Curious City

Curious Citizen Linda Rudy wondered when ground is broken for building or repairs, is anyone there to look for treasure? We catch up with local archaeologists who’ve scoured everything from construction sites, to the White City, to ... grandpa’s outhouse.

Rogers Park resident Lowell Wyse noticed how diverse his neighborhood is, and wonders whether the city helps place international refugees there. If City Hall’s not, who is?

The bulk of its objects are out of sight, but not necessarily out of mind. Start with our behind-the-scenes view, and stick around for a surprising international backstory.

History suggests a Victorian-era prejudice against commercial traffic in Chicago parkways lurks behind a ban against pickup trucks on Lake Shore Drive. Should truck owners worry? And, where can they park, anyway?

In this episode we deconstruct neighborhood boundaries and take a new look at old Chinatown. Kathy Herwig inspired the first investigation with her question: Who decides when new neighborhoods form and how does it happen? And Monica Glicken prompted us to look into Chinatown with her question about its origins and whether or not it's still predominantly Chinese. To see the stories and INTERACTIVE comic associated with this week's podcast, head here: Neighborhoods: http://www.wbez.org/series/curious-city/question-answered-how-are-chicago-neighborhoods-formed-103831 Chinatown: http://www.wbez.org/series/curious-city/question-answered-when-did-chicago%E2%80%99s-chinatown-develop-neighborhood-104125

Curious citizen Miriam Reuter wondered how Chicago's coastline has changed over the decades. We learn that from nature to industry and back again (sorta), the lakefront’s changed so much that city founders wouldn’t recognize it.

If you were one of the lucky folks who made it out to the Curious City Trivia Bowl on November 20th, then you already know the answers to these questions. But if not! Here are three bite-sized answers to questions posed to Curious City: Chesney Floyd wondered: How much does Chicago spend on ornamental flowers and plants? Emily Tremmel wanted to know: What happens to all the plant material when it's changed out for a new season? Rosemary Caruk was curious to know: What's the oldest sidewalk in Chicago? And Kathy Herwig requested an answer to the question: Why is Ketchup strictly forbidden on Chicago-style hot dogs? For videos and photos for this story, check out: http://www.wbez.org/series/curious-city/questions-answered-chicago%E2%80%99s-flower-costs-oldest-sidewalk-and-why-no-ketchup-our

When Steve Brockway was leaving his job at the United Airways Reservation Center at O’Hare International Airport in mid-June, he noticed something he hadn’t noticed before; sitting between him and a runway was a wood cage of some sort — about 6 feet by 6 feet — with mesh wiring between the frames. And inside of that was a bunch of small, black birds. Maybe 20 to 30 of them. Brockway thought it was an odd sight, given the fact that he was at an airport, so he snapped a photo of the contraption and posted this question to the Curious City website: “Why is there an aviary at O’Hare airport?” An aviary, according to Merriam-Webster, is a place for keeping birds confined. The dictionary goes on to clarify, though, that aviaries are mostly used to keep birds for pleasure or study. Which is definitely not what that bird-house at O’Hare was for. For videos and photos for this story, check out: http://www.wbez.org/series/curious-city/question-answered-why-there-aviary-o%E2%80%99hare-airport-102520

Derek Stiles posed this question to Curious City: What is the deal with Chicago's ginormous 16-inch softballs? Derek is a transplant from San Diego and had played softball in Iowa City, Iowa, before coming here. His Iowan games involved a smaller ball and players used gloves, but he noticed something different when he tried picking up games in Chicago. “That is not how I played it,” he said. “The ball is huge, people don’t have gloves and I was curious ... why?” He had begun looking to play for a softball team and a league here, but his family grew by two (twins!) so he did not resume his playing days on the field. 16-inch softball is the norm in Chicago so sometimes it’s easy to forget that it’s not the norm elsewhere. If you were born and raised here, it would seem like an odd question, but that’s a bit myopic. We basically are 16-inch softball snobs, but it is our game and investigating Derek’s question was a fun game in itself! For videos and photos for this story, check out: http://www.wbez.org/series/curious-city/what-deal-chicagos-ginormous-16-inch-softballs-103021

In this episode of the Curious City podcast you'll learn: How they clean Cloud Gate - aka the bean sculpture in Millennium Park Why left hand turn signals can be so short in Chicago And how the distinctive ChicAAAHgo accent formed. Be sure to check out wbez.org/curiouscity for lots more stories, videos, and photos. Check out more information on our Pub Trivia event here: http://www.wbez.org/member-meet-curious-city-trivia-bowl-edition-103493 And you can always ask US questions you've always wondered about Chicago, the region or it's people. Submit your questions to curiouscity.wbez.org Thanks for listening!

The city's home to more wildlife than the usual suspects. (We're talking 'bout you, Mr. Squirrel.) Lace up your boots, folks. To find lizards, osprey and cactus, we’ll be heading far off the Mag Mile.

Lisa Doi grew up on the North Shore and went to North Shore Country Day School, a long way from the University of Pennsylvania, where she now studies anthropology and urban studies. The distance didn’t stop her from thinking of home when she posed this question: How do conceptions of the American Dream differ across socio-economic class in the Chicago area? Do residents of the North Shore (especially Winnetka & Kenilworth) have different conceptions of what the American Dream is or its achievability than residents of lower socioeconomic communities (Rogers Park, Woodlawn, etc)? At Curious City we often track down the most learned experts we can find to answer questions, but at Lisa’s request we didn’t turn to academia, interest groups or City Hall. And in lieu of precise surveys conducted in and limited to our region, we’re betting that people across the region are themselves equipped to take on this question. For videos and photos for this story, check out: http://www.wbez.org/series/curious-city/question-answered-how-does-perception-american-dream-differ-around-chicago

Crossing the street is one of those tasks that, sadly, isn't as straightforward — or safe — as it should be, at least to Chicagoans who feel threatened by impending traffic. We learned this after taking on our latest Curious City question, posed by Chicago native Marcy Phillips: “Why do Chicago drivers fail to stop for pedestrians at crosswalks?” A simple question? Not really, at least when you probe a bit. And, getting to the bottom of it led us to an experiment about what’s more effective: tough laws or a combo of wagging fingers, make-up and silent expressions. For videos and photos for this story, check out: http://www.wbez.org/series/curious-city/question-answered-why-don%E2%80%99t-chicago-drivers-stop-crosswalks-100855

What is a Chicago accent and what do Chicagoans really sound like? Sound off with your phone and become part of the linguistic record.

Mike Mitterman lives near the Chicago River and crosses it daily on his way to work. One day he noticed an overflowing garbage barge toddling by below, and he imagined some of that trash falling off and sinking to the river's bottom. That prompted him to wonder: What IS at the bottom of the Chicago River? We investigated his question through the lens of both the man-made and natural. For video and photos for this story, check out: http://www.wbez.org/series/curious-city/question-answered-what%E2%80%99s-bottom-chicago-river-102651