Learn something new every day!
Everything Everywhere Daily is a daily podcast for Intellectually Curious People. Host Gary Arndt tells the stories of interesting people, places, and things from around the world and throughout history. Gary is an accomplished world traveler, travel photographer, and polymath.
Topics covered include history, science, mathematics, anthropology, archeology, geography, and culture.
Past history episodes have dealt with ancient Rome, Phoenicia, Persia, Greece, China, Egypt, and India. as well as historical leaders such as Julius Caesar, Emperor Augustus, Sparticus, and the Carthaginian general Hannibal.
Geography episodes have covered Malta, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Monaco, Luxembourg, Vatican City, the Marshall Islands, Kiribati, the Isle of Man, san marino, Namibia, the Golden Gate Bridge, Montenegro, and Greenland.
Technology episodes have covered nanotechnology, aluminum, fingerprints, longitude, qwerty keyboards, morse code, the telegraph, radio, television, computer gaming,
Episodes explaining the origin of holidays include Memorial Day, April Fool’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, May Day, Christmas, Ramadan, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Canada Day, the Fourth of July,
Famous people in history covered in the podcast include Salvador Dali, Jim Thorpe, Ada Lovelace, Jessie Owens, Robert Oppenheimer, Picasso, Isaac Newton, Attila the Hun, Lady Jane Grey, Cleopatra, Sun Yat Sen, Houdini, Tokyo Rose, William Shakespeare, Queen Boudica, Empress Livia, Marie Antoinette, the Queen of Sheba, Ramanujan, and Zheng He.
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For over 600 years, the empire that dominated the region of Southeast Asia was the Khmer Empire. Built out of a collection of kingdoms, the Khmer Empire dominated its corner of Asia. It was an advanced civilization known for its massive building projects and its system of waterworks. Even though the empire eventually fell, as all empires do, its legacy can still be seen in the religious and cultural institutions in the region today. Learn more about the Khmer Empire, its rise, and its fall on th...
All around you, in the air and the ground, is the most common element on Earth: Oxygen. As you are certainly well aware, Oxygen is required for life on Earth as we know it. But you might realize that the Earth didn’t always have oxygen in its atmosphere. Oxygen has been responsible for everything from the rise of multicellular life to the space program. Learn more about the element oxygen, what it is, and how it came to be in our atmosphere on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsor...
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, several major Americans were the battleground for a conflict between two great powers. These powers were not armies or nations; rather, they were newspaper conglomerates headed by two of the most powerful figures in the history of American media. The competition between them was furious, and it was fought not just on the pages of their newspapers but sometimes on the streets. Learn more about Joseph Pulitzer, William Randolph Hearst, and the newspaper w...
Every October in the Northern Hemisphere, leaves on the trees turn color and fall to the ground. While the leaves turn from green to the bright colors of autumn, listeners' green questions are also transformed into colorful answers. Stay tuned for volume number 23 of questions and answers on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan your next trip to Spain at Spain.info! Sign up at butcherbox.com/daily and use code daily to get chicken breast, salmon or ground beef FREE in every...
When we look at history, we tend to focus on grand things like great leaders and great battles. In reality, what makes for successful empires is often the mundane: stable laws, an uncorrupt civil service, or, for large sprawling empires, a system of roads. Roads were one of the secrets to the success of Rome, and they proved useful for centuries, even after the empire's fall. Learn more about Roman roads and how they linked together a vast empire on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. S...
Many places on Earth have extreme climates. However, there is one place on Earth that has a climate so extreme that it is the closest thing to it might be on another planet. Despite having the most inhospitable and unforgiving climate on Earth, researchers have been shocked at what they’ve found there. Their discoveries might help pave the way to finding life outside our world. Learn more about the Dry Valleys of Antarctica, how they came to be, and what makes them so unique on this episode of E...
Many people have one or more favorite sports teams. Most people support these teams because they happen to be the team close to where they live. What many people don’t realize is that many teams, especially major sports teams in North America, didn’t originate in the city where they are today. In some cases, teams have moved multiple times, changed names, and even returned to the city where they originally came from. Learn more about relocated sports teams and teams that have gone defunct on thi...
Located in Vatican City, just off St. Peter’s Square lies one of the plainest and most uninteresting buildings you might ever find. It has no adornments and it is just a solid beige color. However, inside that bland structure, you will find one of humanity’s greatest artistic achievements, and to enjoy it you just might get a sore neck. Learn more about the Sistine Chapel, the building, the art, and its history, on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan your next trip to Spai...
The United States Constitution identifies three separate branches of government: the executive, the legislative, and the judicial. Each branch has a set of checks and balances, which, in theory, limits the power of the others. Two of those branches are outlined in detail in the Constitution. The third, the judicial, is given very little mention in comparison to the other two, and much of its workings and its power in relation to the other two, had to be created over time. Learn more about the Un...
This episode explores Napoleon Bonaparte's audacious return from exile on the island of Elba, a period known as the Hundred Days. It details how he landed in France with only a small guard and managed to regain control of the army and government without firing a shot due to his reputation and the unpopularity of King Louis XVIII. The episode covers the formation of the Seventh Coalition, Napoleon's efforts to raise a new army, the preliminary battles, the decisive Battle of Waterloo, his second abdication, and his final exile to the remote island of St. Helena where he eventually died.
In 1972, one of the greatest movies ever made was released: The Godfather. The Godfather is not only one of the most critically acclaimed movies in history but was also one of the most successful at the box office. Despite its overwhelming success, however, it almost didn’t get made and could have wound up a very, very different film. Learn more about The Godfather and the fascinating story of its production, casting, and filming on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan your...
In 1922, British archaeologist Howard Carter stumbled upon one of the most pristine tombs of an Egyptian Pharaoh ever found: the tomb of King Tutankhamun. That discovery became a pop culture sensation and revolutionized our understanding of Ancient Egypt. Learn more about King Tutankhamun, aka King Tut, on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan your next trip to Spain at Spain.info! Sign up at butcherbox.com/daily and use code daily to get chicken breast, salmon or ground bee...
On December 11, 1978, one of the most audacious heists in history took place at JFK Airport in New York City. A small group of thieves executed an almost perfect crime and walked away with 6 million dollars in cash and jewelry. While the actual robbery went off without a hitch, it was after the crime that things fell apart and eventually left a trail of bodies strewn across New York. Learn more about the 1978 Lufthansa Heist, how they pulled it off, and its bloody results on this episode of Ever...
For decades, the nation of Ethiopia has dreamed of creating a damn on the Blue Nile River. Such a dam would provide an enormous amount of electricity for a country that is one of the lowest electricity consumers in the world. Such a project would be a massive undertaking and it would also bring a great deal of prestige to the country. What was once a dream began to become a reality in the 21st century, and today is producing energy for the country. However, the project has also caused problems w...
A popular activity that millions of people around the world engage in every week is bowling. Today, all the equipment manufacturers and bowling alleys constitute a multibillion-dollar business. However, this modern pastime has a history that goes back not hundreds of years but thousands. Learn more about bowling, where it came from and how it has developed on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Sign up at butcherbox.com/daily and use code daily to get chicken breast, salmon or ...
As early as 2400 years ago, Greek philosophers were coming up with paradoxes that seemingly had no solution. Early mathematicians came up with problems that seemed impossible to solve. It wasn’t until the 17th century that the techniques were finally developed to solve these problems and unlock new fields of science and mathematics. Learn more about calculus, what it is, and what it attempts to do on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan your next trip to Spain at Spain.info...
On October 28, 1929, a day known as Black Monday, the New York Stock Exchange suffered its greatest one-day loss in history. The next day, known as Black Tuesday, the market dropped even further, registering the second biggest one-day loss in history. This was the start of an extended bear market that saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average drop 89% in just under three years and ushered in the period we know as the Great Depression. Learn more about the 1929 Stock Market crash, its causes, and its ...
This episode explores the profound influence of French on the English language, tracing its roots back to the Norman invasion and examining how French shaped English vocabulary in law, diplomacy, the arts, and cuisine. It also discusses the decline of French in England and introduces 'Anglish,' a constructed version of English without foreign influence.
After the Nazi invasion of France in 1940, the French were forced to sign a lopsided armistice that gave control over most of the country to Germany. However, about 40% of Frace was not occupied by the Germans. It was controlled by a French government that came to power after the invasion and collaborated with and sided with Germany. The government ruled much of France for four years until the Allied invasion of France, and after liberation, the collaborators paid the price. Learn more about Vic...
In 1961, Michael Rockefeller, an heir to one of the greatest fortunes in the world, disappeared on an art-collecting trip off the coast of the island of New Guinea. For decades, the family simply assumed that he accidentally drowned off the coast in an attempt to rescue his anthropologist colleague. However, in the decades since he disappeared, more information may have come forward about exactly what happened, and it may not have been a simple drowning. Learn more about Michael Rockefeller and ...
People in the entertainment industry often say that show business is “show business.” As much as motion pictures are an art form, it is also a business. In many cases, a very big business. Motion picture studios will often invest hundreds of millions of dollars into a film expecting to see a return on their investment. Most of the time, a film will break even. However, in a few spectacular cases, a disastrous film has ruined a studio. Learn more about box office bombs and some of the worst-perfo...
Located between Canada and the United States is one of the largest bodies of freshwater in the world, Lake Superior. Lake Superior is the largest and deepest of the Great Lakes, and it is the first of the lakes in terms of water flow. Despite being the largest of the Great Lakes, it has the fewest number of people living on its shores, yet it is one of the most important economically. Learn more about Lake Superior, the big lake they call Gitche Gumee, on this episode of Everything Everywhere Da...
As soon as money was invented, counterfeiting was invented soon after. Counterfeiting has been around for as long as money, and as money has changed, counterfeiters have changed with it. What used to be a relatively simple process has become a highly technical game of cat and mouse. Today, it is considered a crime in every country on Earth, but of course that depends on what currency you are trying to counterfeit. Learn more about counterfeiting and the perpetual game of trying to stop counterfe...
Almost every country in the world uses the metric system…..almost. There are still a few stragglers, like the United States, who use units handed down to them from the British. These are known as Imperial Units. These units often confuse those living in countries that use the metric system….as well as those who live in countries that use Imperial Units. They don’t often make sense. They don’t have any consistency between units, and their histories are quite murky. Learn more about imperial units...
In 1908, a two-year-old boy named Puyi was installed as the 11th Emperor of the Qing Dynasty in China. His life would prove to be radically different from that of any other Chinese emperor who came before him. He would see the end of Imperial China, become a puppet ruler for those who wished legitimacy, wind up in prison, and finally live out his final days as a commoner. His personal story can be seen as a microcosm of the history of China during the 20th century. Learn more about Puyi, the las...
Located on the island of La Gomera in the Spanish Canary Islands is one of the most unusual languages on Earth. For centuries, the people on this island have been able to communicate over vast distances not by shouting, using smoke signals, or drums, but rather by whistling. This system allowed them to communicate just as easily as if they were talking, and it is still being used today. Learn more about Silbo Gomero, the whistling language of the Canary Islands, on this episode of Everything Eve...
Every country in Africa is unique and has its own history. However, many African countries share a similar story over the last 150 years, having gone through European colonization and decolonization. The nation of Liberia, however, has a history, unlike any other country in the world. From its founding to its modern-day governance, the story of the country is truly fascinating. Learn more about the West African country Liberia and its unique history on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily...
Whenever there is a lottery, the odds of winning are given. If you go to a pizzeria, they might tell you the number of possible pizzas that can be made, given their toppings. If you have a combination lock, it is secured because of the number of different solutions that are possible. All of these things might seem different, but they are all part of the same branch of mathematics. Learn more about Permutations and Combinations and how they work on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Spo...
In 19th century America, a movement began to take areas of exceptional natural beauty and preserve them. This idea of setting aside land for the purpose of preservation is something that was never really taken seriously before. These areas became known as national parks, and they spawned a movement of land preservation that spread around the world and continues to this day. Learn more about National Parks, America’s best idea, on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Sign up for ...
There is a good chance that sometime in the last few days, weeks, or months, you might have enjoyed a slice or two of pizza. Pizza has become a near-ubiquitous food which can be found in almost every country. However, there is no one pizza. There are vehement disagreements about what pizza is best and what sort of toppings are acceptable. Learn more about pizza, where it came from, and its variations on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Sign up for ButcherBox today by going t...
