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Thomas Nast, Part Two: A Cartoonist Conquers Corruption (and Moves to Ecuador)
Rising from humble beginnings, Thomas Nast soon became something very much like the conscience of America. His illustrated takedowns of corruption spoke directly to people who were often illiterate, …
Published on 1 year, 7 months ago
Thomas Nast, Part One: The Cartoonist Who Shaped America
Tons of people have a soft spot for their favorite cartoon or comic strip -- yet few have attained the social status of the legendary artist Thomas Nast, the caricaturist often referred to as the "Fa…
Published on 1 year, 7 months ago
CLASSIC: The Rotten, Sausagey Secret Origin of Botox
Today botox is one of the world's most well-known wrinkle treatments, as well as a go-to joke in the realm of pop culture. But where did this treatment come from, and what on Earth does it have to do…
Published on 1 year, 7 months ago
Books You Can't Read -- By Design!
Books are amazing. When you think about it, a good book can be a portal to another world. A book can a time machine, and the right story can genuinely change a person's life... so long as you can act…
Published on 1 year, 7 months ago
La Maupin: The Swordfighting Opera Singer of France
During the era of Louis XIV, Julie D'Aubigny became one of the most popular criminals in all of high society. In today's episode, the guys welcome returning guest Ben Thompson, author and creator of …
Published on 1 year, 7 months ago
CLASSIC: The Weird World of Meat Jell-O (A Gelatin Origin Story)
Today Jell-O and other gelatin foodstuffs are generally relegated to world of desserts, but this wasn't always the case. In fact, gelatin took a long, strange path from ancient history to modern-day …
Published on 1 year, 8 months ago
A History of Roller Coasters, Part Two: Higher, Faster, More Expensive
In the history of roller coasters, one thing became clear: the public wanted extremes -- the fastest, the highest, the most dangerous of rides. In part two of this week's series, the guys explore the…
Published on 1 year, 8 months ago
A History of Roller Coasters, Part One: Early Ups and Downs
If you described the concept of a roller coaster to an alien, they'd probably be baffled: Why on Earth are humans purposely recreated the sensation of falling, flying and -- quite possibly -- feeling…
Published on 1 year, 8 months ago
CLASSIC: London Made a Train for the Dead
In the mid-19th century, London was literally filling with corpses. When the city was in the grips of a cholera epidemic, the already-overfilled cemetaries couldn't handle the extra bodies. So when t…
Published on 1 year, 8 months ago
The Page-turning Evolution of the Encyclopædia Britannica
In a burst of meta-humor, the Encyclopædia Britannica defines encyclopædia as "reference work that contains information on all branches of knowledge or that treats a particular branch of knowledge in…
Published on 1 year, 8 months ago