The Maryland Curiosity Bureau

Latest Episodes:

Baltimore's sister: Odesa, Ukraine Feb 25, 2022

Show notes

Baltimore's sister-city, Odesa, is experiencing the tumult of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and we got on the line today with Karina Mandell, chairwoman of the Baltimore Odesa Sister City Committee, to hear about her efforts to contact friends and family back home.

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Who are the Odd Fellows? Feb 14, 2022

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Have you seen those mysterious "Odd Fellows" signs on buildings across Maryland? Who meets there? What do they do? And where did that name come from? This episode, we get invited behind the curtain of a secretive, centuries-old fraternal organization with deep Baltimore roots.

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How did the Baltimore accent happen? Feb 07, 2022

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Whether it’s ‘Bawlmer’ or ‘Baldamor,’ the city’s accent is a phonological puzzle. This episode, we invite locals to share their versions of the Baltimore accent, and we bring in linguistics scholars and historians to help make sense of what we’re hearing. We even answer the question, ‘Is there such a thing as a Spanish Baltimore accent?’

This episode, we hear from:

Baltimore natives EZE Jackson and Tommy Sinbazo

Linguistics professors Christine Mallinson and Inte'a DeShields

Baltimore writer D Watkins

Aida Medina, Director of Cross Cultural Competency at Gallery Church Patterson Park

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What exactly is Lake Trout? Jan 31, 2022

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Baltimore has had a longtime love affair with the breaded, deep-fried carryout dish known as Lake Trout, but what is it, exactly? Is it trout? What lake does it come from? How did it get so popular? And how did it get its name? We talk with a Baltimore food blogger, a Maryland fisheries expert, and a celebrity chef to try to get to the bottom of this culinary mystery.

This episode, we hear from:

Simone Phillips, food blogger at Charm City Table

Erik Zlokovitz, Recreational Fisheries Coordinator at the Maryland Department of Natural Resources

John Shields, Chef at Gertrude’s Chesapeake Kitchen and head of Our Common Table

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How will sea level rise impact Baltimore? Jan 24, 2022

Show notes

Markers show that the water level in Baltimore’s harbor is a foot higher than it was a century ago. Projections indicate that it’ll rise at least that much more in the next hundred years. What’ll that mean for waterfront neighborhoods and businesses? How will it impact water pipes and roads? And what are we doing to cope with it?

This episode, we hear from:

Lisa McNeilly, Director of the Baltimore Office of Sustainability

Benjamin Grumbles, Secretary of the Maryland Department of the Environment

Brad Rogers, Executive Director at South Baltimore Gateway Partnership

Meleny Thomas, Executive Director at South Baltimore Community Land Trust

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The complex ills of water bills Jan 17, 2022

Show notes

It sounds like a word-problem with a simple solution: “A city resident and a county resident get their water from the same source. They both use the same amount of water. How will their bills compare?” The answer, it turns out, is tangled up in a century-old municipal labyrinth with more twists and turns than the meandering Gunpowder River.

In this episode, we hear from:

Matthew Garbark, Deputy Director of the Baltimore City Department of Public Works

Rianna Eckel, affordable drinking water advocate with Food and Water Watch

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What happens to Baltimore’s recycling? Jan 10, 2022

Show notes

After you set that recycling on your curb, it’s got a long and winding road ahead. This episode, we follow the trail and learn some surprising facts along the way, like: What percent of Baltimoreans actually recycle? How much of what we throw in the bins is in fact recyclable? What do oil prices and geopolitics have to do with the price of recyclables? And can you recycle a bowling ball?

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How did that giant Male/Female sculpture happen? Dec 13, 2021

Show notes

When it comes to the 51-foot-tall Male/Female sculpture outside of Baltimore’s Penn Station, opinions abound. Questions, too: How did it end up there? What is it supposed to mean? And what might become of it in the future? This episode, we hear from someone who’s kept his thoughts to himself, until now – the artist, Jonathan Borofsky.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A stone-cold mystery Dec 06, 2021

Show notes

Baltimore’s rowhouses are renowned for their white marble front steps, but where did all that marble come from? This episode, we track down the origins of the mystery marble, and it turns out the answer is closer than you might expect.

In this episode, we hear from:

Community artist Megan Hildbrandt

Historian Phillip Lord

Thomas Doyle, President of Hilgartner Natural Stone Company

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why can’t Baltimore synchronize its traffic lights? Nov 29, 2021

Show notes

This week, a listener asks why Baltimore’s traffic-light network seems so poorly organized, so we talk with the engineering masterminds behind the system. And Aaron does an experiment to calculate how much time we spend waiting at red lights.

This episode, we hear from:

William Haynes, Chief of the Traffic Division at Baltimore’s Department of Transportation

Frank Murphy, Senior Advisor with Baltimore’s Department of Transportation

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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