Cool Weird Awesome – Brady Carlson

Do Chocolates Taste Better With The Right Music? (Cool Weird Awesome 243)

21 02, 2020

Do Chocolates Taste Better With The Right Music? (Cool Weird Awesome 243)

By Brady Carlson|2020-02-21T09:49:38-05:00February 21st, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: chocolate, music, science|

Washington State University has a Sensory Science Lab that tests all the ways we encounter what we eat and how that can affect how we think it tastes. Now they’re testing whether different kinds of music can affect how we think about chocolate. Plus: this weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina, there’s a chance to go out on a bar crawl that’s like none other.

“Ghost Signs” Show What Buildings Used To Be (Cool Weird Awesome 242)

20 02, 2020

“Ghost Signs” Show What Buildings Used To Be (Cool Weird Awesome 242)

By Brady Carlson|2020-02-20T09:31:06-05:00February 20th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: Alexandria IN, New York City, photography, signs|

If you’ve ever driven past a building and seen a faded advertisement on the side of the brick, or spotted a neon sign for a restaurant where a real estate office now sits, those are ghost signs. A new book called The Ghost Signs of NYC tours these signs and advertisements and tells the stories of how they got where they are. Plus: meet the world's largest paint ball!

When Americans Could Mail Their Children From Place To Place (Cool Weird Awesome 241)

19 02, 2020

When Americans Could Mail Their Children From Place To Place (Cool Weird Awesome 241)

By Brady Carlson|2020-02-19T06:57:15-05:00February 19th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: bar codes, electronic music, experimental music, mail|

It was on this day in 1914 a family in Grangeville, Idaho sent a four year old through the mail to her grandmother in Lewiston, 73 miles away. And she wasn’t the only kid to travel this way after the US Postal Service began the parcel post. Plus: the group Electronicos Fantasticos is making some fascinating music with bar code scanners!

The Robot That Sorts Your Trash From Your Recyclables (Cool Weird Awesome 240)

18 02, 2020

The Robot That Sorts Your Trash From Your Recyclables (Cool Weird Awesome 240)

By Brady Carlson|2020-02-18T09:34:54-05:00February 18th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: oops, recycling, robots|

Toss an item into TrashBot and the system’s internal sensors figure out what the item is, and whether to recycle it or toss it out. No more recyclables in the trash, no more trash in the recyclables. Plus: officials in Prichard, Alabama missed a typo when sending out their new trash bins for residents.

Gerald Ford Stayed In His Own House, Not The White House, After He Became President (Cool Weird Awesome 239)

17 02, 2020

Gerald Ford Stayed In His Own House, Not The White House, After He Became President (Cool Weird Awesome 239)

By Brady Carlson|2020-02-17T09:00:19-05:00February 17th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: Alexandria VA, Gerald Ford, houses, presidents|

Since 1800, presidents have made the White House their home base. But there have been a few times when new presidents took office unexpectedly and the world's most powerful address wasn’t yet available to them. For Gerald Ford in 1974, that meant he spent the first 10 days of his presidency living at his family home in Alexandria, Virginia.

Olm Salamanders Are The Most Chill Creatures On Earth (Cool Weird Awesome 238)

14 02, 2020

Olm Salamanders Are The Most Chill Creatures On Earth (Cool Weird Awesome 238)

By Brady Carlson|2020-02-14T09:30:53-05:00February 14th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: Maine, Rangeley ME, salamanders, snowmobiles, Valentine's Day|

For Valentine's Day, the story of the olm salamander, who will basically sit around and do nothing… unless it’s time for love. Plus: people in Rangeley, Maine gear up for the annual World Record Snowmobile Ride.

The Loudest Thing Anybody Ever Heard (Cool Weird Awesome 237)

13 02, 2020

The Loudest Thing Anybody Ever Heard (Cool Weird Awesome 237)

By Brady Carlson|2020-02-14T09:26:09-05:00February 13th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: decibels, Krakatoa, octopus, sound|

Some sounds are pleasing, others not so much. And a few can actually be destructive, like the sound ZME Science identified is probably the loudest sound humans have ever heard. Plus: how about some loud applause for an octopus who managed to escape four octopus escape rooms?

Dogs Are Saving Citrus Orchards From Disease (Cool Weird Awesome 236)

12 02, 2020

Dogs Are Saving Citrus Orchards From Disease (Cool Weird Awesome 236)

By Brady Carlson|2020-02-12T05:55:01-05:00February 12th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: agriculture, dogs, Horses|

Orchards in the US and elsewhere have been trying to head off a disease called citrus greening. Research shows that dogs can sniff out this disease better and more quickly than any other method we have. Plus: if you're out riding a horse in Australia, and you get a call, put the phone in hands-free mode.

Living Fabrics Make The World Greener As They Make Us Look Fancy (Cool Weird Awesome 235)

11 02, 2020

Living Fabrics Make The World Greener As They Make Us Look Fancy (Cool Weird Awesome 235)

By Brady Carlson|2020-02-11T09:41:19-05:00February 11th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: clothing, fashion|

There's a whole world of sustainable materials for clothing that will have less of an impact should they end up in landfills - some don't just have low carbon footprints, they have negative carbon footprints! Plus: an art student in Japan puts on a fashion show in which the lead materials in the clothes are rubber bands.

4D-Printed Microneedles Could Take The Shots Out Of Getting Shots (Cool Weird Awesome 234)

10 02, 2020

4D-Printed Microneedles Could Take The Shots Out Of Getting Shots (Cool Weird Awesome 234)

By Brady Carlson|2020-02-10T08:59:48-05:00February 10th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: 3D printing, cats, medicine|

Here’s one instance where the doctor really CAN say “this won’t hurt a bit.” 4D-printed microneedles could perform of the medical functions of hypodermic needles - giving us vaccines and medicines, taking blood samples - except no shots. Plus: the story of a cat and her 3D-printed titanium paws.