Cool Weird Awesome – Brady Carlson

Humans Actually Do Perk Up Their Ears At Interesting Noises (Cool Weird Awesome 339)

10 07, 2020

Humans Actually Do Perk Up Their Ears At Interesting Noises (Cool Weird Awesome 339)

By Brady Carlson|2020-07-10T08:45:37-04:00July 10th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: biology, corn, Dublin OH, hearing, science, statues|

Our entire show is based on the idea that we might say something interesting enough that it might get you to perk up your ears, figuratively speaking. Or, as a team at Saarland University has found, maybe not so figuratively speaking. Plus: a sculpture garden in Dublin, Ohio pays tribute to ears of a different kind.

Having Knee Problems? Try This Artificial Cartilage (Cool Weird Awesome 338)

9 07, 2020

Having Knee Problems? Try This Artificial Cartilage (Cool Weird Awesome 338)

By Brady Carlson|2020-07-09T07:48:16-04:00July 9th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: ball, medicine, soccer, technology|

Every year in the US there are some 600,000 knee replacement surgeries. But a team at Duke University might help some people avoid those surgeries with a hydrogel that can stand in for cartilage. Plus: engineers at NIKE develop a ball that can really soar.

In The 1980s, You Downloaded Video Games Off The Radio (Cool Weird Awesome 337)

8 07, 2020

In The 1980s, You Downloaded Video Games Off The Radio (Cool Weird Awesome 337)

By Brady Carlson|2020-07-08T08:00:28-04:00July 8th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: cassettes, comets, computer programs, computers, internet, outer space, video games|

Today we download video games online all the time. Back in the 1980s, gamers without the Internet (such as it was) had to buy or borrow their games. But a few could download programs off the radio. Plus: there's a comet headed Earth's way, and it might make for some great viewing this month, or 6,000 years from now. Either one.

Satchel Paige Was So Good He Could Still Get Batters Out In His Late 50s (Cool Weird Awesome 336)

7 07, 2020

Satchel Paige Was So Good He Could Still Get Batters Out In His Late 50s (Cool Weird Awesome 336)

By Brady Carlson|2020-07-07T08:10:02-04:00July 7th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: baseball, Black history, ninjas, Satchel Paige, Sports, sports history|

Today is believed to be the birthday of Leroy "Satchel" Paige, perhaps the most legendary pitcher baseball ever saw. Paige was a star for decades, and once pitched three scoreless innings in the major leagues at age 59. Plus: we'll visit the man who earned the world's first degree in ninja studies.

Kids In Nicaragua Created Their Own Sign Language (Cool Weird Awesome 335)

6 07, 2020

Kids In Nicaragua Created Their Own Sign Language (Cool Weird Awesome 335)

By Brady Carlson|2020-07-06T08:30:13-04:00July 6th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: caves, deafness, language, Mexico, Nicaragua|

In the 1980s Deaf children in Nicaragua were sent to a new school that was supposed to help them learn finger spelling. Instead, they built up their own language, now known as Nicaraguan Sign Language. Plus: divers in Mexico find a cave that looked like it hadn't been visited before, only to find a link to civilization thousands of years ago.

What Do You Call People In Each State? (Cool Weird Awesome 334)

3 07, 2020

What Do You Call People In Each State? (Cool Weird Awesome 334)

By Brady Carlson|2020-07-03T08:29:51-04:00July 3rd, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: demonyms, geography, Idaho, language|

Vivid Maps released a map of the U.S. by demonym, which is the term for a word that describes people from a certain place. Some are straightforward, but there are also plenty of surprises. Plus: you've heard of Four Corners, but did you know there's also a Tri-State Marker where you could stand in the states of Idaho, Wyoming and Utah all at once?

How The Baby Sitters Club Became The Book Series All The 80s Kids Were Reading (Cool Weird Awesome 333)

2 07, 2020

How The Baby Sitters Club Became The Book Series All The 80s Kids Were Reading (Cool Weird Awesome 333)

By Brady Carlson|2020-07-02T07:57:20-04:00July 2nd, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: Ann M. Martin, books, children's books, flowers, photography, The Baby-Sitters Club, Vietnam|

Netflix is about to release a show based on The Baby-Sitters Club I used to re-shelve all the time at the public library where I worked. Here's the story of how the series came to life.

Canada Was Almost Named “Borealia” (Cool Weird Awesome 332)

1 07, 2020

Canada Was Almost Named “Borealia” (Cool Weird Awesome 332)

By Brady Carlson|2020-07-01T08:04:23-04:00July 1st, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: Canada, geography, history, names|

Today is Canada Day, marking the 1867 confederation of three provinces then known as Canada, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. But Canada was only one name out of many that were suggested for the new country. Plus: this week got weird at several Canadian Tire stores, thanks to a computer glitch that made every item show up in the scanner as a Mr. Potato Head.

The Smart Glove That Can Translate Sign Language Into Speech (Cool Weird Awesome 331)

30 06, 2020

The Smart Glove That Can Translate Sign Language Into Speech (Cool Weird Awesome 331)

By Brady Carlson|2020-06-30T08:22:33-04:00June 30th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: American Sign Language, cotton, language, technology|

A team at UCLA has built technology into a glove that can recognize the hand movements from American Sign Language and translate those movements into spoken English in real time through a smartphone app. Plus: scientists in Australia say they can modify cotton to make its own color, without not-so-eco-friendly chemical dyes.

The San Diego Chicken Almost Moved To Atlanta (Cool Weird Awesome 330)

29 06, 2020

The San Diego Chicken Almost Moved To Atlanta (Cool Weird Awesome 330)

By Brady Carlson|2020-06-29T08:39:24-04:00June 29th, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: baseball, Gerald Ford, mascots, San Diego Chicken, Ted Turner|

Back in 1978 the San Diego Chicken was winning huge numbers of fans - which is why Atlanta owner Ted Turner tried to coax the man inside the chicken suit, Ted Giannoulas, to move east. Plus: