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The Constant: A History of Getting Things Wrong
The Constant: A History of Getting Things Wrong
Mark Chrisler

Did you know that Europeans used to believe that sheep grew from Mongolian trees? Have you heard about the misbegotten discovery of... more

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Episodes

Comfortably Numb, Part 2

What does every wild west shootout in every movie you've ever seen have to do with the history of anesthesia?... more

09 Apr 2024 · 45 minutes
Comfortably Numb, Part 1

The war between humanity and its oldest, archest of enemies: pain. Get 50% off by navigating to factormeals.com/constant50 Check out: indeed.com/theconstant now to start... more

26 Mar 2024 · 48 minutes
Like a Son

He was the most beautiful man in the history of Athens. And he nearly destroyed it. Check out: indeed.com/theconstant now to start hiring Visit our Patreon... more

12 Mar 2024 · 56 minutes
Whoa Baby

Until recently, our understanding of where babies came from was hazy. Which made it easy for a certain class of... more

27 Feb 2024 · 54 minutes
Let's Talk About Sex, Babies (Remix!)

We're remaking one of the all-time classic Constant episodes, this time with decent audio! Check out: indeed.com/theconstant now to start hiring Visit our Patreon here. You... more

13 Feb 2024 · 56 minutes
The Holy She, Part 2

Did a woman secretly manage to become pope, only to be revealed by a badly mistimed labor in the streets... more

30 Jan 2024 · 50 minutes
The Holy She, Part 1

Did a cross-dressing woman manage to worm her way into the papacy, and was she discovered when she gave birth... more

16 Jan 2024 · 42 minutes
Presenting: Historical Blindness

Find Historical Blindness at https://www.historicalblindness.com/ or wherever you listen to this podcast. We'll be back with a new year of... more

02 Jan 2024 · 1 hour, 8 minutes
A Very BMJ Christmas

They celebrate the season a little differently down at The British Medical Journal. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online... more

19 Dec 2023 · 1 hour, 4 minutes
99% Conspicuous

The James R. Thompson Center is the most hated building in the city of Chicago. And it has to be... more

05 Dec 2023 · 1 hour, 15 minutes
Rock Bottomless, Part 2

We can go deeper. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/theconstant and get on your way to... more

21 Nov 2023 · 1 hour,
Rock Bottomless, Part 1

This week, we're going deep. How deep? No one knows! Check out: indeed.com/theconstant now to start hiring Get 15% off your MasterClass subscription by... more

07 Nov 2023 · 53 minutes
The Werewolf

A beastly history of the beasts that stalked Europe for centuries. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a... more

24 Oct 2023 · 1 hour, 7 minutes
Psych Out, Pt 3: Repeat After Me

In which a psychic horse causes the greatest crisis in scientific history. Check out: indeed.com/theconstant now to start hiring Want a month trial of... more

10 Oct 2023 · 1 hour, 29 minutes
Introducing: Southern Gothic

The Baynard Mausoleum is the oldest surviving structure on Hilton Head Island, but eerily, the family once interred inside is... more

07 Oct 2023 · 30 minutes
Psych Out, Pt 2: Pick a Card

In which a talking, psychic horse gives JB Rhine the idea for a new field of science: parapsychology. Thanks HelloFresh! Go... more

19 Sep 2023 · 1 hour, 26 minutes
Psych Out, Pt 1: Lady Wonder

A horse is a horse, unless, of course, that horse can tell the future. Thanks HelloFresh! Go to HelloFresh.com/50constant and use code 50constant... more

05 Sep 2023 · 1 hour, 23 minutes
Everything Aristotle Has Said is Wrong & The Reflex

Early episodes of this show sound like crap! So this week we're remaking a couple of old favorites. Thanks HelloFresh! Go... more

22 Aug 2023 · 55 minutes
The One from Nowhere

In 1900, three lighthouse keepers went missing, starting a phony mystery that long concealed a real one. Go to drinkAG1.com/constant to... more

08 Aug 2023 · 53 minutes
Burning Men

There's a party in 14th Century Europe, and everybody's invited! Thanks HelloFresh! Go to HelloFresh.com/constant50 and use code constant50 for 50%... more

25 Jul 2023 · 56 minutes
The Captain and The Serpent, Part 2

What's that out there in the distance? A fish? A whale? A SEA SERPENT?! No, it's just the conclusion to... more

11 Jul 2023 · 1 hour, 6 minutes
The Captain and The Serpent, Part 1

Murder! Monsters! Lifeboats! This one's got it all. Go to drinkAG1.com/constant to get a FREE 1-year supply of immune-supporting Vitamin D... more

27 Jun 2023 · 1 hour, 10 minutes
Red Mercury, Part 2

Buckle up your crazy belts, 'cuz we're going off the rails on a crazy train to crazy town! Thanks Athletic Greens.... more

06 Jun 2023 · 1 hour, 17 minutes
Red Mercury, Part 1

In 2004, three men were arrested in London. Their crime was attempting to purchase material to build a nuclear bomb.... more

23 May 2023 · 56 minutes
A Pickle for The Knowing Ones

This is The Tale of Lord Timothy Dexter: The Luckiest Asshole in History. This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online... more

09 May 2023 · 57 minutes
I Have Come from Hell

On the morning of May 8th, 1902, Ludgar Sylbaris awoke in jail alone. And then the world ended. This episode is... more

25 Apr 2023 · 1 hour, 14 minutes
Happy Place

The special spring break surprise is here! Join Heather for a journey into the sad side of the happiest place... more

11 Apr 2023 · 1 hour, 3 minutes
This Means War (Volume 2)

Watch yourself: the wars only get stupider from here. Want a month trial of Shopify for just a dollar? Grab it here! Visit www.omahasteaks.com and... more

28 Mar 2023 · 55 minutes
This Means War (Volume 1)

At its best, war is terrible, wasteful, regrettable and necessary. At its worst, it's just fucking stupid. Check out: indeed.com/theconstant now to start... more

14 Mar 2023 · 51 minutes
The Earliest Englishman (Part 2)

A mystery story where one of the suspects writes mystery stories? How could you go wrong! Visit www.omahasteaks.com and enter "theconstant" at check... more

28 Feb 2023 · 1 hour, 19 minutes
The Earliest Englishman (Part 1)

In December, 1912 a lawyer and a paleontologist made an amazing announcement: The missing link was real, the missing link... more

14 Feb 2023 · 55 minutes
Link Missing (Part 2)

After Charles Darwin published Origin of Species, the scientific world spent the next fifty years searching for an alternative theory... more

31 Jan 2023 · 1 hour, 35 minutes
Link Missing (Part 1)

What is a man? A miserable pile of secrets, of course. But in the 19th century, a debate arose about... more

17 Jan 2023 · 1 hour, 23 minutes
Are Whales Fish?

To start off the year, we're looking back at an old favorite that plays a significant part in an upcoming... more

02 Jan 2023 · 1 hour, 8 minutes
The War on Christmas

Merry Christmas, you filthy animals. This episode is sponsored by/brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at betterhelp.com/theconstant... more

20 Dec 2022 · 1 hour, 28 minutes
It's The Little Things (Volume 2)

One more round of short stories, about little things, that had big consequences. This episode is sponsored by/brought to you by... more

06 Dec 2022 · 1 hour, 3 minutes
It's a Secret to Everyone (Volume 3)

It's Mark's birthday, it's The Constant's birthday, and it's Thanksgiving. In celebration we're opening up The Secret Feed vault and... more

22 Nov 2022 · 51 minutes
It's The Little Things

We're keeping things simple this week. Or that was the plan at least. But sometimes the simple things are friggin'... more

08 Nov 2022 · 57 minutes
Sister Pact

We've got a special Halloween episode for you, full of demonic possessions, dark conspiracies and sexy nuns. What more could... more

25 Oct 2022 · 1 hour, 45 minutes
The Constant Presents: History Daily

Good history, well-told, five days a week. That's History Daily. So get on it, y'buncha jagbags! How about a free fourteen... more

18 Oct 2022 · 44 minutes
The Foolkiller Pt 7: Or Rewrite History

After more than four years of research and nine hours of episodes, we're finally at the TRUE conclusion to The... more

04 Oct 2022 · 2 hours, 23 minutes
The Foolkiller Pt 6: Might Solve a Mystery

Just when I think I'm out, they pull me back in. How about a free fourteen day trial of Shopify? Grab it... more

20 Sep 2022 · 59 minutes
Heart of Darkness

This is the story of two diseases, and two theories about where one of them came from. Want 15% off an... more

06 Sep 2022 · 1 hour, 20 minutes
The Greater Good

This is a story about the search for goodness in the world. Naturally, it ends tragically. Get $75 credit to upgrade... more

23 Aug 2022 · 1 hour, 12 minutes
Cassandras

Three high ranking American financial officials tried to warn the world about the 2008 financial collapse. But they were ignored,... more

09 Aug 2022 · 1 hour, 21 minutes
Do You Think He Saur Us?

Beneath lackluster Disney movies and schlocky cable reality television lies an untold true story: the secret brontosauruses of Africa, and... more

26 Jul 2022 · 1 hour, 14 minutes
Chicago

After every American mass shooting, the gun debate is drowned in one question: What about Chicago? Today, we're answering it. "How... more

12 Jul 2022 · 1 hour, 13 minutes
Goat Balls

This story is about music, radio, medicine, politics, power, money, people and... goat testicles. Get $75 credit to upgrade your job... more

28 Jun 2022 · 1 hour, 2 minutes
The Hadacol Boogie

There are lots of stories about drugs that changed the medical industry. But here's one about a drug that changed... more

14 Jun 2022 · 46 minutes
Shipwreckless

In 1867, The Eliza set out to sea with a fresh crew, a full hold and fair weather. Yet no one expected... more

31 May 2022 · 40 minutes
The Constant Medicine Show (Pt 2)

Step right up, step right up! We've got the cure for what ails you: more podcasts! How about a free fourteen... more

17 May 2022 · 1 hour, 1 minute
The Constant Miracle Tonic All Night Medicine Show!

Feeling run down, run out or run around? Well friend, I've got the cure for you! Step right up for... more

03 May 2022 · 55 minutes
The Cockatrice

In 1474, the people of Basel tried, convicted and sentenced to death a rooster, in one of the strangest court... more

19 Apr 2022 · 1 hour, 5 minutes
The Forbidden Experiment

If you really want to know what language people originally spoke, all you have to do is the unspeakable. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/233597995_Royal_Investigations_of_the_Origin_of_Language Get $75... more

05 Apr 2022 · 1 hour, 11 minutes
Babble On

The search for the original language, the true language, the language of God and Adam and Enoch, begins today. Continue your... more

22 Mar 2022 · 1 hour, 16 minutes
What Goes Up (Pt 5)

Will humanity ever successfully fly? No. Find out why, on this, the conclusion of our five part series on people... more

08 Mar 2022 · 1 hour, 22 minutes
What Goes Up (Pt 4)

The doe-eyed optimism of Rousseau! The biting cynicism of Baron von Grimm! And a whole bunch more people attempting to... more

22 Feb 2022 · 56 minutes
What Goes Up (Pt 3)

On the third part of our survey of failed fliers, we've drawing from all walks of life: a peasant and... more

08 Feb 2022 · 1 hour, 12 minutes
What Goes Up (Pt 2)

What do a professor, a heretic, a clockmaker, a barber, a cantor, a laborer, an architect, an alchemist and a... more

25 Jan 2022 · 1 hour, 6 minutes
What Goes Up (Pt 1)

You've heard of The Wright Brothers, the first people to fly. Maybe you've heard of Alberto Santo Dumont, too. Arguably... more

11 Jan 2022 · 1 hour,
The Constant: A History of Getting Things Wrong
The Cockatrice
The Constant: A History of Getting Things Wrong
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Description

In 1474, the people of Basel tried, convicted and sentenced to death a rooster, in one of the strangest court cases in... more