Episodes
How do you make an addictive video game?
This episode will change how you look at games.
Where did all the roaches go?
Cockroaches were a scourge that scuttled through the cracks and crevices of homes all throughout America.
What are we gonna do about all these cats?
A question that has launched a battle between bird-loving ecologists and ardent, cat-defending activists.
How do you survive fame?
Actor Molly Ringwald joins us to talk about a time in her life when her job was to pretend to be a normal American teenager, a job which made it impossible to actually be a normal American teenager.
Why are there so many chicken bones on the street? (Part 2)
This week, the shocking finale of our investigation into who -- or what -- has been leaving chicken bones strewn across the sidewalks of American cities.
Why are there so many chicken bones on the street? (Part 1)
A team of investigators with an unusual set of skills joins us this week to solve a mystery that haunts dog owners across modern American cities.
When do you know it’s time to stop drinking?
This week, a question a podcast has no business trying to answer. We talk to writer A.J. Daulerio about his own story of recovery, and the story of how he found himself opening a very unusual community on the internet . You c...
Am I the victim of an international sushi scam? (Part 2)
We bring you the shattering conclusion to our investigation into whether a New York City sushi restaurant is swapping their tuna rolls for “the ex-lax fish.”
Am I the victim of an international sushi scam? (Part 1)
We investigate unsettling rumors that fish purveyors may be mislabeling fish to save a buck.
Who should be in charge of AI?
Reporter Casey Newton helps tell the story of a very brief, very absurd revolution at the world’s leading artificial intelligence company, OpenAI.
Why don’t we eat people?
This week, a question from a four-year-old tips us into an investigation of one of our most fundamental taboos.
The Bull of Wall Street
Every day in Manhattan, about 1,000 people will stand outside in a long line waiting for their chance to take a picture with a bronze bull.
Why'd I take speed for twenty years? (Part 2)
In part two of our story about ADHD medications, we approach the question from a different angle.
Why'd I take speed for twenty years? (Part 1)
One of the millions of millennials given prescription stimulants to treat ADHD decides to quit. And afterwards wonders -- how did these drugs becomes so popular, so fast? This week, the story of amphetamine's birth, life, dea...
Is there a sane way to use the internet?
Ezra Klein joins Search Engine this week to answer a question that's increasingly confounded us: how do I use the internet now? How do I get information about the things I care about, without getting sucked into a vortex of o...
Heavyweight x Search Engine
Search Engine is VERY EXCITED to share the news that Heavyweight, one of our favorite shows, is now available wherever you download podcasts.
The Fond Du Lac Apartment Mystery
Why would the government give Korianne a coupon for a free apartment that she can’t find?
Where did the 8 billion dollars go?
This week, the story of former crypto wunderkind Sam Bankman-Fried.
Why are we still buying diamonds?
They’re shiny rocks that we’ve somehow agreed embody romance and eternity.
Why’s it so hard to figure out how many people watch Stranger Things?
Maya Hawke, of Stranger Things, would like to know why Netflix won't tell her how many people watch the show?
Does anyone actually like their job?
Or, am I being lied to by a Brooklyn-based musician?
Why are drug dealers putting fentanyl in everything? (Part 2)
We speak to Luis, a former fentanyl dealer and user who tells us why a dealer might want to put fentanyl in less lethal drugs.
Why are drug dealers putting fentanyl in everything? (Part 1)
Isn't it bad business to kill your own customers?
Why can’t we just turn the empty offices into apartments?
Our quest for answers this week sends us over a hundred years into the past.