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Episodes
Pour yourself something warm. Let it drizzle outside. This one's for the curious.
The Mark & Toddcast is your weekly escape from the algorithm, the outrage cycle, and whatever fresh hell is trending. Broadcasting from the rainy heart of Portland, Oregon, two friends have spent 11 years and over 300 episodes doing exactly what you wish you could do at your favorite dimly lit neighborhood pub: sitting down with a pint and wandering through whatever's genuinely interesting.
Consider us comfort food for your brain.
Instead, expect pure Pacific Northwest chill and unfiltered curiosity about topics like:
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Why we absolutely hate the sound of our own voices
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The secret origin of the biohazard symbol
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America’s classified, Cold War plan to nuke the moon
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The Stanford Prison Experiment (and why it was actually kind of BS)
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Portland’s very own infamous Barbie-hacking culture jammers
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The unsolved mystery of the Toynbee Tiles
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And yes... the actual science of farts
What’s in an Episode?
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The Catch-Up: A little life banter between two longtime friends navigating the Rose City.
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Just the Headlines: A quick spin through the weirdest, wildest science and culture news of the week.
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The Deep Dive: A 20-minute, high-level plunge into whatever strange subject one of us couldn't stop reading about.
Meet Your Hosts:
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Mark spent his twenties operating nuclear reactors for the Navy before coming home to Portland's Silicon Forest to keep the machines that build microchips running. Now, he’s a technical director helping companies get found online.
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Todd has lived several lives—ad copywriter, artist, Newsweek-published writer, and an unrepentant Madonna superfan. Today, he’s a local therapist helping people untangle their stories and reconnect with the humans around them.
Pull up a chair. Grab a local beverage.
Science is funny.
Episodes
Tuesday Apr 10, 2018
Tuesday Apr 10, 2018
Black holes and dark matter are such a mystery, scientists are still trying to unwrap their secrets. In this episode, we take a look at the basics of black holes, and struggle to understand dark matter, which is the mysterious substance that makes up most of the universe. Plus, the Unipiper joins us in studio to talk fake Unipipers, Sasquatches, and WWeek's "Best of Portland 2018." Also: LED street lights causing headaches, world's largest dinosaur footprint, zombie raccoons, fart detectors, and what 167 theramins sound like playing Beethoven. Enjoy!
Tuesday Apr 03, 2018
Tuesday Apr 03, 2018
If I can't exhale at the speed of sound, how does my voice travel the speed of sound? How do the Eastern Oregon hot springs work? And who knew Alyssa Milano's dad was such a successful Hollywood sound editor? These questions and more will be answered in this meandering and interesting episode. Also discussed: "Embiggen" added to the dictionary, oil companies buy Utah monuments for drilling, Amazon patents drones to recognize flailing and screaming gestures, the Texas-sized (?) Pacific Garbage Patch, earliest North American footprint found, China face IDs and tickets jaywalkers, mind-reading technology, new human organ discovered, and turtles develop karate-chopping flippers. Cowabunga, dude!
Wednesday Mar 21, 2018
Wednesday Mar 21, 2018
Between movies, TV, and advertising, our heads are full of songs we know note-for-note, but know nothing else about. This week, Brian "The Unipiper" sits in for a vacationing Mark and digs into the history and origins or some of the most famous songs we don't know the origins of. Also, "Toys R Us" and "I Heart Radio" file for bankruptcy, autism neurology breakthrough, WalMart patents robot bees, and "Weird" Al makes history. Enjoy!
Wednesday Mar 07, 2018
Wednesday Mar 07, 2018
Like most of us, you probably think of Michael Jackson on the cover of the National Enquirer when you hear "Hyperbaric Chamber." Surprisingly, they're not just kookie, weirdo nonsense, but hold legitimate, scientific purpose. This week we learn all about them, and hear a first-hand account of what it's like to use one. Also, the Unipiper is in-studio to tell us all about the First Annual Tonya Harding Film Festival! Also: Detecting autism, eradicating polio (also, what is polio?), SpaceX, Foreign Accent Syndrome, Best Buy stops selling CDs, Bitcoin heist, and drones take over the fashion runways. Enjoy!
Tuesday Feb 06, 2018
Tuesday Feb 06, 2018
This week Todd recaps his journey into opening his third eye as he describes his sensory deprivation salt water float experience. Then we dive into the surprisingly fascinating and innovative history of a much maligned (well, maligned by Todd) RC Cola! All that, plus: The Unipiper is art!, liquid mirror telescopes, Amazon tracks and "nudges" workers, Amazon/Berkshire Hathaway/JP Morgan insurance, SF clears marijuana convictions, and amateur astronomer finds missing NASA satellite. Enjoy with a frosty cold Nehi!
Wednesday Jan 31, 2018
Wednesday Jan 31, 2018
In 1984, 751 people in the town of The Dalles, Oregon were sickened with salmonella when a group led by Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh poisoned the salad bars of local restaurants. It was the beginning of the end of one of the largest and most invasive cults in the United States, and came complete with a fleet of Rolls Royces. Discover the Rajneeshes on this fascinating episode. Plus, the Unipiper joins us to chat about a new project! Also discussed: RIP Rosie the Riveter and Mort Walker, electric barges, solar tariffs, super blood moon, Musk's flamethrower, and scandal in the world of camel beauty pageants. Enjoy!
Tuesday Jan 23, 2018
Tuesday Jan 23, 2018
There are no mistakes, just “happy accidents.” In this episode, we take a look at a bunch of scientific innovations and inventions – from Corn Flakes to penicillin to the microwave to Play-Doh – that...
The post #106 – Accidental Inventions appeared first on Mark and Toddcast.
Tuesday Jan 09, 2018
Tuesday Jan 09, 2018
We’re back with a bonus-sized episode! This week we catch up with, well, everything — both the news stories we’ve been saving up, as well as a look back at the past year in science....
The post #105 – Playing Catch-Up appeared first on Mark and Toddcast.
Wednesday Dec 20, 2017
Wednesday Dec 20, 2017
This week we welcome special guest and meteorologist Jack Bohl to chat about how climate works (or, more accurately, how we don’t really know specifically how it works), and how things have changed in weather...
The post #104 – It’s Raining, Men appeared first on Mark and Toddcast.
Tuesday Nov 28, 2017
Tuesday Nov 28, 2017
“Quantum Computing” is a phrase we’re hearing more and more about it, and it’s something that seems like magic — because it sort of is. Let’s take a look at Quantum Computing, which is basically...
The post #103 – Mark Explains and Doesn’t Explain Quantum Computing appeared first on Mark and Toddcast.