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Absurdity Becomes Truth: The Crazy Ideas Science Laughed At—Until Proven True
From sewer science to smart pills — how mocked “crazy” scientists changed the world when their absurd ideas turned out right.
Some of history’s most ridiculous notions — handwashing, ulcers, even talking to machines — were once scientific punchlines.
Discover how five people endured ridicule and rewrote reality.
You’ll see how pride delays truth — and why curiosity always wins.
Tap subscribe so you don’t miss the next twist in history.
Related Episodes / Playlists
The Eloquence Illusion – Why We Fall for Beautiful Nonsense https://youtu.be/pc43xdF1DDk
Playlist – Hidden Genius & Missed Opportunities https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvguDu9efxtoRfoCHh3ZqVEXIJ1zBpwLW
📚 References
• Harvard Health – “Gut Bacteria and Fecal Transplants in Modern Medicine” – https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/the-future-of-fecal-transplants
• National Library of Medicine – “Ignaz Semmelweis and the Birth of Handwashing” – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28612231/
• USGS – “Alfred Wegener and Continental Drift” – https://www.usgs.gov/media/images/continental-drift-wegener
• Nobel Prize Archives – “Barry Marshall and Robin Warren – H. pylori Discovery” – https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/2005/summary/
• Nobel Prize Archives – “Stanley Prusiner and the Discovery of Prions” – https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/1997/summary/
Credits
Music: This is Not a Ballad by True Cuckoo, via YouTube Audio Library
Images: Public Domain / Creative Commons (CC-BY) sources as cited
Hashtags: #ScienceHistory #CrazyIdeas #AnOuncePodcast
________________________________________
🎯 Chapters (Timestamps)
00:00 – Hook – The Sewer Plant Prophecy
01:06 – Setup – When Brilliance Wore a Clown Nose
02:05 – Ignaz Semmelweis – The Soap Heretic
02:51 – Alfred Wegener – The Man Who Moved the Earth
03:29 – Barry Marshall & Robin Warren – The Bacteria Betrayal
04:15 – John Yudkin – The Sugar Pariah
04:55 – Stan Prusiner – The Mad Protein Theory
05:48 – The Modern Echo – Microbes and Machines
07:26 – An Ounce
________________________________________
🎯 Tags
Base Tags:
an ounce podcast, history podcast, forgotten history, weird history, untold history
10 second pre-roll promo for An Ounce Podcast on YouTube
View all episodes
By Jim Fugate
5
1919 ratings
From sewer science to smart pills — how mocked “crazy” scientists changed the world when their absurd ideas turned out right.
Some of history’s most ridiculous notions — handwashing, ulcers, even talking to machines — were once scientific punchlines.
Discover how five people endured ridicule and rewrote reality.
You’ll see how pride delays truth — and why curiosity always wins.
Tap subscribe so you don’t miss the next twist in history.
Related Episodes / Playlists
The Eloquence Illusion – Why We Fall for Beautiful Nonsense https://youtu.be/pc43xdF1DDk
Playlist – Hidden Genius & Missed Opportunities https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvguDu9efxtoRfoCHh3ZqVEXIJ1zBpwLW
📚 References
• Harvard Health – “Gut Bacteria and Fecal Transplants in Modern Medicine” – https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/the-future-of-fecal-transplants
• National Library of Medicine – “Ignaz Semmelweis and the Birth of Handwashing” – https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28612231/
• USGS – “Alfred Wegener and Continental Drift” – https://www.usgs.gov/media/images/continental-drift-wegener
• Nobel Prize Archives – “Barry Marshall and Robin Warren – H. pylori Discovery” – https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/2005/summary/
• Nobel Prize Archives – “Stanley Prusiner and the Discovery of Prions” – https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/1997/summary/
Credits
Music: This is Not a Ballad by True Cuckoo, via YouTube Audio Library
Images: Public Domain / Creative Commons (CC-BY) sources as cited
Hashtags: #ScienceHistory #CrazyIdeas #AnOuncePodcast
________________________________________
🎯 Chapters (Timestamps)
00:00 – Hook – The Sewer Plant Prophecy
01:06 – Setup – When Brilliance Wore a Clown Nose
02:05 – Ignaz Semmelweis – The Soap Heretic
02:51 – Alfred Wegener – The Man Who Moved the Earth
03:29 – Barry Marshall & Robin Warren – The Bacteria Betrayal
04:15 – John Yudkin – The Sugar Pariah
04:55 – Stan Prusiner – The Mad Protein Theory
05:48 – The Modern Echo – Microbes and Machines
07:26 – An Ounce
________________________________________
🎯 Tags
Base Tags:
an ounce podcast, history podcast, forgotten history, weird history, untold history
10 second pre-roll promo for An Ounce Podcast on YouTube