Thomas Browne: Renaissance Mythbuster
Seventeenth-century author Sir Thomas Browne was a true Renaissance man: a doctor, a scholar, a scientist, and… a mythbuster! In this episode, Jen will delve into Pseudodoxia Epidemica, Browne’s 1646 compendium debunking hundreds of ancient legends, myths, and old wives’ tales.
Sources and Further Reading
21 grams experiment. (2026). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=21_grams_experiment&oldid=1334669096
Brown, P. (2022, May 4). Specieswatch: Beware the deathwatch beetle. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/may/04/specieswatch-beware-the-deathwatch-beetle
Browne, T. (n.d.). Pseudodoxia epidemica: Or, enquiries into very many received tenents and commonly presumed truths. Retrieved October 19, 2025, from https://penelope.uchicago.edu/pseudodoxia/pseudodoxia.shtml
Canadian Wildlife Federation. (n.d.). Lemmings. Hinterland Who’s Who. Retrieved January 24, 2026, from https://www.hww.ca/wildlife/mammals/lemmings/
Clinton admits crush on mummy—UPI Archives. (n.d.). Retrieved January 25, 2026, from https://www.upi.com/Archives/1996/05/23/Clinton-admits-crush-on-mummy/1824832824000/
Foxon, F. (2024). Bigfoot: If it’s there, could it be a bear? Journal of Zoology, 323(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13148
Garden of Cyrus. (2026). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Garden_of_Cyrus&oldid=1333878688
Hannibal. (2026). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hannibal&oldid=1334467727
Henry VII, Holy Roman Emperor. (2026). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Henry_VII,_Holy_Roman_Emperor&oldid=1334534320#cite_ref-Jones,_pg._536_26-6
Isaac Newton. (2026). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Isaac_Newton&oldid=1334058825#Optics
Kramer, S. (2016, March 22). The myth that lemmings commit mass suicide has a disturbing backstory. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/lemmings-dont-commit-suicide-off-cliffs-2016-2
Lawrence, N. (n.d.). Love spells and deadly shrieks: Illustrations of mandrakes (ca. 650–1927). The Public Domain Review. Retrieved November 1, 2025, from https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/mandrakes/
Mosher, D. (2016, August 2). 16 ridiculous “facts” about animals you should really stop repeating. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/worst-animal-science-myths-2016-8
Quincunx. (2025). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Quincunx&oldid=1311759543
Religio Medici. (2026). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Religio_Medici&oldid=1332701751
Thomas Browne. (2026). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Thomas_Browne&oldid=1332919321
Woodford, R. (2003). Lemming suicide myth: Disney film faked bogus behavior. Alaska Department of Fish and Game. https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=wildlifenews.view_article&articles_id=56