Omnibus
HowStuffWorks
Every week, Ken Jennings and John Roderick add a new entry to the OMNIBUS, an encyclopedic reference work of strange-but-true stories that they are compiling as a time capsule for future generations.
Location:
United States
Genres:
History Podcasts
Networks:
HowStuffWorks
Description:
Every week, Ken Jennings and John Roderick add a new entry to the OMNIBUS, an encyclopedic reference work of strange-but-true stories that they are compiling as a time capsule for future generations.
Language:
English
Episodes
The Population Bomb (Entry 966.GE2803)
11/14/2024
In which centuries of sterilization-happy doomsayers fail to predict a game-changing revolution in wheat, and Ken thinks Pakistan wants John to clean out his fridge. Certificate #2037.
Duration:01:27:05
The King Under the Mountain (Entry 688.RO1311)
11/7/2024
In which dozens of national sleeping guys with long beards wait in caves for their countries to need them again, and John thinks Tom Cruise should not be in a courtyard. Certificate #53610.
Duration:01:21:41
New Urbanism (Entry 835.SS0711)
10/31/2024
In which conservative Sun Belt retirees and progressive urbanists agree on a nostalgic but radical revolution in city design, and Ken does a Normal Rockwell impression. Certificate #34959.
Duration:01:26:09
Soviet Spartacus (Entry 1194.EX2116)
10/24/2024
In which a Thracian slave from two thousand years earlier becomes a proletarian role model and Communist sports hero, and John prefers action stars with boogers. Certificate #37084.
Duration:01:17:54
Electrical Sockets (Entry 400.JS0215)
10/17/2024
In which the long war between alternating and direct current produces power outlets that multiply nto a dizzying world of configurations, and Ken needs a grounding prong. Certificate #29673.
Duration:01:31:11
Tartans (Entry 1279.DE2230)
10/10/2024
In which Scottish clans each choose a distinctive plaid based on a romantic Highland history that didn't really happen, and John takes a hard hit while playing Frisbee in a skirt. Certificate #26624.
Duration:01:27:26
The Twenty-Seventh Amendment (Entry 1352.GE3028)
10/3/2024
In which a constitutional change finally happens after a two-hundred-year delay just to spite one Texas poli sci professor, and Ken likes it when scriveners get away scot-free. Certificate #43079.
Duration:01:14:50
The Teddy Bear Shipwreck (Entry 1283.PR2433)
9/26/2024
In which the toy market is revolutionized by a faddish stuffed animal that would be priceless today if it hadn't disappeared, and John buys the concept of a rabbit. Certificate #24398.
Duration:01:25:15
Sea Peoples (Entry 1120.1K2248)
9/19/2024
In which the great Mediterranean civilizations of the late Bronze Age collapse virtually overnight due to some mysterious visitors, and Ken knows a lot about white broccoli. Certificate #9795.
Duration:01:14:02
The Coconut Revolution (Entry 239.JE0207)
9/12/2024
In which Melanesian eco-revolutionaries fight off helicopter gunships with literal slingshots and homemade diesel, and John makes a shocking announcement about all scientists. Certificate #54146.
Duration:01:18:31
Poutine (Entry 973.PS10709)
9/5/2024
In which a curd-heavy side from central Quebec belatedly becomes the national dish of a land with no real national cuisine, and Ken learns so much about Sacramento culture. Certificate #30037.
Duration:01:11:22
The Fenian Raids (Entry 461.DE2849)
8/29/2024
In which a secret society of plucky Civil War veterans hatches a plan to return Ireland to the Irish by—wait for it—invading Canada, and John doesn't think the people who sold him wine coolers actually exist. Certificate #12129.
Duration:01:22:47
Comic Sans (Entry 248.2C1009)
8/22/2024
In which even the most hated typeface in the history of desktop publishing has its defenders, and Ken isn't sure why he owns cargo shorts. Certificate #54861.
Duration:01:06:38
Oh, You Kid! (Entry 862.GA0519)
8/15/2024
In which a flirty but forgotten Tin Pan Alley song leads to the first great moral panic in pop music history, and John sneakily borrows someone else's shanty town. Certificate #12960.
Duration:01:31:50
Pickleball (Entry 937.EZ4621)
8/8/2024
In which a state politician's lack of badminton equipment leads to the invention of the hottest sport of the 21st century, and Ken is slightly present. Certificate #42131.
Duration:01:20:51
Stradivarius Violins (Entry 1231.PS9203)
8/1/2024
In which researchers squabble for centuries about the secret ingredient that made one Cremonese craftsman the greatest musical instrument-maker of all time, and John seasons guitars under a bus. Certificate #36611.
Duration:01:09:35
The Forbidden Island (Entry 489.LV2523)
7/25/2024
In which a king agrees to hand over his seventh-best island in the hopes of creating a haven for his native Hawaiian language and culture, and Ken does not want to greet Zach. Certificate #43273.
Duration:01:20:00
Fermi Problems (Entry 462.MK0819)
7/18/2024
In which the last universal physicist demonstrates to his students that ballpark estimates in math can be as powerful as precision, and John isn't sure if Romanians can count tomatoes. Certificate #46480.
Duration:01:15:53
Love Canal (Entry 737.PR2526)
7/11/2024
In which an ill-advised utopian scheme to bypass Niagara Falls becomes America's first toxic waste catastrophe, and Ken knows the main thing that water does. Certificate #42025.
Duration:01:25:13
Turtle Soup (Entry 1351.SS0212)
7/4/2024
In which the great gourmet food of 19th-century "frolics" suddenly disappears from American menus, and John thinks humankind often looks to weasels. Certificate #32793.
Duration:01:13:42