Brains On! Science podcast for kids
Aug 14, 2026 · 7 min · 9 segments
This is a sneak peek of a bonus episode available to Smarty Pass subscribers. It’s a follow up to the Forever Ago episode about the history of Pokemon. This time, Marc and Sanden are back as the Hoax…
Molly BloomHostThe time is the evening on December 16th, 1997.
The place, Japan.
Kids all across the country are watching live TV.
[upbeat music]
You couldn't just push a button and watch anything you wanted whenever you wanted.
Yeah, you had to, like, wait for a specific time on a specific day to see the show you wanted.
So, like, if you were, like, really into The Simpsons, for example, you could only watch the new episodes on, let's say, Sunday nights at 7:00 PM by turning to channel five.
I totally remember having to do this, and it was kind of annoying, but also kind of cool.
TV shows were like a sunset.
Yeah, exactly like...
Wait, what?
You know, when the sun goes down at the end of the day?
No, no, I, I know what a sunset is, Marc.
I meant, like, how is TV like a sunset?
Oh, [laughs] okay.
Well, you can't just watch a sunset whenever you want to, right? It only happens at a specific time of day, which makes it special.
Wow.
I, I never thought of it like that, but that is kinda special.
Plus, with live TV like that, everyone had to watch the same shows at the same time.
It was a totally shared experience.
Yeah.
Yeah, that is kinda cool, and in this case, it's also where the trouble started.
The time is the evening on December 16th, 1997.
The place, Japan.
Kids all across the country are watching live TV.
[upbeat music]
You couldn't just push a button and watch anything you wanted whenever you wanted.
Yeah, you had to, like, wait for a specific time on a specific day to see the show you wanted.
So, like, if you were, like, really into The Simpsons, for example, you could only watch the new episodes on, let's say, Sunday nights at 7:00 PM by turning to channel five.
I totally remember having to do this, and it was kind of annoying, but also kind of cool.
TV shows were like a sunset.
Yeah, exactly like...
Wait, what?
You know, when the sun goes down at the end of the day?
No, no, I, I know what a sunset is, Marc.
I meant, like, how is TV like a sunset?
Oh, [laughs] okay.
Well, you can't just watch a sunset whenever you want to, right? It only happens at a specific time of day, which makes it special.
Wow.
I, I never thought of it like that, but that is kinda special.
Plus, with live TV like that, everyone had to watch the same shows at the same time.
It was a totally shared experience.
Yeah.
Yeah, that is kinda cool, and in this case, it's also where the trouble started.
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