Episodes

  • Why did people hate the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge?
    Feb 1 2025

    Nowadays most people are fans of national parks, but this wasn't always the case. Join the guys as they delve into the strange "birds vs. babies" conflict over Lake Malheur.

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    32 mins
  • First Ladies Who Weren't Wives, Part One: The Niece Will Have To Do
    Jan 30 2025

    For more than two hundred years, the American public has elected not just a president, but a family. While the position of First Lady of the United States is not outlined in the Constitution, you literally cannot be the President without someone at your side. As a result, the position of FLOTUS wields immense, subtle power -- often in ways the public does not understand. In the first part of this continuing series, Ben, Noel and Max explore the intricate, bizarre -- dare we say, ridiculous -- stories of people who quietly saved the world while a president took credit.

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    41 mins
  • Some of History's Funniest Honorifics, Part One: The Babymaker, the Debauchee, and More
    Jan 28 2025

    Honorifics are perhaps best described as the fancier version of nicknames, with some of the same familiar rules: just like nicknames, you don't get to give yourself an honorific. And, again, just like nicknames, not all honorifics are particularly flattering. What do we mean? Join Ben, Noel and Max to learn more about ridiculous honorifics in today's episode.

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    40 mins
  • IP, Part Two: The Baffling World of Trademarks
    Jan 23 2025

    What does it mean to own an idea, a brand, a catchphrase or a concept? In part two of their continuing exploration of the weird world of intellectual property, the guys suss out what exactly is (or isn't) a trademark, and why people still find it so confusing in the modern day.

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    50 mins
  • A Ton of Inventors Died Due To Their Own Inventions, Chapter Two: Li Si and the Five Pains
    Jan 22 2025

    The world is riddled with inventors whose discoveries led to their demise. Thomas Midgley, Jr. is the world's worst inventor. Marie Curie discovered radioactivity and it killed her. Li Si invented the torture method his Emperor would later use for his own execution. In the newest installment of this continuing series, Ben, Noel, and Max explore more stories of inventors who died as a result of their own discoveries.

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    37 mins
  • CLASSIC: The 1904 Racist Summer Olympic Games in St. Louis
    Jan 18 2025

    A few years after Baron Pierre de Coubertin revived the ancient sporting event known as the Olympics, he brought the games to the U.S. for the first time. The 1904 Summer Olympics were held in St. Louis, Missouri, coinciding with the 1904 World's Fair. Seems set to make history, right? Not the way you'd think. Join Ben and Noel as they take a closer look at the series of disastrous decisions and bizarre notions that led one games organizer to set up his own racist olympics in this week's Classic episode.

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    34 mins
  • The Ridiculously Ambitious History of the World's Fair, Part Two: Things Don't Always Work Out
    Jan 16 2025

    On paper -- and, often, in practice -- the world's fair is an astonishing global showcase of groundbreaking innovations. However, as Ben, Noel and Max discover in the second part of this two-part series, not every world's fair has been a success. Tune in as the guys explore several ill-fated examples of expositions gone wrong in California and Louisiana.

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    45 mins
  • The Ridiculously Ambitious History of the World's Fair, Part One: A Crazy Plan, and Crazy Success
    Jan 14 2025

    Have you ever dreamed of going to a science fair as an adult? If so, the world's fair is for you -- these massive international exhibitions occur around the world, usually running for three to six months. And each world's fair include exhibits from a significant number of countries, inventors, and companies with new (potential) breakthroughs for society. In part one of this special two-part episode, Ben, Noel and Max explore world's fair success stories -- along with a mysterious fire.

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    47 mins