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Latest episodes from Unlikely Explanations

Richard Owen: Dinosaur Jerk

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 10, 2023 25:57


Who named the dinosaurs? We know! It was Richard Owen, a plagiarizing, grasping, conniving jerk. Let's dive into dinosaurs, evolution, public education and the question of what constitutes scientific fact.Support the show

The Fate of the Springs: Steamboat Springs part 6 of 6

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 16, 2022 30:21


Steamboat Springs finds an unlikely savior in Karl Hovelsen, or, as he was known in the United States, Carl Howelsen. He kicked off the skiing craze in Colorado that continues to this day. But the natural wonders of the area continue to be damaged by tourism and construction. Hear how local conservationists are working to stop this alarming trend.Support the show

The Railroad: Why Steamboat Springs Blew Up the Steamboat Spring (5 of 6)

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 1, 2022 26:57


In this episode I finally answer why Steamboat Springs blew up the Steamboat Spring. For money. It was a capitalist house of cards built on future investment. Spoilers. Just listen to the episode; I explain it all.Support the show

Meeker: Steamboat Springs 4 of 6

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 19, 2022 15:56


A single figure served as the turning point for the Ute in Colorado: Nathan Meeker. This episode explores his legacy and motives to better understand how Colorado was transformed.Support the show

How Homesteading Transformed America: Steamboat Springs 3 of 6

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 4, 2022 26:30


With success in the Civil War, the Republican and northern vision for the West won out. Americans were encouraged to individually colonize the West through the Homestead Act. Despite their anti-slavery stance, they were happy to join with southern peers in oppressing the American Indians. This is how Colorado and Steamboat Springs came to be settled by Whites.Support the show

The Peopling of Colorado: Steamboat Springs 2 of 6

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 20, 2022 23:34


Part 2 of "Why did Steamboat Springs blow up the Steamboat Spring". In this episode we explore this history of humanity in the Americas and Colorado, specifically the development of Ute identity, and early encroachment by White Europeans and Americans.Support the show

Why did Steamboat Springs Blow Up the Steamboat Spring? 1 of 6

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 6, 2022 30:08


1 of 6 on Colorado History. To understand why Steamboat Springs blew up the Steamboat Spring we go deep into the past to unravel the geology of the Rockies.Support the show

Astroworld and Today: Crushes 8 of 8

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 28, 2022 13:11


Although this is a history podcast, human crushes are not a thing of the past. In this episode we consider the recent Astroworld disaster and what can be done to improve crowd safety moving forward.Sources and images at UnlikelyExplanation.com: https://www.unlikelyexplanation.comFollow on social media: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanationsSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/unlikelyexplanations)

Nightclub Escapes: Crushes 7 of 8

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 21, 2022 24:59


Nightclub fires and crushes continue through the 20th century up through today. In this episode, we explore the tragedies at the Rhythm Night Club, the Cocoanut Grove, The Station, and the Thomas Restobar to understand how crush safety remains paramount for indoor events and what we still get wrong about human stampedes.Sources and images at UnlikelyExplanation.com: https://www.unlikelyexplanation.comFollow on social media: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanationsSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/unlikelyexplanations)

Trapped Inside: Crushes 6 of 8

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 14, 2022 20:52


Stampedes cause a large portion of the deaths in building fires. We'll explore the fires at the Theatre Royal, the Brooklyn Theater, and the Iroquois Theater to see how crushes interact with disasters inside of buildings and why it's probably not a good idea to remain calmly seated as a theater catches fire.Sources and images at UnlikelyExplanation.com: https://www.unlikelyexplanation.comFollow on social media: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanationsSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/unlikelyexplanations)

The Quintessential Crush: Hillsborough. Crushes 5 of 8

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 7, 2022 28:57


A police conspiracy. Unquestioned prejudice. Long-standing misunderstandings. This is an in-depth explanation of the causes, outcomes, and conceptions of the Hillsborough crush. Sources and images at UnlikelyExplanation.com: https://www.unlikelyexplanation.comFollow on social media: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanationsSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/unlikelyexplanations)

The Deadliest Pilgrimage: Hajj. Crushes 4 of 8

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 24, 2022 16:04


Every year, millions of Muslims gather to celebrate Hajj. It is the largest gathering in the world and in many years it was the deadliest.Sources and images at UnlikelyExplanation.com(https://www.unlikelyexplanation.com/)Follow on social media: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanationsSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/unlikelyexplanations)

Kumbh Mela and Deadly Indian Festivals: Crushes 3 of 8

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 17, 2022 14:30


Most crushes in the world happen in India. When did they occur, how did they kill, and what is being done to stop them?Sources and images at UnlikelyExplanation.com(https://www.unlikelyexplanation.com/)Follow on social media: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanationsSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/unlikelyexplanations)

Political Crushes of Moscow: Crushes 2 of 8

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 10, 2022 16:42


Two exceptionally deadly crushes happened in Moscow. What caused them?Sources and images at UnlikelyExplanation.com(https://www.unlikelyexplanation.com/)Follow on social media: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanationsSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/unlikelyexplanations)

Why Do Humans Stampede? Crushes 1 of 8

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 3, 2022 16:29


What causes human crushes and stampedes? What are they like? Are you more likely to be trampled or squeezed to death? These answers and more, as well as a look at an early human  stampede at the wedding of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVISources and images at Unlikely Explanation.com https://www.unlikelyexplanation.com/Follow UE on social media for more stories: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanationsSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/unlikelyexplanations)Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/unlikelyexplanations)

Mormons, Adventists and Ghosts, Oh My! The Burned Over District Part 4 of 4

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 1, 2021 121:31


Part 4 explores the explosion of Spiritualism. The belief in ghosts and a fundamentally similar life after death gripped nearly every mind in New York and became the default belief system of the non-Christian American: New Age (and its related beliefs). This episode also includes honorable mentions for weird mystic cults and a trip to meet the greatest New York cult leader of them all: the Great and Powerful Wizard of Oz.Americans in the burned-over district of New York took God into their own hands and radically reimagined what Christianity and spirituality were all about. Learn how the spontaneous uprisings and communities of upstate New York affect the religious landscape of America today.Sources and images at Unlikely Explanation.com https://www.unlikelyexplanation.com/Follow UE on social media for more stories: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanationsSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/unlikelyexplanations)

Mormons, Adventists and Ghosts, Oh My! The Burned Over District Part 3 of 4

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 4, 2021 108:47


Part 3 covers the flowering of eccentric spiritualist movements in upstate New York: the Mormons, a non-trinitarian polygamist church that was chased out of the United States, Robert Matthews, Sojourner Truth, and the masculist patriarchy of New Zion, and John Humphrey Noyes' Oneida commune that practiced complex marriage and eugenics.Americans in the burned-over district of New York took God into their own hands and radically reimagined what Christianity and spirituality were all about. Learn how the spontaneous uprisings and communities of upstate New York affect the religious landscape of America today.Sources and images at Unlikely Explanation.com https://www.unlikelyexplanation.com/Follow UE on social media for more stories: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanations

Mormons, Adventists and Ghosts, Oh My! The Burned Over District Part 2 of 4

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 6, 2021 77:22


Americans in the burned-over district of New York took God into their own hands and radically reimagined what Christianity and spirituality were all about. Learn how the spontaneous uprisings and communities of upstate New York affect the religious landscape of America today.Part 2 covers the first crop of eccentric New York spiritualists: The first trans American, the Public Universal Friend; celibate communists known as Shakers; and William Miller's apocalyptic predictions that created Adventism.Sources and images at Unlikely Explanation.com https://www.unlikelyexplanation.com/Follow UE on social media for more stories: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanations

Mormons, Adventists and Ghosts, Oh My! The Burned Over District Part 1 of 4

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 2, 2021 57:45


The burned-over district of New York was a time and a place where Americans took God into their own hands and radically reimagined what Christianity and spirituality were all about. Learn how the spontaneous uprisings and communities of upstate New York affect the religious landscape of America today.Part 1 covers initial European settlement in North America; the origin of puritans, Pennsylvania, and quakers; the Longhouse religion of Handsome Lake; and the socio-economic conditions that allowed the burned-over district to flourish.Sources and images at Unlikely Explanation.com https://www.unlikelyexplanation.com/Follow UE on social media for more stories: https://linktr.ee/unlikelyexplanations

Why do Musicals Sound Like That? The 20s–40s (Long Version)

Play Episode Play 28 sec Highlight Listen Later Nov 30, 2020 124:40


After Gilbert and Sullivan, a wave of American writers made the musical truly their own and created what is now called "The American Songbook." Learn how America's racist past met with new ideas about society and set us on the path to the modern musical.

Why do Musicals Sound Like That? The 20s–40s (Short Version)

Play Episode Listen Later Nov 30, 2020 60:08


After Gilbert and Sullivan, a wave of American writers made the musical truly their own and created what is now called "The American Songbook." Learn how America's racist past met with new ideas about society and set us on the path to the modern musical.

Why Do Americans Keep Electing Republicans And Democrats?

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 5, 2020 53:43


Americans by and large are unhappy with our parties and our government. But with a few structural changes, we could bring our political system back from the brink of collapse.

How to Survive the South Pole

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 8, 2020 47:14


Most polar explorers survived while nearly all hauling animals died on polar expeditions. Why did Robert F. Scott die in the antarctic and what does it have to do with eating dogs?

survive south pole robert f scott
How Do We Cope With Gender?

Play Episode Listen Later Aug 10, 2020 65:19


In many times and places, there were more than two options when it came to gender. Eunuchs no longer exist as a class but nonbinary people are starting to assert their identity. What can we learn from nonbinary people of the past?

What Can Eunuchs Teach Us About Politics?

Play Episode Listen Later Jul 7, 2020 48:55


Part 1 of 2. For most of history, eunuchs were an integral part of imperial administration. Who were eunuchs and what can we learn about gender in politics from them?

What's in a Quarantine?—A History of Pandemics

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 1, 2020 76:46


We have been quarantining since before the invention of germ theory. Why do we quarantine and what can we learn from pandemics of the past?

What Does Trump Mean By "Deep State"?—Conspiracies Part 2

Play Episode Listen Later May 4, 2020 58:35


Over the 20th Century, superconspiracy theories have infiltrated the American political discourse, particularly on the right. This process reached its climax in the election of our first openly conspiracist president, Donald Trump. This episode explores the history of conspiracy theories in America from Henry Ford to Pat Robertson to Donald Trump.

How Did Conspiracy Theories Become Mainstream?—Conspiracies Part 1

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 13, 2020 49:48


What is a conspiracy theory? Where do they come from? Why does my grandma keep posting them on Facebook? This is the story of how fringe theories conquered the mainstream.

Why Does Anyone Live in Resolute?—A Canadian Atrocity

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 2, 2020 49:03


In 1953 the Canadian government relocated Inuit to the inhospitable far north. Why?

Why Do Musicals Sound Like That? Gilbert and Sullivan

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 3, 2020 54:32


Warning: this episode discusses sexual assault and racist depictions. In the 1870s, the comic opera made the jump into English and started the tradition that made Broadway and West End the theater capitols of the world. This episode takes a close look at the first step of that development: the work of W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan.

history english broadway musicals west end sound like arthur sullivan gilbert and sullivan
Why Was The North Pole Discovered Four Different Times?

Play Episode Listen Later Jan 6, 2020 46:12


Two men claimed to be the first to the north pole. One man claimed to be the first to fly over. All three were lying. Hear the bizarre story of who truly reached the north pole first.Read more at unlikelyexplanation.com

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