For 18 Days, Lake Champlain Was A Great Lake

Today in 1998, a little-noticed line in a funding bill for the National Sea Grant Program led the United States to declare that there were not five but six Great Lakes.

By |2025-03-07T05:53:52-05:00March 7, 2025|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , |

Edith Keating Let The World See What The World Looked Like From The Air

Today in 1884 was probably the birthdate of a pioneer in aerial photography, Edith Keating.

By |2025-03-05T07:15:24-05:00March 5, 2025|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , , , |

Long Before He Was President, Abraham Lincoln Was A Tavern Owner

The 16th President has been called the Great Emancipator, Honest Abe, The Railsplitter… and if you go far enough into his backstory, you can call him "Bartender In Chief."

By |2025-02-12T05:53:37-05:00February 12, 2025|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , , |

For One Supreme Court Nominee, The Nation’s Number One Question Was About His Mustache

Today in 1833, the birthday of Melville Fuller. He would eventually become Chief Justice of the United States, but not before the country asked whether a member of the US Supreme Court could be fair and objective if he has a mustache (!)

By |2025-02-11T07:16:43-05:00February 11, 2025|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , |

A Guy Used A Loophole In International Law To Put Himself “In Charge” Of Western Antarctica

This week in 1819 was probably the first European sighting of Antarctica. It’s different from all the other continents in so many ways - including how, from a certain point of view, a big chunk of Antarctica is “ruled” by a guy who’s never even been there.

By |2025-01-30T07:50:08-05:00January 30, 2025|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , |

The World Of Fighting Fires Is Getting More Robotic

First responders in Kent, England have a powerful new tool: a remote-controlled robot for fighting fires. This is a slowly growing trend in firefighting, sending devices into a fire scene so there are fewer human firefighters at risk.

By |2025-01-29T06:10:41-05:00January 29, 2025|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , |

Never Forget That There Are People With Nearly Perfect Memories

Today in 2011, Rebecca Sharrock of Brisbane, Australia got a medical diagnosis: Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory. It's a rare condition in which people can vividly remember virtually everything they've ever experienced.

By |2025-01-23T06:49:21-05:00January 23, 2025|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , , |

Greenland Starts The New Year With Visits From Silent Masked Visitors

The new year tradition of Mitaarfik in Greenland features a bunch of people in masks hanging out in your house without saying a word.

By |2025-01-03T07:45:09-05:00January 3, 2025|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , |

Troublemakers Beware, It’s Time For Austria’s Krampus Parades

Nothing says the holidays like a creepy devil creature hitting you with sticks! In some European countries, there are parades focused on Father Christmas's evil counterpart, Krampus.

By |2024-12-06T06:08:40-05:00December 6, 2024|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , , |
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