The Atlas Obscura Podcast

We go to Statesboro, Georgia to the US National Tick Collection to learn what ticks, often thought of as little monstrosities, can teach us.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/us-national-tick-collection

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The Flagg Grove School in Brownsville, Tennessee has become a museum dedicated to its most famous student. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS:https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/tina-turner-museum

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Take a trip to Micropia, the world’s only museum dedicated to microscopic organisms, and learn about our invisible life companions.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/micropia

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The story of the unimaginable destruction of the American Chestnut tree and the group of scientists, academics and tree lovers who are desperately trying to bring them back from the edge of extinction.

LEARN MORE: Visit https://acf.org/ to find out more about this massive conservation effort

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A spinning furnace tucked under the football stadium at the University of Arizona is building giant telescope mirrors. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: 

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/richard-f-caris-mirror-laboratory

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Sun cannons have been around since the 1600s. But as far as we know, there’s only one left that’s still up and running. We pay it a visit. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/atvidaberg-sun-cannon

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Habaneros!  Jalapenos! Green! Red! These days, an appreciation for chiles is pretty mainstream. But that wasn’t always the case. We head to New Mexico to learn how this food became such a huge part of our culture, and visit an institute dedicated to its continual improvement. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/chile-pepper-institute

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A North Carolina town has become a draw for people who want to see the wreckage of the train wreck from the movie “The Fugitive.” But a more interesting – and true – story happened just a pistol shot away.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-fugitive-train-wreck-sylva-north-carolina

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A once-blacklisted Hollywood star created a magical theater in Topanga Canyon, California, that still endures and inspires today.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/theatricum-botanicum

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One of the oldest books in the world is also the most misunderstood. A medievalist tells us about the Voynich, which is in the collection of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/beinecke-rare-book-manuscript-library

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She’s about 8 feet wide and 500 pounds. And her history spans all the way from the stockyards of Chicago... to a nuclear test during the Manhattan Project...to a stadium at the University of Texas at Austin. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/big-bertha-drum

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We dig through more than 1,000 years of dirt, history,  colonialism, and myth on the Swahili Coast.

Read more in the Atlas: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/kilwa-kisiwani-ruins

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Where can you find the smoothest, most scrumptious edible art? If you ask our host, Dylan, it’s in the Minnesota State Fair butter sculpture room. He’s joined in this episode by Gastro Obscura writer Sam O’Brien, who got the scoop on the yummy centerpieces.
 

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We all dream of the perfect vacation when everything goes right. This episode is about the opposite. Hear stories of people having near death travel experiences.

TELL US YOUR STORY: We want to hear your stories too! Give us a call at (315) 992-7902, and leave a message telling us your name, and about your own near-death travel experience. You can also record a voice memo and email it to us at hello@atlasobscura.com. Looking forward to hearing from you.

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Elusive patches of land in America’s Midwest can show us what the environment was like 150 years ago and tell us about the future.

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We spend time with the world’s foremost poo enthusiasts, who operate a museum in England where poo is elegant, elevated and celebrated.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/national-poo-museum

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A walk through this scale model has you feeling like a giant, and striding from Baton Rouge to Omaha in an hour. LEARN MORE about the model and the group trying to revive it, here: https://friendsofmrbm.org/

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The next time you go out on a road trip, keep your eyes peeled for a peanut-shaped car that got its start as an advertising play during the Great Depression

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Nestled in a hospital courtyard in Kumasi, Ghana, you’ll find the strength of the Asante people: the sword of Okomfo Anokye, planted in the ground over 300 years ago. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/sword-of-okomfo-anokye

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We go on a bumpy ride with the Hurricane Hunters – the government’s team of scientists who fly into storms so the rest of us can have accurate info and research about massive weather events. Our guide is Nick Underwood, of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

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At a food truck in Austin, tried and true barbecue favorites meet unexpected spices and flavor profiles. Here, chef Damien Brockway’s journey into family history led him to weave the flavors of the African diaspora into his food. This episode was produced in partnership with Travel Texas. 

LEARN MORE about Distant Relatives and Travel Texas.

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In 1986 an unknown natural disaster at Lake Nyos in Menchum, Cameroon left more than 1700 people dead in one night - and puzzled scientists. Listen to learn how they solved the mystery. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/lake-nyos-the-deadliest-lake-in-the-world

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How far would you go to find the largest island in the largest lake on the largest island in the largest lake on the largest island in the largest lake in the United States? 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/moose-boulder-debunked

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The variety of apples we enjoy today have a common ancestor that lies in the forests of Kazakhstan, where scientists are studying the wildest version of the fruit.

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Welcome to the Judith A Basset Canid Education & Conservation Center, where a California couple has dedicated their lives to showing folks man has even more best friends than previously thought.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-jab-canid-education-and-conservation-center-jabcecc

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Jonathan Carey and Michelle Cassidy of the Atlas Places Team bring us stories about the trees that have witnessed history. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: Read the story of Emancipation Oak in Hampton, VA and the Travel Log from California. 

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It’s easy to dismiss Bigfoot, the yeti, the Loch Ness monster, and other cryptids as far-fetched X-Files fodder. But the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine aims to show that when investigations into unknown creatures are done right, they involve real science, and have real scientific value.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/international-cryptozoology-museum 

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In the Adirondacks of northern New York sits John Brown's Farm, a monument to the famous abolitionist, and the last vestige of Timbuctoo, an ambitious but failed settlement that some hoped could help African Americans secure the right to vote. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/john-brown-farm

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In Atlanta, on this historic Auburn Avenue, sits a small bookstore and reading room that’s been called “an interactive art museum of Black Thought.” 

LEARN MORE: https://www.forkeepsbooks.com/

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Ross Jennings, aka the First Piper, has been on a world-spanning quest to play the bagpipes in every country of the world. 

LEARN MORE: https://www.thefirstpiper.com/

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We go to Northern Ethiopia and learn about an ancient King who left a great legacy to his people and the world: the rock hewn church known as St. Giyorgis, where religious services are held to this day. See a virtual rendering of all the rock hewn churches of Lalibela at the Zamani Project.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/bete-giyorgis-lalibela

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This stunning geological marvel just north of Dahab, Egypt has been called the deadliest dive spot in the world. But is that reputation deserved?

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/red-sea-blue-hole

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Author Mary Roach takes us into the hidden corners of the scientific world. From training to poop in space to the surprisingly pleasant Common Cold Unit, all the way to the inside of Elvis’s colon. If you want to check out her work, we recommend starting with Packing for Mars. 

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We head to the Namib Desert in Africa, where the landscape is dotted with mysterious, pimple-like indents known as fairy circles. Where do these things come from? Scientist Walter Tschinkel has spent the last several years studying and experiencing a natural occurrence so enchanting, locals describe it as “The footprints of the gods.”

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/fairy-circles-southern-africa

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For decades, the Ashley House in Sheffield, Massachusetts preserved and promoted the story of Col. John Ashley, a wealthy businessman who opened his home to those fighting against British rule on the eve of America’s war for independence. But in this episode we hear a new narrative, about an enslaved woman and true patriot who tested the rhetoric of the revolution.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/ashley-house

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Hear tales of our team’s most memorable family trips – like going on vacation with Thomas Jefferson, getting thrown in the ocean and meeting Klingons. 

TELL US YOUR STORY: We want to hear your stories too! Give us a call at (315) 992-7902, and leave a message telling us your name, and about your own memorable family trip. Whatever it is, wherever you went, we want to hear about it. You can also record a voice memo and email it to us at hello@atlasobscura.com. Looking forward to hearing from you.

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Photographer and author Paul Koudonaris brings listeners to this Ethiopian Church and explores ossuaries, jeweled skeletons, and death practices throughout the world. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/yemrehana-krestos-church

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In 1986, something really weird happened in Pennsylvania – a replica of The Statue of Liberty mysteriously appeared through the fog on the Susquehanna River. We unravel the mystery. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/mini-statue-of-liberty-harrisburg

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A 50 square mile patch of Yellowstone National Park in Idaho might just be the perfect place to commit a crime. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/yellowstones-zone-of-death

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An adventurous couple sets out to document and unearth the arrows of America’s past, once used to help pilots find their way across the skies. You can learn more about Charlotte and Brian’s journey – and see photos of the arrows they’ve documented – at their website: dreamsmithphotos.com

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A tidy little story from Pocatello, Idaho, home to the Museum of Clean 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/museum-of-clean

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Trailblazing computer scientist Grace Hopper shaped the way people use and talk about computers. Her actual computer bug is preserved at the Smithsonian Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: 

https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/grace-hoppers-bug

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 This San Francisco museum, curated by a super-fan of the Beats, is a shrine to an incredibly influential cultural movement and a destination for folks keeping it alive today. *An earlier version of this episode contained a mispronunciation and a misattributed quote. Both have been fixed and we regret the error.
 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/beat-museum

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Filmmaker and writer Cheuk Kwan takes us for a round-the-world meal. Three courses, three incredible places. Three stories of Chinese immigration.

LEARN MORE: Cheuk Kwan’s new book is called “Have You Eaten Yet?” You can also check out “Chinese Restaurants,” his documentary series that started it all, on youtube https://www.youtube.com/@cheukkwan/featured

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Dylan chats with Rowan Jacobsen, a food journalist and host of the podcast called OBSESSION: Wild Chocolate. And he takes us on a journey that follows his multiyear quest into the Amazon rainforest to learn more about a mythical chocolate that has a dark history and the potential to save parts of the rainforest.

LEARN MORE: Check out Rowan's podcast here.

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Jonathan Carey and Michelle Cassidy of the Atlas Places Team bring us stories about the biggest balls of twine. Plus, a special guest adds an additional tangle to the tale. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/world-s-largest-ball-of-twine

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Tonopah, Nevada is home to the Clown Motel - an inn on the edge of the desert that’s packed with statues and figurines of Clowns. The eerie and fully-functioning inn is also a labor of love.  

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/clown-motel

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The deep woods of Pennsylvania hold a phenomena that has drawn attention from scientists and people around the world, and was almost recently destroyed. To learn more about the Pennsylvania Firefly Festival visit https://www.pafireflyevents.org/.

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We visit a park in Palo Alto, California, home of the world’s most famous donkey. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-donkeys-of-barron-park-palo-alto-california

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A massive 19th-century reservoir under the city of Copenhagen has been repurposed as a contemporary art cave. We venture inside to learn more about its history, and bask in the incredible acoustics of the space.

Visit Cisternerne and Frederiksberg Museerne: https://frederiksbergmuseerne.dk/da/

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/cisternerne

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