But Why: A Podcast for Curious Kids

Why does my voice sound weird when it’s recorded?

How does our body make our voice? How do voice boxes work? What makes our voices so different? Why are boys' voices often lower than girls' voices? Why does your voice so

What are fossils?

What is a fossil? How are they formed? Where are they found? What’s the oldest fossil, and what’s the biggest? When you think of a fossil you might be picturing a full di

Where do constellations come from?

How are constellations formed? How many stars are there? What are stars made of? Why are there stars in the sky? Why are stars white? Why are some stars red? Why do stars

Why does space have so many planets?

Join us on a tour of our solar system with John O’Meara, chief scientist at the W.M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii. We’ll answer all of your questions about planets! How wer

Do animals play?

Have you ever seen your dog play with another dog? Have you seen squirrels chasing each other in the woods? Are they playing or are they doing something else? We look at

When was the first World Cup?

Right now, the 2026 FIFA men’s World Cup is happening across 16 cities in the United States, Canada and Mexico and it’s time to learn a little bit about soccer…or should

How are video games made?

How are video games made? Who invented the concept? Why do games have levels? Who invented them? Why are game consoles so expensive? Why do people like playing these game

What is ADHD?

What is ADHD? How does ADHD affect the brain? Why do only some people have it? How can we control our brains? An estimated 11 percent of U.S. kids are diagnosed with the

What are eels?

What are eels? And why are some eels electric? We head to Poughkeepsie, New York to learn about eels with Chris Bowser, Hudson River estuary educator with the New York De

Why does green mean go and red mean stop?

Why is there traffic? How do traffic lights work? How do they know when to turn red and green? Why does green mean go and red mean stop? Why are cars able to go faster th

Are Komodo dragons really dragons?

Can’t get enough of lizards? We’re back with a bonus episode answering more of your lizard questions with Adam Clause of the San Diego Natural History Museum. This week,

How do lizards grow their tails back?

Deep in the basement of the San Diego Natural History Museum, there are thousands of jars filled with preserved reptiles and amphibians. In this episode, But Why takes a

But Why turns 10!

But Why turns ten years old on April 1, 2026! To celebrate this milestone, we’re listening back to our very first episode. We’ve got owls and turtles and bears. Naturalis

What's it like to be a Kid Governor?

In the United States, voters in each state elect a governor every two or four year terms. The governor is the top official in the state government. But did you know five

How do we know life is not a dream?

Some questions are so big they’re existential, meaning that they get right to the heart of human existence. These are also sometimes called philosophical questions, so fo

How did bird dinosaurs survive the meteor?

Why did the dinosaurs go extinct? Many of you have learned about the meteorite that scientists say hit the earth 66 million years ago and killed off many dinosaur species

Why are brothers and sisters so annoying?

Why are brothers and sisters so annoying? Why do siblings often look a lot alike? Why do siblings fight? Can your sister be your best friend? Why do we fight with our sib

Do bunnies come out at night?

Why are rabbits called bunnies? Why do they have fur? Why do bunnies have puffball tails? Why do rabbits have eyes on the sides of their heads? Why do rabbits hop? Our gu

Why can’t we remember being babies?

How does memory work? Why can’t we remember things that happened when we were babies? Why do we forget? Why are some people forgetful? Why do elephants have such good mem

What’s on your bucket list?

Have you ever heard of a bucket list? That’s an expression people sometimes use that means something big you want to do or see or accomplish in your lifetime! For our las