People ask me where I get show topics. Well, dumb ideas are a constant like death and taxes. We’ve aired 40-plus episodes, but the list of future shows has reached 70! The problem is I read. And listen to public radio. People like you and me are too well-informed. To be stumped for shows I’d have to stick my head in the ground, which by the way is a dumb idea.
Recent episodes include the misnamed Red Delicious apple, the dumb side of Watergate, and harmful generational stereotypes. What this show isn’t about is lame ideas, or hoaxes. They don’t change the world.
I thought about a show on “Piltdown Man.” By 1912 British paleoanthropologists were making huge discoveries. Then a Sussex wannabe stuck an orangutan jaw on a human skull, and announced his “discovery” of the Missing Link. Experts were incredulous, but it created a sensation. He received every possible honor, and it took real scientists four decades to debunk the fraud. I won’t dignify this loser by naming him--he doesn’t rate the publicity, or the posterity since he’s been dead a hundred years. So, this show isn’t about Piltdown Man. It doesn’t pass the sincerity test.
We bring you Dumb Ideas each Wednesday at 12:45 pm and Fridays at 8:20 am. Thanks to producer Shannon, you can find archived shows at… KENW.org. Type “dumb ideas” in the search bar. Or just google “dumb ideas KENW.” You can listen and see my best reference for further reading.
Drop us an email with your comments or show ideas to Por.Dumbideas@enmu.edu. That’s Por.Dumbideas@enmu.edu.
Tune in each week and, unlike scientific frauds, feel better about your life choices!
I’m Jeff Gentry
Best reference:
Weiner, J.S., Oakley, K.P. & Le Gros Clark, W.E. (1953). The solution of the Piltdown problem. Bulletin of The British Museum (Natural History) Geology, 2(3): 141-146.
Dumb Ideas that Changed the World copyright 2025 by Jeff Gentry. All rights reserved.
