Uploaded April 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
From the Radiolab podcast: Shocking tales from the dairy farm.
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 Gutiérrez
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 from 1876 to 1929 (zpr.io/3PStsDgidpj5), by David Nye
Powering American Farms: The Overlooked Origins of Rural Electrification (zpr.io/GdQ4pMCy4DAV), by Richard Hirsch
Beyond the Barn – Dodging Cow Patties for 50 Years by a Country Vet (zpr.io/S8qS9HLEQBJe), by Don Sanders a memoir about his long career.
Episode Segments:
0:00 Intro
13.25 - Chapter 2
35:30.5 - Chapter 3
🎧 Subscribe to Radiolab wherever you listen to podcasts: lnk.to/radiolab!youtube
🔎 Subscribe to Radiolab on YouTube: bit.ly/3I9KI53
🖋 Subscribe to Radiolab’s Newsletter: radiolab.org/newsletter
🌱 Check out Radiolab's Starter Kit Playlist: bit.ly/3sX8f4P
👍 Like this video ✏️ and leave us a comment!
Follow Radiolab:
Instagram — instagram.com/radiolab
X — https://x.com/Radiolab
Facebook — facebook.com/Radiolab
Threads — threads.net/@radiolab
TikTok — tiktok.com/@radiolab
Our newsletter includes short essays, recommendations, and details about other ways to interact with the show. Sign up here: radiolab.org/newsletter
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab today: radiolab.org/the-lab
Photo illustration by Lily Padulla
Video by W. Harry Fortuna
From the Radiolab podcast: Shocking tales from the dairy farm.
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 Gutiérrez
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 from 1876 to 1929 (zpr.io/3PStsDgidpj5), by David Nye
Powering American Farms: The Overlooked Origins of Rural Electrification (zpr.io/GdQ4pMCy4DAV), by Richard Hirsch
Beyond the Barn – Dodging Cow Patties for 50 Years by a Country Vet (zpr.io/S8qS9HLEQBJe), by Don Sanders a memoir about his long career.
Episode Segments:
0:00 Intro
13.25 - Chapter 2
35:30.5 - Chapter 3
🎧 Subscribe to Radiolab wherever you listen to podcasts: lnk.to/radiolab!youtube
🔎 Subscribe to Radiolab on YouTube: bit.ly/3I9KI53
🖋 Subscribe to Radiolab’s Newsletter: radiolab.org/newsletter
🌱 Check out Radiolab's Starter Kit Playlist: bit.ly/3sX8f4P
👍 Like this video ✏️ and leave us a comment!
Follow Radiolab:
Instagram — instagram.com/radiolab
X — https://x.com/Radiolab
Facebook — facebook.com/Radiolab
Threads — threads.net/@radiolab
TikTok — tiktok.com/@radiolab
Our newsletter includes short essays, recommendations, and details about other ways to interact with the show. Sign up here: radiolab.org/newsletter
Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab today: radiolab.org/the-lab
Photo illustration by Lily Padulla
Video by W. Harry Fortuna
