Today, if you or someone you know experiences a medical emergency, you dial 9-1-1 and a squad of trained medical professionals arrives at your door. But just 55 years ago, that was not the case.Emergency calls were generally dispatched to funeral homes simply because their vehicles were suited to transporting bodies. You’d be lucky if the person transporting ... Show More
Nov 2019
Kodak Roll Film: As Convenient as a Pencil | S20-E1
Today, if we want to take a photo, we unlock our phone, aim, and click. It can be done on a whim, without a second thought. We document everything from new haircuts to latte art, cute cats to baby’s first smile. But prior to the 1900s, photography was the exclusive domain of prof ... Show More
35m 48s
Jan 2020
Electronic Television: The Picture Radio | S21-E1
The invention of the electronic television was uniquely complicated for its time. So complicated, in fact, that the prevailing narrative is that it couldn’t have been invented by a single person -- let alone Philo Farnsworth. After all, some of the most brilliant minds in the wor ... Show More
38m 57s
Feb 2020
Valium: Miltown Magic | S22-E1
Anxiety. It’s something everyone experiences at some point in their lives, but for centuries doctors had no effective way to treat it. They could send patients on rest cures, order them to do nothing at all, or prescribe barbiturates that depressed the central nervous system, eas ... Show More
39m 31s
Nov 2024
How Emergency Call Lines Became A Thing
In most of the modern world, the average person has an astonishing resource for any disastrous situation: you find a phone, then dial 3 numbers to be immediately connected with someone who can call police, EMTs, fire fighters or other first responders. It's a fantastic concept, a ... Show More
52m 27s
Mar 2025
Elementary | Calling an Ambulance
<p>It's a nightmare situation: someone has an accident and needs immediate medical help, and you're the only person around to help. In today's ChinesePod lesson, learn how to call for help in Chinese. Who knows - with some of this vocabulary, you might just save a lif ... Show More
16m 57s