Cool Weird Awesome With Brady Carlson

Glass is versatile stuff, but fragile. A new project out of McGill University is modeled after the material in mollusk shells and could make glass a lot more durable. Plus: in Brazil, Fabio Gomes Trindade makes outdoor art that incorporates the shapes and colors of the nearby trees and bushes.  Unbreakable glass inspired by seashells (McGill University) Street Artist Incorporates Flowering Plants Into His Graffiti to Stunning Visual Effect (Oddity Central) Our Patreon backers are naturally amazing --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

Today in 1959, a write-in candidate for city council in São Paulo, Brazil, won a huge victory. The catch: that candidate was a rhinoceros from the São Paulo Zoo. Plus: today in 1935, a man in Houston, Missouri finds a hat he'd lost three years earlier.  Rhino Horns In On A Brazilian Election (Life Magazine) Hat Lost 3 Years Returns (Bend Bulletin) Vote for our show as a backer on Patreon! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

One of the many things we’ve learned over the last 19 months or so is that a lot of people around us can get lonely and isolated, even if they want social contact. In the Netherlands, a grocery store chain is trying to help by offering Kletskassa, or "chat checkout," where customers and clerks can strike up conversations if they need them. Plus: October is National Roller Skating Month, and whenever you’re next in Lincoln, Nebraska, you can check out the National Museum of Roller Skating. Jumbo opens ‘chat checkouts’ to combat loneliness among the elderly (Dutch News) Here Are 22 Things You Can Only Find In Nebraska (Only in Nebraska) We're always up for a chat with our Patreon backers --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

In a part of the world where the energy grid isn't as reliable as residents might like, Reedii rents out energy “capsules” to those who need to charge cellphones, plug in lights or use other powered devices. And the "capsules" are charged with solar power! Plus: did you know there are six asteroids named for the six members of Monty Python?  This Nigerian startup sells solar-powered batteries at corner stores (Fast Company) Celebrating National Asteroid Day with Monty Python and asteroids #9617-9622 (Tellyspotting) Our Patreon backers are out of this world --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

Today's the birthday of a mystery author known to millions of kids, Donald J Sobol. He wrote the Encyclopedia Brown series, about a 10 year old detective who solved cases because he knew, as his nickname suggested, all sorts of unusual and obscure facts in the era way before the internet. Plus: it’s National Taco Day, and here's the story of one of the largest tacos ever made.  Encyclopedia Brown and the Case of the Mysterious Author (Crimereads) Guinness confirms 102-meter taco is world’s largest (Mexico News Daily) No mystery about who makes our show happen, it's our Patreon backers  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

It's International Coffee Day, so here's the story of a woman in Dresden, Germany, who made it a lot easier to brew coffee: Melitta Bentz, the inventor of the coffee filter. Plus: it's World Smile Day, and in Polk County, Oregon, there's a giant smiley face on a hillside made of trees! Overlooked No More: Melitta Bentz, Who Invented the Coffee Filter (New York Times) Giant Smiley Face on Oregon Hillside Is Made Up of Trees (Oddity Central) Our Patreon backers make us smile every day --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

A project out of a Saudi university has built a cooling system that uses salt, water and heat from sunlight, but not electricity. Plus: one of the finalists for induction into the National Toy Hall of Fame is sand. Just sand.  No Electricity? A New Cooling System Uses Sunlight and Saltwater (Interesting Engineering) 2021 National Toy Hall of Fame Finalists  Our show stays cool with help from our backers on Patreon --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

Today in 1954, Willie Mays made one of the most amazing plays in baseball history - an over the shoulder catch in deep center field, followed by a throw that kept the opposing baserunners from scoring. And yet, Mays was so great that some researchers say The Catch wasn't even his greatest catch! Plus: for Goose Day, a visit to Belfast to see a statue in honor of Alec the Goose.  The true 'Catch' story (ESPN) Goose Day - 'Alec the Goose' (Atlas Obscura) Our Patreon backers caught on to Cool Weird Awesome early on, and you can join them! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

Today in 1881, Eleonora Sears was born in Boston. She would go on to be one of the most versatile and accomplished athletes of the early 20th century, excelling in dozens of sports, from tennis and squash to boxing and auto racing. Plus: the website House Rules catalogs all the fun homegrown variations people have come up with for classic board games.  A Woman to Know: Eleanora Randolph Sears (A Woman To Know) Eleonora Sears, Blueblood Bad Girl on the Tennis Courts (New England Historical Society) House Rules  Our Patreon backers are as versatile as they are talented  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

Around this time in 2018 humans started removing mountain goats from Olympic National Park in Washington state. But for a range of reasons, they had to do it by putting the goats in harnesses and flying them out with a helicopter. Plus: around this time in 1997, Elton John improvised a song on a TV show using words from some guy's oven manual.  A National Park Is Airlifting Hundreds of Mountain Goats That Have Gone Crazy for Human Pee (Vice) Elton John Was Challenged To Improvise A Song Based On This Guy's Oven Manual And He Absolutely Crushed It (Digg) Our Patreon backers make all the words on this show happen!  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

If you listen to our show, your ears are doing the work, unless you’re a certain type of roundworm that researchers have just shown can react to sound even though they don't have any ear-like organs. Plus: a crater on the moon has a new name in honor of the great Black explorer Matthew Henson.  Earless worms 'listen' through their skin (Science Daily) Thanks to UCLA graduate student, a lunar honor for explorer Matthew Henson (UCLA) If you hang out with us you'll hear us talk about how great our Patreon backers are --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

Today was the day in 1962 that “The Jetsons” premiered on ABC. Fitting for a show about the future, it was the first color broadcast for the network. Plus: it's National American Pot Pie Day - though the world record in the category for “Largest pie, meat” belongs to a group of catering students from the UK. September 23, 1962…”The Jetsons” Debuts As First Color For ABC (Eyes of a Generation) ‘The Jetsons’ turns 53! Eight fun facts about the science fiction sitcom (New York Daily News) Largest pie, meat (Guinness World Records) Our Patreon backers keep this show moving into the future --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

Today in 1934, Leonard Cohen was born. His music and poetry have influenced other songwriters and poets for decades, but today we’re talking about another part of his career, and maybe the weirdest part: the time he guest starred on the 80s action series “Miami Vice.” Plus: today in 1997, Dunkin gave out free donuts to mark the last hurrah for their longtime TV pitchman, Fred the Baker.  Revisiting Leonard Cohen's fantastic cameo appearance in 'Miami Vice' (Far Out) Doughnuts for everyone, on Fred Pitchman: Fred, the star of Dunkin' Donuts TV ads for 15 years, gets a sweet send-off today as the company gives away doughnuts at its 3,300 U.S. locations. (Baltimore Sun) Make more episodes like this one as a backer on Patreon!  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

Today in 1934, Paramount Pictures released the movie “Belle of the Nineties,” starring Mae West. And, for some reason, the studio trained several dozen parrots to learn to say the title of the movie so they could appear at theaters and wow the moviegoing public. There was just one problem with the plan, though. Plus: on this World Peace Day, the guy who tried to make the world a more peaceful place by walking backwards.  A.C. Lyles ("A Woman At War" via Google Books) Mani Manithan: I walked backwards for 25 years (Friday Magazine) We're trying to get some parrots to say "Back our show on Patreon!" --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

The famous cover of The Clash's landmark album "London Calling" was taken on September 21, 1979, according to the liner notes. Except that Dave Marin, a concertgoer who was there when the photo was taken, has a concert stub that says September 20th. And he's spent decades trying to get the world to notice that the album credits are a day off. Plus: today in 1940, a bomb explodes in London, and the locals decide to turn the crater it left behind into something special.  When Did a Famous Guitar-Smashing Occur? One Fan of The Clash Insists Everyone Has It Wrong (Wall Street Journal) Ecologies of resilience: Westminster’s  bomb crater garden and the  Dig for Victory campaign (Seismopolite) Our Patreon backers always stand by us --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

This weekend is National Cheeseburger Day, and there's only one such holiday. But if you ask where the cheeseburger came from, there are a couple answers. Plus: for National Pet Bird Day, a story from 2017 in which researchers found wild birds in Australia swearing. Who Invented the All-American Cheeseburger? (The Spruce Eats) Plaque commemorating invention of the cheeseburger in Pasadena dedicated at LA Financial Credit Union (Pasadena Chamber of Commerce) Birds that escape from captivity teach wild birds how to speak (and swear) in English (Inhabitat) Our Patreon backers make every delicious episode of our show possible --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

Today in 1979, a story that sounds like it came straight out of a movie: two families in Communist East Germany escaped to the West by making and flying a hot air balloon. Plus: Today in 2018, Denise Mueller-Korenek broke the world record for “fastest bicycle speed in slipstream": 183.9 mph.  Freedom Balloon (Popular Mechanics) With hot air to freedom (Der Spiegel) A history of cycling speed records as Denise Mueller-Korenek reaches 183 mph (Guinness World Records) Help keep this show flying as a backer on Patreon! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

Today's the birthday of Agatha Christie, the novelist and playwright who gave us some of the most popular mysteries of all time. But when she wasn't sending Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot out to crack cases, she was often found surfing. Plus: it's the birthday of playwright Jerry Sterner, best known for “Other People’s Money," and for being buried under a headstone that was perfect for someone in his line of work. How Agatha Christie Helped Popularize Surfing -- Yes, Surfing (Crimereads) Investigating Hate (Harpers) We'd hang ten with our Patreon backers anytime --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

Apollo 8 brought the first human astronauts to lunar orbit in late 1968, but a few months beforehand, the Soviet Zond 5 mission sent two tortoises (and a few other living things) for a trip around the moon. Here's what happened. Plus: today in 1890, Mexican singing and songwriting great Maria Grever was born. Whether or not you know her songs, you know a phrase that comes from one. The Time Two Russian Space Tortoises Beat Apollo to the Moon (HowStuffWorks) Maria Grever (Encyclopedia.com) Our backers on Patreon help us launch new episodes every day --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message

These days, with everything moving further and further online, it's not a surprise that many of us can see our doctors through remote appointments. But a century ago, a radio enthusiast called Hugo Gernsback predicted a way that doctors could examine patients remotely, using radio waves. Plus: a giant blob of old pizza dough has become an odd kind of celebrity in New Orleans.  Telemedicine Predicted in 1925 (Smithsonian) North shore pizza dough blob grows to enormous proportions, overtakes dumpster post-Ida (New Orleans Times-Picayune) We predict our Patreon backers will make more great episodes of our show happen --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/coolweirdawesome/message