Cool Weird Awesome with Brady Carlson

Today is Take A Cruise Day. Cruise ships aren’t for everybody, but some of us really take to them, especially Clara MacBeth, who spent entire decades on cruise ships sailing around the world. Plus: today in South Haven, Michigan, the first day of the Ice Breaker Festival. Sail away from the January blues (Evening Standard via Archive.org)  29th Annual Ice Breaker Festival We keep cruising tha...

Rechargeable batteries like the ones in our smartphones typically last a few years, but a new project out of Australia could lead to batteries that last nearly a decade. And that's thanks in part to sound waves. Plus: February is Black History Month, and few people spent as much time collecting artifacts from Black history as Elizabeth Meaders. Australian tech could triple phone battery life and s...

On this day in 1790 the US Supreme Court held its first session. Back then, the Court didn't have its own building, but now it does, and that building includes a basketball court. Plus: on the birthday of Rick James, the story of how the funk legend once got a special gift from none other than Salvador Dalí.  The Highest Court in the Land (Sports Illustrated) From Dali to Bestiality: The 10 C...

Today in 1971, Apollo 14 launched. It may be best known today for the moment when astronaut Alan Shepard hit golf balls on the surface of the moon, but that wasn’t the only landmark from this mission. Apollo 14 also gave us the “moon trees.” Plus: Brian Moore's LOL Verifier only lets your keyboard type the famous acronym if it notices that you are actually laughing out loud. The "Moon Trees" (NASA...

Today in 1882, the birthday of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. He wound up being America’s longest serving president, but at one point FDR had a very different destiny in mind for himself: he wanted to write screenplays for movies. Plus: we mark the birthday in 1951 of musician Phil Collins with a story of a statue that unintentionally looked just like him.  Franklin Delano Roosevelt: Patriot, Sta...

If you’re trying to eat healthier in the new year, maybe by cutting back on salt, here’s something that might help: cutlery that can make food seem saltier without the added salt. Plus: this Sunday at Terhune Orchards in Princeton, New Jersey, it's Wassailing the Apple Trees. electric spoon, bowl, and chopsticks trick taste buds by making food 'saltier' (designboom) Wassailing the Apple Trees (Ter...

Today in 1956, the US issued a patent for Play-Doh. Millions of kids have built bazillions of things with this colorful stuff, but in its first life, Play-Doh had a very different job: cleaning soot off wallpaper. Plus: a mom in Chicago finds a clever way to get her gamer daughter to take food out of the freezer.  Why Play Doh Stays Hugely Popular, 60 Years Later (Fortune) Made in Jersey: Pla...

Too much waste plastic? Too many greenhouse gases in the atmosphere? Researchers in the UK may have a partial solution for both problems: a process that uses solar energy to convert plastic and greenhouse gases into useful products. Plus: a fancy new wastebasket is partly made of waste plastic and sawdust from the company's factory.  Using solar power to convert plastic and greenhouse gases i...

Today is National Peanut Butter Day. It’s been particularly popular over the last century or so, if you look back even further, you’ll find that peanut butter has been the nutty, crunchy wind beneath our wings for centuries. Plus: a look at a research study from the 2000s called “The Effects of Peanut Butter on the Rotation of the Earth.” A Brief History of Peanut Butter (Smithsonian) The Effects...

A lot of us turn to paper towels when there’s a mess to be addressed, but they could also be greener. Researchers are developing a reusable kitchen towel made of hydrogel. Plus: park rangers in Australia have found an invasive cane toad that may be the biggest one ever found, so of course they nicknamed it "Toadzilla." Roll Over, Paper Towels—UMD Researchers Create Picker-Upper That’s Even Quicker...

There’s still plenty of winter to go. But if plenty of winter still isn’t enough, there’s a way to level up: staying at an ice hotel. Plus: the story of a bird that has perfect timing.  Canada's Ice Hotel Is an Incredible Winter Wonderland — and Now You Can Explore It From Home (Travel + Leisure) 8 Ice and Igloo Hotels to Visit This Winter (UrbanDaddy) Australian Parrot Lands on Redditor’s Bi...

Today was the birthday in 1809 of author Edgar Allan Poe. It was also the day that, for decades, a mysterious individual would pay tribute to the great writer with a mask, three roses and a bottle of cognac. Plus: students at Washington State University have built a life-size version of the game Operation.  Poe’s Memorial Grave (The Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore) Life-size ‘Operation’...

Today in 1943, the US government tried to help the war effort in a way that did NOT go over well. They tried to halt the sales of sliced bread. Plus: for Winnie the Pooh Day, a reminder that there is a world championship for a game from the books known as Poohsticks. Pre-Sliced Bread Was Once Banned in the United States (Today I Found Out) Witney's World Poohsticks Championships mark 35 years (BBC...

Today in 1899 was the birthday of Al Capone. Not everyone would brag about getting a gift from the notorious gangster, but there’s a hospital in Baltimore that’s happy to share its connection. Plus: today in 1931, the birthday of James Earl Jones, legendary actor and occasional CB radio prankster.  For Union Memorial, Al Capone's tree keeps on giving (Baltimore Sun) James Earl Jones on Darth...

Dr. King gave his most famous speech in Washington D.C. When he was in the capital city and when he was hungry, he often stopped at a landmark restaurant known as Ben’s Chili Bowl. Here's some of its story.  My Restaurant Has Hosted Protestors Including MLK for More Than 60 Years (Thrillist)  Ben's Chili Bowl Celebrates 45th Anniversary (CNN)

Tomorrow in Las Vegas, the 2023 AArrow Sign Spinners competition begins, with elite-level sign spinners showing off their best moves. Plus: for National Rubber Ducky Day, a visit to the world’s largest rubber duck store. AArrow Sign Spinners Competition Broward Man Heading to World Sign Spinning Championship in Las Vegas (Miami New Times) Meet 2 sign spinners who will compete in Las Vegas in a wor...

Today in 2015, the first news reports about Eclipse, a dog in Seattle that had figured out how to get itself to the dog park on the city bus. Plus: Comet 2022 E3 (ZTF) is going to be visible from Earth this month and in early February, and you probably don’t want to wait until its next go-round to see it. Seattle dog's rush hour ride: on the bus, by herself, weekly (KOMO News) Bus-riding dog who t...

When the snow and ice comes, it makes me think of getting out the snowblower. But a snowy city in Japan thinks, we could power our lights with this . Plus: a scenic train in Japan's Miyazaki Prefecture is now running on a special kind of fuel that's made in part from leftover ramen broth. Electricity from snow? A Japanese city believes it can be done (Nikkei) This Japanese Train Ditched Convention...

A lot of products, even some otherwise green ones, still use a lot of disposable single-use plastic. But there’s a research project that aims to replace that plastic wrapping with a completely biodegradable version made from cranberries. Plus: Vollebak has some literally green-tech, a solar-powered winter jacket that gives off a green glow in the dark. Could Dissolvable Cranberry Film Replace Plas...

Today in 1913, the birthday of Richard Nixon, 37th president of the United States, and the only one who ever went a wild ride with the head of the Soviet Union. Plus: next month in Denmark, they’re opening a museum on the site of REGAN Vest, the country’s Cold War bunker. Town Car Diplomacy – 40 Years Ago (Nixon Foundation) Venture Into the Apocalypse at This Bunker-Turned-Museum in Europe (Thrill...

Today in 1912, New Mexico became the 47th state in the Union. And so far, it’s the only one where a state lawmaker tried to make expert witnesses dress like wizards in court. Plus: tomorrow in Yuma, Arizona, the Yuma Medjool Date Festival! Odd Law Alert: New Mexico Expert Wizard Amendment (University of Cincinnati Law Review) Yuma Medjool Date Festival  Our Patreon backers are magical 

Today was the birthday in 1914 of the man who brought spray can and whipped cream together: Aaron “Bunny” Lapin. Plus: today in 1895, the birthday of pioneering microbiologist Dr. Rebecca Lancefield. Some scientists mark her accomplishments by making her recipe for eggnog.  Aaron 'Bunny' Lapin, 85, Dies (Washington Post) Aaron S. Lapin, Reddi-wip Creator, Dies at 85 (New York Times) More Evid...

It's the first Wednesday of the new year. How come many of us don’t pronounce it “WED-ns-day”? Plus: around this time in 1939, Lyra Ferguson of Missouri set a goal of traveling to each of the then-48 states and finding a job in each of them, for just one week. Why 'Wednesday' Isn't Pronounced the Way It's Spelled (HowStuffWorks) 45 Jobs in 45 States (Weird Universe) Our Patreon backers make our sh...

We have some good news early in this new year: the Leaning Tower of Pisa isn’t leaning quite as far as it used to! Plus: today in 2020, people in Venice saw an unusual sight: two emu-like birds known as rhea or nandu took a train ride into the city and then roamed around like tourists. The Leaning Tower of Pisa Now Leans Less, Its Infamous Tilt Having Been Reduced by 1.6 Inches Over the Last Two D...

Most people have O, A, B or AB type blood, but there are dozens of rarer blood types, including Rhnull, which is sometimes called "golden blood." Plus: Today in 1978, a guy in a snowman costume ended up on fire?!?  'Golden blood' - only 43 people in the world have this rare blood type (Jerusalem Post)  Landry, Cowboy Coach, Enjoys Day at Movies (New York Times) Our Patreon backers are as...