Episode 4: Never Twice the Same Color - The Secret Standards Behind Every Screen

Dormant Knowledge

Why does your TV screen have those exact proportions? Why do old movies sometimes look slightly "off" when you're watching them? Tonight, Deb explores the fascinating invisible infrastructure that shapes every single thing you see on any screen—the secret world of television broadcast standards.

Discover the surprising political drama behind NTSC, PAL, and SECAM—the three competing systems that divided the world into incompatible television zones. Learn why American engineers joked that NTSC stood for "Never Twice the Same Color," how the Cold War influenced which countries adopted which standards, and why a tiny shift from 30 to 29.97 frames per second still affects your Netflix viewing today.

From mechanical spinning disks in the 1920s to today's 4K streaming, this is the story of how technical decisions made in small committee rooms ended up shaping global culture in ways most people never realize. Whether you drift off learning about phosphor chemistry or stay awake for the digital revolution, you'll never look at your screen the same way again.

Perfect for curious minds who love learning about the hidden engineering marvels that surround us every day.

Dormant Knowledge: Learn something fascinating while you fall asleep.