Talk Nerdy with Cara Santa Maria

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Stanford University professor Dr. Brian Lowery joins Cara to talk about his new book, "Selfless: The Social Creation of "You." They discuss the complex psychology of identity, intersubjectivity, and humanity in a reality shaped by social pressures and norms.

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by Dr. Danielle Clode to talk about her new book, "Koala: A Natural History and an Uncertain Future." They discuss the behavior, evolutionary biology, and ecology of this enigmatic yet threatened species.

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by science writer Susanne Wedlich to talk about her new book, "Slime: A Natural History." They discuss what slime is (and isn't), why it evokes disgust, and how it may improve medicine and technology in the future.

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by science and technology writer Sally Adee to talk about her new book, “We Are Electric: Inside the 200-Year Hunt for Our Body's Bioelectric Code, and What the Future Holds.” They discuss the history of bioelectricity, as well as the promise it may hold for our biomedical future.

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by science writer Kristin Ohlson to talk about her new book, "Sweet in Tooth and Claw: Stories of Generosity and Cooperation in the Natural World." They discuss mutualism (cooperative relationships) between microbes, fungi, plants, and animals (including humans) across the natural world. Follow Kristin: @kristinohlson.

Dr. Sara Manning Peskin discusses neurology, dementia, and her book. Topics include misfolded proteins, cannibalism transmission of diseases, Croissfelt-Ya'kob heritable disease, various dementia types, drug interventions, and early diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases.

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by accelerator physicist Dr. Suzie Sheehy to talk about her new book, "The Matter of Everything: How Curiosity, Physics, and Improbably Experiments Changed the World." They discuss how particle accelerators came to be, what they actually do, and their applications from fundamental particle physics to nuclear medicine and beyond. Follow Suzie: @suziesheehy.

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by Dr. Gloria Mark, Chancellor's Professor of Informatics at the University of California, Irvine. They talk about her new book, "Attention Span: A Groundbreaking Way to Restore Balance, Happiness and Productivity." They highlight how our brains are affected by modern technology, including social media, entertainment, and vocational demands.

Hosted by Ash Kelley and Alaina Urquhart from the hit show Morbid. When 90-year-old Laurence Pilgeram drops dead on the sidewalk outside his condo, you might think that’s the end of his story. But, really, it’s just the beginning. Because Laurence and others like him have signed up to be frozen and brought back to life in the future. And that belief will pull multiple generations of the Pilgeram family into a cryonics soap opera filled with dead pets, gold coins, grenades, fist fights, mysterious packages, family feuds, Hall of Fame baseball legends, and frozen heads — lots of frozen heads. From Wondery, comes a story about life, death, and what comes next. Follow Frozen Head on Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts. Binge early and ad-free by subscribing to Wondery+ in Apple Podcasts or the Wondery App. Listen to Frozen Head: Wondery.fm/FH_TN

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by Dr. Erica Thompson to talk about her new book, "Escape From Model Land: How Mathematical Models Can Lead Us Astray and What We Can Do About It." They discuss the intersection of science, mathematics, and humanity, including how we make sense of data and use it to predict future outcomes.