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Join David and Will as they explore the paleontologists’ perspective on various topics in life and earth history. Each episode features a main discussion on a topic requested by the listeners, presented as a lighthearted and educational conversation about fossils, evolution, deep time, and more. Before the main discussion, each episode also includes a news segment, covering recent research related to paleontology and evolution. Each episode ends with the answer to a question submitted by subscribers on Patreon. New episodes with new topics every fortnight!
Episodes
Saturday Oct 23, 2021
Saturday Oct 23, 2021
Welcome ... to Spookulative Evolution.
October is here, and that means it’s time for Spook-E! Each episode throughout this month, we’re choosing a famous monster and discussing how it – or something like it – might evolve under the rules of evolution and natural selection, pulling inspiration from organisms of the real world. This year’s theme: monster plants.
This episode, we evaluate a famous and deadly monster favored by healers and witches. How can we use nature’s toolkit to evolve a baby-shaped root with a fatal scream? Our creatures to create this time: mandrakes.
Featuring special guest, Dr. Aly Baumgartner, our favorite paleobotanist!
Follow Aly on Twitter or Instagram @paleolorax
Join us on Patreon to support the podcast and enjoy bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Or make a one-time donation via PayPal: https://tinyurl.com/4c68u4hp
Find Spook-E merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Follow and Support us on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Saturday Oct 16, 2021
Saturday Oct 16, 2021
An Earth covered in ice might sound far-fetched, but there’s reason to think it has actually happened in the past – more than once. In this episode, we examine the Snowball Earth hypothesis and the geologic evidence and climate models that back it up, as well as some of the major lingering questions: Just how snowy is the snowball? How could this start? How could it end? And how did life fare on a frozen planet?
In the news: ancient tardigrades, meat-eating sloths, shark communities, and relict mangroves.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:04:30
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:32:30
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:02:00
Patron question: 01:44:00
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
Join us on Patreon to support the podcast and enjoy bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Or make a one-time donation via PayPal: https://tinyurl.com/4c68u4hp
Find merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Follow and Support us on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Musical Interludes are "Professor Umlaut" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Saturday Oct 16, 2021
Saturday Oct 16, 2021
Welcome ... to Spookulative Evolution.
October is here, and that means it’s time for Spook-E! Each episode throughout this month, we’re choosing a famous monster and discussing how it – or something like it – might evolve under the rules of evolution and natural selection, pulling inspiration from organisms of the real world. This year’s theme: monster plants.
This episode, we ponder a familiar favorite of myths, media, and Middle Earth. What evolutionary path might result in a towering woody plant that walks and talks? Our creatures to create this time: animated trees.
Featuring special guest, Dr. Aly Baumgartner, our favorite paleobotanist!
Follow Aly on Twitter or Instagram @paleolorax
Join us on Patreon to support the podcast and enjoy bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Or make a one-time donation via PayPal: https://tinyurl.com/4c68u4hp
Find Spook-E merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Follow and Support us on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Saturday Oct 09, 2021
Saturday Oct 09, 2021
Welcome ... to Spookulative Evolution.
October is here, and that means it’s time for Spook-E! Each episode throughout this month, we’re choosing a famous monster and discussing how it – or something like it – might evolve under the rules of evolution and natural selection, pulling inspiration from organisms of the real world. This year’s theme: monster plants.
This episode, we consider a classic category of plants-turned-monsters. How might natural selection produce a predatory plant with a taste for humans? Our creatures to create this time: people-eating plants.
Featuring special guest, Dr. Aly Baumgartner, our favorite paleobotanist!
Follow Aly on Twitter or Instagram @paleolorax
Join us on Patreon to support the podcast and enjoy bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Or make a one-time donation via PayPal: https://tinyurl.com/4c68u4hp
Find Spook-E merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Follow and Support us on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Saturday Oct 02, 2021
Saturday Oct 02, 2021
Spiders are among the most diverse, successful, and famous living groups of invertebrates. Today, they’re a worldwide assortment of fascinating predators, and their scarce fossil record provides hints of a history over 300 million years old. In this episode, we discuss the diversity and evolution of spiders, their varied lifestyles, and their most versatile and famous tool, silk.
In the news: snake evolution, giant penguins, early American humans, and spider parents.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:05:30
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:35:00
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:12:30
Patron question: 01:53:30
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
Join us on Patreon to support the podcast and enjoy bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Or make a one-time donation via PayPal: https://tinyurl.com/4c68u4hp
Find merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Follow and Support us on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Musical Interludes are "Professor Umlaut" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Saturday Sep 18, 2021
Saturday Sep 18, 2021
The Earth is in motion beneath our feet. The shifting and grinding of the tectonic plates is responsible for the shape of our planet’s surface and – directly or indirectly – nearly all the activity that happens upon it. Plate tectonics has a deep and fascinating history, both as a force that has shaped the Earth for billions of years and as a surprisingly recent foundational scientific theory.
In the news: shark teeth, Cambrian predators, Carnotaurus skin, and teratorns.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:05:30
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:29:30
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:16:30
Patron question: 01:57:00
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
Join us on Patreon to support the podcast and enjoy bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Or make a one-time donation via PayPal: https://tinyurl.com/4c68u4hp
Find merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Follow and Support us on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Musical Interludes are "Professor Umlaut" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Saturday Sep 04, 2021
Saturday Sep 04, 2021
Nearly all animals have some form of nervous system, and this system is often monitored and regulated by a brain. We humans are particularly proud of our enormous brains, but these organs come in all shapes and sizes across the animal kingdom, past and present. In this episode, we discuss brain diversity, the sometimes roundabout ways we explore brains in the fossil record, and what we’ve come to learn about the evolution of brains.
In the news: turtle embryo, frog-legged leaf beetle, early lizard cousin, and tyrannosaur brains.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:06:15
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:34:00
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:12:45
Patron question: 02:05:00
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
Join us on Patreon to support the podcast and enjoy bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Or, make a one-time donation via PayPal: https://tinyurl.com/4c68u4hp
Find merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Follow and Support us on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Musical Interludes are "Professor Umlaut" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Saturday Aug 21, 2021
Saturday Aug 21, 2021
Ever since T. rex was first identified in 1905, tyrannosaurs have been among the most famous and well-studied dinosaurs of all time. Research, especially in the last few decades, has revealed incredible details of tyrannosaur evolution, lifestyles, and development. This episode, we take a tour through tyrannosaur history, envision what these predators were like in life, and touch on some of the most prominent tyrannosaur controversies, including their notorious popularity.
In the news: venom evolution, mammoth roaming, Jurassic land-croc, and climate change.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:07:30
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:45:30
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:24:00
Patron question: 02:44:30
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
Join us on Patreon to support the podcast and enjoy bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Or, make a one-time donation via PayPal: https://tinyurl.com/4c68u4hp
Find merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Follow and Support us on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Musical Interludes are "Professor Umlaut" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Saturday Aug 07, 2021
Saturday Aug 07, 2021
India is a landmass with an incredible history. Over the past half-billion years, it has spent time with the southern continents, time as an island-on-the-move, and time with the northern continents. Its fossil record is a combination of southern life, northern life, and uniquely Indian life, and its geologic history is not only the story of a traveling subcontinent, but also the origin story of one of Earth’s most impressive mountain ranges.
In the news: baby pterosaurs, vampire bats, early sponges, and snake-y ancient reptiles.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:04:30
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:32:00
Main discussion, Part 2: 00:55:30
Patron question: 01:38:30
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
Join us on Patreon to support the podcast and enjoy bonus content! https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Find merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Follow and Support us on:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Musical Interludes are "Professor Umlaut" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Saturday Jul 24, 2021
Saturday Jul 24, 2021
As organisms live, grow, and move in their environments, they leave all sorts of traces in their surroundings, and these can become fossilized just like body parts can. Trace fossils (ichnofossils) can include evidence of burrowing, walking, feeding, and more. Individual trace fossils are great for understanding the behaviors of ancient organisms, and communities of trace fossils can help us track major changes in ecosystems through time.
In the news: damaged cave bear, shrinking dinosaurs, koala lemurs, and megaripples.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:05:30
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:35:30
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:11:30
Patron question: 01:55:00
We're on a new podcast! We're both players on Mysteries of the Mournland, a Level Up: Advanced Fifth Edition actual play horror podcast, set in the world of Eberron.
https://motma5epodcast.podbean.com/
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
Find merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Follow and Support us on:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Musical Interludes are "Professor Umlaut" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/