PLAY PODCASTS
Trade, tyranny, and untapped potential: The history and science of spices
Episode 95

Trade, tyranny, and untapped potential: The history and science of spices

Tiny Matters · Multitude

October 15, 202527m 29s

Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (mgln.ai) 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

For thousands of years, the rise and fall of empires and the global economy were closely tied to something you might not expect: spices. The spice trade began around 1000 BCE, localized to southeast Asia and the Middle East. But by the beginning of the next millennia, it had rapidly expanded and nations vied to control it. Today it’s typically far less work to find and purchase spices you want, but just because they’re no longer starting wars that upend nations doesn’t mean they’re any less important. Because while you might think spices are mostly about making your food taste good, science — and particularly chemistry — is finding they can do a whole lot more.

Send us your science facts, news, or other stories for a chance to be featured on an upcoming Tiny Show and Tell Us bonus episode. And, while you're at it, subscribe to our newsletter!

Links to the Tiny Show and Tell stories are here and here. All Tiny Matters transcripts and references are available here.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Topics

scienceLife Sciences