How has America reacted to this, what seems at best,

outdated legislation? I mean, Americans are reacting the way Americans always react.

You know, a chunk of the people are freaking out.

The other chunk of the people, they're celebrating.

And a larger chunk, the largest chunk, has no idea what's going on.

And at some point in the next few years, we'll say, what do you mean we can't get abortions? So things are going the way they always go.

It was kind of it was kind of stunning because Alabama lawmakers like a lot of states are trying to ban abortion in different ways because they really they wanted to go up to the Supreme Court.

Yeah,

[gentle music] Okay, we're back, and before I delve even deeper into tooth history, why don't you guys share your shocking medical history story? [laughs]

Sure.

Our, our story's about a woman named Henrietta Lacks, who was a 34-year-old Black mother of five living in Baltimore in the early 1950s.

She went to Johns Hopkins Hospital with severe pelvic pain and bleeding, and during her nine months of treatment for cervical cancer before she died from the disease, doctors took samples of her cancerous tissue without asking her permission.

And so the HPV actually changed the normal cells' systems, control systems, and it turned off important tumor suppressor mechanisms, and it signaled the cells to keep growing.

Uh, this is honestly one of the most important scientific discoveries of the last century, and those cells became known as HeLa cells, using the first two letters of her first and last name.

And once scientists realized what they had, HeLa cells were used everywhere.

For example, when it comes to polio vaccine research, HeLa cells were used as a host system to grow and quantify poliovirus in the laboratory.

We'll be right back after a few words for the grownups.

Hey, grownups.

Today's episode is sponsored by Quince.

You know, lately I have been a little more serious about what I wear every day.

I've been leaning into pieces that feel effortless, comfortable, and still put together.

You know, it just makes getting dressed simpler, and I look better, and Quince has been my go-to.

The fabrics feel elevated, the fits are flattering, and everything just works without me overthinking it.

Just the directions, please.

[laughs]

And that's a conduit to discuss, like, you know, minstrelsy and race in America, and representation in America, and how it historically has worked, and capitalism and race.

And so, um, I made that in 2017, and one of the things was I wanted Hank Azaria to do it on camera, like actually have a conversation with me.

And the hope was that would be, like, a full circle moment in the movie, and we actually could show people you can have a disagreement about something and still have a, a, you know, a genuine, thoughtful conversation.

Uh, but he, he refu- Not refuses is the wrong...

He said no.

It's a drop in the ocean compared to what you just referred to, which is how your community [laughs] ha- has had to deal with as a, as a result of it.

I mean, what he's referring to is the ...

[laughs]

They had a metal detector on hand.

Uh, secondly, I feel like just let, let, let him get away with it, 'cause apparently because of the amount of prize money that was involved, it's technically a felony.

I'm like, let, let's just let him get away...

If someone is cheating during a fishing competition, there's not much else going on for him.

Like-

[laughs]

We just have books that we want people to look at.