Midnight Facts for Insomniacs

Diets Debunked: The Sketchy Science of Health and Weight Loss

What's the most effective weight loss plan? Do any of the trending "diet tips" on the Internet actually work? Why does the keto diet make your breath smell like death? 
Join the guys for an exploration of the wild history of nutrition science through the ages, and learn which (if any) fad-diets are legit. 
 
In this episode:
The shifting, shifty food pyramid
Fletcherism
The cigarette diet
The Hay diet
Atkins
The paleo diet
The raw food diet
Food replacement (SlimFast etc)
~Become an Insomniac! Support the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content.~Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD~Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforinsomniacs@gmail.com~Rep the show! Grab a tee or mug at the MIDNIGHT MERCH store and spread the word.~Follow us on INSTAGRAM

Uncool: Failed Fads and Terrible Trends

We humans are suckers for the latest crazes and fads, but it's easy to forget that today's TikTok dance will be tomorrow's Macarena. Today's iPhone will be tomorrow's Blackberry. Today's skinny jeans will be tomorrow's skinny jeans. You get the idea. 
 
Join the guys for a rollicking trip through the fad-tastic misfires of yesteryear, from carob to merkins. 
 
In this episode:
Water Beds
Carob
Merkins
Dance Marathons
Mailbox Baseball
Pogs
Magic Eye (Autostereograms)
Sea Monkeys
~Become an Insomniac! Support the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content.~Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD~Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforinsomniacs@gmail.com~Rep the show! Grab a tee or mug at the MIDNIGHT MERCH store and spread the word.~Follow us on INSTAGRAM

Substandard Superheroes: The Bad, the Worse, and the Ugly

Not all heroes are created equal. Join the boys for adventures in mediocrity as they explore the least "super" heroes from comic book lore. 
 
In this episode:
The Silliest:
Big Bertha
Leather Boy
Squirrel Girl and Monkey Joe
Arm Fall Off Boy
Fortress Lad
Mnemonic Kid
Color Kid
Cypher (Doug Ramsey)
The Red Bee (Rick Raleigh)
NFL Superpro (Phil Grayfield)
The Black Condor (Richard Grey Junior)
Vibe (Francisco Ramone)
Strong Man
Gin Genie
Hawkeye?
~Become an Insomniac! Support the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content.~Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD~Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforinsomniacs@gmail.com~Rep the show! Grab a tee or mug at the MIDNIGHT MERCH store and spread the word.~Follow us on INSTAGRAM

Misnomers and False Advertising

A peanut isn't a nut, a king crab isn't a crab, a koala isn't a bear, and the funny bone isn't a bone. Listen to this week's episode to find out all of the ways in which your entire life is a lie. 
In this episode:
Funny Bone
King Crab and Horseshoe Crab
Jellyfish and Starfish
Koala Bears
Dry Cleaning
Coconut and Peanut
Horned Toad
Head Cheese
Guinea Pig
Pencil Lead
Tinfoil
Glow Worms and Fireflies
Holland
The 100 Years War
~Become an Insomniac! Support the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content.~Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD~Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforinsomniacs@gmail.com~Rep the show! Grab a tee or mug at the MIDNIGHT MERCH store and spread the word.~Follow us on INSTAGRAM

Forbidden Tourism: The Most Dangerous Locations on Earth

Exploring new locations can be fun, but there’s a fine line between “adventure” and “ordeal.”
Join the the MFFI boys for a whirlwind tour of four deadly destinations that you won’t find on Trip Adviser. From flaming desert-craters to islands packed with vipers, from zombie-bacteria-caves to cannibal jungles, there’s a little something (awful) in this episode for everyone. These are the kinds of tourist traps you’ll never escape...
In this episode: 
Snake Island, Brazil
(Ilha da Queimada Grande)
The Door to Hell, Turkmenistan
(Darvaza Gas Crater)
George Kourounis
Naica Crystal Cave, Mexico
(Cueva de los Cristales)
Sentinal Island, India, Bay of Bengal (The Andaman Islands)
The 1956 Andaman and Nicobar Islands Protection of Aboriginal Tribes Act
Dudnath Tiwari
 
~Become an Insomniac! Support the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content.~Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD~Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforinsomniacs@gmail.com~Rep the show! Grab a tee or mug at the MIDNIGHT MERCH store and spread the word.~Follow us on INSTAGRAM

MFFI Challenge: can Shane make an entertaining episode from the world’s most hated subject?

Full disclosure: no one suggested this week’s topic. Why would they? Only an idiot would attempt to make an interesting podcast episode out of the history and specifics of taxation. 
Shane is that idiot. 
He’s also a giant nerd, and believes that global finances can be fascinating. Duncan is skeptical. Can Shane make taxes interesting? Listen to find out...
In this episode:
Egyptian Shat 
Sin Taxes
The Russian Beard Tax
The Rosetta Stone
Types of Taxes
Tariffs 
Scaled vs Flat (progressive/regressive) 
Capital Gains
~Become an Insomniac! Support the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content.~Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD~Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforinsomniacs@gmail.com~Rep the show! Grab a tee or mug at the MIDNIGHT MERCH store and spread the word.~Follow us on INSTAGRAM

Murdersville U.S.A: Ed Kemper

TW: This episode is not for the faint of heart. Seriously, like, for reals. If you don't have a VERY dark sense of humor, feel free to skip this one. No judgment. 
 
MFFI true-crime crossover, part 2! Edmund Kemper III was a stone-cold psychopath, and the primary inspiration for the movie-villain Hannibal Lecter. An incestuous, sadistic, necrophiliac cannibal who murdered his grandparents and his own mother, Kemper is easily one of the most depraved killers of all time...and he lived 5 minutes from the MFFI studio. This one hits close to home, literally. 
In this episode:
Baby giant
Carnell Kemper
Senicide
Overkill
Institutionalized
 Attending Cabrillo College, life with Carnell
The Jury Room
Law Enforcement Aspirations
Teeth Cleaning
Engagement
Little Zapples
The Spree Begins (Berkeley CA)
Mary Ann Pesce and Anita Mary Luchessa
Irrumatio 
Aiko Koo
Rosalind Heather Thorpe and Alice Helen Liu
Matricide
Decapitation Dartboard
Apprehended
Incarceration
~Become an Insomniac! Support the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content.~Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD~Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforinsomniacs@gmail.com~Rep the show! Grab a tee or mug at the MIDNIGHT MERCH store and spread the word.~Follow us on INSTAGRAM

Murdersville U.S.A: The Serial Killers of Santa Cruz

Finally, an MFFI true-crime crossover!
In the 1970s, a small California surf town earned the nickname “Murdersville USA.” As bodies piled up with no explanation or apparent connection, the Santa Cruz Police Department became increasingly desperate. Gun sales shot through the roof, and the entire beachfront community devolved into panic. It would take years for law enforcement to unravel the convoluted chain of events and confirm that multiple serial killers had been simultaneously operating out of the same tiny town...and one of them was a six-foot-nine necrophiliac cannibal named Edmund Kemper.
And guess where MFFI is based? In fact, it turns out that the Sleepless Cell (the MFFI podcast studio) is located mere blocks from the former house—and grisly homebase—of one of the most notorious psychopaths in American history.
Join the boys for a terrifying romp through the blood-soaked history of Santa Cruz.
In this episode:
Santa Cruz in the 70s
The Ohta residence mass murder
John Linley Frazier
Herbert Mullin
Earthquakes and telepathy 
Victims: 
Lawrence White
Mary Guilfoyle
Father Henri Tomei
Jim Gianera+1
Kathy Francis+2
the Henry Cowell killings 
Fred Perez
Ed Kemper intro 
~Become an Insomniac! Support the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content.~Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD~Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforinsomniacs@gmail.com~Rep the show! Grab a tee or mug at the MIDNIGHT MERCH store and spread the word.~Follow us on INSTAGRAM

Modern Snake Oil: From Cryotherapy to The Secret

We like to think we’re in the golden age of medicine, but the truth is that the healthcare industry is still rife with misinformation and hucksterism. Tune in this week for some eye-rolling examples of modern snake oil, and then check out episode 15 for an overview of notorious historical quackery. 
In this episode: 
K Tape
Supplements
Essential Oils and Aromatherapy
The Secret
Penile Extenders 
Whole Body Cryotherapy
Goop
~Become an Insomniac! Support the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content.~Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD~Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforinsomniacs@gmail.com~Rep the show! Grab a tee or mug at the MIDNIGHT MERCH store and spread the word.~Follow us on INSTAGRAM

Stupid Criminals

Way back in episode 2 ("Heists"), Shane and Duncan learned all about the most notorious criminal masterminds in history. In this episode, they meet the B Team. Join the boys for a glorious celebration of schadenfreude, and delight in the misadventures of inept, bumbling criminal wannabes. 
 
In this episode:
Adventures with Flakka (Patrick Rempe)
Facebook dummy #1 (John Mogan II)
Penguin heist (Rhys Owen Jones & Keri Mules)
ATM blowtorch (??)
Britain's Dumbest Criminal (Jamie Sharp)
Alias misfire (Shareeka Strawn)
Bringing a knife--and a bat--to a gunfight (Derrick Mosley)
~Become an Insomniac! Support the show on PATREON and unlock exclusive bonus content.~Join the community, chat with fellow insomniacs, and vote on episode topics via DISCORD~Send Shane and Duncan a message at midnightfactsforinsomniacs@gmail.com~Rep the show! Grab a tee or mug at the MIDNIGHT MERCH store and spread the word.~Follow us on INSTAGRAM