Loosen your belts and tuck a napkin under your chin because feasting season is almost here. Katherine Spiers -- journalist, food anthropologist, editor of HowtoEatLA.com and host of the culinary history podcast Smart Mouth -- lets Alie belly up for a buffet of questions about winter gatherings, Thanksgiving myths, green bean casseroles, the hazards of deep frying, holy eels and more.Follow Katherine Spiers on Instagram, Bluesky, and XCheck out her food review site HowToEatLA.com and podcast network TableCakes ProductionsA donation went to: Los Angeles Regional Food BankFull-length (*not* G-rated) Food Anthropology episode + tons of science linksMore kid-friendly Smologies episodes!Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a monthOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, masks, totes!Follow @Ologies on Instagram and BlueskyFollow @AlieWard on Instagram and TikTokSound editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions, Jarrett Sleeper of Mind Jam Media and Steven Ray MorrisMade possible by work from Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Emily White and Erin TalbertSmologies theme song by Harold Malcolm

What IS a coral? Where do they grow and what do they eat and why are they so pretty? What kind of tools do coral scientists use? Why are they so many colors? And what is bleaching? Will changing your sunscreen save coral reefs? The wonderful and charming Cnidariologist Dr. Shayle Matsuda took time out of his busy schedule during a coral spawning event to chat about how magical and beautiful coral can be and why reef health is important. Follow Dr. Shayle Matsuda on XDonations went to Paepae o He’eia and Point FoundationFull-length (*not* G-rated) Cnidariology episode + tons of science linksMore kid-friendly Smologies episodes!Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a monthOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, masks, totes!Follow @Ologies on X and InstagramFollow @AlieWard on X and InstagramSound editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions, Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media & Steven Ray MorrisMade possible by work from Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Aveline Malek, & Erin TalbertSmologies theme song by Harold Malcolm

To finish off SpooOoktober, we’re looking at huge birds that devour the ickiest stuff around: the giant, majestic and critically endangered California condor. Condorologist Dr. Jonathan C. Hall’s work helps monitor populations, tracks flight data, and keeps tabs on how well this small population is rebounding after going extinct in the wild in 1987. We chat carcasses, wingspans, beaks, bald heads, and more. By the end, you’ll want to gaze at the skies hoping for a sighting. Check out Dr. Jonathan C. Hall’s websiteFollow him on X and InstagramWatch the Condor Cam on the Ventana Wildlife Society websiteA donation went to BlackInAppalachia.orgFull-length (*not* G-rated) Condorology episode + tons of science linksMore kid-friendly Smologies episodes!Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a monthOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, masks, totes!Follow @Ologies on X and InstagramFollow @AlieWard on X and InstagramSound editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions, Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media & Steven Ray MorrisMade possible by work from Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Aveline Malek, & Erin TalbertSmologies theme song by Harold Malcolm

I scream, you scream, we all scream for… a brand new, screaming hot episode of Smologies. Be warned *slaps the top of this ep* you can fit so many screams in this bad boy. (Seriously though, there’s a lot of screaming in this episode, it’s probably not the one to gently fall asleep to.) What kinds of screams you ask? We got birds, foxes, caterpillars, and of course, children. What is a scream? Is it the same as yelling? How far can you hear a scream? What makes screaming at a haunted house so fun? Join us as we hoot and holler with internationally acclaimed Emory professor of psychology Dr. Harold Gouzoules for the answers to these and so many more of your questions as we learn about the study of that most animal of vocalizations: screaming.Check out Dr. Gouzoules’s Emory University Bioacoustics LabA donation was made to the American Diabetes AssociationFull-length (*not* G-rated) Screamology episode + tons of science linksMore kid-friendly Smologies episodes!Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a monthOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, masks, totes!Follow @Ologies on X and InstagramFollow @AlieWard on X and InstagramSound editing by Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media and Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio ProductionsMade possible by work from Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Emily White, & Erin TalbertSmologies theme song by Harold Malcolm

ALIENS! EXTRATERRESTRIALS! MARTIANS! The phenomenal Dr. Kevin Peter Hand of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory dishes on the oceans of distant moons, methane rivers, ice crusts, the James Webb Space Telescope findings, what might be out there, aliens, what elements a planet needs to sustain life, and how finding extraterrestrial microbes would change the way we see life on this here tiny blue dot in space. Dr. Kevin Peter Hand's book Alien Oceans: the Search for Life in the Depths of SpaceFollow Dr. Kevin Peter Hand on X and InstagramDonations went to Traveling Telescope & Vermont's Manchester Rescue SquadFull-length (*not* G-rated) Astrobiology episode + tons of science linksMore kid-friendly Smologies episodes!Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a monthOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, masks, totes!Follow @Ologies on X and InstagramFollow @AlieWard on X and InstagramSound editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions, Jarrett Sleeper of Mind Jam Media & Steven Ray MorrisMade possible by work from Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Emily White, & Erin TalbertSmologies theme song by Harold Malcolm

Bugs are cool! But are they lunch? Entomophagy Anthropologist Dr. Julie Lesnik is an expert on bug eating and enthusiastically explains how much more sustainable – and tasty? -- it is than other types of animal proteins. We talk about the human past, present and future of ingesting insects, from grasshopper tacos to ant omelettes, cricket wedding cakes, humane bug slaughter, water conservation, arthropod allergies, and cultural biases. Also: termite farts? Yes. Dr. Julie Lesnik's websiteA donation went to Little HerdsTo try crickets: EatChirps.com, use code Ologies10 for 10% off Chirp ChipsAly Moore's Bugible.com and EatBugsEvents.comFull-length (*not* G-rated) Entomophagy Anthropology episode + tons of science linksMore kid-friendly Smologies episodes!Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a monthOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, masks, totes!Follow @Ologies on X and InstagramFollow @AlieWard on X and InstagramSound editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions, Jarrett Sleeper of Mind Jam Media & Steven Ray MorrisMade possible by work from Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Emily White, & Erin TalbertSmologies theme song by Harold Malcolm

The seasons are a-changin'! We’re coming up on sweater weather in both hemispheres and seasonal researcher and expert Phenologist Dr. Libby Ellwood weighs in with amazing information about why fall smells so good, why leaves change color, why some plants need to chill, bird migrations, and how global temperature shifts affect the whole food web. Bonus: a peek at the most candid, touching thoughts Alie's ever heard from a scientist studying climate. Get this one in your ears and hearts.Follow Dr. Libby Ellwood on XA donation went to SaveGPOrangutans.orgFull-length (*not* G-rated) Phenology episode + tons of science linksMore kid-friendly Smologies episodes!Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a monthOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, masks, totes!Follow @Ologies on X and InstagramFollow @AlieWard on X and InstagramSound editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions, Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media & Steven Ray MorrisMade possible by work from Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Kelly R. Dwyer, Emily White, Jacob Chaffee & Erin TalbertSmologies theme song by Harold Malcolm

The SMOL version of an ep about smol precious creatures, we're talkin' slimy little angels with bellies for feet... literally! That's what gastropod means! We've got Dr. Jann Vendetti of the Natural History Museum of LA County to talk with Alie about snail-based beauty products, escargot, urban snails, thousands and thousands of teeth, and whether or not you should adopt a rabbit-sized pet snail. Check out the SLIME project at NHM.orgFull-length (*not* G-rated) Malacology episode + tons of science linksMore kid-friendly Smologies episodes!Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a monthOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, masks, totes!Follow @Ologies on X and InstagramFollow @AlieWard on X and InstagramSound editing by Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam MediaMade possible by work from Mercedes Maitland, Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Emily White, & Erin TalbertSmologies theme song by Harold Malcolm

Trains. Locomotives. Choochoos. Bullet trains. Hyperloops. Subways. How fast can they go? How did they change American history? Why do people love them? What should we do with all that abandoned track? Did cars and trains ever have a rivalry? What's it like to shovel coal into a steam engine? Alie went off the rails at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan talking to official ferroequinologist and curator Matt Anderson.Check out The Henry Ford Museum Railroad ExhibitFull-length (*not* G-rated) Ferroequinology episode + tons of science linksMore kid-friendly Smologies episodes!Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a monthOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, masks, totes!Follow @Ologies on X and InstagramFollow @AlieWard on X and InstagramSound editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions and Steven Ray MorrisMade possible by work from Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Emily White, & Erin TalbertSmologies theme song by Harold Malcolm

Bundle up for a smol, classroom-friendly episode with Princeton University evolutionary biologist and Thermophysiologist Dr. Shane Campbell-Staton. You’ll learn about everything from heat tolerance to frostbite, anti-freeze woodfrogs to icy alligators, why some people run hot, why your toes run cold, how a fever is like a honeybee, how geography influences our body composition, why mammoths are big, and why you should grab your hat before running out the door. Also: what counts as “balmy” in Alaska. Check out Dr. Campbell-Staton’s websiteFollow him on Instagram and XListen to his podcast The Biology of Super HeroesFull-length (*not* G-rated) Thermophysiology episode + tons of science linksMore kid-friendly Smologies episodes!Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a monthOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, masks, totes!Follow @Ologies on X and InstagramFollow @AlieWard on X and InstagramSound editing by Zeke Thomas Rodrigues & Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam MediaMade possible by work from Mercedes Maitland, Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale,Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Emily White, & Erin TalbertSmologies theme song by Harold Malcolm