podcast recs? :D

[sophia_sol]

Well the other week I got a pair of wireless earbuds and all of a sudden I'm capable of being a podcast person, because I can listen to podcasts in one ear while bicycling places and still hear traffic and stuff for safety.

I started with Maintenance Phase, but I'm rapidly staring down the end of their archive, and I need other things to listen to once I'm done it. Which means now I need to find podcasts I enjoy, like a decade behind everyone else! And I'm hoping you, o beloved flist, might be able to help with recs.

What I'm looking for:

1. Nonfiction; if it's fiction I'll run into the same issues I get with listening to audiobooks, where it's too stressful because I don't know what's going to happen and I can't skim or skip ahead to check on things like I can with books, plus I'll want to finish the whole thing in one fell swoop


2. Not true crime or anything adjacent to it, and not about current events/politics; too stressful for me!


3. Telling me details about something the host(s) find(s) interesting - history, prehistory, dinosaurs, birds, arts and crafts, food, books and fandom, language, other cultures, etc


4. Some chatter between hosts is fine, but I'd prefer if it stays fairly focused on the topic at hand

If you know of anything good like this, please let me know so I can give it a try!

Comments

[melannen]

Oh, these are my favorite kind! I will make you a short list. Do you like ones where someone is brought in for an interview every episode, or do you prefer it to be mostly your favorite hosts?

[sophia_sol]

ooh yay! I think I'd prefer mostly my favourite hosts, so I don't need to constantly be getting used to new people.

[melannen]

We overlapped comments! I agree with you on the interview thing (Especially when walking/biking, because it's easier to handle voices/accents I'm already used to) but if you *had* liked them I could have recommended some more great ones on those topics that I quit because I was tired of the interviews. :D

[melannen]

OK anyway here's a list because, Good podcasts!

Lingthusiasm: Two linguists get enthusiastic about linguistics and languages! Different language-related topic every week.

Common Descent: Two palaeontologist/science educators talk about topics in palaeontology and earth history and palaeontology in popular culture every week.

Paleocast: Extremely long-running podcast where a different working palaeontologist is interviewed about there work every week. I always enjoy their topics, but I will note that I don't like it for being out near traffic, because the interviewee often has an accent in English that I need less background noise for.

Paleao After Dark: Three working palaeontologists get together and discuss the palaeontology papers they've read this week (This one assumes a pretty strong background in the science, but you do pick it up as you listen.)

The Field Guides: Two naturalists go for a walk in the park and discuss nature things they're seeing around them.

Astronomy Cast: Two astronomy buffs discuss a different topic in astronomy every week.

Skeptics with a K: Three people who are very interested in questions of science and how to keep science honest discuss "science" claims in the news and how to assess accuracy and truth in science and science reporting. (This one occasionally touches on current events but it's out of the UK and it's mostly stuff like "This is what the UK government recently did regarding funding homeopathy on the NHS" and anti-anti-vaccine advocacy and that sort of thing.)

Saga Thing: Two scholars of Ancient Norse discuss (And rate) all the Sagas of the Icelanders!

Those are the ones I'm currently keeping up with but I can do more!

[melannen]

And a few more now that I'm actually on my phone:

Oh No Ross and Carrie! : Ross and Carrie try out all sorts of things and people making fringe claims about health, wellness, spirituality, psychic powers, etc. and then report back (So far in ten years they've found about half a dozen that actually worked.)

In Research Of: An archaeologist and a friend rewatch the 1970s Leonard Nimoy "In Search Of" TV and update us with the latest research on the topics it covered (Like Ghosts, Hurricanes, and the Loch Ness Monster)

Mathematical Objects: Two math professors discuss a neat math thing (like a mobius strip or a Rubik's cube or a twenty-sided die). Possibly on;y cool if you wee raised by feral mathematicians, but I enjoy it.

This Podcast Will Kill You: Two public health experts tell you all about something that could kill you every episode. (Lightning strikes? Polio? Guinea worm? Take your pick.) They cover both the biology/science and the public health/culture/history aspects.

Jay and Miles X-Plain the X-Men: Two comics nerds explain the entire history of X-Men comics, in order from the beginning. You don't have to know or care about the X-Men to enjoy this (but you will end up knowing and caring if you do.)

[sophia_sol]

yayyyyy thank you so much for all these wonderful recs, I think you're my friend who listens to podcasts the most, and I know we have interests in common, so I was hoping you would stop by!

[chestnut_pod]

Lingthusiasm is fun! I've fallen irretrievably behind, but I always like dipping back in.

[sophia_sol]

I've actually been following Lingthusiasm via reading their transcripts on tumblr since it first began, but I'm excited to try actually listening to it! They always have such fun and interesting things to say.

[melannen]

You know, when I was making this list I somehow had the impression that you already followed lingthusiasm but I was like, well, guess not. That explains it!

I hope you find something you like, as you can tell this is my very specific favorite kind of podcast and I sort of collect them. They do vary a lot in their audio production values and how well they stay on topic, so you should definitely dip in and out and try different ones.

[sophia_sol]

just wanted to come back and tell you HOW MUCH I have been enjoying the Common Descent podcast! I am barely into their extensive archive and already I'm mourning the future when I run out of backlog to listen to. Paleontology!!!!!!