The Discovery of Fire

The Discovery of Fire

Transcript When we think of what made human beings into human beings, one of the first things which come up is the discovery of fire. The control and use of fire is one of the earliest things which our ancestors did, which separated us from other apes and began us on the path to becoming …

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A Brief History of London

A Brief History of London

Podcast Transcript Almost 2000 years ago, after conquering most of the island of Great Britain, Roman forces established a settlement at a strategically narrow point on the Thames River. Since its establishment, the city has grown dramatically, at one point having secured the title of the largest city in the world.  Today it is one …

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The Silurian Hypothesis: How Could We Detect Extremely Ancient Civilizations

The Silurian Hypothesis: How Could We Detect Extremely Ancient Civilizations

Podcast Transcript The universe is billions of years old.  If, in the future, humanity were to explore the galaxy and visit other planets around other stars, we might be visiting places where at one time, an advanced civilization once existed.  However, if such a civilization existed, it might have been millions of years in the …

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Titanium: The Wonder Metal That Never Quite Was

Titanium: The Wonder Metal That Never Quite Was

Podcast Transcript Titanium is the ninth most abundant element in the Earth’s crust.  However, titanium is not even remotely close to the ninth most common element in industrial or commercial use.  In fact, despite being so abundant, we didn’t even know titanium existed until the late 18th century, and we couldn’t figure out how to …

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The Greatest Concert of All Time: Beethoven’s Concert of December 22, 1808

The Greatest Concert of All Time: Beethoven's Concert of December 22, 1808

Podcast Transcript On December 22, 1808, concertgoers in Vienna, Austria, were witness to a monumental event in music history.  Ludwig van Beethoven held a concert where he debuted several of his greatest works in one program. While the concert has gone down as one of the most important in history, the conditions during the concert …

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The History of Blue Jeans

The History of Blue Jeans

Podcast Transcript Unquestionably, the most popular clothing innovation of the last 150 years has been blue jeans.  They can be found all over the world, yet they have become synonymous with American culture.  While modern blue jeans are definitely American, their origin actually goes back centuries earlier to Europe. Learn more about the history of …

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The Roman Emperor Claudius

The Roman Emperor Claudius

Podcast Transcript Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, known to history as Claudius, was the fourth Emperor of Rome.  Of the emperors that came before him and all those who came after him, he was the most unlikely of emperors.  Up until the moment he became emperor, no one during his entire life seriously thought of …

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Could There Be Extraterrestrial Life In Our Solar System?

Could There Be Extraterrestrial Life In Our Solar System?

Podcast Transcript One of the biggest questions that humanity has asked is, “Are we alone in the universe?” The possibility that there are other civilizations that we could one day communicate with has tantalized people for years. However, before we can answer that question, there are other simpler questions that we need to answer, such …

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The Dead Sea Scrolls

The Dead Sea Scrolls

Podcast Transcript In early 1947, a teenage Bedouin herder was looking for a lost goat from his flock when he came upon a cave near the Dead Sea.  Randomly, he threw a stone into the cave and was surprised to hear not the sound of the stone hitting a cave wall but rather the breaking …

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