In this week’s episode, both storytellers must navigate heartbreaking dilemmas as they try to figure out how to convey crushing news.

Part 1: While doing fieldwork in the Congo, Stella Mayerhoff must track down a local researcher to deliver devastating news.

Part 2: During his second year of residency, Sam Blackman is tasked with caring for a dying child whose mother’s unwavering faith clashes with his scientific approach.

Stella Mayerhoff is a primatologist turned science communicator. As a scientist, Stella traveled the world—from Puerto Rico to the Democratic Republic of Congo—studying various primate species. She now draws inspiration from her time in the field, writing to share the sense of adventure and real-world impact that science offers. Stella has written for Georgia State’s College of Arts & Sciences, Georgia State University Research Magazine, and Science ATL, and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Science Communication at UC Santa Cruz. When she’s not chasing a story, Stella enjoys spending her time with her cat, TBD, who owes his perfectly odd name to a moment of writer’s block.

Sam Blackman is a physician-scientist and pediatric oncologist. He's was founder and former head of research and development at Day One Biopharmaceuticals, a company focused on drug development for childhood cancers. He’s currently an entrepreneur-in-residence at Google Ventures. Sam is an avid storyteller, baker of bread, and recently climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro. Sam lives on Orcas Island with his wife, having successfully launched their first and only child off to college.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this week’s episode, both of our storytellers bite off a bit more than they can chew.

Part 1: Fresh out of college and in what seems like her dream job, drug and alcohol coach Rhana Hashemi quickly realizes she has no idea how to connect with the high school students she’s supposed to help.

Part 2: When Paul Davis and his wife struggle to get pregnant, they decide to foster a pregnant dog—and things escalate quickly.

Rhana Hashemi is a Bay Area–based drug educator, national expert in youth overdose prevention, and Ph.D. candidate in Social Psychology at Stanford University. Her research adapts Lifting the Bar for youth who use substances. This intervention, called More Than That, elevates youth voices to show educators that a student is "more than" their substance use. By reducing stigma and strengthening student–teacher relationships, she demonstrates how seeing and empowering students can protect against risky drug use. Rhana is also the founder and Executive Director of Know Drugs, the first youth-focused harm reduction organization in the United States, which advances evidence-based drug education for young people. Bridging social psychology with community partnerships, she works to reduce drug misuse and promote more compassionate, effective responses to youth substance use.

Paul Davis writes and directs horror movies. His last short won Screamfest and Ravenheart, two of the biggest horror film festivals in the U.S. and Europe. He is currently raising funds to expand it into a feature. Paul is passionate about storytelling. He has had stories air on NPR and published in Reader's Digest. He is also working on a solo-storytelling show. You can reach him on Instragram @pauldavisfilmmaker or [email protected]

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, we’re teaming up with Silenced Science Stories, a volunteer project that shines a light on scientists whose work has been derailed by federal budget cuts and mass firings. In this episode, both of our storytellers share deeply personal accounts of how these political decisions upended their work—and the science itself.

Part 1: When an epidemiologist dedicated to preventing violence against children is suddenly fired from the CDC, she is left grappling with both the shock of losing her job and the uncertainty of what comes next.

Part 2: At a global climate conference, climate scientist Tom Di Liberto learns that Trump has been re-elected—and feels the weight of what that means for him and the fight against climate change.

Tom Di Liberto is a climate scientist and award-winning science communicator working as a public affairs specialist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Communication (as of March 29. He's been caught up in the government purges and is on administrative leave). As part of NOAA’s Ocean Today’s studio, he wrote and starred in NOAA’s first ever animated series Teek and Tom Explore Planet Earth. Previously he served as the senior climate scientist for NOAA’s Climate.gov and social media editor for the NOAAClimate accounts on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. In addition to his work at NOAA, Tom also served as the lead of the Department of State’s U.S. Center at the United Nationals climate change conference COP29 in 2024. The U.S. Center is the premiere public face of the U.S. government at the UN Climate conference. As lead, Tom designed every aspect of the center from the build to the schedule to planning every event that took place. He previously served as emcee of the Department of State’s U.S. Center at the United Nations climate change conferences COP21, COP22, COP26, COP27, and COP28 Fun fact: Tom performs regularly at the Washington Improv Theater on two house teams including the Hypothesis, a team Tom started and is full of scientists and science-lovers.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, in honor of Halloween, we're presenting two classic stories about facing fears for science.

Part 1: As a newly minted PhD student in geology, Erik Klemetti starts to question his decisions when Aucanquilcha, a 20,000-foot volcano in Chile, proves difficult to tame.

Part 2: Explorer George Kourounis finds himself growing increasingly anxious as he prepares to enter a fiery sinkhole known as the “Doorway to Hell.”

Erik Klemetti is an associate professor of Geosciences and volcanologist at Denison University. He works on volcanoes all over the planet, from Chile to New Zealand to the Cascades of Oregon and California. His research focuses on how crystals record the events inside a volcano before and between eruptions. For the past 9 years, he’s been teaching all the “hard rock” classes at Denison. He also writes for Discover Magazine. His blog, Rocky Planet, have been running since Fall 2017. Before that, he wrote Eruptions, a blog about volcanoes, for Wired Science for 9 years. You can also find him on Twitter (@eruptionsblog), variously tweeting about volcanoes, baseball (mostly Red Sox and Mariners) and his love of punk.

George Kourounis is a renowned global explorer and storm chaser who specializes in documenting extreme forces of nature including: tornadoes, hurricanes, volcanoes, deserts, caves, avalanches and more. He is an Explorer In Residence for The Royal Canadian Geographical Society, served as the Chairman of the Explorers Club Canadian Chapter, and has received several awards and medals for his efforts. He frequently finds himself driving into the eye of fierce storms, or descending ropes into actively erupting volcanic craters, often while hosting television programs including “Angry Planet” and others. He has given five TEDx talks, and has addressed the United Nations Environmental Emergencies Forum. George’s expeditions have taken him to over 80 countries on all seven continents to such far-flung places as: Madagascar, Turkmenistan, Vanuatu, Greenland, North Korea, Myanmar, and Antarctica.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this week’s episode, both of our storytellers learn the hard way that getting high doesn’t always mean having a good time.

Part 1: At his friend’s bachelor party, Andrew McGill joins in on a mushroom trip that quickly spirals out of control.

Part 2: In an attempt to calm his nerves about going on an Alaskan cruise, Will Clegg turns to marijuana.

Andrew McGill is a storyteller born and raised in Brooklyn, NY when not on stage is a English teacher at a high school in Brooklyn.

Will Clegg is a filmmaker, storyteller, and new dad living in Westfield, NJ. He’s the co-creator and sometimes host of the long-running storytelling show “Awkward Teenage Years” as well as the writer and performer of two solo shows: “The Lonely Road” and “Syncope.”

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In honor of OCD Awareness Week, this episode features two deeply personal stories about living with obsessive compulsive disorder.

Part 1: For Hannah Hedelius, a classmate’s hiccups trigger an overwhelming reaction she can’t hold back.

Part 2: As a graduate student, Rachel Hostetler begins to realize that her intrusive thoughts may be more than just regular stress.

Hannah Hedelius was born and raised in Idaho. She received her Bachelors of Psychology from Boise State University and is currently working on her Masters in Biomolecular Sciences. Hannah plans to attend medical school where she will work towards a dual doctorate for a career as a medical scientist. Hannah is a graduate assistant for the Dean of Students Office where she works in substance misuse prevention. She focuses on creating alcohol and other drugs education and awareness. Hannah is also doing research at Boise State where she studies cholera toxin and its potential in treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases. In her free time, Hannah enjoys reading and spending time with her family.

Rachel Hostetler is a scientist at the Allen Institute for Brain Science and her role focuses on providing scientific training to users of the institute’s tools and datasets. Prior to working at the institute, she completed a Ph.D. in Neuroscience at West Virginia University, where she used many Allen Institute datasets to guide her research on somatostatin inhibitory interneuron diversity. She completed her B.S. at the University of Minnesota, double-majoring in Neuroscience and German Studies. Now living in Seattle, she yells out in excitement whenever she sees a mountain (not just Mt. Rainier but literally any mountain) after growing up in the Midwest. When not yelling at mountains, she spends her free time trying new seafood restaurants with her partner, snuggling with their very needy cat, and exploring the beauty of the PNW.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this week’s episode, we wade into the bloody (and sometimes gory) side of science.

Part 1: Shawn Musgrave wants to donate blood, but runs headfirst into the FDA’s lifetime ban on gay men as donors.

Part 2: While working with the condor recovery program, Molly Astell opens a freezer to find every researcher’s nightmare.

Shawn Musgrave is a lawyer, journalist, lawyer-who-represents-journalists, and somewhat recent transplant to New York. His work has appeared in The Intercept, POLITICO, The Verge, VICE, and the Boston Globe, among other publications, as well as in the Netflix docuseries How to Fix a Drug Scandal.

Molly Astell is a wildlife biologist who originally never wanted to be one of those "bird people", yet went on to exclusively work with endangered birds in their career. Fourteen of those years were spent working as part of the California condor recovery program in a variety of different roles, mostly with the wild condors in southern California, but also with the captive breeding birds in Boise, ID. Currently, they are a graduate student at Boise State University doing research with condor data they helped to collect, and is discovering the joys of teaching biology to undergraduates.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this week’s episode, our storytellers face life-or-death moments they’ll never forget.

Part 1: On a trip to Colombia for a research conference, biologist Stephanie Galla must rely on her fight-or-flight instincts when she is cornered by a mugger with a knife.

Part 2: An ordinary day takes a shocking turn when Kim Weaver is struck by lightning.

Stephanie Galla is an Assistant Professor in avian biology at Boise State University. She is interested in interdisciplinary conservation efforts for species in decline, and in particular, how genomic technologies can inform management decisions. Using DNA, her research team explores whether birds (including grouse and raptors) have the adaptive capacity to be resilient in a changing world. Outside of her everyday work life, she enjoys bird watching, making art, taking care of her backyard chickens, and watching TV with her husband and cat.

Kim Weaver is a long-time storyteller and occasional guest host at Story Night in Bremerton, but she cut her storytelling chops as a high school math and engineering teacher.  (No matter how much you heckle, you will not be as brutal as a room full of Algebra I students.) She has also told plenty of ocean tales as a Science Communication Fellow aboard the E/V Nautilus.  Kim lives in Poulsbo, Washington where her primary role is meeting the demands of a high-maintenance corgi named Bird, but her actual job is providing STEM and EdTech support to teachers throughout the Kitsap and Olympic peninsulas.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week we present two classic stories from people who had hypotheses. 

Part 1: Teaching sixth grade science becomes much more difficult when Xochitl Garcia's students start hypothesizing that fire is alive. 

Part 2: When journalist John Rennie is assigned to cover an entomological society event where insects are served as food, he sees an opportunity to face his fear of bugs. 

Xochitl Garcia is the K-12 education program manager at Science Friday, where she focuses on supporting the inspiring efforts of educators (of all types) to engage students in science, engineering, math, and the arts. She is a former NYC school teacher, who specializes in sifting through random piles of junk that she insists are "treasures," to figure out cool ways for learners to explore scientific phenomena. You can find her making a mess in the name of science education at the Science Friday office, her house, with other educators...you get the picture. Update: Xochitl welcomed her baby (not fire) into the world on 1/1/2020. 

John has worked as a science editor, writer and lecturer for almost 40 years. Most recently, he was a deputy editor at Quanta Magazine. During his time as editor in chief at Scientific American, between 1994 and 2009, the magazine received two National Magazine Awards. He co-created and hosted the 2013 series Hacking the Planet on The Weather Channel. Since 2009, he has been on the faculty of the Science, Health and Environmental Reporting Program in New York University’s graduate journalism school. You can learn follow him on Bluesky @johnrennie.sky.social or check his website, www.johnrennie.net. 

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this week’s episode, we’re featuring two powerful stories born from our education program.

Part 1: As an undergraduate with no “real” science experience, Molly Magid is thrilled to join a research project studying how bats fly—until she discovers the bats refuse to cooperate.

Part 2: As a child, Léa Souccar and her father explore the wreckage in the aftermath of a devastating bombing.

Molly Magid is a science communicator and podcast producer. She has been telling stories about science since the first grade, when she wrote a biologically accurate story about ladybugs. Originally from Denver, Colorado, Molly now lives in Christchurch, New Zealand. She enjoys sharing her passion for science anywhere from podcasts to social media to declaring her love of longfin eels on the street.

Léa Souccar was born in Lebanon, three years into the war. By the time the fighting stopped, she was twelve. In between, the voice of her storytelling grandmother carried her above the chaos—like a flying carpet—and helped shape who she became. During her first year studying Performing Arts, Beirut hosted its first Storytelling and Monodrama Festival. She skipped classes that week to attend every lecture by day and every performance by night. Something long asleep inside her woke up. From that moment on, she trained relentlessly, learning from renowned storytellers from around the world. After earning a Master’s in Theater Education for Special Needs, she began working as a storyteller and puppeteer, sharing stories in schools, hospitals, refugee camps, and prisons. In 2010, she became a primary school teacher in France. She found her place in a preschool classroom, where she began exploring all the ways oral storytelling can support and inspire learning. Today, she leads workshops where she shares her two greatest passions: storytelling and education—and the sparks that fly when the two meet.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.