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Why Do We Do That?

BBC Radio 4 36 Episodes Apr 11, 2025

Why Do We Do That? is a podcast that explores the cultural, historical, and evolutionary origins of everyday human habits and behaviors. Hosted by palaeoanthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi, each episode dives into seemingly ordinary activities like kissing, doomscrolling, and sitting down to use the toilet. The show reveals how these behaviors are rooted in our deep evolutionary past, offering a unique perspective on modern life. Guests join Ella to uncover the surprising stories behind the things we do without thinking.

Episodes

More... Play with Brenna Hassett Apr 11, 2025 892 Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Play with Brenna Hassett.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

12. Why do we play? Apr 11, 2025 882 Paleoanthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi asks why do humans play?The Neanderthals are a species that was so close to us that we could reproduce with them, they had creativity, technology and they made art - handprints on cave walls and painted shells strung into necklaces. But it turns out the Neanderthals had shorter childhoods than us. Their children grew up quicker than their Homo sapiens counter

More... Bad Boys with Julia Stern Apr 9, 2025 1009 Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Bad Boys with Julia Stern.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

11. Why do we fall for the bad boy? Apr 9, 2025 884 Paleoanthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi looks at the evidence for what people want in a partner and how it changes as they get older. Psychologist Julia Stern from the University of Bremen shares the results of a study which recruited people from a singles night in a Berlin club and followed them for 13 years. Novelist Adele Parks explains why writing about bad boys is so much fun, and on the Bridget

More... Dancing with Bronwyn Tarr Apr 9, 2025 924 Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Dancing with Bronwyn Tarr.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

10. Why do we dance? Apr 9, 2025 876 Dance seems like such a natural thing, a good beat comes on and you can’t help it, you might find yourself bobbing, even the rhythmically impaired might find themselves tapping their fingers along to the music and it starts early - one study has shown that babies as young as 5 months engage in rhythmic movements. Every culture on earth dances and yet look around at the rest of the animal kingdom…

More... Pubs with Robin Dunbar Apr 9, 2025 842 Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Pubs with Robin Dunbar.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

More... Nature with Gregory Bratman Apr 9, 2025 987 Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Nature with Gregory Bratman.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

8. Why does nature make me feel calmer? Apr 9, 2025 913 Nature is charismatic, a good view can take our breath away and a walk in the woods can help de-stress our frazzled minds. But have we always been this way? Because after all, our early ancestors didn’t have cities to escape from. Is an affinity with the natural world around us, something we inherited? Ella Al-Shamahi asks psychologist Dr Gregory Bratman and Robin Muir Head of Maggie’s Cancer Car

More... Blushing with Laith Al-Shawaf Mar 14, 2025 1100 Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Blushing with Laith Al-Shawaf.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

7. Why do we blush? Mar 14, 2025 867 Paleoanthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi asks why we blush. Even Darwin was intrigued by blushing. He called it “the most peculiar and most human of all expression” but didn’t think it had a function. Dr Laith Al-Shawaf from the University of Colorado makes students do embarrassing things to understand why we blush and how blushing can make people like you more when you make a mistake.

More... Lies with Roman Stengelin Mar 7, 2025 983 Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Lies with Roman Stengelin.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

6. Why do we lie? Mar 7, 2025 892 Ella Al-Shamahi asks why do we lie? You might think that deception is a uniquely human characteristic, but does camouflage or mimicry in nature, where animals pretend to be another animal or the actual environment like the insects leaf-mimic katydids that walk around looking like a leaf. Does that count as lying? Or is it just us humans with our highly complex language that have the ability to

More... Laughs with Sophie Scott Feb 28, 2025 1013 BONUS: Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Laughs with Sophie Scott.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

5. Why do we laugh? Feb 28, 2025 882 Ella Al-Shamahi asks why do we laugh?Some people might not have a sense of humour, you might even know someone who never laughs… but there isn’t a culture out there, say a tribe, where people just never laugh. It does appear to be universal but how universal and how primal? Many mammals and the great apes ( chimpanzees, gorillas and bononbos) laugh. Orangutans diverged from the other great apes

More... Dogs with Greger Larson Feb 21, 2025 1194 BONUS: Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Dogs with Greger Larson.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

4. Why do we love dogs? Feb 21, 2025 929 Ella Al-Shamahi asks why do we love dogs? Dogs evolved from wolves but why did they choose us humans to be their best friends?They say dogs are a man’s best friend but all dogs, even chihuahuas are descended from wolves, the grey wolf, a majestic, fierce and incredibly dangerous species. How did this happen but more importantly, why did we start trusting wolves? And when did wolves turn into do

More... Grandmothers with Emily Emmott Feb 14, 2025 1161 Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Grandmothers with Emily Emmott.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

3. Why do we have grandmas? Feb 14, 2025 891 Grandmothers are a bit of a mystery, biologically speaking. If the biological purpose of life is to survive and have children, why are they so important even once they've stopped being able to reproduce? Of course, as we all know, grandma's are the rock of most families, and it turns out, biologically also incredibly useful. Grandmothers are a logical necessity, your mother and father also had m

More... Football fanatics with Martha Newson Feb 7, 2025 812 Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Football Fanatics with Martha Newson.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

2. Why do I get so upset when my team loses? Feb 7, 2025 888 Ella Al-Shamahi is joined by Crystal Palace superfan Bobby and psychologist Martha Newson to find out why it's so devastating when our football team loses.People who normally keep a stiff upper lip through life's ups and downs are distraught after a defeat. Is this a cultural response or something more primeval? Martha’s work shows that being beaten by another team deepens social bonds with fell

More... Gossip with Nicole Hagen Hess Jan 31, 2025 931 BONUS: Ella Al-Shamahi explores evolutionary mysteries in More Gossip with Nicole Hagen Hess.BBC Studios Audio Producer: Olivia Jani Additional Production: Emily Bird Series Producer: Geraldine Fitzgerald Executive Producer: Alexandra Feachem

1. Why do we gossip? Jan 31, 2025 898 It can be the source of drama that ruins reputations or simply keeps you entertained during your lunch break. But is gossip ingrained in our nature? Anthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi digs into our evolutionary history to uncover the truth behind this age-old human habit. Joining her are Kelsey McKinney from the Normal Gossip podcast and anthropologist Dr. Nicole Hagen Hess, as they unravel the origin

Welcome to Why Do We Do That? Series 2 Jan 23, 2025 161 Ella Al-Shamahi is back to once again investigate the origins of everyday human habits and behaviour.

10. Why do we doomscroll? Dec 2, 2022 861 Are you drawn to the endless news cycle? Do you keep going back for more? Do you feel a strange compulsion to absorb negative news that is weirdly soothing but makes you more stressed? These are signs you may be doomscrolling. But fear not, you’re not the only one. Stuart Soroka is a professor at UCLA who’s been looking at our draw towards negative information and found that people all over the wo

9. Why doesn't everyone clear up? Dec 2, 2022 873 It’s a familiar problem with any shared household - there’s always someone who doesn’t do their fair share. Studies have shown that when people with different thresholds live together, the person with the lower tolerance for mess cleans up more, quickly leading to resentment and conflict. So why do some people clean up more than others? What needs to happen for everyone to pull their weight? E

8. Why do we wear make-up? Dec 2, 2022 859 Make-up has a long history - from the surprising use of lipstick in ancient Greece to today's Tiktok trends - and though fashions may have changed, some things, like red lips, cheeks, and defined eyes, keep cropping up. So in this episode, Ella Al-Shamahi investigates if there is any biological basis to make-up? Joined by Journalist and BBC Radio 1 presenter Katie Thistleton, and psychologist Pr

7. Why do we sit down to poo? Dec 2, 2022 876 You might think sitting is a recent technological advancement, but both squat and sit-down toilets have been around for millennia. Today Westerners have embraced the sit-down toilet, whereas billions in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and even parts of Europe use toilets that are designed specifically for squatting. But which is better for us - sitting or squatting? Ella Al-Shamahi speaks to gastro

6. Why can't we all be morning people? Dec 2, 2022 866 Are you at one with midnight, or up before sunrise? In this episode, Ella Al-Shamahi investigates when we naturally feel tired and awake, known as our chronotype. Our chronotype depends on our lifestyle, our environment, where we live, and is also influenced by our genes. In this episode, Ella Al-Shamahi uncovers fascinating research which suggests our chronotype can be traced back over 100,000 y

5. Why do we shake hands? Oct 28, 2022 840 The handshake has been threatened several times throughout history. It was even made illegal in Prescott Arizona due to the Spanish Flu — and yet we keep returning to it. In this episode, Ella Al-Shamahi delves into a possible biological explanation for why we handshake. Studies have shown that we bring our hands close to our face after a handshake, and then subconsciously take a sniff (inhalation

4. Why do we procrastinate? Oct 28, 2022 840 Procrastination is the thief of time - or so the old saying goes. Studies have shown that people who procrastinate have higher levels of stress and lower levels of well-being. So why do we do it? One theory is that focusing on the here-and-now was beneficial for our palaeolithic ancestors. Dr Caroline Schulter from Ruhr-Universität Bochum in Germany found that chronic procrastinators have a larger

3. Why do we kiss? Oct 28, 2022 881 This episode is all about the iconic kiss. Is it as universal as we think? One study suggests that lip-to-lip romantic kissing - the snog, if you will - is only present in 46% of cultures around the world. So did we just recently learn to do it? Ella Al-Shamahi speaks to Journalist and Radio 1 Life Hacks Presenter Katie Thistleton to get deep into the strangeness of kissing. Speaking to Dr Rafael

2. Why do we do things that are bad for Us? Oct 28, 2022 874 Ella Al-Shamahi is joined by psychologist Prof Laurence Steinberg and DJ / presenter Arielle Free to explore why we are drawn to do things that are bad for us. If our evolutionary purpose is to survive long enough to pass on genes, why do we knowingly put our lives at risk? Ella delves into a theory called costly signalling which may explain why we do risky things when there are others watching –

1. Why Is Heartbreak So Painful? Oct 28, 2022 877 In this episode, Ella Al-Shamahi delves into the origins of a broken heart. Words or phrases that use ‘heart pain’ to describe emotional pain appear in many languages, suggesting it is present in many cultures. Studies show that looking at photos of ex-partners within six months of a break-up triggers the same areas of the brain as physical pain. And as odd as it sounds, just like with physical pa

9. Why do we go to the pub? Apr 9, 2025 886 Humans have evolved to drink alcohol, or at least to be able to metabolise it. And we share this ability with our closest living relatives, the chimpanzees and gorillas, who are also able to convert alcohol into sugar. It gave our ancestors an advantage because we could eat rotting fruit from the forest floor and convert the alcohol into sugars, providing a source of nutrients that not all spe

Welcome to Why Do We Do That? Oct 25, 2022 79 Ella Al-Shamahi introduces her new series, Why Do We Do That? An anthropologist's guide to the modern world.

Why Do We Do That?

Episodes

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