Volcanoes. Trees. Drunk butterflies. Mars missions. Slug sex. Death. Beauty standards. Anxiety busters. Beer science. Bee drama. Take away a pocket full of science knowledge and charming, bizarre stories about what fuels these professional -ologists' obsessions. Humorist and science correspondent Alie Ward asks smart people stupid questions and the answers might change your life.
Site
RSS
Spotify
Apple
Recent rankings
Latest chart positions across Apple Podcasts and Spotify rankings.
Shared links between episodes and podcasts
Links found in episode descriptions and other podcasts that share them.
Museology (MUSEUMS) Encore in Memory of Ronnie Cline
Episode 409
Wednesday, August 28, 2024 β’ Duration 01:00:14
A very special encore in memory of our favorite Museologist, Ronnie Cline. In this 2018 episode, we talked about the life and work of a great dude and a good pal who passed away this morning. On the agenda of his legendary episode: Museums! Mummies! Paintings! Hot dogs! Alie sits down with her dear internet friend and museologist Ronnie Cline, who manages 30,000 artifacts over 22 California State Park Museums. Get the hot gossip about behind-the-scenes museum life, vintage ghosts, following your dreams, changing the tone of history and the time Alie ruined a 16th Century Dutch portrait. Also: why Jack London is your new dead celebrity crush.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Speleology (CAVES) with Gina Moseley
Episode 408
Wednesday, August 21, 2024 β’ Duration 01:12:00
Caves! Caverns! Grottos! Crystals! Let's get down and dirty with Speleology with explorer, researcher, professor, and paleoclimatologist Dr. Gina Moseley. She shares what itβs like to spend a week straight in a cave, safety tips, climate research breakthroughs, and the deepest and darkest caves. Also: stalactites, stalagmites, cave clouds, show caves, who counts as a spelunker, what ancient climate science can tell us about our current sticky situation, cave diving, cave rescues, creepy caves, gated caves, old school versus new school cave mapping, if cavers ever lose their damn minds down there, and why nothing beats the longing for the underground. Grab a friend and wear a helmet. Weβre goinβ in.Β
Ichthyology is not easy to say, but fish are easy to love. Dr. Chris Thacker will get you so thrilled to stare into a pond or look up pictures of silvery sea serpent-looking fish friends.Β
Hilariously charming fish expert and LA County Natural History Museum Curator of Ichthyology, Dr. Thacker took Alie to a basement full of several million jars of fish to chat about the worst fish husbands, the weirdest mating behaviors, the scariest fish, the nicest fish, the tiniest fish, how they breathe, how you can help reverse global warming, and whether you should pee in wetsuits. I love her so much and so will you.Β
(For the adult version, the full-length episode is linked below.)
Why an episode on Detroit?! Itβs got a great story. Standalone, this episode is a fascinating look at a metropolis that swelled and thrived during the auto boom, then declined, and is navigating a rocky rebirth of sorts. Aaron Foley was Detroitβs first official City Storyteller and wrote the book βHow to Live In Detroit Without Being a Jackass.β Iβve wanted to have him on Ologies for five years, and we finally sat down to talk about MoTown, car culture, square pizza, $1000 houses, gentrification, urban infrastructure, underground salt mines, amusement park slides, Diana Ross, emerging rappers, and the cityβs abandonment issues. Stay tuned for the March 21 Domicology episode on how buildings and neighborhoods decay, and what people β and science β can to do about it. Also, if youβre looking for a book to read, Iβm loving Aaronβs debut novel, βBoys Come First,β which he describes as βvery Black, very gay, and very Detroit.βΒ
Iβm at the airport and there are hundreds of brain scientists everywhere. So I swallowed my dignity/anxiety and approached strangers about the neuroscience they do. The result is a bushel of info on cravings, sleep, consciousness, addiction, dopamine, monogamy, Ozempic, toxins in your brain and so much more with: Georgia Kirkpatrick, Isabella Montana, Dr. Marissa Co, Chancey Garrett, Noah Millman, Pique Choi, Dr. Barbara Sorg and Elizabeth Plunk. Oops, we just made a bunch of new friends. All thanks to poster tubes, a.k.a: nerdurdurs.Β
A donation went to the Society for Neuroscience at SFN.org
Environmental Toxicology (POISONS + TRAIN DERAILMENT) with Kimberly K. Garrett
Episode 306
Wednesday, February 22, 2023 β’ Duration 01:19:15
Chemical spills, historical disasters, water quality, airborne toxic events, clear gasses, White Noise, dead fish, dark clouds, chemistry tests, trench coats, PFAS, phthalates, and the Ohio train derailment that plumed vinyl chloride into the skies of a small Ohio town. The lovely and informative Environmental Toxicologist Dr. Kimberly K. Garrett works at the intersection of chemical safety, public health and environmental justice β and she has cool science tattoos. Also: should I burn incense all the time?Β
Visit Dr. Kimberly K. Garrettβs website and follow her on Twitter
Skin color! Hair texture! Biological anthropology! The incredibly informed and infectiously funny Dr. Tina Lasisi joins to chat sunscreen, ashiness, redheads, light skin, dark skin, in-between skin, beards, UVAs, UVBs, shower habits, cultural colloquialisms, vitiligo, melasma, medical math, ocher, freckles and more. Dr. Lasisi is about to become your new favorite science communication and internet friend. Also: sunscreen, people.Β
Itβs invisible. Itβs mysterious. Itβs all around us β and no one knows what it is. Letβs have a fun existential crisis by pondering Dark Matter! The worldβs most affable and endearing theoretical particle physicist, Dr. Flip Tanedo of UC Riverside, makes the Large Hadron Collider, Higgs bosons, and neutrinos make sense. Also: Star Trek, space ghosts, vintage insults, supernovas and more. Youβll leave with a newfound wonder and the desire to read physics journals for the secrets of life.
Laryngology Part 2 (VOICE BOXES) with Ronda Alexander
Episode 303
Wednesday, February 1, 2023 β’ Duration 54:50
Part 2 is here! Pull up a seat for singing techniques, baby talk, baritones, whistle notes, stroke recovery, vibrato, Julie Andrews, crying jags, throat singing, accents and much more with your new favorite Laryngologist, Dr. Ronda Alexander. We justβ¦ we love her so much.Β
HPV Vaccine Ditty Remix on SHORT Notice by the Extremely Talented Jason Scardamalia
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Related Shows Based on Content Similarities
Discover shows related to Ologies with Alie Ward, based on actual content similarities. Explore podcasts with similar topics, themes, and formats, backed by real data.