Ancient mathematics was very different than the mathematics you are used to today. Two primary tools ancient mathematicians used were the compass and the straightedge. With these two very simple objects, they were able to make an astounding number of proofs and mathematical discoveries. However, there were some problems that were always beyond their grasp. Learn more about squaring the circle and the problem that eluded mathematicians for over 2000 years on this episode of Everything Everywhere ...
Nov 03, 2024•16 min•Ep. 1581
Right now in the Northern Hemisphere, the days are getting shorter, and things are getting colder. In the southern hemisphere, the opposite is happening. Regardless of whether you are in the North or the South, there is one thing for certain…in November, there shall be questions, and there shall be answers. Stay tuned for Questions and Answers volume 25 on this episode of Everything Everywher Daily. Sponsors Plan your next trip to Spain at Spain.info! Sign up at butcherbox.com/daily and use code...
Nov 02, 2024•17 min•Ep. 1580
Today, there is a giant rift that is tearing the continent of Africa apart. ..and I mean this quite literally because the rift isn’t cultural, economic, or political, it’s geologic. In several million years, Africa will be split into two continents, and while the process will take a long time, you see ample evidence for it right now. Learn more about the East African Rift and how it has shaped the modern continent of Africa on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan your next ...
Nov 01, 2024•14 min•Ep. 1579
The myth of the werewolf, a human who transforms into a wolf, is one of the most enduring and pervasive tales in folklore. Tales of werewolves could be found in many countries for over 2000 years. In the Middle Ages, people suspected of being werewolves were hunted alongside witches and vampires. By the 20th century, the werewolf myth had evolved into a common narrative and appeared in a multitude of media properties. Learn more about werewolves, their origin in legends, and how the modern versi...
Oct 31, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1578
Some of the most frightening and iconic monsters in the history of the horror genre are vampires. Vampires have a history that is both ancient and modern. For thousands of years, various cultures around the world have had stories of vampire-esque beings who would prey on humans. However, in the last two centuries, these stories have coalesced into a very specific type of creature with a unique backstory and set of powers and weaknesses. Learn more about vampires, how they were created and where ...
Oct 30, 2024•16 min•Ep. 1577
In 1816, a group of friends who were writers were stuck indoors in Geneva, Switzerland, and were bored. So, they created a challenge for themselves. They were to each come up with a unique ghost story. After several days of being unable to come up with a story, one of the women in the group was struck with an idea for her ghost tale. Her story became the basis of one of the most important novels in English literature, one of the greatest characters of all time, and arguably spawned an entire for...
Oct 29, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1576
One of the primary religious practices of the Ancient Egyptians was preparing physical bodies for the journey to the afterlife. This highly developed process, perfected over centuries, preserved bodies for thousands of years. Many of these bodies, discovered by archeologists and thieves, were taken out of Egypt and put in museums all over the world. They have caught the attention of the public and have been the source of many horror stories. Learn more about mummies, why they were made, how they...
Oct 28, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1575
One of the most popular forms of fiction today involves zombies. There are TV shows, movies, and books that all envision life during a zombie apocalypse. Zombie stories are a relatively new form of fiction. However, zombies didn’t come out of nowhere. They have a basis in legend, religion, and fact….. well, sort of fact. Learn more about zombies, their origins, and how they have been portrayed in media on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan your next trip to Spain at Spain...
Oct 27, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1574
If you are listening to me speak these words, regardless of where in the world you live, you are part of a global network we call human civilization. You share in the ideas, technology, and goods created worldwide and by people in your community. Most people on the planet are a part of this system. But not everyone. Some people have remained separated from this system and still live in their traditional ways today. Learn more about uncontacted people, who they are, and where they live on this ep...
Oct 26, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1573
On August 4, 1892, in Fall River, Massachusetts, an incredibly grizzly event took place. Andrew and his wife, Abby Borden, were brutally murdered by repeated strikes with a hatchet to their heads. The primary suspect in the case was their daughter, Lizzie. In the subsequent trial, there wasn’t enough evidence to convict, and ever since, people have wondered if Lizzie did, in fact, kill her parents, and if she didn’t, who did? Learn more about Lizzie Borden and Borden's murders on this episode of...
Oct 25, 2024•16 min•Ep. 1572
From the end of the Second World War through 1991, the city of Berlin, the former capital of Germany and its largest city, was split in two. The two Berlins, East and West, were in a geopolitical situation unlike any that the world had seen before or since. This one city split into two, was ground zero for the Cold War. Here, the conflict between East and West was a daily reality for the people who lived on both sides. Learn more about East and West Berlin, how they came to be, and how they came...
Oct 24, 2024•17 min•Ep. 1571
Ever since the dawn of the space age, there have been some who have dreamed of establishing a human presence on Mars. However, despite being really far away, Mars is not exactly hospitable to humans. Some suggest that the answer might be to completely change Mars's environment, to radically change its atmosphere, and, over time, to turn it into a second Earth where humans could live. Learn more about the idea of terraforming Mars, what would need to be done, and the challenges it would face in t...
Oct 23, 2024•16 min•Ep. 1570
In the late 13th century, the Mongol Empire was at the peak of its power. It was at this time that the Mongol Emperor of China, Kublai Khan, set his eyes on the islands of Japan. On two separate occasions, the Mongols assembled the largest amphibious fleet in world history. Both times, they discovered the limits of their military conquests. Learn more about the Mongol invasions of Japan on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan your next trip to Spain at Spain.info! Sign up a...
Oct 22, 2024•16 min•Ep. 1569
After the founding of Rome as a city in the 8th century BC, it created a social system based on an elite few and a majority of commoners. This social arrangement wasn’t unique to Rome, and it has appeared in cultures and civilizations around the world. However, Rome was one of the first cultures to experience a conflict between these classes and for the commoners to win major concessions. Learn more about the Conflict of the Orders and the battle between Plebeians and Patricians on this episode ...
Oct 21, 2024•16 min•Ep. 1568
Approximately every eleven years, our sun experiences a cycle in which its magnetic poles flip. During this cycle, solar flares and sunspot activity increase, and then the sun returns to a state of relative calm. These solar cycles have been tracked for over two hundred years and are among the best-recorded aspects of solar astronomy. These extremes, known as the solar maximum and solar minimum, affect the sun and can have implications for the Earth. Learn more about the solar cycle and the ebbi...
Oct 20, 2024•16 min•Ep. 1567
One of the most powerful forces in economics and finance is compound interest. Not everyone understands compound interest, even though they may reap its benefits or suffer its consequences. Compounding has the potential to build fortunes and wreck empires. The effects of compounding are also not limited to interest payments. It can apply to a great many things in and out of the natural world. Learn more about compound interest, how it works and its awesome potential on this episode of Everything...
Oct 19, 2024•18 min•Ep. 1566
Every day, billions of people around the world wake up and have breakfast. Breakfast is very different than the other meals you eat in a day. The types of food that people consume for breakfast are usually much more narrow than what they might be for lunch or dinner. Moreover, the way we eat breakfast and what we eat is very different to the types of meals people ate in the past. Learn more about the history of breakfast on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan your next tri...
Oct 18, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1565
In 1475, Michelangelo Buonarroti was born in Caprese, Italy. Over the next 88 years, he left a legacy of paintings and sculptures unlike any artist before or since. His art shaped the city he came from, the era he lived in, and, eventually, the entire world of Western art. Today, the works he created are some of the most treasured and valuable artworks in the entire world. Learn more about Michelangelo and how he became the greatest artist of the Renaissance on this episode of Everything Everywh...
Oct 17, 2024•14 min•Ep. 1564
Two of the United States's most distant territories are located in the Western Pacific Ocean: Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Despite being separate political entities today, the two groups of islands have a shared geography, history, and culture. Today, they find themselves on the doorstep of Asia and straddling the world world of the west and the east. Learn more about Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan...
Oct 16, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1563
On December 25, 2021, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope was launched from the European Space Agency launch center in French Guyana. After six months of testing and configuring the telescope, in July of 2022, its first images were transmitted. Since then, we have received a flood of images and data that have caused astronomers to rethink much of what we know about the universe. Learn more about the discoveries made by the James Webb Space Telescope so far on this episode of Everything Everywhere ...
Oct 15, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1562
Insurance seems like a pretty modern concept. There are insurance commercials on television, and insurance companies sponsor major sports teams. Most of us have to buy insurance, or we are at least under someone else’s insurance policy. However, insurance is far from a modern concept. It is actually one of the oldest financial arrangements in human history. Learn more about insurance, how it was created, and how it works on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan your next tri...
Oct 14, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1561
From 1899 to 1900, China underwent a widespread and violent uprising. The revolt, a reaction against China’s exploitation by foreign powers, was decades in the making. In response to the revolt, a group of eight nations joined together to put down the rebellion and ultimately subjected China to yet another humiliating treaty. The rebellion wasn’t successful, but it laid the groundwork for the seismic changes that would shape the country during the 20th century. Learn more about the Boxer Rebelli...
Oct 13, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1560
In late 1944, the Allies were on a roll, and Germany was on the ropes. Some Allies, considering how fast they were advancing, thought the war might be over by Christmas. However, Hitler had a plan. He would engage in one last desperate battle, which he thought would turn the tide of the war in the West and possibly wipe out the Allies completely. The result was one of the largest battles of the Second World War and the German military's ultimate failure. Learn more about the Battle of the Bulge ...
Oct 12, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1559
For centuries, sailors told tales of gigantic waves that they encountered at sea, and for centuries, scientists didn’t believe them. However, over time, evidence began to pile up, which suggested that the legends of these freak waves were, in fact, true. These waves are rare, still not well understood, and terrifying to ships and sailors because there is almost no way to detect or predict where or when they will occur. Learn more about rogue waves, how they were discovered, and how they occur on...
Oct 11, 2024•16 min•Ep. 1558
Humans have probably had the desire to fly ever since they saw the first bird fly in the air. Flying, as it turned out, was a very challenging problem for creatures without wings. Throughout the 19th century, many people tackled the problem without success. It wasn’t until the first years of the 20th century that the problem was finally solved. Learn more about the invention of the airplane and the solution to heavier-than-air travel on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan ...
Oct 10, 2024•16 min•Ep. 1557
In the 1860s, one of the bloodiest wars in the Western Hemisphere took place….and it wasn’t the US Civil War. It was a war between Paraguay and an alliance of Uruguay, Argentina, and Brazil, and it was one of the bloodiest ever fought in Latin America. It was a conventional war that resulted in a guerilla war, which spawned famine and disease. Learn more about the Paraguayan War or the War of the Triple Alliance on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. Sponsors Plan your next trip to Spai...
Oct 09, 2024•17 min•Ep. 1556
At the end of the Second World War, Europe was a mess. The economies of most countries were in shambles and the threat of communism loomed over the continent. In a speech at Harvard University on June 5, 1947, U.S. Secretary of State George C. Marshall proposed a plan which could help get Europe back on its feet. The plan is widely considered one of the most successful foreign aid programs in history. Learn more about the Marshall Plan, how it came about, and how it worked on this episode of Eve...
Oct 08, 2024•17 min•Ep. 1555
Every year, hundreds of millions of birds around the world migrate. Some migrate short distances, some migrate incredibly long distances, and others don’t bother to migrate at all. For centuries, people didn’t know why birds migrated, how they managed to travel such long distances every year, or where they would go. Thanks to modern science and technology we now have a much better idea of how it works and where they go. Learn more about bird migrations on this episode of Everything Everywhere Da...
Oct 07, 2024•15 min•Ep. 1554
Sitting in most homes is a deck of playing cards. Cards and card games have become almost ubiquitous They are played by children and in retirement homes. They are played at family picnics, and there are also televised games played with millions of dollars on the line. You can play games with friends, or you can even play them by yourself. Despite how common they are, most people don’t realize that they have a very ancient heritage. Learn more about the origin of playing cards on this episode of ...
Oct 06, 2024•14 min•Ep. 1553
One of the defining events of the Middle Ages took place in Constantinople on April 12, 1204. Soldiers of the Fourth Crusade, under orders of the Doge of the Republic of Venice, breached the walls and sacked one of the greatest cities of the era. The sack wasn’t just an orgy of violence and destruction, which it was. It also set into motion events that caused irreparable divisions between the Eastern and Western Christian worlds and, ultimately, the fall of the Byzantine Empire. Learn more about...
Oct 05, 2024•16 min•Ep. 1552
