Fossils and Fiction – Details, episodes & analysis

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Fossils and Fiction

Travis Holland and Alyssa Fjeld.

Science

Frequency: 1 episode/25d. Total Eps: 62

🎙️The culture and science of palaeontology.

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Apple Podcasts

🇬🇧 Great Britain - naturalSciences
21/07/2026
#86
🇬🇧 Great Britain - naturalSciences
20/07/2026
#63
🇬🇧 Great Britain - naturalSciences
07/05/2026
#79
🇬🇧 Great Britain - naturalSciences
06/05/2026
#52
🇬🇧 Great Britain - naturalSciences
05/05/2026
#33
🇬🇧 Great Britain - naturalSciences
19/04/2026
#97
🇬🇧 Great Britain - naturalSciences
18/04/2026
#85
🇬🇧 Great Britain - naturalSciences
17/04/2026
#74
🇬🇧 Great Britain - naturalSciences
16/04/2026
#60
🇬🇧 Great Britain - naturalSciences
15/04/2026
#48

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Score global : 53%

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Aussie pterosaur round up with Adele Pentland

Season 3 · Episode 10

Wednesday, July 3, 2024 • Duration 37:30

Pterosaur expert and PhD student Adele Pentland discusses the discovery and description of the newest and most complete Australian pterosaur, Haliskia peterseni. The fossil was found in Australia and is 100 million years old. Adele explains the unique features of Haliskia, including its large wingspan, interlocking teeth, and long throat bones.

The conversation places Haliskia in context with other Aussie pterosaurs and pterosaur families from around the world.

She also discusses the importance of museums like Kronosaurus Korner and the Australian Age of Dinosaurs in promoting paleotourism and supporting local communities. Adele shares her optimism for future discoveries of pterosaurs in Australia and highlights the significance of these findings for scientific research and public interest.

More info:

Adele's podcast Pals in Palaeo https://palsinpalaeo.com/

Kronosaurus Korner https://www.kronosauruskorner.com.au/

The Conversation article on Haliskia https://theconversation.com/100-million-year-old-fossil-find-reveals-huge-flying-reptile-that-patrolled-australias-inland-sea-231393

Scientific Reports paper describing Haliskia https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-60889-8

Scientific Reports paper describing Ferrodraco lentoni https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-49789-4

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Kids Fossil Frenzy with Sandra Bennett

Season 3 · Episode 9

Tuesday, June 18, 2024 • Duration 23:23

Children's author Sandra Bennett discusses the importance of literacy and her journey as an author, including the Adamson Adventure series, a number of which feature prehistoric animals. Sandra shares how she started writing stories for her students, which sparked their interest in reading. She also talks about her book series, which combines adventure, history, and extinct Australian wildlife. In Fossil Frenzy, the Adamson children discover prehistoric Queensland while Tracks in the Mist, releasing June 2024, features a family trip to Tasmania and the elusive Thylacine. Sandra hopes her books inspire a passion for reading, science, and environmental conservation.

Check out https://sandrabennettauthor.com/

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'The Jurassic Park Book' - Part 1

Season 3 · Episode 1

Wednesday, February 28, 2024 • Duration 01:33:00

Dr Matthew Melia introduces and discusses The Jurassic Park Book, published by Bloomsbury. The Jurassic Park Book is the second in a three-part series by Matt on Steven Spielberg's biggest creature features: Jaws, Jurassic Park, and ET. Following Matt, global film specialist Peter Kramer discusses his contribution to the book. This is part one of a two-part discussion with contributors to this book. __ More info: The Jurassic Park Book https://www.bloomsbury.com/au/jurassic-park-book-9781501384844/ Cinergie Journal: 'Franchising Jurassic Park' https://cinergie.unibo.it/issue/view/1234 Matt Melia's profile: https://www.kingston.ac.uk/staff/profile/dr-matthew-melia-648/ Peter Kramer's profile https://www.dmu.ac.uk/about-dmu/academic-staff/technology/peter-kramer/peter-kramer.aspx

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Ancient bugs with Alyssa Fjeld

Season 2 · Episode 14

Sunday, December 17, 2023 • Duration 33:26

Alyssa Fjeld discusses her research on early arthropods, especially tomotiids, a group that appeared over 520 million years ago.

Alyssa's research focuses on the growth patterns of early arthropods. She explores the concept of the inhibitory cascade model and its implications for understanding the life cycle and evolution of these animals.

Alyssa also shares her experiences in science education and outreach, emphasising the importance of making science accessible and engaging for diverse audiences.

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Found a Fossil with Sally Hurst

Season 2 · Episode 13

Saturday, December 9, 2023 • Duration 22:58

Do you know what to do if you find a fossil or First Nations artifact? Sally Hurst made it her business to find out as part of her Masters study at Macquarie University. We talk about the Found a Fossil project, Sally's journey to palaeontology, and her outreach work with school children.

More info:

Found a Fossil website https://www.foundafossil.com/

Hurst, S. (2023). Found a Fossil: Assessing Australian perceptions of heritage discoveries and conservation [Thesis, Macquarie University]. https://doi.org/10.25949/22662535.v1
Hurst, S., Kosnik, M., Evans, L., & Brock, G. A. (2023). Found a fossil: Improving awareness, engagement, and communication strategies for heritage discoveries. Journal of Science Communication, 22(5). https://jcom.sissa.it/article/pubid/JCOM_2205_2023_A03/

Thanks to Charles Sturt Uni student intern Jack Thompson for his assistance with this episode.

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A trip to Dinosaur Valley

Season 2 · Episode 12

Tuesday, November 7, 2023 • Duration 29:11

Each summer in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, a prehistoric landscape comes alive with the sound and sights of dinosaurs. This is Scenic World's Dinosaur Valley.

For more information on Scenic World and Dinosaur Valley visit https://scenicworld.com.au/

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Garret Knows Dinosaurs

Season 2 · Episode 11

Wednesday, September 20, 2023 • Duration 27:21

From a dino-themed wedding to running the world’s biggest dinosaur podcast, it’s Garret from I Know Dino! Garret joins Fossils and Fiction to chat about the lessons he and Sabrina have learned while covering new dinosaur discoveries every week for the past decade.

Check out I Know Dino on their website or your favourite podcasting app: https://iknowdino.com/

___

Stuff mentioned:

Clements, T., Atterby, J., Cleary, T., Richard P. Dearden, & Rossi, V. (2022). The perception of palaeontology in commercial off-the-shelf video games and an assessment of their potential as educational tools. Geoscience Communication, 5, 289–306. https://doi.org/10.5194/gc-5-289-2022

Common Descent Podcast: https://commondescentpodcast.com/

Noble, B. (2016). Articulating Dinosaurs: A Political Anthropology. University of Toronto Press. https://utorontopress.com/9781442621329/articulating-dinosaurs/

Plotnick, R. E., Anderson, B. M., Carlson, S. J., Jukar, A. M., Kimming, J., & Petsios, E. (n.d.). Paleontology Is Far More Than New Fossil Discoveries. Scientific American. Retrieved September 15, 2023, from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/paleontology-is-far-more-than-new-fossil-discoveries1/

Terrible Lizards Podcast with Dave Hone and Iszi Lawrence https://terriblelizards.libsyn.com/

Dinosaurs will always be awesome

Season 2 · Episode 10

Friday, September 1, 2023 • Duration 26:09

Jimmy Waldron once told Conan O’Brien he looked like a therizinosaurus. He also founded a non-profit called Dinosaurs Will Always Be Awesome that takes dinosaur experiences out to those who might not otherwise access them. After you’ve listened to the episode, check out more info on DWABA: https://dwaba.org/ Check out Jimmy's research on teaching evolution to school students:

Nadelson, L., Culp, R., Bunn, S., Burkhart, R., Shetlar, R., Nixon, K., & Waldron, J. (2009). Teaching Evolution Concepts to Early Elementary School Students. Evolution: Education and Outreach, 2(3), 458–473. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12052-009-0148-x

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Age of Mammals with Dr Chris Manias

Season 2 · Episode 9

Sunday, August 27, 2023 • Duration 50:53

Dinotherium, diprotodon, mastodon and more! Dr Chris Manias discusses his book The Age of Mammals: Nature, Development and Paleontology in the Long Nineteenth Century. Chris is Senior Lecturer in the History of Science & Technology at Kings College London.

Books mentioned:

Manias, C. (2023). The Age of Mammals: Nature, Development and Paleontology in the Long Nineteenth Century. University of Pittsburgh Press. https://upittpress.org/books/9780822947806/
Ashby, J. (2022). Platypus Matters: The Extraordinary Lives of Australian Mammals. HarperCollins. https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780008431440/platypus-matters/
Douglas, K. (2010). Pictures of Time Beneath: Science, Heritage and the Uses of the Deep Past. CSIRO Publishing. https://www.publish.csiro.au/book/6342/
Panciroli, E. (2021). Beasts Before Us: The Untold Story of Mammal Origins and Evolution. Bloomsbury. https://www.bloomsbury.com/au/beasts-before-us-9781472983978/

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'Dig Up Stupid' - Adele Pentland Talks Pals in Palaeo

Season 2 · Episode 8

Tuesday, August 8, 2023 • Duration 28:43

Palaeontologist Adele Pentland makes her second appearance on Fossils and Fiction to talk about... The Simpsons? Oh, and also her podcast Pals in Palaeo and her tips for science communication. ___ Find out more about Adele's work and Pals and Palaeo here:

Adele's website https://www.adelepentland.com/
Pals in Palaeo Instagram https://www.instagram.com/palsinpalaeo/
Pals in Palaeo links https://linktr.ee/palsinpalaeo

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Fossils and Fiction – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Fossils and Fiction – Details, episodes & analysis

Podcast details

Recent rankings

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Shared links between episodes and podcasts

Other88

Instagram7

Twitter5

RSS feed quality and score

Publication history

Latest published episodes

Similar podcasts and content

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Related Shows Based on Content Similarities

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Other88

Instagram7

Twitter5