#598 Train, boat, truck, it’s the supply chain

March 14, 2022 Rachelle Saunders General Science, Multimedia

I'm sure we've all heard the phrase 'supply chain disruption' by now. It might bring to mind ships floating outside LA or trucks jackknifed across a highway in the snow. But it's far, far more than that. Get ready for miles of conveyor belts and the largest robot in the world. Christopher Mims is here to talk about his book Arriving Today: From Factory to Front Door -- Why Everything Has Changed About How and…

Cracked open an old portfolio of pencil drawings

March 9, 2022 Glendon Mellow General Science, Multimedia

Sketch process for the Scarab-Trilobite

February 28, 2022 Glendon Mellow General Science, Multimedia

In late December, I unveiled a new winged trilobite that was not part of my initial round of sketches for The Field Guide to Flying Trilobites: Trinucleus ra, the Scarab-Trilobite. Here’s a look at the process. This sketch looks like pencil, but was done entirely in ArtRage Vitae. ArtRage is a wonderful digital painting platform for people who are used to painting traditionally, due to the lack of drop-down menus and the palette system. ©…

Episode 137: Tanis

February 25, 2022 Liz Martin-Silverstone Multimedia

The end-Cretaceous mass extinction was a cataclysmic asteroid impact that ushered in the end of the non-avian dinosaurs and forever changed the course of evolution on Earth. But what can we say about the timing of the event, other than it happened 66 million years ago? Well, it turns out that Tanis, a relatively-recently discovered fossil site in North Dakota, is full of lines of evidence that are allowing earth scientists to piece together when…

Acheulian Hand-Axe Trilobite

February 21, 2022 Glendon Mellow General Science, Multimedia

Ogygopsis acheuliensis, the Acheulian Hand-Axe Trilobite, © Glendon Mellow Acheulian Hand-Axe Trilobite‪“While the exact nature of the ritual that led Homo ergaster to hurl their Acheulian hand-axes into piles is unknown, the discovery of a unique cache of these finely-crafted tools, laden with trilobite fossils, led to the start of the Fossil Wars.” —from A...

#597 The Trouble With Passion

February 18, 2022 Rachelle Saunders General Science, Multimedia

Choosing a career path is a big decision. In the modern western world a career is practically synonymous with identity: whether we like it our not, what we do is a big part of who we are. And we are told to choose a career carefully, to find and follow our passion. But what is...

Yep, I made an Assassin’s Creed photomode Insta

February 12, 2022 Glendon Mellow General Science, Multimedia

I made myself a logo, riffing on the Assassin’s Creed logo which looks like the imprint of an eagle skull. I added the cuts on the right to make an “M”. Too subtle? Hm. This has been fun. Last summer, I decided to create a new Instagram account, @MellowAssassin, to share my game captures from...

2021 was a year of getting back into creative pursuits

February 12, 2022 Glendon Mellow General Science, Multimedia

Follow me on Instagram @FlyingTrilobite My 2021 was focused on image-making & community-building.tl;dr:🎨Worked on adding colour to The Field Guide to Flying Trilobites⛈️Ran the 6th(?) #SciArtTweetStorm in the spring. 🟣 Co-hosted weekly SciArt Chats with Julia Krolik - we started by alternating on Clubhouse and TwitterSpaces, and made the switch to Spaces by the end...

Episode 135/136: Burmese Amber Pt2

February 3, 2022 Liz Martin-Silverstone Multimedia

Continuing our mini series on Burmese Amber, we now turn our focus to the ethics of working on this fossil material. Can possessing or working on amber from Myanmar ever be considered ethical? In the first part of this episode, we examine the political context, work around Myanmar’s fossil exportation laws and follow the money back through the trade routes. In the second part we discuss why it’s currently unethical to study Burmese amber, what…

#596 Tailoring your brain with science

January 30, 2022 Rachelle Saunders General Science, Multimedia

Intent on improving your creativity or focus? Want to raise your IQ? What does that even mean? This week, we've got Emily Willingham back on the show to talk about tailoring the brain with science: The good, the bad, and the totally not proven. We're talking about her new book The Tailored Brain: From Ketamine, to Keto, to Companionship: A user's guide to feeling better and thinking smarter.

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