Best Episodes
In Adam Ruins Everything, host Adam Conover employs a combination of comedy, history and science to dispel widespread misconceptions about everything we take for granted. A blend of entertainment and enlightenment, Adam Ruins Everything is like that friend who knows a little bit too much about everything and is going to tell you about it… whether you like it or not.
Written by Sophie and last updated on dec 30, 2022.
PS: The following content contains spoilers!
PPS: I will admit that parts of this page was written with the help of AI - it makes my work so much easier to not start from a blank page!
Adam Conover explains that inflated hospital costs have created a system that's unaffordable and unfair. Plus, the reckless prescription of antibiotics is making them worthless, and you might not need a mammogram.
The episode was rated 7.66 from 316 votes.
Adam poses the question of what makes great art and shows why pieces visible to the masses are revered, regardless of artistic merit. He then exposes the masters as copycats and reveals that today's art market is a moneymaking scheme.
The episode was rated 7.67 from 293 votes.
Adam explains why the odds of becoming a dropout billionaire are not in your favor, how manipulated school rankings have little to do with education quality and why the privatization of student loans created a massive debt crisis.
The episode was rated 7.67 from 274 votes.
Adam reveals why you have nothing to fear from strangers with candy and how the "panic" over Orson Welles' War of the Worlds broadcast was the clickbait of the 1930s. And, mediums and séances have a long history - of being fake.
The episode was rated 7.67 from 226 votes.
The Pilgrims didn't break bread with Native Americans, but did dig up their graves! There was no romance between Pocahontas and John Smith, and cities in the New World rivaled London in scale before their "discovery."
The episode was rated 7.68 from 120 votes.
Adam Conover debunks the fake moon landing theory, discusses the Satanic Panic of the 1980s and reveals how to spot a false theory.
The episode was rated 7.68 from 279 votes.
Testing mice means wasted resources because what works on them often fails on humans. Scarce funding stops scientists from seeking cures, and there's no money in reproducing results, even though it's essential in proving findings.
The episode was rated 7.68 from 207 votes.
Adam logs in to dulge into monopolistic tech companies by stating that Amazon's monopoly over online shopping harms consumers; that copyright law is abused to prevent unauthorized repairs; and that tech companies not only routinely evade taxes, but also downright eradicate competition.
The episode was rated 7.68 from 111 votes.
Adam swipes right on knowledge by exposing the flaws in dating sites; the existence of alpha males (and wolves); personality tests.
The episode was rated 7.72 from 329 votes.
Host Adam Conover illustrates all the reasons low-fat diets can actually make you fatter, and why counting calories is a waste of time.
The episode was rated 7.73 from 370 votes.
Adam causes turbulence when he reveals that reward miles drive up costs, and revisits the "golden age" of air travel to uncover smoky, sexist death traps in the sky. Plus, airline mergers are crippling smaller cities.
The episode was rated 7.78 from 95 votes.
Adam shows that Columbus didn't discover America, King Tut was a dud and the rules of grammar are not as ironclad as people think.
The episode was rated 7.78 from 317 votes.
Adam has a rude awakening for everything you thought you knew about sleep (or lack of it), from the mattress industry to supposedly lazy teens to sleep aids.
The episode was rated 7.84 from 104 votes.
Adam dispels the myth about getting pregnant after 35, delves into breastfeeding vs formula, and explores postpartum depression for women - and men.
The episode was rated 7.84 from 391 votes.
Emily takes over to "ruin" Adam, pointing out where his facts fall short. She debunks the idea that IQ tests measure intelligence and points to information Adam has gotten wrong in the past. Plus, she explains the "backfire effect."
The episode was rated 7.87 from 278 votes.
