Today, we’re talking about the explosive side effects of climate change - literally. Patagonian glaciers are melting so fast they're uncorking volcanoes that have been sitting quietly under the ice for millennia. We’re also taking a look at the bizarre world of 16th-century medicine where doctors kept patient records that read like Harry Potter spells, complete with astrological charts and alchemical recipes that’ll make you pretty grateful for modern healthcare.

Plus, we revisit the 1930s technocracy movement where engineers genuinely believed they could run society better than politicians using energy units instead of money. On the ecommerce side of things, did you know that in America's digital gun marketplace, you can now buy assault rifles online easier than getting decent pizza delivered? Because apparently there are more gun shops than McDonald's and Starbucks combined. From volcanic eruptions triggered by global warming to the Wild West going digital, this episode proves humanity has a special talent for making everything simultaneously fascinating and terrifying.

 

CHAPTERS:

 

00:00 Introduction 

00:39 Volcanoes Unleashed by Melting Ice

02:18 Historical Medical Records and Practices

02:49 Astrology and Self-Taught Doctors

03:58 Bizarre Medical Treatments

13:56 Dog Flatulence and Animal Farts

24:03 Technocracy and Historical Predictions

30:55 Technocracy: The Vision and Ideals

41:23 Plant Perception: Can Plants See?

47:20 The Surprising Number of Gun Stores in the US

52:39 Conclusion 





SOURCES:

 

Flatulence in pet dogs

#DoesItFart

Does It Fart?: The Definitive Field Guide to Animal Flatulence

Flatulence of humans in art

Expansion and contraction of the Patagonian ice sheet

Flatulence in pet dogs

#DoesItFart

Does It Fart?: The Definitive Field Guide to Animal Flatulence

Flatulence of humans in art

Expansion and contraction of the Patagonian ice sheet

https://bostonraremaps.com/inventory/technocracy-inc-technate-of-america-1940/?srsltid=AfmBOorbLyYscmwozM57Wjrr_Kgv5DAoAhG1q9oq7Y4KAcrfHbRaYJpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technocracy_movement

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Scott_(engineer)

https://web.archive.org/web/20100728093447/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,744852,00.html

https://futurism.com/trump-junior-gun-failure

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/may/16/purges-angels-and-pigeon-slippers-methods-of-elizabethan-quacks-finally-deciphered

https://www.earlystuartlibels.net/htdocs/overbury_murder_section/H0.html

Today, we&rsquo;re talking about the explosive side effects of climate change - literally. Patagonian glaciers are melting so fast they're uncorking volcanoes that have been sitting quietly under the ice for millennia. We&rsquo;re also taking a look at the bizarre world of 16th-century medicine where doctors kept patient records that read like Harry Potter spells, complete with astrological charts and alchemical recipes that&rsquo;ll make you pretty grateful for modern healthcare.
Plus, we revisit the 1930s technocracy movement where engineers genuinely believed they could run society better than politicians using energy units instead of money. On the ecommerce side of things, did you know that in America's digital gun marketplace, you can now buy assault rifles online easier than getting decent pizza delivered? Because apparently there are more gun shops than McDonald's and Starbucks combined. From volcanic eruptions triggered by global warming to the Wild West going digital, this episode proves humanity has a special talent for making everything simultaneously fascinating and terrifying.
&nbsp;
CHAPTERS:
&nbsp;
00:00 Introduction&nbsp;
00:39 Volcanoes Unleashed by Melting Ice
02:18 Historical Medical Records and Practices
02:49 Astrology and Self-Taught Doctors
03:58 Bizarre Medical Treatments
13:56 Dog Flatulence and Animal Farts
24:03 Technocracy and Historical Predictions
30:55 Technocracy: The Vision and Ideals
41:23 Plant Perception: Can Plants See?
47:20 The Surprising Number of Gun Stores in the US
52:39 Conclusion&nbsp;
 
SOURCES:
&nbsp;
<a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00480169.1998.36088?casa_token=8Z_rh793WDYAAAAA:esUzTttSgXkboGwHrLRVLLazs_WnoKR8Jh95oJPVqF8aBEYT4cUJKctmdR7RLnwhLyZPcVoX33JNJA">Flatulence in pet dogs</a>
<a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/19gMMn4Wmw3BNLWMojEy7kgrjnjVB2JlMSwd1s-nYyUc/htmlview#">#DoesItFart</a>
<a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/0316484156?ref_=mr_referred_us_au_au">Does It Fart?: The Definitive Field Guide to Animal Flatulence</a>
<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Flatulence_of_humans_in_art">Flatulence of humans in art</a>
<a href="https://conf.goldschmidt.info/goldschmidt/2025/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/30438">Expansion and contraction of the Patagonian ice sheet</a>
<a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00480169.1998.36088?casa_token=8Z_rh793WDYAAAAA:esUzTttSgXkboGwHrLRVLLazs_WnoKR8Jh95oJPVqF8aBEYT4cUJKctmdR7RLnwhLyZPcVoX33JNJA">Flatulence in pet dogs</a>
<a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/19gMMn4Wmw3BNLWMojEy7kgrjnjVB2JlMSwd1s-nYyUc/htmlview#">#DoesItFart</a>
<a href="https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/0316484156?ref_=mr_referred_us_au_au">Does It Fart?: The Definitive Field Guide to Animal Flatulence</a>
<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Flatulence_of_humans_in_art">Flatulence of humans in art</a>
<a href="https://conf.goldschmidt.info/goldschmidt/2025/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/30438">Expansion and contraction of the Patagonian ice sheet</a>
<a href="https://bostonraremaps.com/inventory/technocracy-inc-technate-of-america-1940/?srsltid=AfmBOorbLyYscmwozM57Wjrr_Kgv5DAoAhG1q9oq7Y4KAcrfHbRaYJpg">https://bostonraremaps.com/inventory/technocracy-inc-technate-of-america-1940/?srsltid=AfmBOorbLyYscmwozM57Wjrr_Kgv5DAoAhG1q9oq7Y4KAcrfHbRaYJpg</a>
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technocracy_movement">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technocracy_movement</a>
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Scott_(engineer)">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Scott_(engineer)</a>
<a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20100728093447/http:/www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,744852,00.html">https://web.archive.org/web/20100728093447/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,744852,00.html</a>
<a href="https://futurism.com/trump-junior-gun-failure?utm_term=Futurism%20//%2007.18.25&amp;utm_campaign=Futurism_Actives_Newsletter&amp;utm_source=Sailthru&amp;utm_medium=email">https://futurism.com/trump-junior-gun-failure</a>
<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/may/16/purges-angels-and-pigeon-slippers-methods-of-elizabethan-quacks-finally-deciphered">https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/may/16/purges-angels-and-pigeon-slippers-methods-of-elizabethan-quacks-finally-deciphered</a>
<a href="https://www.earlystuartlibels.net/htdocs/overbury_murder_section/H0.html">https://www.earlystuartlibels.net/htdocs/overbury_murder_section/H0.html</a>

From tales of historical idiocracy and scientific genius to weird and wacky cultural phenomena, Dr Rod Lamberts and Dr Will Grant are here to take you on a wild conversational journey, deep diving into the crevices of science, history and culture that you never knew existed. 

From tales of historical idiocracy and scientific genius to weird and wacky cultural phenomena, Dr Rod Lamberts and Dr Will Grant are here to take you on a wild conversational journey, deep diving into the crevices of science, history and culture that you never knew existed.

Bizarre science history from academics with beers

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