This History of Lead

This History of Lead

Podcast Transcript Sometime around eight to nine thousand years ago, ancient people in Asia Minor found a very dull grey metal that turned out to be easy to manipulate when it was heated.  For thousands of years, it was used for a variety of purposes, including as a food additive.  With the advent of the …

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Cahokia: The Largest Indigenous Settlement in North America

Cahokia: The Largest Settlement in North America

Podcast Transcript You are probably familiar with, or have at least heard of, several of the great pre-Columbian cities in the Americas. Places like Tikal, Guatemala, Copan, Honduras, and Tenochtitlan, Mexico are some of the great legacies of the civilizations that came before.  However, all of these population centers were located Mesoamerica. Most of the …

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Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

The Grand Canyon is one of the greatest natural attractions on Earth. It’s a vast and visually powerful landscape with plunging cliffs and variegated colors slashing across the ancient rocks. Known for its multihued toned, the colors of the rocks change color through the course of the day, culminating in a spectacular sunset. It also …

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The London Underground

The London Underground

Podcast Transcript The 19th century saw an explosion in population in London. The city grew severalfold and became the largest city in the world.  With so many people and the city growing so rapidly, transportation became a huge problem.  One solution was to provide the new technology known as locomotives in the city. However, building …

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Alternative Forms of Space Flight

Alternative Forms of Space Flight

Podcast Transcript Every single rocket that has ever been launched into space has been a rocket that burned some sort of fuel.  These chemical fuel rockets have worked well for making the short trip to orbit. Beyond that point, however, they are not necessarily the best option for space travel.  There are a host of …

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Human Life Expectancy

Human Life Expectancy

Podcast Transcript Everyone, I have some good news and some bad news.  The bad news is that you, me, and everyone else listening to my voice right now are mortal.  As of the recording of this episode, time is undefeated.  The good news is that there has never been a better time to be alive …

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The Maginot Line

The Maginot Line

Podcast Transcript After the First World War in France, many generals thought that the end of the war was really just a pause before another war began. They wanted to make sure that the next time war broke out with Germany, they were ready and could never be invaded again.  To that end, they created …

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Questions and Answers: Volume 14

Questions and Answers: Volume 14

Podcast Transcript The month of January was named after the Roman god Janus who had two faces, one on each side of his head.  Janus was the god of waging war and making peace. Of beginnings and endings, and of change and passages. …and while there is no evidence to prove it, I’m pretty sure …

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Introduction to the Philippines

Introduction to the Philippines

Podcast Transcript Located off the coast of Southeast Asia lies an archipelago of 7,641 islands that constitute the nation of the Philippines.  The Philippines is one of the largest countries in the world by population and has a history and a culture, unlike any other country in Asia.  The process through which the modern nation …

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