Ever wonder if a penny that drops from the Empire State Building will actually kill someone or if you can really survive being buried alive in a coffin? You aren’t alone–which likely explains the success of the popular Discovery Channel show, MythBusters.

Kari Byron made her first appearance on MythBusters in its first season, helping to test the myth of whether an airplane toilet can create enough suction to cause a person to become stuck on it (to aid in the experiment she modeled her buttocks for a cast). Byron told us her entry on to the show had a lot to do with being at the right place at the right time. “I was doing an internship at M5 industries in special effects when I stumbled on to the show," she says. "I was a sculptor trying to figure out how to make a living at the time.”

That was over eight years ago, and since, Byron has become a fixture and fan favorite on the show—leaving only for parental leave during the second half of the 2009 season when she gave birth to her daughter Stella Ruby. In 2010, Byron also got her own show, Head Rush, which airs on the Science Channel.

Byron says of her run on MythBusters: “There have been so many incredible moments. In particular there was this Demolition Derby episode where we were trying to simulate a luxury car commercial in the Mojave dessert. It really felt like this pinnacle moment. I was also emotional and pregnant at the time so maybe that had something to do with it.” This season, Byron says to expect an episode devoted to whether it is possible for humans to walk in a straight line and also a show about Kung Fu movie myths.

Due to her time on MythBusters, Byron has developed into a role model for young girls interested in the sciences. “It’s actually ironic,” Byron says. “It took me a long time to realize that science isn’t just memorizing the components of a cell. It’s actually a lot like art. I’ve become really passionate about it.”

As for seemingly being the only woman on the show Byron says, “I’m the only woman that you see. There are producers, directors and researchers behind the scenes.”

Byron’s day-to-day as a MythBusters mom is as hectic as you might imagine. She works five days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., making her workload very similar to most working moms. “I wake up in multitasking mode,” says Byron. “I also always make time to talk and cuddle with Stella Ruby before work. When I come from work there is dinner, ballet. Being a working mom is hard. Anyone that tells you different is lying. Not that I would have it any other way. I never really entertained the idea that I would give up my career.”

As for what has fallen by the wayside since becoming a mom Byron says, “I don’t really have time for myself. Between being a mom, trying to make my husband feel special and my crazy production schedule, let’s just say I don’t get to paint my nails that often. They’re looking a little rough right now.”

It’s all been worth it for Byron who says, “I know it’s cliché, but I don’t think I really understood my capacity for love before Stella Ruby.”