Smartest Year Ever

Is superhuman strength in emergencies real—or just a myth? Gordy explores the phenomenon known as hysterical strength , those jaw-dropping moments when people seem to summon superhuman power in a crisis. From stories of mothers lifting cars to scientific insights into adrenaline , motor unit recruitment , and pain suppression , this episode dives into the fascinating mix of physiology , myth , and...

What is the ugliest color in the world? On this episode of Smartest Year Ever , Gordy digs into the strange story of Pantone 448C , a muddy greenish-brown shade that became the unlikely star of a worldwide public health campaign. This episode explores: How color psychology influences perception and behavior Why Pantone 448C was chosen in cigarette packaging regulations The role of design, branding...

 Why do we say Germany in English when locals call it Deutschland ? Why is Japan “Japan” to us but Nihon in Japanese? And why does Greece go by “Hellas” inside its own borders? In this episode of Smartest Year Ever , Gordy dives into the fascinating world of exonyms and endonyms —the outsider names and insider names that reveal the tangled history of languages, empires, and trade routes. From Roma...

Olympus Mons is the tallest mountain in the solar system —a Martian giant that makes Mount Everest look like a speed bump. Gordy breaks down just how massive this shield volcano is, why Mars can grow mountains on a scale Earth can’t touch, and how humans first discovered it. From comparisons with Mauna Kea and Everest, to the role of weak gravity and the lack of plate tectonics , this episode unpa...

How many poppy seeds does it take to make a drug test go positive? Gordy digs into the strange overlap between breakfast bagels , opium poppies , and the science of urine testing thresholds . This episode of Smartest Year Ever explores how Papaver somniferum (the opium poppy) ended up blurring the line between a harmless poppy-seed muffin and a failed drug screening . From the Sumerians calling it...

Do animals have accents? Gordy dives into the fascinating world of animal communication —from whales with regional songs, to bird dialects , to cows rumored to moo with local twangs. This episode explores how creatures from orcas to sparrows to goats develop unique sounds depending on geography, culture, and social learning. What starts as a simple question— do animals have accents like humans? —o...

Animals once stood trial in real courts. From pigs in pants to rats with lawyers, the medieval justice system went to bizarre lengths to prosecute creatures for crimes. Gordy explores the strangest animal trials in history, where the line between justice, religion, and superstition completely blurred. You’ll hear about a pig executed in France , rats defended in court , insects excommunicated by t...

Benjamin the Tasmanian Tiger is one of the most haunting symbols of extinction. This episode of Smartest Year Ever dives into the tragic story of the last thylacine , also known as the Tasmanian tiger , and the powerful concept of an endling —the final surviving member of a species. Gordy explores how Benjamin’s lonely fate in Hobart Zoo became a global reminder of the irreversible cost of extinct...

The Greasefish of Lake Tota —a strange Colombian catfish so packed with fat it could be lit like a torch. Gordy dives into the bizarre story of Rhizosomichthys totae , an enigmatic species once found in Colombia’s largest lake. Was it truly driven extinct by invasive rainbow trout, or could it still be hiding in the depths today? This episode of Smartest Year Ever blends science, history, and curi...

Why do some roads have deer crossing signs , while others get full-on wildlife bridges ? In this episode, Gordy explores the strange, data-driven world of animal crossing signs —from the famous Christmas Island crab migration (where officials built actual crab bridges and underpasses ) to moose crossings in North America , toad fences in Germany , and even squirrel skybridges in Washington State....

On today’s Smartest Year Ever , Gordy dives into the strange world of island evolution . Why do elephants become pygmy mammoths on the Channel Islands, while small creatures like rodents balloon into giants? Biologists call this phenomenon the island syndrome —also known as the island rule or Foster’s rule . It explains how insular dwarfism shrinks massive animals like mammoths and hippos, while i...

How far can a bird really fly without stopping? In this episode of Smartest Year Ever , Gordy explores one of the most extreme endurance records in the animal kingdom. It’s part of Animal Week , and today’s subject, the bar-tailed godwit looks ordinary on the beach—but in the air, it achieves something that pushes the limits of biology, navigation, and survival. From reconfiguring its body before...

Who really invented the high five? Gordy takes us inside the surprising and surprisingly recent story of one of the world’s most universal gestures. From Dodger Stadium in 1977 to the University of Louisville basketball courts , this episode traces the origins of the high five, its ties to sports history , and its cultural journey from jazz slang to global celebration. Along the way, Gordy uncover...

In this episode of Smartest Year Ever , Gordy dives into the surprising origin of Happy Birthday to You —a tune that began in a kindergarten classroom before becoming a global anthem sung billions of times a year. From the Hill sisters’ simple melody to a courtroom battle over copyright worth millions, this story traces how a cheerful school song turned into the world’s most recognized melody . Al...

How do you protect priceless masterpieces when bombs are falling from the sky? During World War II , curators, historians, and ordinary citizens went to extraordinary lengths to shield art from destruction. From Michelangelo’s David bricked into a fortress in Florence, to the Mona Lisa’s secret escape from Paris, to the National Gallery’s underground vaults in Wales , the survival of Europe’s cult...

What does it take to survive over a year at sea with no engine, no oars, and almost no supplies? In this episode of Smartest Year Ever , Gordy unpacks the extraordinary true survival story of José Salvador Alvarenga , who drifted across the Pacific Ocean for 438 days —the longest recorded survival at sea. From brutal storms, starvation, and turtle blood, to unimaginable loneliness and resilience,...

Why does the sound of nails on a chalkboard make your skin crawl? Gordy digs into the science of sound aversion —from acoustic resonance in the 2,000–4,000 Hz frequency range to the way our amygdala and limbic system light up when we hear those unbearable screeches. Along the way, he explores possible evolutionary links to primate alarm calls , why screams cut through the noise, and why expectatio...

Two skeletons found in a 2,800-year-old embrace have been called the Hasanlu Lovers —but what do we really know about them? In this episode of Smartest Year Ever , Gordy explores the dramatic discovery at Teppe Hasanlu in northwestern Iran, where archaeologists uncovered a city frozen in time after its sudden destruction around 800 BCE. What makes these two skeletons so captivating? Why did the ni...

Why do tennis balls smell so good? Gordy dives into the surprising chemistry and psychology behind one of the most oddly satisfying scents in sports. From pressurized cans to vulcanized rubber , and from volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to the way smell ties into nostalgia and memory , this episode uncovers why cracking open a fresh can of tennis balls feels so addictive. If you’ve ever wondered...

Where did restaurants really begin? Gordy dives into the surprising history of public dining, tracing the story from ancient Rome’s thermopolia to China’s Song Dynasty restaurant culture , and finally to 18th-century Paris , where a legal battle and a revolutionary shift in society reshaped how we eat today. Discover how early eateries weren’t just about food—they were about choice, menus, private...

In 18th-century France, a man named Tarrare became one of the most disturbing mysteries in medical history. Described by doctors as a “human anomaly” , Tarrare’s hunger was insatiable—his body seemingly a bottomless pit . He could devour live animals, garbage, raw meat, and even military secrets hidden inside wooden capsules. His strange condition baffled surgeons and generals alike, and his story...

Did Coca-Cola really used to contain cocaine —and if so, how much was actually in every bottle? Gordy dives into the wild history of the world’s most iconic soft drink, tracing it back to its 19th-century origins as a coca-leaf tonic created by a morphine-addicted pharmacist. From Sigmund Freud’s praise of cocaine to the federal lawsuit United States v. Forty Barrels and Twenty Kegs of Coca-Cola ,...

Ketchup has a surprising history that goes far beyond burgers and fries. In this episode, Gordy uncovers the strange global journey of this iconic condiment—one that started centuries before tomatoes ever entered the bottle. From its origins as a fermented fish sauce in Asia to the bizarre British experiments with mushroom ketchup and walnut ketchup , and finally to Henry J. Heinz transforming it...

Do dolphins drink water—or do they get hydrated another way? Gordy dives into the fascinating world of dolphin biology, osmoregulation, and marine mammal physiology to answer a surprisingly tricky question: how do dolphins survive surrounded by salt water? This episode explores metabolic water , reniculate kidneys , and the unique strategies dolphins use to stay hydrated in the ocean. Along the wa...

How could a simple eating utensil be branded as effeminate, foreign, and Satanic ? In this Food Week episode of Smartest Year Ever , Gordy explores the surprising history of the fork —from its scandalous debut in Byzantine courts to the fiery backlash of Italian clergy , who claimed God gave humans fingers for a reason. Discover why forks were linked to the Devil’s pitchfork , how a Venetian noble...