The disaster at Three Mile Island thankfully did not cost any lives directly, but the notion that it didn't harm people is very much up in the air. Learn all about the worst nuclear disaster in the history of the United States today.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informa ...Show more
Short Stuff: 1955 Le Mans Disaster
In 1955, the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance motor race took a very dark turn when a terrible accident on the track continued into the crowd.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Ruth lifts the lid on the surprising history of toilets. A cesspit proves deadly for a noble assembly in 12th-century Germany. Pigs form an unlikely part of the sewage system in ancient China. And the world’s first flushing toilet is invented… four and a half thousand years ago… ...Show more
While the toilet is not THE most important invention, it's certainly hard to imagine life without one -- and the advantages of modern flushing toilets go far beyond mere convenience. In this Invention two-parter, Robert Lamb and Joe McCormick explore the ancient origins of the to ...Show more
Why is it so hard to find a bathroom when you need one? In the U.S., we used to have lots of publicly accessible toilets. But many had locks on the doors and you had to put in a coin to use them. Pay toilets created a system of haves and have nots when it came to bathroom access. ...Show more
Whether you're royalty or a roaming vagrant, a President or a pauper, one thing's for sure: At some point, you'll have to use the restroom. While sanitation isn't often brought up in polite conversation, it plays a vital role in human health, and over the centuries various civili ...Show more