The Spite House, An Elegant, Expensive Way To Get Back At Somebody (Cool Weird Awesome 608)

Boston's Skinny House went up for sale recently. It's a four-story house with rooms only 10 feet wide, and was reportedly built just to block another house's view of the harbor. "Spite houses" have been regularly built for these kinds of reasons, it turns out. Plus: today in in 1504 Michelangelo completed David. We've got a fun fact about this iconic sculpture for you. 

By |2021-09-08T06:08:47-04:00September 8, 2021|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , |

A Sustainable Pacific Island Community That Floats (Cool Weird Awesome 510)

As sea levels rise, small island nations like Kiribati face some tough choices. A European design studio has an idea that might help: sustainable buildings that can collect rainwater, generate electricity, and help grow food. And they float. Plus: Boston's Museum of Science joins with Leonard Nimoy's family to mark his 90th birthday in a fascinating way.

By |2021-04-01T08:35:25-04:00April 1, 2021|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , , |

Boston’s Mayor Once Wanted To Clear Snow With Flamethrowers (Cool Weird Awesome 221)

On this day in 1948 of the mayor of Boston, James Curley, wrote to the president of MIT, asking that the school's top engineers find a way to get rid of the huge amounts of snow, maybe with flamethrowers. Seriously.

By |2024-01-29T09:49:32-05:00January 22, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , , , |

I Got Mushrooms!

As I was going on my merry way near the Commons a nervous-looking fellow came up to me and asked me, "I got mushrooms, you want to buy some mushrooms?" Not catching on right away, I answered, "No, thanks, but do you have any peppers?"

By |2003-02-01T00:01:31-05:00February 1, 2003|Categories: Blog|Tags: , |
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