Innovation and Resilience Reshape Sports, Survival, and Art Access

Key Quotes

"The thing that made the laser racer so controversial is that speedo really took advantage of the fact that world aquatics was pretty lenient on what could be considered fabric... the laser racer added a thin layer of polyurethane and the addition of this rubbery material helped swimmers create less drag as they moved through the water."

Producer Jacob Medina Gleason explains that the Speedo Laser Racer swimsuit's controversy stemmed from its use of polyurethane, a material that reduced drag. This innovation gave swimmers wearing the suit a significant advantage in the water.

"The ioc ruled that the suit would only be allowed if it was made available to all competitors... the 2008 olympics came and records were made at an unbelievable rate... there were 25 world records broken and of the swimmers who medaled more than 90 of them were wearing this suit."

Jacob Medina Gleason details how the International Olympic Committee intervened to ensure fairness by requiring the Laser Racer suit to be available to all athletes. This led to a surge in record-breaking performances at the 2008 Olympics, with a vast majority of medalists wearing the controversial suit.

"Violet jessop is born in 1887 in argentina to irish immigrant sheep farmers she is the oldest of six children and as a young woman she dreams of becoming a nurse but then before she can chase that dream her father dies and her mother gets sick meaning very early on violet has to become the family breadwinner."

Producer Joe Rosenberg introduces Violet Jessop, highlighting her early life challenges. Jessop, born in Argentina to immigrant parents, faced the responsibility of becoming a family breadwinner at a young age due to her father's death and her mother's illness.

"Fast forward seven months to april of 1912 when violet is again picked to be on the maiden voyage of the white star line's newest ship the largest ship in the world... the rms titanic... and the titanic is actually basically identical to the olympic just a tiny bit bigger and on the titanic's inaugural transatlantic voyage... a giant crash and shudder runs through the entire length of the ship because its steel plated hull had been severely punctured on its starboard side just below the waterline only this time it's an iceberg."

Joe Rosenberg recounts Violet Jessop's experience on the Titanic's maiden voyage. He notes the ship's similarity to its sister ship, the Olympic, which Jessop had previously survived a collision on, and describes the fatal iceberg impact that punctured the Titanic's hull.

"Violet jessop is on board for one thing violet jessop is on board violet jessop has entered the chat which is how it comes to pass and i hate to say it one morning in november of 1916 on a voyage from southampton to greece a giant crash and shudder runs through the length of the ship because its steel plated hull had been severely punctured on its starboard side below the waterline okay well here we go so what was it this time that they crashed into or whatever well this time they crashed into nothing this time well or they did in a sense because the britannic had struck a mine a german mine."

Joe Rosenberg reveals Violet Jessop's third maritime disaster. He explains that Jessop was aboard the HMHS Britannic, the third sister ship to the Olympic and Titanic, when it struck a German mine during World War I, causing severe hull damage.

"I must tell you this little joke about the family violet the next time you go on a boat for god's sake if it's going to sink put your toothbrush in your pocket."

Joe Rosenberg shares a memorable detail from Violet Jessop's account of the Britannic sinking. Jessop, having learned from the Titanic disaster, prioritized retrieving her toothbrush, a seemingly minor item that underscored her survivalist mindset.

"The idea was that it would make it more expensive for like youths to buy cigarettes and so you'd get less kids smoking... and then of course with the advent and spread of vending machines cigarette companies wanted to conform you know there's this incentive because if all the other brands have packs that fit and yours don't your brand is going to get left out of this very lucrative sales venue."

Producer Kurt Kolstad explains the historical context behind cigarette packaging size regulations. He notes that legislation requiring a minimum of 20 cigarettes per pack and the prevalence of vending machines incentivized cigarette companies to standardize their packaging dimensions.

"Wittington sought out a disused machine and he converted it to spit out polaroid prints that he packed to blocks of wood and made like part of this local art show and that was the very first art automaton."

Kurt Kolstad describes the origin of the art automaton. He explains that artist Clark Wittington repurposed a disused vending machine to dispense art, specifically Polaroid prints attached to wooden blocks, marking the creation of the first art automaton.