World War I and the Rise of the Peat Moss Bandage
War often drives innovation — often out of desperation. In World War I, doctors were overwhelmed and dangerously short on supplies, especially bandages. With no end in sight for the cotton shortage, i...
10 Jun 202035min
Flashback: Unforeseen Consequences Throughout History: Part 2
How did air conditioning fundamentally change the course of U.S. politics? What does the Y.M.C.A. have to do with cigarettes? Join Ben and Casey as they welcome special guest, Sean Braswell, to learn ...
5 Jun 202028min
Flashback: Unforeseen Consequences Throughout History: Part 1
How did air conditioning fundamentally change the course of U.S. politics? What does the Y.M.C.A. have to do with cigarettes? Join Ben and Casey as they welcome special guest, Sean Braswell, to learn ...
3 Jun 202039min
Louis Wain, the Godfather of Cat Memes: Part 2
Before the days of WiFi, Reddit, nyan cat and grumpy cat alike, one man set the art world on fire with his increasingly bizarre paintings and sketches of cats. Join Ben, Noel and Casey as they welcome...
29 Mai 202044min
Louis Wain, the Godfather of Cat Memes: Part 1
If you're listening to this podcast, you definitely know about cat memes. At this point, they're almost like an internet currency all their own. But far before the days of WiFi, Reddit, nyan cat and g...
27 Mai 202031min
Feedsack Fashion: How Thrifty Inventiveness Transformed America
In the early 20th century, rural US residents were all-too-accustomed to scraping by, often by any means necessary. Families without the means to buy what they wanted invented ingenious ways of recycl...
22 Mai 202036min
Emperor Tiberius Was Debauched, Deranged and Probably Not Fun At Parties
When Emperor Tiberius first ascended to the throne in AD 14, he seemed to be a principled reformer set on cleaning up the empire -- checking excesses and abuses, erasing loopholes and banning astrolog...
20 Mai 202043min
The Return of Historical Flexes, Part 2: Flexcessiveness
History is riddled with bizarre stories of flexes — things people of the past thought were somehow impressive at time. The Ridiculous Historians are fascinated by these strange stories, as are their f...
14 Mai 202027min
