Stuff You Should Know

By iHeartRadio & HowStuffWorks

Society & Culture

SHOW DESCRIPTION

If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.

4.6

35,063 ratings

	EPISODES LIST
		How Galaxies Work In the universe things tend to cluster. This means there’s a coherent structure to the universe and learning about clusters of stars – galaxies - helps us figure out what that structure is. Join Chuck and Josh on an amazing space voyage!	02.21.2019
		Short Stuff: Turbulence If you’ve ever had a bumpy airplane ride, you know it’s nothing fun. But have you ever noticed that the pilots sometimes tell you ahead of time to buckle in? How do they know turbulence is ahead? Are they some kind of fortune teller? How can anyone see wind?	02.20.2019
		Yeti: The Asian Bigfoot We've covered Nessie and Bigfoot, so why not tackle the Yeti? Listen in today and Josh and Chuck cover what used to be known as the Abominable Snowman.	02.19.2019
		SYSK Selects: Interpol: World Police Interpol is an international police agency that helps other law-enforcement agencies track criminals who operate across national borders -- but how does it work, exactly? Join the guys as they delve into the world of global law enforcement.	02.16.2019
		Elephants: The Best Animals? Elephants are pretty much the best. Why? Josh and Chuck will let you know in great detail in today's episode.	02.14.2019
		Short Stuff: War of Jenkins' Ear In the 18th century, Spain and England fought each other in the colonies of Georgia and Florida, a war kicked off by an English sea captain who was mad his ear had been perhaps unfairly lopped off.	02.13.2019
		Could There Be A Loch Ness Monster? People have believed something strange lives in Loch Ness for at least 3500 years. Thousands of people have sighted the Loch Ness Monster and dozens of expeditions have been launched. But does the fact that nothing’s been found mean it’s not real?	02.12.2019
		SYSK Selects: How Coral Reefs Work Coral reefs are the largest organic structures on Earth, yet they're created through a symbiotic relationship between creatures about 3 millimeters long. Learn more about the the world's coral reefs (and how to protect them) in this episode.	02.09.2019
		The True Story of BlacKkKlansman In 2018, director Spike Lee brought the story of Ron Stallworth to the big screen to great effect. Today, Josh and Chuck discuss the true story behind the Oscar nominated film.	02.07.2019
		Short Stuff: Ellen Richards Who is Ellen Richards? One of the most unsung scientists of all time, that's who. Her contribution? Bringing real science into the household and forcing the world to take "home-ec" seriously. We celebrate her today on Short Stuff.	02.06.2019
		The Insidious Abuse of Stalking Stalking has only recently been recognized for what it is – a profound form of psychological abuse where the victim’s life is “infected” by the stalker, as one survivor put it. Stalking can go on for years, and in some cases may be the prelude to murder.	02.05.2019
		SYSK Selects: Saunas: More Interesting Than You Think! Although they seem pretty mundane, saunas are surprisingly fascinating inventions. Josh and Chuck break out all sorts of sweaty, sauna-related trivia, from the Finnish affinity for saunas to sauna etiquette, in this episode.	02.02.2019
		How Central Park Works Central Park in Manhattan was America’s first landscaped public park, built at a time when New Yorkers’ only option for getting some fresh air was hanging around cemeteries. Get all the info about this beautiful icon and how it’s served as a landscape for class struggles over three centuries.	01.31.2019
		Short Stuff: Johnny Appleseed Johnny Appleseed was real! And he was about as amazing as the legend paints him. He really did plant apple trees all over America and if the feds hadn’t chopped them down during Prohibition, they’d still be around. Learn what we mean in this episode.	01.30.2019
		How Ping Pong Works While Asia is well-known for being cuckoo for Ping Pong, the game was actually invented by bored British Victorian aristocrats. Go back and forth about Ping Pong’s place in the world with Chuck and Josh.	01.29.2019
		SYSK Selects: Bioluminescence: A Bright and Shiny Fish Science has a handle on fireflies and glowworms, but most bioluminescent animals live in the ocean and are tough to study. Today, researchers are still figuring out why some animals produce light. Dive with Josh and Chuck into this illuminating topic.	01.26.2019
		The Legend of Betsy Ross Betsy Ross is an American icon to many, the seamstress who sewed the first U.S. flag because of a personal commission from George Washington. But is it true? Sort of. Learn all about this fascinating story today.	01.24.2019
		Short Stuff: Thread Count Is thread count all it's cracked up to be? Listen in and find out in today's edition of Short Stuff!	01.23.2019
		SYSK Live: The Kellogg Brothers’ Wacky World of Health There’s no way you haven’t had one of their breakfast cereals, but we bet you don’t know the story behind the two brothers who brought the world corn flakes. Buckle in for a lot of talk about poop, religion and masturbation, live from Sydney, Australia.	01.22.2019
		SYSK Selects: How Lobotomies Work Lobotomies -- brain surgeries to relieve psychiatric problems -- are rarely performed today, but they were once fairly common. Tune in to learn more about the controversial history and practice of lobotomies.	01.19.2019
		The July 20th Plot to Assassinate Hitler A lot of people in Hitler's inner circle wanted him dead toward the end of the war. But he proved impossible to kill from within. Listen in today as Josh and Chuck dig into the infamous July 20th plot to blow up Der Führer.	01.17.2019
		Short Stuff: Olestra In the 90s a fat free miracle food came out that promised we could eat all we wanted and not gain weight. But there was a caveat: it could also make your bowels unpleasantly loose.	01.16.2019
		How Airbags Work It turns out that the inflatable bag of air that shoots out of your steering wheel or dashboard is the result of a controlled explosion of solid fuel, just like in a rocket – aimed for your face.	01.15.2019
		SYSK Selects: How Schizophrenia Works Up to 24 million people worldwide have schizophrenia. Despite the vast amounts of research, the disorder remains mysterious. In this episode, Josh and Chuck delve into the nature of schizophrenia, from the history of the disorder to the latest research.	01.12.2019
		The Great Finger in the Wendy’s Chili Caper In 2005 a woman named Anna Alaya discovered a length of human finger – nail and all – in her Wendy’s chili. Her cries of disgust would set off a media firestorm, a criminal investigation and a prison sentence for her and her husband.	01.10.2019
		Short Stuff: How Often Do You Need To Change Your Oil? First things, first: Take that oil change reminder sticker off your windshield and throw it away forever and never look back!	01.09.2019
		How the Spanish Flu Worked The Spanish Flu killed anywhere from 20-100 million or more people over 1918/1919. All of this played out with World War I in the foreground, one big reason why the flu spread so far, so fast. Learn all about this devastating pandemic in today's episode.	01.08.2019
		SYSK Selects: How Munchausen Syndrome Works Why would someone fake an illness? Here's an even better question: Why would someone repeatedly make themselves sick? Join Josh and Chuck as they separate the facts from fiction and give you the scoop on Munchausen syndrome.	01.05.2019
		What was the Tunguska event? In 1908, the most powerful meteoroid explosion in recorded history happened over a remote area of Siberia. But the weird thing is there was no impact crater and no asteroid to be found – so was it an asteroid? (Yes.)	01.03.2019
		Short Stuff: Khipu Listen in to learn all about the fascinating "language" of the Incan khipu knotted ropes.	01.02.2019
		Rockettes: Still Kicking After All These Years Tune in today to learn all about the legendary NYC Rockettes, who actually got their start in Missouri.	01.01.2019
		SYSK Selects: How Fossils Work A fossil is a piece of once-living organic material that has undergone a transition from an organic state to an inorganic state. But what exactly is fossilization? Listen in as Josh and Chuck break down the process of fossilization.	12.29.2018
		Dr. Seuss: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly The Seuss is loose in this episode about legendary children's book author Ted Geisel. The funny thing is, he didn't ever want children of his own, and his past work was a bit problematic.	12.27.2018
		Short Stuff: The Brain-Bladder Connection How much do you know about the brain-bladder connection? In about 15 minutes, it'll be a lot more.	12.26.2018
		SYSK Live Christmas Spectacular! This year, Josh and Chuck go live for their annual Christmas Spectacular. Recorded from the Center Stage Theater in Atlanta, pour up some eggnog, light a fire and enjoy this live show with the whole family.	12.25.2018
		SYSK Selects: The Star Wars Holiday Special of 1978 Long ago, in a galaxy not so far away, George Lucas allowed the Star Wars Holiday Special to be made. What happened on the night of November 17, 1978 can never be fully explained, but we make our best effort in a very special edition of SYSK. May the force be with us all.	12.22.2018
		E.T.: Is It Really the Worst Video Game of All Time? If you play video games you probably have an easy answer to worst game of all time: ET. But it turns out there are no easy answers, especially when you’re talking about a game so terrible it’s blamed for bringing the entire video game industry with it.	12.20.2018
		Short Stuff: Unique Snowflakes Amazingly, it turns out that every snowflake truly is unique. Math backs it up.	12.19.2018
		Geodesic Domes: The Wave of the Future That Wasn't Sometimes a good idea doesn’t pan out in real life. Take Buckminster Fuller’s geodesic dome: It requires less energy to heat and cool, it’s cheap, and it’s durable enough to withstand a hurricane – but it’s also godawful ugly and that was its undoing.	12.18.2018
		SYSK Selects: How Igloos Work Igloos were traditionally used by Inuit Indians as temporary shelter while on hunting and fishing trips. In this episode, Josh and Chuck look at the design of igloos, from their impressive heat-catching properties to their ingenious construction.	12.15.2018
		Are good samaritan laws effective? Good samaritan laws have been around for many years, helping to provide legal protections for people who try to help other people. But do they work? Decide for yourself today!	12.13.2018
		Short Stuff: Laughing Buddha Did you know that the friendly, smiling Buddha we all know from bars and restaurants isn't really Buddha?	12.12.2018
		How Ayahuasca Works One day in the Amazon Basin, a shaman put together a plant containing DMT with a vine that allows the body to absorb DMT. The combination, a foul-tasting, wildly hallucinogenic brew called ayahuasca, has changed cultures throughout the Americas.	12.11.2018
		SYSK Selects: That Dang-old Goat Fell Over Due to a condition known as Thomsen's disease, the muscles of fainting goats tense up whenever the animal is startled. In this episode, Josh and Chuck break down the science behind this bizarre condition.	12.08.2018
		Was the PMRC censorship in disguise? The Parents Music Resource Center in the 1980s was really just censorship in disguise. But it kind of backfired. Learn all about Tipper Gore's crusade in today's episode.	12.06.2018
		Short Stuff: Dolphin Detectors They don’t actually disarm mines, but navies around the world use dolphins to find and tag sea mines so humans can disarm the mines themselves. But even if it’s safe, is it ethical?	12.05.2018
		How Search and Rescue Dogs Work All dogs are great, but some dogs work harder than others. Or play harder, depending on your view. Learn all about the good boys and girls who find lost people and recover bodies to bring humans peace and closure.	12.04.2018
		SYSK Selects: Can Your Grandfather's Diet Shorten Your Life? Epigenetics is a fascinating field of genetics that studies how the epigenome and environmental, nutritional and social factors affect gene expression. Josh and Chuck explain how epigenetics works in this episode.	12.01.2018
		Adidas v. Puma: A Sibling Rivalry Join Josh and Chuck today as they go down the sport shoe rabbit hole, detailing the strange tail of the brothers who brought Puma and Adidas to the world. Sibling rivalry, Nazis, shoes - there's a lot to unpack here.	11.29.2018
		Short Stuff: iSmell Two men once had a dream - to add smell to the internet. And they almost gave it to us.	11.28.2018

LAST EPISODE

How Galaxies Work

02.21.2019

In the universe things tend to cluster. This means there’s a coherent structure to the universe and learning about clusters of stars – galaxies - helps us figure out what that structure is. Join Chuck and Josh on an amazing ...