Smartest Year Ever

In this episode, Gordy digs into some wildly optimistic (and occasionally insulting) predictions made in 1925 about the world we’d be living in today, in 2025. From flying cars and rooftop airports to the disappearance of beauty itself, futurists from a century ago weren’t exactly short on opinions. Featuring forecasts from scientists, novelists, and newspaper editors, this episode unpacks five of...

Why do donkeys and your backside share the same word? It’s not what you think. In today’s episode of Smartest Year Ever , Gordy unpacks the linguistic mix-up that gave us the same word for both a pack animal and your posterior . Spoiler: it has nothing to do with donkeys being stubborn. The term for a donkey comes from Latin asinus , while the word for your rear end traces back to Old English ærs...

Does your birth order actually influence your personality—or is your older sibling just using it to justify being bossy? In Episode 100 of Smartest Year Ever , Gordy explores the classic theory that birth order shapes personality . Are firstborns really more responsible? Do youngest siblings actually tend to be rebellious? And what happens to middle children—besides being forgotten at Walmart? Fro...

What’s humanity’s backup plan if farming fails? Gordy explores the Svalbard Global Seed Vault , a secure facility tucked inside a Norwegian mountain that stores over a million seed samples —a real-life "save game" button for civilization. From war zones to climate change, agriculture has always been vulnerable. But Svalbard’s frozen vault preserves the genetic future of crops, offering h...

How did a melted candy bar lead to a kitchen revolution? In this episode, Gordy dives into the accidental invention of the microwave oven —a story that starts not with culinary ambition, but with a confused radar engineer and a pocket full of chocolate. Learn how microwaves work , why they don’t cook from the inside out, and what really happens when you put metal inside one. From dancing water mol...

Ever wondered why your name comes with a bonus round in the middle? Gordy dives into the unexpected history of middle names —from ancient Roman status symbols to modern-day family dramas. Discover how "Julius Hairy Caesar" wasn’t just a bold branding choice, why John Quincy Adams helped make middle names mainstream, and how adding a middle initial makes you seem smarter (seriously, science says so...

Neanderthals had bigger brains , stronger bodies , and possibly even faster sprinting speed than modern humans. So… why are we the ones still around? In this episode, Gordy dives into what made Neanderthals such a powerhouse species—from their barrel-chested strength and visual-spatial superbrains to their survival skills in the Ice Age wilderness . We now know they weren’t just primitive brutes—t...

 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 thous...

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...

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 h...

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...

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 ,...

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 e...

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 som...

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 anos...

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 act...

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...

What if I told you one of the most famous chess moves in history starts by giving away a pawn? Welcome to the Queen’s Gambit —one of the oldest and most effective openings ever played. This strategy tricks opponents into thinking they have an advantage —but it’s actually a power move that gives White control of the board. It’s been played by grandmasters, world champions, and yes, even Beth Harmon...

Why do Bird of Paradise plants look like actual birds? Is it just a coincidence—or did nature design them that way on purpose? Turns out, these plants evolved to mimic the shape of a bird’s head and beak —all to attract sunbirds , their perfect pollinators. When a sunbird lands on the flower’s beak-like structure to drink nectar, the plant’s hidden pollen sacs pop open, dusting the bird’s head —he...

Why do we say “P.U.” when something stinks? It’s not short for anything—so where did it come from? Turns out, “P.U.” is actually a misheard version of an old exclamation—“pyoo” —which came from the Latin word “putere” (meaning “to stink”) . Somewhere along the way, “pyoo” got written down as “P.U.”, and people assumed it stood for something—kind of like how people think “SOS” means “Save Our Souls...

You take a big sip of a milkshake—and suddenly, it feels like your skull is being impaled by an icicle . Why does brain freeze happen? It turns out, sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia (yep, that’s the real name) is just your body overreacting to extreme cold. When something icy touches the roof of your mouth, your blood vessels freak out—constricting and then rapidly dilating. The trigeminal nerve ,...

Why the U.S. Still Uses Fahrenheit Why is the U.S. one of the last countries still using Fahrenheit? It’s not just American stubbornness—there’s an actual reason. 📌 Today’s Episode Covers: ✔ Why Fahrenheit was invented and how it works ✔ Why America never switched (even though it tried) ✔ The actual benefits of Fahrenheit over Celsius ✔ Why Celsius is still superior —even if the U.S. won’t admit...

On April 18, 1930 , the BBC’s evening news came on air… and the announcer simply stated, “There is no news today.” Instead of stretching for filler content, they just played 15 minutes of piano music and ended the broadcast. This wasn’t a technical failure or a protest—it was simply a time when news had to be newsworthy . But in today’s 24/7 cycle, could we ever go back? 🔍 Sources: Briggs, Asa. T...

Why do we call a butt a “heinie”? Is it just a goofy word, or does it have a hidden connection to war and German soldiers? There are two main theories behind this cheeky slang. The first is simple: it comes from "hind end", just like “tummy” for stomach or “booty” for butt. But then there’s the wartime theory—during World War I, Allied soldiers called German troops "Heinies" (s...

🐧 Penguins are cute, right? Now imagine one standing 6’8” tall, weighing 250 pounds, and staring down at you—because these prehistoric penguins were the size of LeBron James. Meet Palaeeudyptes klekowskii, the Colossus Penguin—an ancient giant that ruled Antarctica 37 million years ago. It was the tallest penguin species ever, towering over humans and twice the height of today’s emperor penguins....