PODCAST

Palaeocast

A free webseries exploring the fossil record and the evolution of life on Earth.

science natural sciences

All Episodes

16:03

Life On Our Planet 1.2 - Dan Tapster

Palaeocast ·

2023/10/25

In LOOP 1.2 we are joined by showrunner Dan Tapster. He’s the one responsible for pulling everything together, designing the story and creating the best production team. We learn about how LOOP first got started, why both CGI and modern footage was used, and how to cram billions of years of evolution into just 8 episodes. Life On Our Planet (LOOP) is a new 8-part series created for Netflix by Silverback Films and Amblin Television. This Steven Spielberg produced series, narrated by Morgan Freeman,

20:19

Life On Our Planet 1.1 - Introduction

Palaeocast ·

2023/10/25

Life On Our Planet (LOOP) is a new 8-part series created for Netflix by Silverback Films and Amblin Television. This Steven Spielberg produced series, narrated by Morgan Freeman, is hugely ambitious in its scope, telling the story of life throughout the whole Phanerozoic Eon. Ancient organisms and environments are painstakingly recreated by the supremely talented Industrial Light and Magic, whilst modern natural history scenes add vital context to the story. This show has been worked on for six

01:08:21

Episode 156: Bird Necks

Palaeocast ·

2023/10/08

01:09:12

Episode 155: The Byron Dig Pt2

Palaeocast ·

2023/06/01

Following up on an initial discovery of ice-age remains in Byron, New York, in the 1950's, Dr Richard Laub took on the task of systematically excavating the 'Hiscock Site' for the Buffalo Museum of Science. Fieldwork commenced in 1983, but as more and more fossils were discovered at the site, the 'Byron Dig', as it became known, would continue for almost three decades. In that time, countless numbers of significant Late Pleistocene and Holocene discoveries were made, including those of mastodon,

01:01:22

Episode 154: The Byron Dig Pt1

Palaeocast ·

2023/05/15

01:15:01

Episode 153: Castle Bank

Palaeocast ·

2023/05/01

A new Ordovician lagerstätte (site of special fossil preservation) has just been described from Llandrindod Wells, Wales. The site contains the remains of well over 150 different species, most of which are entirely new to science. It is dated to around 461 million years old, placing it at a critical point in life's evolution: the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event. This is even more significant, considering the relative sparsity of lagerstätten of this time. We are joined in this interview

55:36

Episode 152: Lissamphibian Origins Pt2

Palaeocast ·

2023/01/25

Part 2. Caecilians, sometimes known as ‘blind worms’, are a lesser-known group of lissamphibians (all living amphibians). Most modern caecilians are all fossorial (burrowing) and are restricted to the moist soils and leaf litter of tropical forests. Adaptation to this specific ecology has led to radical modification of their bodies, from fusion of the bones in the head and the function of the jaw, to the loss of limbs and development of unique sensory organs. The fossil record of caecilians is

53:43

Episode 151: Lissamphibian Origins Pt1

Palaeocast ·

2023/01/25

Caecilians, sometimes known as ‘blind worms’, are a lesser-known group of lissamphibians (all living amphibians). Most modern caecilians are all fossorial (burrowing) and are restricted to the moist soils and leaf litter of tropical forests. Adaptation to this specific ecology has led to radical modification of their bodies, from fusion of the bones in the head and the function of the jaw, to the loss of limbs and development of unique sensory organs. The fossil record of caecilians is incredibly

33:20

Episode 150: Palaeoart in Pop Culture Pt3

Palaeocast ·

2023/01/19

Palaeontology (dinosaurs in particular) are incredibly well represented in nearly all forms of popular media today. From documentaries and films to computer games and even specialist podcasts. But where did the public fascination in dinosaurs come from? Has it always been there, ever since the existence of dinosaurs was first revealed, or has interest grown cumulatively with every public engagement milestone. This third and final part examines the need for modern films and documentaries to be able

34:14

Episode 149: Palaeoart in Pop Culture Pt2

Palaeocast ·

2023/01/01

Palaeontology (dinosaurs in particular) are incredibly well represented in nearly all forms of popular media today. From documentaries and films to computer games and even specialist podcasts. But where did the public fascination in dinosaurs come from? Has it always been there, ever since the existence of dinosaurs was first revealed, or has interest grown cumulatively with every public engagement milestone. In this second part of a special three-part episode, Vicky Coules talks all about dinosaurs

36:24

Episode 148: Palaeoart in Pop Culture Pt1

Palaeocast ·

2022/12/15

Palaeontology (dinosaurs in particular) are incredibly well represented in nearly all forms of popular media today. From documentaries and films to computer games and even specialist podcasts. But where did the public fascination in dinosaurs come from? Has it always been there, ever since the existence of dinosaurs was first revealed, or has interest grown cumulatively with every public engagement milestone. In this special three-part episode of Palaeocast, guest host Dr Suresh Singh interviews

30:24

Episode 147: Palaeo Gaming Pt2

Palaeocast ·

2022/11/15

Computer games are a colossal industry, eclipsing those of both film and music combined. With so many people playing games, and with so many titles focussing on palaeontological themes, should we be concerned about the accuracy and quality of their content? Joining us for the second part of this interview are Thomas Clements and Jake Atterby, lead authors on a paper in which they address this issue as communicators of science. We discuss what some of the most common negative tropes within these

40:15

Episode 146: Palaeo Gaming Pt1

Palaeocast ·

2022/10/21

Computer games are a colossal industry, eclipsing those of both film and music combined. With so many people playing games, and with so many titles focussing on palaeontological themes, should we be concerned about the accuracy and quality of their content? Joining us for this episode are Thomas Clements and Jake Atterby, lead authors on a paper in which they address this issue as communicators of science. We discuss what some of the most common negative tropes within these games are, whether or

48:41

Episode 145: Scleromochlus

Palaeocast ·

2022/10/05

Scleromochlus is an animal that has been known for over 100 years, and has been frequently suggested as being an ancestor to pterosaurs. It hails from the Late Triassic of Scotland, and there are fewer than 10 specimens known. Unfortunately the preservation of this small reptile means that it is very difficult to interpret. However, thanks to the wonders of modern technology and CT scanning, new evidence from Scleromochlus reveals new anatomical insights, and further supports Scleromochlus as a

01:08:07

Episode 144: Russell's Dinosauroid

Palaeocast ·

2022/09/15

19:38

Episode 143: The Palaeontographical Society Pt2

Palaeocast ·

2022/09/08

59:19

Episode 142: The Palaeontographical Society Pt1

Palaeocast ·

2022/08/16

This year marks the 175th anniversary of The Palaeontographical Society. Having been established in 1847, PalSoc is the world’s oldest Society devoted specifically to the advancement of palaeontological knowledge in existence. The primary role of Pal Soc is to promote the description and illustration of British fossils, which it does through monographs. In the first part of this two-part episode, we speak to Dr Victor Monin a historian of science who specialises in the history of palaeontology,

01:00:54

Episode 141: Bolca Fish

Palaeocast ·

2022/07/15

Bolca is a site of exceptional preservation of fossils (termed a konservat lagerstätte) located close to Verona, Italy. This 50 million year old limestone was deposited in the Eocene Epoch and contains over 500 species of plants, arthropods terrestrial vertebrates and most notably a lot of fish! The preservation at Bolca is so detailed that even the external colouration of the skin and internal anatomy of many of these fossils can be seen. Exploring the taphonomy (the processes that occur to a body

01:02:56

Episode 140: Aquatic Spinosaurids

Palaeocast ·

2022/06/20

In the last few years there has been lots of new work on the iconic Spinosaurus - was it aquatic? What about its relatives? What kind of evidence can we look at to tell us this answer? In this episode we speak with Dr. Matteo Fabbri, from the Field Museum of Chicago, who has been working on Spinosaurus and other relatives and has recently published a detailed study supporting the idea that some spinosaurids were likely a swimming, aquatic dinosaur at least part of the time. He walks us through the

52:48

Episode 139: Marrellomorphs

Palaeocast ·

2022/05/16

Marrellomorphs are the group of early Paleozoic arthropods that get their name from the well-known Burgess Shale fossil Marrella splendens. They have for a long time been considered to be closely related to the trilobites, based on similarities in their gills, but numerous studies have since suggested they are closer related to mandibulate arthropods (crustaceans, insects & myriapods), although their strange appearance means other relationships might still be plausible. Since they have a soft

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