
Don't Panic Geocast
John Leeman and Shannon Dulin discuss geoscience and technology weekly for your enjoyment! Features include guests, fun paper Friday selections, product reviews, and banter about recent developments. Shannon is a field geologist who tolerates technology and John is a self-proclaimed nerd that tolerates geologists.
Latest episodes

Aug 5, 2023 • 54min
Episode 367 - "Summer Break"
Classes are about to start, so let's grab some gear and get to work!
Field Supplies
Field Kits
Geological Field Sketches and Illustrations: A Practical Guide
Fun Paper Friday
What do grapes and microwaves have to do with advanced physics? Find out in this week's Fun Paper!
Khattak, Hamza K., Pablo Bianucci, and Aaron D. Slepkov. "Linking plasma formation in grapes to microwave resonances of aqueous dimers." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 116.10 (2019): 4000-4005.
Video of Grapes in Action
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Shannon Dulin
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Jun 23, 2023 • 52min
Episode 366 - "I Didn't Blow Away"
This summer while Shannon has been at field camp we took a short hiatus, but we're back! Find out what happened with camp and more as well as what happens when you drop a spinning bottle of water.
Fun Paper Friday
Ehrenstein, David. "Controlling the Bounce of a Bottle." Physics 16 (2023): 102.
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Shannon Dulin
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Jun 9, 2023 • 39min
Episode 365 - Salinity Crisis "Smoking Various Meats and WWII"
This week we talk about the Messinian Salinity Crisis and if your mom was right about cracking your knuckles.
Fun Paper Friday
Does cracking your knuckles destory your joints, improve joint health, or neither? Find out how one man has experiented on himself to find a potential answer.
Unger, Donald L. "Does knuckle cracking lead to arthritis of the fingers?." Arthritis & Rheumatism: Official Journal of the American College of Rheumatology 41.5 (1998): 949-950.
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13 snips
May 13, 2023 • 56min
Episode 364 - Geology of War "I'm glad I listen to this podcast"
Explore how geology and military strategy intertwine, influencing historical battles and troop movements. Discover the deadliest rock types and the significant role of geographic features in warfare outcomes. Uncover amusing peacetime uses for nuclear technology post-war. Delve into how sedimentary dynamics play a part in military logistics and strategies. Enjoy a light-hearted discussion on culinary fluid mechanics, reinforcing that science can be both educational and entertaining!

May 5, 2023 • 53min
Episode 363 - "National Natural Landmark"
In this episode of the Don't Panic Geocast podcast, we continue our exploration of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail, immersing ourselves in its stunning landscapes and geological wonders. From glacial features to ancient river valleys, each step along the trail reveals new marvels waiting to be discovered. In the "Fun Paper Friday" segment, we dive into the intriguing world of gas marbles, unraveling their peculiar properties and potential applications.
Fun Paper Friday
Roux, Aymeric, Alexis Duchesne, and Michael Baudoin. "Everlasting bubbles and liquid films resisting drainage, evaporation, and nuclei-induced bursting." Physical Review Fluids 7.1 (2022): L011601.
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Apr 28, 2023 • 47min
Episode 362 - "A lot of gray area in geology"
In this episode of the Don't Panic Geocast, we dive into the fascinating world of dolomite, a mineral that is commonly found in sedimentary rocks. They discuss the unique characteristics of dolomite and the different ways in which it is formed. We also highlight a fun paper on equine dietary preferences, which explores the food choices of horses in different environments. The paper reveals interesting insights into the feeding habits of horses and how they adapt to different conditions
Fun Paper Friday
Goodwin, Deborah, Pat Harris, and Nell Davidson. "Behaviour of stabled horses presented with foraging devices in mangers and buckets." (2005): 96.
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Shannon Dulin
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Apr 14, 2023 • 1h 1min
Episode 361 - "No Ice Other than in Tea" Ice Age Trail Part 1
John and Shannon are embarrassed to learn about a "new" national park - the Ice Age National Scenic Trail!
Ice Age Trail
Fun Paper Friday
How can invisible creatures make their eyes invisible? What about their blood? What's going on in the ocean?
Feller, Kate, and Megan Porter. "Photonic tinkering in the open ocean." Science 379.6633 (2023): 643-644.
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Shannon Dulin
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Apr 7, 2023 • 43min
Episode 360 - "Third and Fourth Order Nonsense" Lane's Balance
This week we dive into rivers and what makes them erode, deposit, move and more using an engineering concept called Lane's balance.
River Dynamics Fact Sheet
Fun Paper Friday
Lasers, high speed cameras, lightning, radio observations, and electric fields. It doesn't get better than this!
Houard, Aurélien, et al. "Laser-guided lightning." Nature Photonics (2023): 1-5.
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Shannon Dulin
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Mar 18, 2023 • 37min
Episode 359 - "Standing Around Staring"
We've been off air for a bit due to a giant move! Find out more!
Fun Paper Friday
Have we been leaving more that footprints on Mt. Everest? What about other planets?
Humans are leaving behind a 'frozen signature' of microbes on Mount Everest
Nicholas B. Dragone, L. Baker Perry, Adam J. Solon, Anton Seimon, Tracie A. Seimon, Steven K. Schmidt. Genetic analysis of the frozen microbiome at 7900 m a.s.l., on the South Col of Sagarmatha (Mount Everest). Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research, 2023; 55 (1) DOI: 10.1080/15230430.2023.2164999
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Shannon Dulin
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Feb 24, 2023 • 57min
Episode 358 - "Put a pin in it" Surveillance Balloons
There's been a lot of buzz about the PRC surveillance balloon, so we unpack the history of using balloons for science and for military.
Fun Paper Friday
Thanks to listener Xavier for this disturbing fun paper on privacy and tech repair.
Ceci, Jason, Jonah Stegman, and Hassan Khan. "No Privacy in the Electronics Repair Industry." arXiv preprint arXiv:2211.05824 (2022).
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Shannon Dulin
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