Snapshot · Matt and Shane's Secret Podcast
The phrase 'knock on wood' (or 'touch wood') likely originates from a children's game of tag in the 1700s-1800s where touching a tree counted as a safe base.
Where this was said
At 41:57 · chapter starts 37:00
From the Belichick debate, the conversation wanders into urban legends and superstitions. Shane rants about the genre of online content that traces every modern custom to ancient pagan witchcraft — birthday candles, knock on wood — and frames them as malevolent rituals. Matt confirms that 'knock on wood' is not a summoning spell but rather traces to a children's tag game from the 1700s or 1800s where touching wood meant you were safe. Lemaire looks up the '10% of the brain' myth and confirms it is fully debunked — humans use their entire brain. The group then speculates that if you removed a piece of someone's brain, it would be a very bad time.
Bill Belichick won six Super Bowls as head coach of the New England Patriots, which the group agreed gives him considerable social latitude.
The idea that humans only use 10% of their brain is a confirmed urban legend; scientists say people actually use 100% of their brain.
Joel de la Garza noted that the CISO role is a relatively recent invention, with Steve Katz widely credited as the first-ever CISO.
Superficial adoption of electricity gave factories only 6% efficiency gains; fully redesigning factories around it delivered a 3x productivity improvement that powered 20th-century US growth.
Harold Ramis recounted that during Caddyshack filming, storms kept the cast cooped up in a Florida hotel for days, during which they partied and did drugs all day and night.
In the 1820s, China accounted for 25% of global economic output, making it the world's largest economic machine — a historical precedent for its current AI superpower ambitions.
66 Americans held hostage at the US Embassy in Iran were released after 444 days, within hours of Reagan's inauguration.
In the first round of the secret arms deal, 508 TOW missiles were transferred from Israel to Iran in exchange for hostage releases.
America secretly transferred 2,000 missiles and missile parts to Iran across 8 separate shipments over just over a year.
Despite all the missile sales, only 3 of the 7 American hostages held by Lebanese terrorists were ultimately released.
The CIA supply plane that blew open the scandal was flying at only 2,500 feet in broad daylight when it was shot down on October 5, 1986.
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