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99% Invisible

99% Invisible

Roman Mars 795 episodes Nov 10, 2026

99% Invisible is a weekly exploration of the process and power of design and architecture. Hosted by Roman Mars, the podcast uncovers the hidden stories behind the objects, buildings, and systems that shape our world. From award-winning producer Roman Mars, it reveals how design influences our daily lives in ways we often overlook.

Episodes

Perfectly Leveraged for the Squat
Perfectly Leveraged for the Squat Nov 10, 2026 35:35 Jan Todd was considered by many to be the strongest woman in the world back in the 1970s. She set world records, lifted the Dinnie Stones in Scotland, and wrote the first rulebook for women's powerlifting. Then she became a historian, and uncovered a lost generation of strong women who came before her. For more, check out Bonnie Tsui's book, On Muscle. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to liste
100 Objects #23: Coin From the Ship of Gold
100 Objects #23: Coin From the Ship of Gold Nov 6, 2026 40:34 On August 20th, 1857 a ship set sail from the Port of San Francisco with 600 people and thousands of pounds of gold. That gold was destined for the vaults of New York City banks, but it never made it. Instead, the ship sank to the bottom of the ocean, taking all that gold with it. Executive Producer Annie Brown sits down with Roman Mars to tell the story of the sinking of the SS Central America an
Zone Zero
Zone Zero Nov 3, 2026 37:27 Across the West, there's a contentious debate playing out over how to adapt homes and neighborhoods to this era of increasingly extreme wildfire risk. In Berkeley, California, it's become a particularly emotional fight because of a very specific architectural history that began all the way back in the 1890s. Emmett Fitzgerald reports on the new rules about what plants you can grow around your hous
100 Objects #22: AOL Disc
100 Objects #22: AOL Disc Oct 30, 2026 34:13 In 1998, the recording industry was thriving. But the company pressing more compact discs than anyone else in America wasn't a record label…it was an internet company: America Online. The AOL Disc was a marketing coup—hugely successful. It’s not an overstatement to say that it’s the campaign that introduced America to the internet. Because of how well it worked, for a while the internet was AOL. A
Doktoro Esperanto
Doktoro Esperanto Oct 27, 2026 35:18 Esperanto is what linguists call a “constructed language.” It isn’t attached to a nation or a region, and it didn’t evolve from another language over time. Instead, nearly 150 years ago, someone decided to sit down and design the whole thing from scratch. That someone was L. L. Zamenhof, also known as Doktoro Esperanto. He created this language with the hope that it would unite the world unde
100 Objects #21: Window from the House of D
100 Objects #21: Window from the House of D Oct 23, 2026 37:03 In 1932, the Women's House of Detention—New York City's first women's prison—opened in the heart of Greenwich Village. It was opened to make "wayward" women quiet, private, and properly feminine. And the building had one unique feature originally meant to be a sort of kindness—a special kind of window that the women inside could open. Roman Mars and historian Hugh Ryan trace how those special wind
Audio Guide of the Imperfections of a Perfect Masterpiece
Audio Guide of the Imperfections of a Perfect Masterpiece Oct 21, 2026 29:44 This episode is sponsored by Acura.From the outside, the building is a light gray spiral, and from the inside, the art is displayed on one long ramp that curves up towards a glass skylight in the ceiling. We’re going to take the greatness of this building as a given. What we’re going to focus on are the oddities, the accretions, the interventions that reveal a different kind of genius. Not just th
Tony Hawk's Real-Life Willy Wonka
Tony Hawk's Real-Life Willy Wonka Oct 20, 2026 52:16 A desert train built for Tony Hawk leads into the strange and thoughtful world of N.D. Austin, a designer of real-life experiences. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of 99% Invisible ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information
The Problem With Football Helmets
The Problem With Football Helmets Oct 13, 2026 43:19 Football helmets can prevent devastating injuries, but they may also help make an inherently violent game feel safer than it really is. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of 99% Invisible ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for informa
(Not Just) Another Brick in the Wall
(Not Just) Another Brick in the Wall Oct 6, 2026 28:18 A closer look at the messy, beautiful bricks hiding across Chicago. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of 99% Invisible ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
100 Objects #20: AA Sobriety Chip
100 Objects #20: AA Sobriety Chip Oct 2, 2026 52:57 Comedian, writer, and podcaster Jamie Loftus has always known about Alcoholics Anonymous. As a kid, she loved the album where her dad kept all his AA chips — that little piece of plastic that marks a day, a month, a year of sobriety. Now as an adult, Jamie wanted to understand where that little chip came from. What she found is that imbued in that little chip is a hidden history — from Prohibition
Tootle of a Devilish Song
Tootle of a Devilish Song Sep 29, 2026 32:19 How a Swiss mountain call crossed the Atlantic and helped define the sound of country music. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of 99% Invisible ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of person

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