Dinner with King Tut Explores the Wild World of Experimental Archaeology
In his new book, Sam Kean reveals how re-creating ancient tools, techniques and traditions can unlock secrets about how our ancestors lived—and what they felt.
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (traffic.megaphone.fm) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
Science writer Sam Kean joins Science Quickly to explore the hands-on world of experimental archaeology—where researchers don’t just study the past; they rebuild it. From launching medieval catapults to performing ancient brain surgery with stone tools, Kean shares his firsthand experiences with re-creating the techniques and technologies of long-lost civilizations.
His latest book, Dinner with King Tut, dives deep into these wild experiments and the things they have revealed about how our ancestors lived, worked and ate.
Recommended reading:
Denmark’s Radical Archaeology Experiment Is Paying Off in Gold and Knowledge
Dinner with King Tut, by Sam Kean; Little, Brown, 2025
Join the #SciAmInTheWild photography challenge for a chance to win a one-year Unlimited subscription to Scientific American—plus an exclusive bundle of gadgets and gear to level up your next adventure. See the rules for entry here.
Email us at [email protected] if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover!
Discover something new everyday: subscribe to Scientific American and sign up for Today in Science, our daily newsletter.
Science Quickly is produced by Rachel Feltman, Fonda Mwangi, Kelso Harper and Jeff DelViscio. This episode was edited by Alex Sugiura. Shayna Posses and Aaron Shattuck fact-check the show. The theme music was composed by Dominic Smith.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices