Podcast Transcript Located in East London is the Royal Greenwich Observatory. Passing directly through the observatory is an imaginary line that extends from the North Pole to the South Pole. This line is significant because it is the reference point for every other line of longitude in the world. What is even more remarkable is …
Podcast Transcript From August 1942 to February 1943, the Germans and the Soviets engaged in what would become the most brutal and bloodiest battle in human history. The battle took place in a city that probably had greater psychological and propaganda value than it did actual strategic value. The battle, in many respects, was the …
Podcast Transcript The most significant event in American history was undoubtedly the Civil War. The Civil War was, of course, the result of the institution of slavery, which had existed for generations by that time. By the same token, the opposition to slavery had existed for just as long. The opposition to slavery began amongst …
Podcast Transcript February is the shortest month of the year. It is the flex month, where we stick extra days to make the calendar work. Depending on what hemisphere you are in, it can be a month of warmth and sunshine or a month of short days and cold weather. But it is also a …
Podcast Transcript Organized crime wasn’t always so organized. In the early 20th century, in New York, what we would call the mafia was rather unorganized. There were competing groups, and while the individual groups had an organization, there was anarchy among them. From 1929 to 1931 there was a war between some of the crime …
Podcast Transcript One of the most popular categories of beverage in the world today is soft drinks. Soft drinks can be found almost everywhere in every country, from corner stores to restaurants to vending machines. Unlike other popular beverages, soft drinks are a rather recent invention, despite there being early antecedents to soft drinks that …
Podcast Transcript On November 4, 1979, a group of Iranian Revolutionaries stormed the American Embassy in Tehran, Iran, and took 66 American diplomats and citizens hostage. Over the next 444 days, the hostage crisis dominated the news and became the single biggest foreign policy issue for both the United States and Iran. Even after the …
Podcast Transcript Since its creation, the Central Intelligence Agency has been tasked with gathering intelligence on foreign adversarial governments. Exactly how they were to go about doing this was not exactly spelled out in advance. This gave them an enormous amount of leeway and creativity in how to go about their mission. Some of their …
Podcast Transcript Airplanes are wonderful things. They fly through the air and move people and goods at rapid speeds around the world. However, they have some downsides. In order to take off and land, an airplane requires an enormous amount of land for runways. So, for over a century, aeronautical engineers have been trying to …