At the core of modern timekeeping lies a surprising hero: quartz. In this episode of Smartest Year Ever, Gordy breaks down how a simple crystal became the heartbeat of nearly every watch, clock, and computer on Earth.
Discover the science behind the quartz revolution—from the piezoelectric effect discovered by the Curie brothers, to how Seiko’s 1969 Astron transformed the watch industry forever. Learn why quartz vibrates at exactly 32,768 times per second, and how that rhythmic hum keeps your watch so precise that it only drifts a few seconds per month.
Gordy also dives into the Quartz Crisis, when mechanical watchmakers faced extinction at the hands of battery-powered precision. It’s a story of physics, innovation, and a rock that changed time itself.
Watch till the end to find out why quartz—not diamonds—might just be time’s true best friend.
#Quartz #ScienceFacts #Watchmaking #Physics #Watches #timekeeping #physicsfacts #crystals Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources:
Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of American History. Quartz Clocks and the Quartz Revolution.
Marrison, W.A., & Horton, J.W. (1927). The Precision of Quartz Crystal Oscillators. Bell Telephone Laboratories Technical Journal.
Seiko Museum Tokyo. History of the Seiko Astron (1969).
Encyclopaedia Britannica. Piezoelectricity.
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Quartz Oscillators and Frequency Standards.
At the University of Queensland, a small glass funnel has been “dripping” since 1927. But what’s dripping isn’t water — it’s pitch, a tar-like substance so thick it takes years for a single drop to fall. Known as the Pitch Drop Experiment, it’s officially recognized by Guinness World Records as the longest-running laboratory experiment in history.
Physicist Thomas Parnell started it nearly a century ago to prove that some solids are actually liquids that flow extremely slowly. Since then, it’s been a saga of missed moments, camera failures, and scientific patience — a study in viscosity that moves at the pace of geological time.
Gordy unpacks the full story of this mesmerizing experiment that’s still running today, producing roughly one drop every decade. From Parnell’s original setup in 1927 to the moment a professor’s shaky hand accidentally triggered a long-awaited drop, this is the strangest cliffhanger in science — and one that’s still teaching us the quiet power of patience.
If you think science can’t be dramatic, wait until you meet a liquid that takes 13 years to fall.
Music thanks to Zapsplat.
#ScienceFacts #WeirdScience #PhysicsExperiments #SlowestExperiment #ScienceHistory #DailyFacts #pitchdropexperiment #pitchdrop #physics #experiments #scienceexperiment
Sources:
University of Queensland. (n.d.). The Pitch Drop Experiment. https://smp.uq.edu.au/pitch-drop-experiment
Guinness World Records. (n.d.). Longest-running laboratory experiment.
The Conversation. (2023). World’s longest-running experiment continues to drip.
Trinity College Dublin Physics Department. (n.d.). The Pitch Drop Experiment at Trinity.
Parnell, T. (1930). Original Laboratory Records, University of Queensland Archives.
The Tenth Watch (n.d.). Official Livestream Feed of the Queensland Pitch Drop. http://thetenthwatch.com/feed/
Every few years, Hollywood gets déjà vu — two nearly identical movies hit theaters within months of each other. Think Armageddon and Deep Impact, A Bug’s Life and Antz, The Prestige and The Illusionist. How does this keep happening? Are studios copying each other, or is there something deeper going on behind the scenes?
In this episode, Gordy unpacks the phenomenon of “twin films” — rival movies that share the same plot, tone, and release window. From asteroid blockbusters to competing magician dramas, discover how parallel development, industry gossip, and herd behavior make Hollywood’s strangest coincidences almost inevitable.
If you’ve ever thought, “Didn’t I already see this movie?” — this episode will finally explain why.
#HollywoodHistory #FilmFacts #MovieTrivia #CinemaHistory #EntertainmentIndustry #moviefacts #twinfilms #hollywood #moviemaking #productioncompanies Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources:
Purcell, E. (2020). Why Do We Have Twin Films? Counter Arts (Medium).
The Guardian. (2017). Why Hollywood Keeps Making Twin Films.
Variety. (1998). Armageddon vs Deep Impact: The Battle for Earth.
The Hollywood Reporter. (2006). Magician Movies Square Off.
Box Office Mojo. (2024). Financial Data for Armageddon, Deep Impact, Antz, A Bug’s Life, The Prestige, The Illusionist, Olympus Has Fallen, White House Down.
Six million years ago, a bird the size of a human soared over prehistoric Argentina. With a 23-foot wingspan and a body weight rivaling a person’s, Argentavis magnificens wasn’t just massive—it was the heaviest flying bird the planet has ever seen.
In this episode of Smartest Year Ever, Gordy dives deep into the aerodynamics, anatomy, and evolution of this Miocene monster—exploring how it pushed the limits of physics to stay aloft. Learn how scientists modeled its flight mechanics, how it compared to giants like Pelagornis sandersi and modern Andean condors, and why Argentavis represents the upper boundary of powered flight in Earth’s history.
Perfect for fans of prehistoric life, aerodynamics, and evolutionary biology, this story blends hard science with the awe of nature’s engineering at its absolute limit.
Watch till the end to understand what it truly takes for a creature this heavy to defy gravity—and why nothing like it has ever flown again.
#PrehistoricBirds #AnimalFacts #ScienceFacts #DailyFacts #Evolution #Paleontology #AviationScience #NaturalHistory #DidYouKnow #argentavis #extinctanimals
Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources:
Chatterjee, S., Templin, R. J., & Campbell, K. E. (2007). The aerodynamics of Argentavis, the world’s largest flying bird from the Miocene of Argentina. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 104(30), 12398–12403.
Campbell, K. E., & Tonni, E. P. (1980). A new genus of teratorn from the Upper Miocene of Argentina. Contributions in Science, 330.
Ksepka, D. T. (2014). Flight performance of the largest volant bird. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(29), 10624–10629.
National Geographic. (2014). World’s largest flying bird identified from fossils.
Smithsonian Institution Archives. (n.d.). Pelagornis sandersi fossil record.
The Corpse Flower, or Amorphophallus titanum, is one of nature’s strangest performances—a rare botanical spectacle that looks magnificent but smells like death. In this Fright Facts Week episode of Smartest Year Ever, Gordy dives into the bizarre science and history of the world’s largest and smelliest flower, uncovering how evolution engineered this tropical monster to mimic the scent of decay.
From its chemical cocktail of putrescine, cadaverine, and dimethyl trisulfide to the way its spadix heats up like a human body, every grotesque detail serves a purpose. You’ll discover why crowds still line up for hours to catch a whiff, how it lures carrion beetles and flesh flies, and why this stinking spectacle only blooms once every decade.
If you think flowers are just pretty and fragrant, think again. This one could make you gag—and that’s exactly how it survives.
#Titanarum #flowers #botanyfacts #CorpseFlower #WeirdNature #Botany #FunFacts #ScienceFacts #DailyFacts
Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources:
Beccari, O. (1878). Piante Omonime del Genere Amorphophallus. Florence.
National Geographic. (2018). Corpse Flower: Why Does This Giant Bloom Smell So Terrible?
Smithsonian Magazine. (2016). Why the Corpse Flower Smells So Bad.
U.S. Botanic Garden. (2017). Amorphophallus titanum: Bloom Facts and Life Cycle.
Kew Gardens Archives. (1889). First Recorded Bloom of Amorphophallus titanum Outside Indonesia.
BBC Science Focus. (2020). The Science Behind the Corpse Flower’s Terrible Stench.
Nisyawati & Wiriadinata, H. (1998). Pollination and Bloom Cycle of Amorphophallus titanum. Indonesian Journal of Botany.
It sounds like a horror movie — but it’s real. In this Fright Facts Week episode, Gordy unpacks the eerie medical mystery known as Lazarus Syndrome, when patients declared clinically dead suddenly start breathing again — sometimes minutes after life support has been stopped.
From a 1982 Lancet case report to the astonishing real-life story of Velma Thomas, whose heart restarted nearly an hour after death, this episode explores the rare condition that blurs the line between life and death. Gordy dives into theories from modern medicine — like delayed drug effects, trapped air in the lungs (auto-PEEP), and spontaneous return of circulation — to reveal how the body can sometimes reboot itself in ways science is still trying to understand.
It’s one of the strangest phenomena ever recorded in emergency medicine — and a reminder that even death, sometimes, takes its time.
Watch until the end for the unbelievable real cases that made doctors rethink what “time of death” really means.
#LazarusSyndrome #MedicalMystery #Resurrection #DailyFacts #ScienceFacts #WeirdScience #medicalmarvel #medicine #spookyfacts #CPR Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources:
Linko, J. G., Honkavaara, P., & Salmenpera, M. (1982). Recovery after discontinued cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The Lancet, 319(8270), 106–107.
Adhiyaman, V., Adhiyaman, S., & Sundaram, R. (2007). The Lazarus phenomenon. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 100(12), 552–557.
Bray, J. E., Deasy, C., Smith, K., Bernard, S., & Finn, J. (2010). The Lazarus phenomenon: Return of spontaneous circulation after cessation of resuscitation in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Resuscitation, 81(7), 830–833.
Hornby, K., Dhanani, S., & Shemie, S. D. (2010). A systematic review of autoresuscitation after cardiac arrest. Critical Care Medicine, 38(5), 1246–1253.
NEJM Journal Watch. (2014). Lazarus phenomenon following prolonged resuscitation.
CNN (2014). Woman declared dead, wakes up after 45 minutes.
BBC News (2020). US woman found alive in body bag at funeral home.
Resuscitation Council UK (2021). Guidelines for termination of resuscitation efforts.
It’s Halloween, and Gordy’s saving the creepiest for last. Deep in the forest, a bizarre fungus called Dead Man’s Fingers pushes up from the soil — blackened, shriveled, and disturbingly human-like. But is it just an illusion… or something stranger?
In this episode of Smartest Year Ever, Gordy explores the science and folklore behind Xylaria polymorpha, a fungus that looks like it’s clawing its way out of the grave. From its eerie anatomy and forest ecology to the myths that made it famous, this episode digs into how something so horrifying can also be essential to life itself.
Learn why these “fingers” emerge from the ground, what they’re actually doing beneath the surface, and how mycologists are now studying their bioactive compounds for potential medical and environmental breakthroughs. Creepy, fascinating, and just in time for Halloween — this is nature’s version of a horror movie with a twist ending.
So… are those fingers reaching for you, or for the next rotting log?
Watch till the end — it’s worth it.
Sources:
Spooner, B. M., & Sherwood-Pike, M. A. (1983). Fungal Flora of the British Isles. Kew Bulletin.
Mycological Society of America. (2019). Xylaria polymorpha: Ecology and Morphology.
University of Wisconsin Mycology Herbarium. (n.d.). Xylaria polymorpha Database Entry.
North American Mycological Association. (2020). Field Guide Entry: Xylaria polymorpha.
Nova, et al. (2021). Bioactive Compounds from Xylaria Species. Mycobiology.
Music thanks to Zapsplat. #HalloweenFacts #CreepyNature #Mycology #Fungi #DeadMansFingers #fungus #WeirdScience #ScienceFacts #DailyFacts
In this chilling Fright Facts Week episode, Gordy uncovers one of the most haunting museums on Earth — a place where nature accidentally mummified hundreds of people. Deep beneath the streets of Guanajuato, Mexico, a strange mix of climate, soil, and 19th-century tax policy turned an ordinary cemetery into a gallery of preserved faces frozen in time.
Why did only a handful of bodies mummify while others decayed? What scientific conditions made this town a natural embalming chamber? And how did it all lead to one of the world’s most unsettling tourist attractions — the Museo de las Momias de Guanajuato?
From cholera epidemics to gravedigger discoveries, and even a Mexican wrestling movie where heroes battled the undead, this is a story where science meets folklore, and tragedy becomes tourism.
#Mummies #Guanajuato #Mexico #CreepyHistory #Anthropology #ScienceFacts #HistoryMysteries #DailyFacts #spookyfacts #halloweenweek Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources:
Museo de las Momias de Guanajuato. (2018). Official archives and visitor information.
García, A., & Medina, M. (2011). Natural Mummification in Guanajuato, Mexico: A Climatic and Forensic Analysis. Universidad de Guanajuato.
Carmichael, E., & Sayer, C. (1991). The Skeleton at the Feast: The Day of the Dead in Mexico. University of Texas Press.
National Geographic. (2016). Mexico’s Accidental Mummies.
Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia (INAH). (2018). Preservation Records.
During Fright Facts Week, Gordy dives into one of the most chilling experiences the human brain can produce — sleep paralysis, the terrifying moment when your mind wakes up but your body doesn’t. For centuries, people thought it was a demonic visitation, a witch sitting on your chest, or a night hag haunting your dreams. Science calls it REM atonia, but that doesn’t make it feel any less like the real nightmare.
In this episode, Gordy explores the psychology, neurology, and cultural history behind sleep paralysis — from the Old English “mare” that gave us the word nightmare, to modern sleep studies uncovering why our brains conjure such vivid hallucinations. You’ll learn how REM dissociation creates the overlap between dream and wake states, and why the shadowy figures and chest pressure so many people report are all part of the same ancient, universal fear response.
Whether you’ve felt that eerie paralysis yourself or you’re just fascinated by sleep disorders, hallucinations, and the science of nightmares, this one’s a perfect watch for spooky season.
Music thanks to Zapsplat.
#SpookyFacts #SleepParalysis #Nightmares #SleepScience #DailyFacts #Psychology #BrainFacts #Dreams #DidYouKnow #SmartestYearEver
Sources:
Cheyne, J. A., Rueffer, S. D., & Newby-Clark, I. R. (1999). Sleep paralysis: Historical, psychological, and medical perspectives. Journal of Sleep Research, 8(4), 319–326.
American Academy of Sleep Medicine. (2020). REM Atonia and Sleep Paralysis Overview.
Jalal, B., & Hinton, D. E. (2015). Sleep paralysis among different cultures: A comparison of incidence and explanations. Transcultural Psychiatry, 52(4), 579–596.
Oxford English Dictionary. (n.d.). Nightmare (Old English mare).
National Institutes of Health. (2020). Prevalence and Mechanisms of Sleep Paralysis.
Every Halloween, we talk about zombies. But what if nature already made them? In this Fright Facts Week episode of Smartest Year Ever, Gordy explores the real-life fungus that controls ants like puppets, forcing them to climb, freeze, and die so it can spread. Known as Ophiocordyceps unilateralis — or the zombie ant fungus — this mind-controlling parasite shows that nature’s horror stories can be even more chilling than fiction.
Gordy breaks down how this fungus invades an ant’s body, grows through its muscles, hijacks its movements, and even makes it clamp down on leaves before sprouting a spore-filled stalk from its head. Scientists have discovered that it doesn’t even need to touch the brain — it’s pure biological manipulation, what Richard Dawkins called an “extended phenotype.”
This episode dives into the evolutionary precision of parasitic fungi, how Cordyceps species target specific insects, and what they reveal about behavioral control in nature. And yes — it even touches on whether something like this could ever infect humans (fans of The Last of Us, listen closely).
Perfect for fans of science, horror, and biology, this one proves that the most terrifying monsters aren’t in movies — they’re in the rainforest.
#ZombieAntFungus #ParasiticFungi #NatureHorror #MindControl #Evolution #ScienceFacts #DailyFacts #fungus #weirdnature #FunFacts Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Hughes, D. P., et al. (2011). Behavioral mechanisms and morphological symptoms of zombie ants infected by Ophiocordyceps unilateralis. BMC Ecology.
de Bekker, C., et al. (2014). Species-specific ant brain manipulation by a specialized fungal parasite. BMC Evolutionary Biology.
Andersen, S. B., et al. (2009). The life of a dead ant: The expression of an adaptive extended phenotype. American Naturalist.
Penn State University. (2017). Zombie-ant fungi manipulate hosts with precision.
SourcesSmithsonian Magazine. (2019). The True Nature of the Zombie Fungus That Takes Over Ants.
Every October 31st, millions of people dress as ghosts, ghouls, and superheroes — but few realize that Halloween began as a solemn ritual to survive the coming of winter. In this episode, Gordy traces the 2,000-year-old story of how an ancient Celtic festival called Samhain evolved into the Halloween we know today.
From bonfires and animal-skin disguises to soul cakes, turnip lanterns, and the first Jack-o’-lanterns carved from mangled roots, this is the fascinating tale of how pagan superstition became modern-day candy chaos.
Along the way, Gordy unearths how All Hallows’ Eve got its name, why turnips came before pumpkins, and how Irish immigrants helped reinvent the holiday in America. You’ll never look at Halloween — or that jack-o’-lantern on your porch — the same way again.
🎧 Dive in for the real history behind the costumes, candy, and skeletons. Because before Halloween was fun… it was sacred.
#HalloweenHistory #FrightFactsWeek #CelticMythology #AncientHistory #CulturalTraditions #DailyFacts #Halloween #FunFacts #spookyfacts
Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Oxford English Dictionary. (n.d.). Entry for Halloween (16th-century Scots usage).
Smithsonian Magazine. (n.d.). The Origins of Halloween Traditions.
History.com Editors. (2024). Halloween: Origins, Traditions & Facts. A&E Television Networks.
National Geographic. (n.d.). Samhain: The Celtic Origins of Halloween.
Encyclopaedia Britannica. (n.d.). All Saints’ Day and Samhain entries.
SourcesIrish Central. (n.d.). The Legend of Stingy Jack and the Jack-o’-lantern.
Miyamoto Musashi wasn’t just a samurai—he was Japan’s undefeated warrior-philosopher, a man who turned sword fighting into a system of thought that still influences strategy today.
In this episode, Gordy dives into Musashi’s legendary duels, his creation of the two-sword style Niten Ichi-ryū, and his transformation from duelist to artist, strategist, and author of The Book of Five Rings. How did one man win over sixty duels, shape Japanese martial arts, and still end up meditating alone in a cave?
Gordy unpacks Musashi’s most famous battle with Sasaki Kojiro, explores the deeper meaning of the Five Rings philosophy, and explains why modern CEOs and athletes still study his teachings 400 years later.
If you’re into samurai history, martial arts philosophy, Japanese culture, or psychology of strategy, this is a must-watch.
#HistoryFacts #Samurai #JapaneseCulture #MartialArts #DailyFacts #SmartestYearEver #Musashi #samuraihistory #samuraifacts #funfacts
Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources
Musashi, M. (2002). The Book of Five Rings (Go Rin no Sho) (W. S. Wilson, Trans.). Kodansha International.
Tokitsu, K. (2004). Miyamoto Musashi: His Life and Writings. Shambhala Publications.
Turnbull, S. (2003). Samurai: The World of the Warrior. Osprey Publishing.
Japanese Ministry of Culture Archives. (n.d.). “Historical Records of Niten Ichi-ryū.”
BBC History. (2019). Miyamoto Musashi: Japan’s Legendary Samurai.
Most people know the Guinness Book of World Records… but almost nobody knows it started with a missed shot at a bird — and a barroom argument that got way out of hand.
In this episode, Gordy uncovers the real story behind the Guinness Book of World Records, tracing its roots back to Sir Hugh Beaver, the Guinness Brewery, and one fateful hunting trip in Ireland. Discover how a marketing idea meant to settle pub debates over “the fastest” and “the biggest” turned into a global publishing phenomenon.
From the McWhirter twins’ obsessive fact-checking to the book’s transformation from bar giveaway to cultural empire, this is the wild, witty story of how a beer company accidentally created the most famous record book on Earth.
Expect clever insight, historical trivia, and one truly legendary case of content marketing done right.
Sources:
Guinness World Records. (n.d.). Official History. Retrieved from https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com
Beaver, H. (n.d.). The Origins of the Guinness Book of Records. Guinness Archives, Dublin.
BBC History. (2015). The Twins Who Built a World of Records.
The Irish Times. (2018). How an Argument Over Birds Led to the Guinness Book of Records.
The Guardian. (2020). From Barroom Bet to Global Brand: The Guinness World Records Story.
Music thanks to Zapsplat.
#GuinnessWorldRecords #WorldRecords #GuinnessBeer #HistoryFacts #FunFacts #DailyFacts #DidYouKnow #MarketingHistory
Does counting the seconds between lightning and thunder actually tell you how far away a storm is? 🌩️ In this episode, Gordy breaks down the science behind thunder, the physics of sound vs. light, and why that old “One Mississippi” trick actually works — sort of. Discover how Benjamin Franklin, Count Volta, and modern meteorologists all helped turn a childhood storm superstition into a surprisingly accurate way to measure storm distance.
Learn how sound speed changes with temperature, humidity, and altitude — and why a thunderclap can sound like a growling monster one moment and a cannon blast the next. You’ll never look at a lightning storm the same way again.
So next time you hear thunder, remember: you’re casually calculating the difference between light-speed and sound-speed physics, one Mississippi at a time.
#ScienceFacts #WeatherExplained #Lightning #Thunder #StormFacts #DailyFacts #FunFacts #SmartestYearEver Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources: • National Weather Service. (n.d.). The 30/30 Rule. https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-faq • NASA Earth Observatory. (n.d.). Why Thunder Rolls. • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (n.d.). Lightning Science: Five Striking Facts. • Franklin, B. (1752). Experiments and Observations on Electricity. London: E. Cave. • Encyclopaedia Britannica. (n.d.). Speed of Sound. • Royal Meteorological Society. (n.d.). Estimating Lightning Distance by Counting Seconds.
In this episode of Smartest Year Ever, Gordy explores the surprising origins of the world’s first vending machine—and no, it wasn’t dispensing snacks in an airport. Long before soda machines and coffee dispensers, an ancient inventor named Hero of Alexandria engineered a coin-operated device that changed the way humans thought about automation, innovation, and fairness.
From holy water dispensers in Greek temples to the Industrial Revolution’s postcard machines, and all the way to Japan’s modern vending empire, this episode unpacks how a 2,000-year-old idea evolved into one of the most successful inventions in history.
Discover how this ancient genius nearly sparked an industrial revolution centuries too early, and what his other mind-blowing creations—like self-opening temple doors, mechanical theaters, and the first steam engine—tell us about human curiosity.
If you’ve ever wondered who built the first vending machine or how humanity got from sacred rituals to Cheetos and Coca-Cola, this one’s for you.
#HistoryFacts #InventionHistory #AncientGreece #Engineering #Inventors #HeroofAlexandria #AncientInventions #VendingMachines #DailyFacts
Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources:
Hero of Alexandria. Pneumatica (1st century CE).
British Museum. (n.d.). Hero of Alexandria’s Vending Machine.
Smithsonian Magazine. (n.d.). Meet Hero, the Ancient Greek Who Invented the Vending Machine.
The Science Museum, London. (n.d.). History of Vending Machines.
Encyclopaedia Britannica. (n.d.). Hero of Alexandria.
Adams Gum Company Archive. (n.d.). New York Historical Society.
Zyzzyx Road might be the most infamous box office flop in Hollywood history—and yet, its failure wasn’t an accident. In this episode, Gordy digs into the bizarre story behind the lowest-grossing movie ever made, starring Katherine Heigl, Tom Sizemore, and one of the strangest marketing “strategies” ever.
Why did a movie cost over $1.2 million to make but earn only thirty dollars? How does a desert road, a snake oil salesman, and a Screen Actors Guild loophole all connect to this legendary flop?
Gordy unpacks the whole strange saga—from the forgotten Dallas theater where it played to the internet legend that turned failure into fame.
It’s a story about Hollywood dreams, contractual fine print, and the weird ways obscurity can make you famous.
#MovieFacts #FilmHistory #HollywoodTrivia #BoxOfficeBombs #DailyFacts #FunFacts #DidYouKnow #ZyzzyxRoad #zyzzyx
Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources:
Box Office Mojo. (2006). Zyzzyx Road (2006).
Los Angeles Times. (2007). The Movie That Made $30 at the Box Office.
IMDb. (2006). Zyzzyx Road (Production Notes).
Mental Floss. (2019). The Story Behind the Lowest-Grossing Film Ever.
SAG-AFTRA. (2005). Low Budget Agreement Archive.
U.S. Geological Survey. (n.d.). History of Zzyzx, California.
Every American kid knows the words to the Pledge of Allegiance—but almost nobody knows where it actually came from.
In this episode, Gordy uncovers the unexpected story behind one of America’s most repeated rituals: a pledge born from a children’s magazine, written by a socialist Baptist minister, and once performed with a salute that history has quietly erased.
From its 19th-century debut at the Chicago World’s Fair to its Cold War transformation into a patriotic creed, the Pledge has mirrored America’s shifting ideals—unity, fear, and faith all baked into a single sentence.
Why did it change? Who decided to add “under God”? And what did that original salute look like that forced Congress to rewrite the rulebook in 1942?
Gordy breaks down how this classroom ritual evolved from a marketing stunt to a national symbol, revealing the politics, propaganda, and cultural forces that shaped it.
👉 Watch to the end to see how a simple school recitation turned into one of the most debated patriotic acts in U.S. history.
#PledgeOfAllegiance #AmericanHistory #FrancisBellamy #USHistory #Patriotism #EducationHistory #DailyFacts #HistoryFacts Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources
Bellamy, F. (1892). The Youth’s Companion.
Library of Congress (2024). The Pledge of Allegiance: A Short History.
United States Code, 36 U.S.C. § 172 (1942).
Supreme Court of the United States. West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, 319 U.S. 624 (1943).
Smithsonian Magazine (2023). “The Man Behind the Pledge of Allegiance.”
Chicago Historical Society (2022). World’s Columbian Exposition of 1893.
In this episode, Gordy dives into the surprising anatomical truth behind one of the most emotional phrases in the English language: “tugging on my heartstrings.” It turns out, this expression isn’t just poetic — it’s rooted in real human anatomy.
From the early days of Renaissance medicine to Shakespeare’s poetic turns in Othello, Gordy traces how literal fibrous cords in your heart inspired centuries of art, emotion, and metaphor. Discover how a 16th-century misunderstanding of the heart’s structure became one of the most enduring ways to describe human feeling — and why science didn’t kill the metaphor, it made it stronger.
If you’ve ever wondered where phrases like “gut feeling” or “broken heart” come from, this is one you’ll want to hear. Get ready for a story that connects anatomy, etymology, and emotion — one tug at a time.
🧠 Give it a listen, and find out why this phrase might be one of the rare metaphors that’s technically true.
#WordOrigins #Heartstrings #LanguageHistory #AnatomyFacts #DailyFacts #Etymology #DidYouKnow #SmartestYearEver #idioms #wordfacts
Music thanks to Zapsplat.
Sources:
Oxford English Dictionary. (n.d.). Entry for “heart-string.” Oxford University Press.
Oxford English Dictionary. (n.d.). Entry for “chordae tendineae.” Oxford University Press.
Shakespeare, W. (c. 1603). Othello.
Gray, H. (1858). Anatomy: Descriptive and Surgical. London: John W. Parker and Son.
Ellis, F. G. R. (Ed.). (2014). A History of the Heart in Medicine, Science, and Culture. Cambridge University Press.
Encyclopaedia Britannica. (n.d.). Chordae Tendineae.
The Eiffel Tower is one of the world’s most iconic landmarks—but here’s the twist: it wasn’t meant to last. When Gustave Eiffel’s iron colossus was unveiled for the 1889 World’s Fair in Paris, critics mocked it as a “metal asparagus,” and the city had a plan to dismantle it after just 20 years.
Gordy dives into the surprising story of how a structure once despised by Parisians became a permanent symbol of France. From protest letters by artists and writers, to Eiffel’s secret scientific experiments in his private apartment at the top, to the unexpected role of radio technology and World War I, the tower’s survival was never guaranteed. Add in Adolf Hitler’s failed plans to destroy it during World War II, and the Eiffel Tower’s history reads like a thriller.
Today, this “temporary” tower is the most-visited paid monument on Earth, repainted every seven years with 60 tons of paint, standing as both a cultural icon and an engineering marvel. But the story of how it survived is stranger—and more fascinating—than you might think.
👉 Stay tuned through the end for Eiffel’s hidden apartment and the colorful painting history of the tower.
Sources
Lemoine, B. (1999). Gustave Eiffel: Le magicien du fer.
Jonnes, J. (2009). Eiffel’s Tower. Penguin Books.
Guinness World Records. (n.d.). Most-visited paid monument.
Curl, J. S. (Ed.). (2009). The Oxford Companion to Architecture. Oxford University Press.
Smithsonian Magazine. (2019). How the Eiffel Tower Was Nearly Torn Down.
#EiffelTower #HistoryFacts #ParisHistory #Architecture #DailyFacts #Paris #Eiffel #Engineering #landmarks #touristattractions Music thanks to Zapsplat.
At Oxford University, a tiny bell has been quietly defying time for nearly two centuries. Known as the Oxford Electric Bell (or the Clarendon Dry Pile), this mysterious device has been running continuously since the 1840s, powered by one of the world’s oldest batteries. Scientists still don’t fully know how it works, or how it’s lasted this long.
Why has this bell never stopped? What makes its unknown battery chemistry so enduring? And what does it reveal about the history of science, electricity, and human curiosity?
Gordy dives into one of history’s strangest and most enduring scientific mysteries—an experiment that has outlasted the Victorian era, the telegraph, and even the invention of the lightbulb.
Stay tuned—this story is a reminder that sometimes the simplest experiments can outlast entire generations.
Sources
Dibner, B. (1957). Early electrical machines. Norwalk: Burndy Library.
Guinness World Records. (n.d.). Longest lasting battery. Retrieved from https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com
Jones, A. (2015). Oxford Electric Bell still ringing after 175 years. Physics World, Institute of Physics.
Middleton, W. E. K. (1964). The history of the barometer. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Oxford University, Physics Department. (n.d.). The Oxford Electric Bell. Clarendon Laboratory archives.
#HistoryFacts #ScienceMysteries #BatteryLife #WeirdScience #sciencefacts #batteries #ScienceExperiment #funfacts Music thanks to Zapsplat.