Some people make money from corporate jobs, while others find a way to be their own boss. Matt Farley does a little of both. Oh, and it’s often by way of songs about bathroom humor. Today we collectively experience something that doesn’t happen often - a total solar eclipse. Can we look at it, even for a split-second? How will pets react? Conventional wisdom says we need 7-8 hours of sleep per night. You know what it feels like to get less, but what if you sleep more? Can we get too much sleep? ...
Apr 08, 2024•22 min•Season 1Ep. 152
When we think of execution methods, the guillotine seems quick and therefore painless. Maybe not… Chocolate Chip Ice Cream was once an in-demand flavor. Are we now on the brink of it going away… forever? Americans just spent $5 billion on Easter Candy, a lot of it in the form of chocolate bunnies. How did this creature become so seasonally popular? Sources: https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/502594/death-guillotine-painless https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/15/business/chocolate-chip-ice-cream.ht...
Apr 01, 2024•22 min•Season 1Ep. 151
Hotels and airlines avoid it. More than 1/3 of Americans say they fear it. What makes #13 so bad? Did you attempt the Presidential Physical Fitness test in your elementary school P.E. class? Did you pass? Did an actual president declare that we should do this? During Covid, more than 50 million people registered as active bird watchers - the most participants in any sport in America and, now post-Covid, they’re still watching. Dave calls one “birder” to get the scoop. Sources: https://www.mental...
Mar 25, 2024•25 min•Season 1Ep. 150
*Episode 118 Rebroadcast* The iconic Apple logo features an apple with a bite missing. How did they decide on that image? It depends on who you ask. Some are heroes in a traditional way and save a puppy from a burning building or rescue someone from drowning. Then some are like Roger Anderson and go after telemarketers. Would you trade your friends in for a free cheeseburger? Well, a few days, Burger King asked that very question. Of course, they got a response. http://www.commutethepodcast.com ...
Mar 18, 2024•23 min
England offers incredible tea selections and passionate soccer fans. They also drive on the other side of the road. Iowa Hawkeye basketball standout Caitlin Clark hasn't just broken records and won a lot of games, she's had an impact that goes beyond the court. Years ago, a rat fell into wet cement in Chicago leaving an outline of its body in the sidewalk. The neighborhood thought this a quirky local story … then the rest of the world discovered it. Sources: https://www.thrillist.com/amphtml/tra...
Mar 11, 2024•24 min•Season 1Ep. 149
A recent real-life Charlie and the Chocolate Factory seemed too good to be true. Spoiler alert - it was. Have you ever wondered why we pronounce Arkansas like that? So have we, and we decided to find out why. Can we blame bad or strange behavior on a full moon? Intelligent people have figured this out. Sources: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/27/world/europe/willy-wonka-experience-glasgow.html https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/local/2015/05/17/arkansaw-ar-kansas/27489055/#:~:text=Well%2C%20Sus...
Mar 04, 2024•24 min•Season 1Ep. 148
History is filled with stories that seem too fantastic to be true … and then there’s Archimedes and his death ray. Private label generic brands are the more affordable option to store brands at your local supermarket. But who makes this stuff, and is it true that it’s secretly made by the name brand company it’s competing against?! As we’ve discussed on the show before, food expiration dates are suspect, and certainly something that’s 50,000 years old is a no-brainer! When scientists dug up a pe...
Feb 26, 2024•21 min•Season 1Ep. 147
Sometimes, if you’re a Sriracha fan and you want THE Sriracha - the original OG version with the cartoon rooster - you’re out of luck. Is it a supply chain issue as everyone assumes … or something deeper? It’s hard to go a day without seeing a State Farm Insurance commercial featuring the iconic Jake from State Farm. But Jake is a real person (though that’s not his real name), and being famous isn’t always all it’s cracked up to be. Soon we’ll recognize something we only experience every four ye...
Feb 19, 2024•23 min•Season 1Ep. 146
We’re fresh off of watching the Super Bowl - but besides the Super Bowl there was the Puppy Bowl! Where did this come from, and why do so many advertisers want in? Betty Crocker, The Jolly Green Giant - these fictional characters are fun representatives for food brands that consumers can form connections with. Then there's Chef Boyardee. Eighty-seven years ago, Amelia Earhart vanished during a flight. Her plane and remains have never been found. Have we finally solved the mystery? Sources: https...
Feb 12, 2024•21 min•Season 1Ep. 145
Americans average nearly 30 minutes in the car to get to work and back, and they hate it. This week, what we can do to improve the experience. Movies spectacles cost millions of dollars. One thing that’s not in the budget? Fighter jets. Taylor Swift made both the NFL and the Kansas City Chiefs a lot of money. We’ll tell you how and how much. Sources: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/taylor-swift-is-worth-331-million-and-counting-to-nfl-and-the-chiefs-05e4dbf9 https://www.marketwatch.com/story/t...
Feb 05, 2024•23 min•Season 1Ep. 144
Why is raising the middle finger offensive? How did the idea evolve? You dip a chip and take a bite. Now, what do you do with the other half? Does it matter what month your birthday occurs? Some turn out to be better than others. Sources: https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/22/world/middle-finger-gesture-explained-cec?cid=ios_app https://theconversation.com/is-double-dipping-a-food-safety-problem-or-just-a-nasty-habit-51014 https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3361998/amp/Not-happy-birthday-Research...
Jan 29, 2024•20 min•Season 1Ep. 143
It looks so easy in movies, but what does it take to hire a hitman in the real world? In the 90’s, McDonald’s was the largest playground provider in the nation, but recently McDonalds Play Places have been disappearing. What happened? Heads or tails? Does it matter which you choose? A group of researchers decided to find out. Sources: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/14/nyregion/hit-men-are-easy-to-find-in-the-movies-real-life-is-another-story.html https://www.mentalfloss.com/posts/mcdonalds-play...
Jan 22, 2024•20 min•Season 1Ep. 142
For most of its 110-year history, Stanley drinkware has not been particularly cool. Suddenly, the Stanley Tumbler has now become a status symbol across high school and college campuses. How did this happen? In the early 1980s, cockroaches were everywhere, from homes across America to the halls of the White House. This seemingly indestructible insect was impossible to stop. Then one man had an idea. Legend has it that specific artwork on a Tootsie Roll Pop can be redeemed for a freebie. But legen...
Jan 15, 2024•22 min•Season 1Ep. 141
If you thought litter was terrible on Earth, wait until you hear about what’s happening in outer space. At least down here it doesn’t come at you flying 15,000 MPH! First, there was Winnie the Pooh and, now, Mickey Mouse. As beloved modern characters enter public domain we could see them in versions and situations their creators never intended. But with Mickey there’s a catch... When Columbus and crew discovered America in 1492 they brought a stowaway with them. It now lives in your front yard. ...
Jan 08, 2024•23 min•Season 1Ep. 140
Teaching history is hard. It can be challenging to convey the importance of events that happened long ago. An Instagram account tried a different approach, but did it work? Need a new Christmas tradition?! Too bad - we have one for you, anyway. To close out 2023, we look back at the year’s top 25 Wikipedia searches and wonder if it means anything for the year ahead. Sources: https://amp.theguardian.com/world/2019/may/08/instagram-holocaust-diary-evastories-sparks-debate-in-israel https://www.nyt...
Dec 18, 2023•23 min•Season 1Ep. 139
Walk down the snack aisle at any grocery store and mixed among the BBQ and Salt & Vinegar chips you’ll find unusual and limited edition ones like “Picnic” or “All Dressed Up.” How do such chips, which may taste like entirely different foods, get made? If you’ve thought your cell phone reception has worsened in recent years, this segment is for you. McDonald’s is always a pretty consistent fast food choice. That’s about to change. Sources: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2023/dec/02/the-weir...
Dec 11, 2023•20 min•Season 1Ep. 138
Of all the strange rituals we rarely question, blowing out birthday candles has got to be up there. What are the origins of this very unsanitary act? The online dating world is challenging but, with so many different dating apps, if one doesn’t work we can try another. They are surely all unique … aren’t they …? Why does being on the naughty list mean coal for Christmas? Sources: https://www.wonderopolis.org/wonder/why-do-we-blow-out-birthday-candles https://www.theverge.com/23560419/match-group...
Dec 04, 2023•21 min•Season 1Ep. 137
We’ve all failed. Most of us would rather not talk about it, but the Museum of Failure does more than talk about failures. It celebrates them. U.S. airlines lose millions of pieces of luggage annually. Most of them don’t just vanish, they end up in the same place. (It’s not the landfill.) It’s been a calling card of the dining experience at Olive Garden for decades - unlimited breadstick and salad refills. But even unlimited things have their limit. Sources: https://www.npr.org/2023/11/24/121484...
Nov 27, 2023•21 min•Season 1Ep. 136
Do retailers put out Christmas stuff earlier and earlier every year, not giving Thanksgiving fair respect, or is it all in our heads? A presidential pardon forgives a crime and clears the record of the offender. So why does a turkey (yes, an actual turkey) receive this treatment every Thanksgiving? Sources: https://www.newsweek.com/countdown-christmas-creep-earlier-every-year-1631978 https://www.npr.org/2019/11/26/782716688/i-beg-your-pardon-the-strange-history-presidents-sparing-turkeys http://...
Nov 20, 2023•15 min•Season 1Ep. 135
Although the Beatles put out their last record in 1970, a demo originally recorded a few years later has been cleaned up and released thanks to technological advances - and features John Lennon more than 40 years after his death. To tip or not to tip, that is the question. And these days it’s asked more than ever. Not tipping is still an option, tho, right? Not if DoorDash has anything to say about it. Mein Kampf, the autobiographical, anti-Semitic hate manifesto written by Adolf Hitler, is one ...
Nov 13, 2023•23 min•Season 1Ep. 134
More than three decades ago, the New Yorker Magazine printed a cartoon about the internet that is just as accurate today as it was then, setting records for reprints. It’s still setting records. It’s after Halloween. What happens to all the pumpkins? Porta potties - everyone uses them; no one wants to. We’ll tell you more than you ever expected to know, including how often, if ever, they’re cleaned. Sources: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-most-reprinted-new-yorker-cartoon-breaks-r...
Nov 06, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 133
How did “cheese” become the universal smile word used by photographers? You’ll never guess what word it replaced! It’s the official slogan of Halloween, but where and when did it begin? And what did cabbage have to do with the whole thing? The most terrifying mask of all time has one of the most bizarre backstories. Sources: http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2013/04/the-origin-of-say-cheese-and-when-people-started-smiling-in-photographs/ https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/630861/why-we-sa...
Oct 23, 2023•19 min•Season 1Ep. 132
For almost 70 years a glass of Coca-Cola cost a nickel. In Iceland, it’s easy to accidentally marry your cousin. Luckily, there’s an app for that. Legendary anonymous street artist Banksy may have finally been unmasked. Or maybe not. Sources: https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2015/11/18/456410327/episode-416-why-the-price-of-coke-didnt-change-for-70-years https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2013/04/18/new-app-helps-icelanders-avoid-accidental-incest/2093649/ https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/w...
Oct 16, 2023•23 min•Season 1Ep. 131
Every year new words get added to the dictionary. Who decides? If we don’t know someone’s name or they want to stay anonymous, we typically refer to them as John or Jane Doe. How did this happen? What if your actual name is John Doe? Will we ever add another face to Mt. Rushmore? It comes up in conversation. http://www.commutethepodcast.com Follow Commute: Instagram - instagram.com/commutethepodcast/ Twitter - @PodcastCommute Facebook - facebook.com/commutethepodcast...
Oct 09, 2023•21 min•Season 1Ep. 130
Can pizza tip us off to issues of national security? The evidence seems to be clear. After a big sporting event - Super Bowl, World Series, or National Championship Game - it’s amazing how quickly the winning team t-shirt is available. How is this possible, and what happens to the losing team's shirts? Asteroid Beenu is currently on a collision course with Earth. Have we got a plan for this? Sources: https://slate.com/human-interest/2016/07/the-pizza-meter-was-a-staple-of-1990s-pop-pseudoscience...
Oct 02, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 129
It's almost Halloween season. Soon kids, dressed as their favorite characters, go door to door asking for candy. But does the fun have an age limit? How old is too old? Have you planned for your funeral? When you do, you’d better prepare for a dent in the bank account. Cemetery real estate doesn't come cheap. Have you ever thought the teenagers on TV shows look older than any teenager you’ve ever met? There’s a reason for that… Sources: https://www.mentalfloss.com/posts/what-age-too-old-trick-or...
Sep 25, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 128
Every day, millions of truck hit the roadways to deliver the goods and services we’ve come to take for granted. This week: what it takes to be a truck driver. Seven of the most common birthdays are all in the same month. But just wait until you hear about the most UNcommon! Theaters in the 1940s and 1950s looped a movie continuously throughout the day. Moviegoers arrived to see their film of choice whenever they wanted to, starting wherever that movie happened to be in its story. Until the arriv...
Sep 18, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 127
Artificial intelligence is everywhere: education, science, healthcare, work; but what about church? How would you like to have a conversation with Jesus? We imagine making an Olympic team and competing against the world's best on a global stage, but have you heard of the Magic Olympics? Subtitles are a TV viewing feature to assist people who are hard of hearing, so why are folks who can hear just fine using them? http://www.commutethepodcast.com Follow Commute: Instagram - instagram.com/commutet...
Sep 11, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 126
We all love a feel-good sports movie. The underdog learning to win, the budding romance, the dad who works too much…. When The Mighty Ducks became a hit in the 90s, Disney loved the movie so much that they made a real team. If you’re listening to this on release day, it’s Labor Day and you’ll have to put away your white clothes until next Spring. Why? When you pause a DVD you see a floating logo bounce around the screen continually. This week we reveal - does it ever eventually hit the corner? S...
Sep 04, 2023•22 min•Season 1Ep. 125
An airport realized that people kept urinating on the floors of the men’s bathroom. It came up with an interesting solution that is now used all over the world. The Beatles are considered the greatest band of all time. Why did it take them so long to have a song reach a billion streams on Spotify? And what’s a billion streams worth, anyway? What if you went to a restaurant and you knew up front that there was a good chance that your order wouldn’t arrive the way you wanted it, and what if you we...
Aug 28, 2023•21 min•Season 1Ep. 124
