What do we know about brain differences between genders? Are gendered brain differences innate or a product of the environment? How do the brains of trans people compare to brains of cis people? This episode discusses all these questions and more!

I could have talked about this for many, many hours. If you want to hear more, sign up for our Patreon and come chat with us on Discord!

Sources:

Regions of brain activity while experiencing compassion 

Newborns looking at a human face vs a mobile 

The effect of biology vs environment on personality from cis-girls who experienced high testosterone in the womb: 1 and 2 

Review discussing limitations of studies like the above two 

The brain and puberty

Music: Cabaret by Kai Engel

Hadrian inherited the Roman Empire at its greatest extent and is regarded as one of Rome’s best emperors.

Sources:

Scriptores Historiae Augustae. Historia Augusta. 

Cassius, Dio. Roman History. 

Duncan, Mike. History of Rome. ep. 82 “May His Bones Be Crushed”.

Livius.org. “Hadrian”. 

Gibbon, Edward. The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Vol. 1. New York, New York: The Heritage Press, 1946, p.59, note 26.

Examples of statuary - https://www.antinoos.info/antin4a.htm

Music: Cabaret by Kai Engel

What is heteronormativity? Whether you've dealt with it yourself or you're thinking "wow that's a long word", this episode gets everyone on the same page and then digs a little deeper. Look out for follow-up episodes, something as complex as heteronormativity is impossible to cover in an hour. 

Music: Cabaret by Kai Engel

“Was Shakespeare Gay? Sonnet 20 and the Politics of Pedagogy” by Casey Charles

“Shakespeare’s Queer ‘Sonnets’ and the Forgeries of William Henry Ireland” by Michael Keevak

“Was Shakespeare gay, and does it matter?” by John Sutherland 

“All’s Well That Ends Well’ and Shakespeare’s Marriage”. by R. Brian Parker

Music: Cabaret by Kai Engel

The first episode on what might become a series on gay and/or transgender animals. We start with the general idea of same-sex attraction in animals and using animals to argue about whether being gay is "natural".

Skip to 34:10 if you just want to hear about gay penguins. 

Trigger warning: brief mention of nonconsensual sex in a hypothetical example about humans from 50,000 years ago. Skip 20:15 to 21:05 to avoid that part of the episode. 

Bonus content: Alyssa’s cat sneezing

Music: Cabaret by Kai Engel

Was Julius Caesar gay? Bi? Straight? In this episode we discuss the evidence for one of Rome's most famous.

Sources:

Roman History by Dio Cassius

De Vita Caesarum (The Lives of the Caesars) by Caius Tranquillus Suetonius

Masculinity, Appearance, and Sexuality: Dandies in Roman Antiquity by Kelly Olson 

Music: Cabaret by Kai Engel

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