Don't Panic Geocast

Episode 127 - "Tectonic plate sized bulldozers"

07 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

SciPy Abstracts Convergent Plate Boundaries Metamorphic Rocks Episode 55 (Plate Tectonics) Episode 116 - Metamorphic Rocks Critical Taper Theory Fun...

Episode 126 - "Quantitative Analysis of Cowbell"

30 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Boaty McBoatface Article Divergent Boundary Rocks Basin and Range formation (YouTube) Divergent plate boundary Pillow basalt Gabbro Aulacogen East...

Episode 125 - "Irony Abounds" Density Altitude

23 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week it’s hot… so hot that some airplanes cannot takeoff. We talk about atmospheric density and density altitude, as well as look into some h...

Episode 124 - “I leave you guys alone for three weeks”

16 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Shannon is back and we take some time to go over your feedback. Our email inbox was clogged all week, but should be running now, so get your sticker r...

Episode 123 - "Large crushing amounts of Snow" Dr. Anandakrishnan

09 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week, we mix things up a bit. This joint show between Embedded.fm and the geocast explores what happens when electrical engineering meets geoscie...

Episode 122 - "The speed of sound in spaghetti" Open Source

02 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week Shannon pops a surprise interview on John, asking all about open source. We talk about what it is, why people do it, and what it means for y...

Episode 121 - "I don't see much difference between science and art" Uri ten Brink

26 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week Dr. Uri ten Brink joins us to talk about his field experiences as an observational geophysicst and some thoughts about being a scientist. (S...

Episode 120 - A Stork Visits: Rebroadcast "Dam Nation"

19 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Shannon just had a baby! We take the week off and celebrate with this classic episode of the geocast... Don't Panic, we'll be back next week! Having j...

Episode 119 - "When Nerds Have Research Instruments" Fulgurite

12 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

  John is installing his weather station and Shannon is still pushing through finals week. On this week’s show we talk about a listener question re...

Episode 118 - "One of those lies we tell in intro"

05 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

John’s Hackaday Prize Entry New Prince Rupert’s Drop Video We Martians - Esker Questions Episode 92 - Martian Esker Fun Paper Earth Structure S...

Episode 117 - "Everything is a few weeks away" Open Drone Map

28 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Drones are everywhere, but did you know you can recreate 3D point clouds with images taken from your drone? Episode 73 – “A gigapan from 1906” ...

Episode 116 - "The closest thing to alchemy"

21 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Shannon takes one more field trip and John is ready to hit the road again, but we slow down to talk about metamorphic rocks - and probably get in trou...

Episode 115 - "The three horsemen of the academic apocalypse"

14 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

John is off teaching a workshop and Shannon is working towards the end of the semester. We take a little time off to talk about academic service - wha...

Episode 114 - "Charismatic megafauna" with Shane Loeffler

31 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

What is “flyover country”? Is it the states in the middle of the US? A band name? A geoscience education app? One of these is true and the creator...

Episode 113 - "Enjoy your symbol of eternal love" Bowen's Reaction Series

24 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Pi-Hole MagicMirror Embedded.fm Making Embedded Systems Bullet vs. Prince Rupert’s Drop Bowen’s Reaction Series Wikipedia article Norman Bowen ...

Episode 112 - "Enchantment Under the Troposphere Dance"

17 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Bombogenesis Stella’s Bombogenesis Explosive cyclogenesis Rossby Waves Smarter Every Day : Prince Rupert’s Drop GEMPAK Bergen School of Meteorol...

Episode 111 - "Adiabatman"

10 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

John and Shannon both had windstorms this week and decided it was a great chance to talk about strange thermodynamics. Also halloween costumes and pop...

Episode 110 - "An instrument at every Starbucks" Robert Busby

03 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week we tackle a listener requested show - the transportable array! Join us as Robert Bubsy joins us to talk about managing the project. Transpor...

Episode 109 - "Really sad Michael Bolton music" Lauren and Dave Heerschap

24 Feb 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Lauren and Dave Heerschap Real Science Innovations LLC Rule of V’s Blocks Brunton Axis Video of Axis in Action Real Science Innovations YouTube Ch...

Episode 108 - "Physics should work the same everywhere"

17 Feb 2017

Contributed by Lukas

John is defending his dissertation, so he prepares by describing it to you! Meseum of Osteology XKCD Thesis Defense Origin of the Thesis NZ Earthqua...

Episode 107 - "How many will ever make a map?" Field Skills

10 Feb 2017

Contributed by Lukas

How many students will ever make a professional geologic map? Not many most likely. Is it still essential to learn? You bet! This week we discuss why ...

Episode 106 - "Creepy Rotating Ice Disks"

03 Feb 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week we take some time to discuss YOUR feedback.- and there’s a lot! Also, how can disks of ice start rotating spontaneously? Listen this week ...

Episode 105 - "Nuggets of Nature" with Jay Minton

27 Jan 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week Jay Minton stops by to tell us about working at some of the largest boy scout camps around and all of the planning that goes into nature tra...

Episode 104 - "I can't eat mashed potatoes" Devil's Tower

20 Jan 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week, John is moving and Shannon is getting started with the semester, but we take a break to talk about Devil’s Tower, why Shannon has to play...

Episode 103 - "Itsy Bitsy Cracks"

13 Jan 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Listener Graeme asked us why rocks are hard. We explore the simple and hard explanations and then tackle the science of the perfect Martini in this we...

Episode 102 - "Hey Yo Shan" Academia

06 Jan 2017

Contributed by Lukas

This week we talk about academia. How does it work? The career track is long and has many twists and turns. There are also a lot of jobs many people n...

Episode 101 - "Cure your hangover with science"

31 Dec 2016

Contributed by Lukas

John and Shannon ring in the new year talking about native science and Enchanted Rock State Park. Why are the rocks enchanted and what can we learn fr...

Episode 100 - "Mineralogists are Yelling" EBSD

23 Dec 2016

Contributed by Lukas

John made it back from San Francisco and Shannon is getting her new laptop setup. This week we took a break to talk about electron backscatter in scan...

Episode 99 - "Happy Funhundredth!"

16 Dec 2016

Contributed by Lukas

It’s our 100th episode! Join us as we revisit some of our favorite Fun Paper Friday segments. Are you musically inclined? We are looking for new sho...

Episode 98 - "You get a can of electron beam" SEM

09 Dec 2016

Contributed by Lukas

John and Shannon wrap up the semester by taking a break to talk about scanning electron microscopes and the health benefits of beer. Scanning Electron...

Episode 97 - "Ridiculous Ear Tufts" Elecia White

02 Dec 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week Elecia White from Embedded.fm joins us to talk about embedded electronics, beach sand pirates, and bear bells. Also John has microphone issu...

Episode 96 - "Party with Engineers" Learning New Skills

25 Nov 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Shannon has been learning how to play engineer. This week we talk about getting your hands dirty and how we learn new skills. Learning New Skills Deb...

Episode 95 - "At least there were functions" Greg Wilson

18 Nov 2016

Contributed by Lukas

John and Shannon are back to doing science instead of troubleshooting and take a break to talk with Dr. Greg Wilson about Software Carpentry, how to t...

Episode 94 - "It sounds better than piece of string"

15 Nov 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Shannon has been in the field sampling the great unconformity and John has been traveling to prepare for an exciting change. Join us this week to lear...

Episode 93 - "It has a capital letter" Air Pressure

04 Nov 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we address a listener question about air pressure. What is it? Is the Earth’s atmosphere different thicknesses at different places? Find o...

Episode 92 - "I fell into your trap" Ben Crosby

28 Oct 2016

Contributed by Lukas

John and Shannon are still fighting lab equipment, but take a break to talk to a guest suggested by listener Angie about how climate change is forming...

Episode 91 – “I've seen buoys before” Hurricanes Part 2

21 Oct 2016

Contributed by Lukas

John and Shannon are fighting lab equipment, but they take a break to continue their discussion of hurricanes. This week we talk about how we measure ...

Episode 90 - "It's like a big straw" Hurricanes Part 1

14 Oct 2016

Contributed by Lukas

We’ve had a fairly active hurricane season, so we thought that maybe now would be a good time to discuss what exactly a hurricane is, especially for...

Episode 89 - "I had lunch with some ghostbusters" Maker Faire

07 Oct 2016

Contributed by Lukas

John visits Maker Faire and Shannon found another paper about video games to answer questions we raised last week. Maker Faire Glank Ono Smartphone ...

Episode 88 - "Helene is made of mayo" GSA 2016

30 Sep 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Shannon has been at the Geological Society of America meeting in Denver and John is about to head off to Maker Faire. Join us to hear about the latest...

Episode 87 - "Dr. Lagomorph" Happy Birthday NPS

23 Sep 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Feedback Babylon 5 Effects John was on Embedded.fm this week! Big year for NPS Lots of press about NPS turning 100 this year Every Kid in a Park N...

Episode 86 - "There's all kinds of terror" Laura Wallace

16 Sep 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we take it slow. Laura Wallace joins us to talk plate tectonics and slow slip in New Zealand. Also a project that gets the best acronym of t...

Episode 85 - "Please buy tickets to Oklahoma today"

10 Sep 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Earthquake! Last week Oklahoma was rocked by the largest recorded earthquake recorded in the state’s history. We talk with Dr. Katie Keranen who is ...

Episode 84 - "It might be too soon" (The Limerock Challenge)

02 Sep 2016

Contributed by Lukas

A few weeks ago we finished collecting all of your limericks in our contest to win some sweet geo-swag from Chris at Taylor Custom. This week we are j...

Episode 83 - "Out of the country" (Brad Jolliff Rebroadcast)

26 Aug 2016

Contributed by Lukas

We are teaching and traveling with the start of the semester. Since John has no solid cell phone signal at a conference in New Hampshire and Shannon i...

Episode 82 - "What Summer?"

19 Aug 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Classes start next week - it’s time to evaluate what we did over the summer. How did our summer manifestos work out and what are we going to accompl...

Episode 81 - "Landscape Bulldozers" The Driftless

12 Aug 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we address a listener show request from Mike about the Driftless region and address the phenomena of Pokemon Go. Can it improve our spatial ...

Episode 80 - "Dam Nation"

05 Aug 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Having just got back from vacationing near a river, Shannon’s mind is wondering (and wandering!) about dams and their impacts, both good and bad. Pe...

Episode 79 - "Secret Balloon Barn"

29 Jul 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Forecasting the weather is tricky business. You need a lot of information. While surface observations can get us a lot of data, we still need informat...

Episode 78 - "Just trying to narrow down the issue" Apollo 11

23 Jul 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we discuss the anniversary of the first manned lunar landing and how a software glitch puts over 40,000 brain studies at risk. Apollo 11 Ap...

Episode 77 - "It's Swedish Fish day" SciPy 2016

15 Jul 2016

Contributed by Lukas

British Geological Survey Hackathon SciPy 2016 A few SciPy talks Modeling Rate and State Friction with Python | SciPy 2016 | John Leeman Working ...

Episode 76 - "You can't runaway in an oxbow lake"

08 Jul 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week a massive landslide took place in Alaska. Join us to discuss it, Jupiter’s wife, and electric eels on a geo-news episode! July 7, 2016 Ok...

Episode 75 - "It tells you where they like to vacation"

01 Jul 2016

Contributed by Lukas

What’s your favorite formation? It’s like asking a geologist what their favorite book is. Find out what Shannon has to say about the Fountain form...

Episode 74 - "You pay $5000, then leave"

24 Jun 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we talk about how academic papers get published and all the strange things they go through before you read them. Shannon also found us a fas...

Episode 73 - "A gigapan from 1906"

18 Jun 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we talk about how one very famous aerial photograph was taken and how it relates to one of the most devastating earthquakes of the last cent...

Episode 72 - "I have a lot of words"

10 Jun 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Shannon has been feeling the effects of topography, temperature, and field weather conditions. This week we link geology and meteorology talking about...

Episode 71 - "My New MacBook" Summer Manifestos

03 Jun 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we kick off summer shorts with our 2016 summer manifestos and talk about a relieving #FunPaperFriday. Shannon’s Manifesto Work (again) on...

Announcement - Book Club!

31 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Hey everyone! We've teamed up with The Orbital Mechanics to start a book club. Head over to theorbitalmechanics.com/bookclub and vote for what we shou...

Episode 70 - "Lake Bottom Seismometers" Natalie Accardo

27 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we interview guest Natalie Accardo to learn about various seismic projects and lake bottom seismometers! We then pack pears with a behaviora...

Episode 69 - “Pretentious way to say raindrop”

20 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

It’s raining. A lot. This week we talk about how we measure precipitation. We then discuss how beetles use stars to navigate in this week’s Fun Pa...

Episode 68 - "It's kind of magical down there" Kiya Riverman

13 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we interview Kiya Riverman about crawling around in caves… underneath a glacier! Join us to learn about glacial hydrology and what it’s ...

Episode 67 - "Rock Drills and Beer" Undersampled Radio

03 May 2016

Contributed by Lukas

We’re back! On this surprise Tuesday show we talk with the hosts of Undersampled Radio. Pomeroy Rock Drill Matt Hall (@kwinkunks) Graham Ganssle (@...

Episode 66 - "I'm going to stomp my hat now" Stress, Strain, Folding, and Faulting

29 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we talk about all the wonderful feedback we’ve been getting, plus about how rocks can bend and break. We then tie it all up by talking abo...

Episode 65 - "If it's not in the index, I'll be in my office" Katy Huff

22 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Katy’s Website Effective Computation in Physics Physics Codes Seminar Git Page Jupyter Notebooks Software Carpentry The Most Dangerous Writing App ...

Episode 64 - "A is for Anticline"

15 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week join us for our own alphabet aerobics as we fly through the geologic alphabet! John’s Deines Lecture A - Anticline B - Breccia C -...

Episode 63 - "I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night"

08 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

We spend a lot of time working with our hands, in fact that’s why we can do science at all. It’s shocking the amount of science ignorance and lack...

Episode 62 - "A perpetually fresh hot tub" Hot Springs, AR

01 Apr 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we talk about Hot Springs, the geologic feature and the town in Arkansas. Shannon is going there to visit and have students map the town’s...

Episode 61 - "Squiggly McSquiggleface"

25 Mar 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we catchup on feedback and news, discuss ship naming conventions, and learn about an old gravity experiment! What do the Apollo missions and...

Episode 60 - "Open Source is Magical" Martin Pratt

18 Mar 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we are joined by guest Dr. Martin Pratt to discuss new ways to visualize your data and express the frustrations we still deal with on a dail...

Episode 59 - "You get a lot of bloat-ware, but you don't get a compiler"

11 Mar 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we talk about mounds of feedback, learning new skills, and where to tackle the problem of computer programming. It’s for everyone and it’...

Episode 58 - "The background on my phone is a thin section" Hannah Rabinowitz

04 Mar 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Hannah’s Website Seismic Sound Lab Girls’ Science Day Penn State Trash Can Experiment Research as Art Caddisfly jewelery Olivine und...

Episode 57 - "You go to a cave and do math problems"

26 Feb 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week we’re going underground…to caves that is. We review the basics of how caves form, some unique features, and a lot of fun vocabulary. We ...

Episode 56 - "A lot people would like to think they've got a lunar meteorite" Brad Jolliff

19 Feb 2016

Contributed by Lukas

This week a special guest takes us to the moon by talking about lunar rocks and meteorites! The moon turns out to be a fascinating place, but probably...

Episode 55 - "Every time you clip your fingernails" Plate Tectonics

12 Feb 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Why do mountains form, earthquakes happen, and volcanoes form where they do? The answer is plate tectonics. This week we explore the history of being ...

Episode 54 - "We use statistics"

05 Feb 2016

Contributed by Lukas

We’ve already talked a little bit about the Earth’s magnetic field, but where does that fall in terms of geoscience? Lots of physicists look at th...

Episode 53 - "They call it the snowtron"

29 Jan 2016

Contributed by Lukas

With the first winter storm of 2016 over with, we figured we would jump on the bandwagon and talk about some different types of winter precipitation. ...

Episode 52 - "You pay for significant digits"

22 Jan 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Last week we talked about glaciers, a basic staple of any geology education. That means it’s only fair to talk about a geophysics staple this week. ...

Episode 51 - "Regelation. I think I had that for lunch the other day" Glaciers

15 Jan 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Last known survivor of the 1906 San Fran. EQ/Fire passes away Ice is a mineral National Snow and Ice Data Center Great USGS informational publ...

Episode 50 - "Some serious geometric voodoo" Projections Part 2

08 Jan 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Last week we told you about many different map projections and talked about why they are all wrong. This week we’ll discuss a few of our favorites, ...

Episode 49 - "Would it blow your mind if I told you Africa is 14x larger than Greenland?"

01 Jan 2016

Contributed by Lukas

Maps are useful things, but it turns out that projecting a 3D object on a 2D map can cause a lot of unexpected problems. They even inspired an XKCD co...

Episode 48 - "You know you're going to be inspired" AGU

25 Dec 2015

Contributed by Lukas

We want to wish you happy holidays and invite you to join us while John was at AGU. This show should have been released a week ago, but John got very ...

Episode 47 - "That's nerd points" Holiday Gift Guide

11 Dec 2015

Contributed by Lukas

The holiday season is approaching and you may be wondering what to get that geoscientist or science nerd in your life. Look no further as we discuss o...

Episode 46 - "The sweet sounds of square wheels rolling" Posters Continued

04 Dec 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week we continue our discussion of posters, presentation, and talk about splashing around with our fun paper Friday! Graphing Software Igor Pro ...

Episode 45 - Revisit "What if you calibrated your candles differently?"

28 Nov 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week we re-visit one of our favorite shows while everyone is outside or in their turkey food-coma here in the US. We also read some listener mail...

Episode 44 - "It's not Richter magnitude!"

20 Nov 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week we talk about Bill Nye, earthquake magnitudes, and coffee. Bill Nye John got to see Bill Nye (@BillNye) talk at Penn State! News article wi...

Episode 43 - “Life should be more than turning off drop shadow defaults”

13 Nov 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week Shannon is grading, John is modeling (numerically), and they both are mad about some graphs they have seen. Data Visualization We are color...

Episode 42 - "Life, the Universe, and Everything"

06 Nov 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Shannon was at the GSA 2015 meeting in Baltimore Maryland. She also won a raffle there for a Rite in the Rain notebook and holder. The meeting app wo...

Episode 41 - "The Nino (Pumpkin Spice Latte Season)"

30 Oct 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week we talk about El Nino, what it is, how it works, and what it means for this winter. We also discuss pumpkin carving injuries on this week’...

Episode 40 - "Pumpkin Sedimentation"

23 Oct 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week Shannon talks about back to back field trips, broken airplanes, and rain. John relates a story about a strange northeast tradition and share...

Episode 39 - "There are some blow up bubbles" Mars

16 Oct 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week we talk about water on Mars and aeroelastic flutter of bird wings. John got married with drones and garter cannons. Keep an eye on his Twit...

Episode 38 - "I was kind of crafty about it, switching aisles"

09 Oct 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week we interview Kina McAllister to talk about her science activity kits for girls and then talk about the optimal office temperature setting in...

Episode 37 - "We solved all those problems, for all time" Open Hardware Summit

02 Oct 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Open Hardware Summit 2015 Hackable badge! Talks AnnMarie Thomas (Univ. St. Thomas) “Making Makers” Jason Kessler and Jon Ruston talked about UL...

Episode 36 - "We're looking at something the size of Connecticut" with Prof. Charles Ammon

25 Sep 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week special guest Prof. Charles Ammon joins us to discuss the recent magnitude 8.3 Chile earthquake. We then talk about coffee and how it can mo...

Episode 35 - "So often we disconnect these things" Why study geology?

18 Sep 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week we discuss how geoscience can enrich anyone’s life. Join the discussion and then learn about how much cosmic dust falls on us every day! ...

Episode 34 - "The Earth isn’t a big bar magnet"

11 Sep 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Join us to talk about the Earth’s magnetic field. It protects us and has complication on more levels than you think. It produces the aurora and help...

Episode 33 - "Where's that little nerdy guy?"

04 Sep 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week we thought we would go through our every day carry (EDC) essentials for braving the academic jungle. As most of us go back to the academic y...

Episode 32 - "I mean, they still make rulers with inches too"

28 Aug 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Classes are back in session, and we’re back to normal episodes. Join us to talk about Brunton pocket transits, argue about strike and dip, and discu...

Episode 31 - "Galveston just gets it" Pt.2

21 Aug 2015

Contributed by Lukas

We continue our quest form last week to hit the most interesting mechanisms of catastrophic sedimentation, talk about a new notebook, and learn how to...

Episode 30 - "YouTube is rife with turbidite videos"

14 Aug 2015

Contributed by Lukas

This week we start an accidental two-part show on catastrophic sedimentation, John’s drone experiments, and a revisit of some stories from the past....

Episode 29 - "Dear NASA, these are a few of our favorite things”

07 Aug 2015

Contributed by Lukas

Intro The Orbital Mechanics highlighted how little we know about planetary formation, so let’s talk about Pluto and what we’ve learned from the Ne...