Stuff You Should Know

Selects: Fallout Shelters: Probably Useless (Let’s Never Find Out)

The advent of nuclear weapons and the Cold War kicked off a craze in the US for building rec rooms with foot-thick reinforced walls and outfitted with survival rations an

SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: What is Collective Hysteria?

Throughout the history of the world, there have been many cases of what is known as collective hysteria - groups of people, usually young women, who all exhibit the same

SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: What was the Philadelphia Experiment?

The Philadelphia Experiment is a bad movie from the 1980s, and also the conspiracy theory that refuses to die, despite virtually zero evidence of its occurrence. Learn al

SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: Mermaids: Not a real thing

Mermaids aren't real. That much we know. But the history and lore of these magical and sometimes menacing creatures of the sea is pretty interesting stuff. Learn all abou

SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: Will We Find Evidence of Aliens by Their Engineering Projects?

In 1960 physicist Freeman Dyson suggested that in the hunt for alien life, we should search for evidence of massive engineering projects that encapsulate stars with solar

SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: The Mystery of the Mary Celeste

When the Mary Celeste was discovered floating and abandoned in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean one day in 1872, the legend of the ghost ship was born. Why did the Mary C

SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: The Max Headroom Incident

In 1987, a very strange broadcast intrusion occurred in the city of Chicago. For just a couple of minutes, the odd TV character Max Headroom appeared onscreen in the midd

SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: Dragons: As Real as Mermaids

Dragons are like mermaids in that they're not real. And that's about where the comparison ends. Learn all about dragons today. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy in

SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: The Creepy Legacy of the Hotel Cecil

The Hotel Cecil in downtown Los Angeles has had no less than 16 unnatural deaths, from suicides to murders and everything in between. Listen in to the history of this dec

SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: What's the deal with blue people?

The famous blue people of Kentucky are no longer blue. But why were they like that in the first place? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: Doppelgängers: Hey you, you're me!

Seeing your near twin is probably pretty weird. But could there be a genetic commonality as well? You bet  there could!   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informa

SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: The Story of the Nuclear Boy Scout

David Hahn was a kid who was really into science. So much that he built a nuclear reactor in his mother's potting shed. And it worked.  See omnystudio.com/listener for p

The Cancer Episode

Cancer is a terrible word in any language for at least two reasons: It’s incredibly difficult to get rid of once it grows in the body, and there’s a very good chance that

Short Stuff: Leisure Suits

You know the leisure suit, perhaps the tackiest suit to ever be invented. It was so huge in the 70s and spread as wide the lapels of the shirts worn with them. Then, as f

How Boredom Works

Are there benefits to boredom? Or is it all negative? Why do we get bored? What can we do to break free from boredom? The answers to those questions and more are coming y

Selects: Wasps: Not as cute as bees

Wasps have a bad rap. Because their sting really hurts and they don't make honey like their cousins. But they are super cool and you shouldn't kill them. Listen to this c

The Odyssey Episode

Why does the story of The Odyssey endure this many years after it was first spoken? Listen in to find out. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Short Stuff: Flappers

In the 1920s, a certain set of women wanted to loosen up and have a good time. Today, we get into it with the flappers. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informati

Nickelodeon:The Best of Slimes

Today we tell the story of the kids TV network that changed it all, Nickelodeon. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Selects: Blacksmiths? You got that right!

Blacksmiths? You got that right. Learn all about this age old occupation in this classic episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.