Seemingly Unrelated Podcast

Why does every major communication breakthrough attract ghost stories? In our annual Spooktacular episode, we connect dots between:

• The transatlantic telegraph engineer who tried to contact spirits through his cables (1860s)

• The Polaroid cult in Flushing, Queens worshipping instant ghost photos

• Project December and AI "thanabots" resurrecting the pandemic's dead

With guests Michael Johnstone (Walky Talkie Brewing) and sports journalist Janet Eagleson, host Dr. Andrew Johnstone argues that hauntings aren't superstition — they're what happens when technology makes death feel immediate.

🎧 Full episode: patreon.com/seeminglyunrelated
🍎 Premium Apple Podcasts subscribers get instant access

#SpookySeason #DeathAndTechnology #Thanabots #VictorianSpiritualism #ArtificialIntelligence #GriefTech #Podcast #SeeminglyUnrelated

What if your favourite team mascot has roots in tragedy, racism, and a whole lot of anxiety?

In this episode of Seemingly Unrelated, I'm joined by co-host Alicia Britt (www.aliciabrittpuppetry.co.uk) and returning guest Dr. Rianna Walcott (www.riannawalcott.com) as we pull back the curtain on the surprisingly murky history of sports mascots. We're talking expert analysis delivered with the irreverence and curiosity our listeners expect—and yes, there's plenty of laughter amidst the darkness.

We trace the origins of collegiate athletics through the late 19th-century United States, unpacking how "Muscular Christianity" became a vehicle for management to channel student political protest energy into team sports. But here's where it gets complicated: we examine how anxieties around Black and Brown urbanization intersected with white supremacist ideology, and how "race suicide" fears shaped the very institutions that produce our beloved college teams today.

🎧 Want the full story? This is just a taste. Subscribe to our Patreon for the complete episode—including the stories you won't hear anywhere else about baseball's first mascots, the Michelin Man connection, and our infamous half-elephant/half-cactus debate. 👉 patreon.com/seeminglyunrelated

Timecodes

00:00:45:19 - Introducing special co-hosts

00:01:40:01 - Mascots chat begins 00:03:37:11 - The term enters the English language via French opera 'La Mascotte'

00:05:00:00 - Official Mascot definition

00:05:26:23 - Muscular Christianity and taming college students

00:09:14:22 - Sports and 'race suicide'

00:14:46:05 - Why the West Indies National Cricket Team is so great

00:19:00:00 - Disabled Mascots and 'Philly Elmo'

00:22:53:07 - Outro

00:25:34:17 - AI Nuke

#SportsMascots #HiddenHistory #SeeminglyUnrelated #PatreonExclusive #MuscularChristianity #CollegeAthletics #CulturalHistory #RaceSuicide #DrRiannaWalcott #AliciaBritt

A crossover with Dr. Chris Haswell on World Englishes, colonial legacies, and who owns the English language.

🔗 Find Lost in Citations at https://www.lostincitations.com/

What makes someone a "native" English speaker? According to Dr. Chris Haswell of Kyushu University and co-host of Lost in Citations, the answer is: nothing; the distinction doesn't hold up to scrutiny.

In this crossover episode, Andrew sits down with Chris to unpack the field of World Englishes. They cover why a person from Rotherham and a person from New Orleans might be mutually unintelligible despite sharing a "first language," how Japan built an entire writing system just for foreign loanwords, and why the Thatcher-era codified a native/non-native dichotomy that linguists now reject as late-stage imperial thinking.

Along the way: frog-giggin in Louisiana, the return diaspora of "anime" back into English, Scandinavian people who speak better English than the English, and why HTML5 might be a better metaphor for language evolution than any prescriptivist academy.

This is a free preview of the conversation.

The full episode including Chris's research on decolonializing English, language death, and YouTube as a living laboratory for World Englishes is available to Patreon supporters.

🎧 Subscribe to Seemingly Unrelated on your preferred podcast player 💸 Full episodes + 100+ hours of bonus content at patreon.com/seeminglyunrelated

In this season finale, Andrew, Alicia, and Naomi sit down to unpack everything Season 3 taught them—and where they stumbled along the way. From questioning whether school uniforms are sexist (spoiler: the Facebook comments section was wild) to admitting mistakes about Abrahamic faiths and gender assumptions, this is a rare podcast moment where the hosts reflect on their own blind spots.

What did they actually learn about gender as a socially constructed concept? Why do binaries feel comfortable but fail us? And how does an Anglo-American lens limit even the most well-intentioned analysis of other cultures' gender norms?

The conversation covers:

• The most surprising guest insights from across the season

• Where the hosts' own assumptions failed them (especially on religion)

• Reactions ranging from supportive listeners to angry Facebook commenters

• Why this season should be a jumping-off point, not a final word

• Hints at Season 4—and how listeners can help make it happen

If you joined this season thinking you understood gender constructs, this episode challenges you to dig deeper. And if you're new to the show, consider this your invitation to listen with an open mind. Full interviews and bonus content available if you sign up here at Patreon.

In this groundbreaking sixth episode, we dismantle the rigid binaries that society tries to force onto human biology including the undeniable reality of intersex existence, proving once and for all that genitals are not determinants of sex or gender.

Dr. Andrew Johnstone and Alicia Britt examine the historical beginnings of separating sports by gender. This episode traces the fragility of men playing golf in the Victorian period, the emergence of Muscular Christianity and the impact that funding and perception have on athletic ability. Guests include journalist Janet Eagleson and Dr. Isaac Hoff from the University of Glasgow.

Perilous windmills ahead as we dive in to the hot button issue of the moment whether women's sports are a biological necessity or just a social norm we've created in the last 100 or so years.

Arriving for tee time this week is co-host Alicia Britt and returning guest Dr. Isaac Hoff as well as sports journalist and notable raconteur Janet Eagleson to sort out when exactly women's sports emerged and some other critical questions like:

Are men's sports the default? How much impact does separation of men and women in the field of sports have on individual athletic ability? Were the fishwives of Musselburgh just really yoked from all that cleaning and filleting of fish? And most important of all: Is it wrong to be attracted to the image of Jesus on a crucifix?

Try to get a hole in one for a free game as we give the role of mini-golf in the women's sports debate a whirl on Seemingly Unrelated.

Bibliography:

Conant, Robert Warren. The Manly Christ, a New View. With New York Public Library. Chicago ;, 1904. http://archive.org/details/manlychristnewvi00cona.

Eschner, Kat. “The YMCA First Opened Gyms to Train Stronger Christians.” Smithsonian Magazine. Accessed June 21, 2026. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ymca-first-opened-gyms-train-stronger-christians-180967665/.

“Five Facts Friday - The Old Course at St. Andrews.” October 23, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141023061114/https:/trugolf.com/news/st-andrews-old-course/.

“Golf in Scotland 1457-1744 - National Library of Scotland.” Accessed June 21, 2026. https://digital.nls.uk/golf-in-scotland/.

Hudson, David L., and David L. Hudson Jr. Women in Golf: The Players, the History, and the Future of the Sport. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2007.

Lowerson, John. “Scottish Croquet: The English Golf Boom, 1880-1914.” History Today, April 30, 1983. https://www.historytoday.com/archive/scottish-croquet-english-golf-boom-1880-1914.

R&A. “The Women’s Amateur Championship.” Accessed June 21, 2026. https://www.randa.org/en/championships/the-womens-amateur-championship.

“‘Rational Recreation’ and the Law: The Transformation of Popular Urban Leisure in Victorian England.” McGill Law Journal, n.d. Accessed June 21, 2026. https://lawjournal.mcgill.ca/article/rational-recreation-and-the-law-the-transformation-of-popular-urban-leisure-in-victorian-england/.

Sisters with Drive: Early Women Golf Coaches and Professionals | Playing Pasts. n.d. Accessed June 21, 2026. https://www.playingpasts.co.uk/articles/gender-and-sport/sisters-with-drive-early-women-golf-coaches-and-professionals/.

Stark, James. “Fitness Gurus and ‘Muscular Christianity’: How Victorian Britain Anticipated Today’s Keep Fit Craze.” The Conversation, January 9, 2020. https://doi.org/10.64628/AB.cfx43h9nu.

The Guardian (London, Greater London, England). “Article Clipped from The Guardian.” June 14, 1893.

The New York Times. “MISS BISHOP WINS GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP; Defeats Mrs. Sanford in Final Match by 5 Up and 3 to Play. PLAYED ON MERION LINKS Winner Is from the Brooklawn Club of Bridgeport -- Large Gallery Sees Interesting Contest.” Archives. October 16, 1904. https://www.nytimes.com/1904/10/16/archives/miss-bishop-wins-golf-championship-defeats-mrs-sanford-in-final.html.

Thévoz, Seth Alexander. “Petticoat Alley: London’s Forgotten Women’s Clubs.” History Today, May 2, 2024. https://www.historytoday.com/archive/history-matters/petticoat-alley-londons-forgotten-womens-clubs.

“Title IX and Sex Discrimination | U.S. Department of Education.” Accessed June 21, 2026. http://www.ed.gov/laws-and-policy/civil-rights-laws/title-ix-and-sex-discrimination.

Wrack, Suzanne. “How the FA Banned Women’s Football in 1921 and Tried to Justify It.” Football. The Guardian, June 13, 2022. https://www.theguardian.com/football/2022/jun/13/how-the-fa-banned-womens-football-in-1921-and-tried-to-justify-it.

Dr. Andrew Johnstone and Alicia Britt examine men's emotions and emotional suppression through cultural and historical lenses. This episode traces how norms of masculinity shape emotional expression, highlights key research and historical examples, and offers practical takeaways for recognizing and changing emotional habits.

From the theological origins of motherhood we now have to look into the philosophical roots of manliness to address the elephant in the room: men have a problem.

To offer a helping hand while set on default mode is co-host Alicia Britt and our guest interviews with drag barbarian Oedipussy Rex and lecturer Isaac Hoff. Together we'll be answering the important questions:

How chill were the Stoics? Was Protestantism the worst thing to happen to medieval Europe? Is it possible to be masculine without being toxic about it? And of course the most important question of them all: how did World War II create the mano-sphere?

Prepare to subdue the passions and line your pills of various primary colours this week on Seemingly Unrelated.

Bibliography:

Bassue, Jamaljé R. “Overcoming Pseudo-Stoicism in Medicine.” AMA Journal of Ethics 25, no. 5 (2023): 375–77. https://doi.org/10.1001/amajethics.2023.375.

Bee, Michele, and Maria Pia Paganelli. “Adam Smith, Anti-Stoic.” History of European Ideas 45, no. 4 (2019): 572–84. https://doi.org/10.1080/01916599.2019.1574488.

Bement, Peter. “The Stoicism of Chapman’s Clermont D’Ambois.” Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900 12, no. 2 (1972): 345–57. https://doi.org/10.2307/449898.

Blackson, Thomas. “The Stoic Explanation of the Origin of Vice.” Méthexis 29, no. 1 (2017): 121–40.

Campbell, Bruce B. “The Rise and Fall of Comradeship: Hitler’s Soldiers, Male Bonding and Mass Violence in the Twentieth CenturyThomas Kühne.” Holocaust and Genocide Studies 32, no. 2 (2018): 304–5. https://doi.org/10.1093/hgs/dcy024.

Dopierała, Renata. “Popular Stoicism in the Face of Social Uncertainty.” Qualitative Sociology Review 18, no. 4 (2022): 154–70.

Evans, Michael. “CAPTAINS OF THE SOUL: Stoic Philosophy and the Western Profession of Arms in the Twenty-First Century.” Naval War College Review 64, no. 1 (2011): 30–58.

Golf-French, Morgan. “From Atheists to Empiricists: Reinterpreting the Stoics in the German Enlightenment.” Modern Intellectual History 20, no. 1 (2023): 62–87. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1479244321000573.

Holiday, Ryan, and Stephen Hanselman. Lives of the Stoics: The Art of Living from Zeno to Marcus Aurelius. With Rebecca DeFeld. Profile Books, 2020.

Hunt, Harold Arthur Kinross. A Physical Interpretation of the Universe: The Doctrines of Zeno the Stoic. Melbourne University Press, 1976.

Jalobeanu, Dana. “Idolatry, Natural History, and Spiritual Medicine: Francis Bacon and the Neo-Stoic Protestantism of the Late Sixteenth Century.” Perspectives on Science 20, no. 2 (2012): 207–26.

Kühne, Thomas. “Protean Masculinity, Hegemonic Masculinity: Soldiers in the Third Reich.” Central European History 51, no. 3 (2018): 390–418. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0008938918000596.

McElheran, Megan, Franklin C. Annis, Hanna A. Duffy, and Tessa Chomistek. “Strengthening the Military Stoic Tradition: Enhancing Resilience in Military Service Members and Public Safety Personnel through Functional Disconnection and Reconnection.” Frontiers in Psychology 15 (September 2024): 1379244. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1379244.

Moore, Andrew, Janet Grime, Paul Campbell, and Jane Richardson. “Troubling Stoicism: Sociocultural Influences and Applications to Health and Illness Behaviour.” Health 17, no. 2 (2013): 159–73. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363459312451179.

Morgan, Michael L. “Stoics and Neostoics: Rubens and the Circle of Lipsius (Review).” Journal of the History of Philosophy 31, no. 2 (1993): 288–89.

Murray, Greg, Fiona Judd, Henry Jackson, et al. “Big Boys Don’t Cry: An Investigation of Stoicism and Its Mental Health Outcomes.” Personality and Individual Differences 44, no. 6 (2008): 1369–81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2007.12.005.

“Nazis and Neo-Stoics: Otto Brunner and Gerhard Oestreich before and after the Second World War on JSTOR.” Accessed June 21, 2026. https://www-jstor-org.ezproxy2.lib.gla.ac.uk/stable/3600729?seq=1.

Noakes, Lucy. “Gender, Grief, and Bereavement in Second World War Britain.” Journal of War & Culture Studies 8, no. 1 (2015): 72–85. https://doi.org/10.1179/1752628014Y.0000000016.

Oestreich, Gerhard. Neostoicism and the Early Modern State. Cambridge Studies in Early Modern History. Cambridge University Press, 1982. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511562716.

Papy, Jan. “Lipsius’ (Neo-)Stoicism: Constancy between Christian Faith and Stoic Virtue.” Grotiana 22–23, no. 1 (2001): 47–71. https://doi.org/10.1163/016738312X13397477910747.

ResearchGate. “Two Stoic Theories of Preliminary Passions.” Accessed June 21, 2026. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/291066805_Two_Stoic_theories_of_preliminary_passions.

Scaltsas, Theodore, and Zeno, eds. The Philosophy of Zeno: Zeno of Citium and His Legacy. 1. ed. Municipality of Larnaca [u.a.], 2002.

Seitz, Brian. “Foucault and the Subject of Stoic Existence.” Human Studies 35, no. 4 (2012): 539–54.

Sherman, Nancy. Stoic Warriors: The Ancient Philosophy behind the Military Mind. Oxford University Press, 2007.

No. Neither is Gaia.

Episode 3 and we are bringing the question of social construct out of the school yard and into the deepest recesses of human mythology. Every accepts that 'Mother Nature' is the nurturing yet furious embodiment of our planet but has that always been the case?

We'll get to the origins of nature's femininity with Alicia Britt and featuring special guest interview with Jan Kohn aka Producer Naomi's mum! Together we'll answer the questions:

Was it a man that created existence or five dragons having a good time? What is the cult of the Virgin Mary? Is it good or bad that women have been ascribed characteristics like caring and nurturing? And of course the biggest question of them all: what in the name of all that is good and right was wrong with Zeus?

Tune your earth crystals, say your pagan prayers, and don't forget to put out the bins this week on Seemingly Unrelated.

#Gaia #MotherEarth #Sumerian #WeaponizedIncompetence #podcast #history

Bibliography:

Asher-Greve, Julia M. Goddesses in Context : On Divine Powers, Roles, Relationships and Gender in Mesopotamian Textual and Visual Sources. With Internet Archive. Fribourg : Academic Press Fribourg ; Göttingen : Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2013. http://archive.org/details/goddessesinconte0000ashe.

Bird, Elizabeth. “Women’s Studies and the Women’s Movement in Britain: Origins and Evolution, 1970–2000.” Women’s History Review 12, no. 2 (2003): 263–88. https://doi.org/10.1080/09612020300200351.

Coburn, Carol K. “An Overview of the Historiography of Women Religious: A Twenty-Five-Year Retrospective.” U.S. Catholic Historian 22, no. 1 (2004): 1–26.

Giese, James R., and Eric Foner. “The New American History. Critical Perspectives on the Past.” The Journal of Southern History 58, no. 3 (1992): 580. https://doi.org/10.2307/2210227.

“Hesiod, Works and Days, Line 1.” Accessed June 18, 2026. https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3atext%3a1999.01.0132.

Lisman, J. J. W. “At the Beginning... Cosmogony, Theogony and Anthropogeny in Sumerian Texts of the Third and Second Millennium BCE.” Leiden University, 2013. https://hdl.handle.net/1887/20756.

Monk, Janice. “Changing Expectations and Institutions: American Women Geographers in the 1970s.” Geographical Review 96, no. 2 (2006): 259–77. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1931-0846.2006.tb00052.x.

“Nature, n. Meanings, Etymology and More | Oxford English Dictionary.” Accessed June 18, 2026. https://www.oed.com/dictionary/nature_n.

Sands, Danielle. “Gaia, Gender, and Sovereignty in the Anthropocene.” philoSOPHIA 5, no. 2 (2016): 287–307. https://doi.org/10.1353/phi.2015.0022.

Steinkeller, Piotr. On Rulers, Priests and Sacred Marriage: Tracing the Evolution of Early Sumerian Kingship. 1999, 103–37.

team, CLRN. “How Many Books Have Been Published in History?” California Learning Resource Network, July 2, 2025. https://www.clrn.org/how-many-books-have-been-published-in-history/.

“The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Poetical Works of Skelton, Volume 2 (of 2), by The Rev. Alexander Dyce.” Accessed June 18, 2026. https://www.gutenberg.org/files/59998/59998-h/59998-h.htm.

Straighten that tie, lower that hemline, and cover your shoulders listeners because this week we're being very strict about what is proper attire and we even asked Queen Elizabeth I to weigh in.

Join Andrew and Alicia alongside our special guest Dr. Christia Spears Brown for this medieval adventure through the dangerous dynamics of uniforms and dress codes including questions like:

Are school uniforms just for poor people? How long does it take for gender roles to settle into a child's mind? What Emo song best represents the lament of having to wear the same boring outfit every single day?

Plus, our guest interview manages to recreate the conversation we have on the podcast with chilling accuracy despite never being able to hear it.

Check your school regs and don't step out of line or else...this week on Seemingly Unrelated.

Bibliography:

BBC News. “Islamic Headscarf Debate Rekindled in France.” Europe. April 1, 2013. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-21997089.

BBC News. “School Uniforms: A History of ‘Rebellion and Conformity.’” England. September 5, 2014. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-29047752.

“Beyond the Suit: Contemporary Menswear from the Collection of Alexandre Marr and Dominic Iudiciani | Kent State University Museum.” Accessed June 12, 2026. https://www.kent.edu/museum/event/beyond-suit-contemporary-menswear-collection-alexandre-marr-and-dominic-iudiciani.

Breward C, Lemire B, and Riello G, eds. The Cambridge Global History of Fashion: From the Nineteenth Century to the Present. Cambridge University Press, 2023.

EBSCO. “Dress Codes and Uniforms in Public Schools | Education | Research Starters | EBSCO Research.” Accessed June 12, 2026. https://www.ebsco.com.

Great Britain. The Statutes of the Realm: Printed by Command of His Majesty King George the Third, in Pursuance of an Address of the House of Commons of Great Britain. From Original Records and Authentic Manuscripts. Dawsons of Pall Mall, 1810. https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/012297566.

King’s Printer of Acts of Parliament. “Elementary Education Act 1880.” Https://Www.Legislation.Gov.Uk/Projects/Controllers-Library#item_651859. Accessed June 12, 2026. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Vict/43-44/23/contents/enacted.

Lewis, Ramon. “Preparing Students for Democratic Citizenship: Codes of Conduct in Victoria’s ‘Schools of the Future.’” Educational Research and Evaluation 5, no. 1 (1999): 41–61. https://doi.org/10.1076/edre.5.1.41.3886.

Office, U. S. Government Accountability. “K-12 Education: Department of Education Should Provide Information on Equity and Safety in School Dress Codes | U.S. GAO.” August 16, 2023. https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-23-105348.

OHCHR. “Experts of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination Commend Mauritius on Intercontinental Slavery Museum, Raise Questions on Mandatory HIV Testing for Migrant Workers and the Treatment of the Chagossian People.” Accessed June 12, 2026. https://www.ohchr.org/en/meeting-summaries/2025/04/experts-committee-elimination-racial-discrimination-commend-mauritius.

“Polite, Well-Dressed and on Time: Secondary School Conduct Codes and the Production of Docile Citizens *. - Document - Gale Academic OneFile.” Accessed June 12, 2026. https://go-gale-com.ezproxy1.lib.gla.ac.uk/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=glasuni&id=GALE%7CA131235584&v=2.1&it=r&sid=summon&asid=eb9c3118.

Pomerantz, Shauna. “Cleavage in a Tank Top: Bodily Prohibition and the Discourses of School Dress Codes.” Alberta Journal of Educational Research 53, no. 4 (2007). https://doi.org/10.55016/ojs/ajer.v53i4.55303.

Raby, Rebecca. “‘Tank Tops Are Ok but I Don’t Want to See Her Thong’: Girls’ Engagements With Secondary School Dress Codes.” Youth & Society 41, no. 3 (2010): 333–56. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X09333663.

Ribeiro, Aileen. Dress and Morality. With Internet Archive. London : Batsford, 1990. http://archive.org/details/dressmorality0000ribe.

Riello G, Rublack U,. The Right to Dress: Sumptuary Laws in a Global Perspective, c.1200–1800. Cambridge University Press, 2019.

Shakespeare’s Globe. “Elizabethan Sumptuary Laws: Fashion Policing in Shakespeare’s England | Blogs & Features.” Accessed June 12, 2026. https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/discover/blogs-and-features/2019/04/16/elizabethan-sumptuary-laws-fashion-policing-in-shakespeares-england/.

“The Time Traveler’s School Uniform.” Accessed June 12, 2026. https://www.museumoflearning.org/stories/the-time-travelers-school-uniform/.

That's right dedicated Patreon subscribers for this month's bonus episode we are going back in time to the Podcast Squared archives to take a look at how the conversation around gender has evolved in the last 13 years. This seems fitting for our bonus ep that overlaps with season 3 and the conversation around gender.

Is it cringe inducing for me, Andrew, to listen to this? You bet. I really really hate it. BUT that's just the level of embarrassment I am willing to experience in exchange for your hard earned money.

This episode is a panel of three women who were (and still are) involved in podcasting in March 2013 when it premiered. The first panelist is an outspoken activist in favour of sex worker rights as well as a very vocal supporter of Trans rights in the US she still hosts a podcast called The Whorecast it's Siouxsie Q. Next is the founding producer of the Nerdist suite of podcasts and ongoing freelance podcast producer Katie Levine . Last but not least is one of the great Midwesterners of all time, Emily Reese has been the long time creator of Level a podcast about video game music and continues to be a regular newscaster for Minnesota Public Radio's Minnesota Today.

Some notes:

• Past Andrew, you should talk less and listen more

• Catch all the social constructs that are treated by me as just...normal

• Progress and growth are good...very good.