Stuff You Should Know

On one terrible day in Chicago in 1982, seven people died suddenly and mysteriously. In just a matter of hours, it becomes clear, someone has poisoned bottles of Extra-Strength Tylenol, one of the most trusted and widely-used products in America. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The largest ever kidnapping case in the United States went down in the small town of Chowchilla, CA. Learn all about it today.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The panic that began in Chicago spreads and begins to change the world. The investigation into the murders turns up leads and suspects, but still no one has ever been charged with the murders. It remains unsolved to this day. Find out the extent of what we know in this classic episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Long before we knew what serial killers were, a family in remote Kansas was disposing of victims at their family farm. Listen in to the Tale of the Bloody Benders if you dare! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In August of 1980 a bomb containing 1,000 pounds of dynamite was quietly delivered to Harvey’s, a casino and resort at Lake Tahoe. This kicked off a whirlwind caper that lasted 30 hours and ended up nearly demolishing the 11-story resort. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The murder of Ken McElroy comes off like a story from a cheap paperback book you’d get to read on a plane. But this is a true crime story, set in Missouri in the early 80s. And boy does it pack a punch. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tune in today to listen to the story of when North Hollywood became a war zone after a brazen bank robbery.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In July 1966, three women out for a day at the beach waded into the water of Lake Michigan, got onto a boat and were never heard from again. To this day, not a trace of them has ever turned up and theories of what became of them abound. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 1963, 15 men got together in England to pull off one of the most daring heists in history. The Great Train Robbery was the crime of the century, capturing the public's attention and leaving them torn on who to root for - the cops or the robbers. Learn all about England's greatest heist in today's episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Far Side is one of the greatest cartoons in history. Today we go to great lengths to convince you of that. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The death cap mushroom lives up to its name. It’s a mushroom cap that causes death. Find out why. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sound effects are one of the unsung parts of any movie or TV show – they’re best when you don’t even notice them making what you see on screen even more real, and when they’re off you notice immediately. Learn how hard this amazing craft is in this episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you’ve ever wandered past what looked like a pile of dog barf on a log during a hike in the woods, you’d just seen slime mold - one of the most perplexing organisms on Earth. Listen to this classic episode and get as amazed as Josh and Chuck were when they recorded it. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As part of our shameful history series, today we dive into the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiments of the 1930s, 40s, 50s, 60s and into the 70s. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you try to kill someone who was already dead is that a bad thing? Yeah? How bad? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Say one thing about Mao's communist China, they could kill some sparrows. Learn why and how in today's episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Subpoenas are all the rage. But what do they even mean if someone can just ignore it? Learn this and a lot more in this classic episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s an understated miracle that humans can get across ideas to one another by saying things out loud. We’re strangely good at not constantly talking over each other, interrupting one another, and correcting misunderstandings. All just by conversing!  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One of the last uncontacted people in the world live in the Bay of Bengal and they have made it clear they don’t want you to visit. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Aussie James Harrison gave blood close to 1,200 times over a 60 year period and saved 2.5 million babies in the process. That makes him a hero.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you’ve ever found your blood pressure rising because some guy down the street doesn’t know how to keep the trigger on a leaf blower pulled all the way, then you’ve experienced noise pollution. Not only is it annoying, it turns out it’s deadly too! Learn all about it in this classic episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the 1960s, America took stock of itself when scores of low-income cities broke out in riots. It found that racism was at the root of many social problems. Instead of addressing the underlying issues, the country decided instead to militarize the police. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why does water seem to freeze faster when it starts out warmer? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

E-e-e-eek! E-e-e-eek, we say! Adding to the tradition of our wonderful animal episodes we contribute this amazing installment on one of the all-time great sea creatures, the dolphin! Attach a sponge to your rostrum and dive in with Josh and Chuck! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A pair of old timey fossil hunters had a rootin’ tootin’ rivalry that spilled from academic journals into the American Wild West - where fossils were dynamited and employees turned double agent. Learn about the two-fisted origins of American paleontology in this classic episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.