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Generation Anthropocene

97 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 1 year ago - ★★★★★ - 118 ratings

Exploring the connection between humans, nature, and the powers shaping our new geologic age.
Hosted by Michael Osborne and produced by 14th Street Studios.

Science
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Episodes

The Nature of Intelligence

December 14, 2022 15:18 - 56 minutes

Humans tend to think that our intelligence is the most distinguishing trait of our species. Collectively our intelligence has given us god-like powers. But what exactly is intelligence, and how did it evolve? How do we measure intelligence in other species, and how might we use that information to protect organisms in the wild? Joshua Plotnik is a professor at Hunter College in New York, and he's part of a community of researchers who are re-examining some of these fundamental questions. Josh...

The Rescue Effect

November 03, 2022 18:20 - 49 minutes

The tone around conservation is often pretty heavy and it’s hard not to feel a sense of despair. But maybe there are opportunities in the world of conservation that we are not fully taking into account. The truth is, organisms and ecosystems have built-in defense mechanisms to respond to rapid change that might just be the secret to combatting the negative effects of the Anthropocene. In his new book, The Rescue Effect, author Michael Webster explores the many ways in which nature is respond...

Planet Texas, Ep1

October 14, 2022 20:00 - 46 minutes

Today's episode is a cross-promotion with the Planet Texas podcast. We are featuring the first episode of the series. The Ogallala Aquifer is the biggest aquifer in North America, and it accounts for more than 30 percent of all agriculture in the United States. And… it’s running out of water. Climate change is making the naturally hot and dry climate of the Texas Panhandle even worse. Farmers are working desperately to keep their crops alive, and the secret to survival is adaptability. Learn...

Human Origins

September 21, 2022 14:20 - 1 hour

As a species, our intelligence is probably the single most important quality that sets us apart from every other organism that has ever lived. But it’s not so much our abilities as individuals, but rather it’s our collective and accumulated knowledge. All of the drivers of the Anthropocene are only possible because of our capacity to transfer knowledge down through generations. So when exactly did that process begin? When did we start to behave in a way that was fundamentally “human,” and can...

Bunkers and Preppers

August 10, 2022 06:00 - 49 minutes

What the subcultures of Preppers can teach us about preparing for environmental destruction.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cybel

July 21, 2022 10:00 - 25 minutes

On today’s episode we’re bringing you something special and a little different: A science fiction short story. It’s weird, and cool, and is, in a way, very much about the Anthropocene. Anyway, it’s fun! Written and sound designed by Brandon Buerk with help from Jackson Roach, and read by Nick Weiler. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Famous and Gravy's Emblem of Dignity

July 01, 2022 20:31 - 1 hour

Today's episode is a cross-promotion with a new podcast by Michael Osborne called Famous and Gravy. This person died in 2013 at age 95. His given name translates colloquially as “troublemaker.” The question most often asked about him was how, after all he’d been through, he could be so evidently free of spite. In 1956, he was arrested on charges of treason. He was a symbol of the opposition to apartheid in South Africa. Today’s dead celebrity is Nelson Mandela. Famous & Gravy official website...

Elizabeth Kolbert

June 03, 2022 14:12 - 45 minutes

Support us on www.patreon.com/genanthro It's hard to avoid the sense of despair that surrounds the story of climate change – and for that matter the story of the Anthropocene. It can all feel so hopeless. So, who is responsible for the weight of these feelings? What responsibility lies with the scientists and journalists who are bringing us the hard truth? Elizabeth Kolbert is one of the premier science journalists living today, and in this conversation she confronts that question head on. An...

Christians and Climate Change

May 13, 2022 10:23 - 21 minutes

For as long as climate change has been an issue, the Evangelical Christian community has generally either downplayed the threat, or denied it altogether. In the last decade, however, more and more Evangelicals are coming around, and are even voicing support for meaningful action. So what's changed? In this episode, Kyle Meyaard-Schaap offers some ideas for why this shift is happening, and how climate change and Christian values aren't as disparate as they might seem. Support us on Patreon at ...

Bill McKibben

April 22, 2022 09:02 - 38 minutes

Find merch and support the show through our Patreon: https://patreon.com/genanthro With his landmark book, The End of Nature, Bill McKibben was one of the first journalists to start writing about climate change for a mass audience. He's since become one of the most prominent American environmentalists of our time. With his most recent endeavor, Third Act, he's trying to mobilize the older generation that drove the political and social change of the 1960s. This episode, published on Earth Day ...

The Love Canal

April 15, 2022 12:04 - 54 minutes

In the late 1970s, in a neighborhood just downstream from Niagara Falls, an environmental disaster slowly came to light. In so many ways, it turned out to be a true life horror story. And, as it turns out, the story of the Love Canal also has a lot to teach us about the environmental crises we face today. In his new book, Paradise Falls, author Keith O'Brien chronicles the activists and scientists who raised the alarm to the highest levels of corporate and political power. This is a must read...

Dark Green Religion

March 09, 2022 11:05 - 1 hour

It's sometimes hard to square Darwinian evolution with the major religions of the world. According to Professor Bron Taylor, if you take our current scientific understanding of biological interconnectedness, and combine it with the reality of the global environmental crises, what you get is a whole new spirituality that is taking shape before our eyes. He has a term for this emerging phenomenon: Dark Green Religion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Infectious Disease: A Big History

January 05, 2022 08:05 - 1 hour

The history of disease is really a story about humankind’s ever-changing relationship to the natural world. All of the momentous events in human history— the acquisition of fire, the development of farming, the Columbian exchange, rapid industrialization, and accelerated globalization— all coincide with exposure to emerging new diseases. In a way, the Covid-19 pandemic is a reminder that pathogens will always evolve alongside us, and, in fact, infectious diseases can shine a light on the comp...

We Are As Gods

November 17, 2021 14:18 - 33 minutes

Humans have been shaping the course of evolution for a long time, but with today's gene editing technologies our power to determine the fate of life on Earth is reaching new levels. With the extinction crisis looming, should we use these new editing tools to rescue threatened organisms? Are we playing god? In her new book, Life As We Made It, Beth Shapiro helps us understand our long history exerting evolutionary pressure, the state of the science, and the ethical questions confronting conser...

Hurricane Lizards & Plastic Squid with Thor Hanson

October 01, 2021 09:30 - 42 minutes

All around the globe, biologists are discovering that organisms are ALREADY responding to climate change. They're moving, adapting, evolving, taking refuge – the whole darned thing is more unpredictable than we could've imagined. Climate change biology is here. Super weird, kind of a bummer, but also at times pretty fascinating. Stay curious, my friends! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Shrinkage

September 23, 2021 07:01 - 30 minutes

What happens to Earth's biology when we heat up the planet? Weird stuff, that's what. For example, everything gets smaller. As in shrinkage. Weird, right? We talk to Jen Sheridan in this conversation about why warming = smaller. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Explainer: The Impact of Climate Denialism

September 16, 2021 08:00 - 21 minutes

Sometimes it seems like the only reason we haven't had meaningful action on climate change is because of the decades-long effort to mislead the public. But is that true? Just how important is climate denialism? In this 3rd installment of our explainer series, Aaron Strong helps us tackle that thorny question. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Explainer: Why Cows Are So Damned Bad for Warming

September 09, 2021 08:00 - 15 minutes

Cows are...a problem. Especially when it comes to global warming. With an assist from Zeke Hausfather, In this installment of our explainer seires we do our best to answer (quickly) why exactly cows and beef are such a big deal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Explainer: The Origin of 2 degrees

September 02, 2021 07:00 - 29 minutes

In this first in our new explainer series, we dive into the origins of the number 2 degrees C. How did that number come to be an international target, and what's its significance anyway? Professor Aaron Strong of Hamilton College explains. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Waste-Free World, with Ron Gonen

August 26, 2021 18:42 - 48 minutes

We all kinda know that the global waste stream is a crazy big problem, but, in terms of just bottom line dollars, most of the time we don’t think about what waste COSTS. So, where might there be big opportunities today to totally rethink everything we throw away? In today’s episode, Ron Gonen answers that question and paints a picture of the past, present, and future of waste in America.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Carbon Valley, Ep1

June 02, 2021 09:00 - 39 minutes

Today is a guest spot featuring Episode 1 of Carbon Valley, a new series from Wyoming Public Media. In the coal capital of the country, in the least-populated state in the union, leaders had to make a move. So, they turned to a silver bullet and brought in a $20 million competition to jumpstart a new era for coal country. Along the way, an unlikely ally emerges: a skateboarding environmentalist. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Yum

May 11, 2021 09:00 - 35 minutes

Few things in life are better than savoring delicious food. We all know this to be true today... but we've never stopped to consider just how important flavor-seeking might've been in the distant past. It turns out that the science of flavor can teach us a lot about the story of human evolution, and how we might reign in our rapacious appetites as we confront global environmental change. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Individual Reckoning

April 19, 2021 03:01 - 35 minutes

Climate change sometimes feels like a problem that can only be solved by governments, corporations, and large sectors of the economy. The truth, though, is that we as individuals can make an impact too. And, as it turns out, it's not all sacrifice. In her new book, Under the Sky We Make, Professor Kim Nicholas of Lund University explores the humanity that emerges when we're willing to do engage in a little personal reckoning. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Never A Catalytic Moment

February 26, 2021 14:27 - 46 minutes

At some point global warming will get so bad that the world will HAVE to take action, right? Well, maybe not. In this conversation with environmental journalist, David Roberts, we dive into the scary reality of shifting baselines syndrome. That's the human tendency to rationalize, normalize, and otherwise brush stuff under the rug. Along the way we drop a bunch of f-bombs, and also have a good chat about hope. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Magic and Science of Psilocybin

September 18, 2020 08:00 - 1 hour

This episode is about magic mushrooms and the Anthropocene. Need I say more? Prepare to have mind = blown. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Zombies, Covid-19, and The Anthropocene

May 31, 2020 22:15 - 39 minutes

Are you afraid of the end of the world? Sure! Who isn’t?! Sometimes, though, it’s hard to unpack all the stories we tell ourselves about the looming apocalypse. So perhaps the most popular monster of the 21st century, the freakin’ ZOMBIE, can help us unearth and confront our collective fears. Let’s do this. See you in the graveyard at midnight! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Timefulness, with Marcia Bjornerud

May 06, 2020 09:00 - 45 minutes

When I fell in love with geology, I developed a new relationship with TIME. It’s not just the vastness of Earth history that blew my mind— it’s imagining all that’s happened, all that’s transpired to make the Earth what it is today. In her book, Timefulness, Marcia Bjornerud captures this idea as well as anyone I’ve ever met. I had to talk to her. She’s my new favorite person. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2020 Earth Day Relaunch

April 22, 2020 08:00 - 25 minutes

It's been 3 years since our last episode – and we're (finally!) bringing GenAnthro back. On this episode, we learn how GenAnthro came to be, what happened, and where we go from here. Happy to be back, y'all – more episodes coming soon! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Raw Data's Origins of Power: Prelude

May 04, 2018 15:41 - 8 minutes

Cross-promotion. Introducing Raw Data's Origins of Power in Silicon Valley. How did we get here? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sounds of the Ocean

June 27, 2017 15:38 - 24 minutes

When you imagine ocean sounds, maybe you hear the smooth arcing songs of the humpback whale, or the energetic, rhythmic clicks and snaps of dolphins. But it turns out the oceans are home to a much wider range and diversity of sounds than we could ever imagine, and today some of them are being captured by hydrophones (underwater microphones). In this episode, we take an audio journey of the oceans, learning what sound can reveal, what scientists have yet to identify, and how the underwater sou...

Telltale Signs

June 22, 2017 16:29 - 30 minutes

Two stories of ecological disruption: the great sea star wasting, and a graveyard of trembling aspens. As climate change unfolds, one of the scariest prospects is that we will witness large scale ecosystem collapse. So is that moment already upon us? Will we be able to recognize the symptoms in time, and do we have enough information to take steps in advance? In both of today’s stories, from the oceans to the mountains, scientists are trying to understand the magnitude of ecological transform...

Rising Seas in Silicon Valley

June 20, 2017 15:15 - 11 minutes

Sea level rise is a global concern, and on the whole, policy and funding for mitigation aren’t keeping pace. Today on Gen Anthro, producer Isha Salian shares a story about a unique mitigation method in the San Francisco Bay Area – wetlands restoration, which is happening right next door to Silicon Valley’s biggest tech campuses. The Bay Area has a reputation for being environmentally conscious, but even here, local ecologists and policy makers are facing big challenges. Isha originally produc...

Interview: Kim Stanley Robinson (the sequel)

June 15, 2017 16:08 - 41 minutes

What will New York City look like in 2140? Scifi author Kim Stanley Robinson’s latest novel explores a possible future in which NYC is partly submerged, due to catastrophic sea level rise. In this conversation with producer Mike Osborne, KSR discusses the bedrock of science and economics in 'New York 2140,' his writing process for the novel, and of course, the Anthropocene. This is the second time Mike has interviewed KSR! Listen to their first conversation here: bit.ly/2sDV5eA Learn more abo...

State of the Human's 'Crashing'

June 13, 2017 17:23 - 13 minutes

Once upon a time, Miles crashed a server with his project ‘Geology of Game of Thrones’. Today on the show, we're featuring a short piece in which Miles shares the backstory to the project (and the server hullaballoo), as well as the connection he sees between ‘Geology of GoT’ and the Anthropocene. Today’s episode was produced by Eileen Williams of the Stanford Storytelling Project, and was originally broadcast on their podcast ‘State of the Human.’ Check out the entire State of the Human epis...

Interview: Christian Parenti

June 08, 2017 15:49 - 34 minutes

Capitalocene – maybe it doesn’t roll off the tongue, but a group of thinkers argue the term is preferable to Anthropocene because it's more diagnostic of what underlies our environmental problems. One of those thinkers is Christian Parenti, a reporter and scholar. In 2011 Parenti published ‘Tropic of Chaos,’ a book about the connections between climate and conflict. More recently, he contributed to the book ‘Anthropocene or Capitalocene?’ where he lays out the case for why the state is an env...

Saving the Last Ocean

June 06, 2017 16:26 - 22 minutes

We hear a lot in the news about the Antarctic ice sheet melting – but other than climate change, it’s hard to imagine what else threatens a place so cold, so remote, and so seemingly barren. What other ecological protection could the southern continent possibly need? But Antarctica is...a really weird place. No single country “owns” or governs Antarctica, so decisions about conservation are a huge challenge that involve diplomacy and cooperation. On today’s show, we learn about polar history ...

Interview: Admiral Lee Gunn

June 01, 2017 14:33 - 26 minutes

How is climate change going to affect national security and the work of our armed forces? On today’s show, Admiral Lee Gunn shares his perspective on this overlooked topic. Now retired from the Navy, Admiral Gunn has been working on connections between climate and military intervention for many years. In this conversation, he discusses the implications for climate refugees, the idea of climate change as a threat multiplier, the politics inside the armed forces, and some of new technologies th...

Trump on Earth's 'The Climate of Mann'

May 30, 2017 16:25 - 25 minutes

‘Trump on Earth’ is a new podcast about the environment under the Trump administration. They’re doing a fantastic job keeping tabs on policy changes coming out of Washington, so today on Gen Anthro, we want to feature one of their episodes – an interview with renowned climate scientist Michael Mann. Back in March, Mann testified before the House Science committee, and in this interview he talks about what it was like to be the ONLY participant on the panel who supported the scientific consens...

Interview: Camille Dungy

May 25, 2017 15:00 - 26 minutes

How do cultural constructs, like race, influence our relationship to the natural world? Poet and professor Camille Dungy explores this question by highlighting African-American voices in her 2009 anthology, “Black Nature: Four Centuries of African American Nature Poetry.” In this conversation with producer Jackson Roach, Camille shares her perspective on the intersection of race, identity, history, and the human-environment relationship. Link to “Black Nature”: http://amzn.to/2qYkxbn Camille’...

Carbon Footprint of Superheroes

May 23, 2017 13:54 - 20 minutes

In the pursuit of justice, Superman leaps tall buildings in a single bound; Ironman uses incredible technology to defeat evil forces; and Batman outfits himself with everything a flying-vigilante-mammal needs to fight the corrupt underbelly of Gotham City. In their own way, every superhero is trying to make the planet a better place for us mere humans. But given the global environmental crisis underway, shouldn’t we examine superheroes more thoroughly? As fellow inhabitants of Earth, we owe i...

Interview: Paul Shapiro

May 18, 2017 20:07 - 27 minutes

Are you a vegetarian, a vegan, or a lapsed vegetarian? Do you eat meat and feel a little conflicted about it? No matter where you fall on the spectrum, Paul Shapiro wants to welcome you into the conversation around animal agriculture. Shapiro is an animal rights activist and the Vice President of Policy for the Humane Society of the United States. With producers Benji Jones and Mike Osborne, Shapiro talks about the intersection of the environmental and animal welfare motivations to eat less m...

Trash to Treasure

May 16, 2017 13:47 - 18 minutes

A story about accidental beauty, a changing landscape, disappointed tourists, and the complicated nature of conservation in the Anthropocene. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Interview: Odile Madden

May 11, 2017 15:10 - 33 minutes

One word: PLASTICS! Plastics get a bad rep when it comes to the environment, but at the same time, we all benefit from this often maligned material. Today on the show, producer Miles Traer talks to materials scientist Odile Madden of the Smithsonian. What plastic artifacts define the modern era, and what should we preserve in museums? Are we in the Plastic Age, and if the Anthropocene boundary were defined by plastics, what would the global marker be? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit m...

Ginkgo

May 09, 2017 15:00 - 19 minutes

Today, Ginkgo biloba is a common street tree, found in cities all over the world. But believe it or not, it was once almost lost to extinction. This once global tree retreated into a tiny relic community, only found in a few valleys in China. But about 1,000 years ago, humans discovered ginkgo, thought it was beautiful and useful, and began to cultivate it. From there, in time, it spread across the planet again. This makes ginkgo arguably our oldest conservation project. This episode of Gen A...

Interview: Ryan Kelly

May 04, 2017 15:54 - 23 minutes

What if you you could scoop up a jar of seawater and use it to figure out what species were in that part of the ocean? Today we’re able to do that with a new scientific technique analyzing environmental DNA, or eDNA for short. In this episode, we talk to Ryan Kelly, an ecologist and lawyer at the forefront of eDNA research, about the technique itself, how it's changing what we can learn about the ocean, and how that might impact policy. Season 9, Episode 5 Learn more about your ad choices. Vi...

How We Grow

May 02, 2017 15:47 - 20 minutes

Humans are a force radically reshaping the Earth’s surface – but what forces are shaping homo sapiens? Today on the show, we feature two stories. First we look at ongoing human evolution and genetic mutations (btw, we are still evolving). Our second piece is about a human and animal instinct that we rarely think about – the impulse to play. More on Stuart Brown and the National Institute for Play: http://www.nifplay.org/ Creative commons music by Johnny_Ripper, Podington Bear, and Myriadar Le...

Interview: John Holdren

April 27, 2017 16:04 - 31 minutes

John Holdren was President Obama’s senior advisor on science and technology for eight years. In this conversation with producer Mike Osborne, Holdren discusses Obama’s passion for science and its role in all aspects of American life. He also tells us what it’s like to testify in front of Congress, which he calls “piñata day” (it sounds fun...until you realize he’s the piñata). Mike and John end by discussing the future of science and environmental policy under the Trump administration. The Da...

Oh Right, the Animals

April 25, 2017 15:07 - 24 minutes

Today: border critters and beaked whales. Two stories about human actions disrupting the ecosystems and lives of other animals with whom we share the planet. First, a tale of how the U.S. Navy’s sonar activities created an acoustic storm in the Great Bahama Canyon, impacting a population of remarkable, rare whales. Second, we brush the dust off a once-forgotten research paper about the likely ecological impacts of a coast-to-coast U.S.-Mexico border wall. Featuring student producers Denley De...

Season Premier! Interview: Jonathan Foley

April 20, 2017 00:00 - 39 minutes

WE’RE BACK! I mean, OMG, right?! And it’s our 5th podcast birthday! So, on the eve of the Science March, we’re kicking off the new season with an interview featuring Jonathan Foley, Museum Director of the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. In this conversation, Foley explores the role of museums in educating the American public on science and sustainability. He shares his journey from university professor to Museum Director, and his strong views on why science...

The Biggest Stories

December 15, 2016 19:53 - 39 minutes

Andy Revkin is an award-winning journalist whose life work has centered on reporting about the environment and climate change. He spoke to producer Mike Osborne about his early seafaring adventures, how he got his start in journalism, and his view that climate change is a symptom of a much bigger story about our species coming of age on a finite planet. We also have a short bonus segment featuring David Biello, who has just published a new book about the Anthropocene titled “The Unnatural Wor...

Guests

David Suzuki
1 Episode
Jonathan Foley
1 Episode

Twitter Mentions

@famousandgravy 1 Episode