This 13th episode of The Pain Beat is the first of a three-part series discussing the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine – awarded to David Julius, University of California, San Francisco, USA and Ardem Patapoutian, Scripps Research, California, USA – for their work on molecules important for somatosensation (see PRF related interview here, and PRF related news story here). In this episode, The Pain Beat spoke with Nobel Prize laureate David Julius and Michael Caterina, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Maryland, USA, to discuss their discovery of TRPV1. The conversation provides insight regarding their thought processes and problem solving, the enduring challenges of scientific discoveries, and the fun they had along the way. Podcast participants include: David Julius, PhD, University of California, San Francisco, USA Michael Caterina, MD, PhD, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Maryland, USA Tayler Sheahan, PhD, University of Pittsburgh, USA (Host)