Cool Stuff Ride Home
Covering the most interesting and coolest stories that you may have missed around the world in about 15 minutes a day. Cool Stuff Ride Home looks at science, progress, life-hacks, memes, exciting art, and hope. This is the antidote to depressing headlines. Smart stuff in podcast form. Cool news, as a service.
Hosted by Reggie Risseeuw and Marques Pfaff.
351
Thu. 07/28 - No, This Isn't Scientific Evidence...
Why a new discovery about plesiosaurs has gotten everyone talking about the Loch Ness Monster. Plus, the oldest DNA from a horse domesticated in America might have solved a centuries-old mystery. And the scoop on that thirteen-eyed anthropomorphic...
18 min
352
Wed. 07/27 - Netflix "Lucas-ing" Stranger Things
Cryptographers have identified the first known secure global communication system, in the form of nineteenth century newspaper ads. Plus, a fourth patient has been effectively cured of HIV. And Netflix is retroactively editing Stranger Things. The...
18 min
353
Tue. 07/26 - The Best Failed Inventions
Let’s take a visit to the Museum of Failure. Plus, robot spider zombies. Not a new comic book series, but an actual experiment from mechanical engineers in Texas. And the Earth’s earliest animal predator has been named after David Attenborough....
16 min
354
Mon. 07/25 - When Did NASA Logos Become Fashion...
The world’s first verified image of Mormonism founder Joseph Smith has been found… but it’s not convincing everyone just yet. And how did the NASA logo become so ubiquitous in clothing from fashion runways to rural Walmarts? Sponsors: Kolide,...
15 min
355
Fri. 07/22 – Home Depot's Got (Giant) Crabs
Why do we laugh and what causes us to do so? Was laughing at one point an evolutionary advantage? Plus, the reason for a mysterious pink glow over a small Australian town on Wednesday. And the latest contender in Home Depot’s line of extremely large...
18 min
356
Thu. 07/21 - TikTok is Oozing Pink Sauce
A product that could help you hear the person you’re trying to have a conversation with in a loud, crowded room. Plus, a follow-up on why Unicode is adding so many more colored hearts in the next emoji drop. There was more to the story than I...
14 min
357
Wed. 07/20 - Real-Life Quidditch Changes Its Name
The real-life sport inspired by quidditch has announced their new name––and I have a lot of thoughts. Plus, a few companies in Japan have introduced standing “nap boxes” into their offices. And on the anniversary of the moon landing, NASA has...
19 min
358
Tue. 07/19 - DIY 4 Lyfe & Death
Three species frozen in time within one single piece of amber. Plus, the DIYers building their own coffins. And Costco has promised not to raise the price of their rotisserie chickens, but is that a good thing? Sponsors: Kolide, Got Slack? Got Macs?...
15 min
359
Mon. 07/18 - An Experiential Peek Into 2050's W...
Heatwaves around the world are so extreme this week that one of them matches a projected forecast for 2050. Plus, MIT engineers have found a more efficient method for boiling water. And the winners of the World Emoji Awards as well as all the new...
15 min
360
Wed. 07/13 - When Coal Was "Un-American"
What can the slow and timid adoption of coal in the US tell us about the transition to solar and wind power? Plus, this newly-discovered dinosaur sheds some light on why T-Rexes had those tiny li’l arms. And, when cities welcome physical monuments...
18 min
361
Tue. 07/12 - Spikes, Blobs, & Bubbles: Explaini...
The JWST images are here! But what are we actually looking at? Plus, could gene editing put an end to cholesterol-related disease? And Cat Power is planning to perform a cover of an entire Bob Dylan concert at the original venue where he performed it....
17 min
362
Mon. 07/11 - Sailing Without a Map, or Compass,...
Could an MIT idea to ease the climate crisis by blowing up giant sun-blocking bubbles in space actually work? Plus, the Polynesian voyagers who are reviving ancient seafaring techniques and traversing thousands of miles across the ocean without maps...
16 min
363
Fri. 07/08 - The Breakfast Episode
Welcome to our accidental breakfast episode. First, how did orange juice become our go-to breakfast beverage of choice? Plus, Waffle House’s in-house record label. And, someone’s been eating their Wheatie’s, how major sports tournaments are...
20 min
364
Thu. 07/07 - Sports Leagues IN SPACE
In 1972, a team of international researchers used computer modeling to assess and warn us about the potential collapse of human civilization. Fifty years later, how does their assessment add up and have we heeded their warning? Plus, we’ve got space...
17 min
365
Wed. 07/06 - Big Mouth Billy Bass
We take a deep dive into the freshwater lake origins of Big Mouth Billy Bass, the singing fish, and his riptide success in the early 2000s. And, in other peak scientific innovation news, the Large Hadron Collider has been booted up once more and...
16 min
366
Tue. 07/05 - The Rise of #Gentleminions
Could the historic flooding at Yellowstone National Park be a positive thing in the long term? Plus, new findings into long COVID-caused brain fog. And why some movie theaters are banning formal attire. Sponsors: Calm, Get 40% off a Calm Premium...
17 min
367
Thu. 06/30 - The Kid Who Invented Popsicles... ...
The murky history of Popsicles, and freeze pops or Otter Pops or whatever you call them. Plus, those skin mites that live on your face might be able to reveal your geographic ancestry. And the Canadian radio station that only plays one song by Rage...
16 min
368
Wed. 06/29 - Did "The Dress" Foreshadow Fake News?
Remember the photo of that blue and black dress, or I’m sorry, white and gold dress? It turns out at least one neuroscientist conducted an official study of people’s perceptions about it, and his findings could have larger ramifications on our...
15 min
369
Tue. 06/28 - The Return of the Moon Age
NASA’s Artemis mission returning us to the moon has officially begun… sort of. Here’s everything you need to know about today’s first step towards establishing a base in lunar orbit. Plus, why do so many of us love logging the books we read...
16 min
370
Mon. 06/27 - Why Friends Smell Alike
Do groups of friends all smell alike? Plus, an astonishingly well-preserved 30,000 year old woolly mammoth baby was just discovered. And we finally have photographic evidence of that mysterious rocket stage that hit the moon in March. Sponsors: I Am...
15 min
371
Fri. 06/24 - The Creatures That Live & Mate On ...
The facts on how risky public bathrooms actually are when it comes to germs and disease transmission. Plus, the secret lives of skin mites––a bevy of new findings on the microscopic creatures that live on our faces. And, as a chaser, animal ASMR....
13 min
372
Thu. 06/23 - The "Anti-Hunger" Molecule Formed ...
A newly-identified molecule may explain why some workouts make you super hungry and others leave you without an appetite at all. Plus, a spectacular planetary conjunction is on display this weekend––how to catch sight of five planets at once....
15 min
373
Wed. 06/22 - Pinocchio, Fascism, & Guillermo de...
A deep dive into the origins, values, and many adaptations of The Adventures of Pinocchio––including how Guillermo del Toro’s dark upcoming stop motion animation could be the truest to the original yet. Plus, the mystery of eight thousand Iron...
19 min
374
Tue. 06/21 - Queerness in Colonial Williamsburg
More and more countries are banning single-use plastics, but what alternatives are available? One team of scientists have developed an antimicrobial spray that could replace plastic food packaging. Plus, how Colonial Williamsburg is working to...
16 min
375
Mon. 06/20 - Peecycling
Would you use your own pee in your garden? Or donate it to a local farm? Some folks around the world see it as the future of fertilization. Plus, some scientists want to rename summer “danger season.” And astronomers have discovered a new...
15 min