I can rely on podcasts
They never let me down. Please enjoy these recommendations.
Welcome to Hurt Your Brain #210, the place to get podcasts and links that will make you think, sent every so often.
As Mr Milchick said, it’s been a minute.
For a quick reminder, if you like podcasts and links that make you think, you are in the right place.
This mostly explains where I’ve been. I like to wait until I have some good things to send, and I’m past that threshold.
Also, I made a visual to show what podcasts have meant to me this year (and for the past 10+ years). No matter what is happening, podcasts provide a bit of consistency and comfort that is rather unique.
Ok, so about those good things I mentioned. Please enjoy these below recommendations and don’t be shy about sending some my way.
PODCAST RECOMMENDATIONS
StarTalk Radio: Into The Matrix with Laurence Fishburne
The Big Idea: Just a really fun conversation that is perfect for anyone who enjoys Neil DeGrasse Tyson and who loves the original Matrix movie.
YouTube version of the conversation is great too.
If you want a episode even more focused on the cutting edge of science and physics, there is also a recent phenomenal StarTalk with Brian Cox.
Decoder Ring: I Am Tupperware, I Contain Multitudes
The Big Idea: The more interesting-than-you-would-think story of how Tupperware went from a weird invention involving an industrial byproduct, to a massive hit thanks to the marketing genius of Brownie Wise (what a name), to a company fighting off bankruptcy and irrelevance.
Science Friday: Author John Green On The Many Ways Tuberculosis Shaped Human Life
The Big Idea: Tuberculosis is the number one most deadly infectious disease, killing over 1.25 million people in 2023 alone. If this surprises you, you are not alone, and are in good company with how author John Green felt not too long ago. His story of how it became personal is a good one and he is a very effective messenger around the story of tuberculosis.
John Green’s new nonfiction book Everything is Tuberculosis sounds fantastic, and I have hinted very strongly to my wife about it as a top idea for my upcoming birthday.
Embedded: Alternate Realities – A Strange Bet
The Big Idea: What if your father lived in a completely different ideological reality from you and the rest of your family, and it involved extreme conspiratorial thinking? What if you were able to make a bet with an end date to see whose version of reality was true? That is the idea of this three episode series from Embedded, and it’s a wild, fascinating listen.
Website with transcript [above link is also the website, I couldn’t find this on episodes.fm, my typical source for main links]
Planet Money: The Parable of Peanut the Memecoin
The Big Idea: Memecoins, OnlyFans, a viral pet squirrel. This episode has it all, and I hate how much you can learn about the modern world with this insane story.
It’s all very interesting, but for an added layer of fun, pretend you are someone from 50 years ago (or even 10) trying to decipher a single thing that is going on.
The Big Idea: Nature is capable of some incredibly dark things, and I’m not referring to the fact that many animals eat each other. What I mean is that there are some evolutionary pressures to make very, very dark surfaces in biology in order to absorb as much light as possible. Take the famous anglerfish for example, that gruesome (beautiful?) deep sea creature with the dangling bioluminescent light to attract prey. It wants its next meal to see the light, but NOT for the meal to see IT, so even the littlest reflection on its skin would be bad. This means they are very dark and are even super hard to photograph.
This ultra-black that can be naturally created by certain deep sea fish and a select few land animals can absorb well over 99% of light, and is even on par with the famous vantablack material made in a lab. For this trick in biology, it’s not just about the pigment, but also the physical structure of the skin.
Simple, interesting conversation from Radiolab.
PODCAST LINKS
What I Got Wrong About The Telepathy Tapes. An excellent post from Samantha Hodder, who you should subscribe to at Binge Worthy if you enjoy smart writing about podcasts. I respect so much what Hodder does in this post, which is to allow herself to be vulnerable about why she initially believed the story in The Telepathy Tapes and how she came to change her mind. I haven’t listened to The Telepathy Tapes, but I was planning to listen in order to write up a take down on it. This post does that beautifully and I would much rather spread the word on this.
What’s the best podcast you’ve ever listened to? A great thread on Reddit.
OTHER LINKS TO MAKE YOU THINK
How to make a CPU. This is only a minute and a half and I found it to be a fun mixture of tongue in cheek but technically accurate.
Books that could alter my brain chemistry and potentially change my life. Great Reddit thread that asks for book suggestions. People deliver. How could you not click with a title like that?
Everyone's a Geek About Something. Wonderful visual with short essay.
FOR FUN
Watching this 9 minute compilation of the entire Cones of Dunshire storyline from Parks and Rec is a very good way to spend your time.
Every 90s Commercial Ever (Uncensored). This parody takes a TURN, but will start nostalgic for any 90’s kid and is hilarious if you are into messed up comedy and don’t mind over the top gore. Feels very Adult Swim.
An old bit from Conan’s show around a spelling bee. I won’t spoil who the current A-lister is playing the kid, but I actually didn’t realize she started in entertainment that young.
Map of Countries Often Omitted from Maps. So, so stupid. But great.
The doctor’s appointment that feels like a podcast. I linked to the wrong thing last newsletter, so here is that great SNL skit if you missed it.
That’s it for this week. Thank you as always for reading and responding!
Please like or comment (or reply) if you want to share any comments. See you next time.
p.s. I like the idea of doing other media thoughts here: Currently reading Rendezvous with Rama, which is an Arthur C Clarke book that is being developed into a movie by Denis Villenueve after his third Dune movie. I’m not halfway done yet, but I can easily guarantee that this will be an absolutely stunning movie visually and will demand a viewing in IMAX. The storyline unfolds in mysterious and fascinating ways and I’m glad to have no idea where it is going to end up.
I love podcasts
I need to listen to the radio lab episode