Science... Sort Of

00:00:00 - Patrick and Ryan welcome Astrophysicist Steve Healey to the show! We begin with a brief overview of what exactly astrophysics is. Steve claims that by listening to this section, you'll have completed most of a bachelors in the subject. Congrats!   00:20:15 - To celebrate your recent academic achievement, we all have a drink. In celebration, Steve uncorks some Champagne Soda, whatever the hell that is. Ryan powers through his trepidation and tries a pickleback, with whiskey from Wyoming and pickles sent in my listener Jerrold. Thanks, Jerrold! And Patrick kicks back with Back in Black from 21st Amendment Brewery.    00:31:17 - Now that we're all clear on the basics, we ask Steve to tell us about some his latest work. Which involves both the first and second sightings of an Active Galactic Nuclei. Don't worry, we make him explain it.    01:07:32 - PaleoPOWs are a lot like Active Galactic Nuclei; we're still not sure we get what the big deal is. Patrick is happy to announce a new recurring donation fr

00:00:00 - We first learn that Ben is not great at telling stories, but also that there was a guy Fermi who is known for one thing when he really did many thing. The thing he's known for is asking where all the aliens are, and while there are some pretty interesting potential answers to his questions (including Dyson Spheres as discussed on The Titanium Physicists), this week we're focusing on the new addition to the mythos: what if no one is out there because the zombies got them first?   00:30:06 - Zombies don't appear to be affected by alcohol, but living humans are and in a healthy amount we can even enjoy it. Abe kicks back an Anchor California Lager. Ben enjoys a Coco Rico, which causes Abe and Ryan to act very strange. And Ryan inevitably has The Last Word.   00:35:58 - Viruses, are they alive or what? Who knows, maybe The Weekly Weinersmith does. What we do know is that we found some viruses frozen in Siberia for 30,000 years and the best solution seemed to be to thaw them out and bring them back to l

It's time again for our annual Thanksgiving show! That means all feedback this week, all from PaleoPosse who have been kind enough to give us a bit of their hard-earned cash to help us keep producing this podcast for y'all.    00:00:00 - Our first PaleoPOW of the week comes from Joshua W., who is worried that microbes might be out there causing mass extinctions. We do our best to comfort him with cold hard science, so maybe not actually that comforting after all.   00:12:35 - One form of comfort is having a drink with your friends, so let's try that. This segment is actually brought to us by Clay the Human, who has started a recurring donation specifically to support the drinking segment. Thanks, Clay! Patrick sups some fine Basil Hayden bourbon, and gets a bit defensive about his use of an ice cube. Ryan, having recently returned from Sweden, has a sampling of various liquors of which Charlie suggests one of the aquavits. He drinks out of it from a shotglass sent in to our mailing address by superfan and don

0:00:00 - Abe and Ryan are joined by Vanessa Knutson, who studies nudibranchs at the California Academy of Sciences (where we've recorded before). She recently described a few new species of these beautiful citters, and published those results for anyone to read right here. We chat with her about the process of finding and describing a new invertebrate, as well as opportunities for women in science. Contribute directly to women in science by visiting the crowdfunding site Instrumentl.   00:38:42 - Living underwater means drinking basically all the time, but for us on the land drinking is an event worth sharing. This week Abe is drinking a 120 Minute IPA by Dogfish Head. Vanessa enjoys some Dihydrogen Monoxide to highlight California's recent and ongoing troubles with keeping the populace hydrated. Ryan stalls his way through eating some hákarl and washes it down with the brennivín in true Icelandic fashion.   00:48:50 - Moving on to vertebrates, we discuss why a certain group of sea snakes evolved smaller tha

00:00:00 - Patrick and Ryan are joined by Jasper Akerboom and Jason Osborne, who collaborated to make a beer with yeast harvested from fossils. The beer, Bone Dusters from Lost Rhino Brewing Company, involved diving into swamps for fossils, swabbing protocetids for cultures, and dealing with all the trials and tribulations of a yeast strain cultivated from a bone. It's a good story, and by all accounts a good beer.    00:21:14 - Speaking of beers, we're all having some. Jasper is having an Elder Wright, appropriately made by the aforementioned Lost Rhino. Jason was having a vodka tonic, but all our beer talk forced him to switch to an cellared Bone Dusters. Patrick is fighting a sore throat with the help of a hot toddy. And Ryan tries to keep everything thematic with a Mikkeller's Beer Geek Brunch Weasel.   00:29:25 - The second segment is all about what Jason and Jasper do when they're not busy brewing. Jason helps run PaleoQuest, a non-profit organization dedicated to espousing the value of geology and pale

00:00:00 - Arthur C. Clarke wrote in 2010: Odyssey Two that the center of Jupiter was one giant diamond. He probably never expected to be right... sort of. A new model suggests that conditions on Jupiter and Saturn may be right to have diamonds forming in the atmosphere and raining down from above. Pretty trippy stuff, science.   00:23:00 - Most drinks don't cause a trip, but there's only one way to find out for sure: drinking them. Jacob insults Ryan by daring to bring a pre-mixed Zombie cocktail from Bacardi on the show. Tsk tsk. Abe enjoys a Dunkel from Prost Brewing Company. And Ryan gets weird with a Tangerine Dreamsicle collaboration beer from Terrapin Beer Company and Green Flash Brewing Company.   00:31:40 - Jacob hasn't been on the show much lately, so Abe and Ryan demand some answers. Turns out he's been teaching children science as part of Club Scientific. I guess teaching the next generation is an OK excuse...   00:59:49 - PaleoPOWs are a lot like summer camp, you develop very strong bonds and the

00:00:00 - Dr. Robert McAfee joins Ryan to discuss all things sltohs! Finally, Ryan gets to just cut loose. First up on the docket, were giant ground sloths sneaking meat meals in between the leaves? There's some evidence to suggest that they were, but do these two slothologists believe it?   00:29:29 - No good sloth discussion happens without beer. Robert enjoys his Easter Bunny Vs Unicorn wheat wine as it warms. Ryan, failing to find anything from Ohio, settles for a There Went the Neighborhood by Black Bottle Brewery.   00:36:11 - Robert has found that when people find out he studies sloths, the typically ask about Sid the Sloth from the Ice Age movie series. A discussion of the first two movies, with particular emphasis on xenarthran representation, ensues.   01:14:24 - PaleoPOWs are a lot like ice ages, they come on ya fast, and they leave ya fast. (The accuracy of the previous statement has not been verified in any way.) Only one this week, but it's a goodie from Maria Q. all about SLOTHS from her homel

00:00:00 - Ryan is join by J. Leighton Reid to talk about birds, forests, and conservation. The first paper discussed is about how forest restoration in the tropics benefits birds.    00:24:34 - Speaking of feeling restored, how about beer? Leighton pulls off something that few guests or even co-hosts have ever accomplished: he has a beer Ryan hasn't heard of, namely a Alphadelic IPA by Hop Valley Brewing Company. Ryan also has a beer hailing from Oregon, a Class of '88 Belgian Style Ale from Deschutes Brewery et al.    00:26:05 - Next up we cover this new technique of applied nucleation, where you plant small patches of trees instead of trying to replant the whole forest. Fewer trees but better results? Talk about a win-win! If you want to know more about the project, you can read about it here and if you'd like to donate directly, you can do so here!   00:55:38 - PaleoPOWs are a lot like forest restoration, we're not quite sure how its done but we're really hoping it works out. Since Ryan is flying is solo

00:00:00 - Chad Jones, host of The Collapsed Wavefunction, joins us because apparently a story about chemicals was a better fit for here than his own show. That's fine, we're happy to have him. The story is about a new chemical that may help catalyze carbon fixation reactions. Don't worry, we make Chad explain all of that with small, easy to understand words.   00:13:25 - Drinks often contain carbon, but does drinking them catalyze fixation? I have no idea. Ryan guesses that Patrick is having a Sweetwater 420 based on one clue. It's a very sad waste of talen. Chad enjoys a Diet Cherry Dr. Pepper, but we can't tell if it has 24 flavors or just one. And Ryan succumds to a Hellhound On My Ale lemon beer from Dogfish Head so he has an excuse to sing some blues at the crossroads.   00:19:25 - Several new studies have lead to the startling conclusion that sasquatches may actually be bears. The first uses DNA, as if that means anything. And the second uses maps, but they're fancy maps, so maybe they're on to somethi

00:00: 00 - People love to focus on gigantic and impressive fossils, but tiny fossils of tiny parasites can also teach us a lot about our history of living with those critters that would take advantage of us. We begin the show with some  Schistosomiasis eggs found around the stomach region of a fossil human from Mesopotamia. Next up is a tick in amber with something that looks a whole lot like the bacteria for lyme disease inside of it, which you can vaccinate your dog for but not yourself. 00:26:40 - While blood may be appetizing for a tick, we humans prefer other sorts of beverages. Kelly is not yet off the  wagon, due to her status as a mammalian mother, so she enjoys a decaf latte with a cookie. A special cookie, but not the kind of special you might be thinking. This cookie is going to support a pretty great cause. Namely Project Sedna, helping to fund the exploration of our fast melting arctic via encouraging both native peoples and young women to take an active role in documenting ice loss. Ben has an 

00:00:00 - This week is dedicated to an interview Ryan did with PhD student Zeka Kuspa, who studies environmental toxicology as it affects California condor restoration. The first part of the interview covers the basics of California condors, their conservation history, and the problems they face due to lead poisoning.   00:39:01 - It take us a little bit but we do finally get to the drinks. Zeka, per her policy of only drinking beers with animals on the label, is enjoying a Sculpin from Ballast Point Brewing. Ryan, thinking that raptors often have those cool little hoods on, has the Blindfold Black IPA from Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.   00:43:17 - The secondpart of our interview focuses a bit about their project called Condor Watch which is part of Zooniverse and helps researchers get the public involved in analyzing the data from California condor camera traps. You, yes you, can sign up today to be a part of helping keep California's burgeoning condor population healthy and growing strong!   00:47:15 -PaleoPO

00:00:00 - Dr. John Pohl MD joins Kelly and Ryan to talk about his work as a pediatric gastroenterologist. Ever think that kids and adults have the same sort of digestive problems? Well you were wrong! John explains some of the key differences, but he's much nicer than my exclamation point would suggest.   00:30:00 - Having drunk with Ryan before, John is no stranger to our drinking segment. He's keeping it local with a Belgian-style white ale with orange peel from Wasatch Brewery. Ryan, in honor of John's home state, has a FULL STRENGTH (it's a big deal in Utah) Black Imperial IPA from Moab Brewery. Kelly has water. Kelly is responsible. Let us all be more like Kelly in the future. Stay hydrated, kids!   00:37:07 - Next John tells us about his research about how your pancreas could try to kill you. Sounds important. And he helped put together a book on his field of pediatric gastroenterology. Sounds prestigious. We end with John telling us a bit about how he came to be both a man of science and a man of fait

00:00:00 - Since we spend so much time promoting everyone else's work, we decided to be a bit selfish and spend the first segment talking about our own science. Charlie has a paper coming out in Nature Climate Change about moving forward into a low-carbon, sustainable energy future. No big deal. Patrick has 2 papers (show off) to talk about. The first is about how to not mess up your samples by using bleach. And the second is about paleodiet using everyone's favorite atoms: the stable isotopes! Ryan has a paper in Journal of Mammalogy of teeth of sloths, armadillos, and cats. Listen in to find out how that's all actually connected.   00:39:55 - Since it's a special occasion, the Paleopals decide to have a drink. Ryan's beer embodies an aspect of each of them: Odell's Fernet Aged Porter. Patrick goes back to the beginning with a Guinness. And Charlie, recovering from jaw surgery, revels in the palatable bitterness of a Sculpin IPA from Ballast Point.   00:47:36 - The preview doesn't give away much, but that

00:00:00 - Patrick interviews someone by the name of Ryan Haupt who has been doing paleontology along the Panama Canal. How does that work? Listen and find out!   00:21:44 - The Panama Canal transports goods around the world, allowing us to purchase all manner of things, such as drinks! Abe is drinking some homebrew that he thought would be well served with the name Bill & Bob's Boiled Basil Belgian Beer. Ben is having yet another ginger ale, this time with Godzilla on it. And Ryan is also drinking homebrew with the much simpler name of Regular & Rich.   00:36:48 - Trailer Trash Talk has a hard time staying on topic when it comes to The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Especially since our own Dr. Tippett has some science to drop whne it comes to web-slinging speeds.   00:57:25 - In the second part of  Canal Talk, Patrick and Ryan discuss what paleontology in the tropics is like, as well as some of the engineering history that went into making the canal work in the first place. For more on the history, check out

Ryan sits down with Zach Weinersmith to discuss his new kids book up now on Kickstarter called Augie and the Green Knight, which features a smart and daring female protagonist. The conversation predictably rambles to include mentions of the following:   Sir Gawain and the Green Knight -or- the book the inspired it all! The Once and Future King; which also features Knight(s) Gender Development, which contains facts, not fiction! And a comic with an art style similar to Boulet called March by Congressman Joe Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell   Most importantly, support women in science, support a book trying to drive forward that agenda, and support yourself. Give yourself a pat on the back. It's been a long week, you've earned it.   Thanks for listening and be sure to check out the Brachiolope Media Network for more great science podcasts!

00:00:00 - Like a modern day Cassandra, scientists have long predicted that insects would catch up to our GMO crops. Now, even though the biotech companies did their best to keep it hidden, corn rootworms have infested the US corn supply. Thanks for not even pretending to listen.   00:23:28 - Ryan has a riff on a Cuba Libre known as a Cubata using actual Cuban rum. Abe and Ryan manage to make sense of Abe's My Antonia from Dogfish Head. And Charlie has a terroir-agnostic Pleiades blend red wine.   00:34:24 - The tech-nerd rapture knowns as the Singularity comes under scrutiny both as a concept and as a plotline when the guys watch the preview of Transcendence in this week's Trailer Trash Talk!   00:54:07 - Y'know that big thing up in the sky? No, the other one. The nighttime one. Well for a long time we thought it was as necessary as the daytime sky object (aka the Sun) but mayhaps life can evolve without a stabilizing moon. Doesn't mean we don't still love ya, moon!   01:17:45 - PalePOWs are a lot like moons

00:00:00 - Old friend of the show Brian Switek returns with a ton of paleo to be talked about. Things begin with a new study of the bones of the Pliocene aquatic sloth, which turn out to have pachyosteosclerosis! Don't worry, we explain what that means and why it matters. (Hint: think marine iguana.)   00:22:04 - Sloths entered the drink, and so do we. Brian enjoys his own homemade apple cider. Patrick's drink isn't homemade, but it is local in the form of some Bowman Brothers Virginia Bourbon. Whereas Ryan sups from faraway lands, enjoying some illicit Cuban beers, Cristal and Bucanero Fuerte.   00:28:31 - And speaking of things from faraway lands, this week's trailer covers, in quite some depth, everything going on both science and not in the preview of the hotly anticipated Godzilla remake!   00:46:26 - To the shock of basically nobody, Ryan is upset about the headlines for a newly described dinosaur, but Switek is here to calm him down. Turns out, this new oviraptor from the Hell Creek Formation is notabl

00:00:00 - This week we tackle one of the (literally) biggest debates in the solar system: which planet has the largest mountain? For awhile, Mars seemed the clear winner, but new research suggests Earth might still have a horse in this race. Tune in to find out what Charlie and Abe think of this new discovery, and read up on volcanoes in general with this handy volume.   00:18:43 - If books containing world records are any indication, disputes are best settled over a pint, which we fortunately have a segment for just that. Charlie kicks things off with a High West Double Rye, much to the envy of Ryan who still manages to enjoy a mojito made with Panamanian rum. Abe, amidst all our other nonsense, does his best to sing the praises of his southern hemisphere Moa Five Hop IPA.   00:27:13 - However, we're hard-pressed to sing the praises of the new found-footage sci-fi horror film "based on the real fake phenomena" of the Brown Mountain Lights in Alien Abduction on this week's Trailer Trash Talk! (Also, here's w

00:00:00 - This week we're featuring a 2-part interview with host of the new Brachiolope Media Network show Astrarium James Silvester! Ryan and James being there conversation with James' early astronomical and radio origins. 00:21:38 - Back in the here and now (aka evening) drinks are had. Kelly continues being pregnant with some coconut water. Ryan has a more fiery version of water called Aguardiente. And Abe keeps it meteorological with a 10° Below from the Scuttlebutt Brewing Company. 00:31:07 - It takes more than a minute to work our way through the Marvel cinematic universe (which you can go and watch through our Amazon portal) but we eventually get to chatting about the trailer for their latest release Captain America: The Winter Soldier. 00:45:08 - Part 2 of Ryan's interview with Jimmy Silvers focuses more on the future of his show, including some 'awesome' suggestions from Ryan about potential topics. If you haven't checked out this new addition to the network, wait no longer! 01:05:36 - PaleoPOWs are

00:00:00 - Whether they formed via troll warfare or via geology, all we know now is that Iceland is covered in lava tubes. A possible explanation for their enigmatic origin is tonight's first topic!   00:18:47 - We presume that trolls like to drink, so in some ways this segment is for them. But it's also for you, the listener. And us. Definitely for us. Ryan continues his tour of Panamanian beers with a Soberana, which has nothing to do with sobreity nor frogs. Charlie enjoys some silky smooth Scotch and Abe keeps things thematic with a Hop Lava imperial IPA.   00:25:39 - Another 'historical' figure who liked to drink was Noah, and we discuss his upcoming eponymous movie, along with other aspects of his myth, in this week's Trailer Trash Talk!   00:41:10 - A coral reef has been found thriving in an acidified section of ocean. Does this mean all that worry over climate change was for naught? NAY! The Paleopals are here to set the record straight and explain what this seeming conundrum actually says about our e