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A Little Bit Of Science

A Little Bit Of Sciencewholesomeshow.com

From tales of historical idiocracy and scientific genius to weird and wacky cultural phenomena, Dr Rod Lamberts and Dr Will Grant are here to take you on a wild conversational journey, deep diving into the crevices of science, history and culture that you never knew existed. 

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Episodes

Now Only 30% Slavery! A Beer With Assoc Prof Jo Ford!

Modern slavery eh - you know what the big problem is? There's not enough jokes in it! (No, that's not the problem. The problem is that somewhere between 21 and 44 million people around the world are currently enslaved and we're all potentially contributing to the problem. But what do we do about it? Is it regulation? Is it culture change? We sat down with Associate Professor Jo Ford who knows all about it it find out more!) The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, proudly supported by @ANU_CPA...

Mar 22, 201832 min

Don't Be The First Adopter? Assoc Prof David Caldicott Talks Pill Testing!

Party drugs - these days, they're all the rave! (Sorry, terrible 1990s joke there). But seriously, party drugs are getting more diverse and more complicated every single year. To deal with the complexity, people like our guest in this episode Associate Professor David Caldicott reckon the best thing to make people safe is to arm them with knowledge. You know, test the drugs, and give them advice on that basis. But conservative types don't agree... We sat down with the dark knight of the emergenc...

Feb 28, 201831 min

You're Going To Bloody Say Yellow - A Beer with Vanessa De Kauwe!

What's your thoughts on disability education. Reckon it's great? Or are we just doing minimal compliance education not far from the institutional model of the 1950s? We talk with Vanessa de Kauwe who's finishing up a Phd on bringing science into disability education! We talk frogs, knives and acid, and why it's important to teach people about yellow... The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, proudly supported by @ANU_CPAS. New chiptunes theme song by chriswk210! https://www.fiverr.com/chriswk...

Feb 21, 201829 min

A Bunch of Pseuds! - A Beer with Steve Fuller, Founder of Social Epistemology

Ok, explainer challenge: how do you explain social epistemology to a bunch of real estate agents at your neighbourhood barbecue? You know who knows how? Professor Steve Fuller, Auguste Comte Chair in Social Epistemology at the University of Warwick, that's who! We talk with Steve about advice for Zuckerberg, the crucial role of the 'we' and when is the best time to throw down the Popper! The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, proudly supported by @ANU_CPAS! See omnystudio.com/listener for pr...

Feb 12, 201831 min

LIVE SHOW! Licking toads for science at CitSciOz18!

You know what? If you ask nicely, it’s amazing the things people will volunteer to do. Or at least that's what some of the world's leading thinkers on citizen science reckon! We took a trip to the Australian Citizen Science Association Conference to find out more, including: Are scientists’ jobs in danger? Can you hide things in easter eggs? Should you stop children licking toads? Why should you take your camera with you when you poo in the woods? Awesome guests in this episode: - Ellie Downing ...

Feb 09, 20181 hr 27 min

Don't Spill Beer on The Supercomputer! Dr Leaf Lin, Supercomputer Wrangler!

They said it couldn't be done. They said it shouldn't be done! But guess what listener - we did it! That's right, your intrepid team at The Wholesome Show went and recorded a podcast inside the thrumming chamber of Australia's biggest supercomputer. And we didn't spill any beer on it! This week we chat with Dr Leaf Lin, Senior High Performance Computer Systems Specialist at Australia's National Computational Infrastructure. We learn about cassette tapes making a comeback, being able to hear the ...

Jan 31, 201822 min

What's The Magic Wand Bullet? Benny Wilson of the National Centre for Indigenous Studies!

Hi there international listeners, You may not realise this but Australia has some issues with... how we came to be what we are right now. You know, mass appropriation of indigenous lands, attempted genocide, long centuries of deprivation. The usual colonial lot! Anyway, we're trying to be better! And we at The Wholesome Show are part of that too. So we sat down with Benny Wilson from the National Centre for Indigenous Studies to talk reconciliation, welcomes to country, and how we all can do bet...

Dec 06, 201736 min

Magnificent Mundane Governance! Steve Woolgar, Simone Dennis, Kate Henne!

Mundane governance doesn't sound too interesting, huh? But it's actually crazy fascinating! In this week's episode we crashed this Mundane Governance Conference and had not one, but three beers with three interesting people. And look, we admit it we laughed a little at the the conference tite at first, but then we found it was chock full of intriguing people and ideas. Seriously, check this out: First we yacked with Professor Simone Dennis about 'governance of the tongue', how there are rules ab...

Nov 23, 20171 hr 2 min

Tax Breaks For Good Sleepers! We talk work with Dr Huong Dinh!

Hey there listener - personal question, but how many hours do you work each week? Are you one of the 19% (of Australian full time workers, if you're Australian) who work 50 hours or more? Well you should probably stop it, because it's going to make you sad - and Dr Huong Dinh has the research to prove it! The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, proudly proudly supported by @ANU_CPAS! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....

Nov 15, 201731 min

Can You Arrest People Over the Phone? We ask Superintendent Cath Grassick of the AFP!

Here's a police question for you... How many Superintendents do you reckon it takes to run the Australian Federal Police's: bomb squad dog squad negotiators search and rescue AND water police The answer is one. Seriously, just one woman. Her name is Superintendent Cath Grassick, and she's one impressive policing individual! In our jaw-floppening, eyebrow-bouncing beer with Cath (don't worry, she was off duty), we asked the big questions. You know, like: do Pomeranians make more dextrous police d...

Nov 08, 201739 min

A Dream in Plywood! We talk with our philosopher builder Professor Marnie Hughes-Warrington!

What skillset would you put in charge of a $262 million dollar construction project - an engineer? An architect? A philosopher? We had a chat with Professor Marnie Hughes-Warrington, a philosopher historian driving a massive construction project... The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, proudly supported by @ANU_CPAS! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nov 01, 201732 min

LIVE SHOW: Greens - Funnier Than You'd Expect!

It's time for the Greens Institute conference - but what even are Greens anyway today? We sat down with Tim Hollo, Christine Milne, Robyn Lewis and Samantha Ratnam to find out about what they really reckon they are. Enjoy! The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willo See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 27, 20171 hr 30 min

Sunday Night Mutation Diagnoses! Professor Carola Vinuesa of the Centre for Personalised Immunology

Cancer is really just a terrible thing. Up there with the worst things in the world. But do you know it's... given us something back? We had a beer with Professor Carola Vinuesa of the Centre for Personalised Immunology! The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, proudly supported by The Australian National Centre for the Public Awareness of Science! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 25, 201731 min

Strap On An Extra Carbon! A Beer With Photosynthesis Turbocharger Ben Long

Did you know that blue green algae isn't an algae and in fact is pretty much cows? Well, not quite. But blue green algae is providing a secret to help us turbo charge photosynthesis... Ben Long tells us more! The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, comms manager is @ellageebee. Check out @ANU_CPAS! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 11, 201733 min

Modular Mobile Multilevel Maggot Management - A beer with Goterra's Olympia Yarger

Listener, we'll let you in on a secret. Sometimes you record a podcast episode that's just chockablock with potential episode titles. For example, for this episode we could have gone with: - A Smell That's a Little Less Offensive - Crickets: Little Land Prawns - The Perfect Podcast Recording Temperature - Crickets Are Just Smaller Chicken - Maggot Lady to Maggot Maven. We decided to go with Modular Mobile Multilevel Maggot Management. Listen to find out why! Will n Rod! See omnystudio.com/listen...

Oct 04, 201729 min

The Curious Case of the Designer Vagina! A Beer With Dr Bethany Jones

What's the most awkward thing you can imagine two blokey idiots like Rod and Will discussing? Is it the emerging world of DESIGNER VAGINAS? Yes that's it, you got it right away! Rod and Will had a beer with Dr Bethany Jones, the research detective staring in The Curious Case of The Designer Vagina. Enjoy! The Wholesome Show is @rodl, @willozap and @ellageebee, brought to you by the amazing people at @ANU_CPAS. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....

Sep 27, 201733 min

Even Hitler liked clean water! A beer with Adam Parris from @SRIatJB

How do we get interdisciplinary research to work? Adam Parris from the Science and Resilience Institute at Jamaica Bay New York reckons it's all about the hugs! We think that's very practical advice, please do it more if it is at all possible. Consider it. The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, Comms Manager is @ellageebee! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sep 11, 201726 min

Weird blooms of echidnas! We chat with Jason Cummings from the Woodlands and Wetlands Trust

Do you prefer woodland or wetland? Jason Cummings doesn't have to choose, he's looking after both! Jason's the General Manager of the Woodlands and Wetlands Trust, and he's very very pro-betong! The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, Communications Manager and Puppy Wrangler is @ellageebee See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sep 06, 201732 min

The Great Juniper Shortage! A beer with The Canberra Distillery's Tim Reardon

If you want to go and set up your own hipster backyard gin distillery (and lord knows who doesn't) here's the two things you gotta think about: - How to get your junipers - Securing bottles for years to come We had a beer with The Canberra Distillery's Tim Reardon to discuss the world of backyard (legal) alcohol sales! The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, Comms Manager @ellageebee! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....

Aug 30, 201733 min

The Stark Vacuum of Purpose - A beer with Rescope Project Director Anthony James

Ok we have to admit, we just had the most hippy conversation we've ever had, about live, love, laughter... and how we get our society to where we want it to be. We sat down and had a beer with @RescopeProject Director Anthony James as he heads off to the New Economy Network Conference. THERE WILL BE SO MANY HIPPIES THERE The Wholesome Show is @rodl, @willozap, comms manager @ellageebee. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....

Aug 28, 201733 min

Should compromise be our middle name? A beer with Professor Frank Jotzo

Frank Jotzo's a climate economist who's lived a decade of fights over carbon pricing, but... he's also a total optimist about solving climate change. The only problem is that to get there, economists have to grapple with (ugh) compromise and (double ugh ugh) politics. We had a beer with an academic economist people actually listen to. Enjoy! The Wholesome Show @rodl and@willozap, Comms Manager is @ellageebee See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....

Aug 23, 201736 min

Live Show - Scientists who bloody love their jobs!

It's a Live Show! We talk with scientists all the time, and we often hear how happy they are. Well we wanted to explore this in more detail, so we did a Live Show with four of the happiest scientists we could find - Dr Niru Mahendran, Professor Susan Scott, Dr Erin Walsh and Dr Brad Tucker. Enjoy! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Aug 17, 20171 hr 37 min

Anti-love... enhancements? A beer with ethicist Dr Adam Henschke!

If we gave soldiers an anti-love pill, would that help them win the war? Would it be ethical? But would a love pill be more ethical, or less? We had a beer with Dr Adam Henschke, an applied ethicist from the National Security College at ANU to find out! The Wholesome Show is @rodl, @willozap, Ella Barnett (get a twitter handle Ella), brought to you by @ANU_CPAS See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Aug 09, 201735 min

Picking fights Down Under - a beer with The Wall Street Journal's Mary Kissel

What's a Fox News correspondent doing down under, talking to two lefty shits like us? Well, as we all know, The Wholesome Show is Here For Society(TM), and we'll talk to everyone to make this world a better place. (Even you Cory). This episode brought to you by the extremely well dressed people at @TheIPA, @USAembassyinOZ, the Ben Franklin Club of Canberra, the Pentaverite and the Australian National Centre for the Public Awareness of Science. The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, Communica...

Aug 07, 201732 min

Do emergency room doctors ever get tips? A beer with Dr Mike Hall

Do emergency room doctors ever get tips? Look not really, though sometimes people might leave them a half bag of chips. Sweet. OK maybe that doesn't make you want to be an emergency room doctor. But what if we told you that it's actually fun, that you don't really have to do 100 hour days and 15 day weeks, and that it's perfect for smart people with short attention spans? Getting curious now, eh? In this episode, we chewed the fat with real life emergency department doctor Mike Hall, who let us ...

Jul 26, 201731 min

The most pass-ag upper-middle class dinner party ever - with Thesis Whisperer Inger Mewburn

Academia... you don't often hear it described as like the most passive aggressive upper middle class dinner party ever, but it's pretty much true. We sat down for a beer with a fascinating thinker on the world of academia, Associate Professor Inger Mewburn - or as she's more widely known, The Thesis Whisperer! Enjoy! The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap, proudly supported by @ANU_CPAS See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....

Jul 19, 201739 min

Getting loose exploring politics in Iraq - a beer with Damian Doyle

Ok, so social movement theory might be, as our guest in this episode describes it, "the rotting carcass of a whale on a beach"... But at least it can help you understand modern politics in Iraq. Or at least that's what our guest Damian Doyle reckons - listen in! The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jul 12, 201738 min

Cyber criminal help desks - a beer with Fifth Domain's Matt Wilcox

Ok so apparently cyber criminal outfits - those bad folk who put ransomware on your computer to steal your money - run businesses based on trust. In fact, they care so much about their trusted image they have help desks and customer service departments to facilitate you paying them the ransom. We had a beer with Fifth Domain's Matt Wilcox to find out more! The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....

Jun 28, 201740 min

Let's eat the carbon! A beer with carbon utiliser Marcus Dawe!

Hi there listener, I'm going to explode your mind: instead of treating carbon as a waste, we need to utilise as a resource (and then it's worth a trillion dollars!). We talk with Marcus Dawe, who's doing just that. The Wholesome Show is @rodl and @willozap. Ella Barnett is Communications Manager! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jun 21, 201733 min
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