Podcasts about San Diego Natural History Museum

Chances are, you've never seen our state amphibian in the wild. In this episode, find out how the California red-legged frog became so rare while also delving into international border crossings with endangered frog eggs, urban drool, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, things that can fit into a bullfrog's mouth, and the essential mindset shift that might just change the world. Join me and Brad Hollingsworth from the San Diego Natural History Museum as we discuss all of this and so much more. Links: Trivia Night! Join me in-person on May 12th or online on May 27th for Quiz for a Cause, a fundraiser to help rebuild the Eaton Canyon Nature Center. And check out the silent auction here! Saving the California red-legged frog from extinctionFAUNO: Fanua del Noroeste. Learn more about the work in Mexico or sign up for a workshop. ECOS information on red-legged frog federal listing  Support Golden State Naturalist on ⁠Patreon⁠ and get perks starting at $4/month. Follow me on ⁠Instagram⁠. My website is ⁠goldenstatenaturalist.com⁠. Get podcast Merch. The theme song is called “i dunno” by grapes and can be found ⁠here⁠.Episode cover photo courtesy of the San Diego Natural History Museum.

What do cacti and rare pines have in common? What's a paleoendemic? Do pinecones have teeth? Why do so many different plant species live in Mediterranean climates? Join me and Jon Rebman as we go behind the scenes of the San Diego Natural History Museum, explore the herbarium, and discuss the rarest pine species in North America. Links: San Diego Natural History MuseumUniversity of California Museum of PaleontologyCool study about redwood leavesInfo about Torrey pines and bark beetlesSupport Golden State Naturalist on ⁠Patreon⁠ and get perks starting at $4/month. Follow me on ⁠Instagram⁠. My website is ⁠goldenstatenaturalist.com⁠. Get podcast Merch. The theme song is called “i dunno” by grapes and can be found ⁠here⁠.

Flying over San Diego, you can see them: Fingers of green extending through neighborhoods all across the city.  San Diego's urban canyon's serve as refuges for people and wildlife alike, but they're also often isolated islands of habitat. This can keep animals from accessing the resources they need to survive. And human neighbors aren't always able to access these spaces, either.  In this episode, join me and Michelle Thompson as we search for reptiles in one of San Diego's urban canyons, discuss what makes canyons special, and explore how the San Diego Natural History Museum is setting the foundation for the long-term health of these spaces.  Links: Healthy Canyons Initiative Go on a FREE hike with the Canyoneers  Want to help SD canyons? Email Michelle Thompson at: conbio@sdnhm.org  1988 Michael Soulé Study  Support Golden State Naturalist on ⁠Patreon⁠ and get perks starting at $4/month.  Follow me on ⁠Instagram⁠.  My website is ⁠goldenstatenaturalist.com⁠.  Get podcast Merch.  The theme song is called “i dunno” by grapes and can be found ⁠here⁠. Episode cover photo provided by The San Diego Natural History Museum. 

Always willing to collaborate with local San Diego institutions, Burning Beard has hooked up with The San Diego Natural History Museum to celebrate their 150th year! To commemorate this stunning achievement they crafted an equally stunning and easily crushable beer that also pays homage to the light American Lagers, introducing Nat-Lite.

How can museums and cultural institutions become more inclusive and welcoming for all visitors? Join us as we explore this vital question with Beth Redmond-Jones, VP of Exhibitions at the Monterey Bay Aquarium and editor & contributing author of Welcoming Museum Visitors with Unapparent Disabilities. With over 30 years of experience at leading institutions like the San Diego Natural History Museum and the Smithsonian's National Zoo, Beth shares her insights on designing exhibits that inspire and connect with diverse audiences.Tune in to the episode and learn how universal design can create environments that cater to the needs of all visitors, highlighting the continuous journey toward accessibility and inclusivity.Produced by Lorem Ipsum.Show Notes:Beth Redmond-JonesMonterey Bay AquariumWelcoming Museum Visitors with Unapparent DisabilitiesInto the Deep | Exhibition | Monterey Bay AquariumHeureka Goes CrazyIf you have any comments, suggestions or questions about the show please send an email to ask@loremipsumcorp.com.A transcript of this episode can be found at loremipsumcorp.com/matters-of-experience.

Audrey Carver is a multidisciplinary artist originally from Idyllwild, CA. She graduated summa cum laude from Tufts University in 2022, with a self-designed major in Scientific Communication. She has had both solo and group expositions in Cuenca (kwen - ca), Ecuador,  Palm Springs, Idyllwild,  San Diego, and Boston. She has worked as an artist-in-residence and science communication fellow at Scripps Institute of Oceanography at UCSD, the Climate Science Alliance, Cabrillo National Monument, and Tijuana River National Estuarine (Es tura rin) Reserve. She was awarded Artist Enterprise Laboratory Grants from Idyllwild Arts Academy in 2015, 2016, and 2017 for public works. She was a speaker at the 2020 San Diego Climate Summit, where she addressed the importance of interdisciplinary science communication, and was the curator for the 2023 San Diego Climate Summit art show, hosted by the San Diego Natural History Museum.  Subscribe at idyllwildarts.org/theseriesOne World. One Idyllwild. The Series. brings together thought leaders, creatives, influencers and changemakers, highlighting the work of citizen artists whose careers and lives have been shaped by the transformative power of art.Executive Producer & Host: Idyllwild Arts Foundation President, Pamela JordanPlease consider making a gift: https://idyllwildarts.org/giving/

In episode 196 America Adapts, we partnered with the Climate Science Alliance to cover their Climate Science Summit at the San Diego Natural History Museum.   Experts, speakers and participants from the Summit are highlighted in this episode. We kick things off with Dr. Amber Paris of the Alliance setting the stage for the Alliance's approach to transformational adaptation, emphasizing community-centered approaches, resilience, and relationship building. Multiple tribal voices share the importance of indigenous approaches to climate adaptation. The summit was a rousing event with many diverse voices sharing their perspectives on transformational adaptation. You'll also hear how art and culture play a critical role in how society is going to adapt to the impacts of climate change. Looking ahead, the Alliance aspires to build on their momentum, encouraging others to adopt their transformational adaptation model and fostering partnerships. The episode highlights the power of collective action and offers insights for organizations on a similar adaptation journey. This episode was generously sponsored by the Climate Science Alliance Experts in this Episode: Dr. Amber Pairis - Founder and Lead Advisor of the Climate Science Alliance  Paula Ezcurra - Operations and Grants Manager, Climate Science Alliance  Martha Rodriguez - Sycuan Cultural Dept. Director, Instructor Nikki Cooley - Co-manager for the Institute for Tribal Environmental Professionals' Tribal Climate Change Program Lauran Engeman - Coastal Climate Resilience Specialist at California Sea Grant Amy Larson – Grants Program Director at the California Wildlife Foundation Angela Mooney D'Arcy - founder and Executive Director of the Sacred Places Institute for Indigenous Peoples Richelle Ellis - Artist, Curator, Analog Astronaut connecting Art + Science Dr. Megan Jennings - Conservation ecologist and Co-Director of San Diego State's Institute for Ecological Monitoring and Management Althea Walker - Co-Director and Community Resilience Lead for the Climate Science Alliance Check out the America Adapts Media Kit here! Subscribe to the America Adapts newsletter here. Donate to America Adapts Listen to America Adapts on your favorite app here! Facebook, Linkedin and Twitter: https://www.facebook.com/americaadapts/ @usaadaptshttps://www.linkedin.com/in/doug-parsons-america-adapts/ https://www.instagram.com/america_adapts/?hl=en Resources and Links in this episode: https://www.climatesciencealliance.org/2023-climate-summit Summit summary and photo gallery with you, both of which can be found on our webpage: www.climatesciencealliance.org/2023-climate-summit https://www.climatesciencealliance.org/building-resilience Stay up to date on projects, trainings, and more from the Climate Science Alliance and their partners. Subscribe to our newsletter Follow up on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube Letter of Relationality The third annual Innovations in Climate Resilience Conference (ICR24) takes place on April 22-24, 2024, in Washington, DC. This toolkit is meant to help share messaging and information with your audiences.  ICR24 Websitehttps://www.battelle.org/conferences/conference-on-innovations-in-climate-resilience IMPORTANT KEY DATES ·         Abstract Submission Deadline – December 11, 2023 – Submission link Early Bird Registration Opens – November 1, 2023 – Registration link Early Bird Registration Deadline - February 16, 2024 Standard Registration Closes - April 15, 2024 Donate to America Adapts Follow on Apple Podcasts Follow on Android Hey Adapters, I'm excited to announce a new partnership with Atmos. America Adapts has been selected as one of the non-profits that gets direct donations when you start banking with Atmos, the world's most climate-focused bank account. From solar loans, cash-back checking to high yield savings accounts, Atmos is 'banking with a purpose.' When you open a bank account you can increase your monthly savings rate when you regularly support their select list of non profits working for a sustainable future. Yes, there are other options besides America Adapts...like Amazon Watch, 1% for the Planet, Grist, Project Drawdown and many more. Please watch the short video below to get a specific explanation of what Atmos offers. America Adapts gets individual donors because we're a 501(c)3, but Atmos might be a better fit, as you get banking services with your donations.. Doug Parsons and Speaking Opportunities: If you are interested in having Doug speak at corporate and conference events, sharing his unique, expert perspective on adaptation in an entertaining and informative way, more information can be found here! Now on Spotify! List of Previous Guests on America Adapts Follow/listen to podcast on Apple Podcasts. Donate to America Adapts, we are now a tax deductible charitable organization! Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Strategies to Address Climate Change Risk in Low- and Moderate-income Communities - Volume 14, Issue 1 https://www.frbsf.org/community-development/publications/community-development-investment-review/2019/october/strategies-to-address-climate-change-low-moderate-income-communities/ Podcasts in the Classroom – Discussion guides now available for the latest episode of America Adapts. These guides can be used by educators at all levels. Check them out here! The 10 Best Sustainability Podcasts for Environmental Business Leadershttps://us.anteagroup.com/news-events/blog/10-best-sustainability-podcasts-environmental-business-leaders The best climate change podcasts on The Climate Advisorhttp://theclimateadvisor.com/the-best-climate-change-podcasts/ 7 podcasts to learn more about climate change and how to fight ithttps://kinder.world/articles/you/7-podcasts-to-learn-more-about-climate-change-and-how-to-fight-it-19813 Directions on how to listen to America Adapts on Amazon Alexahttps://youtu.be/949R8CRpUYU America Adapts also has its own app for your listening pleasure!  Just visit the App store on Apple or Google Play on Android and search “America Adapts.” Join the climate change adaptation movement by supporting America Adapts!  Please consider supporting this podcast by donating through America Adapts fiscal sponsor, the Social Good Fund. All donations are now tax deductible! For more information on this podcast, visit the website at http://www.americaadapts.org and don't forget to subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts.   Podcast Music produce by Richard Haitz Productions Write a review on Apple Podcasts ! America Adapts on Facebook!   Join the America Adapts Facebook Community Group. Check us out, we're also on YouTube! Executive Producer Dr. Jesse Keenan Subscribe to America Adapts on Apple Podcasts Doug can be contacted at americaadapts @ g mail . com

In this episode I chat with illustrator and author, Rachel Ignotofsky about blending illustration and education, crayons, women in STEM, and her latest book, What's Inside A Caterpillar Cocoon? Rachel Ignotofsky is a New York Times Best Selling author and illustrator, based in California. She grew up in New Jersey on a healthy diet of Star Trek and pudding and graduated from Tyler School of Art in 2011 with a BFA in Graphic Design.  Rachel's career as a scientific communicator started by nurturing her own curiosity. Out of college, she created art and infographics about topics she found interesting and important- with a focus in science literacy. She had many friends starting their careers in teaching, and Rachel wanted to create resources to help them with their lessons. Soon Rachel's online store was selling her posters to schools, labs and science enthusiasts across the country and her work was scooped up to be featured on the likes of Scientific American, Fast Company, PRI and PBS. Rachel's art has been embraced by the science community and she has spoken at and partnered with institutions like NASA, The Salk Institute, The San Diego Natural History Museum, The Chicago Field Museum, The Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University and many more! Rachel believes when you take the time to organize complex information—and then take the next step to make it beautiful with art — you can reach even the most reluctant learner. Illustration is a powerful tool when it comes to education.  With her first book Women in Science (2016), Rachel used her art to address the growing gender gap in STEM and shed a light on women's stories. It became an instant success and was on the NY Times Best seller list for over 90 weeks. Since then, Rachel has continued to use her background in graphic design and her skills as a storyteller to make dense information and fun and accessible. Her work is published in over 24 different languages and enjoyed by readers all over the world! She has written more books about women's history like Women in Sports (2017) and Women in Art (2019). As well as tackling topics like conservation and climate change in her book The Wondrous Workings of Planet Earth (2018). She has introduced backyard biology to the youngest readers with What's Inside a Flower? (2021) which is the first installment of her new picture book series with Random House Kids. Now she is excited to share her newest book The History of the Computer (2022). This book is the first of its kind — a fully illustrated book that spans over 25,000 years of human history and tells the story of our evolving relationship with technology. Rachel sees all of her books as a love note to educators, and is thrilled to see them used in classrooms.Rachel IgnotofskyRachel's Etsy ShopRachel's BooksThe Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurs, Steve BrusatteThe Rise and Reign of the Mammals, Steve Brusatte Support the showThe Bookshop PodcastMandy Jackson-BeverlySocial Media Links

Ok, but what IS in a caterpillar's cocoon? And HOW is a butterfly different from a moth? If you're asking yourself these questions, fear not for the guest on the latest #DTALKSPodcast episode, Rachel Ignotofsky has you covered! Rachel covers, in great visual detail, everything you've ever wanted to know about cocoons, moths, and even a butterfly in her latest book 'What's Inside a Caterpillar Cocoon? And Other Questions About Moths & Butterflies'. Rachel does a great job explaining her background in children's literature and how the "info graphic style" she illustrates her books with helps educate adults alongside their kids (like me!) Enjoy!   About Rachel Ignotofsky   New York Times bestselling author, illustrator, and graphic designer Rachel Ignotofsky is the author of eight books exploring science, art, and women's accomplishments through beautiful illustration and design—including her newest picture book What's Inside a Caterpillar Cocoon? And Other Questions About Moths & Butterflies (September 5, 2023, Crown Books for Young Readers).   Rachel began creating scientific art-filled infographics and educational resources with the goal of improving scientific literacy, and her work quickly caught the attention of the scientific community. Rachel and her work have been featured in many print and online media outlets such as the New York Times, PRINT, Scientific American, Science Friday, Brain Pickings, and more. Rachel has also spoken at and partnered with many scientific institutions across the county, including NASA, The Salk Institute, The San Diego Natural History Museum, and many others.     About 'What's inside a caterpillar cocoon?'   With warm and heart-fluttering illustrations, discover the next nonfiction picture book about butterflies and moths. Find out more about these mysterious and majestic insects and learn about their awestrucking metamorphosis!    Make sure to check out the Dtalkspodcast.com website! Thanks to Empire Toys for this episode of the podcast! Nostalgia is something everyone loves and Empire Toys in Keller Texas is on nostalgia overload.   With toys and action figures from the 70's, 80's, 90's, and today, Empire Toys is a one-stop-shop for a trip down memory lane and a chance to reclaim what was once yours (but likely sold at a garage sale)   Check out Empire Toys on Facebook, Instagram, or at TheEmpireToys.com AND Thanks to Self Unbound for this episode of the podcast: Your quality of life: physically, emotionally, mentally, and spiritually, is a direct reflection of the level of abundant energy, ease, and connection your nervous system has to experience your life!    At Self Unbound, your nervous system takes center stage as we help unbind your limited healing potential through NetworkSpinal Care.    Access the first steps to your Unbound journey by following us on Facebook, Instagram, or at www.selfunbound.com   The DTALKS Podcast has also been ranked #9 in the "Top 40 Detox Podcast You Must Follow in 2020" according to Feedspot.com for our work in the Cultural Detox space. Thank you so much to the Feedspot team!  https://blog.feedspot.com/detox_podcasts/

In 2000, an expedition to the Mexican island of Guadalupe launched a fight to save its ecosystem from being eaten by goats. Russian whalers had introduced the goats to the island in the 19th Century and the population exploded as they ate their way through Guadalupe's plants, shrubs and trees. Several species of birds were already extinct when a group of scientists, from the San Diego Natural History Museum, visited to inspect the damage. Their expedition would begin the campaign to save the island's wildlife from extinction, as Professor Exequiel Ezcurra tells Jane Wilkinson. (Photo: Goats on Guadalupe Island. Credit: Northern Light Productions)

Preserved on a glass microscope slide at Michigan State University's Forensic Science department is a small sample of skin, the key piece of evidence, from an infamous 20th century homicide. Whose tissue is it...and who was responsible for their murder? In the archives of California's San Diego Natural History Museum is a collection of 52 birds, all victims of a mysterious epidemic. What killed these creatures? The Sharpsteen Museum in Calistoga, California houses a simple black cooking pot carried by intrepid pioneers on a long and desperate journey. What grisly stew was prepared in this kettle?For even more Mysteries at the Museum, head to discovery+. Go to discoveryplus.com/mystery to start your 7-day free trial today. Terms apply.

Jon P. Rebman is the Curator of Botany at the San Diego Natural History Museum. Originally from rural Illinois, Rebman landed a Fulbright Fellowship that took him to study in Ensenada. During his year south of the border, Rebman traveled the peninsula cataloging cholla cacti with his fellow students and the Universidad Autónoma de Baja California faculty. He credits this formative experience for igniting his passion for the region's rare endemic flora. Rebman earned a doctorate from Arizona State University and wrote his dissertation on the Cylindropuntia (Chollas) cactus family of Baja California. He is a profoundly energetic expert on Southern and Baja California plants and is relentless in identifying them. Rebman says, "if you can't name it, you can't conserve it." Through the crowd-sourced iNaturalist App, Rebman has answered more than 500,000 plant genus inquiries, I am optimistic he will hit a million answers soon. Rebman authored the Baja California Plant Field Guide with Norman Roberts and co-authored the stunning new bilingual photographic book A Guide To The Flora Of The Sierra De San Pedro Martir. Both are available from the San Diego Natural History Museum Shop here. Thanks to Cypress Hansen at the Nat for walking me through the fabulous new Expedition Baja display and for her work arranging this conversation. Additional thanks to Robert Blaker and his daughter, Sierra Blaker, for planting the seed for this show more than a year ago. Check out Expedition Baja here. Follow The Nat on Instagram. Follow The Nat on Facebook. Download the iNaturalist App here.

California has just introduced a way for survivors of sexual assault to track the testing of evidence in their cases. And, if you're a renter, there's a chance your rent has gone up over the past few years. A recent ProPublica investigation looked at whether widely used rent pricing software could be driving up rental prices in housing markets across the country. Then, voters are being asked to choose a new county assessor. What does the job entail and who are the candidates? Next, academic excellence is now riding on the wheels of some gnarly skateboards at a school in the La Mesa-Spring Valley school district. Then, a preview of the 23rd annual San Asian Film Festival which kicks off on Thursday with the documentary “Bad Axe” at the San Diego Natural History Museum. Finally, the late musician and activist Ramon “Chunky” Sanchez is already a fixture in San Diego's Chicano history. A new documentary about his life and legacy, “Singing Our Way To Freedom” airs Thursday on KPBS television.

Millions of Americans learned Tuesday that some or all of their student loan debt is being erased. Then, the San Diego Unified School District starts on Monday. Superintendent Dr. Lamont Jackson talks about the year ahead. And, a recent NPR/Ipsos poll found a majority of Americans believe the U.S. is experiencing an “invasion” at the southern border. We hear perspectives from San Diegans and an immigration expert about the politicized language around the issue of immigration. Next, the head of the county's Citizen's Law Enforcement Review Board talks about why the board is recommending everyone entering county jails, including deputies and jail staff, should be searched or scanned for drugs. Finally, UC San Diego and the San Diego Natural History Museum's “Art of Science” contest was created to highlight the beauty that can emerge during scientific research. We'll hear about the inspiration for the contest and about the winning entries on display now.

Why does history keep repeating itself? And what can cats tell us about this? Ashley Poust, Ph.D., is a paleontology researcher at the San Diego Natural History Museum. He focuses on vertebrates and evolutionary biology and explains how the study of extinct cats, like the sabertooth, can help us reconstruct ancient environments, gain a better understanding of our origins, see deeper into life's processes, and at the highest level, have a new view of the world. Series: "Triton Talks" [Science] [Show ID: 38073]

Why does history keep repeating itself? And what can cats tell us about this? Ashley Poust, Ph.D., is a paleontology researcher at the San Diego Natural History Museum. He focuses on vertebrates and evolutionary biology and explains how the study of extinct cats, like the sabertooth, can help us reconstruct ancient environments, gain a better understanding of our origins, see deeper into life's processes, and at the highest level, have a new view of the world. Series: "Triton Talks" [Science] [Show ID: 38073]

Why does history keep repeating itself? And what can cats tell us about this? Ashley Poust, Ph.D., is a paleontology researcher at the San Diego Natural History Museum. He focuses on vertebrates and evolutionary biology and explains how the study of extinct cats, like the sabertooth, can help us reconstruct ancient environments, gain a better understanding of our origins, see deeper into life's processes, and at the highest level, have a new view of the world. Series: "Triton Talks" [Science] [Show ID: 38073]

Why does history keep repeating itself? And what can cats tell us about this? Ashley Poust, Ph.D., is a paleontology researcher at the San Diego Natural History Museum. He focuses on vertebrates and evolutionary biology and explains how the study of extinct cats, like the sabertooth, can help us reconstruct ancient environments, gain a better understanding of our origins, see deeper into life's processes, and at the highest level, have a new view of the world. Series: "Triton Talks" [Science] [Show ID: 38073]

Why does history keep repeating itself? And what can cats tell us about this? Ashley Poust, Ph.D., is a paleontology researcher at the San Diego Natural History Museum. He focuses on vertebrates and evolutionary biology and explains how the study of extinct cats, like the sabertooth, can help us reconstruct ancient environments, gain a better understanding of our origins, see deeper into life's processes, and at the highest level, have a new view of the world. Series: "Triton Talks" [Science] [Show ID: 38073]

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria was elected on a promise of drastically reducing emissions through big improvements to biking and public transit infrastructure, but the mayor's commitment to those goals is being put to the test with a street project in Balboa Park. Plus, Gloria joined Midday Edition to discuss transit and a number of the city's most serious and contentious issues. Next, state law says police must release shooting videos within 45 days, except under the narrowest of circumstances. But the San Diego Police Department kept videos from one shooting under wraps for two years—until now. Then, the Chula Vista Police Department has touted its new real-time operations center as the cutting-edge of policing. But a contract with Motorola Solutions to provide software for the center continues to alarm privacy advocates. And, the national debate on gun reform remains focused on access to assault rifles. But researchers say the data on legal gun ownership is scarce. Also, during the COVID pandemic, many childcare providers had to at least temporarily close their doors and two years later state data show many have not reopened. Finally, The San Diego Natural History Museum has a new permanent exhibition on display showcasing research done across the Baja California Peninsula to help conserve rare plants and animals, including California's red-legged frogs.

Ashley Poust is a post-doctoral researcher at the San Diego Natural History Museum, and he's already been in the newspaper twice this year for discovering two ancient animals. He's modest about it, but he has a really cool job, digging up dinosaur bones, studying fossils and naming animals.

Join William Stout, artist and illustrator, with a specialization in paleontological art, to talk about his long career and getting famous slowly. The span of his work is enormous, both in terms of time, from the sixties to now, and across media: murals, posters, record covers, comics, trading cards—and over 70 movies. He is known for bootleg album covers, such as Who's Zoo, and his cover of Firesign Theatre's In the Next World You're On Your Own. His movie work includes the poster for Wizards and design work for the Conan films and Masters of the Universe. His dinosaurs are everywhere: the San Diego Zoo, the San Diego Natural History Museum, many other museums, traveling exhibitions, and books, such as, Ray Bradbury's Dinosaur Tales, The Little Blue Brontosaurus. A terrific and uplifting episode with a hard-working creative individual whose work has touched and influenced many. With co-host Bill Aho.Some places to see Bill Stout this year:https://www.comic-con.org/ccihttps://www.dragoncon.org/Bill's website:https://www.williamstout.com/Thoughts? Comments? Potshots? Contact the show at:https://www.discreetguide.com/podcast-books-shows-tunes-mad-acts/Follow or like us on podomatic.com (it raises our visibility :)https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/books-shows-tunes-mad-actsSupport us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/discreetguideJennifer on Twitter:@DiscreetGuideJennifer on LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferkcrittenden/Discreet Guide Training:https://training.discreetguide.com/

Usually, I struggle when I write these. To start with, I'm not a writer, but more importantly I want each post to convey to you how much I admire the guest I am writing about. Today however, I gained inspiration from my guest, Leah Horstman. Leah is someone I have followed on Instagram for a long time, and a prime example of when Instagram helps me find new creatives to follow. She was a music photographer whose work I admired, so following her @lah_rockshots accounts was a given, but then the unexpected happened. I saw her @lahorstman account that focuses on her landscape and commercial work. I want to talk about something Leah said to me that reminded me of something I mention on this show a lot, but let's back up first. Leah Horstman learned to love photography from her father, who was an avid travel photographer, and who gave her a Minolta XRT101 at age 14. She studied photography in High School, and had a photo of Half Dome published in 1980. After college things changed. Leah traded the photographer life for horses. She competed in the event of "Cutting", and even won a few world titles. Unfortunately, due to an illness, that life came to an end too. But, as he had done years before, Leah's dad once again suggested that she pick up a camera. I think her dad might have known how good she was, because just a few years later Leah entered the Nature Conservancy's Annual Photo Contest - along with over 17,000 others that year. Her image “Xmas on the Merced” won the grand prize, and was named their “photo of the year”. That image went on to hang in the San Diego Natural History Museum too. It seems that Leah was destined to get a lot of these awards. In 2018 National Geographic emailed her to say they were interested in her image of a longhorn steer in Gainesville TX titled “Quintessential Texas”. Seems they were working on an article about the history of Texas and felt this image would make a great addition to the piece. Her image “Ice Climber” won the International SD Photo exhibition's Best of Show in 2019, and recently she was published in the Harper Collin's pocket book, “Canada”. Leah's day job is working for Professionals Choice, a company that manufactures horse products. Her years of riding gives her a unique eye for the timing and composition needed for horse events. This is where her love of these two worlds collide, and while her horse riding competition days may be in the past, she was recently asked by 37X World Champion Bob Avila to take the portrait of him that is now hanging in the AQHA Hall of Fame for his 2021 induction. It's almost as though life guides us to where we belong. Her commercial work has led to her working with "Buggy Whip", which still requires timing, but for dune buggies instead of horses. That connection led to her working with NASCAR driver Kyle Bush. Leah's path through photography is exactly as we often hear it described... do the work, and make the relationships. Be the person clients know they can call on and trust, and the the work will find you. Speaking of relationships, I mentioned that I originally found Leah because of her music photography. That came about because of someone she was dating that was in a band. And this brings us to that thing Leah said to me that I mentioned above. While picking the image for this episode we were mostly looking at her horse images when Leah said she had an idea. She suggested we could touch on "not being afraid of shooting iconic spots... just do[ing] it in your own style and put[ting] your own twist on it". That resonated with me. If you have listened to Behind the Shot for any length of time you might have heard me use the phrase "photographic voice", or "creative voice" for those in areas other than photography. I firmly believe that when people talk about find their "style" that what they really need is to find their voice. Style, to me at least, leans towards the processing side of creativity.

We have a special episode of Star Warsologies! This episode is our "Science of Star Wars" panel at San Diego Comic-Con: Special Edition, from November 27, 2021.   Our "Science of Star Wars" panel at Comic-Con: Special Edition 2021 had several awesome guests! Fon Davis (creative director, Fonco Studios) shared behind-the-scenes knowledge from working on over 40 feature films, including the Star Wars prequels. Scientists included Lisa M. Will, PhD (astrophysics professor, San Diego City College), Frank Santana (herpetologist, San Diego Natural History Museum), Amit K. Patel, PhD (ophthalmologist, University of California San Diego), and Melissa Miller (science writer, Star Wars Insider magazine, Nerdist). The panel was moderated by James Floyd (freelance writer, Star Wars Insider and podcast host, Star Warsologies) and sponsored by the Fleet Science Center.   In Star Warsologies, hosts James Floyd and Melissa Miller combine their love of Star Wars with their keen interest in all things academic by asking experts about how their field is represented in a galaxy far, far away. It's a monthly podcast about science and Star Wars!   Or watch on YouTube with the relevant slides from our panel and other photos!   https://youtu.be/5mgN8Bg2Nks   Show Links   Our panelists and where to find them on social media: Fon Davis, Fonco Studios - @fonhdavis on Twitter and @fonhdavis on Instagram Lisa Will, PhD, astrophysics professor - @dustchick on Twitter. She was also a guest on Star Warsologies episode 9: Astronomy Frank Santana, herpetologist - @bobafrank on Instagram Amit K. Patel, PhD, ophthalmologist   Got follow up questions for us or a suggestion for an -ology or expert? Email us at starwarsologies@gmail.com   Subscribe and never miss an episode of Star Warsologies on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get podcasts.   Follow the podcast on Instagram and Twitter.    Did you miss an earlier episode? Catch up here!         Interested in more Star Warsologies?  

Today we have an interview with Dr. Iris H. W. Engstrand. is a native Californian and indispensable historian of Southern California . Engstrand’s academic honors include USD’s distinguished University Professorship; the Davies Award for Faculty Achievement; Awards of Merit from the San Diego, Southern California, and California Historical Societies, Western History Association, and Orange Coast College; fellowships from the Fulbright Commission, American Philosophical Society and Huntington Library; and the California Design Award in Historic Preservation. She is a trustee of the San Diego Natural History Museum and the San Diego Maritime Museum, past president of the American Historical Association Pacific Coast Branch and of the Western History Association. Engstrand has lived and traveled extensively in Spain and Mexico and lectures widely in both English and Spanish. She has degrees in history, with maors and minors in the fields of California, Mexico, Latin America and the Spanish Southwest history, biology and Spanish Engstrand has recently been awarded the prestigious medal of the Order of Isabel la Catolica (Isabel the Catholic -- ruler of Spain in 1492) by Juan Carlos, King of Spain, for outstanding contributions to the history of Spain in the Americas. Our Patreon Page

Skip the Queue is brought to you by Rubber Cheese, a digital agency that builds remarkable systems and websites for attractions that helps them increase their visitor numbers. Your host is  Kelly Molson, MD of Rubber Cheese.Download our free ebook The Ultimate Guide to Doubling Your Visitor NumbersIf you like what you hear, you can subscribe on iTunes, Spotify, and all the usual channels by searching Skip the Queue or visit our website rubbercheese.com/podcastIf you've enjoyed this podcast, please leave us a five star review, it really helps others find us. And remember to follow us on Twitter for your chance to win the books that have been mentioned in this episode.Competition ends August  27th 2021. The winner will be contacted via Twitter. Show references:https://museumofus.org/https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-haddan-88a7ba93/ James Haddan has been a resident of San Diego since 1998, and has worked in the museum field for almost two decades. As the Senior Director of Development and External Communications at the Museum of Us (formerly the San Diego Museum of Man), he is responsible for building a community of support for the institution. Recently, he and Museum CEO, Micah Parzen, led the effort to publicly launch the Museum’s new name, which embraces a more equitable and accessible identity dedicated to anti-racism and decolonizing work. Mr. Haddan holds both a Bachelor of Environmental Design and Master of Arts in Anthropology from Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas. His graduate work was associated with the Institute of Nautical Archaeology and included underwater archaeology fieldwork at the 17th-century port city of Port Royal, Jamaica. Transcription:Kelly Molson: Welcome to Skip the Queue, a podcast for people working in or working with visitor attractions. I'm your host, Kelly Molson. Each episode, I speak with industry experts from the attractions world. In today's episode, I speak with James Haddan, Senior Director of Development and External Communications at the Museum of Us in San Diego. We discuss the multifaceted process of decolonization and the process of changing the museum's 40-year-old name. If you like what you hear, you can subscribe on all the usual channels by searching Skip the Queue.Kelly Molson: James, it is absolutely lovely to have you on the podcast today. Thank you for joining me. James Haddan: Well, thank you, Kelly, for having me. I'm really looking forward to our chat.Kelly Molson: So am I. But first, icebreaker questions, as always. James, I know that you're a regular listener to the podcast, so you kind of know what's in store for you. What talent would you most like to grow and develop?James Haddan: I would really like to improve my ability with languages. That's something that I've tried over time and have not been really very good at keeping up and someday, in retirement, I'd love to live abroad, and so I really feel like I don't want to be one of those Americans living in a country that refuses to speak any other language but English. And so, I'd like to work on that.Kelly Molson: Yeah. I always say.. Yeah. It's that Brit abroad. For us, I always call it that Brit abroad thing where you go, okay, well, I'm going to go and retire to Spain, but I'm never going to learn a single word of Spanish. I'm just going to speak English the whole time there, so yeah. It's not the right thing to do. What language? What have you tried, or what would you like to learn?James Haddan: So, I did kind of that requisite year or two of high school French in the United States, which I didn't really learn much of anything. In college, I studied German, and in my graduate program, we actually were required to be able to translate in a foreign language. So, I actually, for a period of time, could read German. It wasn't a conversational knowledge of the language, but I could translate it. The German has left me, basically. James Haddan: So what I've been working on now, and I just started it in the pandemic, and please don't ask me to show it off because I'm not ready for that. I'm trying to learn some Portuguese. I really love Portugal. But Portuguese, the pronunciation is really difficult for me. I don't find it natural at all. Kelly Molson: Okay. It's interesting you mention German, actually, because we did French and German at school. And you could choose which one you went on and did for your GCSEs. And I chose German because it was the easier language because it was quite masculine.James Haddan: Mm-hmm (affirmative).Kelly Molson: It felt more similar to the British language. James Haddan: Yes.Kelly Molson: And so I found it easier to say. And that's why I went with German. But it has left me as well. I've been on the Duolingo app. I started doing Duolingo and learning in Spanish in lockdown. And I've been really consistent, so I've done it every day. I think I'm on a 190 day streak at the moment.James Haddan: I am on 390 of a streak of Portuguese.Kelly Molson: Whoa. We should hook up on there. I'll find you.James Haddan: I have been amazed at myself, but it does make it easy. It's not a long period of time, and I do feel like it's okay for me to pick it up for 10 minutes and it's-Kelly Molson: Yeah. I love that. Oh good. Okay. Well, I will find you on there and we'll hook up and we'll spur each other on to learn our languages. Okay, next one. What's the worst movie that you've ever watched?James Haddan: I will say, it's the worst in some ways, but I love it. It's one of those movies that I love but it... It's that Flash Gordon that was done in the eighties, I think. Kelly Molson: Film.James Haddan: And I really love the movie, but it was.Kelly Molson: It's not aged well.James Haddan: Yeah. But I loved it. But I kind of loved hated it, yeah.Kelly Molson: So, that's one of those movies, it's so bad it's good.James Haddan: Yes.Kelly Molson: Yeah. I love Flash Gordon. I think that's a great film. I might, I need to watch that now. Okay. Next one. If you could be in the Guinness World of Records, what record-breaking feat would you attempt?James Haddan: Oh. That's really a tough one. It would have to do with travel. I think it would be places visited or something... I know that's really kind of tough to do, but I'm really obsessed with travel and so, it would be something having to do with travel.Kelly Molson: All right. That's cool. I was thinking of something eating for me.James Haddan: Well, and that was my kind of backup one, that I almost said, was around pasta. Because, but then I think of, oh, the process of eating it for those eating challenges always seems so awful, and it would probably make me not ever want to eat pasta again. And so, that's why I switched over, but I also had an initial urge to choose eating pasta, or some kind of Italian food.Kelly Molson: A couple of years ago, my agency, Rubber Cheese, we did a big year-long charity fundraiser, and one of the challenges that we did was to try and break the world record for eating a can of cheddar cheese Pringles in the fastest amount of time. And we did break the world record for that. Not myself, personally, I was dreadful at it, but I have never eaten a cheese Pringle ever since. Ruined cheese Pringles for me for life, so. All right, James. What is your unpopular opinion?James Haddan: So, my unpopular opinion, which will be more unpopular in the United States probably than in the UK is that our crispy bacon is an abomination. Our idea of taking streaky bacon and essentially nuking it until it's just a piece of ash is horrible. I just don't understand why we insist on doing that to bacon. It seems like such a bad thing to do for lovely pigs who gave their lives for this delicious meat and we just shouldn't do that to bacon.Kelly Molson: I'm with you. I don't understand that. The whole making it, it shouldn't be rock hard, should it? James Haddan: Yeah.Kelly Molson: That's not nice. James Haddan: Yeah. It shouldn't shatter when you go in to bite it. And so I find when I'm in England, I have a much better experience with bacon because they don't assume that I want it... Well, sometimes because if they hear me speak and know I'm American, assume that I want it that way, but. It's like no, just prepare it the way you would normally prepare it. Kelly Molson: All right. Come to the UK, it's all about the good bacon. James Haddan: Yes.Kelly Molson: Selling the UK well.James Haddan: A bacon sandwich in the Uk is a wonderful thing.Kelly Molson: Completely agree with you on that one, James. Right. Let's get into the good stuff.James Haddan: Okay.Kelly Molson: So, James, you are, currently, Senior Director of Development and External Communications at the Museum of US in San Diego. Tell us a little bit about your career. How did you get to that point?James Haddan: So, it's been a long and varied route. And so I'll try to do the CliffsNotes version of it. But I kind of wanted to start off by saying I was one of those students growing up that loved so many different things to study. I loved architecture, I loved art, I loved the built environment, I loved archaeology. And so I was one of those students, I couldn't quite figure out what I wanted to do when I went to college, but I felt like I needed to make a decision and I started right away with aerospace engineering and immediately in the first week or two of that, said, no, this isn't going to be a good idea. Changed my major very quickly to architecture. James Haddan: And so, I did a bachelor's degree in... I went to Texas A&M and their program was a four-year undergraduate degree called environmental design, which then moved to a master's degree in architecture. And, so I did and completed the four years Bachelor of Environmental Design degree and I really loved that degree. But at the end of it, I realized that I would be a very mediocre architect and the world didn't need another mediocre architect. And so I was at a crossroads, I didn't know what to do. I wasn't very employable with that degree and so, like many people will do, oh, I'll just get a master's degree. James Haddan: And I really loved archaeology. And so I decided I would get a Master's degree in Anthropology, specialisation in Archeology. Again, I'm sure my parents and family were like, that's not a great decision in the job field. And so, why are you doing that? But I followed my heart and I was glad that I did that and in my anthropology program, my archaeology program, I worked with the Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M, which is very famous, and did my fieldwork in Port Royal, Jamaica, which is a 17th century English port city that sank into what is now Kingston Harbour. And our program had been excavating there for about 10 years. So, really, very interesting work that I really loved doing. But I also, in that process, decided that a PhD and an academic life for me in archaeology or anthropology also wasn't really meant for me. James Haddan: And while I was doing my graduate work, I was invited to be a graduate assistant at an art gallery on campus. And the curator of the gallery wanted a graduate assistant who had really good research skills and also had good design skills. And he said "I would love an architecture student, but they just don't have time, and especially in their master's program, to work away from the studio. And I would love an anthropology student because they're really great at research, but they don't have any design background." So he kind of reached out to both departments. Well, both departments knew me and said oh, we have the unicorn for you.Kelly Molson: The perfect fit.James Haddan: The perfect fit. And so, I went over and I met with him and he was delighted and I started and that's where I started to realise that a role for myself in a museum was possible. That I had some really good skills that would work in the field. So that kind of lit the fire for me with the professional idea that I could work in museums. So, when I finished graduate school, I had moved to Phoenix to be with my partner, who had finished his graduate program a little earlier and already had a job. He was an engineer. He had a sensible job. James Haddan: And we moved to Phoenix and I was hired by the Arizona Historical Society to head an exhibits project that they were doing. They were opening a new museum. And I worked for them for about five and a half years and it was a really invaluable experience. I was very young and I didn't realize at the time the kind of amount of responsibility I was given. But people had just given me a lot to do and project manage and deal with grants and all kinds of things. Really, really gave me a great foundation to work in the museum field. Great job. James Haddan: I didn't really want to spend the rest of my life in Phoenix. And I had occasionally come to San Diego on holiday as many people in Phoenix do. It's hot in the desert and you drive six hours and you're by the seaside, and it's a very Mediterranean lovely climate. So I wanted to move to San Diego. So I just quit my job. I moved to San Diego. My partner, by that time, was my ex-partner. He had a spare room and he very graciously said you can stay with me rent-free. And so I loaded up, I moved to San Diego, and I got a job at the San Diego Natural History Museum as their Director of Membership. James Haddan: There's a long story about that, but I won't bore you about that. So, I was hired there and that was my first kind of work in the development realm. And my boss there, whose name was Anne Laden, and she was an amazing fundraiser and an amazing mentor. And she taught me so much. And I was there about four years and just kind of soaked in everything that she was doing. She was running this 30 million dollar capital campaign to build a new wing, and I just kind of soaked all of that up.James Haddan: I took a little detour after that. I decided I wanted to try something outside the nonprofit realm. I worked in healthcare for nine years, which taught me that I really wanted to be back in museums. And when I made that decision, the very day that I made the decision that I wanted to get back into the museum field, I started looking online for jobs. I looked at, what then was the San Diego Museum of Man, which is an anthropology museum, and that was my field of graduate study. And I had been to the museum but the kind of the old version of the museum wasn't very exciting for me. But I thought well, I'll see if they have a job. James Haddan: Well, they had a development manager job. And so I thought, I'll give it a try. I sent in my materials, and they called me right away and interviewed me. And in that studying up for the interview process, getting to know the museum actually before my interview, I realised that the museum was in a whole new direction from what it was. So suddenly, I was really excited and thought, oh, this will be a really wonderful place to work and I hope I get this job. And I got the job. And then, I've been at the museum since 2013, and my role has grown over time. And so, now I'm heading the department that I first started in. Kelly Molson: I love hearing how people's careers are so squiggly. James Haddan: Yes.Kelly Molson: There's a great podcast in the UK called Squiggly Careers. I think it's Helen Tupper that is the host of it. And it is fabulous. And it is all about these kinds of weird little directions that we take, that brings us to the perfect place. James Haddan: Yes.Kelly Molson: Now, this is what I want to talk about. So, you mentioned earlier that the museum was known as the San Diego Museum of Man. And I think that was, it had been named that for over 40 years-James Haddan: Yes.Kelly Molson: So it's a really long time. But now it's called the Museum of Us. What is it that prompted that change and how has this come about, that the museum has changed? Because there's quite a big story to this that I want to delve a little bit deeper into.James Haddan: Sure. So it's really interesting. We've done a bit of digging on the history of the name. First of all, the museum was founded in 1915 for the California Panama Exposition. We're located in Balboa Park, which was built for the Exposition. Its original name was not San Diego Museum of Man. It was a very kind of bland name, like California, San Diego Museum Association, or... I'm drawing a bit of a blank on that actually now. But in the forties, it became the Museum of Man and then, later on, San Diego was added to it too. So, it had that name for quite a bit of time and was very, that name, when you came to the museum, it was one of those anthropology museums that you expect to see of that time period. It was about ancient civilisations. Come see the exhibit on the Maya, come see an exhibit on ancient Egypt. James Haddan: Over time, and especially kind of beginning in the seventies, but you see it also in the eighties, there started to be a lot of kind of rumbling in the community about the name. And really, a lot of this was tied to kind of the Equal Right Amendment. Things that were going on at the same time in the United States about language and how our language tends to be very patriarchal and the use of man in that sense of it being humanity. It's really an old use of the word, which really wasn't used anymore in everyday speech. Academics might use it, but in everyday speech, it wasn't. James Haddan: And so, really in the late eighties, early nineties, there was even kind of petition drives that were submitted to the museum and said, "Please consider changing your name. We don't feel welcome with that name.Kelly Molson: Right.James Haddan: It sounds very patriarchal name, a very sexist name, and so please change it." And there were... Actually, the board considered it. At that time, there was a formal kind of membership that had to review those kinds of things. I think there was a vote that said, no, we're not going to change our name. But really, beginning in the nineties, there was a lot of talk about changing our name. And so that's when it really started. James Haddan: And so, in the last 10 years, when we really began changing what we do as a museum, which I think we'll probably talk about in a bit, we also really realised that that old name, the San Diego Museum of Man, didn't fit with what work the museum was doing now. There was really a brand disconnect.Kelly Molson: Okay. Cool. So, one of the things I want to talk about today, and I think it's a really interesting subject, but it's also quite a challenging subject to talk about and discuss about what, the changes that you've made. But it's about the decolonisation initiatives that you've run. Can you tell us when that started and what you've done to kind of facilitate that happening?James Haddan: Sure. Well, it's a very long process and it will be an ongoing process for decades. I mean, you don't decolonise a 100 plus year institution, and museums are, in many ways, deeply colonial structures, as institutions. So you just don't magically undo that. But I always look at, a turning point really for me in decolonising work was, we were talking about it, as I said, I've been here since 2013, and we were talking about it when I started. And I'm sure even before then. James Haddan: Our director came in 10 years ago, Micah Parzen. And so this has been an interest of his for a long time. But really in 2017, we submitted a grant request to IMLS, which is the Institute of Museum and Library Services in the United States. It's a government agency. And we submitted a very large grant to formally start decolonizing practices at the museum. So $300,000 plus grant, and we were awarded it. The review committee was really thrilled to see the museum really want to tackle this in a formal kind of way. And it was essentially a pilot project for us to start working with the Kumeyaay community. James Haddan: And the museum and San Diego, we're all located on Kumeyaay land. This whole land that was settled by Spanish and American settlers was the home of the Kumeyaay and continues to be the home of the Kumeyaay. And so there is a long history there. The cultural materials that we have, much of them are Kumeyaay materials. And so this grant really started that process for us to start building a relationship with the Kumeyaay community about the materials that we hold and to start really consulting with them in ways.James Haddan: And I'll talk, I'll really point to two pieces of really policy decisions that we made about the same time or as this process had gone. The first one was a policy on human remains, where the board formally decided that we would not exhibit human remains without the consent of descendant communities. So we pulled any human remains that we had on display. And so that was one of the first steps.James Haddan: The second step, which is even a bigger step, is called the colonial pathways policy. And what that, in a nutshell, it's a long policy, but what it does is it says that we will be consulting with descendant communities to see what materials that we should continue to hold. So, if materials came into our holdings through any kind of colonial path, we will return those to the descendant communities. And that's a big deal in the museum world. James Haddan: And so, those were some of the two key kinds of pieces of work. Now, since that time, the decolonizing efforts have expanded in every department, including my development department. We are finding ways to move forward in ways that embrace a decolonial paradigm to the work that we are doing. So, it's an ongoing process, but I really look to that IMLS grant as one of the first steps and then those two policy decisions that our board, and I can't kind of give enough kudos to our board for really taking a lead on that. And so, a lot of work had to be done building a board that was ready to make those kinds of decisions.Kelly Molson: How did you go about engaging with the community to do this? Because it's fabulous that those steps were taken. Absolutely the right thing to do. How do you then put that into practice? How do you engage with the community to understand what they want you to do? James Haddan: That's a great question. There are a lot of different layers to that. So, one of the key parts of that is to start having Indigenous and Native American people in the decision making positions on your staff. And so, for example, we have a Director of Decolonizing Initiatives, whose name is Brandie MacDonald and she's Choctaw and Chickasaw, and she's part of the four-member kind of senior executive team of the museum. So she is right in there with all the keys decisions being made at the museum.James Haddan: There's also a past history of the museum with the Kumeyaay community that wasn't a good one. I mean, the Kumeyaay community looked at the museum, rightly so, as an organisation that had their cultural patrimony and shouldn't have it and displayed it in ways that they weren't happy about. So, we needed to start truth-telling about that in the exhibits that we have and we also needed to apologise for that. James Haddan: And so our senior, our director, our deputy director, really our CEO and our Deputy Director went and have apologised for what we have done in the past and have really committed to changing those practices, but not surprisingly, those kinds of things are looked upon with a great deal of scepticism. So, it takes action to start building trust. And so, we're still building trust, but we've started. And we're making progress.Kelly Molson: That's wonderful. And like you say, it's not a quick fix, is it? It's something that going to progress and change over time. How granular do you look at those decisions that you're making now? In terms of, for instance, if there's a new exhibit that you'd like to showcase, do you consult with the community before that happens to make sure that they're happy for you to exhibit those artefacts? How detailed do you go? James Haddan: So that's really interesting because we've done a couple kind of pilots and tests, some kind of small work. For example, with our existing Kumeyaay exhibit, we were partially closed because of a seismic retrofit to our California tower, which is a very famous icon, and during that time, we had to close our Kumeyaay exhibit. And so we thought, this is a perfect time to kind of consult with the Kumeyaay community, which we were already doing, and at least ask what shouldn't be on display. What should we at least take off of display that you don't want us to? So, that gave us kind of the first taste of what do we do, and at least make this exhibit that is decades old less problematic. It still needs to change. James Haddan: But also during that process, and during this first IMLS grant, we were really working with the Kumeyaay and finding out, well, what did they want us to do next? What do they see this museum helping kind of elevate their voice? And they said you need a new Kumeyaay exhibit. You are not talking about us in the way that we want to be presented to the world, and not surprisingly, you don't know anything about us. You are white scholars who aren't Kumeyaay. James Haddan: And so, we just, in this last year, received a second grant from IMLS to actually work on the new Kumeyaay exhibit. And so we're really going to be trying to figure that out because it's that whole process because we want it to be a community-driven exhibit. We want the Kumeyaay community to tell us how their story should be told and to be a part of that. And not just consulting occasionally, but to be with it every step of the way. What's on display, what's on the design, where does it go in the exhibit, in the museum, all of those kinds of things. James Haddan: And so, when I say our decolonising work is a process, it's a process. And sometimes it's messy and we make mistakes. But we're trying to learn how to do it correctly. And so we're still in that process.Kelly Molson: And what's the reaction been from the Kumeyaay community? And then also, other communities that would visit the museum. How have people responded to the changes that you've made?James Haddan: So, I don't know and I wouldn't want to speak for the Kumeyaay on what their impression is of what our work is. From what I see with the partnerships that we've been building through our IMLS work, there's also NAGPRA work, which is another government type of work about the repatriation of ancestors and associated grave goods. It feels like trust is building and so I think that that means that, or is an indicator that there is some happiness about the work that's going. But I don't want to speak for them in any way. James Haddan: I will give one example that I feel shows, it really kind of impacted staff quite a bit. So, we had a visitor to the museum from the Maasai community, an ambassador from the Maasai community, and he was visiting and there was contact between our cultural resources staff and he wanted to come to see what we might have from his community. And so he can in and our staff pulled everything that we, as far as we knew, were Maasai materials. James Haddan: And the first question that we asked him was, should we have these? Should we even have these and should we be stewarding these for your community? And he said, "Yes, it's fine for you to have these. There's nothing that you have in your holdings here that you shouldn't have. But what you should be doing is caring for them differently."James Haddan: We use this very western, European sort of approach to stewarding materials. And so we wrap things in acid-free materials or sometimes different kinds of plastics, and I'm probably using the wrong terms, I'm not a conservator. But he said... And there was specifically a spear that he was looking at. And he said, "You really need to be rubbing this with lamb's fat, for example. And it's dead the way you're taking care of it. It can't live this way."James Haddan: And so, we started following the cultural care practices that he asked for us to do. And it's amazing how that spear changed. Suddenly, it shines in a different way. And it does feel like it's alive again. And so, from those kinds of reactions, it feels like we're on the right track and that we're doing the right thing morally.Kelly Molson: There's so many layers to that, isn't there?James Haddan: Mm-hmm (affirmative).Kelly Molson: When you start to engage with the community where these items have come from. You would never have known that at all about that artefact. James Haddan: Yeah.Kelly Molson: You would never, you wouldn't have read about that anywhere unless that man had told you about it. James Haddan: Yes.Kelly Molson: It's fascinating.James Haddan: And then it also means that I think that if we at some point in time, put that item on display, then also we have a contact who we can talk to and say, how should it be displayed? What story should we tell about this item? And then we can also feel good about it being on display and not feel like we are doing harm or causing trauma to a community by putting it on display.Kelly Molson: So how does this, if we just take a step back and go back to the name change, how have those things run in parallel with each other because they are intertwined, aren't they?James Haddan: They are very much intertwined. And I think we started kind of again, bringing up this idea of a name change two years, in 2018, we actually hired a firm to help us kind of start navigating the process around a name change. To have us kind of start testing names and all of those kinds of activities. We wanted to engage stakeholders with a name and no one was kind of sure what a name should, nobody had any name that just popped to their minds that seemed like a good one. James Haddan: But we knew we wanted to change our name. Also in those discussions, it was interesting because we were kind of told, don't change your name though, until your name, your name or your brand, until the experience in the museum is much different. You don't want there to be a disconnect between having a new name and then the visitor experience be very much different, not be very much different. James Haddan: And so in the back of our minds, we kept thinking, okay, well, at some point, we want to do this multimillion-dollar capital campaign and completely reimagine the visitor experience to the museum. And we had engaged this firm to help us start planning for that and had some really exciting plans around that. We still do. But it will cost a lot of money to make happen and that kind of capital campaign will take some years. We're not quite ready to do that yet. James Haddan: And so when we were thinking about changing our name, we kept thinking, okay, well, we've now gone out to the communities starting in 2018 saying we want to change our name but we're not quite ready to have a whole new visitor experience. How are we going to time this? This is really, this is hard to do and we, by that point in time, we had it kind of narrowed down to three names that we were thinking about. And then, the pandemic happened.James Haddan: Be honest, was part of the thing and I think, like many institutions, we started looking at ourselves and saying, how do we come out of this as a better version of ourselves? What can we learn from this time to make ourselves better? And we did a lot of self-examination and we realized that as an institution, we were already so much different than what we were 10 years ago, we were embracing and really doing all this decolonizing work. We have an exhibit called Race: Are We So Different? where we really tackle that whole idea about systemic racism and white privilege and all of those kinds of things. And that had become the centre point of our education programs. James Haddan: And so we're doing all this antiracism work. We were doing this decolonizing work. We were doing much more work in the social justice sphere. And we were doing, in the kind of traditional collecting of artefacts and showing artefacts from ancient civilizations. And that old name is associated with those old activities. Kelly Molson: Mm-hmm (affirmative).James Haddan: And we really realised that the old name didn't match what we were doing now. And it was causing a disconnect for people coming in. You come in with that old name and you start seeing, even though we still have some exhibits that are older, but we have new exhibits as well. So there's kind of a mixture. So there's a bit of a disconnect there. And we suddenly realised that no, we really needed to change our name. We had outgrown that old name. Or maybe that not the right word, but we weren't in the same place as that old name was. And we really needed to change the name to be in line with the work that we were doing now.Kelly Molson: Yeah. Even though, in the sense of the visitor experience, it hasn't changed that much in terms of how you walk around the building. James Haddan: Yeah.Kelly Molson: Actually, the initiatives that you have are so different from what they used to be-James Haddan: Yes.Kelly Molson: It was the right time to make that change. It's interesting, isn't it? That the pandemic has kind of, one of the positives of it is that it's given people a little bit of time to sit back and kind of be static and look at what's already been achieved up until this point.James Haddan: Yeah, and I think it also gave us permission... In our mind, we couldn't launch a new name without spending a huge amount of money and having everything, every sign redone, and every graphic, a whole new website, and all of those kinds of things. And so then when you think about well, oh, that's going to cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, to make that a reality. James Haddan: Suddenly we realised during the pandemic, people are probably going to forgive us if we don't do it in that way right now. Kelly Molson: Yeah.James Haddan: And so, there's actually now, our team was much reduced because of the pandemic. And so, now, I oversee development and marketing and I think the staff had previously been say, eight, it depends how you count them. And now there's two of us. Kelly Molson: Gosh.James Haddan: So there's me and Kelsey Pickert, who is just the greatest partner to have, in crime, so to speak. And we made it happen. We worked with a wonderful graphic designer named Helen Good, who had worked with us in the past, when we had been kind of working with stakeholder groups about the museum and things. And we contracted with her and we figured out a way to launch a new name and new brand. It's a transitional brand right now because we wanted to kind of let the community get used to fact that the old name is going away. But we did the first round in six weeks. Kelly Molson: Wow.James Haddan: Yeah. The board voted to change the name at the end of June 2020. That's when they officially picked the new name. And we had graphics ready to go. We had hoped that we might be able to reopen in July, so we'd kind of given ourselves a July deadline to kind of launch it. And we were ready to go, but we weren't allowed to reopen at that period in time and so we just kind of waited for a bit. And then months went by, and we weren't sure when we were going to be able to reopen. And we weren't sure when should we announce the new name and we finally just decided to do it in August, even though we weren't reopened. James Haddan: So we announced the name on August 2. The new name and had a front-page local news story about it. It ended up being picked up all over the world. The story went all over the world, the name change. And so then we had a brief reopening in September with the new name.James Haddan: It's interesting because we just installed the permanent sign on the exterior of the building in December and when we posted that on social media, I think it suddenly sunk into many people that we were serious, that the name really changed. Because people, all of a sudden, you changed your name. Well, yes, months ago. Kelly Molson: I can't believe how much you achieved in such a short space of time. I'm laughing because having worked with cultural organisations before, we all know that things do take an awful lot of time to get signed off. So that's a massive achievement.James Haddan: Yeah.Kelly Molson: With a team of two and your graphic designer. So, yeah. Hats off to you. I'd like to ask, there will be, in the UK no doubt, and I know this podcast gets listened to all over the world, thank you, listeners, there'll be other museums that will be thinking about this or starting this process or trying to understand how they start this process. What would be your best advice to those museums that are considering going down this path? James Haddan: So, I think one obvious one is for it not to be performative. For people to really think it through and to make sure that they are doing internal changes within their organisation because if you haven't started that work internally, the external communities that you start working with can feel that. And understandably don't want to be a part of that kind of tokenised process of being a performative process. James Haddan: They really have to understand that this is something that you're committed too, that's why I mentioned our board and our CEO earlier. This is a leadership shift and change that we have. And there also needs to be changes in leadership. We have a board which is, and I don't have the percentages right in front of me, but I think it's around half of the people of colour and I think more women on the board than men. And we have Native Americans on staff.James Haddan: So you have to start making your institution reflective of your community if you expect to be able to have a conversation and work with the community that you need to work with. And I want to be really clear about saying we still have a lot of work to do in that. We're not where we want to be in that. But I think after a number of years now, at least people are seeing that we're committed to it and that we're making real structural changes. Kelly Molson: Thank you, James. I think this has been such an interesting discussion and I really respect how honest you've been about the process that you've gone through and the changes that you've made, so thank you.Kelly Molson: We always ask our guests about a book that they would recommend. Now it can be a book that you love, it can be a book that's helped shape your career in some way. What have you chosen for us today?James Haddan: So, I have chosen Decolonizing Wealth by Edgar Villanueva. And I think it's a really brilliant book. And it's not a really long read and he writes in a way that really engaging and easy to digest. A lot of really kind of substantial ideas, but around philanthropy and the whole kind of nonprofit sector. And how the colonial paradigm is deeply embedded in that. And that to start making changes in other systems, we're going to have to start making changes there. James Haddan: And he really approaches it from idea of approaching it with an idea around Indigenous healing and how philanthropy, if it changes in certain ways, can be a part of the healing process. And I just think it's a really brilliantly written book and it's in a way that makes you think about those things differently but I think also doesn't scare you. It inspires you but doesn't scare you.James Haddan: I think a lot of these ideas are really scary for people because change can be scary. And so sometimes you need to read about it in ways where you realise that this sort of community healing is good for us all. When we help communities that have suffered and experienced trauma, it helps us all. Kelly Molson: Completely agree. What a perfect book for this podcast. As ever, listeners, if you would like to be with the chance of winning this book if you head over to our Twitter account, and you retweet this episode announcement with the comment, "I want James' book", then you will be in with a chance of winning it. Kelly Molson: James, before we go, I want to just go back, because there was a question that I wanted to ask that I completely missed off. You have reopened now in the US-James Haddan: Yes.Kelly Molson: Which is super exciting. It's really, it's so lovely to hear about positive reopening stories. What's next for the museum in terms of the initiatives that you have running?James Haddan: So our big initiative is really around, I mentioned that even my department, development and marketing, is embracing decolonising strategies. And so we have initiated this program called Membership on Us, which means for the price of a single-day admission, you have a membership to the museum for the rest of the year. James Haddan: And so, for the price of daily admission, you can come back as many times as you want over and over during the year. And we've done away with that traditional membership structure, which is very embedded in this idea of if you can pay more, you receive more benefits, you're treated differently at the museum, all of those kinds of things that are really antithetical to what the Museum of Us, which is about all of us, is about. And we want everyone to have a more equitable way of accessing the work that we do. James Haddan: And so we announced this new program just before we reopened, and we really think that it goes hand in hand with our new name, with the decolonizing work that we're doing and we're really super excited about it. And the response has already been really off the chart, really.Kelly Molson: Oh, that's really excellent to hear. That's really, really excellent to hear. James, thank you. I've really enjoyed this conversation. What I want to know though is next time you're in the UK, are you going to hit me up so that we can go for a bacon sandwich together? James Haddan: I definitely will. Kelly Molson: I'll introduce you to my favourite place to get a good cup of tea. James Haddan: I can't wait.Kelly Molson: James, thank you so much for coming on the podcast. It's been a pleasure. James Haddan: Thank you.Kelly Molson: Thanks for listening to Skip the Queue. If you've enjoyed this podcast, please leave us a five-star review. It really helps us others find us. And remember to follow us on Twitter for your chance to win the books that have been mentioned. Skip the Queue is brought to you by Rubber Cheese, a digital agency that builds remarkable systems and websites for attractions that helps them increase their visitor numbers. You can find show notes and transcriptions from this episode and more over on our website, rubbercheese.com/podcast. 

We welcome Dr. Tom Deméré, the Director of the Department of Paleo Services and curator of Paleontology at the SD Natural History Museum, the NAT. Dr. Deméré has worked as a professional paleontologist since 1974 and has been with the San Diego Natural History Museum since 1979. Since 1994, Tom has served as curator of paleontology and director of PaleoServices at the Museum. Dr. Deméré is the author of numerous scientific and popular articles dealing with the paleontological history of southern California and the evolutionary history of marine mammals.  As director of PaleoServices, Tom has conducted and overseen numerous paleontological resource projects ranging from initial resource assessments, through impact evaluation, to actual impact mitigation. The majority of his work has been with residential and commercial developments within San Diego County, which we will hear a little bit about today's developments in Carlsbad and what has been found.  Contact the NAT SD Natural History Museum https://www.sdnhm.org/  Tom at the museum https://www.sdnhm.org/science/consulting-services/paleo-services/about-us/staff/  Contact The Show Nature All Around Me podcast https://www.natureallaroundme.org/ Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation https://www.aguahedionda.org/ 760-804-1969 Podsafe Music by Geovane Bruno, Tremembé/Brasil https://pixabay.com/users/geovanebruny-19309525/

Los Angeles-based sculptor and jewelry designer Charles Sherman was born in Atlantic City, New Jersey in 1947. His work is informed by a lifelong study of ancient civilizations, world cultures and religions. The forms he creates are minimalist, conceptual and inspired by sacred geometry. His philosophy of life and art has always been the same: to promote the positive. Since 2002 Sherman has investigated sculptural forms that express the concept of infinity, especially the three dimensional Möbius ring and variations of the Tetrahedron form. He works in clay using the most primitive sculpture tools. His ceramic sculptures are hand-built using coil or slab construction. Sometimes he applies glass mosaic to ceramic or wood constructions. Some sculptures are transformed into cast bronze, stainless steel or welded stainless steel. In 2006 he began translating his sculptural forms into sterling silver and gold jewelry designs. Sherman's philosophy of life and art are the same: to promote the positive. His intention is to elevate the spirit of the viewer. The Infinity Ring: My Inspiration and Process The continuum of planes that create my Infinity Ring sculptures and jewelry designs are inspired by the Möbius Strip; a form first formulated by the 19th century German mathematician and astronomer, A. F. Möbius. The Infinity Ring form has no beginning and no end. The bottom side becomes the top side and the inside becomes the outside. Touch any point on the edge with your fingertip and trace its circular form. After completing a few revolutions you'll eventually end up at the point where you first started. The continuum form is also the same principle that Dutch graphic artist M.C. Escher used to explore infinity and the reversal of positive and negative forms in space. The methods by which I construct my ceramic Infinity Ring sculptures were formulated after many years of investigating various processes. After many trials and errors, I have developed several different coil and slab building techniques to create three-dimensional clay continuums. Because the Infinity Ring sculptures sometimes collapse during the building process or implode while being fired in the kiln, their creation is both costly and time consuming. The sculptures are not only innovative and unique, each Infinity Ring is a rare creative achievement. Although my main body of work is ceramic, after experimenting with a variety of materials, I've begun using additional mediums to create the sculptures, including bronze, glass mosaic, aluminum, stainless steel, Lucite, sterling silver, and gold. Each material adds another dimension to the spirit of the ring. The Infinity Ring is more than just a vehicle for me to explore the creative process. My intention with this artistic vision is to reveal personal and universal truths. The Infinity Ring sculptures are where my art and personal spiritual growth interconnect. Each stimulates the other in a continuous process of overcoming artistic challenges and creating inner spiritual growth. The infinity ring form is enigmatic and mysterious, and a form of absolute beauty. Paralleling ancient Feng Shui principles, the never-ending circular nature of the Infinity Ring promotes infinite love, healing, abundance, harmony, and serenity. God is a Verb “Dead Sea Scrolls / Contemporary Art”, San Diego Natural History Museum, San Diego, California

Veronica Murphy is Co-Founder and Artistic Director of Write Out Loud (since 2007). With a passion for promoting literature, she has produced six NEA BIG READ initiatives, 11 literary festivals celebrating 19thcentury literature, history and culture, and conceived and executed a Roald Dahl Centenary Celebration. For the past six years she has coordinated the San Diego Regional Poetry Out Loud competition for this national program. She has an extensive professional resume as a performer, costume designer and development director. Veronica is the 2013 recipient of The Deborah Salzer Excellence in Arts Education Award, a 2015 10News Leadership Award and a California English Teachers Association Award of Merit. She has a BA in Theatre Arts from California State University, San Bernardino. Her most important achievement is raising three amazing sons as a single mother.Larry and Debby Kline are collaborative artists, featured in solo exhibitions at Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts (SF,) California Center for the Arts Museum, La Casa del Tunel Art Center (TJ,) Southwestern College, UCSD Cross Cultural Center, Mesa College and La Jolla Athenaeum. Group exhibitions include Indiana State Museum, Torrance Art Museum and Museum on the Seam (Israel.) We have been featured in periodicals such as Utne and Orion, and books including “The Artists Guide,” and “Design and Ethics: Reflections on Practice.” Awards include three grants from The Gunk Foundation (NY) and grants from Potrero Nuevo Fund (SF,) Center for Cultural Innovation (LA,) UCIRA (SD) and San Diego Art Prize. We were featured in an Emmy Award winning episode of ArtPulse TV and were artists-in-residence at San Diego Natural History Museum, Torrance Art Museum, Center for Land Use Interpretation, Building Bridges Art Exchange and currently UCSD School of Medicine. “Bruce’s Story” is our third illustration project for Write Out Loud San Diego.Chapters is a multi-part Creative + Cultural Podcast series concerning the history and the lessons of civil rights violations or civil liberties injustices carried out against communities or populations—including civil rights violations or civil liberties injustices that are perpetrated on the basis of an individual’s race, national origin, immigration status, religion, gender, or sexual orientation.This project was made possible with support from Chapman University and The California Civil Liberties Public Education Program, a state-funded grant project of the California State Library. Visit chapman.edu and library.ca.gov.Guests: Veronica Murphy and Larry and Debby KlineHosts: Jon-Barrett Ingels and Jonelle Strickland

Dr. Michael Wall, curator of entomology and Vice President of Science and Conservation at the San Diego Natural History Museum, sits down with me to spread a little insect appreciation! This interview was recorded for episode 4 of Device, Ants Ants Revolution. Information on the quino checkerspot butterfly:https://www.sdnhm.org/science/entomology/resources/quino-checkerspot-up-close/https://ecos.fws.gov/ecp0/profile/speciesProfile?sId=5900https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrwxPwwHF7o San Diego bees!https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/environment/sdut-environment-bee-diversity-james-hung-2014jun08-story.htmlhttps://sdnativebees.tumblr.com/https://ucnrs.org/foreign-bees-monopolize-southern-california-flower-resources/San Diego Natural History Museum’s Field Guide and insect ID:https://www.sdnhm.org/entoblog/http://archive.sdnhm.org/fieldguide/inverts/index.html

In "The Poisonwood Bible," author Barbara Kingsolver takes us to 1950s Belgian Congo via the Prices, a missionary family. While this novel is great historical fiction, it’s embellished scientifical fiction when a horde of driver ants attack an African Village. David Holway from UC San Diego gives us the rundown on local ant species while Michael Wall from the San Diego Natural History Museum highlights insect appreciation, something Kingsolver could have been better at.

Reel Science returns with the San Diego Natural History Museum and Digital Gym Cinema pairing sci-fi films with real scientists to put the movie science into a broader context. Whether you want preview of the film series or if you can't make the films but want to watch sci-fi films with some questions to ask you'll want to hear entomologist Michael Wall and cognitive scientist Eric Leonardis dissect "Damnation Alley" and David Cronenberg's "The Fly."

The first episode! Comedian Max Weinstein guides you through the San Diego Natural History Museum first floor with guest host Nelson Lin. Join them for discussions of creepy trailers, wail bones, and bear pussy. 

Happy Thanksgiving! This week the gang visits the San Diego Natural History Museum, aka “The Nat,” for an event that’s all shiny and pretty.   We find out why Bash was in the hospital, hate on the Bette Midler hater, answer some fan questions, and talk about what we are thankful for… or not. We bring back an old segment by listing our regrets, and much, much more. The Band this week is Bash’s new obsession Feenixpawl and their song, “Neon Sky.” Makes you want to go out on a Friday night! Theme music: “Around the Bend” by Evan Schaeffer  http://soundcloud.com/evanschaeffer   The Click: Tony’s and Megans’s Click this week is San Diego’s very own Natural History Museum, “The Nat” https://www.sdnhm.org   Bash’s Click this week is the clothing website SHEIN.   https://us.shein.com

Please welcome our guest for this week’s interview, Jim Cline. Ralph recorded this interview with Jim while on the road. It’s a bit long, but it’s packed full of useful, practical tips, especially if you are interested about Peru.Jim Cline is an award-winning cultural documentary and travel photographer based in San Diego, California. Jim is known for his willingness to shoot all around the edges of light, creating images with tremendous impact that capture the essence of a place or culture. He always strives to transcend ordinary travel pictures, and to convey a strong sense of place, and the spirit of the people in his photographs.Jim’s wanderlust and search for compelling images has brought him to many less-traveled areas around the world. He takes particular interest in the indigenous peoples and traditional and tribal cultures of developing nations, and in documenting these disappearing cultures. Through his images he strives to portray the dignity and timeless beauty of these people living in harmony with nature.As well as winning numerous awards, Jim’s work has been displayed in the San Diego Natural History Museum and the Museum of Photographic Arts, and in many galleries, both in the U.S. and abroad. He gives frequent slide presentation lectures of his travels throughout the world. Jim and his photographs have been featured in several books. His images have also been published in numerous magazines, newspapers, annual reports, tourist brochures, calendars, websites, and CD covers. Jim founded Jim Cline Photo Tours in 2002 and he currently leads small-group photo tours to various locations around Latin America.When not busy running his Photo tours business and leading trips to the best photographic locations in Latin America, Jim works on assignment as a photographer for humanitarian organizations. His images have graced the covers of annual reports for groups such as Freedom From Hunger, and have appeared on websites, brochures, postcards and other mediums promoting their efforts around the globe.Duration 1h 13m 8s.Music for this episode: “Zanzibar” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/Links* Website* FacebookPhotos by Jim See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

To hear more episodes from the series The Layman with Jon Gabrus go to http://www.stitcherpremium.com/layman and use promo code LAYMAN at checkout to receive 1-month of our premium service for free!  Michael Wall isn't just Vice President of Research and Public Programs for the San Diego Natural History Museum, he's also the Curator of Entomology. That means when someone in Southern California has a bug question, he's probably getting called. Dr. Wall gave us a behind the scenes tour of his research facilities and showed off an incredibly preserved menagerie of insects and reptiles. We were simultaneously thrilled and creeped out while walking through the world's largest preserved rattlesnake collection. Dr. Wall also showed us a spectrum of insects arranged by how much it hurts when they sting, called the Schmidt Sting Pain Index. Join us backstage at the San Diego Natural History Museum, where they keep the stuff that's too good to show the public!

Controversy has followed the remains of a new species of human, Homo naledi, since it was described in 2015. Buried deep in a South African cave, its primitive features led scientists to believe it was up to three million years old. This week it's been revealed that this estimate was wrong. New dating evidence suggests the skeletons are only 200 000 to 300 000 years old and that means they may have lived alongside other homo species. Previously, humans were thought to have travelled to America via a land bridge between eastern Siberia and modern day Alaska, somewhere between 17 000 - 40 000 years ago when sea levels were lower than they are today. Researchers from the San Diego Natural History Museum now present evidence that suggests this transition could have been much earlier - nearly 100 000 years earlier. Adam talked to Chris Stringer, researcher in human evolution at the Natural History Museum in London, to unpick the evidence. Dark matter is a mystery that has evaded scientists for decades. Now the biggest and most sensitive detector is being built in South Dakota and scientists believe the Lux-Zeppelin experiment will soon be able to detect one of the candidates for dark matter, the elusive particle known as a weakly interacting massive particle (WIMP). Graihagh Jackson got a sneak peak of the key components, including the 'eyes' of the detector, before they're sent off for installation. Adam Rutherford talks to cosmologist Carlos Frenk from the University of Durham and learns of an alternative theory to describe this mysterious dark matter - a whole new dark sector. This sector contains a vast range of different dark particles, from photons to bosons, that could interact with normal particles.

Bradford Hollingsworth of the San Diego Natural History Museum talks about his work managing the wet collections of Reptiles and Amphibians and how his work will help save biodiversity in San Diego and beyond using citizen science and new technology. Thanks to the San Diego Natural History Museum, Cabrillo National Monument Conservancy Producers: Austin Parker, Taylor Parker Host, editor, creator: Austin Parker pelecanus.org

Episode 104: This week's story comes to you from Michael Wall, Curator of Entomology at the San Diego Natural History Museum. That means he's the guy that gets endless texts from his co-workers with blurry photos of insects seeking advice on whether to kill said insect or not. He shared a story on the theme of "Tongues," which was recorded live at Tiger!Tiger! Tavern on 10 May 2016. Enjoy! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 99: Today's story comes to you from Calandra Rothrock. Calandra has been telling stories her whole life; ranging from angsty pre-teen poetry, to angsty college folk music, to less-angsty Shakespeare in the Park. Most Sundays she can be found soothing the beast of her theatrical calling by feeding it a steady diet of the laughter of preschoolers as she appears as Ms. Frizzle at the San Diego Natural History Museum. This story was recorded live at Tiger!Tiger! Tavern on 10 May 2016 when The Narrators took on the theme of "Tongues." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today's story comes from Robert Rutherford. When Robert's not co-hosting The Narrators San Diego, he works as a museum educator and the digital content developer at the San Diego Natural History Museum. Robert's story was recorded live on 8 September 2015 at Tiger!Tiger! Tavern in San Diego, California. The theme of the evening was "Firsts." Our theme music is by our friend Whalehawk (aka the Grammy-nominated musician Jake Sanders). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A love of learning and teaching about pirates inspired UC San Diego’s Mark Hanna to tap the world-renowned Hill Collection of Pacific Voyages, housed in Special Collections & Archives at the UC San Diego Library, to bring history to life in his mobile classroom. Hanna’s students discover the authentic Golden Age of Piracy by reading the Hill Collection log books and other original documents, touring the Real Pirates! exhibit at the San Diego Natural History Museum, and sailing on the Californian at the Maritime Museum of San Diego. Here Be Pirates: The First Citizen Scientists is presented by the UC San Diego Library Channel. Series: "Library Channel" [Humanities] [Show ID: 28213]

A love of learning and teaching about pirates inspired UC San Diego’s Mark Hanna to tap the world-renowned Hill Collection of Pacific Voyages, housed in Special Collections & Archives at the UC San Diego Library, to bring history to life in his mobile classroom. Hanna’s students discover the authentic Golden Age of Piracy by reading the Hill Collection log books and other original documents, touring the Real Pirates! exhibit at the San Diego Natural History Museum, and sailing on the Californian at the Maritime Museum of San Diego. Here Be Pirates: The First Citizen Scientists is presented by the UC San Diego Library Channel. Series: "Library Channel" [Humanities] [Show ID: 28213]