1: of the things that's fascinating about Atlanta is that there's 103 00:05:20,200 --> 00:05:24,360 Speaker 1: so many fungal spores flying around that you get these 104 00:05:24,400 --> 00:05:28,400 Speaker 1: really bizarre, kind of off the wall mushrooms that you 105 00:05:28,400 --> 00:05:34,040 Speaker 1: wouldn't normally see, you know, especially in a city area. So, um, 106 00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:37,440 Speaker 1: who knows. I mean, I don't know about you. But 107 00:05:37,520 --> 00:05:39,680 Speaker 1: for the mushrooms that we we're gonna talk about today, 108 00:05:39,720 --> 00:05:42,479 Speaker 1: if you guys haven't guessed yet out there, listeners, we're 109 00:05:42,480 --> 00:05:45,360 Speaker 1: gonna talk about weird mushrooms today. Of course, we can't 110 00:05:45,360 --> 00:05:47,920 Speaker 1: cover all of them by any stretch of imagination, So 111 00:05:47,960 --> 00:05:51,599 Speaker 1: we just picked three either specific mushrooms or sort of 112 00:05:51,640 --> 00:05:55,840 Speaker 1: a general type of mushroom or a type of mushroom behavior, 113 00:05:56,279 --> 00:05:58,360 Speaker 1: and we're gonna sort of have a you know, the 114 00:05:58,440 --> 00:06:05,320 Speaker 1: potpourri uh episode. Yeah, the none of minor poisonous. Did 115 00:06:05,320 --> 00:06:08,919 Speaker 1: you choose any poisonous ones? Um? I always chose the 116 00:06:08,960 --> 00:06:12,159 Speaker 1: death cap, which is the most poisonous one. And um, 117 00:06:12,200 --> 00:06:14,800 Speaker 1: I mean, there's varying levels of things you shouldn't do 118 00:06:14,839 --> 00:06:16,679 Speaker 1: with the ones that I'm going to talk about today, 119 00:06:16,760 --> 00:06:21,120 Speaker 1: but the the toxicity doesn't really factor heavily into the 120 00:06:21,200 --> 00:06:25,200 Speaker 1: areas I discuss. One of them is definitely not poisonous 121 00:06:25,240 --> 00:06:28,239 Speaker 1: because it's a it's an edible mushroom, um. The others. 122 00:06:28,320 --> 00:06:31,120 Speaker 1: It's kind of it encompasses a number of different types. 123 00:06:31,520 --> 00:06:33,360 Speaker 1: But but this is the kind of thing where if 124 00:06:33,360 --> 00:06:36,480 Speaker 1: you guys like us talking about mushrooms, we can come 125 00:06:36,480 --> 00:06:38,800 Speaker 1: back and do more. We can do a one speak 126 00:06:40,160 --> 00:06:43,280 Speaker 1: various poisonous mushrooms, be good. Well, I have to say 127 00:06:43,839 --> 00:06:46,080 Speaker 1: this reminded me of an episode we almost did I 128 00:06:46,120 --> 00:06:49,679 Speaker 1: think almost a year ago, uh to this week, which 129 00:06:49,800 --> 00:06:53,440 Speaker 1: was our episode about Wolfspange, and it reminded me of 130 00:06:53,520 --> 00:06:57,960 Speaker 1: aconite poisoning. UM. Reading through these descriptions of all the mushrooms, 131 00:06:57,960 --> 00:07:01,760 Speaker 1: and really I had no idea how in depth of 132 00:07:01,880 --> 00:07:06,560 Speaker 1: field mycology is and how precise it is. And the 133 00:07:06,720 --> 00:07:10,640 Speaker 1: entries for these mushrooms were very, very detailed. I mean 134 00:07:10,760 --> 00:07:13,400 Speaker 1: so detailed that we could do an entire episode just 135 00:07:13,520 --> 00:07:17,800 Speaker 1: on one species. So for these entries we really had 136 00:07:17,840 --> 00:07:20,000 Speaker 1: to I think boil them down to their essence. Again, 137 00:07:20,040 --> 00:07:22,800 Speaker 1: no pun intended. We're not actually boiling the mushrooms down here, 138 00:07:23,120 --> 00:07:27,760 Speaker 1: but but yeah, they're they're fascinating um. And it's just 139 00:07:27,800 --> 00:07:29,920 Speaker 1: this thing that we we all kind of just live with. 140 00:07:30,640 --> 00:07:32,920 Speaker 1: And you know what, I mean like they're everywhere and 141 00:07:32,960 --> 00:07:36,880 Speaker 1: we'm at the grocery store and we eat them, but like, uh, 142 00:07:36,920 --> 00:07:40,120 Speaker 1: there there there's an endless variety of them, and they 143 00:07:40,240 --> 00:07:43,960 Speaker 1: all do these like very different things and have incredibly 144 00:07:44,000 --> 00:07:47,040 Speaker 1: complex compounds inside of them. And I feel like we're 145 00:07:47,120 --> 00:07:51,120 Speaker 1: only like as a as a scientific society, like on 146 00:07:51,200 --> 00:07:55,280 Speaker 1: the tip of understanding fungal growth. Yeah, I mean, there's 147 00:07:55,320 --> 00:07:57,720 Speaker 1: there is so much diversity out there. We keep discovering 148 00:07:57,760 --> 00:08:00,520 Speaker 1: new species to the point where I'm I can only 149 00:08:00,560 --> 00:08:03,840 Speaker 1: give like a rough estimate right now, but essentially we're 150 00:08:03,840 --> 00:08:08,480 Speaker 1: looking at a hundred thousand different fungi species, and of those, 151 00:08:08,560 --> 00:08:11,960 Speaker 1: we're looking at in the neighborhood of fourteen thousand mushrooms. 152 00:08:12,160 --> 00:08:15,280 Speaker 1: And again that is that's a number that's constantly changing. 153 00:08:15,320 --> 00:08:17,240 Speaker 1: I looked at numbers from a few years back and 154 00:08:17,280 --> 00:08:20,400 Speaker 1: they were significantly less than that. So it's a it's 155 00:08:20,400 --> 00:08:23,480 Speaker 1: an amazing world. And you know they are so because 156 00:08:23,480 --> 00:08:25,800 Speaker 1: they're so weird, they're so alien. It's no wonder that 157 00:08:25,840 --> 00:08:28,320 Speaker 1: you you can find conspiracy theorists who think they came 158 00:08:28,320 --> 00:08:31,360 Speaker 1: from space, especially when you see ones that look like 159 00:08:31,400 --> 00:08:35,679 Speaker 1: a xenomorph. Yeah, or I can I mean, going back 160 00:08:35,720 --> 00:08:39,200 Speaker 1: to our Wolf Spain episode, right, Like, imagine all of 161 00:08:39,240 --> 00:08:42,040 Speaker 1: the folklore that sprang up out of all the various 162 00:08:42,200 --> 00:08:45,800 Speaker 1: species of mushroom. Yeah, they're so different looking. If you 163 00:08:45,840 --> 00:08:49,120 Speaker 1: didn't you know, have a broader scientific understanding of them, 164 00:08:49,160 --> 00:08:52,480 Speaker 1: you wouldn't even classify them as being the same thing. Yeah, 165 00:08:52,559 --> 00:08:55,640 Speaker 1: like one of my one of my favorite monsters from 166 00:08:55,880 --> 00:08:58,040 Speaker 1: the Dungeon and Dragon universe or the Mikon It's which, 167 00:08:58,040 --> 00:09:02,360 Speaker 1: of course our mushroom people, the monster science episode on them. No, 168 00:09:02,480 --> 00:09:06,680 Speaker 1: we did a Monster Science on the Mushrooms of Matanga, 169 00:09:07,280 --> 00:09:11,640 Speaker 1: which was a Tohoe horror film about this these spores 170 00:09:11,679 --> 00:09:15,040 Speaker 1: that turned people into walking mushrooms. It's a it's actually 171 00:09:15,080 --> 00:09:17,760 Speaker 1: a really creepy movie, totally different vibe than most of 172 00:09:17,760 --> 00:09:21,680 Speaker 1: the Toho films. Well, so full disclosure, audience. The reason 173 00:09:21,679 --> 00:09:23,760 Speaker 1: why I propose that we do an episode on weird 174 00:09:23,760 --> 00:09:26,120 Speaker 1: weird mushrooms is I'm working on like a horror story 175 00:09:26,240 --> 00:09:30,120 Speaker 1: right now that the basis is about mushrooms and spores 176 00:09:30,200 --> 00:09:33,120 Speaker 1: and mycology, and so I was like, you know, I'd 177 00:09:33,200 --> 00:09:34,600 Speaker 1: like to know a little bit more about this, and 178 00:09:34,679 --> 00:09:36,600 Speaker 1: I think it would be a good topic for our listeners. 179 00:09:36,640 --> 00:09:39,120 Speaker 1: So here we are Um. One of the things that 180 00:09:39,160 --> 00:09:40,559 Speaker 1: I just want to bring up before we dive into 181 00:09:40,600 --> 00:09:45,280 Speaker 1: the individual ones. The funky as an organism essentially has 182 00:09:45,320 --> 00:09:47,960 Speaker 1: a parasitic lifestyle, and that's something I think we we 183 00:09:48,080 --> 00:09:50,560 Speaker 1: forget about. We see our mushrooms in the grocery store 184 00:09:50,559 --> 00:09:53,040 Speaker 1: wrapped in plastic and we just go, oh, that's that's 185 00:09:53,080 --> 00:09:56,959 Speaker 1: a lot of people just think it's a vegetable, right, Um. 186 00:09:57,000 --> 00:10:01,400 Speaker 1: But they absorb soluble nutrients through sell membranes. That's how 187 00:10:01,640 --> 00:10:06,520 Speaker 1: they subsist and uh with together with bacteria, as you said, 188 00:10:06,520 --> 00:10:10,360 Speaker 1: they're responsible for the decay of organic matter. Now, some 189 00:10:10,640 --> 00:10:15,199 Speaker 1: estimate that of the biomass on the entire planet is 190 00:10:15,320 --> 00:10:19,040 Speaker 1: fun Guy, that's a lot. So I mean it's worth 191 00:10:20,280 --> 00:10:24,560 Speaker 1: go mycologists. It's it's worth uh studying further and us 192 00:10:24,640 --> 00:10:27,240 Speaker 1: knowing a lot more about these, especially when you get 193 00:10:27,240 --> 00:10:29,960 Speaker 1: into the health benefits that we'll talk about. Yeah, So, 194 00:10:30,360 --> 00:10:32,480 Speaker 1: without further ado, let's go ahead and kick things off. 195 00:10:32,520 --> 00:10:36,960 Speaker 1: I believe you have our first mushroom of the episode. Yeah, 196 00:10:37,000 --> 00:10:39,760 Speaker 1: and this is the one that is most well known 197 00:10:39,800 --> 00:10:43,640 Speaker 1: for its health benefits. It's called the Rashima mushroom. Oh, 198 00:10:43,679 --> 00:10:45,160 Speaker 1: and I want to jump in real quick and just 199 00:10:45,440 --> 00:10:47,800 Speaker 1: tell everybody that on the landing page for this episode, 200 00:10:47,800 --> 00:10:50,360 Speaker 1: I'm going to have a picture of each one that 201 00:10:50,400 --> 00:10:52,880 Speaker 1: we're discussing. So if you start wondering about it, just 202 00:10:52,880 --> 00:10:54,600 Speaker 1: go to stuff to Blow your Mind dot com. Yeah, 203 00:10:54,640 --> 00:10:56,280 Speaker 1: and you'll be able to see what each one of 204 00:10:56,320 --> 00:10:59,160 Speaker 1: these looks like, especially because we were show some really 205 00:10:59,200 --> 00:11:02,680 Speaker 1: bizarre looking The raci isn't as well known for being 206 00:11:02,720 --> 00:11:05,040 Speaker 1: bizarre looking, although it is kind of weird looking. It's 207 00:11:05,120 --> 00:11:09,160 Speaker 1: mostly known for its life extending properties. In fact, they've 208 00:11:09,160 --> 00:11:12,600 Speaker 1: been used medicinally for at least two thousand years because 209 00:11:12,640 --> 00:11:16,920 Speaker 1: they have a reputation for promoting health and longevity. Rayci, 210 00:11:17,120 --> 00:11:19,400 Speaker 1: I believe, is the name for it in Japan. It's 211 00:11:19,400 --> 00:11:23,319 Speaker 1: also called the ling g mushroom in China. Now you 212 00:11:23,400 --> 00:11:27,679 Speaker 1: may recognize these, Uh. They're kind of a deep reddish brown. 213 00:11:27,760 --> 00:11:30,720 Speaker 1: They're shaped sort of like saucers. The upper surface of 214 00:11:30,760 --> 00:11:33,520 Speaker 1: them looks like it's lacquered when it gets wet. Um 215 00:11:33,559 --> 00:11:35,800 Speaker 1: And because they have this glossy look, some people call 216 00:11:35,880 --> 00:11:39,160 Speaker 1: them varnished conks. And I went, what's the conk? Well, 217 00:11:39,280 --> 00:11:42,480 Speaker 1: conk is a mushroom that has pores instead of gills. 218 00:11:43,200 --> 00:11:45,440 Speaker 1: Um And again I've never heard of them referred to 219 00:11:45,480 --> 00:11:48,959 Speaker 1: as gills before, so that's a nice creepy metaphor there 220 00:11:49,040 --> 00:11:51,240 Speaker 1: as well. I have to say this one kind of 221 00:11:51,280 --> 00:11:56,120 Speaker 1: looks like they might be leathery human ears. Yeah. Well, 222 00:11:56,160 --> 00:11:58,720 Speaker 1: you know what's funny is um I don't know if 223 00:11:58,760 --> 00:12:00,520 Speaker 1: you've ever played this video game, but for but there's 224 00:12:00,520 --> 00:12:03,880 Speaker 1: a video game called battle Born, uh, and my wife 225 00:12:04,160 --> 00:12:06,280 Speaker 1: is addicted to it and I play it with her 226 00:12:06,760 --> 00:12:09,160 Speaker 1: a lot. Anyways, so there's this guy who's a living 227 00:12:09,240 --> 00:12:14,559 Speaker 1: mushroom person and he his head is like a mushroom 228 00:12:14,640 --> 00:12:17,280 Speaker 1: cap and his head looks like a racie mushroom and 229 00:12:17,360 --> 00:12:20,319 Speaker 1: he's the healer in the game. So he's the one who, 230 00:12:20,360 --> 00:12:23,400 Speaker 1: like he blasts the other characters with mushroom spores and 231 00:12:23,520 --> 00:12:26,480 Speaker 1: makes them feel better. And then he can take off 232 00:12:26,480 --> 00:12:28,480 Speaker 1: his mushroom cap and throw it down on the ground 233 00:12:28,600 --> 00:12:31,560 Speaker 1: and it acts as like a healing area buffer or 234 00:12:31,600 --> 00:12:34,720 Speaker 1: something like that. So I have to assume that the 235 00:12:34,800 --> 00:12:38,040 Speaker 1: people who made battle Born were inspired by the Racehie 236 00:12:38,080 --> 00:12:41,160 Speaker 1: mushroom when they came up with this character. Anyways, the 237 00:12:41,240 --> 00:12:44,360 Speaker 1: Racehi they grow up to be eight inches to or 238 00:12:44,400 --> 00:12:48,080 Speaker 1: around twenty centimeters in diameter. You usually find them in 239 00:12:48,080 --> 00:12:52,800 Speaker 1: temperate forests. These are moist areas sometimes in Asia, Europe, 240 00:12:52,880 --> 00:12:56,400 Speaker 1: South America in the US, and they typically attach themselves 241 00:12:56,400 --> 00:12:58,560 Speaker 1: to trees. So similar to what I was just talking 242 00:12:58,559 --> 00:13:01,199 Speaker 1: about with the tree in my front yard, they're probably 243 00:13:01,280 --> 00:13:05,360 Speaker 1: feeding off of the decay on these trees. Uh. So 244 00:13:05,640 --> 00:13:08,280 Speaker 1: here's the deal, why is it a weird mushroom? Well, 245 00:13:08,520 --> 00:13:11,800 Speaker 1: there's actually something to this life extending property thing. This 246 00:13:11,840 --> 00:13:16,040 Speaker 1: isn't just like a you know, folklore myth um. They 247 00:13:16,080 --> 00:13:19,320 Speaker 1: are prepared as teas or as infusions. You can also 248 00:13:19,360 --> 00:13:22,520 Speaker 1: get them as capsules or tinctures, and you can even 249 00:13:22,520 --> 00:13:25,880 Speaker 1: eat them in candy, chocolate bars, and coffee blends. I 250 00:13:25,920 --> 00:13:28,600 Speaker 1: was thinking to myself that a Racie coffee blend might 251 00:13:28,640 --> 00:13:30,160 Speaker 1: be good, But I don't know what a Rachie US 252 00:13:30,320 --> 00:13:33,200 Speaker 1: mushroom tastes like yet. Uh yeah, I guess it would 253 00:13:33,200 --> 00:13:36,880 Speaker 1: taste like a mushroom tea, which is is not generally 254 00:13:36,920 --> 00:13:39,480 Speaker 1: not that pleasant, and in my opinion, I don't know, 255 00:13:39,600 --> 00:13:44,680 Speaker 1: probably maybe yeah. Um. Now you see, so when I 256 00:13:44,720 --> 00:13:46,880 Speaker 1: went to do research on this one, you see a 257 00:13:46,880 --> 00:13:50,120 Speaker 1: lot of advertisements or articles pop up about them, and 258 00:13:50,280 --> 00:13:56,360 Speaker 1: kind of new age style publications about these life extending properties, right, um, 259 00:13:56,400 --> 00:13:59,960 Speaker 1: and if we are talking about traditional medicine and supplement 260 00:14:00,120 --> 00:14:03,120 Speaker 1: here so exactly, they used to be pretty rare, but 261 00:14:03,160 --> 00:14:09,400 Speaker 1: there's new cultural cultivation advances that make them more widely available. Um. 262 00:14:09,440 --> 00:14:13,600 Speaker 1: But the reviews of science literature do indicate that most 263 00:14:13,640 --> 00:14:17,280 Speaker 1: of the medicinal claims for these mushrooms can be validated. 264 00:14:17,360 --> 00:14:20,880 Speaker 1: So let's just talk briefly about what's the science behind them. Well, 265 00:14:20,920 --> 00:14:24,880 Speaker 1: research has found that because of unique compounds in these mushrooms, 266 00:14:25,200 --> 00:14:29,640 Speaker 1: they can stimulate our brain neurons, search and destroy cancer cells, 267 00:14:29,720 --> 00:14:33,560 Speaker 1: and prevent the development of fat cells in obese individuals. 268 00:14:33,800 --> 00:14:37,960 Speaker 1: So that alone is like, that's a pretty broad summaryn wow. Um. 269 00:14:38,000 --> 00:14:40,560 Speaker 1: And they've done lots of studies on mice and humans. 270 00:14:40,560 --> 00:14:44,040 Speaker 1: But studies on mice have shown that these mushrooms may 271 00:14:44,080 --> 00:14:49,640 Speaker 1: also have therapeutic effects on asthma, allergies, autoimmune diseases, Alzheimer's, 272 00:14:49,680 --> 00:14:54,400 Speaker 1: Parkinson's diabetes, liver failure, and more. Now that it all 273 00:14:54,400 --> 00:14:57,640 Speaker 1: boils down to these three compounds that are in the 274 00:14:57,760 --> 00:15:00,440 Speaker 1: rati mushroom that give it its health be fits. And 275 00:15:00,440 --> 00:15:02,880 Speaker 1: this is this is what why I said earlier, like 276 00:15:03,200 --> 00:15:07,560 Speaker 1: these mushrooms are just incredibly complex in their organic matter. 277 00:15:08,600 --> 00:15:13,120 Speaker 1: So the three are polysaccharides. Now, these have anti aging 278 00:15:13,120 --> 00:15:17,960 Speaker 1: effects because they prevent abnormal blood vessel formation in our bodies. 279 00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:22,360 Speaker 1: They also boost immune system function. There's also triter penes 280 00:15:22,560 --> 00:15:26,040 Speaker 1: that protect the liver. Uh. They lower our blood pressure 281 00:15:26,120 --> 00:15:29,640 Speaker 1: and our cholesterol, and they prevent platelet clumping in the 282 00:15:29,640 --> 00:15:32,560 Speaker 1: blood that leads to heart attacks or strokes. They also 283 00:15:32,600 --> 00:15:36,640 Speaker 1: fight allergic responses that are triggered by histamines and indicate 284 00:15:36,720 --> 00:15:41,480 Speaker 1: anti cancer activity. Now, the last compound is called the 285 00:15:41,800 --> 00:15:46,120 Speaker 1: ganoderma lucidum peptide. We've got a lot of latin in 286 00:15:46,120 --> 00:15:50,720 Speaker 1: this episode because mycology really loves its latin. Now, that's 287 00:15:50,760 --> 00:15:55,720 Speaker 1: a protein that has strong antioxidant characteristics that are still 288 00:15:55,760 --> 00:15:59,000 Speaker 1: being studied. So there's a lot going on here with 289 00:15:59,040 --> 00:16:02,480 Speaker 1: this raci mushroom. Uh. There's other studies that indicate that 290 00:16:02,560 --> 00:16:05,280 Speaker 1: it can reduce the size and growth rate of tumors, 291 00:16:05,280 --> 00:16:09,040 Speaker 1: both in human and animal trials. UH, And in fact, 292 00:16:09,080 --> 00:16:12,800 Speaker 1: it's most dramatic in cases of colorectal cancer. However, I 293 00:16:12,840 --> 00:16:15,600 Speaker 1: do want to qualify that statement with there are other 294 00:16:15,640 --> 00:16:19,080 Speaker 1: studies that dispute the use of these mushrooms for treating cancer. 295 00:16:19,120 --> 00:16:20,600 Speaker 1: So it's it's kind of up in the air right 296 00:16:20,640 --> 00:16:24,240 Speaker 1: now and it requires more research. But some oncologists have 297 00:16:24,400 --> 00:16:28,640 Speaker 1: concerns that the mushrooms antioxidant properties may actually interfere with 298 00:16:28,720 --> 00:16:34,000 Speaker 1: chemotherapy drugs. So yes, it may have anti cancer properties, 299 00:16:34,040 --> 00:16:39,360 Speaker 1: but it may also interfere with other therapy for cancer. Um, 300 00:16:39,400 --> 00:16:42,160 Speaker 1: these mushrooms are like a mini first aid kit, Like 301 00:16:42,400 --> 00:16:44,600 Speaker 1: it seems like they're just this great thing that you 302 00:16:44,600 --> 00:16:47,200 Speaker 1: should take every day, you know, although there's and and 303 00:16:47,400 --> 00:16:49,320 Speaker 1: forth noting you were not in the pocket of big 304 00:16:49,320 --> 00:16:52,960 Speaker 1: fungutions no big right, she does not support the show. 305 00:16:53,080 --> 00:16:54,800 Speaker 1: I don't know. I haven't done an ad read yet 306 00:16:54,800 --> 00:16:57,800 Speaker 1: for this episode. Maybe it's there was a race dot 307 00:16:57,880 --> 00:16:59,680 Speaker 1: com And I do have to admit that when I 308 00:16:59,680 --> 00:17:01,840 Speaker 1: was doing research for this, I saw a lot of 309 00:17:01,880 --> 00:17:04,960 Speaker 1: sites that were like, Hey, buy your raciot supplements here, 310 00:17:05,320 --> 00:17:08,479 Speaker 1: get um, get the tease, get the chocolate bars, whatever. 311 00:17:08,560 --> 00:17:11,159 Speaker 1: So there's totally a business that thrives around this. But 312 00:17:11,200 --> 00:17:14,120 Speaker 1: there is some science to it. Well, actually a lot 313 00:17:14,160 --> 00:17:17,000 Speaker 1: of science to it. So what do you have? Well, 314 00:17:17,280 --> 00:17:21,120 Speaker 1: my first one here is not not a specific mushroom, 315 00:17:21,160 --> 00:17:23,000 Speaker 1: though I will mention a couple of different specific ones 316 00:17:23,040 --> 00:17:28,840 Speaker 1: as we go. But discussing the topic of of bioluminescent mushrooms, 317 00:17:28,840 --> 00:17:32,560 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, so um, I'm sure everyone's quite well acquainted 318 00:17:32,720 --> 00:17:37,840 Speaker 1: with the mushrooms elevated status in the iconography of stone 319 00:17:37,920 --> 00:17:43,080 Speaker 1: or black light post Um. I'm thinking of like every 320 00:17:43,119 --> 00:17:47,280 Speaker 1: you know metal fan, every sleep metal album poster has 321 00:17:47,320 --> 00:17:49,800 Speaker 1: like mushrooms at the bottom of it. Yeah, yeah, yeah, 322 00:17:49,840 --> 00:17:52,280 Speaker 1: they kind of engage in in that kind of iconography 323 00:17:52,359 --> 00:17:55,159 Speaker 1: for sure. It's too often see it's it's either the 324 00:17:55,200 --> 00:17:58,680 Speaker 1: caterpillar from the house in Wonderland a top of mushroom, 325 00:17:58,880 --> 00:18:02,680 Speaker 1: or I've seen like bong smoking wizards with mushrooms. I've 326 00:18:02,720 --> 00:18:07,720 Speaker 1: seen aliens, gray aliens into chikis with mushrooms. Um. And 327 00:18:07,800 --> 00:18:09,320 Speaker 1: of course they all glow when you have the black 328 00:18:09,400 --> 00:18:12,440 Speaker 1: light on it. But but there are of course actual 329 00:18:12,720 --> 00:18:16,400 Speaker 1: mushrooms out there, and actual uh beyond mushrooms, just fung 330 00:18:16,440 --> 00:18:20,080 Speaker 1: gui that are bioluminescent, uh, and we keep discovering more 331 00:18:20,160 --> 00:18:22,680 Speaker 1: of them. Uh. Now there are there are a rarity 332 00:18:22,760 --> 00:18:27,040 Speaker 1: within just the overall fungal population, with only about its 333 00:18:27,680 --> 00:18:32,160 Speaker 1: seventy plus species. Out of again the hundred thousand fungi species, 334 00:18:32,200 --> 00:18:37,359 Speaker 1: fourteen thousand odd mushroom species and they admit like twenty 335 00:18:37,359 --> 00:18:39,040 Speaker 1: four hours a day, but they're only gonna be able 336 00:18:39,040 --> 00:18:41,879 Speaker 1: to really observe them at night. Now. Some of the 337 00:18:41,920 --> 00:18:46,280 Speaker 1: more common species here include the jack o lantern mushroom 338 00:18:46,480 --> 00:18:50,840 Speaker 1: or um omphilatus, which will find in North America, as 339 00:18:50,880 --> 00:18:54,400 Speaker 1: well as the honey mushroom. And they've belonged to two 340 00:18:54,640 --> 00:18:57,840 Speaker 1: separate lineages here. There's another there's another one that made 341 00:18:57,840 --> 00:19:01,720 Speaker 1: the rounds a few years back called my Sinna chloroffice 342 00:19:02,080 --> 00:19:06,199 Speaker 1: and that's another glowing um mushroom, specifically a mushroom in 343 00:19:06,200 --> 00:19:09,879 Speaker 1: that case. So three quarters of the glowing mushrooms belong 344 00:19:10,000 --> 00:19:13,359 Speaker 1: to the Mycena genus uh and a group of mushrooms. 345 00:19:13,640 --> 00:19:15,879 Speaker 1: And this is a group of mushrooms that decomposed organic 346 00:19:15,920 --> 00:19:18,920 Speaker 1: matter to feed themselves, like like like a lot of 347 00:19:18,920 --> 00:19:22,280 Speaker 1: fun guys, we've discussed um. So I know you and 348 00:19:22,320 --> 00:19:24,840 Speaker 1: I share in common that we're both playing Fallout for. 349 00:19:25,520 --> 00:19:27,399 Speaker 1: Oh yeah, you've gotten to the point yet where you 350 00:19:27,400 --> 00:19:30,160 Speaker 1: find the glowing mushrooms. Yeah, they're popping up everywhere. Yeah, 351 00:19:30,320 --> 00:19:33,080 Speaker 1: and they're I mean, I guess like in the premise 352 00:19:33,160 --> 00:19:35,560 Speaker 1: of Fallout For it's probably because of radiation that yeah, 353 00:19:35,720 --> 00:19:38,640 Speaker 1: just like the glowing feral ghouls. Yeah, yeah, but no, yeah, 354 00:19:38,680 --> 00:19:43,440 Speaker 1: you find plenty of glowing fun guy, um without nuclear fallout, 355 00:19:43,960 --> 00:19:46,960 Speaker 1: right yeah. Um. They even use them in the game. 356 00:19:47,000 --> 00:19:48,760 Speaker 1: I think at one point as like there's like a 357 00:19:48,800 --> 00:19:52,360 Speaker 1: community that uses them as the lights in their underground community, 358 00:19:52,400 --> 00:19:56,360 Speaker 1: like they have the mushrooms and like lanterns. Yeah, I think, um, 359 00:19:56,400 --> 00:19:58,480 Speaker 1: what is it the children of the Atom do? That's it? 360 00:19:59,160 --> 00:20:02,040 Speaker 1: And and I'm I'm actually running a Dungeons and Dragons 361 00:20:02,040 --> 00:20:03,800 Speaker 1: campaign right now. It takes place in the under dark. 362 00:20:04,040 --> 00:20:06,720 Speaker 1: So there's a lot of five luminescent mushrooms and that 363 00:20:06,760 --> 00:20:09,399 Speaker 1: because you gotta you know, you might have everybody in 364 00:20:09,440 --> 00:20:11,720 Speaker 1: the party with dark vision, but otherwise you need to 365 00:20:11,760 --> 00:20:15,240 Speaker 1: have a little light for people to see some light visions. 366 00:20:15,359 --> 00:20:19,680 Speaker 1: You say, oh, well, there's some luminescent mushroom right here. Now, 367 00:20:19,800 --> 00:20:22,080 Speaker 1: what kind of glow are we talking about? Generally it's 368 00:20:22,119 --> 00:20:28,080 Speaker 1: a yellowish greenish light with wavelength of five nanometers. Not 369 00:20:28,200 --> 00:20:31,119 Speaker 1: all of the parts of the mushrooms necessarily glow, and 370 00:20:31,240 --> 00:20:34,159 Speaker 1: some species it's only the cap for the gills. In 371 00:20:34,200 --> 00:20:37,320 Speaker 1: others it's the stem, and some species the mushrooms don't 372 00:20:37,320 --> 00:20:39,800 Speaker 1: really glow. At all. But it's the fine thread like 373 00:20:39,960 --> 00:20:44,679 Speaker 1: filaments the mycelium from which the mushrooms developed that grows 374 00:20:44,840 --> 00:20:49,080 Speaker 1: brightly and specifically, we're talking about a lucifer in lucifories 375 00:20:49,760 --> 00:20:53,600 Speaker 1: mediated reaction here. Now, basically what we're talking about here, 376 00:20:54,040 --> 00:20:56,399 Speaker 1: these are light emitting compounds that you can find in 377 00:20:56,480 --> 00:21:00,639 Speaker 1: many creatures like fireflies. Of course they're named sort of 378 00:21:00,720 --> 00:21:04,399 Speaker 1: named after lucifer, which means a shining one or light bearer. 379 00:21:04,520 --> 00:21:07,400 Speaker 1: Makes sense because most people find them underground. Yeah, yeah, 380 00:21:07,600 --> 00:21:11,159 Speaker 1: with the devil. But but yeah, so this is this 381 00:21:11,200 --> 00:21:15,440 Speaker 1: is just a common bioluminescent property, and so that's what's 382 00:21:15,440 --> 00:21:17,720 Speaker 1: it hard here. It's nothing strange and alien and out 383 00:21:17,720 --> 00:21:21,040 Speaker 1: of keeping with other glowing creatures. Now, according to San 384 00:21:21,080 --> 00:21:25,920 Speaker 1: Francisco State University biology professor Dennis de Jardine, luminescent species 385 00:21:25,920 --> 00:21:28,600 Speaker 1: of fun Guy come for about sixteen different lineages, which 386 00:21:28,600 --> 00:21:32,400 Speaker 1: suggests that luminescence evolved at a single point and some 387 00:21:32,440 --> 00:21:35,280 Speaker 1: species later lost the ability to close. So, in other words, 388 00:21:35,320 --> 00:21:41,480 Speaker 1: a single early origin of fungal luminescets. Okay, so why 389 00:21:41,920 --> 00:21:45,960 Speaker 1: but what, like why would a mushroom evolve to glow 390 00:21:46,000 --> 00:21:50,080 Speaker 1: to begin with? Like what evolutionary advantage is there to that. Well, 391 00:21:50,119 --> 00:21:54,480 Speaker 1: that's that's interesting. There a number of mysteries still remain. Uh. 392 00:21:54,600 --> 00:21:58,800 Speaker 1: De Jardine believes that some fun guy probably glow in 393 00:21:58,880 --> 00:22:03,439 Speaker 1: order to attract nocturnal animals, and these animals then you 394 00:22:03,480 --> 00:22:06,080 Speaker 1: know it's dark, they're glowing, the animals come over to 395 00:22:06,119 --> 00:22:08,119 Speaker 1: see what the glowing is about, and then they end 396 00:22:08,200 --> 00:22:12,639 Speaker 1: up helping to disperse the spores um and therefore the species. 397 00:22:12,680 --> 00:22:16,760 Speaker 1: And this is especially adaptive and closed canopy forest because 398 00:22:16,800 --> 00:22:19,800 Speaker 1: there's you're not gonna have winds blown through their you know, 399 00:22:19,840 --> 00:22:23,639 Speaker 1: crazy breezes to to to distribute the spores. Well, as 400 00:22:23,680 --> 00:22:25,520 Speaker 1: we've learned here on stuff to blow your mind. Like 401 00:22:25,600 --> 00:22:28,520 Speaker 1: any good parasite, they have an absolutely bizarre way of 402 00:22:28,640 --> 00:22:32,440 Speaker 1: reproducing that are complicated, I should say, rather than bizarre. 403 00:22:32,520 --> 00:22:35,040 Speaker 1: But yeah, that sounds like totally in line with what 404 00:22:35,119 --> 00:22:38,119 Speaker 1: we know about other parasites. Yeah. Now, another theory is 405 00:22:38,160 --> 00:22:41,560 Speaker 1: that in some cases they glow to attract the predators 406 00:22:41,600 --> 00:22:44,240 Speaker 1: of insects they eat the mushrooms, so it's kind of 407 00:22:44,240 --> 00:22:46,480 Speaker 1: an offensive mechanism. And then in other cases we just 408 00:22:46,520 --> 00:22:50,920 Speaker 1: don't know, Like we're continually finding new bioluminocent mushrooms, and 409 00:22:51,520 --> 00:22:55,560 Speaker 1: some of them may have a different game in play. Yeah, huh, fascinating. 410 00:22:55,600 --> 00:22:58,080 Speaker 1: Now I'm now, I'm like really curious if you can 411 00:22:58,960 --> 00:23:02,200 Speaker 1: really light up a room bioluminescent mushrooms in a lantern. 412 00:23:02,280 --> 00:23:06,040 Speaker 1: Probably not, it'ld still be pretty gloomy. Well, it would 413 00:23:06,040 --> 00:23:08,399 Speaker 1: be like tracking like a goth nightclub, but probably not 414 00:23:08,480 --> 00:23:11,280 Speaker 1: in office space. It would have it would be the 415 00:23:11,320 --> 00:23:14,639 Speaker 1: same sort of situation as trying to fill a lantern 416 00:23:14,760 --> 00:23:18,280 Speaker 1: with lightning bugs and light your way, or or if 417 00:23:18,280 --> 00:23:24,520 Speaker 1: you're in the original Riddick movie, like bioluminescent grubs. Yeah, well, 418 00:23:24,920 --> 00:23:27,359 Speaker 1: we're gonna take a quick break, but when we get back, 419 00:23:27,480 --> 00:23:37,000 Speaker 1: we're going to talk about the puff ball mushroom. All right, 420 00:23:37,040 --> 00:23:39,000 Speaker 1: we're back. Now. This one is This one is the 421 00:23:39,000 --> 00:23:40,760 Speaker 1: phone because I have a lot of fond memories of 422 00:23:40,800 --> 00:23:43,520 Speaker 1: this because when I was a when I was a kid, 423 00:23:43,560 --> 00:23:45,800 Speaker 1: I was in boy Scouts, and it seemed like we 424 00:23:45,800 --> 00:23:48,840 Speaker 1: were always having our scout trips out to this area. 425 00:23:48,880 --> 00:23:51,800 Speaker 1: They had a bunch of cows. So there was something 426 00:23:51,840 --> 00:23:56,040 Speaker 1: about the puff balls were always growing up around the 427 00:23:56,080 --> 00:23:58,440 Speaker 1: cows because of the manure. I don't know, I mean, 428 00:23:58,480 --> 00:24:00,679 Speaker 1: I know, so I certainly know that some mushrooms and 429 00:24:00,760 --> 00:24:04,840 Speaker 1: including psychedelic mushrooms, depend on comedy or and that's where 430 00:24:04,840 --> 00:24:07,600 Speaker 1: you go to find them. But in this case, I think, 431 00:24:07,640 --> 00:24:09,320 Speaker 1: I don't know. They're just growing in the same fields 432 00:24:09,320 --> 00:24:11,280 Speaker 1: with them. And so everyone got a big kick out 433 00:24:11,280 --> 00:24:14,040 Speaker 1: of stepping on the puff balls and or stepping on 434 00:24:14,160 --> 00:24:17,440 Speaker 1: the dried cow patties. Right, Because the spores puff out, 435 00:24:17,480 --> 00:24:20,479 Speaker 1: that's why they're called called puff balls. I thought they 436 00:24:20,480 --> 00:24:23,879 Speaker 1: were called puffballs because they looked like these little puffy clouds. 437 00:24:24,320 --> 00:24:26,359 Speaker 1: Well that's when they grow up there. Actually, I would 438 00:24:26,359 --> 00:24:28,239 Speaker 1: say of the mushrooms we're talking about today, these are 439 00:24:28,240 --> 00:24:31,680 Speaker 1: probably the ones that people are most visually familiar with. Um. 440 00:24:31,720 --> 00:24:34,800 Speaker 1: They do kind of look like the mushrooms that we 441 00:24:35,160 --> 00:24:37,040 Speaker 1: you know, the just generic mushrooms that you buy at 442 00:24:37,080 --> 00:24:39,119 Speaker 1: the grocery store and at to your salad or whatever, 443 00:24:39,160 --> 00:24:42,640 Speaker 1: but they're sort of like a bigger, mutated version of them. Um. 444 00:24:42,720 --> 00:24:44,800 Speaker 1: And yeah, like I said, they're called puffballs not because 445 00:24:44,840 --> 00:24:48,520 Speaker 1: of how they look, but because the spores puff out 446 00:24:48,560 --> 00:24:51,000 Speaker 1: of them in a cloud when they're hit, even by 447 00:24:51,080 --> 00:24:54,119 Speaker 1: falling rain drops. That's nuts to me. Any kind of 448 00:24:54,200 --> 00:25:00,800 Speaker 1: impact amidst these spores. So again reproduction. Uh, they're found worldwide, 449 00:25:01,240 --> 00:25:05,040 Speaker 1: but when they desiccate, they release their spores when they're agitated, 450 00:25:05,960 --> 00:25:10,159 Speaker 1: and only one puffball species can produce psychoactive affection. Might 451 00:25:10,160 --> 00:25:12,760 Speaker 1: be wondering why I'm bringing that up, Well, it's important 452 00:25:12,760 --> 00:25:14,399 Speaker 1: to a case study that I'm gonna bring up in 453 00:25:14,440 --> 00:25:17,040 Speaker 1: a little bit here. Um, there are a lot of 454 00:25:17,080 --> 00:25:20,560 Speaker 1: different varieties of puffball mushrooms. They all belong in the 455 00:25:20,640 --> 00:25:25,240 Speaker 1: Bassie dio micada division, and they all have the following 456 00:25:25,320 --> 00:25:28,399 Speaker 1: characteristics in common. They do not grow an open cap 457 00:25:28,480 --> 00:25:31,240 Speaker 1: with the spore bearing gills, so that's why they have 458 00:25:31,359 --> 00:25:35,200 Speaker 1: to you know, emit their spores when they're when they're agitated. Instead, 459 00:25:35,240 --> 00:25:38,560 Speaker 1: the spores are grown internally and the mushroom develops an 460 00:25:38,600 --> 00:25:42,440 Speaker 1: aperture or it splits open to release the spores outward. 461 00:25:43,280 --> 00:25:46,480 Speaker 1: Puffballs are a variety of sizes. Some can be as 462 00:25:46,480 --> 00:25:48,480 Speaker 1: small as a marble, and others can be as big 463 00:25:48,520 --> 00:25:50,320 Speaker 1: as a basketball. I saw a picture of a guy 464 00:25:50,359 --> 00:25:52,159 Speaker 1: holding one that was as big as a basketball, and 465 00:25:52,200 --> 00:25:54,400 Speaker 1: I was I was kind of shocked by that. Um. 466 00:25:54,400 --> 00:25:56,840 Speaker 1: But they're white and round. They look a lot like 467 00:25:56,880 --> 00:26:00,200 Speaker 1: what you think mushrooms look like. Sometimes they're smooth than 468 00:26:00,200 --> 00:26:02,760 Speaker 1: other times. They have large wartz or or even like 469 00:26:02,840 --> 00:26:06,399 Speaker 1: little spikes on their surface, and there's very little stems, 470 00:26:06,400 --> 00:26:10,119 Speaker 1: so they're pretty close to the ground. The term puff 471 00:26:10,119 --> 00:26:15,600 Speaker 1: ball refers to three genera of fungi Calvadia, calbo vista, 472 00:26:15,760 --> 00:26:19,040 Speaker 1: and leco perdon. Now leco pernn is the one that 473 00:26:19,080 --> 00:26:22,679 Speaker 1: I really want to focus on today. Um, but really 474 00:26:22,720 --> 00:26:25,240 Speaker 1: make sure so for instance, like if you're out there, 475 00:26:25,280 --> 00:26:27,800 Speaker 1: like Robert, you just said you saw them when you 476 00:26:27,840 --> 00:26:29,440 Speaker 1: were you know, going to look at cows and stuff 477 00:26:29,480 --> 00:26:32,080 Speaker 1: like that, Right, So some people go and forage for 478 00:26:32,119 --> 00:26:36,160 Speaker 1: puffballs and they you know, by all accounts it's it's edible. 479 00:26:36,600 --> 00:26:39,959 Speaker 1: And uh we did actually an episode here at How 480 00:26:39,960 --> 00:26:43,959 Speaker 1: Stuff Works about foraging in the woods for various foods. 481 00:26:44,119 --> 00:26:46,399 Speaker 1: So I'm just gonna leave you with this disclaimer, like 482 00:26:47,000 --> 00:26:50,360 Speaker 1: you should really make sure you know exactly what kind 483 00:26:50,359 --> 00:26:52,400 Speaker 1: of mushroom you're picking before you just go out into 484 00:26:52,440 --> 00:26:54,520 Speaker 1: the woods and grab a mushroom and throw it into 485 00:26:54,560 --> 00:26:56,280 Speaker 1: a salad or pop it in your mouth. I don't 486 00:26:56,359 --> 00:26:59,080 Speaker 1: don't go picking odd mushrooms based on anything we've told 487 00:26:59,080 --> 00:27:01,600 Speaker 1: you here. If you're gonna engage in that, and make 488 00:27:01,640 --> 00:27:05,320 Speaker 1: sure you are following the footsteps of a true expert. 489 00:27:05,600 --> 00:27:09,719 Speaker 1: And the reason why, especially with puffballs, is because you 490 00:27:09,760 --> 00:27:13,680 Speaker 1: can get quite sick even from just breathing in their spores. 491 00:27:14,200 --> 00:27:17,119 Speaker 1: So this is the main mushroom that's responsible for something 492 00:27:17,160 --> 00:27:22,680 Speaker 1: called lycoperdonosis. This is a really rare respiratory illness that's 493 00:27:22,720 --> 00:27:26,520 Speaker 1: caused by inhaling mushroom spores. And this is the case 494 00:27:26,560 --> 00:27:29,280 Speaker 1: study that I wanted to mention to you. Uh In 495 00:27:30,840 --> 00:27:35,679 Speaker 1: eight teenagers in southeastern Wisconsin had inhaled and chewed the 496 00:27:35,720 --> 00:27:40,399 Speaker 1: spores of puffball mushrooms at a party. Now, according to 497 00:27:40,480 --> 00:27:42,600 Speaker 1: the study that I read, there were no other illicit 498 00:27:42,640 --> 00:27:44,640 Speaker 1: drugs that were found at this party. But it's hard 499 00:27:44,680 --> 00:27:47,000 Speaker 1: for me to believe that these kids weren't eating these 500 00:27:47,080 --> 00:27:49,640 Speaker 1: mushrooms because they thought they would have some psychoactive properties. 501 00:27:49,680 --> 00:27:52,320 Speaker 1: That's why I mentioned earlier there's only one of these 502 00:27:53,240 --> 00:27:56,040 Speaker 1: that has any kind of properties like that. Three of 503 00:27:56,080 --> 00:27:59,880 Speaker 1: these people reported nausea within six to thirteen hours. Within 504 00:28:00,040 --> 00:28:04,200 Speaker 1: three to seven days, all of the patients had a cough, fever, 505 00:28:04,480 --> 00:28:08,160 Speaker 1: shortness of breath, muscle pain, and fatigue. Five of them 506 00:28:08,280 --> 00:28:11,199 Speaker 1: were hospitalized too, had to be intovated. They had to 507 00:28:11,200 --> 00:28:14,440 Speaker 1: have a tube put down their throat. Three had to 508 00:28:14,520 --> 00:28:17,959 Speaker 1: undergo various kinds of lung biopsies to figure out what 509 00:28:18,000 --> 00:28:20,560 Speaker 1: was going on with them. This revealed that their lungs 510 00:28:20,560 --> 00:28:24,959 Speaker 1: were inflamed and they had formed yeast like structures in 511 00:28:25,000 --> 00:28:29,800 Speaker 1: between the flesh of their lungs that were like mushroom spores, 512 00:28:30,600 --> 00:28:33,320 Speaker 1: but there were no fungal cultures found in their lungs. 513 00:28:33,720 --> 00:28:36,800 Speaker 1: The spores got in there and and either replicated or 514 00:28:36,840 --> 00:28:40,320 Speaker 1: just we're clogging up their lungs or something. It really 515 00:28:40,360 --> 00:28:43,840 Speaker 1: didn't make them feel well. Uh so, I really want 516 00:28:43,840 --> 00:28:45,480 Speaker 1: to warn you about this. This is like, this is 517 00:28:45,520 --> 00:28:48,080 Speaker 1: a species that seems harmless, we see it all the time, 518 00:28:48,440 --> 00:28:51,680 Speaker 1: and yet like it can make people quite sick. The 519 00:28:51,720 --> 00:28:54,959 Speaker 1: other hand, this is very rare. Um. The people were 520 00:28:55,000 --> 00:28:59,320 Speaker 1: given cotocosteroids, they got better. Four of them received antifungal 521 00:28:59,360 --> 00:29:02,360 Speaker 1: therapy with rugs. All of them recovered between a week 522 00:29:02,440 --> 00:29:05,480 Speaker 1: and a month. But despite this, there isn't a lot 523 00:29:05,520 --> 00:29:08,320 Speaker 1: of evidence for what in the literature was referred to 524 00:29:08,360 --> 00:29:12,680 Speaker 1: as the efficacy of using anti fungal agents to treat 525 00:29:12,720 --> 00:29:15,080 Speaker 1: this disease. When you breathe in these spores, they don't 526 00:29:15,120 --> 00:29:17,960 Speaker 1: know if it really works. No. And in fact, there 527 00:29:18,040 --> 00:29:20,920 Speaker 1: other than this, there's only been three other recorded cases 528 00:29:20,960 --> 00:29:23,760 Speaker 1: of this, so two of them were in children in 529 00:29:23,760 --> 00:29:27,200 Speaker 1: one and an adolescent. And remember these these were teenagers, 530 00:29:27,320 --> 00:29:30,240 Speaker 1: so it seems to be something that affects younger people more. 531 00:29:30,760 --> 00:29:33,200 Speaker 1: And I just want to point out to like, yes, 532 00:29:33,360 --> 00:29:35,560 Speaker 1: I'm I'm focusing in on the puff ball here because 533 00:29:35,560 --> 00:29:37,960 Speaker 1: it has these rare cases of this disease, right, and 534 00:29:37,960 --> 00:29:41,719 Speaker 1: they make people quite ill. But in general, the spores 535 00:29:41,760 --> 00:29:46,320 Speaker 1: of mushrooms may contain microtoxins. Okay, uh, there are several 536 00:29:46,320 --> 00:29:54,560 Speaker 1: diseases that are associated with inhaling fungal spores, including toxic numonitis, hypersensity, pneumonitis, tremors, 537 00:29:54,680 --> 00:29:59,400 Speaker 1: chronic fatigue, syndrome, kidney failure, and even cancer. So you know, 538 00:29:59,520 --> 00:30:01,560 Speaker 1: before again, before you got into the woods and you 539 00:30:01,600 --> 00:30:03,840 Speaker 1: just start picking up mushrooms and breathing them in or 540 00:30:03,880 --> 00:30:06,000 Speaker 1: chopping them up and putting them in a salad, you 541 00:30:06,200 --> 00:30:09,560 Speaker 1: really want to make sure you know what you're getting. UM. 542 00:30:09,760 --> 00:30:12,040 Speaker 1: Make sure you've either got an expert with you or 543 00:30:12,120 --> 00:30:15,440 Speaker 1: I don't know, you're consulting a book or something like that. Um. 544 00:30:15,480 --> 00:30:18,560 Speaker 1: But yeah, I mean, just consider fungi have a parasitic lifestyle. 545 00:30:18,560 --> 00:30:21,840 Speaker 1: Like I said, so imagine this, like you breathe in 546 00:30:21,880 --> 00:30:24,719 Speaker 1: their spores. Of course, when they get inside your lungs, 547 00:30:25,200 --> 00:30:28,680 Speaker 1: their cell membranes are going to start absorbing nutrients through 548 00:30:28,760 --> 00:30:31,440 Speaker 1: your lungs. So, yeah, they've ended up in the wrong place, 549 00:30:31,480 --> 00:30:33,840 Speaker 1: but that doesn't mean they're They're not gonna attempt to 550 00:30:33,880 --> 00:30:37,160 Speaker 1: carry out their basic program. Yeah, absolutely so. Puff Ball, 551 00:30:37,320 --> 00:30:39,520 Speaker 1: it's a cool, weird kind of It reminds me of 552 00:30:39,600 --> 00:30:43,320 Speaker 1: jiggly Puff the Pokemon. I have to imagine that that 553 00:30:43,360 --> 00:30:48,320 Speaker 1: Pokemon was probably a designed after the puff Ball. But 554 00:30:48,320 --> 00:30:51,280 Speaker 1: but yeah, it's a cute, little weird mushroom. But you 555 00:30:51,320 --> 00:30:56,560 Speaker 1: don't want to necessarily inhale those spores. Right. Well, if 556 00:30:57,000 --> 00:30:59,280 Speaker 1: you're wonderable, what what mushrooms can I eat? Well, the 557 00:30:59,320 --> 00:31:01,680 Speaker 1: one I'm going to talk about you can definitely eat. 558 00:31:02,160 --> 00:31:08,600 Speaker 1: Um It is the edible oyster mushroom or Plerotis austriatis. 559 00:31:08,640 --> 00:31:11,040 Speaker 1: And this, uh, I mean, I think I'm a lot 560 00:31:11,080 --> 00:31:13,920 Speaker 1: most of us have had this before. Oysterroom mushroom. You'll 561 00:31:13,920 --> 00:31:17,480 Speaker 1: typically find it in various stir fries. It's delicious. But 562 00:31:17,640 --> 00:31:19,440 Speaker 1: the really cool thing about it, and what I'm gonna 563 00:31:19,480 --> 00:31:23,400 Speaker 1: talk about here is that this is essentially a carnivorous mushroom. 564 00:31:23,600 --> 00:31:26,760 Speaker 1: So before it ends up on your your grocery store shelf, 565 00:31:27,200 --> 00:31:29,920 Speaker 1: it's out there eating things. Now, I mean, obviously we 566 00:31:29,960 --> 00:31:32,400 Speaker 1: eat things that eat other things, unless you're just eating 567 00:31:32,400 --> 00:31:36,080 Speaker 1: straight up you know, plants that are absorbing um solar radiation. 568 00:31:36,160 --> 00:31:39,800 Speaker 1: But but the thing here is that you don't necessarily 569 00:31:39,800 --> 00:31:43,000 Speaker 1: think about what the mushrooms are consuming, and you don't think, oh, 570 00:31:43,120 --> 00:31:51,760 Speaker 1: they are essentially catching and consuming live nematodes and or spiders. Yeah, 571 00:31:51,920 --> 00:31:54,400 Speaker 1: so there's UM so when you eat them, you're getting 572 00:31:54,400 --> 00:31:57,800 Speaker 1: a little bit of spider well you know, I mean yeah, 573 00:31:57,880 --> 00:31:59,640 Speaker 1: I mean it's it kind of comes back around to 574 00:31:59,680 --> 00:32:01,719 Speaker 1: when you eat your food, how how far back are 575 00:32:01,720 --> 00:32:04,440 Speaker 1: you're going to try and trace the heritage of your 576 00:32:04,520 --> 00:32:07,120 Speaker 1: your nutrients? Um? You know it's gonna go to something 577 00:32:07,200 --> 00:32:10,280 Speaker 1: dead at some point, right, But this isn't like, UM, 578 00:32:10,400 --> 00:32:12,040 Speaker 1: I'm thinking of the fig wasp, which you and I 579 00:32:12,080 --> 00:32:15,160 Speaker 1: have both research before, you know, which which ends up 580 00:32:15,200 --> 00:32:17,840 Speaker 1: in most figs that you eat. But of course insects 581 00:32:17,880 --> 00:32:19,800 Speaker 1: wind up in most foods of the eat. So what 582 00:32:19,840 --> 00:32:24,720 Speaker 1: can you do UM in this particular case, though essentially 583 00:32:24,760 --> 00:32:29,080 Speaker 1: the idea is that the mushrooms will eat these nematodes 584 00:32:29,160 --> 00:32:32,360 Speaker 1: or these spiders. Uh. Probably is a way to supplement 585 00:32:32,440 --> 00:32:35,960 Speaker 1: low levels of nitrogen available available in the wood because 586 00:32:36,000 --> 00:32:37,600 Speaker 1: they tend to grow on like the size of trees 587 00:32:37,680 --> 00:32:39,280 Speaker 1: and stuff they have that you know, they look like 588 00:32:39,280 --> 00:32:42,480 Speaker 1: a little oysters, like little like like a little overhangs 589 00:32:42,480 --> 00:32:45,800 Speaker 1: that you know, yeah, no, might hang under to get 590 00:32:45,800 --> 00:32:48,760 Speaker 1: away from the from the rain the radio. Yeah, I 591 00:32:48,760 --> 00:32:51,200 Speaker 1: know exactly what you're talking about. Yeah. So according to 592 00:32:51,240 --> 00:32:54,760 Speaker 1: a two thousand fifteen study from ARC Imaging Center at 593 00:32:54,920 --> 00:33:00,080 Speaker 1: Monash University and Brickbeck College published in Plos Biology, the 594 00:33:00,080 --> 00:33:06,600 Speaker 1: shrooms employ special membrane attack complex paraffin like proteins or 595 00:33:07,600 --> 00:33:11,400 Speaker 1: m A CPF proteins to punch holes in the cells 596 00:33:11,440 --> 00:33:14,040 Speaker 1: of its prey. And what's crazy here is this is 597 00:33:14,040 --> 00:33:18,640 Speaker 1: the very tactic the human immune cells us against bacterial invaders. So, 598 00:33:18,960 --> 00:33:22,160 Speaker 1: like I'm trying to imagine this, So a spider crawls 599 00:33:22,200 --> 00:33:26,840 Speaker 1: across this and these these cells start poking tiny little 600 00:33:26,880 --> 00:33:30,120 Speaker 1: holes through it. Well, the better examples probably with it 601 00:33:30,120 --> 00:33:33,120 Speaker 1: with the nematodes um and and there's actually a whole 602 00:33:33,120 --> 00:33:37,680 Speaker 1: classification of nemoto phagees fun guy, And this covers nematode 603 00:33:37,760 --> 00:33:42,080 Speaker 1: eating fungi in general. Uh. They often use um my 604 00:33:42,280 --> 00:33:47,840 Speaker 1: cilial trap structures or spores to trap the nematodes, or 605 00:33:47,880 --> 00:33:51,680 Speaker 1: they use special branching structures known as hypel tips to 606 00:33:51,800 --> 00:33:56,800 Speaker 1: attack nematode eggs and cysts. Uh. So the yeah, they're 607 00:33:56,840 --> 00:33:59,920 Speaker 1: actively engaging in I've seen some write ups even go 608 00:34:00,040 --> 00:34:02,920 Speaker 1: so far as to say they're they're hunting and killing nematodes, 609 00:34:03,280 --> 00:34:07,040 Speaker 1: they're hunting and killing spiders and in some cases as well. Uh. 610 00:34:07,520 --> 00:34:09,840 Speaker 1: And it's and it goes beyond just like near grotesque 611 00:34:09,840 --> 00:34:13,880 Speaker 1: curiosity here because their potential medical applications here, learning how 612 00:34:13,960 --> 00:34:17,840 Speaker 1: to to damp in immune response and people with autoimmune disease, 613 00:34:18,280 --> 00:34:22,520 Speaker 1: stopping listeria escaping our immune cells, and preventing malaria from 614 00:34:22,600 --> 00:34:25,680 Speaker 1: infecting the liver. Those are just a few possible um 615 00:34:26,719 --> 00:34:30,120 Speaker 1: treasures we can unlock with the fungal key here. Yeah, 616 00:34:30,160 --> 00:34:32,719 Speaker 1: it seems like the m A CPF that you you 617 00:34:32,840 --> 00:34:37,239 Speaker 1: mentioned earlier, those proteins, the functionality of those can sort 618 00:34:37,280 --> 00:34:40,920 Speaker 1: of be reverse engineered for our benefit. Yeah, that's the 619 00:34:41,239 --> 00:34:43,880 Speaker 1: that's the hope that the researchers have. But even if 620 00:34:43,920 --> 00:34:46,080 Speaker 1: we never get there it is. It is fascinating to 621 00:34:46,160 --> 00:34:48,680 Speaker 1: think that this this mushroom that we love is essentially 622 00:34:49,280 --> 00:34:52,799 Speaker 1: feeding itself in part on nematodes, which nobody really wants 623 00:34:52,840 --> 00:34:55,920 Speaker 1: to think about the role of nematodes uh in their diets. 624 00:34:56,200 --> 00:34:57,960 Speaker 1: But of course there are other animals that eat nematodes 625 00:34:57,960 --> 00:35:01,960 Speaker 1: as well. What can you do some people? Maybe this 626 00:35:02,640 --> 00:35:05,080 Speaker 1: next mushroom is the one that I have the hardest 627 00:35:05,120 --> 00:35:08,040 Speaker 1: time looking at pictures of. And so we mentioned earlier 628 00:35:08,080 --> 00:35:10,600 Speaker 1: we're gonna have pictures of all of these on stuff 629 00:35:10,640 --> 00:35:13,279 Speaker 1: to blow your mind dot com. You should definitely go 630 00:35:13,440 --> 00:35:17,080 Speaker 1: look at what this time looks beautifully bizarre. Yeah, they're 631 00:35:17,080 --> 00:35:20,560 Speaker 1: called the bleeding tooth mushroom, uh. And the reason why 632 00:35:21,040 --> 00:35:26,719 Speaker 1: is because, well, it basically looks like a white mushroom 633 00:35:27,160 --> 00:35:31,440 Speaker 1: that is bleeding all over the place. It has little droplets. 634 00:35:32,280 --> 00:35:35,720 Speaker 1: Basically that's a younger specimens of this mushroom they quote 635 00:35:35,920 --> 00:35:39,000 Speaker 1: bleed a bright red juice. And here's the crazy thing. 636 00:35:39,440 --> 00:35:44,600 Speaker 1: That juice has anticoagulant properties. Now, the blood itself, it's 637 00:35:44,640 --> 00:35:49,480 Speaker 1: not actual blood, uh, isn't because the mushrooms damaged. That's 638 00:35:49,600 --> 00:35:51,840 Speaker 1: just what it really looks like. It's a it's a 639 00:35:51,880 --> 00:35:55,359 Speaker 1: red sap that emerges from this mushroom because of high 640 00:35:55,520 --> 00:35:58,719 Speaker 1: root pressure. When they get older, the pressure eases and 641 00:35:58,800 --> 00:36:01,800 Speaker 1: the fungus turns brown own. But they're about three to 642 00:36:01,920 --> 00:36:05,080 Speaker 1: eight centimeters in diameter summer round but more often not 643 00:36:05,160 --> 00:36:08,800 Speaker 1: their oval or maybe multi lobed. They're white or pale pink. 644 00:36:09,239 --> 00:36:11,960 Speaker 1: They become deeper pink and then brown as they did decay. 645 00:36:13,040 --> 00:36:16,480 Speaker 1: But yeah, I mean it basically looks like, uh, it's 646 00:36:16,520 --> 00:36:20,480 Speaker 1: the stigmata of mushrooms. Like it's a it's a mushroom. 647 00:36:20,520 --> 00:36:22,880 Speaker 1: It's it's a kind of bizarrely shaped mushroom too. It's 648 00:36:22,880 --> 00:36:25,400 Speaker 1: a little pinkish, a little whitish, but there's just little 649 00:36:26,040 --> 00:36:30,000 Speaker 1: dots of what looks like blood coming out of this thing, 650 00:36:30,440 --> 00:36:33,480 Speaker 1: sometimes so much so that it drips down the side 651 00:36:33,560 --> 00:36:37,200 Speaker 1: of these mushrooms. They're just utterly creepy looking. Yeah, the 652 00:36:37,280 --> 00:36:39,160 Speaker 1: thing they really remind me of if we have any 653 00:36:39,280 --> 00:36:42,080 Speaker 1: Mystery Science Theater three thousand fans out there. Uh, there 654 00:36:42,200 --> 00:36:46,040 Speaker 1: was a film, a nine film titled Attack of VV 655 00:36:46,239 --> 00:36:48,719 Speaker 1: Eye Creatures that had two vs in the title and 656 00:36:49,480 --> 00:36:52,200 Speaker 1: that one. Yeah, it's wonderfully bad film and it it 657 00:36:52,280 --> 00:36:55,080 Speaker 1: involves a number of these shambling eye creatures and they 658 00:36:55,239 --> 00:37:01,160 Speaker 1: look like bleeding tooth mushrooms. Okay, okay, yeah, they're real weird. Um. 659 00:37:01,440 --> 00:37:05,359 Speaker 1: They were first described by an American mycologist in nineteen twelve. 660 00:37:05,520 --> 00:37:08,640 Speaker 1: His name was Howard James Banker, and they are found 661 00:37:08,680 --> 00:37:12,920 Speaker 1: in North America, Europe, Iran, in Korea. In Britain, it's 662 00:37:13,000 --> 00:37:16,279 Speaker 1: mainly known as a woodland mushroom, so they mostly grow 663 00:37:16,440 --> 00:37:20,960 Speaker 1: near coniferous trees. Um. They're not poisonous, despite how bizarre 664 00:37:21,040 --> 00:37:23,560 Speaker 1: they look. Yeah, it looks like the last mushroom you 665 00:37:23,560 --> 00:37:28,480 Speaker 1: would yeah. Well, okay, so one of the nicknames that 666 00:37:28,560 --> 00:37:32,480 Speaker 1: it has, especially in Britain is strawberries and cream. Well, 667 00:37:33,120 --> 00:37:35,160 Speaker 1: that's the last thing that I would call it. It 668 00:37:35,320 --> 00:37:39,120 Speaker 1: doesn't at all look appetizing. Um. There's another nickname for 669 00:37:39,200 --> 00:37:42,560 Speaker 1: it is devil's tooth um. But yeah, they're not poisonous, 670 00:37:42,719 --> 00:37:46,040 Speaker 1: but they are pretty bitter. They have an accumulation of 671 00:37:46,080 --> 00:37:48,879 Speaker 1: an element called c c M one seven in them, 672 00:37:48,960 --> 00:37:52,120 Speaker 1: which doesn't make them very pleasant to eat. Their formal 673 00:37:52,280 --> 00:37:55,640 Speaker 1: name is hyddenell um. Again, here we are with the Latin. 674 00:37:55,760 --> 00:37:58,680 Speaker 1: Let me see if I can get this hydenylum pecky 675 00:37:59,000 --> 00:38:01,319 Speaker 1: I believe is what it is is, but so yeah, 676 00:38:01,360 --> 00:38:03,480 Speaker 1: they go by a number of names. That's the formal name, 677 00:38:03,600 --> 00:38:07,879 Speaker 1: Devil's Tooth, Strawberries and Cream, or bleeding tooth. Now here's 678 00:38:07,880 --> 00:38:10,840 Speaker 1: the thing. Remember I said it had anticoagulant properties in it, 679 00:38:11,280 --> 00:38:14,799 Speaker 1: So this blood the same blood. It actually has something 680 00:38:14,840 --> 00:38:19,200 Speaker 1: in it called atromanan which is an effective anti coagulation 681 00:38:19,680 --> 00:38:25,360 Speaker 1: that's similar to heperin. It is anti bacterial against strepto 682 00:38:25,560 --> 00:38:29,560 Speaker 1: coxus pneumonia. That this is the main bacteria that causes 683 00:38:29,560 --> 00:38:33,400 Speaker 1: pneumonia and people. Uh. And you can even use this 684 00:38:33,520 --> 00:38:37,440 Speaker 1: stuff to stimulate smooth muscles. I don't know what that means, 685 00:38:38,719 --> 00:38:42,960 Speaker 1: but it was in the literature, and it causes apoptosis 686 00:38:43,120 --> 00:38:45,879 Speaker 1: in certain leukemia cells, which we were We've talked about 687 00:38:45,880 --> 00:38:50,040 Speaker 1: apoptosis before when we've mentioned m D M A on 688 00:38:50,160 --> 00:38:52,279 Speaker 1: the show before. So M D M A also has 689 00:38:52,320 --> 00:38:56,520 Speaker 1: a poptosis properties, but this is specific to leukemia. It 690 00:38:56,640 --> 00:38:59,520 Speaker 1: might be a way to treat it. All these properties 691 00:38:59,520 --> 00:39:01,919 Speaker 1: were discover it in nineteen sixty five by a team 692 00:39:01,960 --> 00:39:06,440 Speaker 1: of researchers published in the Journal of Pharmaceutical Science. So 693 00:39:06,560 --> 00:39:08,520 Speaker 1: we've known for a while now that it has these 694 00:39:08,520 --> 00:39:11,520 Speaker 1: anticoagulant properties. To it. The other thing that it made 695 00:39:11,520 --> 00:39:13,880 Speaker 1: me think of was when we've talked about bats before 696 00:39:13,920 --> 00:39:16,480 Speaker 1: on the show and how their saliva has anti coagulant 697 00:39:16,480 --> 00:39:18,560 Speaker 1: properties in't it. I know. I love how that sixty 698 00:39:18,600 --> 00:39:22,120 Speaker 1: five article that you reference here it includes mentioned of 699 00:39:22,520 --> 00:39:26,600 Speaker 1: heiden Ellum diabolus. Yeah, so is that I'm wondering, is 700 00:39:26,640 --> 00:39:30,800 Speaker 1: that's another species of it that is diabolic in nature, 701 00:39:31,000 --> 00:39:33,239 Speaker 1: or maybe that was an earlier term for it, or yeah, 702 00:39:33,320 --> 00:39:36,040 Speaker 1: maybe that was what its name was earlier. So from 703 00:39:36,080 --> 00:39:39,440 Speaker 1: what I remember loosely from the notes was that hyden 704 00:39:39,520 --> 00:39:43,640 Speaker 1: Ellum Pecky was named as such because there was a guy, 705 00:39:43,840 --> 00:39:47,279 Speaker 1: a well known mycologist with the last name peck Uh, 706 00:39:47,360 --> 00:39:49,080 Speaker 1: and this it was like sort of like an honor 707 00:39:49,280 --> 00:39:51,400 Speaker 1: to him by naming it after him. But I wonder 708 00:39:51,440 --> 00:39:54,400 Speaker 1: if maybe diabolus was what its name was first, or 709 00:39:54,560 --> 00:39:58,480 Speaker 1: maybe there's different difference between the devil's tooth and the 710 00:39:58,600 --> 00:40:02,920 Speaker 1: bleeding tooth, like are the same species but different genera. 711 00:40:03,040 --> 00:40:05,960 Speaker 1: I'm not sure about that that that is a good 712 00:40:06,040 --> 00:40:08,239 Speaker 1: point that it has a different name in there, but 713 00:40:08,320 --> 00:40:11,480 Speaker 1: I believe they all have that same anticoagon kind of 714 00:40:11,640 --> 00:40:16,000 Speaker 1: seeping blood property to them. So yeah, if you see 715 00:40:16,040 --> 00:40:18,000 Speaker 1: one of these. I mean, you could pop it in 716 00:40:18,080 --> 00:40:21,080 Speaker 1: your mouth. It's gonna taste pretty gross, but it's not. 717 00:40:21,760 --> 00:40:24,719 Speaker 1: But absolutely do not pop it in your mouth. Do 718 00:40:24,840 --> 00:40:26,680 Speaker 1: not pop any mushrooms in your mouth. Because you heard 719 00:40:26,760 --> 00:40:29,320 Speaker 1: us talking about the Yeah that too. Uh no, So 720 00:40:29,440 --> 00:40:31,600 Speaker 1: speaking of the devil, we're gonna get to our our 721 00:40:31,719 --> 00:40:34,120 Speaker 1: last selection here and again with me. This is not 722 00:40:34,280 --> 00:40:40,040 Speaker 1: a specific mushroom, but a type of behavior, if you will, 723 00:40:40,560 --> 00:40:44,359 Speaker 1: manifestation that you see with with mushrooms and fun guy, 724 00:40:44,760 --> 00:40:48,200 Speaker 1: and that is the fairy ring. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. 725 00:40:48,360 --> 00:40:51,759 Speaker 1: There's lots of folklore that pops up out of the ferry. Yeah, 726 00:40:52,320 --> 00:40:55,160 Speaker 1: and it shows up a gosh. It's in Shakespeare, right, 727 00:40:55,520 --> 00:40:58,479 Speaker 1: and it's in Dungeons and Dragons. It's basically cultures around 728 00:40:58,480 --> 00:41:01,319 Speaker 1: the world most important literally area achievements of human kind. 729 00:41:01,440 --> 00:41:04,719 Speaker 1: Shakespeare douches. Yeah, you's encountered in cultures around the world 730 00:41:04,760 --> 00:41:08,600 Speaker 1: because essentially what we're taught, fairy rings essentially just means 731 00:41:08,680 --> 00:41:12,239 Speaker 1: strange circles on the ground or in the ground that 732 00:41:12,320 --> 00:41:16,040 Speaker 1: you find in nature. And uh, we've the causes we 733 00:41:16,120 --> 00:41:19,279 Speaker 1: attribute fairies dancing around and around on the spot, or 734 00:41:19,320 --> 00:41:22,720 Speaker 1: perhaps it's witches or devils. Hey, maybe it's a ufo. 735 00:41:22,960 --> 00:41:25,640 Speaker 1: If you're using a modern interpretation of it, it's whatever, 736 00:41:25,800 --> 00:41:29,279 Speaker 1: whatever the attributed supernatural cause. However, the basic idea is 737 00:41:29,320 --> 00:41:32,440 Speaker 1: that some unseen force is causing the circle to manifest. 738 00:41:32,640 --> 00:41:34,600 Speaker 1: I want to say, have you ever seen is it 739 00:41:34,680 --> 00:41:38,000 Speaker 1: pronounced haxon? I always get the pronunciation room because the 740 00:41:38,040 --> 00:41:41,000 Speaker 1: old devil worshiping hasn't whom loud over the a. Is 741 00:41:41,040 --> 00:41:44,200 Speaker 1: it hawks in? I'm not sure what the proper pronunciation 742 00:41:44,360 --> 00:41:46,960 Speaker 1: is of it, but yeah, it's it's this old documentary 743 00:41:47,000 --> 00:41:49,960 Speaker 1: about sort of the folklore around witches. Yeah, I've never 744 00:41:50,040 --> 00:41:52,160 Speaker 1: watched it in in full, but it has some wonderful 745 00:41:52,360 --> 00:41:55,760 Speaker 1: images in it. Yeah, I want to say that fairy 746 00:41:55,840 --> 00:41:57,560 Speaker 1: rings show up in that, but I might be wrong. 747 00:41:58,000 --> 00:41:59,920 Speaker 1: But but but because of the reasons you just meant, 748 00:42:00,239 --> 00:42:03,960 Speaker 1: because of the idea that which is did like rituals, 749 00:42:04,040 --> 00:42:07,520 Speaker 1: that they danced around the ferry ring right now, Absolutely 750 00:42:07,680 --> 00:42:12,000 Speaker 1: no fairy rings are caused by fairies or aliens or 751 00:42:12,200 --> 00:42:15,279 Speaker 1: the devil or the devil. Sorry, but that's the truth. Um, 752 00:42:15,920 --> 00:42:18,560 Speaker 1: But there there are accounts of fairy rings that are 753 00:42:18,719 --> 00:42:22,360 Speaker 1: that are not trum related, not directly funk related. So 754 00:42:22,520 --> 00:42:25,160 Speaker 1: I ran across one, for instance, from Nambia, and there 755 00:42:25,160 --> 00:42:30,080 Speaker 1: apparently fairy rings here that are caused by termite constructed 756 00:42:30,120 --> 00:42:33,920 Speaker 1: water traps. Uh. But other instances of fairy rings are 757 00:42:34,000 --> 00:42:37,680 Speaker 1: definitely tied to fungal activity and and not the dancing 758 00:42:37,880 --> 00:42:43,160 Speaker 1: micons that you encounter in Disney's Fantasium. So there are 759 00:42:43,239 --> 00:42:47,120 Speaker 1: essentially two varieties of fungal fairy rings. Then the first 760 00:42:47,239 --> 00:42:49,759 Speaker 1: is more mysterious, and I don't think I've ever seen 761 00:42:49,840 --> 00:42:51,759 Speaker 1: one of these in person. But this is just a 762 00:42:51,880 --> 00:42:56,040 Speaker 1: circle of dark green grass in a lawn or meadow, okay, 763 00:42:56,440 --> 00:42:59,839 Speaker 1: and with surrounding grass it's somewhat lighter. The culprit here 764 00:43:00,120 --> 00:43:04,279 Speaker 1: is subsurface fungal mycelia that caused the darker color due 765 00:43:04,280 --> 00:43:08,239 Speaker 1: to increased nitrogen produced by the fungus. Interesting, and you 766 00:43:08,360 --> 00:43:11,160 Speaker 1: also find other fun guy that caused in a chronic 767 00:43:11,320 --> 00:43:15,479 Speaker 1: ring of dead vegetation due to nitrogen depletion right, which 768 00:43:15,760 --> 00:43:18,799 Speaker 1: you know again back to the parasitic aspect of Guy. Right, 769 00:43:18,960 --> 00:43:21,840 Speaker 1: And the massilia is just kind of threading through underneath 770 00:43:22,200 --> 00:43:24,719 Speaker 1: the grass. So you can imagine where you look at this, 771 00:43:24,800 --> 00:43:26,880 Speaker 1: you're like, why is this grass screen or why is 772 00:43:26,920 --> 00:43:29,600 Speaker 1: this grass dead or it must be some sort of 773 00:43:29,640 --> 00:43:33,120 Speaker 1: supernatural force. Um. And then of course there's the more 774 00:43:33,280 --> 00:43:36,200 Speaker 1: overt form, and that's where you have actual surface mushrooms, 775 00:43:36,239 --> 00:43:39,480 Speaker 1: identifiable mushrooms that are lined up more or less in 776 00:43:39,520 --> 00:43:42,440 Speaker 1: a rough surface. You know what I just realized is, uh, 777 00:43:42,880 --> 00:43:46,440 Speaker 1: in my head, fairy rings combined two of the mushrooms 778 00:43:46,440 --> 00:43:51,320 Speaker 1: you've mentioned today, the fairy rings and then the phosphorescent mushrooms. 779 00:43:51,400 --> 00:43:54,319 Speaker 1: But I guess they don't necessarily right, they don't glow. 780 00:43:54,680 --> 00:43:57,080 Speaker 1: I did not in my research. I did not run 781 00:43:57,160 --> 00:44:01,640 Speaker 1: across a species of mushroom that was both. But but 782 00:44:01,719 --> 00:44:04,520 Speaker 1: I'm not sure it's it's possible, as you'll see when 783 00:44:04,560 --> 00:44:07,399 Speaker 1: I describe you know, what exactly is going on here. 784 00:44:08,360 --> 00:44:11,800 Speaker 1: So in either case, whether we're talking about subservice mushrooms 785 00:44:11,800 --> 00:44:15,000 Speaker 1: surface mushrooms, uh, the cause of the circle has nothing 786 00:44:15,040 --> 00:44:17,120 Speaker 1: to do with fairy kingdom and everything to do with 787 00:44:17,280 --> 00:44:21,799 Speaker 1: spore dispersal. So this is this is a fabulous model here. 788 00:44:21,920 --> 00:44:23,920 Speaker 1: So you can start with a single spore, al right, 789 00:44:23,960 --> 00:44:26,280 Speaker 1: it lands in a field, and then it grows, Okay, 790 00:44:26,320 --> 00:44:29,920 Speaker 1: it eventually produces a mushroom, or at least it reaches 791 00:44:29,960 --> 00:44:33,400 Speaker 1: this as adult form, and then it spreads out more spores. Uh. 792 00:44:33,520 --> 00:44:37,200 Speaker 1: And then this causes the growing colony to spread only 793 00:44:37,320 --> 00:44:41,320 Speaker 1: outward since the inner circle uh is the territory that 794 00:44:41,440 --> 00:44:44,200 Speaker 1: it's ravaged. Okay, this is a there's no more nutrients there, 795 00:44:44,239 --> 00:44:45,920 Speaker 1: so it can only spread out. So it's kind of 796 00:44:45,960 --> 00:44:50,000 Speaker 1: like theoretically the circle is going to get larger. Yes, 797 00:44:50,160 --> 00:44:52,880 Speaker 1: the circle gets larger and larger, and the inside of 798 00:44:52,920 --> 00:44:56,239 Speaker 1: the circle is depleted of the nutrients. That it doesn't 799 00:44:56,239 --> 00:44:57,799 Speaker 1: mean that the grass is all dead. It just means 800 00:44:57,840 --> 00:45:00,120 Speaker 1: that there's nothing else. Yeah, nothing else that the to 801 00:45:00,680 --> 00:45:03,080 Speaker 1: this particular fun guy can feed off of. So the 802 00:45:03,160 --> 00:45:06,240 Speaker 1: circle continues to grow and grow and uh. And sometimes 803 00:45:06,280 --> 00:45:09,040 Speaker 1: there are additional circles so you'll actually get uh, you know, 804 00:45:09,120 --> 00:45:11,360 Speaker 1: like figure eights and whatnot. Yeah, I was thinking, like, 805 00:45:11,760 --> 00:45:13,799 Speaker 1: I wonder if there's like a ven diagram one out 806 00:45:13,840 --> 00:45:17,920 Speaker 1: there somewhere maybe. But I love this because wonders of nature. 807 00:45:18,719 --> 00:45:21,640 Speaker 1: But I love this one because it makes me think of, say, 808 00:45:21,680 --> 00:45:23,759 Speaker 1: what have you had a like a sci fi or 809 00:45:23,840 --> 00:45:27,840 Speaker 1: fantasy scenario with say, say zombies or vampires, you know, 810 00:45:27,920 --> 00:45:32,080 Speaker 1: whatever your your breed of destructive monster that reproduces rapidly 811 00:45:32,160 --> 00:45:34,840 Speaker 1: might be. You can have a similar scenario where it 812 00:45:34,920 --> 00:45:37,680 Speaker 1: starts at one point and then it begins to spread outward, 813 00:45:37,719 --> 00:45:40,640 Speaker 1: but it's spreading as a as a ring because it 814 00:45:40,719 --> 00:45:43,400 Speaker 1: has to feed and it cannot continue to survive in 815 00:45:43,440 --> 00:45:46,279 Speaker 1: the area that it has ravished. That would all right, 816 00:45:46,840 --> 00:45:49,680 Speaker 1: producers of the new movie Rings that's coming out, I 817 00:45:49,760 --> 00:45:51,800 Speaker 1: think pretty soon. Right, They didn't pay us to say this, 818 00:45:51,960 --> 00:45:55,560 Speaker 1: but that would be a good spin on that mythos. 819 00:45:56,120 --> 00:45:59,239 Speaker 1: The idea of the girl across on the television and 820 00:45:59,320 --> 00:46:05,000 Speaker 1: kills me her ring forms in like an actual geographic 821 00:46:05,200 --> 00:46:09,200 Speaker 1: area as she kills everybody around, only people in that 822 00:46:09,480 --> 00:46:12,440 Speaker 1: ring like area can watch the video and it grows 823 00:46:12,640 --> 00:46:14,879 Speaker 1: further and further, or you know what show it would 824 00:46:15,000 --> 00:46:18,279 Speaker 1: It would work really well on a strain. Yeah, yeah, yeah. 825 00:46:18,960 --> 00:46:22,040 Speaker 1: It reminds me a lot two of these creatures known 826 00:46:22,080 --> 00:46:26,080 Speaker 1: as the shrunk in Um in our Scott Baker's books, 827 00:46:26,520 --> 00:46:28,320 Speaker 1: because these are these are kind of the Orcs of 828 00:46:28,920 --> 00:46:32,120 Speaker 1: his world, except there there seemed to be just they're 829 00:46:32,120 --> 00:46:36,080 Speaker 1: particularly bred, particularly created to just ravage the land and 830 00:46:36,160 --> 00:46:37,960 Speaker 1: so I get a mad and they bread rapidly, So 831 00:46:38,040 --> 00:46:39,719 Speaker 1: they would be a good model for this, Like they're 832 00:46:39,760 --> 00:46:41,840 Speaker 1: in one area and then they spread outward in this 833 00:46:42,040 --> 00:46:45,040 Speaker 1: in this Ring of desolation. You know, I like to 834 00:46:45,120 --> 00:46:48,800 Speaker 1: think that I'm there's still obviously a lot for me 835 00:46:48,920 --> 00:46:51,600 Speaker 1: to read, But I like to think that I've read 836 00:46:51,640 --> 00:46:53,680 Speaker 1: a lot of horror, and I think you have to. 837 00:46:54,400 --> 00:46:57,000 Speaker 1: And I can't really think of a ton of mushroom 838 00:46:57,080 --> 00:46:59,200 Speaker 1: based horror. And yet it seems to me that there's 839 00:46:59,239 --> 00:47:04,400 Speaker 1: something fun mentally creepy. You have mushrooms and just have 840 00:47:04,600 --> 00:47:08,960 Speaker 1: their formations are just their life process in general. Off 841 00:47:09,000 --> 00:47:10,320 Speaker 1: the top of my head, I cannot think of a 842 00:47:10,400 --> 00:47:12,120 Speaker 1: good one. Maybe I'll think of one after we go 843 00:47:12,239 --> 00:47:16,000 Speaker 1: off off offline here. Maybe you out there have one. 844 00:47:16,120 --> 00:47:19,480 Speaker 1: You're you're screaming at your podcast right now and saying, 845 00:47:19,640 --> 00:47:22,839 Speaker 1: Robert Christian, what you forgot about whatever? I mean? Well, 846 00:47:22,880 --> 00:47:25,600 Speaker 1: the most obvious one is that just the fun guy 847 00:47:25,680 --> 00:47:28,600 Speaker 1: from you go with that believe that Themigo and Lovecraft 848 00:47:28,640 --> 00:47:32,879 Speaker 1: stories are technically funguses, right, Okay, But but but that's 849 00:47:32,920 --> 00:47:34,799 Speaker 1: the only example that's instantly coming to mind. So there 850 00:47:34,880 --> 00:47:36,520 Speaker 1: may be some other great ones out there. Yeah, maybe 851 00:47:36,560 --> 00:47:39,400 Speaker 1: there are alright. Well, on that note, we're gonna go 852 00:47:39,440 --> 00:47:41,680 Speaker 1: ahead and close it out here again. We can only 853 00:47:41,760 --> 00:47:44,160 Speaker 1: discuss a few different mushrooms a few different types of 854 00:47:44,480 --> 00:47:48,160 Speaker 1: of mushroom behavior, if you will. So, if you have 855 00:47:48,360 --> 00:47:52,680 Speaker 1: some other amazing mycological specimens that you would like us 856 00:47:52,880 --> 00:47:56,640 Speaker 1: to discuss, let us know. Especially if you're a mycologist, 857 00:47:56,719 --> 00:47:58,960 Speaker 1: we'd love to hear from you. I'd be really curious 858 00:47:59,400 --> 00:48:02,200 Speaker 1: what your favorites are that and like, what what's the 859 00:48:02,360 --> 00:48:05,480 Speaker 1: daily life of a mycologists? Like it just sounds it 860 00:48:05,600 --> 00:48:09,200 Speaker 1: sounds charming to kind of go around and identify mushrooms 861 00:48:09,239 --> 00:48:12,480 Speaker 1: and examine them and write about them and with lots 862 00:48:12,520 --> 00:48:15,239 Speaker 1: of and occasionally get to name them. So, Hey, check 863 00:48:15,280 --> 00:48:16,879 Speaker 1: out stuff to bow your mind dot com. That's where 864 00:48:16,880 --> 00:48:19,279 Speaker 1: we'll find all the podcasts. You'll find blog posts, you'll 865 00:48:19,320 --> 00:48:22,400 Speaker 1: find videos, uh, you'll find all sorts of content, including 866 00:48:22,440 --> 00:48:25,000 Speaker 1: links out to our very social media accounts. Yeah, we 867 00:48:25,120 --> 00:48:29,560 Speaker 1: are on Facebook, Twitter, Tumbler, and Instagram. We post lots 868 00:48:29,640 --> 00:48:33,000 Speaker 1: of things to those channels, not just the podcasts that 869 00:48:33,080 --> 00:48:36,880 Speaker 1: you're listening to, but also articles that we write, videos 870 00:48:36,960 --> 00:48:40,279 Speaker 1: that we write or star in, and lots of other 871 00:48:40,360 --> 00:48:42,840 Speaker 1: stuff that we find in our travels across the internet 872 00:48:42,920 --> 00:48:46,000 Speaker 1: when we find bizarre science audities and we want you 873 00:48:46,120 --> 00:48:48,600 Speaker 1: to know about them. As I mentioned earlier. I take 874 00:48:48,680 --> 00:48:51,040 Speaker 1: pictures of weird mushrooms in the dog parks sometimes and 875 00:48:51,120 --> 00:48:53,480 Speaker 1: post them to our Facebook page, and hey, you can do. 876 00:48:53,680 --> 00:48:55,040 Speaker 1: That's a great place to share them. And you can 877 00:48:55,080 --> 00:48:59,800 Speaker 1: also send your weird mushroom photos, your mushroom horror suggest 878 00:48:59,840 --> 00:49:02,160 Speaker 1: to what have you to blow the mind and how 879 00:49:02,200 --> 00:49:13,640 Speaker 1: stuff works dot com for more on this and thousands 880 00:49:13,680 --> 00:49:16,000 Speaker 1: of other topics. Is it how stuff works dot com