5/14/2021 0 Comments Our Favorite PodcastsMy favorite way to stay focused during the tedious parts of lab work is listening to podcasts. While my hands are busy repeating a protocol I’ve done countless times before, I can learn new information or get the next installment of a gripping story. Knowing I have an interesting episode cued up can even give me extra motivation to go into lab and split my cells on the weekend. I have to make sure to select the right episode for the task though -- listening to the 538 Politics Podcast while counting worm embryos was a bad choice because all the polling numbers and statistics kept making me lose track of my counts. I’m always on the lookout for interesting new podcasts to add to my rotation, so I asked the other bloggers for their favorites. Here are our recommendations! From Erika: Ear Hustle from Radiotopia tells stories from the daily lives of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people and their families. The podcast is hosted by three men who were or are currently incarcerated in San Quentin State Prison along with a Bay Area artist. I enjoy the podcast because the captivating storytelling covers all aspects of San Quentin life, ranging from lighthearted descriptions of the best food combinations to serious discussions about breaking a cycle of abuse. To get started, you can jump in with Season 7, which is currently being released, or check out this fascinating episode about lockdowns and the creative ways people have figured out to pass packages through the plumbing. Rough Translation explores stories from around the world, with a focus on cross-cultural conversations. The format is similar to other top-rate NPR podcasts like Code Switch and Planet Money, but Rough Translation more often takes me to settings I haven’t heard about before, like an Argentianian talk show that becomes an unexpected forum for feminism or the committee of the French government that officially defines neologisms. One of the most memorable episodes told the story of two political prisoners in Somalia who communicated by tapping in code on the wall separating them, and ultimately held onto their sanity by tapping out the novel Anna Karenina letter-by-letter. From Kristin: Stuff You Should Know is a podcast hosted by Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant, with episodes covering a huge variety of topics, including historical figures and movements, pop culture, science, urban legends, and more. For each podcast, Josh, Chuck, and the show’s producers deeply research the subject, and then present it in a comprehensible, story-like manner to give listeners a working knowledge. The two hosts have fun chemistry and sometimes find themselves off-topic on a random tangent, which adds some humorous content (as my mind naturally wanders off with theirs)! Even with the topics I am familiar with (like how the flu works), I always learn something new, humorous, or insightful from each episode. My favorite recent episode was on Frances Perkins, the U.S. Secretary of Labor under FDR and first woman to serve in any presidential U.S. Cabinet. From Ruchira: 99% Invisible hosted by Roman Mars is a Stitcher production (formerly from Radiotopia) about the process behind the design of objects/media/spaces that are part of daily life and are so ubiquitous that you forget to think about the real people who created them. One of my favorite episodes is about how the Roman font (think Arial, Helvetica, Times New Roman) became the standard design for text. The use of special fonts are then a signal of some kind of intent, like German nationalists proclaiming their love for Germany using Fraktur. Each episode is its own universe, so the podcast is easy to get into. For non-font nerds, my recommendation is this episode about hostile urban architecture where they profile things that are purposely designed to be unpleasant in order to deter certain activities. I’m addicted to 99% invisible because of the ingenious way they capture the visual world of design in an audio format. The Infinite Monkey Cage is a BBC panel show hosted by Professor Brian Cox and Robin Ince. On each episode, they invite three expert scientists and a comedian to talk about fascinating advances in science ranging from what exactly quantum physics is to whether a strawberry is dead or alive. Stephen Fry appears on an episode about six degrees of separation and the maths behind networks and human connections. As a member of the Indian community here at UCSF, I certainly know how no Indian is a stranger. If we try hard enough, we can always find a relation or a common friend that connects our social networks! There isn’t a single episode of Monkey Cage that I didn’t find fascinating so I believe that starting at the beginning is the way to go. From Christina: Mythology: Each episode presents an exciting story and analysis of a myth from a different culture, explaining how its history and origin give insight into how our ancestors saw the universe. The presenters do a really good job in capturing the drama of each mythology and the creatures that inhabit them, perfect for when you’re coding, or taking a break from work and going for a walk. Listening will give you major plus points at the next trivia night or dinner party where you can dazzle people with knowledge of ancient mythology! I listen to the Swedish version based on this series called “Mytologier”, which is nice because it includes more Nordic folk tales as well. My favourite episode is about the tribe of warrior women known as the “Amazons”, a tale of strong women trying to make it in a man’s world. From Martina: Serial: I am not big on podcasts normally, but if you have not listened to Serial you are missing out! I can guarantee you’ll have a hard time stopping listening. This podcast has three seasons, and each one tells a true story with an impressive work of investigative journalism. The stories are very intriguing mysteries and are presented impartially so you’ll be the judge of whether the investigation had the right outcome or not. The episodes build on each other, so start from Episode 1 of any of the seasons. Un giorno da pecora: For our Italian audience (if we have one) I would highly recommend taking a look at this radio program on Radio1. This podcast (also video) brilliantly explores the news of the day in a funny and uplifting way by interviewing Italian politicians, medical doctors and VIPs, and there is often a guest from the US! To hear about current events, jump in with the most recent episode. AUTHOR
Erika Anderson
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