October 21, 1879. It’s late in the evening and a 32-year-old inventor is in his New Jersey lab, tinkering with a carbon thread. When that young inventor—Thomas Edison—lights that thread that night, it isn’t quite a “eureka," lightbulb-over-the-head moment, but the lightbulb in his lab did stay lit long enough to convince him he was on the right track. How di ... Show More
Nov 24
A Meteorite Hits Ann Hodges
November 30, 1954. At about 12:45 in the afternoon, a space rock comes plummeting through the roof of a house in Sylacauga, Alabama. It bounces off a stand-up radio, ricochets around the living room, and collides with the thigh of Mrs. Ann Hodges, who’s been napping on the couch. ... Show More
37m 23s
Nov 17
Ken Burns Reimagines the American Revolution | A Conversation with Ken Burns & Sarah Botstein
November 16, 1776. George Washington rows toward Manhattan to inspect the fort that bears his name, only to meet a full-scale British assault already underway. By afternoon, Fort Washington has fallen, and General Washington is forced to abandon New York City.
The Continental A ... Show More
38m 45s
Nov 10
The Grinnell 14 Take On the Bomb (feat. Peter Coyote)
November 16, 1961. Fourteen college students from Iowa have driven nearly a thousand miles to the White House. They’re fasting, protesting, and calling for an end to nuclear bomb testing. These students, later known as the Grinnell 14, will help ignite the student peace movement ... Show More
27m 56s
Aug 2022
The Bowery Boys and the Black Tom Explosion
Cautionary Tales returns next week, but in the meantime enjoy a story of disaster from The Bowery Boys Podcast. It's July 30th 1916, just after 2am, and a massive explosion rips apart the munitions depot on Black Tom, an island off Jersey City. Tons of debris and jagged shrapnel ... Show More
45m 29s
Oct 2021
La formidable invention du phonographe par Thomas Edison
<p>En 1877, Thomas Edison a mis au point le tout premier appareil capable d'enregistrer et de reproduire des sons ! Cette invention lui a aussi donné l'idée d'une machine pour communiquer avec les défunts... Du phonographe au gramophone, en passant par le nécrophone, le paléophon ... Show More
8m 35s
Dec 2021
EP134: Origin of Everyday Sayings, The Woman Introducing STEM Careers to Young Girls and Thomas Edison at Menlo Park
On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson continues to share another slice from his ultimate guide to understanding these baffling mini mysteries of the English language; Nicole Small, the former CEO of the Perot Museum of Nature and Science, shares how she is now ... Show More
38m 16s