99% Invisible
Weeding is Fundamental
On October 17th, 1989, the Oakland A’s were playing the San Francisco Giants in the World Series,...
5th Aug 2025
On October 17th, 1989, the Oakland A’s were playing the San Francisco Giants in the World Series, but just as the game was kicking off—the television broadcast cut out. When the signal came back, it was no longer the baseball game. These were the early minutes of the Loma Prieta...
99% Invisible
Open Borders
A border is an idea so powerful that we never even have to see it to believe it. Or believe in it....
1st Jul 2025
A border is an idea so powerful that we never even have to see it to believe it. Or believe in it. Global borders can be sites of peace and conflict, violence and celebration, opportunity and confinement. And borders as they exist today – which is to say, increasingly militarized...
99% Invisible
Left to Write (1 of 3): Adaptive Keyboards & Writing Technologies for One-Handed Users
Last year, an accident left my right arm and shoulder numb and paralyzed. After extensive testing,...
1st May 2025
Last year, an accident left my right arm and shoulder numb and paralyzed. After extensive testing, doctors determined that I had severely injured my right brachial plexus — a crucial nexus of nerve pathways carrying signals back and forth between my spinal column and right upper...
99% Invisible
The Great American Pyramid
Memphis, Tennessee is home to many historic landmarks. Like Graceland, and Beale Street. But one of...
1st Apr 2025
Memphis, Tennessee is home to many historic landmarks. Like Graceland, and Beale Street. But one of their biggest tourist magnets is their Bass Pro Shops. Usually, Bass Pro is the place to buy hunting and fishing gear. But the one in Memphis, it’s less of a store, and more of a...
99% Invisible
A Beetle By Any Other Name
In a limestone cave deep in Central Slovenia, an unremarkable insect lives in complete darkness....
4th Mar 2025
In a limestone cave deep in Central Slovenia, an unremarkable insect lives in complete darkness. This tiny beetle, barely visible to the naked eye, has no eyes and a brownish-yellow coloration—adaptations to a life spent entirely underground. The beetle has survived for...
99% Invisible
The Wide Open
When the Endangered Species Act passed in 1973, it was considered a bipartisan home run. The Act...
4th Feb 2025
When the Endangered Species Act passed in 1973, it was considered a bipartisan home run. The Act established protections for plants and animals on the endangered and threatened species lists, and across the aisle, everyone seemed to agree that it would be bad for a bunch of...
99% Invisible
Mini-Stories: Volume 20
Happy New Year! We’re starting 2025 with four more mini stories! This week we have a sleepy button,...
7th Jan 2025
Happy New Year! We’re starting 2025 with four more mini stories! This week we have a sleepy button, electric signs, a very important sticker, and video you can smell. Let’s get into it! Snooze Buttons In the 1950s, General Electric changed alarm clocks forever by adding a snooze...
99% Invisible
The 15 Minute City
In February 2023, over two thousand people took to the streets in Oxford, England to protest their...
3rd Dec 2024
In February 2023, over two thousand people took to the streets in Oxford, England to protest their local government. They were wearing yellow vests and chanting slogans about the municipality’s new traffic policies. But most notably, many of them were vocally angry about a new...
99% Invisible
Meet Me at Riis
There’s a particular slice of beach along the New York City shoreline, that, for the past 80 years,...
5th Nov 2024
There’s a particular slice of beach along the New York City shoreline, that, for the past 80 years, has been a pivotal site for queer liberation. It’s called the People’s Beach at Jacob Riis Park, also known, simply, as Riis. This history is deeply connected to an abandoned,...
99% Invisible
Breaking Down The Power Broker [EPISODE]
In 1974, two very significant things happened, if you are a fan of 99% invisible. Number one is that...
5th Dec 2023
In 1974, two very significant things happened, if you are a fan of 99% invisible. Number one is that 99pi host Roman Mars was born. And number two, The Power Broker by Robert Caro was published. Roman learned about the power broker when he first started to cover cities and...
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