Data centers are stressing the electric grid. What does that mean for Illinois consumers?
Nuclear power is Illinois’ biggest source of energy — over 50% — and nukes are once again in the spotlight as AI data centers jack up the de...
Radio and PodcastLive Radio & Podcasts
Arts
Curious City
Ask questions, vote and discover answers about Chicago, the region and its people. From WBEZ.
Episodes
20 of 671 episodesWhat’s that dead zone in the 19th Ward?
There’s a hole in the map of Chicago. It turns out, it’s a cemetery. But there are many other cemeteries in Chicago that don’t show up as ho...
‘Rivalry is our last name:’ Chicago and Detroit battle on the dancefloor
In Chicago, it was house. In Detroit, it was techno. The two genres ushered a new electronic sound into the dance music world. Despite their...
Industrial jobs left Detroit, Chicago, and Milwaukee. Why did it hit these cities differently?
For over a century, the Midwest had been defined by what we made, including cars, steel, and beer. But during 75 years of deindustrializatio...
Chicago, Milwaukee or Detroit: Which city has the best encased meats?
In Chicago, it’s the Chicago dog. In Milwaukee, the bratwurst. In Detroit, the Coney dog. Each is a little different, but their origin stori...
How Ella Jenkins’ Chicago childhood shaped her iconic children’s music
From school assemblies to “Mr. Rogers Neighborhood,” Ella Jenkins was a rhythm specialist and children’s music pioneer. Her childhood in Chi...
Did Chicago invent the rage room? A look inside “the Frustration Room”
The Frustration Room appeared in a Chicago motel in 1962 and offered visitors the opportunity to smash objects — like a lamp base, a lightbu...
How did a native Chicago plant disappear forever?
Thismia americana enjoys near-cult-status among Chicago botanists, ecologists and plant enthusiasts. The tiny, bell-shaped flower hasn't bee...
Why is the island in Washington Park behind a locked gate?
Bynum Island was once a gem in Chicago’s Washington Park, but now it’s abandoned, overgrown and inaccessible to the public. Curious City loo...
School lunch used to ace the test
Former Chicago Public Schools students say school lunch used to be delicious decades ago. That comes as a surprise to current CPS students,...
Shipwrecks, mussels and sponges: Chicago is a scuba diving destination
One of the world’s largest scuba organizations was founded in the Chicago suburbs by Portage Park pool swim instructor Ralph Erickson. Decad...
Chicago has many block club signs. What are block clubs and what do they do?
Block club signs are all over the city, usually welcoming you to the neighborhood or telling you what you should or should not do while you’...
“Like getting paid to party”: The life of cover bands on the Chicago festival circuit
Once summer hits, local cover bands are busy working Chicago’s many street festivals. What’s life like for cover band musicians? Curious Cit...
Is that a lobster in the Chicago River?
It’s an invasive species that doesn’t seem harmful at first glance. But if they go unchecked, these little things can disrupt local ecologie...
‘Give while you live’: Who is Museum of Science and Industry founder Julius Rosenwald?
The Museum of Science and Industry was renamed in 2024 in recognition of megadonor Ken Griffin. The museum’s original founder, Julius Rosenw...
A good lake, not a Great Lake
For a brief moment in the 1990s, Lake Champlain was known as the sixth Great Lake. The lake wedged between Vermont and New York doesn’t quit...
Why does Chicago have so little love for the ‘Watchdog’ of the lakefront?
The name Aaron Montgomery Ward might sound familiar, either from the chain of now-defunct department stores that once bore his name or as th...
Is This Your Card? A Brief History Of Chicago-style Magic
Chicago-style magic is close up, funny and usually performed at a bar or restaurant. We learn about its history and talk to several magician...
Where did the term 'Chicagoland' come from?
There’s no New York-land or Boston-land, so why does the Chicago metropolitan area have its own unique name? It turns out this has been a qu...
How did Hollywood Beach become Chicago’s ‘gay beach’?
The stretch of beach that starts where DuSable Lake Shore Drive ends wasn’t always as vibrant or as ‘gay’ as it is today. Its transition was...