A Scandinavian country, deep into the Arctic, is home to one of the happiest peoples in the world. What factors help them stay happier than people in many other developed countries (such as the US / western Europe / Japan)? Why are the children in Finland happier than their peers elsewhere? Listen to this conversation with a primary, a middle and a high schooler, to unravel the rest of the story. Co-hosts: Nayra (from Mumbai), Ayan and Dakshta (from Delhi) Do you like to read stories? Read...

In the most recent earthquake in Taiwan, lives were lost and property destroyed. A group of dogs (called search and rescue dogs) came to the attention of many people through their valiant efforts at rescuing people caught under the rubble. This is a story of one such dog called Roger - who was earlier labelled a failure by the country's sniffing dogs group. How he was able to put to use his abundance of energy coupled with his intelligence forms the rest of his life-story. Search and rescue...

A teenager from Gujarat came up with a novel solution to provide access to learning content on devices. Rather than rely on the goodwill of NGOs to provide devices and internet, Karthik Joshi, a 12th grader suggested a way by which students could 'pay' for this, without actually having to pay using money, but resources that are easily available to them. Another teenager from Tamil Nadu (Madhumita) has designed a 2-wheeler that can help the deaf drive on Indian roads, more safely. These are...

This episode captures the history of Bengaluru from over a 1000 years ago. Small settlements created fertile pastures in an otherwise arid region. The ingenuity they used to build a series of lakes and tanks is to be much admired. This is all the more evident in the backdrop of how we squandered centuries of efforts and destroyed all of it in less than 50 years. The story of Bengaluru is narrated in three parts Part 1: How the settlements were formed from 1000 - 1500 AD Part 2: Formation of...

Ever read - the Elves and the Shoemaker? This story is a lot like that, except, in this case, they aren't making shoes. Someone has been turning up every night in the shed of a 75-year old photographer who lives in the UK. This photographer used to leave his work shed in a state of chaos at the end of each day. But the next morning, he would find them spick and span. The contents strewn around would be collected and neatly kept inside a box. Curious to find out who this friendly elf was, he...

The Pench tiger reserve in India has received a special certification. It is the first of its kind for a wildlife park in India to received this, although wildlife parks / national parks in other parts of the world have received this certification. This is related to the skies above Pench. What are we talking about? Listen to the full episode to find out more. Co-Host: Rishi Chaudhuri, 10-yr old from Mumbai, India To support our show, please click here Do you like to read stories? Read our...

A group of 8-15 year olds joined us in reviewing the book 'Wonder' by R.J.Palacio. This is a powerfully narrated story about a 10-year old whose face looks nothing like what most people have. The book goes onto narrate the traumatic experiences he has in school, the friends he makes and how many children emerge from this story - stronger and braver. It is a story that resonates with many children as they see discrimination and 'inside jokes' almost on a daily basis in school. Listen to the...

There are sailors who boldly sail into the Southern Ocean and brave the winds and the waves. They do it all by themselves. This is part of a race called the Golden Globe Race (GGR), which tests the mettle of the best of sailors. In its most recent edition, Kirsten Neuschafer from South Africa became the first woman to win (or even complete) the race. Closely behind her was Abhilash Tomy (a former naval officer from India). Abhilash was also the first Indian to complete the race. The...

This is an #EqualPayDay story. Tennis is one of the few major sports where men and women get equal pay. For that, we have nine women tennis players from the 1970s to thank for. What did Billie Jean King and eight of her friends do, in 1970? This is the story of how they went ahead and set up their own tournament Virginia Slims Circuit in defiance of the Grand Slam (& other big league) organisers. They demanded equal pay. In 1973, the US Open buckled under pressure and gave in. The rest...

In a recent article published in the Scientific American, scientists compared the weight of everything that man has made, with the weight of all life on earth. This exercise was repeated many times over from 1900 onwards and a trend emerged. The opening lines of the article summarises this trend - "The sheer scale of buildings, infrastructure and other anthropogenic objects underscores our impact on the planet". Scientists have also found something rather unnerving about the impact of...

Jacky Hunt Broersma is a cancer survivor. This led to one of her legs being amputated. With a prosthetic leg, she first began to jog a little every day and gradually built up her stamina. Before she knew, she had run her first ever marathon. Over the next few years, she set a world record. Run 104 marathons in 104 consecutive days. This is a short excerpt from a previous recording in Season 1. If you are aged 7-15 and would like to come and speak on this show, please register here.  Do you...

A piece of football (or soccer) artifact is soon to go up for auction. It is a piece that will go down as marking one of the pivotal points in soccer history. What are we talking point? Listen on to find out more Co-hosts: Devansh (4th grader) from Kolkata and Arjun (5th grader) from Mumbai To support our team and donate generously, please click here Do you like to read stories? Read our newsletters here Get Whatsapp alerts here Follow us on Instagram Email your comments at...

A group of researchers in Norway observed the brain patterns of students who wrote vs students who typed. The content was the same in both cases. However, their brain patterns displayed many differences.  Discover what these differences were by listening to the full episode. Co-hosts: 9-year old Rusheel and 10-year old Saatvik from Mumbai, India Donate and support our team by clicking here If you are a child and would like to come on this show, please register here. We have a  short...

Sir C.V.Raman was traveling aboard a ship that was crossing the Atlantic. It was his first trip across the Mediterranean Sea and its colours sparkled in front of him. Standing there he pondered why the sea was blue. The experiments he did to find out the answer to this question led him to discover the 'Raman Effect', which later led to a Nobel Prize. This is a kids and family podcast episode, so you can safely assume that this episode is 'Science Simplified for Dummies'. It is also a 'Basic...

Recently, Indian authorities released a spy who had been kept in detention for over 8 months. This spy was suspected to act on behalf of the Chinese. Later, the spy was found to be innocent and was released. Who was this spy? Why was this spy released? That is what our 2 participants in this episode have to find out. It's an exciting and thrilling story, for adventure lovers! Co-hosts today: Rusheel (9 yrs old) and Saatvik (10 yrs old) from Mumbai, India Recommended by our co-host Saatvik...

It was a weekend of records in the world of tennis. Rohan Bopanna was ranked No. 1 in Men's Doubles.  This makes him the oldest to have been ranked No. 1. At the grand age of 43, when many others slow down and often retire from the game, Bopanna seems to only get fitter and stronger.  The same weekend, a young Jannik Sinner from Italy won the Australian Open Men's singles title at the age of 22, making him the youngest to win this title. More than 50 years had passed since an Italian had...

In this episode, which is the second part 2 of our podcast series on the Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC), we chat with the Project Head of GBBC from Cornel Lab of Ornithology (Becca Rodomsky Bish) and three children - Shravan, Taanvi and Adya. They chat about (a) what would happen if there were no birds (b) how do you count birds in a flock (c) what bird would they rather be - migratory or static? The GBBC in 2024 is to be held from 16-19 Feb. Apps to download to participate in the...

The Great Backyard Bird Count (GBBC) doesn't come our way everyday. But birds do. If you love observing birds, or are curious about them, or even just love to paint or draw pictures of birds - here's an event that you can be a part of. An event where the input of each one of us from around the world can help conserve bird species and populations. One of the three organisations that puts together the GBBC is the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. This episode was recorded in 2023, when the Project...

In a town in Italy, all dog owners have to pay 65 euros to the city corporation. This is to get their dog's DNA tested. Why is this being mandated? Three children (4th grader Smyan, 4th grader Dhruv and 8th grader Aadya) ask the host Sangeetha questions, to decipher why dogs in this Italian city are being tested. Loved the show? To support us, please click here Want to listen to more episodes on this channel? 3 recommended episodes (a) How video game characters started to feature more...

In one district in Ohio, the public school students have recorded high rates of absenteeism. So the district government has proposed a new policy. What is this policy? Three children (4th grader Smyan, 4th grader Dhruv and 8th grader Aadya) ask the host Sangeetha questions, to decipher what the new policy is. Loved the show? To support us, please click here Want to listen to more episodes on this channel? 3 recommended episodes (a) How video game characters started to feature more female...

The man who designed India's tricolour flag - Pingali Venkaiyya is one of India's forgotten heroes. He joined the army under the British rule. He was a trained geologist. He also taught agriculture at a college. He was a polyglot who could learn and speak many languages with great ease and fluency. This episode has loads of trivia on Pingali Venkaiyya - one of India's greatest freedom fighters. He was a man who understood the importance of a flag as a symbol of a country's identity. He was so...

The tricolour Indian flag with the Ashok Chakra has a pride of place in India's Republic Day celebrations. But the  Indian flag was not always like this. How different was it during India's freedom struggle? Listen to the full episode to find out more. Co-host: Taksh Solanki, 3rd grader from Aspee Nutan Academy, Mumbai (India) To join our book review of next month, please click here If you loved this episode and would like to donate to us, to help us produce more such shows, please click...

Man may want to build a settlement on the moon. This is no longer the stuff of science fiction, but already a reality that space agencies are working towards. NASA's Mission Artemis is working towards building a community that can live on the moon. But it requires a lot of planning. One of the many steps includes a lander 'Peregrine' that was to land on the moon, and send important readings back to NASA. But that mission may not be successful. Peregrine is running out of fuel and will not be...

Iceland is famed not just for its ice, but also its fire. It's a land that sees volcanic eruptions once every four-five years. People of the land are hardy and used to these interruptions to daily life. But a fault line that had maintained volcanic silence for over 800 years (the last time it saw this kind of activity was around 1200AD) has made its presence felt. The people of a nearby fishing town (Grindavik) tried building lava barriers to protect themselves. But did this work? Could they...