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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 Jul 25, 2020
Saturday Jul 25, 2020
Everybody starts somewhere, and most animals start inside an egg! Eggs are about as old and as varied as animal life itself, and when they show up in the fossil record, they can be very telling. In this episode we discuss what goes inside an egg, what makes them so special and useful, and what we can learn from their patchy fossil record.
In the news: early archosaurs, more on Dilophosaurus, Microraptor feathers, and a large dolphin.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:04:30
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:32:00
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:13:30
Patron question: 01:58:00
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
New merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Featuring art by Rob Soto! https://www.rob-soto.com/
Follow and Support us on:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
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 11, 2020
Saturday Jul 11, 2020
Roughly nine out of ten living amphibian species are frogs. They’re incredibly diverse and successful, and they have been since the Jurassic Period. But the origins of frogs and their fellow modern amphibians is shrouded in mystery. In this episode, we discuss what makes frogs special, what their fossil record looks like, and what paleontologists know and don’t know about the earliest evolution of modern amphibians.
In the news: colorful insects, salamander evolution, saber-toothed marsupials, and venomous caecilians?
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:04:30
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:36:00
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:11:00
Patron question: 01:41:00
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
New merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Featuring art by Rob Soto! https://www.rob-soto.com/
Follow and Support us on:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
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 Jun 27, 2020
Saturday Jun 27, 2020
"Living fossils" aren't really a thing, not the way they're typically talked about anyway, and the term can be a source of debate among scientists and science communicators. In this episode, we talk about how this term is used and why some scientists defend it while others (including us!) aren't fans.
In the news: horned gophers, dinosaur eggs, giant eggs, and croc tracks.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:05:00
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:37:30
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:16:00
Patron question: 01:54:00
In light of current events, we invite you to explore these links to educate yourself, as we have been doing, about the subject of racial injustice:
Smithsonian NMAAHC - Talking About Race
https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/talking-about-race
TimeScavengers - Black Lives Matter
https://timescavengers.blog/2020/06/01/black-lives-matter/
Ally Anti-Racism Resources
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MjUESaOh2H-846KKiHUWHDUIhi3PlaFts-rqy9EQ43g/edit#
We’ve also made a donation to the NAACP Legal Defense & Education Fund:
https://www.naacpldf.org/
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
New merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Featuring art by Rob Soto! https://www.rob-soto.com/
Follow and Support us on:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
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 Jun 13, 2020
Saturday Jun 13, 2020
In the Canadian Rockies of British Columbia sits one of the most important, well-studied, and scientifically influential fossil sites in the world. The Burgess Shale not only provides us a glimpse into the tail end of the Cambrian Explosion, and not only yields tens of thousands of fossil specimens, but also includes some of the most exceptional fossil preservation of any fossil locality anywhere. This episode, we’ll dive into how it got that way, and what it has to tell us about some of Earth's earliest animal communities.
In the news: baby sharks, hungry dinosaurs, a pregnant ichthyosaur, and one dino’s last meal.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:06:30
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:34:00
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:00:00
Patron question: 01:37:00
In light of current events, we invite you to explore these links to educate yourself, as we have been doing, about the subject of racial injustice:
Smithsonian NMAAHC - Talking About Race
https://nmaahc.si.edu/learn/talking-about-race
TimeScavengers - Black Lives Matter
https://timescavengers.blog/2020/06/01/black-lives-matter/
Ally Anti-Racism Resources
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MjUESaOh2H-846KKiHUWHDUIhi3PlaFts-rqy9EQ43g/edit#
We’ve also made a donation to the NAACP Legal Defense & Education Fund:
https://www.naacpldf.org/
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
New merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Featuring art by Rob Soto! https://www.rob-soto.com/
Follow and Support us on:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
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/
Thursday Jun 04, 2020
Thursday Jun 04, 2020
In this series, we invite scientists to live Q&As on YouTube, where we discuss topics we’ve covered before on the podcast.
This episode, we discussed Conservation Paleontology (Episode 8) with Dr. Rachel Short and Dr. Jeff Martin of Texas A&M University.
You can find the video recording on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfdiT8Klm_YO04cvDqZ-_O3Iiq0J5GZJz
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
New merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Featuring art by Rob Soto! https://www.rob-soto.com/
Follow and Support us on:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Tuesday Jun 02, 2020
Tuesday Jun 02, 2020
In this series, we invite scientists to live Q&As on YouTube, where we discuss topics we’ve covered before on the podcast.
This episode, we discussed Paleopathology (Episode 84) with Laura Emmert of the Gray Fossil Site.
You can also watch the video recording of this Live Chat on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfdiT8Klm_YO04cvDqZ-_O3Iiq0J5GZJz
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
New merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Featuring art by Rob Soto! https://www.rob-soto.com/
Follow and Support us on:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Saturday May 30, 2020
Saturday May 30, 2020
Start exploring vertebrate evolution and paleontology, and it won’t be long before you end up on the subject of teeth. These handy structures are enormously significant not only for the history of life, but in the study of it as well. In this episode we discuss what makes a tooth a tooth, how teeth came to be, and we muse at length over the incredible diversity and scientific usefulness of teeth.
In the news: dinosaur walking, gharial males and females, hurricane-induced evolution, and humans in Australia.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:05:00
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:35:30
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:10:00
Patron question: 01:56:00
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
New merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Featuring art by Rob Soto! https://www.rob-soto.com/
Follow and Support us on:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
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/
Tuesday May 19, 2020
Tuesday May 19, 2020
In this series, we invite scientists to live Q&As on YouTube, where we discuss topics we’ve covered before on the podcast.
This episode, we discussed Turtles with Dr. Steven Jasinski of the State Museum of Pennsylvania. You can find Steven on Twitter at @StevenJasinski.
You can also watch the video recording of this Live Chat on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfdiT8Klm_YO04cvDqZ-_O3Iiq0J5GZJz
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
New merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Featuring art by Rob Soto! https://www.rob-soto.com/
Follow and Support us on:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.
Saturday May 16, 2020
Saturday May 16, 2020
From massive Triceratops to tiny Psittacosaurus, few dinosaurs are as famous, charismatic, or commonly preserved as ceratopsians. In this episode, we’ll follow this group’s evolutionary journey from little bipeds to horned behemoths and discuss some of the biggest scientific questions about their history, their identification, and of course their magnificently adorned noggins.
In the news: the Tully monster, very strange mammals, dinosaur hunting habits, and the tail of Spinosaurus.
Please pardon our audio issues in this episode.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:06:00
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:42:30
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:17:00
Patron question: 01:51:30
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
New merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Featuring art by Rob Soto! https://www.rob-soto.com/
Follow and Support us on:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
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/
Tuesday May 12, 2020
Tuesday May 12, 2020
In this series, we invite scientists to live Q&As on YouTube, where we discuss topics we’ve covered before on the podcast.
This episode, we discussed Ancient DNA with Dr. Leigha Lynch of Washington University. You can find Leigha on Twitter at @PantheraLeigha.
You can also watch the video recording of this Live Chat on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfdiT8Klm_YO04cvDqZ-_O3Iiq0J5GZJz
Check out our blog for bonus info and pictures:
http://commondescentpodcast.wordpress.com/
New merch at the Common Descent Store! http://zazzle.com/common_descent
Featuring art by Rob Soto! https://www.rob-soto.com/
Follow and Support us on:
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CommonDescentPC
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/commondescentpodcast
Instagram: @commondescentpodcast
PodBean: https://commondescentpodcast.podbean.com/
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-common-descent-podcast/id1207586509?mt=2
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCePRXHEnZmTGum2r1l2mduw
The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
More music like this at http://ocremix.org.