Cool Stuff Daily

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Tue. 10/11 - The Ghost of Halloween Candy Panics Past Oct 11, 2022

Show notes

Another Halloween, another candy tampering panic. While these panics rarely––if ever––bear fruit, poisoned candy and concerns around it have a longer history than you might suspect. Plus, a voter fraud scandal has rocked the wholesome Fat Bear Week contest.

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Links:

Rainbow Fentanyl: Poisoned Halloween Candy Rerelease (American Hysteria, Spotify)
This Year's Halloween Candy Panic Is Unfounded "Rainbow Fentanyl" Fears (The Mary Sue)
DEA says "rainbow" fentanyl pills are being marketed to children. Experts say that's nonsense (Salon)
Young people are being targeted with brightly colored ‘rainbow fentanyl,’ government drug agency warns (NBC News)
Crime Reporting (Last Week Tonight, YouTube)
Fri. 10/01 - Edibles In Your Kid's Trick-Or-Treat Candy? Don't Bet On It. (Cool Stuff Ride Home)
How Tainted Treats Led to a Halloween Tragedy in 1858 (Atlas Obscura)
‘Fat Bear Week’ Hit By Voter-Fraud Attempt (Rolling Stone)
Jackson Bird on Twitter

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Mon. 10/10 - Cyborg Cockroaches Are Here To Save the Day Oct 10, 2022

Show notes

Just in time for Halloween, we’ve got cyborg cockroaches. As terrifying as it sounds though, they might actually end up saving our lives. Plus, a round-up of recommendations for celebrating Indigenous People today and everyday. And an upcoming slasher horror version of The Grinch.

Sponsor:

Indeed, Indeed.com/goodnews

Links:

Robotic engineers are creating cyborg cockroaches, roboflys and more (Washington Post)
Researchers Created a 'Cyborg Cockroach' With a Backpack Battery to Inspect Disaster Zones (Gizmodo)
Meet Japan's cyborg cockroach, coming to disaster area near you (Reuters)
Thu. 12/09 - Birds Aren't Real (And Neither Is This Gen Z Conspiracy Theory) (Cool Stuff Ride Home)
NATIVE AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS - LISTEN UP! LISTEN BY CATEGORY
The Native American Music Awards (JSTOR Daily)
Disney Songs In Their Native Languages (FlamSpark, YouTube)
Read an excerpt: Billy-Ray Belcourt's debut novel “A Minor Chorus” and the legacy of residential schools: 'We are still haunted by it' (Toronto Star)
Reservation Dogs Season 1 Trailer (Rotten Tomatoes, YouTube)
An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
Exterminate All the Brutes (HBO)
XYZ Plans Free Release For Horror Pic 'The Mean One' With 'Terrifier 2' Star David Howard Thornton (Deadline)
Jackson Bird on Twitter

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Fri. 10/07 - When Novelty Halloween Songs Ruled The Billboard Charts Oct 07, 2022

Show notes

What the heck is a flying purple people eater and why did that song about one stick around for so long? Plus, remember the Ice Bucket Challenge? Eight years later, we’ve got a look at just how big a difference it made. But is the new ALS treatment the challenge helped fund as great as it seems?

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Links:

‘The Purple People Eater’: Sheb Wooley’s Hit Novelty Song (UDiscover Music)
Purple People Eater History: A Dumb Joke Turned Into a Cultural Icon (Tedium)
Sheb Wooley Is Dead at 82; Sang of Purple People Eater (NY Times)
Jack's recommended starter pack of Halloween oldies from the best oldies curator on the web (Jake Westbrook, YouTube)
Remember the Ice Bucket Challenge? It Ended Up Funding a New ALS Drug (Futurism)
ALS drug's approval draws cheers from patients, questions from skeptics (NPR)
Jackson Bird on Twitter

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Thu. 10/06 - Jinkies! I Can't Believe Butter Is So Expensive Oct 06, 2022

Show notes

I’m back with another shortage report. This time? Butter. Plus, sleep tourism is apparently a thing now. And Velma from Scooby-Doo is officially super gay, for real this time.

Sponsors:

I Am Bio, Subscribe at bio.org/podcast
BetterHelp, Get 10% off your first month at betterhelp.com/COOLSTUFF

Links:

The price of butter is sky-high and 'not going to come down,' says supply chain expert—here's why (CNBC)
Prepare for the Butter Shortage (The Takeout)
Butter Prices Ramp Up Ahead of Holiday Season – How Long Will They Last? (Dairy Herd)
Butter prices hit an all-time high — partly because extreme heat is taking a toll on dairy cows (MarketWatch)
Butter Boards Are Spreading Across TikTok (NY Times)
Why sleep tourism is booming (CNN)
Sleep Vacations: 12 Places to Catch Some Zzzs (Fodors, 2019)
Dreamy sleep vacation destinations (Well + Good, 2018)
Sleep Tourism Will Be One of the Biggest 2022 Travel Trends (Coveteur)
'Scooby-Doo' fans get the snack they've been waiting for: Velma is gay (LA Times)
In the New Scooby Doo Movie, Velma Is Finally Out and Proud (them)
Google Search Scooby-Doo Velma Easter Egg Unleashes Gay Pride Flags (Variety)
Fans cheer as Velma is shown crushing on a woman in the new Scooby-Doo movie (NPR)
Jinkies! Velma's Actually Gay in "Trick or Treat Scooby-Doo!" (Autostraddle)
'Velma': Mindy Kaling Scooby Show Casts Sam Richardson, Constance Wu (Variety)
Jackson Bird on Twitter

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Wed. 10/05 - Bruce Willis Deepfake Deal is Fake, But Others Could Be Coming Oct 05, 2022

Show notes

It’s Nobel Prize week. With three prizes announced and three yet to come, here are the winners in Physics, Chemistry, and Physiology or Medicine. Plus, Bruce Willis did not sell the rights to his digital twin to a deepfake firm, but could someone choose to do so eventually? More on the murky world of deepfakes and Hollywood.

Sponsors:

BetterHelp, Get 10% off your first month at betterhelp.com/COOLSTUFF
I Am Bio, Subscribe at bio.org/podcast

Links:

Nobel Prize awarded to three scientists for work in click chemistry, which links molecules quickly (Washington Post)
‘Spooky’ quantum-entanglement experiments win physics Nobel (Nature)
Nobel Winner Svante Pääbo Discovered the Neandertal in Our Genes (Scientific American)
Actor Bruce Willis Becomes First Celebrity to Sell Rights to Deepfake Firm (Collider)
Bruce Willis denies selling rights to his face (BBC)
Deepfake Bruce Willis may be the next Hollywood star, and he’s OK with that [Updated] (Ars Technica)
Bruce Willis did not sign rights for deepfakes to replace him in future films and advertisements (Mashable)
Fat Bear Week 2022: It's time to vote (CNN)
2022 Fat Bear Week - Katmai (National Park Service)
Jackson Bird on Twitter

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Tue. 10/04 - Turns Out, Buttons Are Bad For Us Oct 04, 2022

Show notes

From the annals of “everyday objects our ancestors were once super concerned about”: electric push buttons. Like, on/off buttons on any basic device. And you know what, they kind of had a point. Plus, on its sixtieth anniversary let’s take a look at one of more pernicious predictions The Jetsons actually got right about our present-day.

Sponsors:

I Am Bio, Subscribe at bio.org/podcast
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Links:

When the Push Button Was New, People Were Freaked (JSTOR Daily)
The Jetsons, now 60 years old, is iconic. That's a problem. (Slate)
George Jetson Birthdate Dispute Episode (Cool Stuff Ride Home)
Jackson Bird on Twitter

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Mon. 10/03 - Can You Eat Crocs? Oct 03, 2022

Show notes

Answering the age old question: can you eat Crocs? Plus, why it is adults still get stress dreams about school even years after they leave. And a chance to stay at the Sanderson sisters cottage for all the die-hard Hocus Pocus fans out there.

Sponsors:

BetterHelp, Get 10% off your first month at betterhelp.com/COOLSTUFF
I Am Bio, Subscribe at bio.org/podcast

Links:

Why Is The Government Suddenly Concerned About NyQuil Chicken? (BuzzFeed News)
Can You Really Eat Crocs? An Investigation (VICE)
Why Adults Still Dream About School (The Atlantic)
'Hocus Pocus' fans can stay at the Sanderson Sisters' cottage on Airbnb (Mashable)
Jackson Bird on Twitter

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Fri. 09/30 - The Real Warriors From 'The Woman King' Sep 30, 2022

Show notes

The real story of the Agoji warriors fictionalized in The Woman King. Plus, the Food and Drug Administration just dropped a new definition for the word “healthy.” And the very opposite of a nightmare on Elm Street.

Sponsor:

American Musical Supply, Use code COOL at https://ter.li/AmericanMusicalSupply-COOL for $20 off your next purchase of over $100

Links:

The Real Warriors Behind ‘The Woman King’ (Smithsonian Mag)
The true story of the women warriors of Dahomey (National Geographic)
Was Dahomey A Barbaric African Kingdom? (HomeTeam History, YouTube)
Viola Davis and Gina Prince-Bythewood on the Battle to Get ‘The Woman King’ Made (Hollywood Reporter)
FDA issues new guidelines for which foods can be labeled ‘healthy’ (Washington Post)
Key takeaways from Biden's conference on hunger and nutrition in America (NPR)
FDA Proposes Updated Definition of ‘Healthy’ Claim on Food Packages to Help Improve Diet, Reduce Chronic Disease (FDA)
'Hocus Pocus' fans can stay at the Sanderson Sisters' cottage on Airbnb (Mashable)
Jackson Bird on Twitter

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Thu. 09/29 - Are Lawns ALL Bad? Sep 29, 2022

Show notes

Lawns are terrible for the environment, but is ripping them out all together the right answer? Plus, why decorating your home for the holidays is, actually, really good for your health. And other facts I’m overhyping to justify the many decorative gourds in my house… And a very popular discontinued item that might be returning to McDonald’s next month.

Sponsor:

American Musical Supply, Use code COOL at https://ter.li/AmericanMusicalSupply-COOL for $20 off your next purchase of over $100

Links:

Lawns Are Dumb. But Ripping Them Out May Come With a Catch (Wired)
Why the Great American Lawn is terrible for the West's water crisis (CNN)
Your Perfect Lawn Is Bad for the Environment. Here's What to Do Instead (Discover Magazine)
Can Decorating For Fall Make You Happier? Experts Weigh In. (HuffPost)
McDonald's May Bring Back a Beloved Blast From its Past (The Street)
McDonald's Halloween Buckets Could Be Back This Fall (CNET)
Celebrating 35 Years Of McDonald’s Halloween Buckets (Nightmare Nostalgia)
Episode Five - McHalloween (Preserve Halloween)
McDonald's is selling Happy Meals to adults — with a twist (CNN)
Jackson Bird on Twitter

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Wed. 09/27 - Could Changing Jupiter Make Earth Better? Sep 28, 2022

Show notes

Could a change in Jupiter’s orbit make life on Earth more hospitable? Plus, behold the best GIFs of the 90s, uploaded a-fresh by internet strangers. And all the Taco Bell news that’s fit to print.

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