Shows / Stuff You Should Know
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Episodes
- Stuff You Should Know
10ish Worst Business Decisions Ever
It’s easy (and kind of fun) to laugh at the misfortune of CEOs and other high up business types when they bring it on themselves – so let’s do that now. Herein…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: How Floods Work
Floods happen when more water is introduced to an area than can be quickly removed. That's about it, but there's more to floods, what causes them and the havoc…
- Stuff You Should Know
The Hyatt Regency Skywalk Disaster
In 1981 America suffered the worst accidental structural collapse in its history. Listen in today to the tragic story of the fast-tracked building disaster…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: Why Spilling Salt is Unlucky
Face it, when you spill salt your life goes totally off the rails, maybe even forever. Fortunately, we humans stumbled upon the one reliable way to counteract…
- Stuff You Should Know
Axolotls: The Smiling Salamander from Mexico
It’s a listener request! Axolotls are one of the more amazing animals roaming the planet right now – they can regenerate parts of their brains, can fight off…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: How Space Stations Work
It seems like we largely take it for granted these days, but the fact that we have humans living in space is the realization of a scientific dream a century…
- Stuff You Should Know
Native American Reservations
Today we dive into the history and current state of Native American reservations. This serves as a nice follow-up to the Trail of Tears double-ep from 2017…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: History of OK
Is OK the best word? It's certainly one of the most versatile. Check the interesting history of this weird contraction. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy…
- Stuff You Should Know
The Made-up Disease of Syndrome K
In WWII, Italy went through its own Jewish Holocaust, terrible at first then horrific as the Nazis took over the country. In Rome, a group of doctors hid…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: Body Odor: You Stink
Chuck and Josh end up making reduxes of past episodes on things like sweating and deodorant in this all-new episode on the science beneath what makes people…
- Stuff You Should Know
Laurens Hammond: The Non-Musical Genius Who Changed Popular Music
Laurens Hammond invented the Hammond organ and in the process changed music history. But he was much more than that. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: Evil Eye
You've seen the evil eye. Many Middle Eastern cultures have a long history with it. Learn how to thwart this curse today. See omnystudio.com/listener for…
- Stuff You Should Know
Fordlandia: Brazil Isn't Michigan
Henry Ford tried to build a Midwestern American town in the Amazon rainforest in the 1920s. It's true. And yes, Chuck will say this should be a movie. See…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: How Toy Testing Works
It's every kid's dream - a job playing with toys that pays in toys. It's a real thing and has been around for a long time. Then there's the other side of the…
- Stuff You Should Know
Plant Migration
Climate change is having sweeping effects on our climate and this is changing the world, not just for humans and other animals, but plants too. Will the…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: Saturn's Rings
Friends, treasure Saturn’s rings while they are young. They won’t be around forever. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Stuff You Should Know
Farmer's Almanac: Literature to Poop To
The Farmer's Almanac has a long rich history that is more than just moon phases and long-term weather patterns. Tune in to learn all about it. See…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: How Music Sampling Works
Today music sampling is a common practice, especially in electronic or hip-hop music. But how does it work? After all, other artists made the original music…
- Stuff You Should Know
The Mysterious Disappearance of the Franklin Expedition
One of the great Arctic mysteries was the disappearance of the ill-fated Franklin Expedition in search of a northwest passage between the Atlantic and Pacific…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: Edward Mordake
In the 19th century news spread of an unfortunate man who was born with an evil second face on the back of his head that spoke to him. The real story is that…
- Stuff You Should Know
How We’re Learning to Talk to Animals
If we could talk with the animals, grunt and squeak and squawk with the animals, what would we say? We’d better start thinking of something good because…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: How Magnets Work
You can stick them to the fridge or use them to transpose sound to tape, whatever they are used for magnets are surprisingly interesting. And knowing just…
- Stuff You Should Know
Xenobiotics
Science is just realizing the extent of the tiny pollutants that have entered ecosystems across Earth and inside all humans. We call them xenobiotics –…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: History of English
Who spoke English first and what was it like? Nothing like it is today. Listen in to learn all about it. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Stuff You Should Know
Dear Diary...
Diaries have been around for a long time. There are many famous ones, and tens of millions that will never see the light of day. Learn about the history and…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: Rainbows: Delighting humanity since forever
Rainbows seem to defy nature, but they're really pretty simple when it comes down to it. Turns out it's just light reacting to water droplets in the air. But…
- Stuff You Should Know
The Last Meal Ritual
The last meal of the executed is a longstanding tradition. Listen in today to learn about the dark history and modern practice of this culinary curiosity. See…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: NATO Alphabet
Alpha, Bravo, Charlie. This is the NATO alphabet. But where did it come from? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Stuff You Should Know
BPD: The Worst Disorder or Not a Disorder at All?
Borderline Personality Disorder has been described as emotional “third degree burns over ninety percent of your body.” It’s as close to a curse as a…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: What's the deal with Stradivarius violins?
The Strad violin is noted for its tonal qualities and superior craftsmanship. And for its price tag. There are many theories why the Strad sounds so great…
- Stuff You Should Know
MAD Magazine: A Tribute
Chuck and Josh grew up on MAD Magazine and we hope you did too. What started out as a comic book that spoofed comic books grew into the foundation of American…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: Blue Highway Signs
In the US those ubiquitous blue highway signs that tell you which direction you’ll find a Burger King have an interesting backstory. See…
- Stuff You Should Know
Learning a Foreign Language
Today, Chuck and Josh dive into the ins and outs of language learning. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: Nirvana: Not The Band
Hinduism and Buddhism are closely related in a number of ways, including their vision of what comes after we exit this mortal coil. Learn about the religions'…
- Stuff You Should Know
Magic Eye Illusions
What became the Magic Eye illusion fad of the 1990s was born by way of the stereogram of the 1950s (and even before that). It's a winding story that you'll…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: Pie-In-The-Face Gag
Throwing a pie in someone’s face was groundbreaking comedy once upon a time. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Stuff You Should Know
Insomnia: Why you can't sleep
Insomnia is rough stuff. Listen in and learn all about why you can't fall asleep and what you can do about that. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: How Police Lineups Work
Police lineups are something most people have never had any firsthand experience with. What you see on TV and in movies isn't so far off though. Learn about…
- Stuff You Should Know
How PCP Works
There is probably no drug more mythologized than PCP. It drives users insane and has the unfortunate side effect of bestowing superhuman strength thus sending…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: Père-Lachaise Cemetery
The most famous cemetery in Paris has some of the most famous people in the world buried there. And it's quite lovely. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy…
- Stuff You Should Know
Birth Order: So nice, we did it twice
This is a very special episode, the first one we've ever fully recorded a second time and decided to release. Why? Because it's good and a little different and…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: How Bats Work
They are creepy, sure, but they are also useful, cute and in great danger of extinction. Get a new lease on life from a new view of bats in this classic…
- Stuff You Should Know
James Beard: Food Legend
James Beard is well-known now for the annual awards named in his honor. But he used to be the most famous chef in America, and set the standard for what makes…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: Hollywood Sign
The Hollywood sign is an iconic landmark that started out as a real estate billboard. Can you believe it? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Stuff You Should Know
How Trucking Works
If truckers suddenly vanished the global economy would come to a grinding halt in a couple days. But as important as they are these highway heroes (mostly)…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: What Makes Lead So Poisonous?
The people of Flint, MI were horrified to find their drinking water was poisoned with lead. As we learn more about lead's effects and realize how persistent it…
- Stuff You Should Know
Butterflies: Caterpillars with Wings!
If you thought caterpillars were awesome, just wait until you see them with colorful, iridescent wings! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: Fahrenheit or Celsius
Fahrenheit or Celsius? Why not both? If they can agree - exactly at -40 degrees - then it seems like we should all be able to agree they're both great as well…
- Stuff You Should Know
Caterpillars: Nature's Magicians
Caterpillars are simply the best. Don't think so? Well listen in and you'll soon agree See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: How Ocean Currents Work
It's easy to overlook the importance of ocean currents - they move along out at sea, while we stay mostly on land. But we are globally affected by them every…
- Stuff You Should Know
How Afrofuturism Works
Black sci-fi writers were shut out of their genre in the 20th century so they created their own vision of the future. That sentiment spread to music and film…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: Chia Pet
It has arrived, the most important podcast episode in the history of the world. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Stuff You Should Know
Large Language Models and You
There is a good chance that in March of 2023, humans crossed a threshold into a transformative new era when a new, smarter type of AI was let loose in the wild…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: SYSK Live: Back When Ford Pintos Were Flaming Deathtraps
For this special live benefit episode recorded in Atlanta, Josh and Chuck go back to the 70s and look at the decidedly ungroovy course of events that led to…
- Stuff You Should Know
How Alumin(i)um Works
Humans made it through the Bronze Age and Iron Age, then we dabbled in steel, and now we are living in the Aluminum Age. The metal is so ubiquitous it seems…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: Suicide Forest
The suicide forest in Japan is a beautiful place with a checkered reputation. Trigger Warning: This episode features a discussion of suicide. If you or anyone…
- Stuff You Should Know
The Stinky History of Human Hygiene
Ever wondered when and why people started caring about body odors and cleanliness? Well look no further than today's episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for…
- Stuff You Should Know
Selects: How Audience Testing Works
Did you know some of our most beloved movies originally had different, sometimes better, endings? That is until they were tested in front of focus groups…
- Stuff You Should Know
Is Reality Real?
Philosophers have been wondering whether we experience reality as it is for millennia now. They’ve pretty much settled on no, no we don’t. Now science has…
Stuff You Should KnowShort Stuff: DNA Data Storage
One of the more futuristic things around right now on Earth is research into encoding data into strings of genetic code. See omnystudio.com/listener for…