30 Minute Expert

In today's episode, Zack has 30 minutes to become an expert on... Silly Putty! A fun toy that is really kinda weird if you think about it. Why does it come in an egg? And why is it that weird fleshy color? Spoiler alert, we did not get the answer to that second question. But we *think* we got the answer to the first one! Another happy accident story - you know how we love those - this one out of a Work War II rubber shortage. The history of silly putty includes a battle of the patent grabbers, a woman boxed out of ownership (typical), and some pretty gritty science talk to try and explain the physical characteristics of this well-known but little-understood children's toy. Zack coined it the "original fidget spinner," and we are sticking with it.

Highlights include: 

- Non-Newtonian Fluids

- A Silly Putty and Play-Doh mix-up (Doh!)

- A $147 loan

Donate to the ACLU: https://action.aclu.org/give/donate-to-aclu-multistep

Donate to the NAACP: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/naacp-1

Follow on instagram @30minuteexpertpodcast and twitter @30minexpertpod

Send us your expertise at [email protected]

And please rate and review!

Podcast artwork by Rick Radvanksy

Intro and Outro music by Jake Radvanksy

In today's episode, Zack has 30 minutes to become an expert on... Evel Knievel! Who was Evel Knievel and how'd he get so evil? Just kidding! He's not evil, he's Evel. And he's not even really Evel - he's Robert! Learn along with us about how ol' Robby went from a regular life growing up in Montana, to becoming a full-blown daredevil. In between he runs (and steals from) a semi-pro hockey team, owns a Honda motorcycle dealership, and marries two different women named Linda. Evel turned out to be an even more fascinating character than we expected, complete with multiple broken bones and questionable marketing practices. What a guy! Extra incentive for this episode? Katie's rendition of Lionel Ritchie's "All Night Long."

Highlights include: (let's be real, this whole episode is highlights) 

- A broken pelvis... twice 

- Two Lindas

- Semi-Pro Hockey team the "Butte Bombers"

Donate to the ACLU: https://action.aclu.org/give/donate-to-aclu-multistep

Donate to the NAACP: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/naacp-1

Follow on instagram @30minuteexpertpodcast and twitter @30minexpertpod

Send us your expertise at [email protected]

And please rate and review!

Podcast artwork by Rick Radvanksy

Intro and Outro music by Jake Radvanksy

In today's episode, Zack has 30 minutes to become an expert on... Watergate! What was Watergate anyway? Something to do with Richard Nixon, a hotel, and "Deep Throat," but beyond that who knows. Well now, we know! And we'll tell you. Impeachment, political scandals, secret recordings - Watergate has got all that, and some lessons we could really take to heart today.

Highlights include:

- A Supreme Court Case

- A Presidential Resignation

- Cops dressed as Hippies

Donate to the ACLU: https://action.aclu.org/give/donate-to-aclu-multistep

Donate to the NAACP: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/naacp-1

Follow on instagram @30minuteexpertpodcast and twitter @30minexpertpod

Send us your expertise at [email protected]

And please rate and review!

Podcast artwork by Rick Radvanksy

Intro and Outro music by Jake Radvanksy

In today's episode, Zack has 30 minutes to become an expert on... Penicillin! Ah, penicillin... we've all heard of it - most of us have ingested it! But where did it come from? Listen to hear the tale of Alexander Fleming and how his lack of hygiene may have saved some of our lives. Come for the mold talk (is blue cheese penicillin? Spoiler Alert - NO!), stay for the SWAT team bursting balloons analogies. 

Highlights include:

- another happy accident discovery

- How Dr. Cecil George Paine saved babies!

- Super-infections (oh boy...)

Follow on instagram @30minuteexpertpodcast and send us your expertise at [email protected]

Podcast artwork by Rick Radvanksy

Intro and Outro music by Jake Radvansky

In today's episode, Zack has 30 minutes to become an expert on... Atlantis! The Lost City! Was Atlantis real? Or simply a watery fantasy for the ages? To get to the "bottom" of it, Zack "dives" into some Plato, an ancient volcanic eruption, and even a midwestern congressman's book on our antediluvian (real word) past.

Follow on instagram @30minuteexpertpodcast and send us your expertise at [email protected].

Podcast artwork by Rick Radvansky

Intro and Outro music by Jake Radvansky 

In today's episode, Zack has 30 minutes to become an expert on... Kintsugi! What is kintsugi, you may ask? Zack did too! Join Zack and Katie in learning about the Japanese practice of repairing broken pottery with gold, and maybe learn to appreciate your own flaws along the way. Self-love. Kintsugi style.

In today's episode, Zack has 30 minutes to become an expert on... Concrete! This was a "hard topic"... okay now that that's out of the way, let's learn about concrete. What's it made from? Is it the most prevalent building material on earth? (hint - why would we ask if it wasn't!) And finally, is it destroying the planet? (see previous hint!)

In today's episode, Zack has 30 minutes to become an expert on... the Salem Witch Trials! Lots of Arthur Miller/The Crucible talk in this one (naturally). Learn how wild Salem was in the 1690s, from convulsive fits to (spoiler alert!) cakes made with pee. Why did this happen? Witches? Mold? You decide!

In today's episode, Zack has 30 minutes to become an expert on... Pizza! If you can get through the intro (lots of Noid talk), you'll learn all about how pizza was born, Queen Margherita, and which holiday is the number one pizza-delivery day in the US (not what you think!).