Stuff You Should Know

You may think composting is just a bunch of old banana peels rotting away into dirt but, friend, you're not looking closely enough. Inside that compost pile is a microcosmic universe doing some magical stuff.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Squirrels are rodents, sure, but they’re rodents with personalities the size of Las Vegas and Detroit put together. Get to know your bushy-tailed (and sometimes not so bushy) neighbors who live interesting hidden lives right out in the open.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Honey is an amazing thing. Just ask any bee. They make a ton of it. So much that humans get what bees can't use and that's a lot of honey.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you could put your leg behind your head, would you? Of course you would! You might even make a career out of it, amazing people around the world with your flexibility. That’d make you a contortionist! But first you’d better get started with stretching.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Jeddah Tower is set to be the tallest building in the world. If it ever gets finished. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ruth Lyons basically invented the daytime talk show, yet she doesn't get the credit. Why is that? Probably because she was a woman in a man's industry. Today we tell her story.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mangroves are incredible survivors and adapters. They're also amazing at lessening the impact of tropical storms and climate change. And heck, they're cool looking. So jump into the brackish waters and have a listen to this classic episode all about these beauts.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From the 1970s to the early 1990s a patch of land in Hong Kong the size of just a few football fields was the most densely-populated area in the world – and by a longshot. Even more remarkable, it was an outlaw land that somehow formed a tight community.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Movies on planes have changed a lot in the last couple of decades. Today, we'll go over how this stuff works. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What happens when a career grifter tries to throw a "luxury" music festival in only six months? Not much it turns out.This was the Fyre Festival.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Something spooky was born on the American frontier in the mid-19th century: the idea that people’s personalities survive death and that some gifted individuals can communicate with them. It developed into a religion that some still practice today.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Before the internet could show you anything in the universe - including stuff it made up - people had few opportunities to have their minds blown. But every few years, somewhere in the world nations would gather and show off the cool stuff they invented.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You might be familiar with the outlaw Johnny Ringo from the movie Tombstone. He was indeed a real-life black hat gunslinger, and a tragic figure at that.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There was a time less than 100 years ago when you could exchange your paper currency at the bank for actual gold. Gave folks a sense of stability, it did. Depending on your view, we either ruined or built our economies when money became just paper.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dopamine is perhaps the most talked-about, most misunderstood biochemical in our bodies. It’s linked to not only addiction and depravity, but also focus, motivation, and living a productive life. How can one molecule be so many things to so many people? Find out all about it in this classic episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Back in 1973 a male chauvinist played tennis against champion Billie Jean King. This is that story.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What’s a MacGuffin? We don’t know. No one knows. But it has to do with movies and that’s fun to talk about.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stanford University was co-founded by Jane Stanford. Not long after she was murdered and it was covered up. We'll probably never know what really happened. Listen in today.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Free range parenting is all about giving your child the freedom to play and explore life on their own. Are there benefits? Sure. Do some people hate the concept? Yes! Listen to this classic episode and learn right here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Flexner Report shook up medicine in the United States when it was released in 1910 and it's never been the same since. For better or worse.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Back in the 1800s, people had an outsized fear of being buried alive. Enter... THE SAFETY COFFIN!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you’ve ever been out of your house you’ve probably been in a crowd before. They can be as mundane as an elevator full of people or as consequential as a mass of protesters. But did you know there’s psychology to crowds? And they follow fluid dynamics?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Charles Darwin wasn't the first or only scientist to grasp the theory of evolution through natural selection, but he became its father and icon. In this classic episode, learn about the man who reluctantly but bravely became the source of the divide between religion and science.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It turns out that lasers are even cooler than they look. And as far as acronyms go, they’re pretty solid in that respect too. There’s way too much cool stuff about lasers to tease here so listen to this old school SYSK episode and let lasers blow away.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the late 90s, a strange musical instrument was excavated under the streets of CDMX. Listen in to learn all about the Aztec Death Whistle. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Humans have all sorts of weird quirks that cause us to do silly things and make bad decisions. It’s not our fault though. Our brains are wired that way. Learn about the psychology of cognitive biases in this episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If look into the mythology of just about any culture in the world, you will find a myth about a great flood that destroyed humanity and submerged the Earth in the distant past. Does this mean that a great flood actually happened? Listen to this classic episode to explore the possibilities with Josh and Chuck.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Cajun Navy was formed after Hurricane Katrina and really got its legs after the Louisiana flood of 2016.  They save a lot of lives, but some fear the pitfalls of "vigilante heroism." Learn all about this group of do-gooders today. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Have you ever cried way longer than usual when you were in a yellow room? You’ve been smacked by color psychology my friend and it’s got your number.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan were one of the most amazing non-magical duos in history. Imagine living trapped in your own mind – unable to see or hear – and then imagine learning to read, traveling the world, and becoming an ambassador of peace.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In World War II, a secret department of British 'corkscrew thinkers' hatched a plan to use the cadaver of an unclaimed homeless man to turn the tide of the war in the Allies' favor. It worked. Listen to this classic episode as Josh and Chuck take you through the real life tale.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you think the Golden Gate Bridge is named because of its color then you are wrong. That name proceeds the bridge by a long time. But that’s just one interesting fact about this amazing structure. Tune in today.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Magic 8 Ball, the mystical fortune telling pool ball started out as a piece of customer swag for the Brunswick Billiard Company.  Since then, it has changed the course of history and shaped nations.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Charge of the Light Brigade is a famous poem about a lesser famous military action during the Crimean War. Tune in today for a rare SYSK walk through wartime history.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You’d think terms like cage-free and free-range means the chickens we eat are frolicking happily in the fresh air under the shining sun, but you’d be so, so wrong. Cage-free is a huge improvement but free-range is lacking and both have a long way to go. Find out all about both in this classic episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur had a famous beef with one another in the mid-90s. It was so intense, it sparked an even wider rivalry between the East and West Coasts. In just a few years, both men had been murdered and the music world was changed forever.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Seven Deadly Sins are tied to religion, but not really in the Bible. So where did this naughty list come from?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, Chuck and Josh walk you through the history of keeping time, from sticks in the sun to atomic clocks.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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 personality disorder can be: deep fear of being abandoned creates behaviors that end up driving people off. Learn all about it in this classic episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Data centers are the backbone of our digital world. All the sites you visit and social media you post happen there. A boom in huge data centers to support AI is underway, and they’re taking a big toll on the environment and life for the people around them.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

During the Cold War, the CIA used the legend of a vampire named Aswang to scare locals into not helping the communists. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

West Virginia is home to sensitive radio telescopes that could easily pick up your cell phone’s signal on Mars. And the cell reception on Mars is about as good as it is in the NRQZ, since cell towers are banned in the interest of furthering astronomy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For most of history, forgiveness fell under the domain of religion. But in the 1980s science started investigating it and found that forgiving someone is really, really good for you. Learn how anybody can be the better person in this classic, and really great, episode.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Seasonal affective disorder, or SAD, is much more than the winter blues. It's a serious subset of depression. Learn all about it and what to do if you suffer from it today. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since 1972 neighborhoods have been officially banding together to prevent crime together. Does it work? It seems to. Does it go too far? It often does, yes.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today we dive into the interesting story of paranormal power couple the Warrens, inspiration behind The Conjuring movie franchise. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We love us some MC Escher. Turns out his story is pretty fascinating too. Tune in to this classic episode and find out all about it with Josh and Chuck.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Whatever you think of TV, you have to admit it has shaped the world (maybe more than the internet, according to Josh). There have been moments here or there in TV history where the world took a new course and we go over some of them in this episode.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What exactly is this durable ceramic anyway?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Home economics seems antiquated – a class that teaches high school kids how to bake a cake and sew doesn’t sound super useful. But would you believe that everything from the obesity epidemic to student debt can be chalked up to home ec disappearing?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.