Oklahoma’s Panhandle Was Once Known As “No Man’s Land” (Cool Weird Awesome 1127)
Today in 1907 Oklahoma became the 46th state in the Union. Oklahoma's panhandle has a complicated history that includes a time when it was known as “No Man’s Land.”
To Drive To Minnesota’s Northwest Angle, You Have To Go Through Canada (Cool Weird Awesome 1007)
Today in 1858 Minnesota became the 32nd state in the Union. There's a part of the state that's on the other side of a lake from the rest, which means anyone who wants to drive from the Northwest Angle to the rest of Minnesota has to drive through Canada.
How A Farmer In Belgium Accidentally Changed The Country’s Borders (Cool Weird Awesome 1002)
Today in 2021, the BBC reported on a very unusual happening: a farmer in Belgium accidentally redrew the country’s border with France.
Could We Replace Concrete Walls With Ones Made Of 3D-Printed Soil? (Cool Weird Awesome 829)
The new 3D printing project called To Grow A Building is working on a method to 3D print the components of structures out of dirt, with the goal of reducing the significant amount of emissions that come from using standard building materials.
How Two Deaf Mountaineers Plan To Climb The Seven Summits (Cool Weird Awesome 828)
For mountaineers, success and safety can depend on good communication. A piece in Outside magazine featured two Deaf climbers who have their own communication system when they’re climbing, and they plan to use that system in climbing the highest peaks on each continent.
Instead Of West Virginia, The US Could Have Had The State Of Westsylvania (Cool Weird Awesome 792)
Today in 1863, West Virginia became a state - though back in the 18th Century, there were several efforts to meld this land with parts of Pennsylvania, Kentucky and Maryland and create an entirely different entity called Vandalia or Westsylvania.
The Outer Limits Of The U.S. Are Really Out There (Cool Weird Awesome 657)
It's Geography Awareness Week, so we wanted to find the furthest points in each direction that are part of the United States, along with the geographical center. Plus: the story of a boundary with Morocco that just sort of popped up one day.
Earth Has Five Oceans Now, But Also Just One Ocean, It’s Complicated (Cool Weird Awesome 554)
The National Geographic Society has recognized a fifth ocean, the Southern Ocean, on earth. How the oceans got their names - and why we don't think of them as one big ocean, which is what it is - is a long and fascinating story. Plus: a designer in South Korea has invented a "third eye" to warn people looking at their phones while walking before they collide with someone or something (or, maybe, to get them to look up more often).
The Keyboard Made From Plants (Cool Weird Awesome 439)
A Spanish tech startup called Bioo has built an installation in which plants serve as the keys of a kind of "green piano." Plus: for International Mountain Day, a look at some of the peaks with more down-to-earth names.
The US Almost Had A 49th State Called Absaroka (Cool Weird Awesome 369)
In 1939 some ranchers in the West proposed taking parts out of Wyoming, South Dakota and Montana and creating a new state, called Absaroka. It never won approval from Congress but it did have its own license plates and beauty pageant. Plus: how come a spot in Tulsa is known as the center of the universe?