Cool Weird Awesome with Brady Carlson

One of the many things we’ve learned over the last 19 months or so is that a lot of people around us can get lonely and isolated, even if they want social contact. In the Netherlands, a grocery store chain is trying to help by offering Kletskassa , or "chat checkout," where customers and clerks can strike up conversations if they need them. Plus: October is National Roller Skating Month, and whene...

In a part of the world where the energy grid isn't as reliable as residents might like, Reedii rents out energy “capsules” to those who need to charge cellphones, plug in lights or use other powered devices. And the "capsules" are charged with solar power! Plus: did you know there are six asteroids named for the six members of Monty Python?  This Nigerian startup sells solar-powered batteries...

Today's the birthday of a mystery author known to millions of kids, Donald J Sobol. He wrote the Encyclopedia Brown series, about a 10 year old detective who solved cases because he knew, as his nickname suggested, all sorts of unusual and obscure facts in the era way before the internet. Plus: it’s National Taco Day, and here's the story of one of the largest tacos ever made.  Encyclopedia B...

It's International Coffee Day, so here's the story of a woman in Dresden, Germany, who made it a lot easier to brew coffee: Melitta Bentz, the inventor of the coffee filter. Plus: it's World Smile Day, and in Polk County, Oregon, there's a giant smiley face on a hillside made of trees! Overlooked No More: Melitta Bentz, Who Invented the Coffee Filter (New York Times) Giant Smiley Face on Oregon Hi...

A project out of a Saudi university has built a cooling system that uses salt, water and heat from sunlight, but not electricity. Plus: one of the finalists for induction into the National Toy Hall of Fame is sand. Just sand.  No Electricity? A New Cooling System Uses Sunlight and Saltwater (Interesting Engineering) 2021 National Toy Hall of Fame Finalists  Our show stays cool with help...

Today in 1954, Willie Mays made one of the most amazing plays in baseball history - an over the shoulder catch in deep center field, followed by a throw that kept the opposing baserunners from scoring. And yet, Mays was so great that some researchers say The Catch wasn't even his greatest catch! Plus: for Goose Day, a visit to Belfast to see a statue in honor of Alec the Goose.  The true 'Cat...

Today in 1881, Eleonora Sears was born in Boston. She would go on to be one of the most versatile and accomplished athletes of the early 20th century, excelling in dozens of sports, from tennis and squash to boxing and auto racing. Plus: the website House Rules catalogs all the fun homegrown variations people have come up with for classic board games.  A Woman to Know: Eleanora Randolph Sears...

Around this time in 2018 humans started removing mountain goats from Olympic National Park in Washington state. But for a range of reasons, they had to do it by putting the goats in harnesses and flying them out with a helicopter. Plus: around this time in 1997, Elton John improvised a song on a TV show using words from some guy's oven manual.  A National Park Is Airlifting Hundreds of Mounta...

If you listen to our show, your ears are doing the work, unless you’re a certain type of roundworm that researchers have just shown can react to sound even though they don't have any ear-like organs. Plus: a crater on the moon has a new name in honor of the great Black explorer Matthew Henson.  Earless worms 'listen' through their skin (Science Daily) Thanks to UCLA graduate student, a lunar...

Today was the day in 1962 that “The Jetsons” premiered on ABC. Fitting for a show about the future, it was the first color broadcast for the network. Plus: it's National American Pot Pie Day - though the world record in the category for “Largest pie, meat” belongs to a group of catering students from the UK. September 23, 1962…”The Jetsons” Debuts As First Color For ABC (Eyes of a Generation) ‘The...

Today in 1934, Leonard Cohen was born. His music and poetry have influenced other songwriters and poets for decades, but today we’re talking about another part of his career, and maybe the weirdest part: the time he guest starred on the 80s action series “Miami Vice.” Plus: today in 1997, Dunkin gave out free donuts to mark the last hurrah for their longtime TV pitchman, Fred the Baker.  Revi...

Today in 1934, Paramount Pictures released the movie “Belle of the Nineties,” starring Mae West. And, for some reason, the studio trained several dozen parrots to learn to say the title of the movie so they could appear at theaters and wow the moviegoing public. There was just one problem with the plan, though. Plus: on this World Peace Day, the guy who tried to make the world a more peaceful plac...

The famous cover of The Clash's landmark album "London Calling" was taken on September 21, 1979, according to the liner notes. Except that Dave Marin, a concertgoer who was there when the photo was taken, has a concert stub that says September 20th. And he's spent decades trying to get the world to notice that the album credits are a day off. Plus: today in 1940, a bomb explodes in London, and the...

This weekend is National Cheeseburger Day, and there's only one such holiday. But if you ask where the cheeseburger came from, there are a couple answers. Plus: for National Pet Bird Day, a story from 2017 in which researchers found wild birds in Australia swearing. Who Invented the All-American Cheeseburger? (The Spruce Eats) Plaque commemorating invention of the cheeseburger in Pasadena dedicate...

Today in 1979, a story that sounds like it came straight out of a movie: two families in Communist East Germany escaped to the West by making and flying a hot air balloon. Plus: Today in 2018, Denise Mueller-Korenek broke the world record for “fastest bicycle speed in slipstream": 183.9 mph.  Freedom Balloon (Popular Mechanics) With hot air to freedom (Der Spiegel) A history of cycling speed...

Today's the birthday of Agatha Christie, the novelist and playwright who gave us some of the most popular mysteries of all time. But when she wasn't sending Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot out to crack cases, she was often found surfing. Plus: it's the birthday of playwright Jerry Sterner, best known for “Other People’s Money," and for being buried under a headstone that was perfect for someone in...

Apollo 8 brought the first human astronauts to lunar orbit in late 1968, but a few months beforehand, the Soviet Zond 5 mission sent two tortoises (and a few other living things) for a trip around the moon. Here's what happened. Plus: today in 1890, Mexican singing and songwriting great Maria Grever was born. Whether or not you know her songs, you know a phrase that comes from one. The Time Two Ru...

These days, with everything moving further and further online, it's not a surprise that many of us can see our doctors through remote appointments. But a century ago, a radio enthusiast called Hugo Gernsback predicted a way that doctors could examine patients remotely, using radio waves. Plus: a giant blob of old pizza dough has become an odd kind of celebrity in New Orleans.  Telemedicine Pr...

If you’ve ever been around a baby you probably heard some cooing, gurgling and babbling, as the babies try to make the sounds adults make. Some new research finds if you spend time with baby bats, you might hear them doing essentially the same thing. Plus: the YouTube channel Steadycraftin finds a pretty cool way to reuse some of those old orange plastic prescription bottles.  Baby Bats Babbl...

Social distancing is a thing in the octopus world. According to new research out of the University of Sydney, some females will tell males to back off by throwing stuff at them. Plus: it was this week in 2019 that a drunk feral pig in western Australia picked a fight with a cow, which is probably one of the weirdest sentences of the week.  Female Octopuses Throw Things at Irritating Males, An...

Boston's Skinny House went up for sale recently. It's a four-story house with rooms only 10 feet wide, and was reportedly built just to block another house's view of the harbor. "Spite houses" have been regularly built for these kinds of reasons, it turns out. Plus: today in in 1504 Michelangelo completed David. We've got a fun fact about this iconic sculpture for you.  Five Spite Houses in N...

Yuan Longping, born today in 1930, was known as the Father of Hybrid Rice, and his work saved countless people from famine and starvation. Here's more of his story. Plus: a school in New Zealand has an unusual crossing guard: a chicken in a safety vest named Henry!  Yuan Longping, whose hybrid rice helped feed the world, dies at 90 (Washington Post) This New Zealand School Is Using a Chicken...

Sputnik IV, to be specific, had some trouble getting back to Earth as planned. Today in 1962, pieces of the Soviet spacecraft ended up crashing into a street in Manitowoc, Wisconsin - so the town started holding a SputnikFest to celebrate their place in space history. Plus: today in 1870, Louisa Swaim made herstory by casting a ballot in Laramie, Wyoming. 'Sputnikfest': How Wisconsin Celebrates Hi...

Today in 2019, a woman in Sweden rose to an unthinkable occasion: she rescued all six of her children, including three under 5 years old, while their house burned down. Plus: did you know hummingbirds can see some ultraviolet colors that humans can't?  Emma, ​​30: I saved my six children from the flames (Expressen.se) Hummingbirds Can See Colors We Can’t Even Imagine (Wired) Thanks to our Pat...

Nike and biotech company NewLight have started developing a shoe made from a polymer derived from carbon, bringing some greenness to an often carbon-intensive industry. Plus: Victoria Rose Richards embroiders overhead views of moors and other parts of the UK's countryside. Nike Is Designing Biodegradable Sneakers Out of Carbon (Interesting Engineering) Landscapes (Futility Closet) You can make mor...