About this episode
This episode explores a mysterious phenomenon affecting dairy cattle in various states, linked to invisible forces and agricultural practices.
There’s something rotten in the cows of Denmark. And Minnesota. And Wisconsin. And Idaho. What could cause a previously thriving herd of majestic dairy cattle to stop drinking water and start drinking … urine? A Danish farmer calls a special investigator, who takes one look at his farm and nopes the heck out of there, refusing to return, citing “bad energy” coming from something nearby … a big building covered in Viking runes. It’s not magic. It’s an invisible force that’s far more common. And yet deeply mysterious. This episode plunges producers Matt Kielty and Simon Adler knee-deep in a decades-old dairy farm controversy, rooted in a fundamental suspicion of the invisible streams of electrons that keep our world humming. Special thanks to Dr. Liz Brock EPISODE CREDITS: Reported by - Matt Kielty and Simon Adler with help from - Clara Grunnet and Rebecca Rand Produced by - Matt Kielty with help from - Maria Paz Gutierrez Original music from - Jeremy Bloom and Matt Kielty Sound design contributed by - Jeremy Bloom Mixed by - Jeremy Bloom Fact-checking by - Angely Mercado and Sophie Samiee and Edited by - Pat Walters EPISODE CITATIONS: Books - The Great Energy Transition: America…
People in this episode
Hosts: Matt Kielty, Simon Adler
Topics covered
- dairy farming
- invisible forces
- electromagnetism
- animal behavior
- agricultural controversy
Keywords
- dairy cattle
- urine drinking
- invisible energy
- Denmark
- Minnesota
- agriculture
- electrons
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: WNYC Studios
Books & works: The Great Energy Transition: America from 1876 to 1929, Powering American Farms: The Overlooked Origins of Rural Electrification, Beyond the Barn – Dodging Cow Patties for 50 Years by a Country Vet
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