It’s our 200th episode! We start with a note of gratitude and a show announcement. 

If you grew up in an American public school, you likely really loved or really hated your school lunches. Here’s the surprising tale of how schools came to provide lunch for students. 

Some 1990s era video games for Super Nintendo were notoriously challenging. One of the most difficult was the Lion King - but it was done on purpose and for a unusually specific reason.

Sources:

https://www.cbr.com/lion-king-brutally-difficult-platformer/

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/american-schools-have-been-feeding-children-for-more-than-100-years-heres-how-the-school-lunch-has-changed-180986583/

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Karaoke is one of America’s favorite activities. Why are so many people willing to sing (so badly) in public?

At the recent running of the Kentucky Derby, the horses had more in common than you’d think.

Humans talk slightly differently based on geographic regions. Can the same be said for animals?

Sources:

https://www.si.com/fannation/rodeo/news/secretariat-lives-on-through-hooves-every-horse-kentucky-derby

https://www.statsignificant.com/p/what-are-the-greatest-karaoke-songs

https://www.mentalfloss.com/do-animals-have-regional-accents

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You can choose the wake-up sound for your phone's alarm. It took a lot of effort to create all those options. 

It makes sense on a gallon of milk, but does bottled water really expire?

Many of us say “please” and “thank you” to the artificial intelligence systems we interact with. Maybe we should stop.

Sources:

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/22098/why-does-bottled-water-have-expiration-date

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/24/technology/chatgpt-alexa-please-thank-you.html

https://www.20k.org/episodes/the-sound-of-apple-2

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 Easter season has come and gone and, with it, the slightly stale marshmallow juggernaut known as the peep. But every single peep has something uniquely in common…

In a plot straight out of the TV show that made it all happen, an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm literally saved one man’s life.

Bad news for Dave. If you’re playing a character with that name in a movie, you might want start looking for your next gig. 

Sources:

https://innocenceproject.org/news/how-curb-your-enthusiasm-saved-an-innocent-man-from-death-row/

https://apnews.com/article/peeps-easter-candy-marshmallow-love-hate-5712b5cad525a0da50622ff8f8c86b73

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/mar/06/warning-if-your-name-is-david-you-wont-survive-a-horror-movie

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Scientists have resurrected an ancient, extinct wolf. Is there any reason to be concerned?

Minecraft has been one the most popular games in the world for a decade and a half. What’s its secret?

A Goofy Movie just turned 30. How did it unexpectedly resonate beyond its, well, goofy leading character to become a beloved cult classic? 

Sources:

https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/rs-gaming/what-is-minecraft-1235310785/

https://time.com/7274542/colossal-dire-wolf/

https://www.polygon.com/movies/554432/a-goofy-movie-not-just-a-goof-production

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The NCAA basketball tournament is one of the most significant of all sporting events and, if you consider its impact beyond just the games, that’s an understatement. 

The children’s horror series Goosebumps has been keeping kids up at night since the 1990s. How does author R.L. Stine, now in his 80s, keep cranking out books?

Burger King is a fast-food giant with 20,000 locations worldwide. You won’t find one in a particular town in Illinois, however. At least not the one you’re expecting. 

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You may remember when buying cereal was as much about the toy inside the box as the cereal. Then it just stopped. 

There’s a unique island that’s less than 10 miles long, has under 1,000 permanent residents, and speaks its own language. And it’s part of North Carolina. This week, we set sail for Ocrcoke. 

We all know how to play Marco Polo, but no one knows where it came from - until now.

Sources:

https://www.sporcle.com/blog/2022/04/why-do-we-yell-marco-polo/amp/

https://www.mentalfloss.com/why-toys-disappeared-from-cereal-boxes

https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20190623-the-us-island-that-speaks-elizabethan-english

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It transformed arcades into performance halls by asking people to dance in public. We’ll explore the cultural impact of Dance Dance Revolution.

Just because you’re an astronaut doesn’t mean you still don’t need to shower - so how does one do it outside the Earth’s atmosphere?

Little Caesars is the go-to meal for social gatherings everywhere. This week how a small Michigan pizza parlor rose to fame, nearly went bankrupt, and somehow emerged even stronger.

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A good movie preview should show just enough to excite us about the upcoming film. What about if the previews show a scene that doesn’t end up in the movie?

Professional drivers are very good at what they do - but NASCAR’s origins are as much about spirits as they are about skills. 

Typos are embarrassing. Sometimes they can be costly.  

Sources:

https://www.rd.com/list/expensive-typos/

https://variety.com/2024/film/news/ana-de-armas-yesterday-trailer-lawsuit-settled-1235972010/

https://www.history.com/news/how-prohibition-gave-birth-to-nascar

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The basket of bread often appears before you even place your order and is never listed on the final bill. How did restaurants get started giving away free food?


The Surgeon General’s recent New York Times op-ed, warning of the potential harm social media can have on young people, provocatively equated internet risks to smoking cigarettes. This isn’t the first time the Surgeon General has had a problem with online content … and their names are Inky, Pinky, Blinky, and Clyde. 


It’s an endless quest to  catch sales of Coca-Cola’s popular Sprite, PepsiCo recently rebranded Sierra Mist as Starry. Of course, that’s not the whole story…

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