1781: "The Carnyx"

1781: "The Carnyx"

Author: JC September 20, 2026 Duration: 4:17
Interesting Things with JC #1781: "The Carnyx" – Celtic warriors raised bronze carnyxes nearly 10 feet high, blasting sound through open animal jaws above the battlefield. One surviving boar head had a hinged jaw and movable tongue that could rattle as it played, while seven carnyxes later found at a Gallic sanctuary showed the same instrument belonged beyond war.

Curiosity often leads us down the most rewarding paths, and that's the spirit behind Interesting Things with JC. Each episode is a compact dive into a story that makes you pause and think, hosted by JC. You'll find a mix here: forgotten chapters from our past that explain the present, nuanced looks at cultural shifts happening now, and those remarkable tales that simply never got the spotlight they deserved. This isn't a dry lecture but a conversation about the threads connecting history, society, and our everyday lives. The focus is on depth over breadth, making each installment of this podcast a self-contained exploration. Whether it's an obscure historical event with surprising modern echoes or a fresh perspective on a current topic, the aim is to feed that curiosity with something substantive. Tune in for a thoughtfully researched and engagingly presented look at the world's fascinating corners.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

Interesting Things with JC
Podcast Episodes
1760: "The Greek That Stayed Behind" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:36
Interesting Things with JC #1760: "The Greek That Stayed Behind" – Muslim families in Turkey still speak a form of Greek that survived the 1923 population exchange. Now fewer children are learning it, and researchers are…
1759: "Gestalt Language Processing" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 6:43
Interesting Things with JC #1759: "Gestalt Language Processing" – A child repeats a phrase they heard hours, days, or weeks earlier, sometimes using the same tone and rhythm. This delayed echolalia can communicate someth…
1758: "The Oxytocin Feedback Loop" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:54
Interesting Things with JC #1758: "The Oxytocin Feedback Loop" – A dog holds its owner’s gaze, and oxytocin rises in the human. The owner then interacts more with the dog, whose oxytocin also rises, creating a feedback l…
1757: "The Tracking Device We Carry" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 3:47
Interesting Things with JC #1757: "The Tracking Device We Carry" – Your phone tracking everywhere you go once sounded like a conspiracy. Now smartphones routinely create location records through cell towers, GPS, Wi-Fi,…
1756: "What Happens When You Skip Sleep?" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:40
Interesting Things with JC #1756: "What Happens When You Skip Sleep?" – Stay awake long enough and adenosine signaling increases sleep pressure while caffeine can temporarily block the feeling of it. Attention, judgment,…
1755: "How Do Dogs Know How to Herd?" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:45
Interesting Things with JC #1755: "How Do Dogs Know How to Herd?" – A Border Collie can crouch, stare, and move around sheep before learning herding commands. Selective breeding reshaped parts of the canine hunting seque…
1754: "Jose Alberto Gutierrez" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:47
Interesting Things with JC #1754: "Jose Alberto Gutierrez" – Bogotá garbage collector José Alberto Gutiérrez keeps pulling discarded books from the trash until his home becomes a free library and the books begin reaching…
1753: "Charlie" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:08
Interesting Things with JC #1753: "Charlie" – The name is very common today, but it kept changing as it passed through different languages.
1752: "The Blind Man" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 2:36
Interesting Things with JC #1752: "The Blind Man" – A blind man’s eyes are touched, and he begins to see people, but they look like trees walking around. His eyes are touched again, and his vision becomes clear, leaving…
1751: "The Wasps That Know Your Face" [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 0:00
Interesting Things with JC #1751: "The Wasps That Know Your Face" – Northern paper wasps recognize individual nestmates by their faces. Change a familiar face, and the colony responds with aggression until it learns who…