41 episodes

No Character Limit is a podcast to thoughtfully explore interesting and diverse topics without the constraints of character limits or the need to always be right. In an age where nuance is lost, anger and outrage are monetized, and entertainment supersedes knowledge, No Character Limit embraces the lost art of research-based longform discussion. An escape from specialization, compartmentalization, and quantification, join host Robert Thuerck as he dares give voice to thoughts across a spectrum of interests, holistic perspectives, and qualitative measures - without sacrificing expert and professional guidance. Are we as a species addicted to fire? Did the moon actually stop a war? Who wins when a magician goes up against a fortune teller? What caused the greatest mass extinction of all time? Find out all of this and more while learning something new - not only about the greater world around us - but hopefully about yourself... when you join in and listen to No Character Limit.

No Character Limit Robert Thuerck

    • Arts
    • 5.0 • 4 Ratings

No Character Limit is a podcast to thoughtfully explore interesting and diverse topics without the constraints of character limits or the need to always be right. In an age where nuance is lost, anger and outrage are monetized, and entertainment supersedes knowledge, No Character Limit embraces the lost art of research-based longform discussion. An escape from specialization, compartmentalization, and quantification, join host Robert Thuerck as he dares give voice to thoughts across a spectrum of interests, holistic perspectives, and qualitative measures - without sacrificing expert and professional guidance. Are we as a species addicted to fire? Did the moon actually stop a war? Who wins when a magician goes up against a fortune teller? What caused the greatest mass extinction of all time? Find out all of this and more while learning something new - not only about the greater world around us - but hopefully about yourself... when you join in and listen to No Character Limit.

    Ultima Thule (Episode 26) - The Big Ones (Parts 3 - 6)

    Ultima Thule (Episode 26) - The Big Ones (Parts 3 - 6)

    In the third installment on some of the largest meteorites to have ever hit Earth we explore some of the larger but lesser-known impacts on the planet. These include the impact sites of Chesapeake, Popigai, Manicouagan, Sudbury, and the largest of them all - Vredefort. We explore which may have been possible multiple-impact events, how they would've affected the world at the time, and how they continue to affect the world today. We go into the crater of one impact site deep underground to one of the most expensive scientific laboratories in the world which we use to study... outer space? (26/29)
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    • 1 hr 14 min
    Ultima Thule (Episode 25) - The Big Ones (Part 2)

    Ultima Thule (Episode 25) - The Big Ones (Part 2)

    In this second episode on some of the biggest meteorites to have ever hit the planet we explore whether or not a large meteorite has ever hit a city. Currently, there are claims that this has happened twice in ancient times - at Tall el-Hammam in Jordan and Ch'ing Yang, China. But the evidence for each are very different. We uncover that the evidence for one of these is completely false and explore the evidence that proves it. We further explore how they connect to an entire network of pseudoscientific actors and their impact on the integrity of science. A must-listen for anyone interested in the importance of science in an age of misinformation and how easily a concerted effort in faking information can get a lot of media attention. (25/29)
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    • 1 hr 1 min
    Ultima Thule (Episode 24) - The Big Ones (Part 1)

    Ultima Thule (Episode 24) - The Big Ones (Part 1)

    This is the first of four episodes dedicated to some of the biggest meteorite impacts in the history of the Earth. Today's episode is dedicated to the most mysterious - the 1908 Tunguska Event. What is actually known about what happened on that June morning in Siberia over a century ago? Where does the baseless speculation end and the evidence begin? In this episode we look at the evidence left behind by the only meteoritics expert who went to investigate - Leonid Kulik - and see what professionals today have to say about the most powerful event in recent history. (24/29)
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    • 55 min
    Ultima Thule (Episode 23) - Cosmic Real Estate (Parts 5 - 7)

    Ultima Thule (Episode 23) - Cosmic Real Estate (Parts 5 - 7)

    In the last episode we explored how much people will pay to possess a meteorite and the wide ranging prices depending on the type of meteorite. But we saved the most valuable meteorites for this episode starting with the pallasite, which can go for hundreds of thousands of dollars for a slice. We learn about the first widely studied pallasite found by Peter Simon Pallas, a brilliant naturalist that does not get the recognition today that he deserves for helping the scientific community understand the natural world. The other valuable meteorites are those from other planets like Mars or even our own Moon. Then we dive into the some of the largest meteorite collections in the world that are worth millions of dollars. Finally, we explore one of the most mysterious meteorite landfalls of the modern world and the unusual situation meteorite hunters found themselves in after traveling to the remote region of Carancas, Peru. Did this meteorite truly make people sick? (23/29)
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    • 1 hr 25 min
    Ultima Thule (Episode 22) - Cosmic Real Estate (Parts 1 - 4)

    Ultima Thule (Episode 22) - Cosmic Real Estate (Parts 1 - 4)

    What happens when a rock from space falls onto our planet of complex property and ownership rights? Is it finders keepers? Is it owned by whose property it lands on? What if it hits you, do you own it? Welcome to the wild world of ownership rights of meteorites. In this episode we learn about some of the most well known meteorite hunters including Mike Farmer, Robert Ward, Darryl Pitt, and Robert Haag who both compete and collaborate with each other. Learn about Ann Hodges who was hit by a meteorite in the 1950s who ended up having to pay money for the meteorite while a nearby farmer sold another piece of the same meteorite for enough money to buy a house and a car. Auction houses like Bonhams and Christie's have documented what people will pay for all kinds of meteorites and in this episode we explore some of the prices different meteorites go for. Finally, can a meteorite be stolen? We follow the histories of two major meteorites - Willamette and Campo Del Cielo - and explore the ethics of claiming a meteorite for yourself. Owning a piece of the heavens is likely more complex than you originally thought. (22/29)
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    • 1 hr 26 min
    Ultima Thule (Episode 21) - Cometary Meteorology

    Ultima Thule (Episode 21) - Cometary Meteorology

    What is a meteor shower and how is it different from the lone fireball streaking across the sky? It turns out that meteor showers don't come from asteroids but instead comets. In fact, debris from meteor showers, unlike fireballs, very rarely ever make it to the ground, burning up on the way down. This has made it extremely difficult for scientists to study remnants from comets on Earth so instead scientists decided to leave Earth and go to them. The first mission to a comet - Giotto - was a huge international undertaking to chase down the most famous of them all - Halley's Comet. With the success of Giotto, multiple other missions have since gone to other comets around the solar system bringing back exciting results with glimpses into the Universe and even the possible origins of life. Finally, we learn about the greatest meteor storms in recorded history and how it led to people believing that they were living through the end of the world. (21/29)
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    • 1 hr 32 min

Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5
4 Ratings

4 Ratings

Cloudonhere ,

Intriguing and in-depth.

I love this podcast. I’m a fan of long form, scientific type podcasts and this one delivers. So many interesting thoughts and concepts that will have you heading to Wikipedia to learn more.

Fixtheappkthx ,

Thoughtful podcast!

So glad I stumbled across NCL. I enjoy podcasts with thought-provoking historical and scientific content and that is what this podcast delivers! Will for sure recommend to others!

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