6 episodes
Along The Backbone Dr. Matthew Bonnan, Ph.D.
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- Science
Paleobiologist Dr. Matthew Bonnan explores the evolution of vertebrate anatomy, from bones to brains, through deep time.
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Episode 8: Face the Face
Of all the vertebrate animals, only mammals have muscles of facial expression ... why?
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Episode 7: Hands Down, or, Why Velociraptor Could Not Open Doors
The ability to open doors depends on two things: 1) being able to grip the door handle and 2) being able to rotate the hand so that the door handle turns. Could a hungry Velociraptor turn a door handle to get at you, the delectable human in hiding?
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Episode 6: How the Dentist Came To Be So Important to Mammals
Why don't mammals continuously replace their teeth? The answer may surprise you.
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Episode 5: Elephants, Cats, and Ticking Clocks
Having upright limbs has advantages for mammals. And you probably want to know about how an elephant almost made Dr. Bonnan thinner.
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Episode 4: A Brief History of Meat
Many of us enjoy eating meat, but few of us pause to think about how important its pre-meal form, skeletal muscle, is for vertebrate life.
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Episode 3: How Do You Make a Snake?
It seems only fitting that a podcast series called Along the Backbone should discuss the formation of the backbone in one of lengthiest vertebrates: snakes.