Podcast Episodes
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Marmorated Stink Bugs (Entry 761.LV1120)
In which a hard-to-kill Asian insect arrives in America and discovers a delightful new predator-free life eating our produce, hiding behind our pictu…
7 years, 5 months ago
Ghost Forests (Entry 527.EZ1724)
In which Ken accidentally goes on vacation to a long submerged, 2,000-year-old forest, and John explains the value he can add to a rugby game or camp…
7 years, 5 months ago
Scrappy Doo (Entry 1115.PP0302)
In which 1970s and 1980s TV is overrun by an avalanche of orphans, runaways, and other wisecracking moppets, and John reveals that Oscar the Grouch i…
7 years, 6 months ago
The Qibla (Entry 1016.PS5517)
In which the Islamic practice of facing Mecca in prayer becomes a thorny theological and geographical question, particularly for Muslims in Alaska, F…
7 years, 6 months ago
Pumpkin Pie (Entry 1008.JH0406)
In which we consider America's favorite gourd as a botanical mystery, a symbol of autumn, a Civil War flashpoint, an Illinois monoculture, a delivery…
7 years, 6 months ago
Deep-Fried Turkeys (Entry 325.JN0432)
In which the Cajun cooking fad of the 1980s spawns a hazardous new holiday favorite, and Ken's wife flips us the bird. Certificate #30269.
7 years, 6 months ago
The Cagot (Entry 173.2K0527)
In which a tiny French minority in the Pyrenees is shunned and hated for reasons no one can quite remember, and John pronounces the words "goose foot…
7 years, 6 months ago
Jennens v. Jennens (Entry 671.NU2711)
In which the notorious "Miser of Acton" forgets to sign his will, and for over a century thousands of people--including Ken's family--become convince…
7 years, 6 months ago
Wild Man Fischer (Entry 472.GE1612)
In which a troubled street performer becomes a beloved musician and helps found a landmark record label, Ken buys a booby-trapped painting, and John …
7 years, 6 months ago
The Doomsday Flight (Entry 372.AM0214)
In which the U.S. government tries to ban a Rod Serling TV movie for inspiring too many mid-air extortions, all of which can be foiled by knowing the…
7 years, 6 months ago