Smartest Year Ever

Imagine an airline with no website, no public schedule, and a fleet of unmarked planes. It sounds like a conspiracy theory, but it’s real—and it flies straight into Area 51.

In today’s episode, Gordy dives into the shadowy world of Janet Airlines, a top-secret U.S. government airline that officially doesn’t exist. From its eerie red-striped jets to its unlisted destinations, Janet is the airline that takes military personnel and defense contractors into the heart of America’s most classified airspace.

So what’s the deal with these secret flights? And why do they operate under a call sign that allegedly stands for “Just Another Non-Existent Terminal”?

Stay tuned to uncover the bizarre world of the airline that isn’t supposed to exist.

Music thanks to Zapsplat.

Sources:

Mauch, C. (2015). JANET, America’s Most Secret Airline. The Aviationist. Retrieved from https://theaviationist.com/2015/12/01/janet-airlines-is-hiring/

National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. (n.d.). Cheat Lines and Livery: The Design of Military Aircraft. Retrieved from https://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil

Sweet, K. (2018). Inside Janet Airlines, the Top-Secret U.S. Government Airline You’ve Never Heard Of. USA Today. Retrieved from https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/airline-news/2018/09/05/janet-airlines-area-51-secret-government-flights/

Simple Flying. (2020). What Is A Cheatline On An Aircraft Livery? Retrieved from https://simpleflying.com/aircraft-livery-cheatline/

Ever wondered at what point alcohol goes from hydrating to dehydrating? 🍺 It turns out there’s an ABV tipping point where drinks stop being your friend and start drying you out. Gordy dives into the science behind beer, wine, spirits, and how alcohol affects hydration.

We’ll look at why sailors once drank low-alcohol “small beer” to stay hydrated, why modern drinks don’t do the trick, and how your cold post-run beer might be doing more harm than good. Plus, find out the exact ABV where hydration turns into dehydration.

🚨 Stay curious, stay clever—on our quest to become the world’s greatest conversationalists.

Sources:

• Maughan, R. J., et al. (2016). A randomized trial to assess the potential of different beverages to affect hydration status. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 103(3), 717–723. https://doi.org/10.3945/ajcn.115.114769
  

• Shirreffs, S. M., & Maughan, R. J. (1997). Restoration of fluid balance after exercise-induced dehydration: Effects of alcohol consumption. Journal of Applied Physiology, 83(4), 1152–1158. https://doi.org/10.1152/jappl.1997.83.4.1152
  

• Institute of Medicine (US) Panel on Fluid, Electrolyte, and Acid-Base Requirements. (2004). Dietary Reference Intakes for Water, Potassium, Sodium, Chloride, and Sulfate. National Academies Press. https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/10925
  

Follow for more daily insights and stay tuned for tomorrow’s episode! Music thanks to Zapsplat. #AlcoholFacts #HydrationScience #BeerMyth #SmartestYearEver #DailyFacts #LearnSomethingNew

How many people have ever lived on Earth? The answer is way more than you’d think — and it’s a wild story of near-extinction, population explosions, and ancient survivors.

We’re diving deep into the math behind the estimated number of humans who have ever walked the planet. From the earliest Homo sapiens 200,000 years ago to the 8 billion alive today, it’s a timeline packed with shocking bottlenecks and explosive growth.

Ever heard of the Toba eruption? Around 70,000 years ago, a supervolcano nearly wiped out our ancestors, reducing the global human population to as few as 10,000 people. It’s called a genetic bottleneck, and scientists believe it’s why modern humans have such little genetic diversity. We almost didn’t make it.

Fast forward to 1804 — the first time we hit 1 billion people worldwide. It took thousands of years to get there, but since then, the numbers have skyrocketed. Now, the 8 billion people alive today make up just 6.8% of everyone who’s ever lived. Think about that: we’re the tiniest fraction of humanity’s entire story.

So, how accurate is our figure? It’s based on mathematical models that estimate birth and death rates over millennia. But we don’t have census data from Paleolithic goat herders, so the number could be off by millions — or even billions.

Sources:

• Haub, C. (2022). How Many People Have Ever Lived on Earth? Population Reference Bureau. https://www.prb.org/articles/how-many-people-have-ever-lived-on-earth

• United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. (2022). World Population Prospects 2022. https://population.un.org/wpp

• Cohen, J. E. (1995). How Many People Can the Earth Support? New York: W. W. Norton & Company.

• Kremer, M. (1993). Population Growth and Technological Change: One Million B.C. to 1990. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 108(3), 681–716. https://doi.org/10.2307/2118405

Music thanks to Zapsplat.

#PopulationHistory #DailyFacts #GeneticBottleneck #VolcanicWinter #SmartestYearEver #WorldPopulation #Neanderthals #HumanEvolution #LearnSomethingNew #anthropology #homosapiens #PopulationHistory #DidYouKnow #HistoryMystery #ViralFacts

Ever wonder why your shoe size is a 10 in one country and a 42 in another? Or why different brands seem to fit differently even when labeled the same size? Gordy breaks down the bizarre history of shoe sizing, from medieval barleycorn measurements to modern inconsistencies. Discover why the Brannock Device—invented nearly a century ago—remains the gold standard, and why even that doesn’t guarantee a perfect fit.

In this episode, we dive into:

• The medieval origins of shoe sizing.
  

• Why US, UK, EU, and Asian sizes vary so much.
  

• How the Brannock Device works—and why sizes still differ across brands.
  

• The frustrating world of shoe width measurements.
  

Stay curious, stay clever, and join the quest to become the world’s greatest conversationalists!

Sources:

• Kimpton, M. (2019, July 15). Why are shoe sizes so different? Footwear Today. Retrieved from https://www.footweartoday.co.uk/why-are-shoe-sizes-so-different/
  

• O'Byrne, K. (2023, March 23). The Confusing World of Shoe Sizes. The Irish Times. Retrieved from https://www.irishtimes.com/life-style/fashion/the-confusing-world-of-shoe-sizes-1.4204487
  

• Encyclopædia Britannica. (n.d.). Shoe size. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/topic/shoe-size
  

Music thanks to Zapsplat.

#SmartestYearEver #ShoeSizes #WeirdHistory #DailyFacts #DidYouKnow #Trivia #Barleycorn #BrannockDevice #Footwear #Measurement

Throwing isn’t just a skill—it’s a human superpower. But what happens when we put our pitching abilities up against some of the strongest animals on Earth? In today’s episode, Gordy digs into the surprising science behind animal throwing speed, from gorillas hurling sticks to chimpanzees planning sneak attacks with rocks.

But can any of them come close to a Major League fastball? And what does that tell us about human evolution, brain power, and the way we’re built to throw? You might be surprised at the answer.

Plus, learn how our shoulders, hips, and brains are specially engineered for precision throwing, and why no other species has quite the same set of skills.

Sources:

• Nakamichi, M. (1998). Stick throwing by gorillas at the San Diego Wild Animal Park. Folia Primatologica, 69(5), 291.
  

• Wittiger, L., & Sunderland-Groves, J. (2007). Tool use during display behavior in wild Cross River gorillas. American Journal of Primatology.
  

• Osvath, M. (2009). Spontaneous planning for future stone throwing by a male chimpanzee. Current Biology, 19(5), R190–R191.
  

• Hopkins, W. D., et al. (2011). The neural and cognitive correlates of aimed throwing in chimpanzees. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 367(1599), 37–47.
  

• Roach, N. T., et al. (2013). Elastic energy storage in the shoulder and the evolution of high-speed throwing in Homo. Nature, 498(7455), 483–486.
  

Music thanks to Zapsplat. #Chimpanzee #ThrowingSpeed #HumanEvolution #DidYouKnow #DailyFacts #AnimalFacts #EvolutionaryBiology #SportsScience

Ever wondered why light is the fastest thing in the universe? Or how scientists first figured out its speed? In this episode of Smartest Year Ever, Gordy dives into the fascinating journey from Galileo’s lanterns to Einstein’s relativity.

From Ole Rømer’s groundbreaking discovery of light’s finite speed to Hippolyte Fizeau’s ingenious wheel experiment, we’ll explore how light sets the universal speed limit. Plus, why light speed remains constant, no matter how fast you’re moving, and how special relativity flips our understanding of time and space.

Along the way, we’ll tackle why light can’t be outrun, why it’s always the same speed in a vacuum, and why it’s the ultimate constant of the universe. Join us as we break down one of physics’ most mind-bending concepts—no physics degree required.

Hit follow for more daily insights!

Sources:

• Cohen, I. B. (1940). Roemer and the first determination of the velocity of light (1676). Isis, 31(2), 327–379. https://doi.org/10.1086/346499
  

• American Museum of Natural History. (n.d.). Ole Roemer Profile: First to Measure the Speed of Light. Retrieved from AMNH.org
  

• American Physical Society. (2010, July). July 1849: Fizeau publishes results of speed of light experiment. APS News. Retrieved from APS.org
  

• Michelson, A. A. (1881). The relative motion of the Earth and the luminiferous ether. American Journal of Science, 22(128), 120–129. https://doi.org/10.2475/ajs.s3-22.128.120
  

• Space.com. (2017, May 30). Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity. Retrieved from Space.com
  

• Department of Energy. (n.d.). DOE Explains...Relativity. Retrieved from Energy.gov
  

• Ellis, G. F. R., & Uzan, J.-P. (2005). 'c' is the speed of light, isn't it?. American Journal of Physics, 73(3), 240–247. https://doi.org/10.1119/1.1819929
  

Music thanks to Zapsplat.

#SmartestYearEver #PhysicsFacts #SpeedOfLight #SpecialRelativity #DailyFacts #FunScience #DidYouKnow #ScienceExplained #AlbertEinstein

In 1994, a white cat named Snowball helped solve one of the most unusual investigations in Canadian history.

When a missing person was found days later under suspicious circumstances, authorities recovered a leather jacket near the scene. It had traces of blood—and several strands of white pet hair.

There was no human DNA linking the jacket to a suspect. But the person of interest? He had a white cat. Investigators turned to a geneticist who pioneered a new way to test animal DNA—and for the first time in Canada, non-human genetic evidence was presented in court.

It worked. The case set a global precedent, and ever since, pet fur has shown up in forensic labs everywhere—from trace evidence on clothing to smuggling cases involving endangered birds.

Today, Gordy breaks down how cat and dog hair can actually help solve complex cases, how long fur can stick around, and why the FBI even has a unit dedicated to tracking it.

So next time you find fur on your hoodie—just know it might be the most talkative witness in the room.

Sources

• CBC. (2012). Cat DNA used in case. Retrieved from https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/cat-dna-used-in-murder-case-1.1169130
  

• National Institutes of Health. (2009). The forensic use of animal DNA. PLoS Genetics, 5(4). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2752138/
  

• FBI Laboratory Services. (n.d.). Trace Evidence Overview. https://le.fbi.gov/science-and-lab-resources/csi-trace-evidence-overview
  

• Forensic Science International. (2012). Animal DNA in investigations. https://www.fsijournal.org/article/S0379-0738(11)00460-6/fulltext
  

Music thanks to Zapsplat. #PetForensics #AnimalDNA #ForensicScience #CatFacts #ScienceExplained #TraceEvidence #SmartestYearEver #ScienceStorytelling #DNAEvidence #Furensics

Jet lag is so normal today that we forget—it’s a modern glitch. For most of human history, people simply couldn’t move fast enough to get it. Boats were too slow. Horses, too steady. But the industrial age changed everything.

In this episode, Gordy explores the invention of jet lag, from the rise of railroads in the 1800s to the first use of the term in a 1966 L.A. Times article. Along the way, we get into the circadian science, the speed threshold for messing with your internal clock, and the weird fact that your biology adjusts slower than your passport does.

This is a story about time, speed, and what happens when technology outruns the human body. Welcome to the future—it’s exhausting.

Sources:

• National Center for Biotechnology Information. (n.d.). Circadian rhythms and jet lag. National Institutes of Health. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK539845/
  

• Lang, H. (2013). Jet lag is a relatively new phenomenon. Smithsonian Magazine. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/brief-history-jet-lag-180951262/
  

• Greenfieldboyce, N. (2023). What time is it on the Moon? The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2023/02/moon-time-nasa-time-zone/673053/
  

• Devlin, H. (2017). How fast is too fast? The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/may/21/sleep-circadian-rhythm-jet-lag-modern-life
  

• Los Angeles Times Archives. (1966). Jet Lag Plagues Sleepy Travelers. https://latimes.newspapers.com
  

#JetLag #CircadianRhythm #TimeZones #HumanBiology #ScienceHistory #TrainsPlanes #ModernLife #SmartestYearEver Music thanks to Zapsplat.

 Some sentences make perfect sense… until they don’t. Today, Gordy explores garden path sentences—a linguistic trap where your brain confidently goes one way, only to slam into a wall of confusion.

From “The old man the boats” to “The horse raced past the barn fell,” these seemingly broken lines are actually grammatically correct. They’re just crafted to mislead your brain’s natural processing system, exposing how we build meaning on the fly, and how quickly things go off the rails.

It’s a peek into psycholinguistics, sentence parsing, and why even native speakers get completely derailed by the language they speak every day. If you’ve ever reread a sentence five times wondering if you were having a stroke—this one’s for you.

 Sources:

• University of Michigan Linguistics. (n.d.). What is a garden path sentence? https://lsa.umich.edu/linguistics/news-events/all-news/search-news/what-is-a-garden-path-sentence-.html
  

• BBC Future. (2017, July 25). Why some sentences just don’t make sense. https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20170725-the-sentences-that-just-dont-make-sense
  

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology. (2007). Introduction to Psycholinguistics [Course material]. MIT OpenCourseWare. https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/brain-and-cognitive-sciences/9-59j-language-processing-fall-2007/

#GardenPathSentences #Psycholinguistics #WeirdGrammar #BrainTricks #LinguisticsFacts #SmartestYearEver #SentenceStructure #LanguageProcessing #Zapsplat Music thanks to Zapsplat.

Some words just sound like nonsense—but they’re not. Today, Gordy breaks down five real words that sound fake but are 100% legit: from a woodworking term that sounds like an alien sidekick, to the name of that eye chart you never knew had a name.

These aren't made-up internet jokes or slang. They’re real, dictionary-approved words with wildly unexpected meanings—and once you learn them, you’ll start noticing them everywhere.

Want to sound clever at your next dinner party? This is the episode.

Words featured:

• Kerf – the gap left by a saw blade
  

• Glabella – the skin between your eyebrows
  

• Snellen Chart – that classic vision test with the big E
  

• Zarf – the sleeve around a coffee cup
  

• Grawlix – the comic strip symbols used instead of swear words
  

Like words that sound fake but aren't? This one's for you.

Sources:

• Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Kerf. https://www.merriam-webster.com/
  

• Smithsonian Magazine. (2021). What is a Grawlix?. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/grawlix-history-symbolic-swearing-180977754/
  

• American Optometric Association. (n.d.). The Snellen Eye Chart. https://www.aoa.org/healthy-eyes/eye-and-vision-conditions/snellen-eye-chart
  

• Oxford University Press. (2014). From zarfs to sleeves: The evolution of coffee cup holders. Journal of Design History, https://academic.oup.com/jdh/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/jdh/epu002
  

#WordNerd #LanguageLovers #EtymologyFun #TriviaFacts #SmartestYearEver #StayCurious #Glabella #Zarf #Grawlix #DailyWordFacts Music thanks to Zapsplat.