Black Firefighters In Chicago Helped Give The World The Fire Pole (Cool Weird Awesome 1141)

Today in 1872, the Chicago Tribune reported on the launch of a new fire station that would change the profession of firefighting forever by inventing the fire pole. 

By |2023-12-06T08:45:49-05:00December 6, 2023|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , |

The Toronto Circus Riot Started Because Clowns Fought Firefighters At A Brothel (Cruel Weird Awful 12)

July 13, 1855 is the date of the Toronto Circus Riot, an event which sounds baffling and bizarre from the name alone, but the details are even weirder.

By |2023-10-30T06:46:39-04:00August 19, 2023|Categories: Cruel Weird Awful, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , |

A Wristband Can Help Keep Firefighters Healthy (Cool Weird Awesome 788)

Firefighting is dangerous work, in part because of the exposure to dangerous chemicals. Researchers are learning more about those exposures thanks to a simple silicone wristband.

By |2022-06-07T08:59:26-04:00June 7, 2022|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , |

Molly Williams Was A New York Firefighter Before There Was a New York Fire Department (Cool Weird Awesome 764)

For International Firefighters Day, it's the story of Molly Williams, an enslaved Black woman who became the first known woman firefighter, and the first Black firefighter, in the United States. Plus: on the anniversary of Rhode Island declaring independence, a visit to one of the state's most unusual attractions. 

A Window That Can Keep The Outside Noise Down, Even When It’s Open (Cool Weird Awesome 485)

A special sound-absorbing window design from a team at the National University of Singapore might let fresh air in without all the extra noise.

By |2024-02-26T07:55:04-05:00February 26, 2021|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , , , |

Debates Can Always Be Worse, Ask The Guy Who Poured Water On The Audience (Cool Weird Awesome 395)

If you've read the negative reviews about last week's debate, know that there are other stories of candidate face-offs gone wrong in the history books - like the one in Arkansas that left the audience all wet. Plus: for National Fire Prevention Week, we pay a visit to Busted Plug, a four story tall sculpture of a fire hydrant. 

By |2023-06-19T14:17:40-04:00October 5, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , |

How To Fight Fires With Drones (Cool Weird Awesome 274)

Firefighters in Chongqing, China, may soon put out fires with help from a team of six large drones that can get in the air and quickly extinguish blazes. Plus: a guy in Tacoma, Washington is spreading positivity by yelling things at people for money.

By |2020-04-03T09:23:37-04:00April 3, 2020|Categories: Cool Weird Awesome, Podcasts|Tags: , , , |
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