Ologies with Alie Ward

ALIENS! EXTRATERRESTRIALS! MARTIANS! Let's. Get. Into. It. The phenomenal Dr. Kevin Peter Hand of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory dishes on the oceans of distant moons, methane rivers, E.T., ice crusts, what might be out there, the timeline of possibly finding them, ghosts, aliens, dark matter, if we should fear making contact with intergalactic beings, if the government is hiding alien secrets, how finding extraterrestrial microbes would change the way we see life on this here tiny blue dot in space. Also: the galactic bulge. Dr. Kevin Peter Hand's JPL profileDr. Kevin Peter Hand on Twitter: @alienoceans and Instagram @kevin_peter_handSponsor links: KiwiCo.com/Ologies, Calm.com/OlogiesThis week's donations were made to Traveling Telescope & Vermont's Manchester Rescue SquadMore links at alieward.com/ologies/astrobiologyBecome a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month: www.Patreon.com/ologiesOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, pins, totes!Follow @Ologies on Twitter or InstagramFollow @AlieWard on Twitter or InstagramSound editing by Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media & Steven Ray MorrisTheme song by Nick ThorburnSupport the show: http://Patreon.com/ologies Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Dr. Jane McGonigal, a trailblazer in video game development and a TED speaker, dives into the powerful intersection of gaming and mental health. She shares her experiences creating 'SuperBetter' to aid recovery from anxiety and discusses how games like Tetris can help with trauma. The conversation also explores the social dynamics of gaming and its ability to foster community, alongside critiques of addictive titles like Fortnite. Jane emphasizes the ethical implications of gamification while celebrating how games can motivate and promote well-being.

The brilliant and dazzling Helen Zaltzman, host of The Allusionist podcast and person who technically for a living researches the origins of language and thus is an etymologist, visits Alie's apartment to chat about various word origins, gender in language, the Bible a.k.a. The Oxford English Dictionary, origins of the filthiest slang, emoji decoding, mediocrity, step parents, babies wearing glasses, Greek kimonos, the romance of languages and the fundamental truth that language is always changing whether you want it to or not. Also tomatoes, pliable boobs, avocados, and fish trails.The Allusionist Podcast, HelenZaltzman.comFollow Helen on Twitter & InstagramSponsor links: TrueandCo.com/ologies (code: ologies) & Amazon.com/popchips (code: 20ologies)This week's donation was made to POPStheclub.comMore links at alieward.com/ologies/etymologyBecome a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month: www.Patreon.com/ologiesOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, pins, totes!Follow @Ologies on Twitter or InstagramFollow @AlieWard on Twitter or InstagramSound editing by Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media & Steven Ray MorrisTheme song by Nick ThorburnSupport the show: http://Patreon.com/ologies Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This episode, and Dr. Shane Campbell-Staton, are a true joy. The UCLA professor, host of the Biology of Superheroes Podcast and Thermophysiologist talks about big animals vs. little ones, lizard storms, dinosaur blood, hibernating bears, why you sweat in your sleep, antifreeze frogs, miracle hamsters, why different people run at very different temperatures, how comic books influence the way he sees science, learning how his brain works and some time management hacks that he uses as a professor and host of an amazing podcast. Get ready to have a new science buddy.Listen to The Biology of Super HeroesFollow Dr. Campbell-Staton on Twitter, as well as his podcastSponsor links: TheGreatCourses.com/ologies, Kiwico.com/ologies, and podsurvey.com/ologiesThis week's donation was made to the Environmental Defense Fund More links at alieward.com/ologiesBecome a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month: www.Patreon.com/ologiesOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, pins, totes!Follow @Ologies on Twitter or InstagramFollow @AlieWard on Twitter or InstagramSound editing by Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media & Steven Ray MorrisTheme song by Nick ThorburnSupport the show: http://Patreon.com/ologies Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

WHO ARE WE? Personality researcher & psychology professor Dr. Simine Vazire dishes about introverts, extroverts, self-esteem, sociopaths, neuroticism, conscientiousness, Buzzfeed quizzes, yearbook inscriptions, trusting people, screwing up your kids, acting like your parents, changing personality traits through therapy or medication and astrology being put to the test. Also, Alie finds out what kind of dog she is. Dr. Simine Vazire on TwitterThis week's donation was made to improvingpsych.orgSponsor links: TheGreatCourses.com/ologies, Takecareof.com (promo code: Ologies50), Handy.com/ologies (promo code: Ologies), and TimesuckPodcast.comMore links at alieward.com/ologies/personalitypsychologyDr. Vazire's podcast, The Black Goat Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month: www.Patreon.com/ologiesOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, pins, totes!Follow @Ologies on Twitter or InstagramFollow @AlieWard on Twitter or InstagramSound editing by Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media & Steven Ray MorrisTheme song by Nick ThorburnSupport the show: http://Patreon.com/ologies Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Love! Romance! Intimate relationships! Marriage! Divorce! Remarriage! Clowns! This episode has it all. The wonderfully warm Dr. Benjamin Karney of the UCLA Marriage lab has been studying romance and intimate relationships for 20 years and sits down to chat about being single and the mechanisms behind finding a partner, what behaviors foster intimacy, why some couples stay together vs. splitting up, some bananas proposals, wedding budgets, how parenting affects marriage, historical problems with matrimony and his own experiences with marriage and divorce. These behaviors are also so applicable to friendships, work partnerships and as it turns out...professional clowns.Dr. Ben Karney at the UCLA Marriage LabThis week's donation was made to Care.org, which works to end gender-based violence.Sponsor links: TheGreatCourses.com/ologies, Linkedin.com/ologies, TrueandCo.com/ologiesMore links at alieward.com/ologies/matrimoniologyBecome a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month: www.Patreon.com/ologiesOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, pins, totes!Follow @Ologies on Twitter or InstagramFollow @AlieWard on Twitter or InstagramSound editing by Steven Ray Morris & Jarrett SleeperTheme song by Nick ThorburnSupport the show: http://Patreon.com/ologies Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

How long can we live? How much of aging is genetics vs. environment? What does oral hygiene have to do with brain health? What causes Alzheimer’s? How do turtles and naked mole rats live so long? Are there any proven strategies for living a longer life? What's up with whiskey and eggs? World-renowned aging expert and biogerontologist Dr. Caleb "Tuck" Finch takes a quick break from his prolific research at USC to answer Alie's sometimes stupid questions about everything from molecules to movies. And she only has like, 3 life-altering epiphanies during the episode.This week's donation was made to CureALZ.orgMore links at www.alieward.com/ologies/biogerontology"I don't have time for bullshit" pen by Cole ImperiBecome a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month: www.Patreon.com/ologiesOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, pins, totes!Follow @Ologies on Twitter or InstagramFollow @AlieWard on Twitter or InstagramSound editing by Steven Ray Morris & Jarrett SleeperTheme song by Nick ThorburnSupport the show: http://Patreon.com/ologies Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

If you think you like sea turtles, get ready to become wildly obsessed with them. Cheloniologist Dr. Camryn Allen met up with Alie on a tropical island (ok, in a hotel room on a tropical island) to chat about flipper slappings, turtle rodeos, nesting BBs, current surfing, endangered statuses, field work, sleeping under water, world records, boopable noses, male:female ratios, mind-boggling navigation, what you can do to help them, and the many mysteries that still remain. Take a deep dive into the world of seartles. Or is it surtles? Follow Dr. Camryn Allen on TwitterThis week's donation was made to Hawaii Marine Animal ResponseSponsor links: kiwico.com/ologies, zola.com/ologies, & trueandco.com/ologies More links at www.alieward.com/ologies/cheloniologyBecome a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month: www.Patreon.com/ologiesOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, pins, totes!Follow @Ologies on Twitter or InstagramFollow @AlieWard on Twitter or InstagramSound editing by Steven Ray Morris & Jarrett SleeperTheme song by Nick ThorburnSupport the show: http://Patreon.com/ologies Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What's a tortoise? What's a turtle? Why do they live so dang long? What's up with their junk? Wildlife biologist and testudinologist Amanda Hipps studies gopher tortoises and dishes about turtle nomenclature, cliques, dicks, behavior, burrows, evolution, habitats and more. If you don't dig tortoises yet, you're about to fall deep into a turtle tunnel in love with them.Follow Amanda Hipps on Instagram or TwitterThis week's donation was made to AlongsideWildlifeFoundation.orgSponsor link: www.thegreatcourses.com/ologies More links at www.alieward.com/ologies/testudinologyBecome a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month: www.Patreon.com/ologiesOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, pins, totes!Follow @Ologies on Twitter or InstagramFollow @AlieWard on Twitter or InstagramSound editing by Steven Ray Morris & Jarrett SleeperTheme song by Nick ThorburnSupport the show: http://Patreon.com/ologies Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

It's tiny! It's beautiful! It's cold! It can kill you. Snow and avalanche expert Dr. Ned Bair meets up on a bench during a layover to chat about the beauty of snowflakes, the best ammo for snowball fights, firing cannons at mountainsides, avalanche flam-flam, the dangers of snow patrolling, a lifesaving goat-antelope, the best and worst ski movies and a mentor that changed his life. Also: bomb cyclones and some tips on excavating your car. Or just staying inside.More on Dr. Ned Bair's workThis week's donation was made to ESAvalanche.orgSponsor links: www.kiwico.com/ologies, www.thegreatcourses.com/ologies, www.linkedin.com/ologiesMore links at www.alieward.com/ologies/snowhydrologyBecome a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month: www.Patreon.com/ologiesOlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, pins, totes!Follow @Ologies on Twitter or InstagramFollow @AlieWard on Twitter or InstagramSound editing by Steven Ray Morris & Jarret SleeperTheme song by Nick ThorburnSupport the show: http://Patreon.com/ologies Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.