What can mapping tell us about public health in medieval cities? Archaeologist, Dr. Taylor Zaneri, uncovers revealing insights from medieval Bologna, from which activities drew the strictest regulation, to who was actually responsible for fixing them. Her work shows how archaeology, historical texts, and maps come together to reveal what was really happening on the ground.

Mentioned on the show:

• Taylor’s Academia.edu: https://iisg.academia.edu/TaylorZaneri
• Featured Academic Paper: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhg.2023.02.009
• Public Mapping Tool ft. Bologna: https://healthscapes.humanities.uva.nl/

📝 Full transcript: https://smitinathan.com/what-maps-reveal-about-medieval-public-health/

🎁 Bonus content: https://patreon.com/smitinathan

✉️ Get in touch at [email protected]

🎙️ Curiosity Meets The Past is a podcast for curious minds who love learning about the past. Each episode features a 20–30 minute curated conversation with guests who reveal the layered stories behind objects, places, and people.

Did you know some of the most fascinating archaeological discoveries never make the headlines? Rachel, from Inside Archaeology, shares overlooked finds from self-healing Roman concrete to surprising burials. We explore how interpretation, imagination, and new technologies shape the stories we tell about the past.

Mentioned on the show:

• https://www.youtube.com/@Inside_Archaeology

📝 Full transcript: https://smitinathan.com/archaeology-discoveries-that-deserve-more-attention/

🎁 Bonus content: patreon.com/smitinathan

✉️ Get in touch at [email protected]

🎙️ Curiosity Meets The Past is a podcast for curious minds who love learning about the past. Each episode features a 20–30 minute curated conversation with guests who reveal the layered stories behind objects, places, and people.

What do we mean when we say “the past,” and how might those definitions shape the futures we imagine? Human-centered designer, Shanice Webb, shares how engaging with the past in different ways can offer surprising clarity when it comes to building what’s next.

Mentioned on the show:

• Shanice’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanicewebb/

📝 Full transcript: https://smitinathan.com/**designing-futures-that-engage-with-the-past**/

🎁 Bonus content: https://patreon.com/smitinathan

✉️ Get in touch at [email protected]

🎙️ Curiosity Meets The Past is a podcast for curious minds who love learning about the past. Each episode features a 20–30 minute curated conversation with guests who reveal the layered stories behind objects, places, and people.

What can human remains reveal about connection, identity, and community in Iceland? Biomedical anthropologist, Dr. Adam Netzer-Zimmer, shares how overlooked human remains are unearthing Iceland’s multifaceted relationship with the dead.

Mentioned on the show:

• adamnetzerzimmer.com
• https://www.tiktok.com/@hrimey_learn

📝 Full transcript: https://smitinathan.com/what-the-dead-still-mean-to-the-living-in-iceland/

🎁 Bonus content: http://patreon.com/smitinathan

✉️ Get in touch at [email protected]

🎙️ Curiosity Meets The Past is a podcast for curious minds who love learning about the past. Each episode features a 20–30 minute curated conversation with guests who reveal the layered stories behind objects, places, and people.

What makes something a word, and who decides? Scholar, author, and podcaster, Michelle Franklin, joins us to explore the surprising origins of words like "púca" and "like," and how slang, dialect, and identity shape the way we communicate.

Mentioned on the show:

• https://www.youtube.com/@authormichellefranklin
• https://www.instagram.com/authormichellefranklin/
• https://bsky.app/profile/michellefranklin.bsky.social
• https://www.tiktok.com/@authormichellefranklin

📝 Full transcript: https://smitinathan.com/the-secret-past-lives-of-words

🎁 Bonus content: patreon.com/smitinathan

✉️ Get in touch at [email protected]

What can archaeology reveal about overlooked food spaces? Dr. Katie Chiou shares how she applies archaeological thinking to explore hidden foodways in the American South, from campus dining halls to gas stations, and what they reveal about inequality, memory, and everyday life.

Mentioned on the show:

• Katie’s Website: https://sites.ua.edu/kchiou/

• Katie’s Lab Website: https://sites.ua.edu/archaeobotany/

• MA student presentation on UA Foodscape project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83ZmHx-JkDs&ab_channel=UniversityofAlabamaGraduateSchool 

• Student documentary on gas stations: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r32lfFMVzPQ&t=5s&ab_channel=EkaterinaM

• UA Food Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bamabiteclub/

• CONSERVE Group: https://conserve-group.org/ 

  
  

📝 Full transcript:  https://smitinathan.com/uncovering-todays-hidden-foodways-through-archaeology/ 

🎁 Bonus content: patreon.com/smitinathan

✉️ Get in touch at [email protected]

What does it really take to start an archaeology project? In this episode, Dr. Ioana A. Dumitru, a digital landscape archaeologist, reveals how fieldwork actually begins. We dig into the moments that no one prepares you for and the relationships that truly shape the work.

Mentioned on the show:

• CALOR Project Website: https://www.calorarchaeology.com/

• CALOR Project Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/calor_archaeology/

• Ioana’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/veganarcheologist/

📝 Full transcript: https://smitinathan.com/how-an-archaeology-project-actually-begins/

🎁 Bonus content: patreon.com/smitinathan

📩 Email notifications for new episodes: https://field-notes-by-smiti-nathan.kit.com/3e5792597b

✉️ Get in touch at [email protected]

Welcome to Curiosity Meets The Past - a podcast for curious minds who love learning about the past. In this short intro episode, you’ll hear what the show is all about and what you can expect from future episodes.

📝 Full transcript: https://smitinathan.com/welcome-to-curiosity-meets-the-past

🎁 Bonus content: patreon.com/smitinathan

📩 Email notifications for new episodes: https://field-notes-by-smiti-nathan.kit.com/3e5792597b

✉️ Get in touch at [email protected]

Thanks to Noor Hanania for leading the edit of this video.

Curiosity Meets The Past is a new podcast for curious minds who love learning about the past.

🎉 Launching June 24, 2025, with new episodes every week in July, then every other Tuesday

👩🏽 Hosted by archaeologist Dr. Smiti Nathan

📺 Watch full episodes on Spotify or YouTube, or listen wherever you get your podcasts

🔗 Learn more at https://smitinathan.com