Stuff You Should Know

iHeartPodcasts

If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.

Play

Open in

61 episodes
Avg 40 min
English

Episodes 61

Newest Oldest Longest

All20 Unplayed20 In progress0 Played0

Counted on this page — what you have heard stays on this device, so it is not something the list can be paged by.

September 5 · 50 min
Selects: Blacksmiths? You got that right!
Blacksmiths? You got that right. Learn all about this age old occupation in this classic episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
September 3 · 47 min
Social Identity Theory: Your Group Rules, Others Drool
In the 80s, a pair of psychologists theorized why being part of a group can change people’s thoughts and feelings, both about themselves and other people. It sounds dry, but SIT explains everything from how people justify genocide to football rivalries. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
September 2 · 12 min
Short Stuff: Hisashi Ouchi
Japanese nuclear worker Hisashi Ouchi is often called on the internet “the world’s most radioactive man.” That’s not exactly true, but it gets the point across about how severe the fatal dose of radiation he received was. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
September 1 · 46 min
Terry Fox: Greatest Canadian Hero
It is to the great nation of Canada’s lasting credit that it has prized Terry Fox as one of the most beloved and admired citizens for nearly 50 years now. It’s difficult to get across how much he means to Canada. Lucky for us, his story speaks for itself. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 29 · 50 min
Selects: Flagpole Sitting: A Real Fad
The 1920s were just absolutely nuts. People got into weird fads really intensely and one of the strangest of all was flagpole sitting. It’s just what it sounds like – sitting on top of a flagpole for as long as you can. One man sat above them all. Learn all about him and many of these wild fads in this classic episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 27 · 43 min
The Fall of the USSR, Pt II
The break-up of the USSR was a tough one for Russia, being the jilted republic. For the entire decade after, the country plunged into a type of controlled chaos, with a rampantly corrupt kleptocracy taking the place of the toppled socialist society. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 26 · 55 min
SYSK Tribute: Why does everyone love Dolly Parton?
Today we dive in to celebrate the international treasure that is Dolly Parton. Why is she nearly universally loved? Listen in to find out. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 26 · 13 min
Short Stuff: Cyclospora
The US has an unusual number of outbreaks of food-borne illness going on in the summer of 2026, and the star of the show is cyclospora. How does this parasite make people sick, where does it come from? You may not want to know. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 25 · 41 min
The Fall of the USSR, Pt I
It’s rare that the downfall of an empire can be chalked up to the decisions of just one person. It’s even rarer, when the empire falls over the course of a year. That’s pretty much what happened with the Soviet Union when Mikhail Gorbachev dissolved it. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 22 · 52 min
Selects: How Narcolepsy Works
Narcolepsy is one of those amazing rare disorders that everyone thinks they understand – people just fall asleep at random times, even in the middle of doing something. But there’s a lot more to it and – even better – we actually may be able to explain it. Josh and Chuck run it down in this classic episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 20 · 43 min
Rope, yeah ROPE!
Rope is one of the unsung heroes of the world of inventions. Think about it. Then let us tell you about it. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 19 · 11 min
Short Stuff: Did a shipwreck double the size of the United States?
Did a shipwreck double the size of the United States? Sort of. Listen in to find out what the heck that means. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 18 · 49 min
Isn't It Ironic, Dontcha Think?
Irony is one of those things that you know when you see it, but it’s almost impossible to define. Well, that’s not quite right – there are a ton of definitions for irony but none of them quite capture it fully. Want to know what irony is? So do we! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 15 · 47 min
Selects: The Manhattan Grid
Ever wanted to know more about how the Manhattan grid was made? Well this is your chance. Find out all about it in this classic episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 13 · 46 min
Who was Robert Maxwell?
Robert Maxwell was a lot of things, publisher, mogul, spy, politician, crook. But was he murdered when he fell from his yacht? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 12 · 12 min
Short Stuff: Nero and His Fiddle
Did Nero play his fiddle while Rome burned during the Great Fire of 64 CE? Absolutely not. Find out how we know when Chuck and Josh bust a two thousand year-old myth. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 11 · 54 min
Bonnie and Clyde
You've probably seen the movie, but what else do you know about this legendary crime couple? Listen in to find out. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 8 · 43 min
Selects: Iran-Contra Affair: Shady in the 80s, Part 2
As the operation expands it also begins to unravel. Word starts to leak out of the illegal stuff the Reagan administration was up to, Congress and the press investigate and people start to point fingers. Spoiler alert – they all got off scot free. Find out how it all wraps up in part 2 of this classic story. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 8 · 45 min
Selects: Iran-Contra Affair: Shady in the 80s, Part 1
When Ronald Reagan was president, America got involved in some deeply shady stuff, not the least of which was the Iran-Contra scandal – a convoluted operation that managed to combine an illegal covert war in Nicaragua with secretly selling arms to Iran. Learn all about it with Josh and Chuck in this classic episode. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript
August 6 · 55 min
Reggae: Kingston’s Gift to the World
Although it was built atop some musical styles that came before, reggae is mostly its own thing. It evolved as local music in the Trenchtown neighborhood in Kingston, Jamaica but after Bob Marley and the Wailers came along, it became a global phenomenon. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
- Transcript

Showing 21–40 of 61 episodes