Episode 34

In part 4 of our science and religion in film miniseries, Ian finally gets to geek out on Star Wars. You can't tell, but he brought his own lightsaber to record this episode. Oh yeah. We're in it to win it! Since we obviously couldn't talk about everything, we focused on "The Last Jedi", and more specifically on the modern tension between religion and spirituality. Do we need the "sacred texts" to become better force users or are we stronger without the ancient traditions? Can a person be both Jedi and Sith? Do those distinctions matter or are they merely power constructs? Most importantly, what color would your lightsaber be and what would be the first thing that you would do with it? 

Revised Miniseries schedule:

3/25 - Contact
4/1 - 2001: A Space Odyssey 
4/15 - Pan's Labyrinth 
4/22 - Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi
4/29 - Star Trek: Generations
5/6 - Interstellar 
5/13 - Jurassic Park 

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

Websites

• https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/12/why-the-last-jedi-is-more-spiritual-than-religious/549146/
• http://info.reframemedia.com/hubfs/Think-Christian-A-Theology-of-Star-Wars.pdf
• https://relevantmagazine.com/culture/where-theology-star-wars-breaks-down/
• https://www.tmatt.net/columns/2018/1/10/those-star-wars-theology-wars-are-heating-up-again

When One Religion Isn't Enough: The Lives of Spiritually Fluid People by Duane R. Bidwell
https://www.amazon.com/When-One-Religion-Isnt-Enough/dp/0807091243

Episode 33

In Part 3 of our miniseries on science and religion in movies, Adam does what Adam does and rejects the premise to get to the point through the back door! the 2006 Guillermo del Toro masterpiece, Pan's Labyrinth (available on Netflix) is not even a little bit scifi. It is a fantasy-realism film that centers on a young girl who is trapped in the crossfire of 1944 Falangist Spain, and is confronted by a mythical creature who tells her that she is so much more than she thinks she is. While this film is not overtly scientific, it is an excellent vehicle for helping us to examine what we believe is real and how we know that. Is science magic? What makes it compelling? Can we become re-enchanted once we have lost the faith of our childhood? How can those of us without mythical spirit guides make sense of the world? 

Miniseries schedule:

3/25 - Contact
4/1 - 2001: A Space Odyssey 
4/15 - Pan's Labyrinth 
4/22 - Interstellar 
4/29 - Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi
5/6 - Star Trek: Generations

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

Stephen Hunt -The Chour of the Air

https://www.amazon.com/COURT-AIR-STEPHEN-HUNT/dp/0765380218

Wizard in Harry Potter reading A Brief History of Time

https://harrypotter.fandom.com/wiki/Wizard_in_the_Leaky_Cauldron

“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic” ~  Arthur C. Clarke (NOT Isaac Asamov as Zack says in the episode)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarke%27s_three_laws

“The second naivete” as a concept in spiritual development 

https://www.mpjauthor.com/spiritual-development-concept/Paul-Ricoeur.html

https://c1b9a88f-157e-47ac-91dd-90f00bc73c13.filesusr.com/ugd/18a280_3bcaa8e62ed848ac954aeae897a5a4a7.pdf

Zack’s Uncle Ed Zacharewicz’s art
https://www.facebook.com/Edward-C-Zacharewicz-268270439887/

Albert Camus’s joyful philosophy 

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/7699175-the-literal-meaning-of-life-is-whatever-you-re-doing-that

Episode 32

It's part 2 of our miniseries on movies, and Kendra leads us in discussing perhaps the most influential scifi movie of all time, 2001: A Space Odyssey. Despite its preeminence, however, she is the only one among us who truly love it. Can she make believers out of the rest of us? Can she help us to appreciate silence and multiple layers of acceptable meaning? Will that draw us deeper into our own spiritual journeys as well? You be the judge. Just make sure you watch the film first, or this episode will make even less sense! 

Miniseries schedule:

4/1 - 2001: A Space Odyssey 
4/8 - Pan's Labyrinth 
4/15 - Interstellar 
4/22 - Rachael's Pick!

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 

John Cage 4’33 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mr9YnBaZBgc

Rudolph Otto Mysterium tremendum : 

• https://www.britannica.com/topic/mysterium-tremendum-et-fascinans ; 
• https://magiscenter.com/the-1st-pole-mysterium-tremendum-in-the-numen-i-b-gods-presence-to-our-consciousness-the-numinous-experience-intuition-of-the-sacred-and-conscience/ 
• https://spectrummagazine.org/article/2017/10/10/mysterium-tremendum 

Articles on the movie 

• https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/hearing-and-seeing-2001-a-space-odyssey-anew 
• http://decentfilms.com/reviews/2001aspaceodyssey 
• https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-from-the-archive-2001-space-odyssey-20180517-story.html 
• https://www.jstor.org/stable/3592986?seq=1 [behind a login/pay-wall, but can get a few free articles each month]

Episode 31

In Part 1 of our new miniseries on science and religion in film, Ian takes us on a tour of perhaps the most famous and influential modern scifi movie that openly grappled with science and religion. If you found quantitative evidence of God, would it change anything? If you never found evidence of God, would THAT change anything? Does good science contain an element of storytelling? What if God were just an alien that looked like your dad? 

Miniseries schedule:

4/1 - 2001: A Space Odyssey 
4/8 - Pan's Labyrinth 
4/15 - Interstellar 
4/22 - Rachael's Pick!

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

Faith and Film: Theological Themes at the Cinema by Bryan Stone 

https://www.amazon.com/Faith-Film-Theological-Themes-Cinema/dp/0827210272/

Religion and Science (Gifford Lectures Series) by Ian Barbour

https://www.amazon.com/Religion-Science-Gifford-Lectures-Barbour/dp/0060609389

Episode 30

What is COVID-19? What is SARS-CoV-2? What is being done to stop this pandemic and what can we do to stay safe? We are joined by Dr Daniel Janies who is on the front lines of this crisis and graciously offered us an hour of his time to answer our burning questions as well as some of yours from our Facebook page.

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

Articles and resources from Dr Janies

https://cci.uncc.edu/directory/daniel-janies

https://janieslab.github.io/index.html

https://brc.uncc.edu/news/2020-02-26/what-do-we-need-know-about-coronavirus-cov-emergent-wuhan-china-long-and-short-terms

https://www.fda.gov/news-events/congressional-testimony/hearing-emerging-disease-threat-how-us-responding-covid-19-novel-coronavirus-03032020

https://www.medtechdive.com/news/fda-chief-warns-of-supply-pressure-on-reagents-for-coronavirus-tests/573999/

NPR story about the Coronavirus spillover from bats

https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/02/20/807742861/new-research-bats-harbor-hundreds-of-coronaviruses-and-spillovers-arent-rare

Statement from Labcorp

https://www.labcorp.com/information-labcorp-about-coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19

Before you share to social media or get angry about something you read there, be sure to fact check! The truth is often far more complicated and boring than the memes would have us believe.

https://www.snopes.com/collections/new-coronavirus-collection/ 

Episode 29

Do you enjoy long walks on the beach and the warm sand between your toes? Have you ever wondered where that sand comes from and if someone has a plan to stop the ocean from taking it back? How are coastal cities preparing for the inevitable sea-level rise, and why should we who don't live anywhere near the ocean care? 

In the final installment of our Climate Connections series, Ian takes us for a long walk on the beach as we discuss climate refugees, sand mining, effective storytelling, and whether there is room for hope in the coming years. 

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 

Lots of articles!

1. 1. 1. Articles about impact of sea level rise
         1. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/sea-level-rise/
         2. Smithsonian Sea Level Rise explanation: https://ocean.si.edu/through-time/ancient-seas/sea-level-rise
         3. https://sealevelrise.org/
      2. Resources for seeing projections 
         1. Surging Seas (affiliated with Climate Central): https://sealevel.climatecentral.org/
         2. Surging Seas Risk Finder: https://riskfinder.climatecentral.org/
         3. Surging Seas Map options: https://sealevel.climatecentral.org/maps/
         4. NOAA Sea Level Rise Viewer: https://coast.noaa.gov/slr/ 
      3. Articles about NC (both address 2012 sea level rise debacle)
         1. https://www.newsobserver.com/news/state/north-carolina/article234385422.html
         2. Background on sea level rise debacle from 2012: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2018/09/14/scientists-warned-of-rising-sea-levels-in-north-carolina-republican-lawmakers-shelved-their-recommendations/
         3. https://www.coastalreview.org/2019/10/ncs-next-sea-level-rise-study-to-eye-2100/
      4. Article about Boston (from 2/19/2020) 
         1. https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/2020/02/19/boston-prepares-rising-seas-climate-change/?arc404=true

Stephen Colbert clip: http://www.cc.com/video-clips/w6itwj/the-colbert-report-the-word---sink-or-swim 

Shishmaref, AK : https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/29/us/sutter-shishmaref-esau-tragedy/index.html  and https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/08/18/490519540/threatened-by-rising-seas-an-alaskan-village-decides-to-relocate 

More on the United Fruit Company and the US Government crushing Central America

https://medium.com/s/story/timeline-us-intervention-central-america-a9bea9ebc148

https://www.warhistoryonline.com/war-articles/country-company-1954-guatemalan-coup-support-united-fruit.html

Books

Amitav Ghosh “The Great Derangement” : https://www.amazon.com/Great-Derangement-Climate-Unthinkable-Lectures/dp/022652681X

 Kim Stanley Robinson "New York 2140" : https://www.amazon.com/New-York-2140-Stanley-Robinson/dp/0316262315/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1J4MX2BOHBEDR&keywords=new+york+2041&qid=1583896793&sprefix=new+york+20%2Caps%2C150&sr=8-1

Episode 28

Do religious beliefs affect attitudes about climate change? Are people who believe we are in the "End Times" less likely to care about long term environmental impacts? What do the polling numbers indicate? The results might surprise you!

Remember to send us your wildest, pie-in-the-sky plan to stop climate change, and you could one BILLION dollars (of totally fake money). Email us at [email protected] or post it to our Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. 

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

Lots of articles to read!

1. 1. 1. Pew Stats from 2015: https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2015/10/22/religion-and-views-on-climate-and-energy-issues/
      2. Religious Statements on Climate Change: https://www.interfaithpowerandlight.org/religious-statements-on-climate-change/
      3. Pew Stats on Catholic Division: https://www.pewforum.org/2015/06/16/catholics-divided-over-global-warming/ 
      4. Katharine Hayhoe: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/31/opinion/sunday/climate-change-evangelical-christian.html
      5. Pew Stats from 2010: https://www.pewforum.org/2010/09/17/few-say-religion-shapes-immigration-environment-views/

“Left Behind” series : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Left_Behind  ; http://leftbehind.com/ 

7 Dispensations : https://www.compellingtruth.org/seven-dispensations.html 

Ozone layer hole : https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2019/2019-ozone-hole-is-the-smallest-on-record-since-its-discovery  [and a small bit of history : https://www.newsweek.com/nasa-hole-earths-ozone-layer-finally-closing-humans-did-something-771922 ]

Judges are more impartial after a meal : https://www.wired.com/2011/04/judges-mental-fatigue/ 

Dear Hank and John podcast : https://www.npr.org/podcasts/735467446/dear-hank-john

Peacock ore (aka Bornite) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bornite and as a crystal : https://www.crystals-online.co.uk/properties-pages/peacock-ore/ 

Y2K and apocalypse : 

https://www.adl.org/education/resources/reports/y2k-apocalypse 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/frederickallen/2020/12/29/apocalypse-then-when-y2k-didnt-lead-to-the-end-of-civilization/#534b3e38475c 

[From a believer in the immediate coming rapture : https://daniel11truth.com/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAqNPyBRCjARIsAKA-WFzh4El5Tz8h5Sivrdoeot6zdAjqKbLTk-ZSPkS0LJJWQMBWpnawv6oaAuWgEALw_wcB ]

Ezekiel 38

Hebrew and English: https://www.sefaria.org/Ezekiel.38?lang=bi 

As proof of apocalypse : https://www.apocalypsesoon.org/xfile-10.html

Episode 27

In part 3 of our Climate Connections series, Adam tries to break us out of our conventional ways of thinking by introducing the concept of play, and forcing us to imagine how we would solve the climate crisis if we had zero limitations. 

How about guerrilla gardening, benevolent-ish dictatorships, billion dollar grants, the end of big cities, the return of generational living, solar farming the desert, or farting salt mines?

Send us your wildest, pie-in-the-sky plan to stop climate change, and you could one BILLION dollars (of totally fake money). Email us at [email protected] or post it to our Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. 

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 PE game

Adam-Scooter (found here: https://www.gophersport.com/pe/scooters/sst-scooters) and games (found here: https://www.gophersport.com/blog/6-scooter-games-pe/ )

Kendra--Parachute, games found here: https://www.playparachutes.com/pagaac.html 

Rachael -- Tetherball, what it is : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetherball  (scene from Napoleon Dynamite : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azSxYbFovWo )

Zack -- none (here’s one story as to why some kids dislike p.e. : https://education.penelopetrunk.com/2013/05/20/forced-gym-makes-kids-hate-exercise/ )

Adam’s book “Living with Tiny Aliens” https://www.amazon.com/Living-Tiny-Aliens-Anthropocene-Groundworks-ebook-dp-B07WWJP3FP/dp/B07WWJP3FP/ref=mt_kindle?_encoding=UTF8&me=&qid=1582659303 

Augustine and his idea that children are sinners : http://www.stephenhicks.org/2011/12/02/augustine-on-why-babies-are-evil/

Solar power in Sahara : http://theconversation.com/should-we-turn-the-sahara-desert-into-a-huge-solar-farm-114450 

Nuclear power, pros-cons: https://greenliving.lovetoknow.com/Advantages_and_Disadvantages_of_Nuclear_Energy 

Gen 2 reactors:

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2016/09/leslie-dewan-explorer-moments-nuclear-energy/

New energy storage ideas:

https://www.wired.com/2016/05/forget-elons-batteries-fix-grid-rock-filled-train-hill/

Episode 26

In part 2 of our Climate Connections miniseries, Rachael serves up a heaping helping of hope in the face of potentially the greatest crisis the human race has ever encountered. Can her immovable optimism stand firm against Adam's unstoppable despair? Will a realistic way forward emerge in the aftermath? Grab some popcorn and roasted crickets. This one is fun. 

(Zack note: I recorded my part from the passenger seat of my station wagon on a family trip, so you will hear my toddler yelling for food periodically. Lunch is important yall!)

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 Tree

Rachael--Aspen: https://www.nationalforests.org/blog/tree-profile-aspen-so-much-more-than-a-tree 

Kendra--Rainbow eucalyptus: https://mymodernmet.com/rainbow-eucalyptus-tree/ 

Ian--live oak: https://www.arborday.org/trees/treeguide/treedetail.cfm?itemID=876 

Zack--box elder: https://www.thoughtco.com/introduction-to-the-boxelder-tree-1343340 

Adam--one particular elm

Bark beetle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mountain_pine_beetle

Beetle kill pine furniture: https://sears-trostel.com/blog/13657/Beetle-Kill-Blue-Stain-Pine-Lumber-in-Fort-Collins 

Food

Who owns the land: https://thecounter.org/who-really-owns-american-farmland/

CO2 animal production: https://ourworldindata.org/food-choice-vs-eating-local?fbclid=IwAR0fMG7sySLwJO7FAjbp7Wix1uy8RAsLci-IOMLZlYxzcxNbnHxV7MRgAIU 

Americans love their meat: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/this-chart-proves-americans-love-their-meat-2016-08-15 

Food recommendations in American diet: https://www.meatinstitute.org/index.php?ht=d/sp/i/47465/pid/47465 

We ate a record amount in 2018: https://www.meatinstitute.org/index.php?ht=d/sp/i/47465/pid/47465 

World consumption of beef (note how many countries eat far less than we do) https://beef2live.com/story-world-beef-consumption-per-capita-ranking-countries-0-111634 

We are the Weather: saving the world begins at breakfast by Jonathan Safran Foer https://www.amazon.com/We-Are-Weather-Saving-Breakfast/dp/0374280002 

Recycling

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/29/climate/recycling-wrong-mistakes.html 

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/29/climate/recycling-landfills-plastic-papers.html 

https://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/green-science/recycling6.htm 

“Star Thrower” by Loren Eiseley wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Star_Thrower

Babies in the river story: https://www.uua.org/re/tapestry/youth/call/workshop1/171686.shtml 

Equality/equity/justice: https://www.icafoodshelf.org/blog/2017/11/15/equity-vs-equality-vs-justice-how-are-they-different 

Creation Care Alliance: https://creationcarealliance.org/ 

Better clothing: https://qz.com/823607/pro-tips-for-buying-clothes-that-will-last-years-not-weeks/ 

A whole book on the subject https://www.amazon.com/How-Break-Fast-Fashion-guilt-free-ebook/dp/B07WH5C7XD