Underunderstood

Select Works

There are questions the internet just can't answer. But that doesn't mean we can't find them. On each episode of Underunderstood, we find a question the internet can’t answer — maybe it’s a dead-end Wikipedia page, an abandoned Reddit thread, or an unanswered question on Twitter — and we fill in the gaps. It’s part chat show, part documentary, and almost always surprising.

5 Listeners

All episodes

Best episodes

Seasons

Top 10 Underunderstood Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Underunderstood episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Underunderstood for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Underunderstood episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

One More Thing… Deodorant

Underunderstood

03/29/22 • 46 min

Billy investigates a theory that Apple products are packaged with a signature fragrance.

Want to join us for "the world's largest trivia contest"? Visit https://underunderstood.com/trivia to sign up.

Support Underunderstood and get our bonus podcast by joining our Patreon!

Show notes:

02:00 – Kevin Purdy
02:10 – iFixit
02:22 – Carbon Switch
02:26 – ImportYeti
02:39 – #importyeti on TikTok
04:14 – Apple on ImportYeti
04:34 – GrandPerspective
09:50 – H.S. Code: 330720 Personal Deodorants - ImportYeti
11:50 – Does Apple intentionally make its products' packaging smell compelling? - Quora
15:23 – 90FM Trivia
15:40 – A video we worked on about the trivia contest
16:17 – Join our trivia team by signing up here!
18:20 – Joanna Stern
20:46 – Joanna tweeting about the new MacBook smell in in 2012 and 2014
21:28 – New Mac Candle - Twelve South (archive.org )
22:10 – New Mac Candle Hands-on - 9to5Mac
25:25 – Dave Applegate - LinkedIn
26:54 – Copy of Apple CSV file
27:36 – Google results for ASA Apple Inc.
29:32 – Similar data on Zauba
30:17 – How Do We Get This Data? - ImportYeti (YouTube)
31:48 – Apple Has Increased Use of Cargo Ships - MacRumors
33:00 – Items under code 330720 with "personal effects" in the description - Zauba
35:52 – Why do Apple stores all smell the way they do? - Quora
36:35 – What is a fact that you know about Apple products that most people don't know? - Quora
38:48 – Packaging PD team job listing - Apple
45:46 – Monkeys Spinning Monkeys by Kevin MacLeod

2 Listeners

Tough Calls

Underunderstood

02/15/23 • 38 min

We hear a message from a listener about a scam call. Then, Adrianne runs after a curious message on a city bus.

Want to support the show? Become a patron at https://patreon.com/underunderstood.

Have a mystery? Email [email protected] or leave a voicemail at 212-994-4882‬.

Show notes:

How Can I Verify If a Debt Collector Is Legitimate? (CFPB)
"EMERGENCY CALL POLICE" on MTA Bus Destination (Reddit)
Bus with signs reading “Emergency! Call police” and “Help! Call 911”? (Reddit)
Bus Messaging (Reddit)
Opie and Anthony clip (YouTube)
Man attacks MTA bus with driver, passengers inside (Fox 5 New York)
Aaron Gordon's current newsletter, Urbababble
When a Bus Driver Told a Rider to Wear a Mask, ‘He Knocked Me Out Cold’ (NYT)

2 Listeners

California License Plate 2SAM564

Underunderstood

11/09/21 • 37 min

Why has the same California license plate been showing up in movies and TV shows for two decades?

Support the show and listen to over 50 episodes of our bonus podcast by joining our Patreon!

Show notes:

01:39 – Buffy the Vampire Slayer, "Villains" episode
02:16 – The Xandermobile
02:54 – A113 summary
03:43 – Screengrab of the plate in "A Star Is Born"
04:11 – Screengrab from "Matchstick Men"
04:52 – Screengrab from "Ray Donovan"
04:59 – "Furious 7" scene with 2SAM564
06:21 – Flim
26:19 – ISS Props
27:40 – Vehicle registration plates of California
29:27 – California DMV Sample License Plate Order Form (PDF)
33:52 – 2GAT123.com's License Plates
35:34 – Studio Graphics

2 Listeners

I Want My MTV Dial Position Sticker

Underunderstood

04/12/22 • 40 min

John goes on a quest to find a sticker that may or may not have existed.

Support Underunderstood and get our bonus podcast by joining our Patreon!

Show notes:

04:00 – Mark Goodman and the dial position sticker (YouTube)
07:12 – MTV Your Favorite Music Promo (YouTube)
07:56 – Worthpoint
14:12 – Our theme song and other music is available to stream
22:45 – Sunday! Sunday! Sunday! commercial voiced by Jan Gabriel (YouTube)
26:54 – A detailed discussion about this setup and MTV specifically (Radio Discussions)

2 Listeners

Did Daft Punk Record ‘Pee is Stored in the Balls?’

Underunderstood

03/29/23 • 42 min

Billy helps a listener uncover the true origins of a popular unreleased song.

Want to support the show? Become a patron at ⁠⁠https://patreon.com/underunderstood⁠⁠.

Have a mystery? Email [email protected] or leave a voicemail at 212-994-4882‬.

Show notes:

Daft Punk – Pee Is Stored In The Balls (Full Unreleased Demo) (YouTube)
Pee is Stored in the Balls (Know Your Meme)
What’s the Deal With Boners? (Cosmopolitan)
Daft Punk’s ‘Random Access Memories’ leaks online (The Verge)
Daft Punk – Pee Is Stored In The Balls (Alternate Mix) (YouTube)
HOME – Resonance uploaded by Electronic Gems (YouTube)
The Nostalgia of HOME’s Resonance, Explained (YouTube)
Home’s verified artist page (Spotify)
@RNDYGFFE on Twitter – tweet one, tweet two
Pee Is Stored In The Balls (Unreleased Demo) playlist (Spotify)
Did Daft Punk actually make pee is stored in the balls? (Reddit)
After 8 years, I’ve managed to figure out what vocoder is responsible for the “Robot Voice” (Reddit)
Randy’s original Tumblr post (slimetony.com)
Randy’s tweet about music being free to use (Twitter)
HOME – Odyssey (archive.org)

2 Listeners

1 Comment

Why Is This Sheriff Arresting Fire TV Sellers?

Underunderstood

02/09/21 • 45 min

An 88-year-old is being charged with a felony after selling "jailbroke firesticks" at a Florida flea market.

If you like the show, support us on Patreon and get access to our bonus show, Overunderstood.

Show notes:

00:56 – Sheriff Grady Judd - Wikipedia
02:59 – Amazon Fire TV Stick - Wikipedia
03:50 – iOS Jailbreaking
04:22 – Rooting (Android) - Wikipedia
09:33 – VPN - Wikipedia
11:45 – F.S.S. 812.15 - Unauthorized reception of communications services; penalties.
15:20 – Nilay Patel - Twitter
15:36 – About The Verge
15:41 – Decoder with Nilay Patel
16:16 – Local news report about Napster (2000) - YouTube
16:44 – Why news sites benefit from having writers with legal backgrounds - Poynter
17:01 – CNBC segment on Kazaa
23:40 – Cynthia Conlin & Associates
29:47 – Dan Marino statue on Google Street View
30:46 – Mobdro FAQ
40:54 – Sheriff Judd reads "Oh, the places you'll go!" by Dr. Seuss - YouTube
42:30 – Full response from the Polk County Sheriff's office
42:34 – Limitations on exclusive rights: Fair use
43:21 – ‘Star Trek’ and Dr. Seuss Mash-Up Not Protected, Court Rules - NYT
44:00 – The officially sanctioned reading of ‘Oh, the Places You'll Go!’ by Michelle Obama - YouTube

1 Listener

Update + LIVE show!

Underunderstood

06/26/23 • 7 min

It's been a while! We have a quick update about our schedule, plus details about our first-ever LIVE SHOW!

Underunderstood Live
Tuesday August 1, 2023, 7pm
Caveat, NYC (21+)
Tickets (both live and virtual!) at Caveat's website

1 Listener

How Far Is Tattoo Far: Real or Fake?

Underunderstood

02/08/23 • 56 min

A listener question sends Billy on a deep dive into an MTV reality show.

Want to support the show? Become a patron at https://patreon.com/underunderstood.

Have a mystery? Email [email protected] or leave a voicemail at 212-994-4882‬.

Show notes:

MTV has not yet responded to our request for comment.

1 Listener

Mail Time!

Underunderstood

03/22/23 • 44 min

We take listener calls and emails about lost video games, plus a Triscuit update.

Want to support the show? Become a patron at ⁠https://patreon.com/underunderstood⁠.

Have a mystery? Email [email protected] or leave a voicemail at 212-994-4882‬.

Show notes:

Slope Rider

Slope Rider official website
iOS Emulation Finally Cracked – Stop Skeletons From Fighting (YouTube)
touchHLE, a high-level emulator for iPhone OS applications
Timecoded link to ad in 2009 Apple event (YouTube)
Monte Boyd’s Slope Rider thread on Mastodon
macos9.app
Stream Mixed-Up Mother Goose (1991, MS-DOS) (Internet Archive)
Mixed-Up Mother Goose Deluxe (1995, Mac) (Macintosh Repository)
UTM | Virtual machines for Mac
Slope Rider download (Macintosh Repository)
Slope Rider running (poorly) in UTM (YouTube, unlisted)
Monte Boyd’s Commodore 64 games (itch.io)
Monte Boyd’s website

Broccoli Man

Film restoration: Saving our cinema heritage – CBS Sunday Morning (YouTube)
APKMirror and APKPure
I know an APK is technically an installer package and not “an executable app file.” Don’t @ me. -Billy

Triscuit

Improvements in and relating to Apparatus for Baking Biscuit, Crackers and the like (Google Patents)
Medical Press and Circular – July 29, 1903 (Google Books)
The Sketch, Vol. 43 (Google Books)
“Common wheat” on Wikipedia

1 Listener

More Than Just A Friend

Underunderstood

03/01/23 • 34 min

Billy helps a listener track down a forgotten collaboration between Mario and Biz Markie.

Want to support the show? Become a patron at https://patreon.com/underunderstood.

Have a mystery? Email [email protected] or leave a voicemail at 212-994-4882‬.

Show notes:

Mandela Effect (Wikipedia)
Mario – Just A Friend (YouTube)
Biz Markie – Just A Friend (YouTube)
Biz Markie performing at The Apollo (YouTube)
Freddie Scott – (You) Got What I Need (YouTube)
Miley Cyrus – The Climb (YouTube)
Grand Upright v. Warner Bros. (Wikipedia)
Copyright Criminals (PBS)
Sampling Wars (LA Times)
De La Soul finally streams (Washington Post)
How Copyright Law Hurts Music (The Atlantic)
Albums you can’t find on streaming (CBC)
Biz Markie on 30 years of ‘Just a Friend’ (EW)
Beat Mann Sessions: With Biz Markie (Bandcamp)
Mario at Glass City Expo 2002 (YouTube)
Mario on The Early Show (YouTube)
Mario on 93.5 KDAY (YouTube)
Napster on CNN (YouTube)
Usher Blames Album Delays On Napster Leaks (MTV News)
Usher – Just A Friend (YouTube)
Mario on Hot 104.1 (YouTube)
Mario AOL Sessions interview (YouTube)
Just A Friend 2002 (Old School Version) (YouTube)
Just A Friend 2002 (feat. Biz Markie) (Spotify)
Just A Friend 2002 (Radio Edit (Old School Version)) (Soundcloud)
The Japanese CD version of Mario’s self-titled album also has the remix (Discogs)
Biz Markie final interview (YouTube)

1 Listener

Show more best episodes

FAQ

How many episodes does Underunderstood have?

Underunderstood currently has 63 episodes available.

What topics does Underunderstood cover?

The podcast is about Society & Culture and Podcasts.

What is the most popular episode on Underunderstood?

The episode title 'Tough Calls' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Underunderstood?

The average episode length on Underunderstood is 37 minutes.

How often are episodes of Underunderstood released?

Episodes of Underunderstood are typically released every 7 days.

When was the first episode of Underunderstood?

The first episode of Underunderstood was released on Jun 28, 2019.

Show more FAQ

Underunderstood

Select Works

Top 10 Underunderstood Episodes

FAQ

How many episodes does Underunderstood have?

What topics does Underunderstood cover?

What is the most popular episode on Underunderstood?

What is the average episode length on Underunderstood?

How often are episodes of Underunderstood released?

When was the first episode of Underunderstood?

Comments