Michael Rank's Blog, page 13
September 22, 2014
HFM 088 | The Greatest Unintended Consequences In History, Part 3: Prohibition
Prohibition is a byword for a failed policy. But it failed in ways you might not expect. Find out how Prohibition is unintentionally responsible for the creation of the U.S. Income Tax code, homebrewing, and an upsurge in fake rabbis running around New York.
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September 15, 2014
HFM 087 | Greatest Unintended Consequences in History, Part 2: The Cobra Effect
If you want to get rid of a nasty pest, it might seem sensible to offer a bounty as a reward. But nothing backfires quite like a bounty. We look at bounties on snakes in Delhi, rats in Vietnam; and feral pigs in Fort Benning, Georgia. In each case, bounty hunters found loopholes in the system and made the problem much worse than it was in the beginning.
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September 8, 2014
HFM 086 | Best Examples of Unintended Consequences in History: Part 1 – Destroying an Ecosystem with Invasion Biology
Beware those who test Murphy’s Law. We will look at the greatest unintended consequences in history, starting with Australia’s introduction of the rabbit into its ecosystem. Spoiler alert: Disaster ensues.
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September 1, 2014
HFM 085 | How Vaccines saved the Revolutionary War
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Debates over vaccines go back way further than Jenny McCarthy. And they have influenced history in ways we still don’t appreciate — chief among them helping America win the Revolutionary War.
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August 25, 2014
HFM 084 | What is the Worst Job in History?
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Think your job is the worst in the world? Well, it isn’t. Not by a long shot. Try being a Roman slave, condemned to walk a water wheel for the rest of their life. Or an English tosher, who roamed London’s sewers, looking for treasure.
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August 18, 2014
HFM 083 | Anne Askew: The 16th Century Protestant Martyr and the Tower of London’s Only Female Victim
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Meet England’s 16th-century martyr who boldly challenged the government establishment for her faith. Think of Anne Askew as England’s Joan of Arc, but with less swordsmanship.
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August 11, 2014
HFM 082 | The President Who United a Fractured Washington, Paid Off the National Debt, and Grew America’s Colonies
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In this episode, we do a Paul Harvey-esque description of a U.S. president, where his identity isn’t revealed until the end. You know what the news is. In a minute, you’re going to hear the rest of the story!
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August 6, 2014
I just launched an online course on Mideast History!
I have just launched a course on Udemy.com called “History of the Middle East: 600 A.D. to Today.” It includes over 13 hours of content and lifetime access.
It’s 75% for the next seven days. Click below to get your discount:
https://www.udemy.com/history-of-the-middle-east-600-ad-to-today/?couponCode=50-percent-discount
August 3, 2014
HFM 081 | What Exactly Did a Lady in Waiting Do?
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Ladies in waiting were required parts of any royal court. But why is the job so enduring — even up to the 21st century — when all they appeared to do was help the queen get dressed? Is there more to the job than this? You bet!
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July 27, 2014
HFM 080 | History’s Greatest Spies, Part 5: George Koval (1913-2006): The Soviet Nuclear Spy from Sioux City, Iowa
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George Koval was as American as they came — he was from Iowa, a World War II vet, and loved baseball…. Except for the fact that he stole nuclear secrets for the Soviets and launched the Cold War nuclear arms race.
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