Episode 1 - "Carbon and Memes‪"‬ Receding Horizons

Episode Notes
This is Receding Horizons, Episode 1, where we talk about biology, the science of life, both on Earth and in the realm of the cosmos. We also talk about dinosaurs.

Our guest in this episode is Andrew Maurer. Andrew has a bachelor of science in biology from the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, received in 2016. His research interests span comparative herpetological phylogenetics and paleobiological studies, as well as genomic mapping and comprehensive studies in Aves, Lissamphibia, and Squamata. He is currently a data entry worker at MicroGenDX in Lubbock, TX. Previously, he's been a shift lead and veterinary assistant at Banfield Pet Hospital in North Wales, Pennslyvania, and was an intern at the Harleysville Veterinary Clinic.

Recorded on 8 February 2021.

00:00:00 - Introduction
00:01:13 - Andrew Maurer
00:04:22 - Paleobiological detective work
00:12:04 - What's your favorite dinosaur?
00:14:42 - How do you determine past behavior?
00:17:14 - Paleontology and astronomy
00:18:40 - Dinosaur constellations
00:19:53 - Oldest surviving DNA
00:22:26 - Extraterrestrial reptiles
00:23:39 - Yoshi
00:24:45 - The definition of life
00:31:26 - A Prime Directive for humanity
00:37:06 - Why carbon?
00:44:51 - Life on moons
00:47:14 - A forum of scientific discussion
00:51:21 - Memetics
00:57:16 - Replicators
00:59:18 - Not the climax of creation
01:02:53 - Fermi paradox
01:05:52 - Earliest life on Earth
01:08:50 - Photosynthesis
01:10:51 - Nucleosynthesis
01:13:51 - The biomass distribution on Earth
01:21:01 - Extraterrestrial plants
01:27:44 - Cosmological natural selection
01:30:01 - Consciousness and anxiety
01:36:33 - Cosmological metal bands
01:39:15 - The frontiers of science
01:42:27 - Closing remarks
01:46:48 - Outro

Sources:

00:07:51 - Spinosaurus (Credit: M. Bowler, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...)

00:08:06 - Spinosaurus (Credit: M. Witton, https://dinopedia.fandom.com/wiki/Spi...)

00:10:39 - Theropoda (Credit: ABelov2014, C. Homler, E. Willoughby, D. Bogdanov, R. Nicholls, N. Tamura, and K. Rex, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...)

00:11:00 - "Figure 2. Biogenesis and transport of melanosomes in mammalian epidermal melanocytes" (Credit: M. Fukuda, "Organizational Cell Biology", Encyclopedia of Cell Biology, 2016, https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/...)

00:13:01 - Allosaurus (Credit: F. Wierum, http://www.dinochecker.com/gallery/al...)

00:38:32 - The elements of life (Credit: Dana Berry/SkyWorks Digital Inc.; SDSS Collaboration, https://phys.org/news/2017-01-element...)

Check out these awesome paleoartists and wildlife photographers:


ABelov2014, https://www.deviantart.com/abelov2014
Dmitry Bodganov, https://www.deviantart.com/dibgd
Julius T. Csotonyi, https://csotonyi.com/
Michael DiGiorgio, https://www.mdigiorgio.com/
Daniel Eskridge, https://daniel-eskridge.pixels.com/
Robert Nicholls, http://paleocreations.com/
Nobu Tamura, http://spinops.blogspot.com/
Frederic Wierum, https://fredthedinosaurman.artstation...
Emily Willoughby, https://www.emilywilloughby.com/
Mark Witton, http://www.markwitton.com/

Related papers and books:

H. C. Betts, M. N. Puttick, J. W. Clark, T. A. Williams, P. C. J. Donoghue, D. Pisani, "Integrated Genomic and Fossil Evidence Illuminates Life's Early Evolution and Eukaryote Origin", Nature Ecology & Evolution, 2, 1556-1562 (2018), https://www.nature.com/articles/s4155...

J. H. Jiang, A. J. Zhai, J. Herman, C. Zhai, R. Hu, H. Su, V. Natraj, J. Li, F. Xu, and Y. L. Yung, "Using Deep Space Climate Observatory Measurements to Study the Earth as an Exoplanet", The Astronomical Journal, 156:26, 1-17 (2018), https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/aac6e2

D. Lambert, "The Kingfisher Young People's Book of the Universe", Kingfisher, (2001), https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

Q. Li, K.-Q. Gao, J. Vinther, M. D. Shawkey, J.A. Clarke, L. D'Alba, Q. Meng, D. E. G. Briggs, R. O. Prum, "Plumage Color Patterns of an Extinct Dinosaur", Science, Volume 327, Issue 5