Stuff You Should Know

Latest Episodes:

Terry Fox: Greatest Canadian Hero Sep 01, 2026

Show notes

It is to the great nation of Canada’s lasting credit that it has prized Terry Fox as one of the most beloved and admired citizens for nearly 50 years now. It’s difficult to get across how much he means to Canada. Lucky for us, his story speaks for itself.

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Selects: Flagpole Sitting: A Real Fad Aug 29, 2026

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The 1920s were just absolutely nuts. People got into weird fads really intensely and one of the strangest of all was flagpole sitting. It’s just what it sounds like – sitting on top of a flagpole for as long as you can. One man sat above them all. Learn all about him and many of these wild fads in this classic episode.

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The Fall of the USSR, Pt II Aug 27, 2026

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The break-up of the USSR was a tough one for Russia, being the jilted republic. For the entire decade after, the country plunged into a type of controlled chaos, with a rampantly corrupt kleptocracy taking the place of the toppled socialist society.

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SYSK Tribute: Why does everyone love Dolly Parton? Aug 26, 2026

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Today we dive in to celebrate the international treasure that is Dolly Parton. Why is she nearly universally loved? Listen in to find out.

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Short Stuff: Cyclospora Aug 26, 2026

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The US has an unusual number of outbreaks of food-borne illness going on in the summer of 2026, and the star of the show is cyclospora. How does this parasite make people sick, where does it come from? You may not want to know.

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The Fall of the USSR, Pt I Aug 25, 2026

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It’s rare that the downfall of an empire can be chalked up to the decisions of just one person. It’s even rarer, when the empire falls over the course of a year. That’s pretty much what happened with the Soviet Union when Mikhail Gorbachev dissolved it.

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Selects: How Narcolepsy Works Aug 22, 2026

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Narcolepsy is one of those amazing rare disorders that everyone thinks they understand – people just fall asleep at random times, even in the middle of doing something. But there’s a lot more to it and – even better – we actually may be able to explain it. Josh and Chuck run it down in this classic episode.

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Rope, yeah ROPE! Aug 20, 2026

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Rope is one of the unsung heroes of the world of inventions. Think about it. Then let us tell you about it.

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Short Stuff: Did a shipwreck double the size of the United States? Aug 19, 2026

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Did a shipwreck double the size of the United States? Sort of. Listen in to find out what the heck that means.

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Isn't It Ironic, Dontcha Think? Aug 18, 2026

Show notes

Irony is one of those things that you know when you see it, but it’s almost impossible to define. Well, that’s not quite right – there are a ton of definitions for irony but none of them quite capture it fully. Want to know what irony is? So do we!

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