Smartest Year Ever

 Rome had traffic jams before cars were even invented. In this episode, Gordy reveals which city in history was the first to reach a population of one million—and why the answer might surprise you.

Spoiler: It wasn’t New York. Or London. It happened over 2,000 years ago in a marble-and-mud metropolis powered by aqueducts and political drama. After that ancient milestone, it took more than a thousand years for another city to hit the same mark.

Gordy breaks down the next big leaps: • Chang’an in the Tang Dynasty • Baghdad during the Islamic Golden Age • London by the 1800s • New York during the Gilded Age • Tokyo, which went from 10 million to 30 million faster than any city in history

It’s the story of urban population explosions—and how humans became really good at living shoulder to shoulder.

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Sources:

• Chandler, T. (1987). Four Thousand Years of Urban Growth: An Historical Census. Edwin Mellen Press.
  

• Chandler, T., & Fox, G. (1974). 3000 Years of Urban Growth. Academic Press.
  

• Britannica. (n.d.). Rome: Historical Population Facts. Encyclopaedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/facts/Rome
  

• Gascoigne, B. (2001). History of Baghdad. HistoryWorld. https://www.historyworld.net
  

• Murphey, R. (1973). The City as a Centre of Change in Asia. University of Hong Kong Press.
  

• Demographia. (2023). World Urban Areas Report: Population and Density Estimates for 1,000+ Urban Areas.
  

• United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. (2022). World Urbanization Prospects: The 2022 Revision.
  

Music thanks to Zapsplat. Hashtags: #UrbanHistory #PopulationMilestones #SmartestYearEver #EducationalPodcast #DailyFacts

Why do we stash our savings inside a ceramic pig? Why not an owl? Or a vault? Or literally anything else?

In this episode, Gordy digs into the surprisingly strange history of the piggy bank—a financial icon born not from porcine symbolism, but from a Middle Ages typo. It turns out that “piggy” used to mean something very different… and one potter’s confusion changed the shape of savings forever.

You’ll learn:

• What the word “pygg” originally meant
  

• Why breaking the bank was literally how you got your money back
  

• And how a clay pun snowballed into a global pig-shaped tradition
  

So if you’ve ever cracked open a piggy bank and wondered where this odd little ritual came from—this one’s for you.

Stay curious. Stay clever. Welcome to the Smartest Year Ever.

Sources:

• Smith, A. (2015). Piggy Banks and the Origins of Saving. Financial History Review, 22(3), 341–356. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0968565015000197
  

• Oxford English Dictionary. Entry on “pygg” (n.) and etymology notes.
  

• Etymonline.com. “Piggy Bank.” https://www.etymonline.com/word/piggy-bank
  

• British Museum. (n.d.). Clay Money Boxes in the Shape of Pigs. Artifact collection and origin notes.
  

• National Geographic. (2013). Why We Save in Piggy Banks. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/piggy-banks
  

Music thanks to Zapsplat #PiggyBankHistory #EtymologyFacts #FunHistory #DidYouKnow #SmartestYearEver #WordOrigins #FinancialHistory #MoneyFacts #EducationalPodcast #ShortFacts

The nuchal ligament is a weird little strap in the back of your neck—but it might be one of the reasons humans became the sweatiest, slowest apex predators on Earth.

In this episode of Smartest Year Ever, Gordy explores why humans are built to run, and how a hidden ligament connecting your skull to your spine helps keep your head from bouncing like a bobblehead. This simple structure shows up in horses, dogs… and us. And it may have been crucial in the rise of persistence hunting—the strategy our ancestors used to chase antelope to death.

You’ll also hear about:

• How the nuchal ligament acts like a biological Steadicam

• The fossil record that links it to Homo erectus

• Why evolution didn’t prioritize speed—but stamina

• What early anatomists got wrong about this tissue

So if your head isn’t flopping while you jog… thank your neck.

Sources:

• Bramble, D. M., & Lieberman, D. E. (2004). Endurance running and the evolution of Homo. Nature, 432(7015), 345–352. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature03052

• Carrier, D. R. (1984). The energetic paradox of human running and hominid evolution. Current Anthropology, 25(4), 483–495. https://doi.org/10.1086/203165

• Lieberman, D. E., et al. (2006). The evolution of endurance running and the tyranny of ethnography: A reply to Pickering and Bunn (2007). Current Anthropology, 48(3), 433–444. https://doi.org/10.1086/512494

• Tuttle, R. H. (1981). Functional and evolutionary biology of hominoid locomotion. Harvard University Press.

• University of Utah. (2004). Born to Run: Humans Evolved To Be Athletes. ScienceDaily. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/11/041123163757.htm

Music thanks to Zapsplat

#EnduranceRunning #Evolution #SmartestYearEver #PersistenceHunting #NuchalLigament #RunningFacts #DailyScience #SciencePodcast #NeckLigament #HumanEvolution

After a rainstorm, you know exactly the smell—that earthy, oddly comforting scent that makes you want to bottle the sidewalk. It’s called petrichor, and today, Gordy breaks down what’s actually causing it, why our noses are absurdly sensitive to it, and how it might’ve helped early humans survive.

From geosmin (a compound made by soil-dwelling bacteria) to the way raindrops launch micro-particles into the air, this episode dives into the biochemistry of nostalgia, plant oils, and even the camel's desert superpowers. Oh, and yes—someone did try to bottle it. His mom was not a fan.

Topics covered:

• Why geosmin smells so strong (even in trillionths)
  

• What “petrichor” actually means and who coined it
  

• How raindrops work like confetti cannons for scent
  

• Why we might be evolutionarily wired to love it
  

• Whether you can bottle rain smell (spoiler: maybe don’t)
  

So there you have it—petrichor: the scent of bacteria, plants, and survival.

Sources: Bear, I. J., & Thomas, R. G. (1964). Nature of argillaceous odour. Nature, 201(4923), 993–995. https://doi.org/10.1038/201993a0 Young, C., et al. (2015). Rain-induced aerosolization of soil bacteria and geosmin detected by high-speed imaging. Nature Communications, 6, 7563. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms8563 Polak, E. H., & Provasi, J. (1992). Odor sensitivity to geosmin enantiomers. Chemical Senses, 17(1), 23–26. https://doi.org/10.1093/chemse/17.1.23 Mazzatenta, A., et al. (2017). Olfactory system adaptations in camelids. BMC Neuroscience, 18(1), 28. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12868-017-0352-2

Music thanks to Zapsplat #Petrichor #RainSmell #SmartestYearEver #Geosmin #DailyScienceFacts #Podcast

April is known for showers, fertility goddesses, and Easter eggs—but how much of that reputation holds up? In today’s episode, Gordy cracks open the surprisingly weird truth behind April’s soggy rep, name origins, and ancient roots.

You’ll learn: • Why April isn’t actually the rainiest month in most places • Where the phrase “April showers bring May flowers” comes from • What Aphrodite, Venus, and Ēostre have to do with April • How Easter got its name—and why most languages call it something else

From Roman love goddesses to springtime pagan festivals, April is messier than your weather app—and a whole lot older.

Sources: Bede. (c. 725). De Temporum Ratione (The Reckoning of Time). Hutton, R. (1996). The Stations of the Sun. Oxford University Press. Online Etymology Dictionary. (n.d.). April and Easter. https://www.etymonline.com/ National Weather Service (NOAA). (n.d.). Monthly Precipitation Normals. https://www.weather.gov Australian Bureau of Meteorology. (n.d.). Climate Data Online. http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/data/

Music thanks to Zapsplat. #AprilShowers #EasterOrigins #WeatherMyths #PaganGoddess #SmartestYearEver #DailyFacts #SpringTrivia

At 16 years old, Benjamin Franklin pulled off one of the greatest literary pranks in colonial America—he catfished Boston as a snarky, opinionated widow named Mrs. Silence Dogood.

In today’s episode, Gordy uncovers the wild true story behind the Silence Dogood letters, the essays that tricked Franklin’s brother, captivated readers, and launched Ben’s obsession with fake names. From mocking the elite to receiving marriage proposals, Franklin’s teenage troll campaign helped launch his career.

Learn why Franklin:

• Used a fake identity to get published
  

• Wrote 14 letters as a fictional widow
  

• Got his brother arrested and took over the paper
  

• Spent his life writing under dozens of pseudonyms
  

If Franklin had Twitter, he'd have burner accounts—and still be roasting people anonymously.

Sources: Franklin, B. (2003). The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin. Harvard University Press. Isaacson, W. (2003). Benjamin Franklin: An American Life. Simon & Schuster. Morgan, E. S. (2002). Benjamin Franklin. Yale University Press. Labaree, L. W. (1959). The Silence Dogood Letters. The Papers of Benjamin Franklin, Yale University.

Music thanks to Zapsplat. #BenFranklin #SilenceDogood #FoundingFathers #HistoryPodcast #DailyFacts #ColonialHistory #SmartestYearEver

Why do we prank people on April Fools’ Day? And how did it get so weirdly universal? In this episode, Gordy untangles the strange, murky origins of one of the world’s most chaotic non-holidays. From French calendar reforms to fake spaghetti trees and medieval mistranslations, this lighthearted deep dive is part history lesson, part conspiracy theory, and part cultural facepalm.

Find out:

• Why some people think April Fools’ Day began in 1582 France

• How a bad translation of Chaucer may have fueled the confusion

• What ancient Roman festivals like Hilaria have to do with it

• And how the BBC convinced people that spaghetti grows on trees

Whether it started as a calendar mix-up or just human nature being messy, April Fools’ is one tradition no one fully understands—and that might be the most fitting prank of all.

Sources:Thompson, D. (2015). The Fixation of Belief: Historical and Cultural Perspectives on April Fools' Day. Oxford University Press. Parker, M. (2018). The History of Hoaxes and Pranks. HarperCollins. BBC Archives. (1957). The Spaghetti Tree Hoax. BBC News. Lévesque, C. (2020). Poisson d’Avril: The French Tradition of April Fools’ Day. Journal of European Folklore Studies.

Music thanks to Zapsplat. #AprilFools #HistoryOfPranks #SmartestYearEver #WeirdTraditions #DailyFacts #FunHistory #CulturalFacts #SpaghettiTree

Why does asparagus turn your bathroom break into a sulfur-scented science experiment? In today’s episode, Gordy explores the bizarre phenomenon of asparagus pee—why it happens, why some people can’t smell it, and why others can’t stop smelling it. Spoiler: it’s not your imagination. It's sulfur chemistry and genetics at work. From asparagusic acid to a strange condition called asparagus anosmia, this episode dives into a stinky subject with surprising depth—and just the right amount of disgust.

Find out:

• What chemical compound causes the smell
  

• Why some people produce the smell while others don’t
  

• Why some people literally can’t smell it, even if it’s there
  

• And why cooking methods don’t make any difference
  

Whether you're one of the lucky immune few or part of the cursed, once you learn this, you’ll never look at asparagus the same way again.

Sources: Mitchell, S. C. (2001). Food idiosyncrasies: beetroot and asparagus. British Journal of Urology International, 87(4), 322–323. Pelchat, M. L., Bykowski, C., Duke, F. F., & Reed, D. R. (2011). Examination of the human ability to smell asparagusic acid’s sulfurous metabolites. Chemical Senses, 36(1), 9–17. Lison, M., Blondheim, S. H., & Melmed, R. N. (1980). A polymorphism of the ability to smell urinary metabolites of asparagus. British Medical Journal, 281(6256), 1676–1678.

Music thanks to Zapsplat. #Asparagus #WeirdScience #Genetics #HealthFacts #DailyPodcast #FunFacts #SciencePodcast #SmellScience #Urine #SmartestYearEver

Ever wonder why people say “Pardon my French” after cussing? It has nothing to do with actual French—and everything to do with irony.Originally, British and American elites used it to excuse real French words in conversation—because, you know, being bilingual is a flex. But then, people started using it sarcastically to excuse swearing instead. By the 20th century, it had nothing to do with actual French—it was just a polite way to pretend you didn’t just say something profane.🔍 Sources:

• Ayto, John. Oxford Dictionary of Modern Slang. Oxford University Press, 2009.
• Rawson, Hugh. Wicked Words: A Treasury of Curses, Insults, Put-Downs, and Other Formerly Unprintable Terms. Crown, 1991.
• Oxford English Dictionary. Pardon My French: Historical Usage and Development.
• Wilton, David. Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends. Oxford University Press, 2004.

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Most people think SOS means “Save Our Ship” or “Save Our Souls.” It doesn’t. In fact, it doesn’t stand for anything at all.The famous SOS distress signal was chosen in 1908 simply because it was the easiest Morse code pattern to recognize:“… — — — …” (dot dot dot, dash dash dash, dot dot dot)Over time, people made up meanings for SOS because they couldn’t believe the most famous distress call in history was just a pattern of beeps.🔍 Sources:

• Howeth, L.S. History of Communications-Electronics in the United States Navy. U.S. Government Printing Office, 1963.
• International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Radiotelegraph Conference Proceedings, 1908.
• Smithsonian National Museum of American History. The Evolution of Maritime Distress Signals.
• British Journal of Maritime History. The Standardization of SOS: How a Simple Signal Changed Global Communication.

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