Midnight Facts for Insomniacs

The Fermi Paradox, A.K.A ”Where are the Aliens?”

Where are all the aliens?? According to scientists, the Milky Way galaxy should be teeming with life, but when we point our telescopes and radio dishes at the sky we find nothing but stale, empty space. Is it possible that we’re actually alone in the universe?
   
Join Shane and Duncan for an exploration of the fascinating Fermi Paradox, and learn what science tells us about the alien conundrum.  
 
In this episode: 
Lunch with Enrico Fermi
Where are the aliens?
The crazy, mind-boggling, existentially terrifying scale of the universe
Counting sand
The Great Filter
Apex-predator-civilizations theory (Great White Sharks of the universe)
Infiltration theory
Interspecies communication, exponential technological progress, and interpretive dance
...and more
~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

Armageddon, Ragnarok, and End Times

Don't rapture me, bro! In the 666th episode of MFFI (not really) Shane and Duncan get cryptic with eschatological prophesies and learn all about the end of the world as we know it. 
 
In this Episode:
Ragnarok
Mayans and the 2012 Phenomenon
The book of Enoch
Revelations
Judgment Day
Tribulations 
Rapture
Preppers
Bugging out
~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

Weird and Obscure Facts About the Human Body

Which is the smallest bone in the human body? The largest muscle? Which of your fingernails grows fastest? At what time of day are you tallest? If you ironed out all of the wrinkles from your brain, which shark would you resemble? Shane and Duncan provide answers to these and other pointless questions in the latest episode... 
In this episode:
Brain wrinkles
T-Rex thighs
Presbycusis
Tongue prints
Heart location
Lung size
Nail length
Ossification
Aging sucks
...and more
~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

The Dark Side of Disney

All is not as it seems in the House of Mouse. Grab your fastpass and buckle up for a journey behind the scenes of the happiest place on earth. It's going to be a bumpy ride. 
 
In this episode:
Walt's demons
Steamboat blackface
Copyright fascism
Trademark shenanigans
Handsy Tigger
The underwear dilemma
Lemmings reprise
Matterhorn basketball
Cryogenics
Club 33
Disneyland cats
Alligator infanticide
Go-away green
Forced perspective, smellitzers, and the psychology of Disneyland
~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

Myths in the Modern World: The Olympians

Legends never die, they’re just recycled. Torture, betrayal, incest...ancient myths are woven so tightly into modern culture that they're inextricable from psychology, commerce, science, and marketing. In the latest quarantine episode, Shane and Duncan chat about the myths and legends that have shaped the modern world. Did we mention incest? 
In this episode:
The Primordial Deities
The Titans
Incest and The Olympians
Frankenstein
The Olympics 
Psychological Conditions (Oedipal Complex, Narcissistic Personality Disorder) 
Mythological Branding 
...and more
~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

Secret Societies

First rule of secret societies: you do not podcast about secret societies.   
Secret rituals, secret initiations, secret handshakes. From the sinister to the ridiculous, here's everything you need to know about the most notorious secret (and not-so-secret) societies in history. 
 
In this Episode:
Knights Templar
Freemasons
Illuminati
Skull and Bones
...and more
~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

Real-Life Human Superpowers

What qualifies as a "superpower," and do superhumans exist? Are there any drawbacks to being extraordinary? Don your cape and spandex for an entertaining exploration of the mutants among us. 
In this episode:
Unbreakable bones
Tetrachromacy
Mr/Mrs Fantastic?
The Loci technique
Aquapeople
...and more. 
~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

Pirates: Were they anything like the stereotype? (No. But kind of. But mostly no.)

Were pirates really the peg-legged, eye-patched, parrot-toting, swashbuckling sea vagabonds depicted in Hollywood? Dive into the weird, filthy history of piracy, from the Sea Peoples to the Vikings to Blackbeard to modern Somali piracy. This one is a wild ride...
 
In this episode:
What the heck even IS a pirate? 
The first pirates: the Sea Peoples 
How did modern pirate stereotypes develop? 
What separates a pirate from a buccaneer, a corsair, and a privateer?
Female pirates (Anne Bonny and Mary Read)
Calico Jack
Blackbeard
~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

UFOs ARE REAL (but they’re probably not aliens)

Join Shane and Duncan for an extraterrestrial (maybe?) exploration of all things flying and unidentified. Find out the real name of Area 51, learn about Project Grudge, get a crash course in plasma, and what the heck is a Foo Fighter? 
 
In this episode:
Roswell
Project Sign, Project Grudge, and Project Blue Book
Area 51
Foo Fighters 
Saint Elmo's (Ermo's?) Fire
Crop Circles
...and more. 
~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

Medical Quackery: From Snake Oil to Coca Wine

True story: back in the 1800s you could buy a gram of cocaine at a local drug store for 25 cents, and corn flakes were waging a war against masturbation. Ah, the good old days, when your best hope for surviving sickness was avoiding a doctor at all costs... 
In this episode: 
Lobotomies
Leeches/Bloodletting
Coca Wine
Lysol Douches
...and more
~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