Star Warsologies: A Podcast About Science and Star Wars part of the Skywalking Network

In this episode of Star Warsologies, we hear from an ornithologist about birds in Star Wars, along with invasive species and extinction events!
Justin Hite joins us for this episode to chat about his career studying birds and the environmental chaos they put up with. We get into whether Rey was exposed to harmful chemicals during her years salvaging parts from downed Star Destroyers and of course all the devastation the Death Star wreaks. We also cover more cheerful topics like birds being tiny dinosaurs and . Being a group of 80s kids, we also talk about how great the show Ewoks is!

Show Links:
Check out the Birds Not Mosquitoes website and Instagram to learn more about the project Justin works on.

You can read the fictional account of a wildlife ranger in the Outer Rim that Melissa wrote while watching The Mandalorian. And the opinion piece she wrote for Nerdist about the killings in that show.

And to learn more about how porgs are like puffins, check Melissa's my Insider article where I interviewed a puffin scientist and the concept artist that created porgs.

Check out ebird.org for bird species to see wherever you live or are traveling.

Check out Justin's Instagram feed, scroll back for more birds!

Subscribe to never miss an episode of Star Warsologies on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Did you miss an earlier episode? Catch up here!

Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, or join our Facebook fan group!

Star Warsologies is a podcast about science in a galaxy far, far away. Hosts James Floyd and Melissa Miller combine their love of storytelling in the franchise with their keen interest in all things academic.

In this episode of Star Warsologies, we learn the difference between empathy, compassion, and sympathy and how each is represented in Star Wars!
Professor Maureen Day shares her insights with James and Melissa about virtue ethics and vices, and their roles in our galaxy and in Star Wars. Can we forgive the atrocities of Vader and Kylo Ren knowing their backstory of complicated young me? What makes the Sith a good example of empathy? What's the best redemption arc in Star Wars? There's more questions than answers in this episode, but we hope you enjoy pondering these topics for yourself!

Show Links:
A reading list from our expert, Maureen Day!

Richard M. Gula, Reason Informed by Faith    Richard M. Gula, The Call to Holiness   Christian Smith, To Flourish or Destruct: A Personalist Theory of Human Goods, Motivation, Failure, and Evil
Check out Maureen's website for more about her research, books, and appearances!

Subscribe to never miss an episode of Star Warsologies on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Did you miss an earlier episode? Catch up here!

Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, or join our Facebook fan group!

Star Warsologies is a podcast about science in a galaxy far, far away. Hosts James Floyd and Melissa Miller combine their love of storytelling in the franchise with their keen interest in all things academic.

In this episode of Star Warsologies, conflict resolution experts weigh in on the wars, negotiations, and other conflicts in Star Wars!
Jen Reynolds and Noam Ebner authored the book "Star Wars and Conflict Resolution: There Are Alternatives To Fighting" and speak with us about the lessons we can learn from Padme, Obi-Wan, and other characters who fight the good fight. From everything from hiring the Millennium Falcon to galactic wars, negotiations occur throughout the saga and mirror the real world in many ways. Apparently there's four ways people typically react to conflict: avoidance, cooperation, competitiveness, and yielding. Which type are you? Which type are your favorite Star Wars characters?

Show Links:
Buy "Star Wars and Conflict Resolution" on Jen and Noam's website and stay updated about the second book and other offerings.

Follow them on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook!

Subscribe to never miss an episode of Star Warsologies on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Did you miss an earlier episode? Catch up here!

Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, or join our Facebook fan group!

Star Warsologies is a podcast about science in a galaxy far, far away. Hosts James Floyd and Melissa Miller combine their love of storytelling in the franchise with their keen interest in all things academic.

In this episode of Star Warsologies, an anatomy professor weighs in on the importance of designing aliens that make sense!
Dr. Elizabeth Rega is an anatomy professor who consults on movies and video games to help creators add an element of realism to their projects. She worked on Mulan, The Emperor's New Groove, and even the Madden series. Melissa and James ask Elizabeth to speculate wildly about what we can tell about some of our favorite aliens based on the traits they share with humans. Is Klaud related to axolotls? Do Gungans breathe through their butts? What does Yoda look like under his Jedi robes? Fun questions for our anatomy expert!

Show Links:
Read Stephen Jay Gould's paper about the evolution of Mickey Mouse.
Check out the Max Rebo maquette showing off his two limbs.
Listen to episode 46 where Elizabeth joined our LA Comic Con panel of science advisors.
Check out Elizabeth's paper about a new species of sloth.

Subscribe to never miss an episode of Star Warsologies on Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Did you miss an earlier episode? Catch up here!

Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, or join our Facebook fan group!

Star Warsologies is a podcast about science in a galaxy far, far away. Hosts James Floyd and Melissa Miller combine their love of storytelling in the franchise with their keen interest in all things academic.

It's the finale! Lisa and Melissa chat about the physics of the final franchise installment (for now). They're joined by Dr. Erin Macdonald, the science advisor for all the current Star Trek shows. Together, they answer important questions like, is a dam just a vertical road? Do bad guys make good shock absorbers in plummeting elevators? Just how much therapy has Jakob had since the last movie? Is Little B destined for a Nobel Prize in Physics? Will anything come of Little Nobody swiping right on Han's dating profile?
We hope you had as much fun listening to these bonus episodes as we had making them! We'll return once there's a new F&F movie out!
Follow Erin on Instagram and subscribe to her YouTube channel!
Follow Melissa @melissatruth
Follow Lisa @dustchick
Listen to episode 10 here
The Facts & The Furious is a podcast rewatch of the entire saga with Dr. Lisa Will (physicist) and Melissa Miller (science writer). We break down each movie of the saga with help from special guest experts. Remember, reality-based physics come and go, but family is forever!
Subscribe so you won't miss our return once the next movie comes out!

Faaaaaaaacts in Spaaaaaace! Melissa and Lisa welcome NASA JPL systems engineer Bobak Ferdowsi (aka the Mohawk Guy!) to chat about the pros and cons of launching a Pontiac Fiero into space. But that's not the only physics nonsense in this movie - there's also magnets, mines, and more! As Bobak eloquently states, the science of Fast & Furious movies are like La Croix - there may not be any real science in the movie but it seems like the creators saw some science at one point or another. 
Learn more about the NISAR program Bobak is working!
Follow NASA on Twitter and Instagram!
Bobak is also (sometimes) on Twitter and Instagram. 
Learn more about the NASA internship program!
Follow Melissa @melissatruth
Follow Lisa @dustchick
Listen to episode 9 here
The Facts & The Furious is a podcast rewatch of the entire saga with Dr. Lisa Will (physicist) and Melissa Miller (science writer). We break down each movie of the saga with help from special guest experts. Remember, reality-based physics come and go, but family is forever!
Subscribe so you won't miss the rest of our rewatch!