Episode 16
So what is evolution exactly? How would you explain it to someone who doesn't think they are "good at science"? Can we see evolution happening today? Should we be worried about mutant Vikings and hybrid coyotes?

Support this podcast on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/DowntheWormholepodcast

More information at https://www.downthewormhole.com/

produced by Zack Jackson
music by Zack Jackson and Barton Willis

Show Notes 

Kleptoplasty Sea Slug:  

https://manoa.hawaii.edu/exploringourfluidearth/biological/aquatic-plants-and-algae/structure-and-function/weird-science-kleptoplasty

Al regel achat: while standing on one foot--story explanation (and how it is used in modern Hebrew)

https://www.haaretz.com/word-of-the-day-al-regel-akhat-1.5318459 

Elephants adapting to be tuskless

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/2018/11/wildlife-watch-news-tuskless-elephants-behavior-change/ 

Peppered Moths of London

http://www.mothscount.org/text/63/peppered_moth_and_natural_selection.html 

Chicken or Egg…first the egg!

https://www.science.org.au/curious/earth-environment/which-came-first-chicken-or-egg 

We don’t understand big numbers

https://waitbutwhy.com/2014/11/1000000-grahams-number.html 

Coywolf (or wolfoyte if preferred)

https://www.earthtouchnews.com/natural-world/animal-behaviour/is-this-coyote-wolf-hybrid-taking-over-north-america/ 

Worm composting

http://www.franklincountywastedistrict.org/vermicomposting.html 

Zack's Worm Bin

https://amzn.to/330caxl

Lactose tolerance or intolerance, who’s the mutant now?

https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2012/12/27/168144785/an-evolutionary-whodunit-how-did-humans-develop-lactose-tolerance 

And this one has a map: https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn27938-everything-you-need-to-know-about-lactose-intolerance/

Reading up on evolution

https://evolution.berkeley.edu/evolibrary/resourcelibrary.php 

https://www.yourgenome.org/facts/what-is-evolution 

Video on natural selection (Crash Course): 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTftyFboC_M&list=PL3EED4C1D684D3ADF&index=14

Video on evolution (Crash Course) 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3GagfbA2vo&list=PL3EED4C1D684D3ADF&index=20 

History of language evolution

http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?ParagraphID=axx 

Or a TED-ed short video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWDKsHm6gTA 

Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries by Kory Stamper (Kindle Edition)

https://amzn.to/2O4ekYo

Because Internet: Understanding the New Rules of Language by Gretchen McCulloch (Kindle Edition)

https://amzn.to/33YQN0G

A forest of language trees, showing their relationships: 

https://eurotalk.com/blog/2015/06/03/the-language-forest-how-are-world-languages-related/ 

Darwin

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Darwin 

Episode 15

As we begin our first evolution miniseries, our hosts take some time to discuss why this topic has become so central to the "religion vs science" conflict and why it matters to us. How do we reconcile a sovereign God with the randomness of natural selection? Can we find meaning through science or only facts? Who ever thought that breeding pugs was a good idea?

Support this podcast on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/DowntheWormholepodcast

More information at https://www.downthewormhole.com/

produced by Zack Jackson
music by Zack Jackson and Barton Willis

Show Notes

Favorite fruits

Kiwiberries

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actinidia_arguta 

Watermelon [and how they’ve changed in the last few centuries]

https://www.vox.com /2015/7/28/9050469/watermelon-breeding-paintings 

Banana [other fruits talked about too]

https://www.sciencealert.com/fruits-vegetables-before-domestication-photos-genetically-modified-food-natural 

Threat to the cavendish: https://www.cnn.com/2015/07/22/africa/banana-panama-disease/index.html 

Strawberries [a brief history]

https://www.uvm.edu/vtvegandberry/factsheets/strawberryhistory.html 

Dogs

Labradoodle Regrets:  

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/25/us/labradoodle-creator-regret.html 

French Bulldog insemination

https://www.frenchie.shop/blogs/frenchie-shop-blog/do-french-bulldogs-have-to-be-artificially-inseminated [pro-Frenchie site]

https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2018/03/30/25974515/your-french-bulldog-is-an-abomination [biased against them]

Pugs

https://www.petmd.com/dog/breeds/c_dg_pug [Note the medical issues associated with them]

Theistic evolution

https://biologos.org/articles/theistic-evolution-history-and-beliefs 

Theodicy

In-depth philosophy article

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/evil/ 

General definitions

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodicy 

https://www.britannica.com/topic/theodicy-theology 

Pardes

An explanation and experience: https://onbeing.org/blog/the-spaces-between-the-consonants/ 

Episode 14

In this episode, our hosts take you on a tour of the bizarre and often misunderstood world of the Satanic Temple and their efforts to fight for religious freedom. What role do satirical religions play in our modern world, and should they be treated like traditional religions? Can we create an organization for secular humanists that has the benefits of religion without a deity?

Support this podcast on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/DowntheWormholepodcast

More information at https://www.downthewormhole.com/

produced by Zack Jackson
music by Zack Jackson and Barton Willis

Show Notes:

Our opening question about our favorite tricksters:

Ian: Loki:

https://norse-mythology.org/gods-and-creatures/the-aesir-gods-and-goddesses/loki/ 

Rachael: Loki and Puck: analysis of Puck

https://www.thoughtco.com/character-analysis-puck-midsummer-nights-dream-2984577 

Zack: Benjamin Linus from Lost :

https://lostpedia.fandom.com/wiki/Benjamin_Linus 

Adam: Dolos [I don’t love using wiki, but I just couldn’t find anything meaningful elsewhere]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolos_(mythology) 

Kendra: Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer

https://buffy.fandom.com/wiki/Spike 

The Satanic Temple

https://thesatanictemple.com/ 

It’s not the Church of Satan:

https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/what-is-the-difference-between-the-satanic-temple-and-the-church-of-satan 

Article on the documentary, Hail Satan?,  produced this year

https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-49392867 

[if you want another article, explaining the documentary director idea that highlights what we spoke about regarding community and the search for meaning] 

https://www.wired.com/2019/05/geeks-guide-hail-satan/ 

List of approved religions in the American military: you will notice neither Pastafarian nor The Satanic Temple are listed.There are over 210 religious affiliations listed as of 2017.

http://americanhumanist.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Faith-and-Belief-Codes-for-Reporting-Personnel-Data-of-Service-Members.pdf 

Durkheim and religion

http://durkheim.uchicago.edu/Summaries/forms.html#pgfId=6212 

Durkheim and philosophy as religion (slightly different take than the above citation)

https://www.iep.utm.edu/durkheim/#H4 

Mircea Eliade and religion

https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Mircea_Eliade#Contribution_to_the_study_of_religion 

[or from britannica, but I found this explanation to a bit more dense]

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mircea-Eliade#ref274286 

Is Buddhism a religion?

https://bigthink.com/21st-century-spirituality/is-buddhism-a-religion 

John Oliver and debt collecting

https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/john-oliver-buys-15-million-of-medical-debt-for-60/?fbclid=IwAR0FBYs-n884jjIzwLQ1DotAVCEhn2bJRGc35hC2nR-BZzbRExRjQKJtCFI