Cool Weird Awesome With Brady Carlson

The HMS Challenger spent years studying the world's oceans and the creatures that call them home. Today in 1875, the mission made one of its most astonishing discoveries. Plus: a company in Tokyo that makes elevator buttons and lights lets factory visitors push a copy of every button it's ever produced - over a thousand in all. HMS Challenger: The voyage that birthed oceanography (BBC) H.M.S. Challenger: Humanity's First Real Glimpse of the Deep Oceans (Discover Magazine) Pressing 1,000 Buttons Is the Perfect Way to Complete an Elevator Button Factory Tour (Oddity Central) Our Patreon backers have kept this multi-year mission going, join them today! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

There really is a robot now called the Pipe-Worm. It's built to unclog pipes, and it does it by mimicking earthworms. Plus: for World Water Day, we look back at a project by artist Dylan Martinez that looks like bags of clear, clean water... or is it?  Worms and cockroaches inspired this robot that can unclog any pipe (Fast Company) Glass Sculptures by Dylan Martinez Perfectly Imitate Water-Filled Plastic Bags (Colossal) Our Patreon backers keep this show moving forward - join them with your support today! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

This was a bonus episode for our Patreon backers, who make the show possible! It was exclusively available to them on Patreon for one year. If you want to hear future bonus episodes before that, join us for just $1 a month. The new book "Bitten by Witch Fever" by Lucinda Hawksley highlights hundreds of wallpaper patterns from the UK in the 19th century, a time when some of the pigments in those papers were made from arsenic. Yes, the poison. Plus: it’s Global Money Week, we shout out to Crescent Shay, a designer on YouTube who just made a dress out of money. Death by Wallpaper: The Alluring Arsenic Colors that Poisoned the Victorian Age (Hyperallergic) Check out this chain mail dress made from over 2500 pennies (Boing Boing) --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Jaundice is treatable with phototherapy, but not all places have access to light therapy machines. A startup in Nigeria is building solar-powered phototherapy machines to fill that gap. Plus: today in 2021, a guy in England tried to rob a bank, only his handwriting was so messy the tellers couldn't read his demand.  This Nigerian tech startup is fighting baby jaundice with solar-powered cribs (CNN) Man’s handwriting was so bad Eastbourne bank staff didn’t know he was trying to rob them (Eastbourne Herald) It's our third birthday today! Thanks to our Patreon backers for being the bright lights of our show --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

The Brandt’s vole has an interesting way to protect itself from predators overhead: a research project found that the little rodent cuts the grass so it can keep a lookout. Plus: a new company is selling work from home pods/writing cabins made from sections of old airplanes.  Voles cut grass to watch flying predators (University of Exeter) Turning old airplanes into home offices (CNN) Join our Patreon backers for just a $1 a month! No grass cutting required.  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1948 that a guy in Portland, Oregon, dedicated Mill Ends Park, two square feet of green space in the middle of a parkway. It's still the world’s smallest park today. Plus: it’s Peeps season again, and the Racine Art Museum in Wisconsin wants your submissions for the 14th Annual International Peeps Art Exhibition. Mill Ends Park (Portland.gov) Call for Artists: RAM 13th Annual International Peeps Art Exhibition  Even a small contribution makes a big difference on our show. Join us on Patreon for just $1 a month! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1750, the birthday of an astronomer who definitely made her mark on the sky: Caroline Herschel, the first woman to discover a comet. Plus: residents of Pooler, Georgia, are down one giant mailbox painted to look like a cow, but don't worry, it'll be back.  Caroline Herschel (NASA) Eight Women Astronomers You Should Know (JSTOR) Who moo-ved the giant mailbox? Chatham County landmark disappears, but don't have a cow (WJCL) Our Patreon backers are pretty stellar too --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Maine became a state today in 1820. One of its best-known inventors was Chester Greenwood, who came up with a way to keep his, and many other people's, ears warm. Plus: there's a new world record for longest car, though you'll be forgiven if you don't see a whole lot difference between this car and the previous record holder.  Greenwood, Chester (Maine, An Encyclopedia)  The story of the modern-day earmuff and its inventor, Chester Greenwood (Washington Post) World’s longest car, over 100 ft, restored to its former glory (Guinness World Records) Our Patreon backers give us a warm feeling all year long --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

It's National Potato Chip Day, so of course we’re going to take you through the history of potato chips and the story of chef George Crum, the man sometimes called “the Edison of grease.” Plus: potatoes have been turned into chips, fries, soup and more; now they're being used for perfume.  How the Potato Chip Took Over America (Smithsonian) ‘Frites by Idaho’: Idaho Potato Commission giving away potato perfume (KXLY) Our Patreon backers are all-righta --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Researchers in Europe have built an algorithm that can decode the sounds of pigs to figure out what they’re feeling, whether it's happy, concerned, curious, anxious or just sort of hanging out. Plus: this weekend in Owensboro, Kentucky, it's the Kentucky State Fiddle Championship.  Pig grunts reveal their emotions (University of Copenhagen)   Kentucky State Fiddle Championship Our Patreon backers always make us feel great --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

There's a new exhibit at the Indiana State Museum about Marshall "Major" Taylor, a Black cycling star who became famous before Jack Johnson, Joe Louis or Jackie Robinson. Here's some of his story. Plus: today in 1888, actor Barry Fitzgerald was born; he later proved with an Academy Award that if you win something big, be careful with it.  Major Taylor Fastest Cyclist In The World (Indiana State Museum) Uncovering The Story Of Cyclist Major Taylor, America's 1st Black Sports Star (Fresh Air) Double Trouble for Foxx's Oscar Quest? (ABC News) Our Patreon backers are champions, all of them --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Today Lionel Richie is receiving the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. Not only has he sold millions of records, he’s become a home goods entrepreneur, an art enthusiast - and one time, personal clothes shopper for none other than Nelson Mandela. Plus: today in Northbrook, IL, it’s the 2022 World Clown Association convention - aka the Class Clown Reunion. Lionel Richie to Receive the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song (Library of Congress) Lionel Richie on being Nelson Mandela's stylist (CBC) World Clown Association 2022 Convention  Our Patreon backers keep us dancing on the ceiling --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

There were cold-like illnesses and sore throats long before there were humans to catch colds and to get sore throats. A research project has found another creature that got sniffles: dinosaurs. Plus: this month marks 200 years since the birth of Harriet Tubman, and there's a lot happening to celebrate her life and her legacy. Even dinosaurs couldn’t escape the sniffles (Popular Science) Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Scenic Byway (Visit Maryland) How Philadelphia Is Honoring Harriet Tubman’s Birthday in 2022 (Visit Philly) Our Patreon backers make great things happen every day  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1929, the start of one of the most outlandish stories in American political history: the time Louisiana Governor Huey Long had the governor's house torn down and a virtual replica of the White House built in its place, because (as it's said) he wanted to get used to living in the White House before he was elected president. Plus: meet the Flairdrum, a percussion instrument built out of recycled plastic drink bottles.  Strippers, Insane Asylums, Assassination, and Termites: Inside the Insane History of the World’s Greatest White House Replica (The Daily Beast)  Old Louisiana Governor's Mansion (National Park Service) Flairdrum, A Wonderful Percussion Instrument Made From Recycled Plastic Bottles (Laughing Squid) You don't have to build a mansion to help build our show! Just join us on Patreon for $1 a month --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1837 an act to incorporate the city of Chicago passed. A decade or two later, thousands of workers helped raise many of its buildings up 14 feet to make way for a badly needed wastewater and stormwater system. Plus: today in 1791, Vermont became a state, and one that's home to a 38 drawer tall filing cabinet. Chicago’s ‘sunken’ homes are remnants of a bold effort to raise the city out of the mud (WGN) Tallest Filing Cabinet on Earth (Atlas Obscura) Join our Patreon backers and help this show keep climbing higher and higher --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Researchers at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology took stem cells and treated them with high-frequency sound waves, which was enough to convert them into bone cells. Plus: today in 2018, runner Murielle Ahoure found an ingenious way to celebrate her country after a big win.  Sonic advance: How sound waves could help regrow bones (RMIT) World Indoor Championships: Ivory Coast's Ahoure celebrates 60m gold with Irish flag (BBC) Our Patreon backers always sound great ZjogEHWYjunepKbHomzO --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Today in 1962 one of the most stunning performances in the history of basketball, or really in all of pro sports: Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points in a game. Plus: today in 1935, the release of a short film called “Donkey Baseball," in which humans lead donkeys around in a baseball game (the donkeys aren't the ones playing baseball).  The Legacy Of Wilt Chamberlain's 100-Point Game (WBUR) Five things you didn't know about Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game (Sporting News) Donkey Baseball (YouTube) Our Patreon backers are all winners --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Mardi Gras, Shrove Tuesday, Pancake Tuesday, etc is typically the day a community in central Mexico has a somewhat notorious festival in which people put homemade explosives on top of sledge hammers and slam the hammers into stuff to make big explosions. If you go, don't blame us for anything that happens. Plus: a town in Kansas marks Pancake Day with a pancake flipping race.  The explosive festival of San Juan de la Vega (La Silla Rota Guanajuato)  Annual 'exploding hammer' festival might be the most dangerous event in Mexico (Mashable)  Liberal pancake race (Kansas Historical Society) We celebrate our Patreon backers every day --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

Most years February is 28 days long. Every fourth year it has 29. But one time, in one country, for one year, there was a February 30th. Plus: today in 1903, the oldest sound recording made in Japan is made.  February 30th (Now I Know) 118 Years Later, Japan’s Earliest Sound Recordings Still Resonate (Atlas Obscura)  Our Patreon backers keep us going every day of the year  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support

This week we're replaying some of our favorite episodes about presidents. In this show from February 2020, we remember the time in 1862 that President Abraham Lincoln said thanks, but no thanks, to an offer of elephants from the king of Siam, now Thailand. It was a gracious letter, which was appropriate because elephants themselves have lovely manners. Lincoln Rejects the King of Siam's Offer of Elephants (American Battlefield Trust) Elephant Emotions (PBS Nature) We graciously invite you to back Cool Weird Awesome on Patreon! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/support