Stuff They Don't Want You To Know

Note: this week's strange news segment may not be appropriate for all audiences.

Authorities have uncovered a sophisticated sexual abuse and slavery ring in Alabama, including biological parents abusing their own children. The United States wants you to help pay the national debt by venmoing Uncle Sam directly. A scandal erupts in Thailand as police arrest a woman who allegedly seduced and blackmailed Buddhist monks. A grenade has ...

After years of rumors, recent releases have confirmed the US government knew much more about UFOs than they'd originally let on. And, despite the recent waves of revelations and classifications, Uncle Sam is still refusing to release everything. When pressed on the issue, the government stated that disclosing certain files would pose "an extraordinarily grave threat to national security" -- so what exactly is on these files? Tune i...

Uncle Benny hips the gang to the bizarre story of the Kaikōura lights. Smells Like Low Tide asks about the latest news regarding the First Palomar Sky Survey Spanish Virtual Observatory. Beer Fairy reaches out with disturbing developments in the world of "AI" therapy. All this and more in this week's listener mail segment.

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Located just 25 miles south of Miami, Florida, the Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station provides power for hundreds of thousands of people -- and has done so for decades. However, since at least the 1970s, Turkey Point has struggled with an issue literally beneath the surface. Water used to cool the station has increasingly leached into the ground beneath the plant, spreading closer and closer to the local aquifer used by millio...

Like many other regions of the world, China has its own folklore about ancient, humanoid giants. In most cases, these legends have a mundane cause -- a misidentified fossil, for example, or a translation error. However, this case appears to be unique, because it turns out the giants have been found... it just depends on what you mean when you call someone a 'giant.' Learn more in tonight's Classic episode.

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45-year-old Brett Lemieux exposes his multi-year sports memorabilia con game -- and apparently dies by his own hand. The aviation giant Delta airlines roles out an intensely controversial "AI super-analyst" to change the price you pay for tickets, from one second to the next. Two more tragedies: one with an MRI machine, and one with American Derek Huffman accidentally joining the frontlines of Russia's War against Ukraine. Also, th...

While the human species is inarguably successful (for now), hundreds of millions of people struggle under daily threats of starvation, physical danger, lack of shelter and disease. And, perhaps more troubling, the numbers indicate it's possible to feed and shelter virtually every single person on the planet -- or is it? Is there enough for everyone, and, if so, why isn't humanity transforming this potential into a reality? Join the...

Big Luke hips the gang to robot rabbits. Della addresses myths about menstration. The Messenger prompts an in-depth conversation about drugs and propaganda. The Lord of Enjoyment inspires a new exploration of cloud seeding. The Cacoa Connoisseur follows up on the science of Earth's sun and human civilization. All this and more in this week's listener mail segment.

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In the foggy, early evening of November 7th, 1990, two people at a Montreal hotel noticed something bizarre in the sky. Soon, multiple people in the hotel had gathered on a rooftop terrace to observe a genuine UFO -- and, soon after that, people across the city began reporting the object (if it was an object). In the almost three decades after this sighting, numerous witnesses, experts, fringe researchers and skeptics have attempte...

The Epstein saga continues to unfold, despite the US government saying there's "nothing to see here." China will hire you to be a wild man. UNO rolls out in Vegas. Swedish royal bodyguards accidentally leak location data via fitness apps. Twitter wants you to get an AI girlfriend. Oh, and Yeti Blood Oaths. All this and more in this week's strange news segment.

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For almost a century, the world has been terrified by the possibility of nuclear war. If one does occur, it will happen quickly, with the first strike triggering a domino effect of retaliation and chaos. So what can the average person do in this hellish situation? In tonight's episode, Ben, Matt and Noel ask: Could you survive a nuclear war? If so, how?

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Cheese Out asks whether humans need to kill AI to understand it. Dandy Granny raises concerning points about the childhood of super soldiers. Paul prompts a conversation about Maine's food sovereignty. Potatoes Gun asks for more information on "Big Storage." All this and more in this week's listener mail segment.

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Although most people may not notice this, the living world is rife with an everpresent, invisible chemical conspiracy: pheromones. These chemicals can warn of danger, entice mates, mark territory and produce sophisticated behavioral changes in every species they touch -- but what about humans? Conventional science has argued humans don't play the pheromone game, but as Ben, Matt and Noel learn in tonight's episode... there may be m...

We all know weather can affect a person's mood, but just how far does it go? Could the activity of the sun be driving widespread human conflicts throughout history? In tonight's Classic episode, Ben, Matt and Noel explore the bisarre theory Alexander Tchijevsky stumbled across when he found wars across the planet seem to coincide with solar cycles. This prompted him to ask: Is human civilization enslaved to the sun?

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Despite numerous earlier statements, the US Department of Justice and FBI officially concludes that notorious human trafficker Jeffrey Epstein had no client list -- spoiler, chaos ensues. Akon's planned utopian city falls through. Elon Musk's Grok chatbot courts controversy as it makes pro-Nazi statements and (for unrelated reasons) is also banned in Türkiye. Akon's utopian city is abandoned. A 'click-to-cancel' rule is blocke...

Are we living in a simulation? What's the future of AI? How can humans understand the past, present, and future of the universe -- assuming, of course, that time exists? In this interview segment, Ben, Matt and Noel welcome special guest Dr. Jorge Cham, the creator of the new hit podcast ScienceStuff, and pick his brain about some of the biggest questions in all of human civilization.

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Sloth inspires a round-up of recent news stories from the world of birds. Fae shares a story of real-life bars inside gas stations. Kevin prompts an exploration of hidden history -- the earth shaking Battle of Blair Mountain, and the resulting cover-up from the Powers That Be. Plus puns. All this and more in this week's listener mail segment.

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It's an open secret that not everything is as it seems in the world of diplomacy -- a great many individuals operate with some degree of subterfuge and invisibility. So what happens when things go wrong, and these often disturbing, unseen things become visible? Tonight's story takes us to Lahore, Pakistan: on January 27, 2011, CIA contractor Raymond Allen Davis found himself in a brutal firefight in traffic. What follows becomes an...