The Most Exciting Change America Has Ever Seen
Jun 23, 2026
Billions of state quarters disappeared from circulation...and that was exactly the plan.
Pre-roll ads (Mazda, LinkedIn)
Design is everywhere in our lives, perhaps most importantly in the places where we've just stopped noticing. 99% Invisible is a weekly exploration of the process and power of design and architecture. From award winning producer Roman Mars. Learn more at 99percentinvisible.org.
PodSkip has analyzed 13 episodes of 99% Invisible, averaging 2.2 ads per episode (5% of runtime).
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100 Objects #5: Blue Back Speller
Jun 19, 2026
Why did an ordinary schoolbook become so treasured that enslaved people risked their lives to possess it?
Pre-roll ads (Mazda, LinkedIn)
The Horn That Divided the World Cup
Jun 16, 2026
Love it or hate it, one buzzing horn changed the sound of the World Cup forever.
Intro music/ambient sounds and unintelligible speech, Foreign language segment (non-English
100 Objects #4: Lowe's Gas Bag
Jun 12, 2026
In 1861, one man and a “gas bag” filled with hydrogen sparked America's obsession with going higher, farther, into the unknown.
Pre-roll ads (Mazda, AT&T Business)
Karaoke Videos
Jun 09, 2026
Behind every cheesy karaoke track was a surprisingly ambitious filmmaking experiment.
100 Objects #3: The Pension Files
Jun 05, 2026
Unearthing a remarkable slave rebellion through dusty Civil War paperwork.
The MAPL Test
Jun 02, 2026
Canada reshaped its music industry with a quirky radio rule that changed who got heard.
Mid-roll ad break, Post-roll ad/non-show content
100 Objects #2: 60-Degree Screw
May 29, 2026
A tiny screw. A precise angle. How America built a hidden empire, one standard at a time.
Pre-show ad or garbled non-show content
Drug Story: Ivermectin
May 26, 2026
What started as a revolutionary treatment for river blindness became something far messier.
100 Objects #1: The Century Safe
May 19, 2026
A locked iron safe, sealed for 100 years. What objects did Americans choose to remember?
Pre-show foreign language/garbled segment, Mid-show foreign language/garbled ad break
Ask Your Doctor About
May 12, 2026
As wild and random as they might seem, a lot of work—and even poetry—goes into coming up with today's catchiest, most unforgettable drug names.
Pre-show garbled audio, Mid-roll ad break
A History of the United States in 100 Objects Trailer
May 08, 2026
100 objects. 100 stories. A new history of the US hiding in plain sight.
Enshittification
May 05, 2026
Why is it suddenly so hard to fix the stuff we depend on most?
Citizen of the World
Apr 28, 2026
One man rejected nationality and dared the world to recognize him anyway.
Cross-promotion / handoff to another podcast, Mid-roll break tease
Constitution Breakdown #9: Alondra Nelson
Apr 24, 2026
Roman and Elizabeth discuss Article VI and VII, which includes the all-important Supremacy Clause. Alondra Nelson, a leading expert on AI, is our guest.
Co-op City
Apr 21, 2026
The world’s largest housing co-op—built to save New York City’s middle class—became the unlikely site of a resident revolt
Mid-roll break transition, Music/transition
RoboUmp Hits the Big Leagues
Apr 14, 2026
The surprisingly long history of trying to use robots to call balls and strikes in baseball. With an update!
Service Request #5: Dude, Where's My Car?
Apr 07, 2026
A missing car reveals the confusing rules, murky fees, and private actors behind modern towing.
Service Request #4: How Does the Grid in Phoenix Work?
Apr 03, 2026
In a place where losing power can turn deadly, keeping the lights on is a high-stakes balancing act.
Service Request #3: Why Is There So Much Litter in San Francisco?
Mar 31, 2026
Why did it take nearly a decade to redesign a city trash can, and why haven't more bins made the streets cleaner?
Constitution Breakdown #8: Jill Lepore
Mar 27, 2026
Roman and Elizabeth discuss Article V, which lays out the process to amend the Constitution. Jill Lepore is our guest.
Service Request #2: Why Is This Red Light So Damn Long?
Mar 24, 2026
What the world's most advanced traffic system can—and can't—do for the city that invented gridlock.
Service Request #1: What Happens When I Call 311?
Mar 17, 2026
The surprising power of a simple phone number to connect a community.
A Man, a Plan, a Canal—Mars!
Mar 10, 2026
How one wealthy, amateur astronomer convinced the world Martians were real.
Where the F*** Are We?
Mar 03, 2026
For centuries, the world's greatest minds were stumped by the deadly mystery of longitude, until an obsessive underdog entered the fray and changed navigation forever.
Constitution Breakdown #7: California AG Rob Bonta
Feb 27, 2026
Roman and Elizabeth discuss Article IV, which outlines the relationship between states and between states and the federal government. California Attorney General Rob Bonta is our guest this month.
The Longest Fence in the World
Feb 24, 2026
How a fence meant to protect sheep transformed the entire Australian landscape.
Molar City
Feb 17, 2026
How a small Mexican border town transformed itself into the dental tourism capital of the world, where dental care costs up to 80% less than what it might cost in the United States.
Artistic License Redux
Feb 10, 2026
When Idaho put a slogan on their license plates in 1928 it started a trend across all states and this would prove surprisingly contentious.
The Em Dash
Feb 03, 2026
The strange history of a punctuation mark that makes writing feel human, and why people now think it proves the opposite.