Videos
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In this video you get to go back in time and see how the starry sky would have looked to an astronomer 2,000 or 3,000 years ago. The motion of the “planets” (aka “the wanderers”) presented a profound mystery. The resolution to the mystery, for 1,500 years (!) involved Ptolemy’s epicycles: See also: The only [...]
In the past few days, many news outlets have picked up on the tale of Jim Nicholson, a Seattle bank teller who refused to comply with the demands of a man who was attempting to rob the bank. Rather than just handing over the money, Nicholson asked to see the man’s gun, causing the would-be robber to flee. Nicholson left his post, chased the man for several blocks and held him until the police could arrive. After all that trouble, Nicholson was fired, as his actions violated bank policy on how to deal with robberies.
You Asked: I have a friend with a cochlear implant. How does a cochlear implant work? — Irena, Cary, NC Marshall Brain Answered: Cochlear implants are a relatively new technology that allow some deaf people to begin hearing again. This video provides a nice introduction: And: See also: Parts of a Cochlear Implant The problem [...]
More than a million parents call 911 in the United States every year because a child gets poisoned. That’s a lot of calls – obviously poisons are a big problem. If your child is poisoned, what would you do? What can you do to prevent poisoning? The obvious way to prevent poisoning is to remove [...]
Online dating is an increasingly popular way of meeting people, but does it really work? Molly and Cristen discuss how online dating compares to regular dating in this podcast from HowStuffWorks.com.
Traffic lights detect vehicles using a variety of methods. Check out this podcast from HowStuffWorks.com to find out how timers, inductive loops and other detectors keep traffic running smoothly.
Cell phone interference is annoying in general, but in some situations, it can be potentially deadly. Find out why hospitals and airlines tend to ban cell phones — and how great the risk actually is — in this podcast from HowStuffWorks.com.
When Sacco and Vanzetti were charged with murder, the Italian-born anarchists didn’t receive a fair trial because of their political views and foreign birth. Learn more about the trial — and its repercussions — in this podcast from HowStuffWorks.com.
Recent Postings by Category
BrainStuff
- Thank You and Best Wishes to Marshall Brain
- Contest – Design a $300 house and win $25,000
- How the Philtrum works – the place under your nose where your face comes together
The Coolest Stuff on the Planet
- The Park That Never Sleeps: Central Park
- Draw a Pretty Picture With Your Bike and Your Phone
- Cats on Parade in Belgium
Keep Asking
- Why can a 5 foot 8 inch man dunk a basketball on a 10 foot rim while some people of taller stature can’t?
- What happens to our sun once it runs out of fuel?
- How do we know the age of the universe?
Stuff Mom Never Told You
- Who invented the Christmas card?
- How the Kinsey Report Fueled Whiskey Sales
- How to Get Your Wedding Announcement into The New York Times
Stuff to Blow Your Mind
- Blow Your Mind: Three Minutes Till Impact
- Touching the Void: Psychedelics and Death
- Space Music: Music on Titan, Sistema, Drokk and Alan Howarth
Stuff You Should Know
- Stuff You Should Know at SXSW
- The Southern Death Cult, the Maya and Georgia
- Deformed Baby Spider Brains
The Stuff of Genius
CarStuff
- Listener Mail: What’s the world’s largest engine?
- Listener Mail: What makes a “classic car” classic?
- Was Chrysler’s “It’s Halftime in America” Super Bowl commercial a little too political?
How-to Stuff
- How to Enjoy the Fruits of Your Labor
- How to Travel the World in 4 Days
- How to Smell Like Someone at HowStuffWorks
PopStuff
- PopStuff Show Notes: Episode 68: Astrology: What’s PopStuff’s Sign?
- PopStuff Show Notes: Episode 67: Collecting: PopStuff’s Cabinet of Curiosities
- PopStuff Show Notes: Episode 66: Tracy and Holly’s Running Playlists
Stuff They Don't Want You To Know
- Good News from the Oldest Mayan Calendar
- One Year Later: Colony Collapse Disorder
- Who Killed Martin Luther King, Jr.?
Stuff to Change the World
- Who will own the Arctic?
- Obesity: The New Global Crisis
- Bill Gates Makes For A Pretty Decent Cartoon
Stuff You Missed in History Class
- Butch Cassidy: Should we read between the lines?
- Are we rooting for D.B. Cooper?
- Party Time: A Look at Unconventional Politics
