Stuff You Should Know
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Episodes
Zorro! That guy with the sword!
This episode explores the history of Zorro, tracing his origins from Johnston McCulley's 1919 pulp serial to the 1920 Douglas Fairbanks film and the 1957 Disney TV series.
Selects: The Tailesin Massacre
Hosts Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant explore Frank Lloyd Wright’s architectural masterpiece, Taliesin, and the dark personal scandal involving his affair with Mamah Bohrmann.
The Wilmington Massacre
This episode details the 1898 Wilmington, North Carolina coup, where an organized white supremacist mob overthrew the city's elected government to suppress Black political power.
Short Stuff: Weather Balloons
This episode explores the mechanics of weather balloons, detailing how radiosondes measure temperature, humidity, and pressure while transmitting data from the stratosphere.
Ba-Dum-Bum Goes Your Heart!
This episode explores the anatomy and function of the human heart, detailing its chambers, valves, and the electrical impulses that drive its rhythm.
Selects: Salem Witchcraft Trials: More Bonkers Than You Know
This episode explores the Salem Witch Trials as a historical anomaly driven by social stress, land disputes, and the misuse of spectral evidence.
The SYSK Annual Halloween Freaky Spooktacular 2026!
In this Halloween special, hosts Josh and Chuck perform a dramatic reading of W.
Short Stuff: The Enfield Monster
This episode explores the 1973 Enfield Monster mystery in Illinois, a cryptid case involving a small town's encounter with a strange, three-legged creature.
(Don't Fear) The (Grim) Reaper
This episode explores the history and symbolism of the Grim Reaper, tracing its evolution from ancient personifications like Thanatos and Anubis to the modern skeletal figure.
Selects: John Lennon and the FBI
This episode explores the FBI's surveillance and harassment of John Lennon in the early 1970s, driven by Nixon’s fear of his influence on young voters.
The Twilight Zone Episode
This episode explores the legacy of Rod Serling and the original *Twilight Zone*, detailing his rise from live teleplays to creating a landmark series that tackled social issues through allegory.
Short Stuff: Spooky Recommendations
In this Halloween-themed episode of Short Stuff, hosts Josh and Chuck (with Jerry filling in for Dave) introduce a new segment featuring personal recommendations.
Winnie the Pooh: Silly Old Bear
This episode explores the origins of Winnie the Pooh, tracing the character from A.
Selects: Sacagawea: Impressive Teen
This episode explores the life of Sacagawea, correcting common misconceptions about her name and legacy.
The Disappearance of Dorothy Arnold
This episode investigates the 1910 disappearance of Dorothy Arnold, a wealthy New York socialite who vanished after a day of dress shopping.
Short Stuff: Currency Symbols
This episode explores the history and origins of major currency symbols, starting with the dollar sign’s evolution from the Spanish peso abbreviation "PS.
Asteroooooid De-FENSE!
This episode explores the science of asteroids, distinguishing them from comets and explaining their origins as remnants of the early solar system.
Selects: What's the deal with swing states?
Hosts Josh Clark and Chuck Bryan explore the mechanics and history of swing states, explaining how the Electoral College and winner-take-all systems…
Stand-Up Pt II
This episode of Stuff You Should Know explores the evolution of stand-up comedy, beginning with the 1990s alt-comedy movement and its rejection of traditional club norms.
Short Stuff: The Style Cycle
Hosts Josh and Chuck discuss a Northwestern University study confirming that fashion follows a 20-year cycle, based on an analysis of 37,000 clothing images.
Stand-Up Comedy Pt I
This two-part episode explores the history of stand-up comedy, tracing its evolution from vaudeville and the Borscht Belt to the rise of "sick" comedians in the 1950s.
Selects: How Bras Work
In this episode, Josh and Chuck explore the history of the bra, from ancient Greek cloth wraps to the 1914 patent by Mary Phelps Jacob.
Let's Thank Universal Pictures for Monster Movies!
This episode explores the history of Universal Studios' iconic monster films, tracing their origins from the Lamley family's early theaters to the 1931 releases of Dracula and Frankenstein.
Short Stuff: The Retirement Curse
Hosts Josh, Chuck, Jerry, and Dave explore the "retirement curse," a phenomenon where Americans experience significant declines in mental health and physical activity after leaving the workforce.
A Good Walk Ruined: The History of Golf
Hosts Chuck and Livia discuss the history of golf, tracing its origins from Dutch roots and 15th-century Scotland to its spread in England and the US.
Selects: Wetlands! Wetlands! Wetlands!
Hosts Chuck and Josh explore the diverse ecosystems of wetlands, detailing types like marshes, swamps, bogs, and mangroves.
Introducing 3 Putt Bogey
Chuck Bryan and Adam Pranica introduce their new golf comedy podcast, Three Putt Bogey, which releases every Friday.
Emily Post: Ettiquette Queen
This episode explores the life and legacy of Emily Post, the pioneering etiquette expert who revolutionized social conduct by emphasizing ethics over wealth.
Short Stuff: Mabon
This episode explores the autumnal equinox and the pagan sabbath of Mabon, noting that the term is a modern invention derived from Welsh mythology rather than ancient Celtic tradition.
Our Big Fat Dream Episode
Josh, Chuck, and Jerry explore the science and psychology of dreaming, covering REM sleep stages, the activation-synthesis hypothesis, and why dream recall is difficult.
Selects: Fallout Shelters: Probably Useless (Let’s Never Find Out)
Hosts Josh Clark, Charles Bryant, and Jerry Rollins revisit their 2020 episode on fallout shelters, discussing the Cold War-era panic that drove Americans to build private and public bunkers.
SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: What is Collective Hysteria?
Hosts Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant explore collective hysteria, or mass psychogenic disorder, explaining how psychological stress can manifest as real physical symptoms without a toxic cause.
SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: What was the Philadelphia Experiment?
Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant explore the Philadelphia Experiment, a conspiracy theory claiming the USS Eldridge was teleported in 1943.
SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: Mermaids: Not a real thing
Hosts Josh Clark and Charles Bryant explore the history and mythology of mermaids, debunking modern sightings as manatees or hoaxes.
SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: Will We Find Evidence of Aliens by Their Engineering Projects?
Hosts Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant explore the Dyson Sphere, a theoretical megastructure proposed by physicist Freeman Dyson to capture a star's total energy output.
SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: The Mystery of the Mary Celeste
Hosts Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant discuss the mystery of the Mary Celeste, a famous ghost ship found adrift in 1872 with no crew aboard.
SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: The Max Headroom Incident
This episode investigates the unsolved 1987 "Max Headroom Incident," where a masked individual hijacked Chicago TV stations WGN and WTTW for a disturbing broadcast.
SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: Dragons: As Real as Mermaids
Hosts Josh and Chuck explore the origins of dragons, arguing that the mythical creatures likely evolved from ancient fears of snakes, big cats, and…
SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: The Creepy Legacy of the Hotel Cecil
This episode of Stuff You Should Know explores the dark history of the Hotel Cecil in Los Angeles, a building notorious for numerous unnatural deaths and its proximity to Skid Row.
SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: What's the deal with blue people?
Hosts Josh Clark and Chuck Bryan explore the history of the Fugate family in Kentucky, whose blue skin resulted from a rare genetic mutation causing methemoglobinemia.
SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: Doppelgängers: Hey you, you're me!
Hosts Josh and Chuck explore the phenomenon of doppelgangers, discussing the term's origins, historical folklore, and the work of photographer François Brunel.
SYSK Gets Weird Playlist: The Story of the Nuclear Boy Scout
This episode details the true story of David Hahn, a Michigan teenager who built a nuclear reactor in his mother's potting shed during the 1990s.
The Cancer Episode
Hosts Josh, Chuck, and Jerry explore cancer as an umbrella term for over 200 diseases driven by uncontrolled cell growth and genetic mutations.
Short Stuff: Leisure Suits
In this "Short Stuff" episode, hosts Josh, Chuck, and Jerry explore the history of the 1970s leisure suit.
How Boredom Works
This episode explores the science and philosophy of boredom, examining how it drives humans to seek novel stimuli and take risks.
Selects: Wasps: Not as cute as bees
Hosts Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant explore the biology and ecology of wasps, covering their evolution, complex social structures, and the potent chemistry of their venom.
The Odyssey Episode
Hosts Chuck and Josh explore Christopher Nolan's 2026 film adaptation of Homer's *The Odyssey*, discussing its historical context, the "Homeric…
Short Stuff: Flappers
This episode explores the rise and fall of the flapper, a rebellious young woman who emerged in the 1920s after World War I and the flu pandemic shifted gender norms.
Nickelodeon:The Best of Slimes
This episode explores the complete history of Nickelodeon, from its 1977 origins in Columbus, Ohio, to its rise as a cultural juggernaut.
Selects: Blacksmiths? You got that right!
Josh Clark and Charles Bryan explore the history of blacksmithing, tracing its evolution from the Bronze Age to the Industrial Revolution.