There’s a new development under the sea: a smart glove that could help scuba divers help each other steer clear of danger. Plus: the website After the Beep is an online answering machine, where you can leave your own anonymous voice message for

Two US Cities Each Insist Their Cuban Sandwich Is The Authentic One

5 days ago 3m 23s

Around this time in 2012, Tampa, Florida declared that “The Historic Tampa Cuban Sandwich” was the city’s signature sandwich. People in Miami weren't thrilled about this, because they insist their Cuban is the historic one. Plus: starting today

The Minor League Baseball Game That Took Three Days To Play

6 days ago 3m 1s

Today in 1981, the Pawtucket Red Sox and Rochester Red Wings started playing a minor league game, and it just kept going and going and going, eventually becoming the longest ever. Plus: starting Saturday in Greenville, North Carolina, it’s Pira

Kansas City’s Subtropolis Is A Huge Business Complex That’s 100 Feet Underground

7 days ago 3m 2s

There's a story you see online about how Ford stashed some surplus cars in an underground cave to preserve them until they could sell. We can't verify that entire story, but there is an underground business park in Kansas City that Ford has use

A “Lunar Olympics” Almost Ended In Disaster For The Apollo 16 Astronauts

8 days ago 3m 8s

Today was the launch date in 1972 of Apollo 16, a mission that tried to pay tribute to that year's Summer Games with a "lunar Olympics"... only the astronauts almost had a disaster on their lunar-suited hands. Plus: for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's bi

Leonardo da Vinci, Inventor of the Resume

9 days ago 3m 17s

Today in 1452, the birthday of Leonardo da Vinci, the painter of the Mona Lisa, namesake of a code (and a ninja turtle) and, according to Fast Company, the inventor of the resume. Plus: the Mona Lisa gets fan mail through its own mailbox. Lear

Murphy, The Eagle Who Became Dad To A Rock

12 days ago 3m 8s

This month in 2023, a big moment in the life of an eagle named Murphy, who had become internet famous for raising a rock. Plus: starting tomorrow in Rockwall, Texas it’s the annual Texas Pie Fest. An Eagle Who Adopted a Rock Becomes a Real Dad

Glowing Orbs In The Netherlands Could Light The Way Toward Clean Water

13 days ago 3m 2s

There’s a new way to find out whether fresh water is actually fresh and clean: a set of glowing orbs in the Netherlands called POND. Plus: starting this Saturday, it's the Wamego, Kansas Tulip Festival. These glowing orbs can tell you if water

The Tempest Prognosticator Used Leeches To Predict Stormy Weather

14 days ago 3m 13s

Today was the birthday in 1794 of George Merryweather, the inventor of his era’s most fascinating leech-based weather predicting contraption: the tempest prognosticator. Plus: today in 1953, a phone company director pretty much predicts the sma

Florence Price Finally Takes Her Place On The List Of Great Composers

15 days ago 3m 8s

Today in 1887 (or, by some accounts, 1888), the birthday of a composer who’s really only now getting the acclaim she deserves: Florence Price. Plus: did you know that it was a violation of iTunes terms of service to use it to build weapons? As

A Study Says Everyone In Japan Could Have The Same Last Name Five Centuries From Now

16 days ago 3m 2s

A study from Japan's Tohoku University says that if current trends continue, everyone in the country will eventually end up with the same surname - though it might take a while to get there. Plus: some residents of Luna Pier, Michigan were appa

A Dog In The UK Saved Lives During The Blitz, Thanks To A Full Bladder

19 days ago 3m 24s

This month in 1941, a dog in the UK became a hero in a very strange way, stopping a bomb by answering the call of nature. Plus: starting today in Darien, Georgia, it’s the Blessing of the Fleet. Urinating WWII Great Dane's medal sold (BBC)Dog

A Guy In Melbourne Walks Around With A Giant Carrot Just For Fun

20 days ago 3m 17s

It's International Carrot Day. If you want to see a really unique carrot, try Melbourne, Australia, where a guy named Nathan walks around town with a very large papier mache carrot. Plus: this weekend in Sebring, Florida, it's the Sebring Soda

Baseball Player Ping Bodie Once Won An Eating Contest Against An Ostrich

21 days ago 3m 9s

Today in 1919, one of the strangest moments in the history of professional baseball, when major leaguer Ping Bodie took on an ostrich in an eating contest and won. Plus: a ketchup giant is installing dispensers on the sidewalks outside some of

Communist Countries Thought The TV Show “Dallas” Would Scare Citizens Away From Capitalism, But It Backfired

22 days ago 3m 26s

Today in 1978, the premiere of the iconic TV show “Dallas.” It was originally just supposed to be a miniseries, but it just kept winning over audience after audience - even some audiences that were behind the Iron Curtain. Plus: all month long

In 1906, Chicago’s Newspapers Told Everybody The City Was Being Attacked By Dinosaurs

23 days ago 3m 28s

It was probably more elaborate than your standard April Fools Day joke: today in 1906, the Chicago Tribune put together a two page "report," complete with pictures, about swarms of dinosaurs wrecking the city. Plus: it’s Easter Monday, and in t

Fine Art Week: Some Art Looks Great Even When Accidentally Hung Upside Down

26 days ago 3m 41s

This week we’re replaying some of our finest episodes about some of the finest works ever created. In this episode from November 2019, we take a trip through the website Weird Universe's Gallery of Art Hung Upside Down. Plus: a 9 year old who c

Fine Art Week: Edmonia Lewis, A Sculptor Who Brought Her Subjects To Life

27 days ago 3m 47s

This week we’re replaying some of our finest episodes about some of the finest works ever created. In this episode from October 2021, the story of sculptor Edmonia Lewis. She was born in the 1840s to a Black father and a Chippewa mother, and be

Fine Art Week: Why Is It So Hard To Tell A Real Rembrandt Painting From A Copy?

28 days ago 3m 48s

This week we’re replaying some of our finest episodes about some of the finest works ever created. In this episode from September 2020, why even researchers run into challenges in verifying whether a Rembrandt is really his work or just a simul

Fine Art Week: Sarah Biffin, A 19th Century Painter “Without Hands” Who’s Getting 21st Century Recognition

29 days ago 3m 5s

This week we’re replaying some of our finest episodes about some of the finest works ever created. In this episode from December 2022, the story of 19th Century English miniaturist Sarah Biffin, a renowned artist who was born without full arms

Fine Art Week: Pigeons Would Make Pretty Good Art Critics

30 days ago 3m 34s

This week we’re replaying some of our finest episodes about some of the finest works ever created. In this episode from October 2021, a look at the research into how pigeons take in and process visual information, like art. Apparently it's pret

If This TV Show Hadn’t Been Canceled, We Might Not Have Had The Original Versions of “Star Trek” and TV’s “Batman”

Mar 22nd, 2024 3m 2s

Today in 1931, the birthday of William Shatner, Captain Kirk from the original “Star Trek” series. Of course, if a different show he was supposed to star in had gone ahead, Shatner might not have ended up as Captain Kirk at all. Plus: tomorrow

Taco Bell Once Sold A Burger Called The “Bell Beefer”

Mar 21st, 2024 3m 29s

It's our show's fifth birthday! It's also the birthday in 1962 of the first Taco Bell restaurant, which had a "chili burger" on its original menu. Plus: for National Fragrance Week, a visit to San Francisco's Aftel Archive of Curious Scents. W

Shizo Kanakuri Finished A Marathon He’d Started 54 Years Earlier

Mar 20th, 2024 3m 20s

Today in 1967, a Japanese athlete Shizo Kanakuri, finished a Olympic marathon that he’d started in 1912. Better late than never! Plus: a college student asks a professor a question and gets a reply long after graduation. Better late than never

The Nutty Narrows Bridge Was Built For Squirrels In Washington State

Mar 19th, 2024 3m 2s

Today in 1963, the opening of a bridge in Longview, Washington. that wasn't for cars, or bikes, or even pedestrians. It was a bridge for squirrels. Plus: Milan's Palazzo Morando is hosting an exhibit of photos featuring the colorful street fash