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Ep. 306: An Alder Choked Hellhole

Published: 2021-12-27 10:00:00
Description Show ▼

Steven Rinella talks with Pamela Groves, Daniel Mann, Janis Putelis, Ryan Callaghan, Brody Henderson, Phil Taylor, and Corinne Schneider.

Topics discussed: running rivers full of bones in the name of science; Mike Kunz, the Forest Gump of Archaeology; the Mesa Site; when you find a 50,000+ year old polar bear skull just sitting on the beach; the hybridization of brown and polar bears; horses as the most numerous large animal during the Ice Age; how you can't just collect paleontological artifacts from Federal Land to create your own collection; the conical ice cream cone growth of mammoth tusks; Bison Bob; interred in sediment; the most exciting find: a hand sticking out of the ground; environmental DNA; the megafaunal extinction event when 70% of large mammals went extinct globally; loess; throwing out the overkill hypothesis; genetic engineering, re-wilding and pet mammoths; Steve's future retirement pursuit of becoming a large pumpkin enthusiast; the last big flock of passenger pigeons killed near where Steve grew up; trying to cultivate that purple alder; how to donate to Pam and Dan's research at the Institute of Arctic Biology at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks (donors should note "other" as designation and enter Daniel H Mann and [email protected] in the comments section); and more.


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Referenced Books

How to Clone a Mammoth
by Beth Shapiro
The hosts are discussing Beth Shapiro's previous appearance on the show and her work with ancient DNA and mammoths. They mention 'How to clone a mammoth' as a book they discussed with her, and note that her husband is a Neanderthal researcher. Beth Shapiro is identified as a researcher they've collaborated with on ancient DNA studies.
Referenced at 00:00:08
The Island of Dr. Moreau
by H. G. Wells
During a discussion about rewilding and creating hybrid or genetically engineered animals, one of the speakers references 'that old book about the island of Dr Moreau' where a character creates weird animals on an island. This is used as a cautionary comparison to modern attempts at recreating extinct species.
Referenced at 00:00:08