Episodes

  • What Really Happened at Indian Boarding Schools?
    Jul 7 2022

    The discovery of mass graves at Indian boarding schools showed how little we understand about these institutions, so I invited a leading expert on Native American education to help me understand.

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    In this episode, Dr. John Gram mentions the following books:

    -Education for Extinction: American Indians and the Boarding School Experience, by David Wallace Adams

    -Boarding School Seasons: American Indian Families, 1900-1940, by Brenda J. Child

    -They Called It Prairie Light: The Story of Chilocco Indian School, by K. Tsianina Lomawaima

     

    And you can find Dr. John Gram's very useful history website here.

    As always, the wonderful music is the song 'Ezekial,' and it comes to us courtesy of Christine Hand. Check it out.

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    54 mins
  • Special Effects in Medieval Theater
    Apr 6 2022

    Medieval theater created a spectacle for the eyes, and everyone in town had a part! Some of these effects were disgusting. Some were inspired. But, no matter what, the theater was always an unforgettable experience.

    Today I've invited a few theater experts to help us explore the tricks of the medieval stage!

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    51 mins
  • The Amazing (and true) Story of Saint Patrick
    Mar 12 2022

    When you get past the shamrocks and tall tales, Patrick turns out to be one of the most admirable people in all of history.

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    26 mins
  • Did Captain Cook Have a God Complex?
    Feb 13 2022

    On Valentine's Day in 1779, Captain Cook's violent ways finally caught up to him. But it might have been avoided if he'd thought just a little bit less of himself.

     

    This episode is indebted to the work of Dr. Shino Konishi of The University of Western Australia because of her excellent article on Cook's punishments, which you can read here:

    https://theconversation.com/captain-cook-wanted-to-introduce-british-justice-to-indigenous-people-instead-he-became-increasingly-cruel-and-violent-127025

     

    Music: "Ezekiel" by Christine Hand.

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    20 mins
  • The People Who ate Mummies
    Jan 21 2022

    Shouldn't museums have more mummies? And what happened to all those mummified cats? The truth is...hard to swallow.

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    14 mins
  • Who Invented the Unicorn?
    Dec 6 2021

    A mistranslation here, a dead whale there, and, just like that, a legend is born.

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    16 mins
  • The Guy Fawkes You Never Knew
    Nov 4 2021

    There's a lot more to the Guy Fawkes story than anarchy and wooden masks.

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    18 mins
  • I Saw the (Marfa) Light!
    Oct 29 2021

    All my life I've heard stories about the Marfa Lights, but I never could tell what to make of them. Naturally, I was excited to take the trip and finally see this mystery for myself.

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    10 mins