x

75% of people globally want unbiased news (Pew Research) but are concerned they're not getting that.

Get balanced coverage with Symby. See how stories are covered across diverse outlets and spot when one side covers a story the other skips.

PODCAST

Ologies with Alie Ward

Volcanoes. Trees. Drunk butterflies. Mars missions. Slug sex. Death. Beauty standards. Anxiety busters. Beer science. Bee drama. Take away a pocket full of science knowledge and charming, bizarre stories about what fuels these professional -ologists" obsessions. Humorist and science correspondent Alie Ward asks smart people stupid questions and the answers might change your life.

science

All Episodes

01:09:30

Serpopsychology (WHAT’S CREEPY?) with Frank McAndrew

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/10/01

Are you creepy? How would you know? What’s “creepy” as opposed to scary or eerie? We talk to the pioneer of this research, Serpopsychologist, Dr. Frank McAndrew, a professor emeritus at Knox College. We chat: dates that give you the willies, Weary Willie the Clown, haunted dolls, college goths, dark alleyways, evolutionary neurobiology, what NOT to get Oprah, the line between horror and comedy, the phobia of balloons, dating tips, and why you should re-evaluate your bathmat. Welcome to Spooktober

en-us

01:30:26

Revolutionology (REBELLIONS & SOCIAL CHANGE) with...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/09/24

Storming the Bastille. Facing off with tanks. Canceling a streaming subscription. We’re talking protests, boycotts, insurrections, and demonstrations. Scholar, professor, and actual real life Revolutionologist Dr. Jack Goldstone lays out the whys – and the hows. What revolts have been the gold standard? How has social media impacted social change? What happens when you install the wrong new leader? Does non-violent protest work? And how does one go about orchestrating big social change? Also:

en-us

00:57:48

Human Technomorphology (SWAPPING OUT BODY PARTS) with...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/09/17

Pigs with human kidneys. Iron lungs. Bionic prostheses. And bendable genitals. Mary Roach is here, and Alie is freaking out. Over the last two decades, this science icon has written seven New York Times bestsellers, including Stiff, Bonk, Gulp, and Packing for Mars. Her latest release, Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy is all about Human Technomorphology. Prep your flesh for getting to 4th base in a lab, bugs on drugs, elective amputation, gene-tweaked farm animals, vacuum chambers,

en-us

01:12:52

Ceramology (POTTERY) with Potted History’s Graham...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/09/10

Porcelain. Earthenware. China. Archaeology. Stoneware. Anthropology. Amphora. Throwing wheels. We got it all. Master potters, history aficionados and Potted History’s icons Sarah Lord Taylor and Graham Taylor are here for our 8th anniversary episode. We get the dirt on ceramics versus pottery, where clay comes from, if there’s enough in the world, how can you spot clay in the wild, how long have humans being making pots, what were the first ceramics, what is glaze exactly, why did your pots explode,

en-us

01:37:01

Neuropathoimmunology (MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS) with Aaron...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/09/03

Neurons. Immune systems. MRIs. Weed gummies? One of the greats in neurology, Dr. Aaron Boster, takes time to chat all about Multiple Sclerosis, a neurological autoimmune disease close to our hearts. Alie’s mom, your grammapod a.k.a. Fancy Nancy, was diagnosed with MS over two decades ago, and this episode explores in depth the factors that can cause MS, therapies that do – and don’t – show promise, how diet, exercise and mindfulness actually can help folks who have MS, the oftentimes agonizing

en-us

01:02:42

Lutrinology (OTTERS) Encore with Chris J. Law

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/08/27

YOU’RE NOT READY. But it’s time. Otters. Sea otters. River otters. Big beefy otters. Tiny otters. Giant river otters. Otters chasing you down the street. Dr. Chris J. Law, a professional Lutrinologist, shares tales about coastal vs. inland otters, otter terrorism, magical teeth, lustrous fur, rock pockets, kelp naps, otter terrorism, cautionary motherhood, toxic relationships, hand holding and why otters make you trust them, despite the fact that you should perhaps not trust an otter. Visit Dr

en-us

01:21:35

Trolleyology (MORAL DILEMMAS + THE TROLLEY PROBLEM)...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/08/20

Train tracks. Split decisions. And a philosophy humdinger worth debating. Dr. Joshua Greene is a Harvard Psychology professor, neuroscientist, and *actual* Trolleyologist. The moral humdinger that has been used in everything from Supreme Court decisions to board games looks at: What makes you a good person? How do you reason with people who make you scream into a jar like Yosemite Sam? How far would you go to save others? Which charities should get your money? What is active versus passive harm? And

en-us

01:01:45

Tempestology (HURRICANES) Part 2 with Dr. Kim Wood &...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/08/13

The info storm continues! Part 1 covered the anatomy of a cyclonic storm, the bizarre histories behind the category system, and where hurricanes come from, but this week’s conclusion with Matt Lanza and Dr. Kim Wood gets you covered on emergency preparation for any disaster occasion, climate change trends and despair, the latest on the government funding drama, if you should trust a waffle house more than a weather person, and literally what is on the horizon in the future. Also: Sharpiegate. Read

en-us

01:10:55

Tempestology (HURRICANES) Part 1 with Matt Lanza &...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/08/06

Hurricanes. Typhoons. Cyclones. Tropical storms. Tropical depressions. What does it all MEAAAN? Let’s dive in. Career meteorologists Dr. Kim Wood of the University of Arizona and Space City Weather’s Matt Lanza join for a two-guest two-parter to address the “deadlier” female-named hurricanes, why hurricane season happens, the category system, where hurricanes come from, why they have eyes, and how we track cyclones’ paths so we can stay out of them. Next week we’ll be back with Kim and Matt to chat

en-us

00:51:07

Bonus Episode: Optical Technology (HISTORY OF...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/08/01

When were glasses invented? What happened back then if your horse stepped on them? How is the digital age changing adults’ and kids’ vision? The first half of this special bonus episode about Optical Technology features the charmingly hilarious director of the Museum of the Eye in San Francisco, Jenny Benjamin. Then we bop over to Houston, Texas for the ultra-knowledgeable real-life optometrist, Dr. Nadia Sledge to chat about the importance of annual exams and where our eyesight is trending in the

en-us

01:19:37

Literary Olfactology (THE POLITICS OF SMELL) with...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/07/30

Smell and culture. Scent descriptions in novels. Fragrances and class. Stink and stigmas. We cover it all. Scholar, author, and Literary Olfactologist Dr. Ally Louks burst into the zeitgeist in 2024 with her PhD thesis “Olfactory Ethics: The Politics Of Smell In Modern And Contemporary Prose” and we finally got to sit down and talk about the intersection of art and smell and culture. Breathe in the foul, the fragrant, the peppermint, the tobacco, why motel rooms smell the way they do, the forgotten

en-us

00:48:38

Bonus Episode: The OCD Experience with Neurobiologist...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/07/29

This one’s all about lived experience: What's it like to have OCD? What’s the therapy all about? How do you support people with it? And how to accept the darkest thoughts that might haunt you. As a bonus to last week’s OCD Neurobiology episode with Dr. Wayne Goodman, the wonderful neuroscientist, board-certified mental health peer specialist, and survivor Uma Chatterjee joins to share her experience living with OCD, and how it inspired a career in research and mental health advocacy. This bonus

en-us

01:19:49

Obsessive-Compulsive Neurobiology (OCD) with Wayne...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/07/23

Ruminations and reassurances. Checking and counting. Suffering and stigmas. It’s OCD, babes! OCD is now considered one of the most common psychiatric conditions, afflicting 2% to 3% of the general population, and this episode is among our top-requested topics. So we snagged a top-shelf ologist: psychiatrist, researcher, advocate and OCD Neurobiologist, *the* Dr. Wayne Goodman. We cover myths, misconceptions, diagnosis and treatment options for OCD, as well as advice for loved ones. Also: PANDAS,

en-us

01:12:09

Fromology (CHEESE) Part 2 with Kyra James

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/07/16

We’re back with molten hot cheese trivia in Part 2 with Fromologist Kyra James of OwnYourFunk.com. Part 1 covered the foundations and this week we address your listener questions about cows on boats, plant-based cheese options, how to properly store cheese, how cheese changes your brain chemistry, the Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake, the great grilled cheese debate, DIY cheeses, squeaky curds, Missouri’s cheese caves, the moon’s composition, and the ultimate charcuterie board. Also: holes, and

en-us

01:11:26

Fromology (CHEESE) Part 1 with Kyra James

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/07/09

Soft. Hard. Fresh. Aged. Stinky. Illegal. Let’s talk cheese with Certified Cheese Professional (CCP) and Fromologist, Kyra James. We chat about proprietary bacterial slurries, basement caves, cheese knife etiquette, rind eating, vegetarian versus vegan cheeses, cheese history, different warm-blooded animals whose milk is used for cheese, American cheese side-eye, shoe deodorizers, and how to chat up a monger. And come back next week to learn more about plant-based cheese options, how to properly

en-us

01:07:49

Lampyridology (FIREFLIES) aka Sparklebuttology...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/07/02

Let’s light up your life and butt. World-renowned firefly expert Dr. Sara Lewis of Tufts University gives us some updates to her 2021 episode, sharing her love of a bug that many think is merely mythological. Learn how these tiny animals illuminate the night, the dos and don’ts of firefly observation, how to take good firefly photos, femme fatales, pink glowworms, secret languages, artificial lights, what’s up with their population numbers, why Western states can chill out with their lightning bug

en-us

01:21:11

Crotalology (RATTLESNAKES) with Emily Taylor

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/06/25

Fangs. Rattles. Misconceptions. Crawl out from under your rock for the angelic rattle of one of the world’s most maligned, misunderstood, gorgeous, mysterious, efficient creatures. Herpetology professor, rattlesnake scientist and thus, Crotalologist Dr. Emily Taylor discusses why rattlesnakes deserve our love, the parenthood strategies of rattlers, how to avoid getting bitten, dog rattlesnake training, rattlers’ relationships with squirrels, antivenom, vaccines, mattress trivia, mood snakes and who

en-us

01:25:08

Aquaculture Ecology (SUSTAINABLE OCEAN FOODS) with...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/06/18

Farmed versus wild. Basement shrimp hustles. Mangrove drama. Anthropology. Animal welfare and plant-based diets. Climb aboard to meet UCSB’s super cool dude, researcher and Aquaculture Ecologist, Dr. Ben Halpern. You’ll hear about sustainable food sources, land vs. sea farming, bycatch, shellfish guilt, salmon who wear makeup, global marine populations, ditching iceberg for seaweed, and a gentle nudge toward vegetables. Progress over perfection; every little step counts.Visit the Halpern Lab and

en-us

01:25:02

Bonus Episode: THE U.S. CONSTITUTION. Let's read it...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/06/14

Have you ever read every word of The U.S. Constitution? You don't have to, because I read it with my mouth into your brain in this weird but vital episode on civil liberties. And of course, there are little sidenotes to make sure we both understand it. There has never been a better time to know what your legal protections are. This episode is a follow up to Nomology (CONSTITUTIONAL LAW) with the legendary law scholar Franita Tolson, the Dean and Carl Mason Franklin Chair in Law USC’s Gould School of

en-us

01:30:20

Macrophycology (SEAWEED) with Patrick Martone,...

Ologies with Alie Ward ·

2025/06/11

Moonlit seaweeds. Dreamy underwater forests. Mounds of beach debris. Not plants. Let’s talk about where seaweed grows and whether or not it will save us all. Macrophycology means “big-ass algae” so let’s join five dazzling seaweed enthusiasts: guest-in-chief Dr. Patrick Martone of the University of British Columbia, UConn Professor Emeritus and “grandfather of seaweed farming” Dr. Charlie Yarish, seagrass scientist Becky Swerida, and marine science PhD students Danielle McCaskill and Angela Jones

en-us

471 results

Similar Podcasts

X Minus 1 - Old Time Radio Show

Inception Point Ai

Science, Spoken

WIRED

This Week in Space (Audio)

TWiT

DarshanTalks Podcast

Darshan Kulkarni

The Best of Coast to Coast AM

iHeartPodcasts and Coast to Coast AM