Getting Curious With Jonathan Van Ness

Grab your Ugg boots and mini skirts and give three cheers for each of Carly Patterson's Olympic medals because this week on Getting Curious, 2004 is back in style. As billions of Brood X cicadas start to emerge across the eastern United States after 17 years, we’re re-releasing our episode from last summer with Dr. Jessica Ware, all about these trending insects.   Dr. Ware is a curator of Odonata and non-Holometabolous insect orders at the American Museum of Natural History, New York and a professor at the Richard Gilder Graduate School. You can follow Dr. Ware (and her amazing cicada coverage!) on Twitter @JessicaLWareLab and Instagram @jessicaleeware42.   Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com. Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan

It’s no secret that we rely on technology in our daily lives. So it shouldn’t be a secret how that technology works, who is developing it, and just how biased it can be. This week on Getting Curious, returning guest Meredith Broussard joins Jonathan to discuss how data rights are civil rights—and how we can all get involved in efforts to defend them.   Data journalist Meredith Broussard is an associate professor at the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute of New York University, research director at the NYU Alliance for Public Interest Technology, and the author of “Artificial Unintelligence: How Computers Misunderstand the World.” Meredith is featured in the documentary Coded Bias, directed by Shalini Kantayya, now available to stream on Netflix.   You can follow Meredith on Twitter and Instagram @merbroussard, and keep up with her work at meredithbroussard.com. For more information on Coded Bias, head over to CodedBias.com and follow @codedbias on Instagram and Twitter.   Make sure to visit the film’

This week’s episode of Getting Curious isn’t a snack, it’s a whole meal. Culinary creator, writer, and video host Sohla El-Waylly joins Jonathan to discuss cooking basics, ancient recipes, and their shared affinity for a certain discontinued Taco Bell classic.   Sohla El-Waylly can currently be seen starring in The HISTORY® Channel’s online series Ancient Recipes with Sohla. Sohla is also currently one of the first-ever Resident Experts for Food52 with Off Script with Sohla, her curated monthly online column and video series. She is also a contributor to The New York Times Cooking vertical. You can keep up with Sohla’s work on Instagram @sohlae and at www.hellosohla.com.   Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com. Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @J

This week on Getting Curious, things are looking up: to Canada! Professor Jeffers Lennox joins Jonathan to discuss early Canadian history, including British, French, and Indigenous relations in northeastern North America; Canada’s role in the American Revolution; Canada’s confederation story; and what the deal actually was with Benedict Arnold.   Jeffers Lennox is an associate professor of History at Wesleyan University. His current book project is North of America: British Provinces, the Revolution, and Creating the United States (under contract, Yale University Press).   You can follow Jeffers on Twitter @jefferslennox, and keep up with his work at www.jefferslennox.com.   Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com. Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitte

This week on Getting Curious, Jonathan sits down with the creators and cast of Netflix’s new animated musical movie Arlo The Alligator Boy. Joining the discussion is director and writer Ryan Crego; supervising producer Blake Lemons; Mary Lambert, who plays Bertie; Michael J. Woodard, who plays Arlo—and Jonathan, who plays Furlecia! Listen in to learn all about the writing, casting, voiceover, and animation process.   You can follow Ryan on Instagram @creegsmamation; Blake @blahlemons; Michael @MichaelJWoodard; and Mary @MaryLambertSing. For more on Arlo The Alligator Boy, and the upcoming Netflix series I ♥ Arlo, follow @NetflixFamily on Instagram.   Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com. Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vannes

This week on Getting Curious, multidisciplinary visual artist Lanecia Rouse joins Jonathan to discuss how creative expression can help us make sense of our lives. Lanecia shares how she sources materials—like magazines, bricks, and strings—for her works; how she contends with questions of religion, grief, and joy in her art; and how she became a full-time artist.   Lanecia is a multidisciplinary visual artist based in Houston, TX and the owner and creator of LAR Art Studio. Her portfolio includes a range of abstract painting, photography, teaching, writing, speaking, and collaborative creative community engagement projects nationally and abroad.   You can follow Lanecia on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter @larartstudio and keep up with her work at www.laneciarousetinsley.com.   Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com.

This week’s Getting Curious is going to the dogs—and the cats and the cows and the crocodiles! Philosopher and writer Eva Meijer joins Jonathan for a conversation about how non-human animals communicate, why humans have often underestimated other species’ capacity for language, and what we can do to build more sustainable, respectful relationships with other species.   Among Eva’s books is Animal Languages, recently translated into English by Laura Watkinson and published by MIT University Press. Follow Eva on Facebook and Twitter @meijereva, and on her website www.evameijer.nl.   Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com. Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.c

This week on Getting Curious, we’re wishing Jonathan many happy returns with an extra special birthday edition of the show. Diana Rose joins Jonathan to discuss astrology, tarot, and other healing practices—complete with Jonathan’s first ever natal chart reading!   Diana Rose is an astrologer, tarot reader, & writer based in Los Angeles. Her practice aims to guide others towards cultivating a more compassionate and re-enchanted relationship with themselves & the world around them.   Diana is on Instagram @ddamascenaa, on Twitter @ddamascenaa, and on Patreon @ddamascenaa.   She’ll be presenting two talks at the Northwest Astrological Conference in May, so make sure to check her out there. She’s also writing the guidebook for the Rosebud Tarot; you can keep up with that project on Instagram @rosebudtarot. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Check out Getting C

This week on Getting Curious, Professor Beronda Montgomery joins Jonathan to discuss plant behavior, adaptation, and communication—plus, the question on everyone’s minds: will Jonathan’s lantana plants survive the winter?!   Beronda L. Montgomery is MSU Foundation Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Microbiology & Molecular Genetics at Michigan State University. A Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Academy of Microbiology, she was named one of Cell’s 100 Inspiring Black Scientists in America.   Professor Montgomery’s new book Lessons From Plants, published by Harvard University Press, will be released on April 6 and is available for pre-order now. You can keep up with #LessonsFromPlants on Twitter @PlantLessons.   Professor Montgomery is on Twitter @BerondaM and Instagram @beronda_m. Harvard University Press is on Twitter at @Harvard_Press and @HarvardUPLondon. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instag

Spring is on its way, the sun is shining, and we want to make sure you’re prepared to bask in the warm weather—even with your masks on! This week on Getting Curious, we’re re-releasing an episode from July 2019 on sun protection with Dr. Emily Newsom. Listen back as Jonathan and Dr. Newsom discuss the science behind sunscreen, tips for managing sun exposure, and more.   Dr. Emily Newsom is a board certified dermatologist and assistant professor of dermatology at UCLA Medical Center. You can follow Dr. Newsom on Instagram @derm_chat. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com. Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week on Getting Curious, we’re traveling back to Early China with Professor Jue Guo. She and Jonathan discuss dynasties, empires, early instances of written language, and so much more. And because curiosity can’t always be contained to 40 minutes—okay, more like an hour and fifteen minutes—we’re planning a follow-up episode with Professor Guo. Make sure to jot down your questions about Early China as you listen, and keep an eye out on our social media accounts for a chance to have them featured in part two!   Jue Guo is an Assistant Professor at Barnard College in New York City. She is a social and cultural historian of Early China (terminus ante quem ca. 3rd century CE), with a geographical focus on southern China. For more information on her work, check out www.barnard.academia.edu/JueGuo.   Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Check out Getting Curious m

We read your Instagram comments. We saw your clamoring for more information on the stunning painting behind Jonathan’s couch—and the artist behind the work. This week, we’re satisfying your curiosity (and ours!) with a conversation between Jonathan and the abstract expressionist painter and writer A’Driane Nieves. A’Driane shares how she developed her art practice, why she’s partial to acrylic paints and massive canvases, what she sees as a more equitable art world, and so much more.   A’Driane Nieves is an interdisciplinary abstract artist, speaker, writer, and the founder of the Tessera Arts Collective and Abstractions Magazine.   On Instagram, you can follow A’Driane @adrianenieves_art; Tessera Arts Collective @tesseraartscollective; and Abstractions Magazine @abstractionsmag. For more of A’Driane’s work, make sure to check out www.addyeb.com. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at

We love going off script for Getting Curious, but we’re staying on it with this week’s guest: the Golden Globe and Emmy-nominated writer, director, actress, and author Emerald Fennell. She and Jonathan discuss her latest project and directorial feature film debut PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, her role as Camilla Parker Bowles on THE CROWN, and so much more.   PROMISING YOUNG WOMAN, nominated for three Golden Globe awards, is a comedy thriller that centers on a woman, played by Carey Mulligan, who is traumatized by an event in her past and sets out for revenge. There are a few spoilers in the first segment of this episode, but we’ll give you a heads up before each one. And the film, released by Focus Features, is available on demand, so if you want to see it before listening to the episode, we’ll see you back here in 1 hour and 54 minutes. Finally, because this film addresses sexual assault, we want to be clear that we’ll be discussing this topic and, more generally, representations of trauma in popular culture, du

Put on your finest loungewear and raise your favorite coffee mug because this week’s episode of Getting Curious is an EVENT! After six years of incredible work, NASA’s Perseverance rover is now exploring Mars, and Jonathan spoke with Christina Hernandez, an engineer at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, all about the mission just before landing day. Listen in to learn more about the Red Planet, the Perseverance mission, and Christina’s advice for the next generation of NASA innovators.   Keep up with rover coverage on Twitter @NASAPersevere and Instagram @NASA, and with Christina’s amazing career on Twitter @estrellasycafe. For Spanish-language coverage, make sure to check out @NASA_es on Twitter and Instagram.   Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN.   Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.   Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com.   Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuin

This week on Getting Curious, we’re celebrating 200 episodes and five years of the show with a look back at some of our favorite segments on empowerment, advocacy, and exploration. We’re so grateful to all of our listeners and guests for taking this journey with us, and we’ll be back next week with an all new episode that’s truly out of this world! Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com. Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week on Getting Curious, we’re learning about three women who shaped the movement for civil rights in the United States—Alberta King, Louise Little, and Berdis Baldwin—but whose stories have too often been footnotes in books about their famous sons.   The writer and scholar Anna Malaika Tubbs joins Jonathan to discuss her new group biography The Three Mothers, her work studying Black motherhood as a Gates scholar and Ph.D. candidate in Sociology at Cambridge University, and her approach to public projects like Stockton, California’s Status of Women Report.   Follow Anna on Twitter @annas_tea_ and on Instagram @annastea_honesty. Make sure to check out The Three Mothers, published by Flatiron Books, on sale now.   Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN.   Check out all new Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com.   Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and

In December 2020, the UK High Court determined that trans, non-binary, and gender diverse young people in the UK must have legal approval before they can start puberty blockers—even if these young people, their families, and their doctors advocate for treatment. This week on Getting Curious, Lui Asquith joins Jonathan to break down what hormone blockers are, why this case is so significant, and how it fits into a broader discussion about trans rights in the UK and beyond.   Lui Asquith (pronouns they/them) is Director of Legal, Policy and Operations at Mermaids. Lui is a qualified lawyer, with a background in LGBTI activism. They moved to Mermaids over two years ago to focus on improving the lives of trans, non-binary and gender diverse young people on the front line. Founded in 1995, Mermaids is a UK-wide charity working to support thousands of transgender, non-binary and gender diverse children, young people, and their families.   Lui is on Twitter @luiasquith. Mermaids is on Instagram @mermaidsgender,

This week on Getting Curious, the writer, activist, and educator Dean Spade joins Jonathan to discuss how we can meet our neighbors’ survival needs through mutual aid, and better understand the systems we live under in the process. Listen in to learn about what mutual aid is, how it differs from charity, and why local wisdom is essential for sweeping change.   Dean Spade has been working to build queer and trans liberation based in racial and economic justice for the past two decades. He’s the author of Normal Life: Administrative Violence, Critical Trans Politics, and the Limits of Law, the director of the documentary “Pinkwashing Exposed: Seattle Fights Back!,” and the creator of the mutual aid toolkit at BigDoorBrigade.com. His latest book, Mutual Aid: Building Solidarity During This Crisis (and the Next), was published by Verso Press in October 2020.   You can follow Dean on Twitter @deanspade and Instagram @spade.dean.   Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Ins

This week on Getting Curious, we’re following the money to better understand banking in America and the history of the country’s racial wealth gap. Professor Mehrsa Baradaran joins Jonathan to discuss banking deserts, overdraft fees, home loans, and more. (Like, what are capital gains, even?!)   Mehrsa Baradaran is a professor of law and associate dean at UC Irvine School of Law specializing in banking law and financial inequality. She is the author of How the Other Half Banks and The Color of Money.   Follow Professor Baradaran on Twitter and Instagram @mehrsabaradaran.   Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN.   Check out all new Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com.   Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

New year, old curiosity: this week on Getting Curious, we’re traveling back in time to ancient Egypt with Dr. Kathryn Howley. She and Jonathan discuss what life might have looked like for ancient Egyptian hairstylists, royalty, and scribes; how ancient Egyptians interacted with neighboring cultures; and what it’s like for Egyptologists to analyze archaeological remains.   Professor Howley is the Lila Acheson Wallace Assistant Professor of Ancient Egyptian Art and Archaeology at the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University. She is interested in how ancient peoples negotiated their interactions with other cultures through art and material culture, particularly Egypt and its southern neighbor Nubia in the first millennium BCE. As part of this interest she directs the Sanam Temple Project, which undertakes fieldwork at the 7th century BCE Egyptian-style temple of the Nubian King Taharqo at Sanam, Sudan.   You can follow the Sanam Temple Project team’s latest fieldwork discoveries on Facebook @sanamtemplepr