Why was Phrenology a Thing? Part II: A Pseudoscience (Sort of) Informs the Modern Day
Listen now
Description
While the credibility of phrenology inevitably deteriorated over time, it was neither a completely original concept, nor, in some respects, a completely useless one. In the second part of this two-part series, Ben, Noel and Max explore the ancient precedents of judging inner qualities based on outer appearance, as well as what modern scientists have to say about how phrenology, as imperfect as it was, helped establish some concepts that stay with the world of research today. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
More Episodes
If you described the concept of a roller coaster to an alien, they'd probably be baffled: Why on Earth are humans purposely recreated the sensation of falling, flying and -- quite possibly -- feeling close to death? In the first part of this special two-part series, the guys explore the origin...
Published 04/23/24
Published 04/23/24
In the mid-19th century, London was literally filling with corpses. When the city was in the grips of a cholera epidemic, the already-overfilled cemetaries couldn't handle the extra bodies. So when there's literally no room in the soil for another dead body, what's a city to do? To the creators...
Published 04/20/24