Enneagrams (Entry 415.JM0124)
In which Sufi mysticism inspires a Bolivian philosopher to divide all of humanity into nine personality types, and Ken visualizes the ur-cow. Certificate #25935.
Aug 03, 2023•2 hr 37 min
Omnibus
Every week, Ken Jennings and John Roderick add a new entry to the OMNIBUS, an encyclopedic reference work of strange-but-true stories that they are compiling as a time capsule for future generations.
Episodes
The Doomsday Clock (Entry 372.1P0407)
In which a panel of concerned atomic scientists quantify the dangers of the nuclear age with a timely visual aid, and John's mother has a favorite fact about Benjamin Franklin. Certificate #26973.
Jul 27, 2023•1 hr 29 min
Foundling Wheels (Entry 495.IS4915)
In which a medieval pope's disturbing nightmare leads to the addition of "baby doors" at convents and hospitals across Europe, and John thinks robots could replace orphans. Certificate #43431.
Jul 20, 2023•1 hr 4 min
The Sanaa Manuscript (Entry 1100.2T0316)
In which a Yemeni construction crew finds a priceless trove of Quranic literature and promptly stuff it into potato sacks, and Ken would like to burn some French translators at the stake. Certificate #24503.
Jul 13, 2023•1 hr 13 min
The Sarajevo Haggadah (Entry 1102.EX1243)
In which a unique piece of Jewish medieval art barely survives two European wars, and John imagines that the Venetian papal censor was a chill guy. Certificate #48606.
Jul 06, 2023•1 hr 18 min
Salton Sea (Entry 1098.GN1403)
In which California's largest lake, created by accident in 1905, teeters on the brink of collapse, and Ken complains about a hotel sink. Certificate #44008.
Jun 29, 2023•1 hr 13 min
101 Uses for a Dead Cat (Entry 606.LV0724)
In which an asthmatic British cartoonist sells two million copies of his books of non-jokes for cat skeptics, and John knows what the handle of a gun is called. Certificate #29573.
Jun 22, 2023•1 hr 9 min
Crackers (Entry 290.NA0302)
In which a Shakespearean insult for an obnoxious blowhard comes to be used as an anti-white slur, and Ken wants to test the Appalachians for testosterone. Certificate #38163.
Jun 15, 2023•1 hr 4 min
The Tartarian Empire (Entry 1279.NA0206)
In which a QAnon-like conspiracy theory insists that fancy 19th-century architecture was all built by a mysterious, long-lost superstate, and John is concerned about neighborhood dogs with heads the size of pumpkins. Certificate #20354.
Jun 08, 2023•1 hr 13 min
The Kruger Millions (Entry 693.JB2801)
In which a vast hoard of gold and diamonds disppears near the Mozambique border during the Boer War, and Ken thinks most penguin species look like hoboes. Certificate #15845.
Jun 01, 2023•1 hr 14 min
Project Cybersyn (Entry 993.AC0245)
In which Latin America's first Marxist democracy tries to collectivize the means of production by inventing a proto-internet in 1970, and John just hopes it was orange and brown. Certificate #53432.
May 25, 2023•1 hr 14 min
The Gimli Glider (Entry 528.PS6104)
In which the pilots of a Canadian commercial jetliner abruptly realize over Ontario that they're entirely out of fuel, and Ken likes sad character licensing attempts at amusement parks. Certificate #41746.
May 18, 2023•1 hr 22 min
Dueling Scars (Entry 385.PR0633)
In which German university students create a new status symbol when they add swordplay to their drinking society meetings, and John's closet skeletons are all bar fights. Certificate #36857.
May 11, 2023•1 hr 10 min
Alligators in the Sewers (Entry 033.LV1142)
In which generations of New Yorkers read about, and lasso, a series of not-legendary-at-all interlopers beneath their city, and Ken doesn't think you should trim a reptile like a bonsai tree. Certificate #36161.
May 04, 2023•1 hr 22 min
Magic Alex (Entry 747.JE0708)
In which a self-proclaimed electronics prodigy from Greece wows the credulous Beatles with five years of inventions he will never invent, and John insists that his recursive t-shirt feature Wil Wheaton. Certificate #45939.
Apr 27, 2023•1 hr 24 min
Saul Zaentz (Entry 1455.1S1435)
In which a future three-time Oscar winner becomes the nemesis of America's favorite fake swamp-rocker, and Ken has prepared a little skit about the death of Stalin. Certificate #42240.
Apr 20, 2023•1 hr 24 min
The Green River Ordinance (Entry 549.RV0320)
In which underslept Wyoming railroad workers strike back against a tide of pushy brush and encyclopedia salesmen, and John appreciates the Jehovah's Witnesses. Certificate #12881.
Apr 13, 2023•1 hr 18 min
Mad Cow Disease (Entry 746.GE4120)
In which the unsavory feeding practices of British dairy farms introduce Europe to a new degenerative brain disease, and Ken believes Prince Edward is not necessarily human. Certificate #41602.
Apr 06, 2023•1 hr 16 min
The Amazing Randi (Entry 038.EX0711)
In which mediums and other charlatans wage a 150-year war with their sworn enemy, elite stage magicians, and John would never yell at a lake or birdbath. Certificate #44722.
Mar 30, 2023•2 hr 35 min
Kevlar (Entry 684.EX2822)
In which a pioneering chemist never sees a cent of the billions of dollars that her tough new polymer earns for her employer, and Ken wonders how many Alaskans fake their own deaths. Certificate #34836.
Mar 23, 2023•1 hr 22 min
The Defector General (Entry 326.IS3301)
In which the greatest turncoat in Chinese history betrays every single warlord or government he ever serves, and John had the 4chan version of the '90s. Certificate #40824.
Mar 16, 2023•1 hr 24 min
The Devils Hole Pupfish (Entry 342.PS10529)
In which a playful-looking but delicate little species is unable to thrive anywhere but its 11-foot wide home near Death Valley, and Ken witnesses a jellyfish tragedy. Certificate #41036.
Mar 09, 2023•1 hr 8 min
The Sight and Sound Poll (Entry 1158.DE0413)
In which a British magazine very gradually takes over film culture with its once-every-decade top ten list, and John is careful not to endorse an invasion of the Sudetenland. Certificate #51403.
Mar 02, 2023•2 hr 33 min
The Bhopal Disaster (Entry 118.JE2106)
In which a series of lapses at a Union Carbide India chemical plant leads to the worst industrial accident in history, and Ken can't get behind a midnight tea break. Certificate #52760.
Feb 23, 2023•1 hr 21 min
The Osage Headrights (Entry 877.MT2508)
In which an Oklahoma tribe becomes the world's richest people before the swindling and the murders start, and John enjoys a web of intrigue. Certificate #47911.
Feb 16, 2023•1 hr 23 min
The Voynich Manuscript (Entry 1403.DA0515)
In which a bizarrely illustrated codex baffles codebreakers for almost four hundred years, and Ken should not have sent that text about the collected works of Dickens. Certificate #42634.
Feb 09, 2023•1 hr 23 min
Rhinos in Europe (Entry 1069.JB3910)
In which Europe is so besotted with exotic ungulates that Roman emperors battle them, artists engrave them badly, and salons honor them in wig form, and John asks about Ken's milk bags. Certificate #27983.
Feb 02, 2023•1 hr 11 min
Cannikin (Entry 180.IS0219)
In which underground nuclear testing in Alaska leads two Jewish Quakers into a new age of direct action in environmental activism, and Ken is grateful for the air fryer. Certificate #53211.
Jan 26, 2023•1 hr 10 min
The Royal Touch (Entry 1087.MT1902)
In which the divine right of kings, along with golden amulets, is considered the only cure for a disfiguring disease, and John considers which celebrities might be carved from wood. Certificate #22347.
Jan 19, 2023•1 hr 9 min
Blue Fugates (Entry 137.DA1006)
In which a rare oxidized form of hemoglobin changes the skin color of a whole holler full of Kentuckians, and Ken wonders when elves got plastic surgery. Certificate #26015.
Jan 12, 2023•1 hr 7 min