An industrial water tank-turned-concert hall in the high deserts of Colorado is nothing less than a sonic wonder of the world. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/the-tank-rangely-colora

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These documents highlight the intellectual legacy of an ancient civilization based in Timbuktu, Mali.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/timbuktu-manuscripts-mali

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A small bit of news, and a request. To ask Dylan your question, send an email or voice memo to hello@atlasobscura.com. 

Or, give us a call at 315-992-7902 and leave a message.

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A map in the archives of the Oregon Historical Society Research Library in Portland, OR may be the key to finding buried treasure that has yet to be found. 

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/buried-treasure-portland-oregon

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Today, we’re sharing an episode from our friends at Terrestrials, a Radiolab spinoff show for families that explores strangeness on Earth. In this episode, host Lulu Miller visits some of our planet’s most magical tree stumps – which are anything but dead.   

Plus: Cast your vote in Radiolab’s quasi-moon naming contest! Voting is open until January 1.

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Writer and friend of the show Colin Dickey tries to destroy Dylan’s holiday cheer with arguments about why Christmas is actually full of monsters from around the world. 

(Just a note for parents listening with little ones, Dylan and Colin talk frankly about Santa and his surrounding lore.) 
 

Check out Colin’s Atlas Obscura column, Eerie Feeling. 

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Places editors Michelle Cassidy and Diana Hubbell take us on a tour of two mildly disturbing yet lovable works of art. 

 

Plus: If you have a piece of public art that you love to hate – or if you’ve created a work of public art that’s caused a stir – we want to hear from you. Give us a call at 315-992-7902 and leave a message telling us your name and story. You can also record a voice memo and email it to us at hello@atlasobscura.com.

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Dylans answers a slew of questions from staff and listeners.

Plus: Do you have a question for Dylan? Send us an email or voice memo to hello@atlasobscura.com. Dylan may answer your question in an upcoming episode!

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Our first international trips can be hugely influential. We want to hear your stories about leaving your home country for the first time. Where did you go?  How did you prepare? What memories do you have from the trip? Maybe you loved it… or maybe you hated it! Either way, we want to hear about it. And if you are about to take your first trip this coming year, we want to know how you’re feeling leading up to it. 

Give us a call at 315-992-7902 and leave us a message, or better yet, record a voice memo and email it to us at hello@atlasobscura.com

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Larry Spring’s Museum of Common Sense Physics in Fort Bragg, California begs the question: What do you do with a science museum where the science preserved inside is a kind of folk art?

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/larry-spring-school-common-sense-physics

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As the winter solstice and Yule are upon us, we are celebrating these Pagan holidays by talking about the iconic image of the witch, with Pam Grossman -- friend of the show, curator, writer and host of the podcast The Witch Wave.

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How one man made someone else's trash into his own treasure ... and how it became a storied part of a New Jersey town.

 

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Every year, hundreds of boats circle the waterways of the eastern United States on The Great Loop. But Mike Straub took a different approach, riding over 6,000 miles alone on a JetSki.

Check out Mike’s YouTube channel and his book, Y WAIT: Experience America's Great Loop.

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Listeners share stories of memorable encounters with strangers – for better or for worse.

Plus: We want to hear your stories about your first international trip. Give us a call at 315-992-7902 and leave us a message telling us about the first time you traveled abroad. Or better yet, record a voice memo and email it to us at hello@atlasobscura.com.

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This week, we’re presenting Sound Influence: The Art and Soul of Puerto Rico. 

Rising singer-songwriter Andrea Cruz shares how she fell in love with folk music as a young girl in Aibonito. We hear about how the plants, birds and animals of Puerto Rico have shaped the fabric of her work, and the profound ways in which her art connects her to the island she calls home. Hollywood film director Miguel Arteta recalls his colorful childhood in Río Piedras, shares the Puerto Rican role model who inspired him to pursue a creative career, and teases his upcoming project, which is set on the island of birth.

Subscribe to Sound Influence: The Art and Soul of Puerto Rico wherever you get your podcasts.

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This week, we’re presenting Sound Influence: The Art and Soul of Puerto Rico.  

 

Oscar-nominated screenwriter and playwright José Rivera shares with us his rich memories, both old and new, of his time in Puerto Rico: of spiders, thunderstorms and a deep sense of community in his childhood town of Espino. We hear about the joy of watching one of his plays performed in Santurce alongside the family members who inspired it, and how the island has been a constant source of inspiration that has enriched so much of his work. 

 

Subscribe to Sound Influence: The Art and Soul of Puerto Rico wherever you get your podcasts. 

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Many people moved to Granbury, Texas for the peace and quiet. Then, a noisy neighbor moved in – and strange things began happening in town.  

Read Andrew’s original reporting about the bitcoin mine and Granbury, Texas. 

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The Ether Dome in Boston was once filled with the screams of patients undergoing painful surgeries. In 1846, everything changed with the first successful use of anesthesia, transforming medicine forever. Dylan explores the room where pain-free surgery began.

 

The Ether Dome is part of the Innovation Trail, which highlights four centuries of world-changing breakthroughs from Boston.  

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Mohawk ironworkers built many of New York City’s iconic skyscrapers. But simultaneously, they were also building a lesser known neighborhood of their own in downtown Brooklyn – one that would become home to hundreds of Mohawk families.   

 

Learn more about Reaghan Tarbell’s documentary, Little Caughnawaga: To Brooklyn and Back. 

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This week and next, we’re presenting Sound Influence: The Art and Soul of Puerto Rico.   The Río Piedras-based comedy band Los Rivera Destino talk about their musical childhoods, how making a music video in Bayamón changed their lives and careers forever, and the extrem...

Today and tomorrow, we’re presenting Sound Influence: The Art and Soul of Puerto Rico.   Legendary actress, singer, dancer and EGOT winner Rita Moreno shares memories of sugar cane, coquís and parrandas during her idyllic childhood in Humacao and Juncos. We hear ab...

Producer Gabby Gladney sees her South Side Chicago neighborhood in a new light thanks to Mahogany Bus Tours, a local company sharing hidden histories around the city.

Read a profile of Dilla, and check out his TikTok.

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In the 1880s, an eccentric California dentist gave away free public water fountains in the hopes they would encourage people to drink less alcohol. One of them went to the small town of Rockville, Connecticut, where it was… not well received. In fact, it was torn down, thrown in a local lake, torn down again… and so on.

Check out the Atlas entry for the Cogswell Fountain.

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Listener stories about the places we’re thankful for – from a beloved neighborhood, to an odd and out-of-place house down the block, to a library that inspired one listener to become a writer herself.    

Plus, we want to hear your stories of memorable encounters with strangers. Give us a call at 315-992-7902 and leave us a message telling us your story. Or better yet, record a voice memo and email it to us at hello@atlasobscura.com.

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Catoosa, Oklahoma is the cite of a massive landlocked whale - and possibly the greatest anniversary gift ever.

READ MORE IN THE ATLAS: https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/catoosa-whale

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Journalist and food writer Evan Rail considers himself a beer guy, but when a mysterious bright green spirit started shaking up the scene in the Czech Republic (where he lives) in the 1990s, he knew he had to learn more. 

His latest book “The Absinthe Forger: A True Story of Deception, Betrayal, and The World’s Most Dangerous Spirit” looks back at the history of absinthe, why it was banned across Europe almost 100 years ago, and how its return to the market has inspired collectors, connoisseurs…and even conmen.

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In August 1953, airstrip operator George van Tassel claimed he was woken up in the middle of the night by an intelligent lifeform from outer space named Solganda. George says Solganda told him to build an energy rejuvenation machine – so that’s exactly what he spent the rest of his life doing…

For more information on visiting the Integratron check out their website. Plus, take a look at some photos from one of George van Tassel’s UFO conventions. 

If you want to learn more, George tells his version of the “encounter with Solganda” in a 1964 interview.

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On a remote island 200 miles off the coast of Alaska, a community hunts for a single, elusive rat. 

Read Daniel Wu’s original reporting on the rat strike team. 

Thanks to Freesound user mmiron for the wave sounds in this episode. 

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Places editors Michelle Cassidy and Diana Hubbell tell us about two real-world places that have been shaped by the internet.

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Blame it on this time of year, but we've been ruminating a lot on the places we're thankful for. And we want to hear your thoughts for a future episode. What's a place that played a pivotal role in shaping your life? It can be a place you grew up, or a place you live in now. Maybe it's a park bench, or another place of community. Tell us about it, any stories behind it, and when and why you go there. Give us a call at 315-992-7902 and leave a message telling us your name and story. Just so you know, our mailbox will cut you off after two minutes so please call in again if you get disconnected. Or you can also record a voice memo and email it to us at Hello@AtlasObscura.com

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