Episode 171 – Beatrice Walks The Plank

00:00:00 – Katie McKissick, creator of the Beatrice the Biologist and contributor to Symbiartic, joins Ben and Ryan to talk all about the highs and lows of making comics about biology. (NOTE TO PARENTS: The language does get a bit salty, it is biology after all.) Katie has also recently put out a book of her comics, Amoeba Hugs and Other Nonsense, which you would be an utter fool not to buy.

00:38:39 – Drinks go into your biology and that can be a good thing. Katie has a Gams-bart Roggenbier from Los Angeles Ale Works, aka her husband’s brewery! Ben enjoys some sticky sweet soursop juice. And Ryan makes a Corpse Reviver #2 in honor of a certain holiday.

00:49:24 – We talk about zombies often, so how could we avoid covering the trailer for the upcoming fire monkey zombie movie World War Z. And don’t forget, we talked to the author of the book, Max Brooks, back in episode 66.

01:13:14 – Some clever chaps at the Max Plank Institute have released their findings readjusting the ratios of dark energy, dark matter, and regular matter. Ben takes a long time to explain this and Ryan forgot to turn on the timer duck. Sorry Christina! (And really everyone else too.)

01:41:52 – PaleoPOWs are a lot like constants in phyisics, they change all the time. Ryan has a generous donation from Bryan E. Thanks, Bryan! And Trevor R. wants to know what’s up with this “archive” thing. Turns out it’s spelled arXiv and you can go there to learn stuff.

Thanks for listening and be sure to check out the Brachiolope Media Network for more great science podcasts!

Music for this week’s show provided by:

The Plank – The Devil Makes Three

Payday at the Pub – Slim Dusy

Search and Destroy - The Stooges

I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow - The Soggy Bottom Boys

Image Credit: Beatrice the Biologist

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Episode 170 – Story Time

00:00:00 – Erin Barker and Ben Lillie of The Story Collider live show and podcast join Patrick and Ryan to discuss the magic of science disseminated via story. We also talk about their successful Kickstart of Science Studio, featuring a little podcast you may know and enjoy. Be sure to check out their podcast, especially the episode featuring our very own Kelly Weinersmith! (and some guy she brought along to help.)

00:27:05 – Drinks often lead to stories, so let’s have some. Patrick embraces Spring with an Old Dominion Cherry Blossom Lager. Charlie cuts through the nonsense with a Sierra Nevada Ruthless Rye. And Ryan keep is “local” with some Buffalo Bill Cody Rye Ale!

00:.33:10 – Speaking of stories, how about a new one featuring some old characters, which is exactly what we have in this week’s Trailer Trash Talk with Star Trek Into Darkness.

00:44:58 – Charlie also has a story to tell, it’s all about big batteries and their applications. Apparently your best bet to charge your phone is a big tub of water. It makes more sense when Charlie explains it.

01:05:51 – PaleoPOWs are a lot like batteries, they never last as long as you think. Patrick gets a stern correction from Bec B. concerning his bungling of Australian geography, but she softens the blow with some cold hard cash. Thanks, Bec! Charlie has an update from Antarctic pilot Blair H. who exposed his Science… sort of  T-shirt to the open air near the South Pole (here’s the photo for proof). HARDCORE. And Ryan wraps things up by unwrapping some sweet science cards from Jonathan Horn at Blue Dot Prints. Jon sent enough that we’ll be including packs to winners of the Flyer Contest, so get on it and be sure to thank Jon for your good fortune!

Thanks for listening and be sure to check out the Brachiolope Media Network for more great science podcasts!

Music for this week’s show provided by:

Might Tell You Tonight – Scissor Sisters

Ruthless – Something Corporate

The Dark of the Matinée - Franz Ferdinand

Battery – Aesop Rock

Image Credit: storycollider.org/

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Special Edition 9 – The Feline Phenomenon!

Derek Mead, the Editor in Chief of Motherboard came out to visit Ryan and so of course they sat down on the mic to talk about CATS! (And yes, the photo is Derek and Ryan out looking for cats in Costa Rica.)

No time stamps for this one. We were drinking an Incredible Hop Series Imperial Rye IPA from the Fort Collins Brewery and a cheeky nip of some Balcones True Blue cask strength Texas corn whiskey.

And here are the stories we talked about:

• Humans on the internet apparently prefer dogs over cats
• China has tiger farms, and somehow that’s not illegal (and how you can help endangered felids)
• Black cats get treated worse, and that not cool

And we end with Derek and Ryan quizzing each other on science trivia using the Science Trivia Quiz Book by Matt Silverman which Ryan bought at a used bookstore for a buck.

Thanks for listening and be sure to check out all the great content available from the Brachiolope Media Network and our friends over at Motherboard!

Music for this episode:

Black Cat – Black Mountain (Only available in the In the Future [Deluxe] album)

Image credit: Ryan and his buddy Garren

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Episode 169 – Ice, Iron, and Glass

00:00:00 – Charlie tells us about an elegant new study which has shed light on just what type of ocean might be sloshing around under the ice of Europa (see Episode 15 for a Europa refresher). Jacob and Ryan are impressed by both the science and Charlie’s explanation.

00:19:21 – Drinking salt water is a bad idea, but good thing that’s not what we’re having. Jacob is under the weather with a cold so Ryan shares his Hot Toddy recipe, in a mug combine:

• 1/4-1/2 fresh lemon juice
• few spoonfuls of honey
• shot of booze (bourbon, brandy, rum all work)
• fill mug with hot water
• garnish with cloves pushed into a lemon peel
• ENJOY!

Ryan is influenced by Charlie’s travels and as such is having a Wilco Tango Foxtrot from Lagunitas. Whereas Charlie came back with a nice bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon from his trip to Napa Valley.

00:26:04 – Trailer Trash Talk dives back into the Marvel Universe to chat about the continued adventures of everyone’s favorite iron-clad avenger in the upcoming Iron Man 3. Ryan also remembers that he’s been working with Marvel on the comics side to help promote some upcoming Iron Man stories. Read all 3 parts of the interview here, here, and here.

00:40:15 – A Seattle bar bans Google Glass before they even hit the market. But what is Google Glass? Do we want it? Should we want it? Big thoughts are discussed.

00:54:56 – PaleoPOWs are lot like dive bars, we ban things that would never get in anyways. Jacob announces a new recurring donation from Zach G. who had our show accompany him along the entirety of the Appalachian Trail. Thanks and congratulations, Zach! Ryan clears up a few questions that have been bugging Graeme N. about the show’s music, fossil ink, and some stuff that Ben said about the center of the universe. And Charlie ends it all with a classic 5-star iTunes review from Sephiroth209.

Thanks for listening and be sure to check out the Brachiolope Media Network for more great science podcasts!

Music for this week’s show provided by:

Ocean Breathes Salty – Modest Mouse

Hot-Hot-Hot – Arrow

Iron Man – Jack Urbont (Only available as the whole album)

Spying Glass – Massive Attack

Image Credit: English Lamp Post Co.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Episode 168 – Lifestyles of the Cold and Aquatic

00:00:00 – According to ‘science’ frogs are growing too many legs. However, as Carl Zimmer points out, sussing out the cause of the excess is a tricky matter indeed. You may have heard it was pollution, but what about the parasites? Kelly explains.

00:22:03 – Drinks can contain both pollution and parasites. A good way to defend against the former is to make sure your drink includes ethanol. Patrick accomplishes this with an Elliot Ness from the Great Lakes Brewing Company. Kelly goes a step further contaminating her beer with coffee in the form of  a Thunderstruck Coffee Porter from Highland Brewing Company. And Ryan sips a concoction of his own creation in the form of a Tequila Sazerac inspired by some awesome antarctic glassware care of Abe and Bev!

00:27:55 – Next the gang is off to a more colorful land as they discuss the myth and the tech behind the upcoming spectacle Oz the Great and Powerful in Trailer Trash Talk!

00:42:19 – Patrick then tells us about the all too real marine super’crocs’ of death that used to roam the seas. What were they? Where do they fit? And what is Patrick’s favorite Crocodylmorph?

00:57:37 – PaleoPOWs are lot like crocodiles, their classification continues to prove difficult and confusing. Kelly has an e-mail from Summer in Seattle letting us know that she saw a video of an anaconda vomiting up an entire cow and that it reminded her of us. Thanks? Ryan has a glowing iTunes review from ViTuanPeterPhan, who like any good reviewer, tells us how far along in the back catalog he is (ep 79 as of this posting). Lastly, Patrick has a very generous donation from a Bryan A., whom Patrick is convinced is a celebrity. Regardless, thanks Bryan!

Thanks for listening and be sure to check out the Brachiolope Media Network for more great science podcasts!

Music for this week’s show provided by:

Jump Around – House of Pain

Oh Catherine, My Catherine – WIDOWER (Available on Bandcamp)

We’re off to see the Wizard – Harold Arlen

Swamp Fang – Rolla Olak

Image Credit: Designertheo

Podcast: Play in new window | Download