99% Invisible: episodes

60 recent episodes from the show's feed. Back to the show

1. Perfectly Leveraged for the Squat

   Nov 10, 2026 · 36 min

   Jan Todd was considered by many to be the strongest woman in the world back in the 1970s. Then she became a historian, and uncovered a lost generation of strong women who came before her.

2. 100 Objects #23: Coin From the Ship of Gold

   Nov 6, 2026 · 41 min

   The story of the sinking of the SS Central America and the gold that sparked the first global financial panic, helped fuel the Civil War, and—over a century later—ruined one man’s life.

3. Zone Zero

   Nov 3, 2026 · 37 min

   Emmett Fitzgerald reports on the new rules about what plants you can grow around your house in Berkeley, CA.

4. 100 Objects #22: AOL Disc

   Oct 30, 2026 · 34 min

   In the 1990s, AOL introduced millions of Americans to the internet with its ubiquitous free CDs, but how did the company that once dominated the internet nearly disappear?

5. Doktoro Esperanto

   Oct 27, 2026 · 35 min

   Reporter Katie Thornton tells the story of Doktoro Esperanto’s dream, and what we can all still learn from Esperanto right now.

6. 100 Objects #21: Window from the House of D

   Oct 23, 2026 · 37 min

   How a women’s prison in Greenwich Village, and its unusual open windows, helped shape queer community and the modern gay rights movement.

7. Audio Guide of the Imperfections of a Perfect Masterpiece

   Oct 21, 2026 · 30 min

   A closer look at the quirks, imperfections, and clever design solutions that have helped Frank Lloyd Wright’s Guggenheim Museum evolve over the decades.

8. Tony Hawk's Real-Life Willy Wonka

   Oct 20, 2026 · 52 min

   A desert train built for Tony Hawk leads into the strange and thoughtful world of N.D. Austin, a designer of real-life experiences.

9. The Problem With Football Helmets

   Oct 13, 2026 · 43 min

   Football helmets can prevent devastating injuries, but they may also help make an inherently violent game feel safer than it really is.

10. (Not Just) Another Brick in the Wall

    Oct 6, 2026 · 28 min

    A closer look at the messy, beautiful bricks hiding across Chicago.

11. 100 Objects #20: AA Sobriety Chip

    Oct 2, 2026 · 53 min

    Imbued in the Alcoholics Anonymous sobriety chip is a hidden history of America’s relationship to gender, religion, and morality.

12. Tootle of a Devilish Song

    Sep 29, 2026 · 32 min

    How a Swiss mountain call crossed the Atlantic and helped define the sound of country music.

13. 100 Objects #19: Western Electric 500 Series

    Sep 25, 2026 · 39 min

    Former MythBuster Adam Savage joins Roman Mars to explore the history of the 500 Series Telephone and what we lost when we eventually decided to leave it behind.

14. The Rocky Statue

    Sep 22, 2026 · 33 min

    How a movie prop became one of Philadelphia’s most beloved monuments, and sparked a decades-long fight over where it belonged.

15. 100 Objects #18: Hair Relaxer

    Sep 18, 2026 · 35 min

    How a single product—the hair relaxer—became a mirror for all of America's contradictions.

16. Doves Type

    Sep 15, 2026 · 37 min

    A legendary typeface, a spectacular friendship breakup, and one extremely committed act of revenge.

17. 100 Objects #17: M43 Field Jacket

    Sep 11, 2026 · 41 min

    How should the military outfit its soldiers to make them as safe and effective as possible?

18. Kobuk the Destroyer

    Sep 8, 2026 · 38 min

    Every product has to be tested somehow, and sometimes that means finding increasingly creative ways to break it.

19. 100 Objects #16: Wheel of Fortune Dalmatian

    Sep 4, 2026 · 47 min

    How the ceramic Dalmatian became the mascot for one of America's most popular game shows.

20. 1-800-PODCAST

    Sep 1, 2026 · 43 min

    This week, two stories about the strange power of the 1-800 number.