Ep 183: Science... sort of - A Center for Ants?

00:00:00 - Jane Zelikova returns to talk about ants! Our guide is the wonderful and free Dr. Eleanor's Book of Common Ants but also including a few new species just described by science. There are a lot ants out there people. But seriously, go snag the pdf of the book so you can follow along with our Ant Science 101 segment. 00:36:51 - We may not change colors like the honeypot ants, but we still enjoy a drink. Jane and Ryan enjoy a sampling of beers from Snake River from Jackson, WY. While Patrick opts for south of the Wyoming border with a Colorado made Breckenridge Brewing Vanilla Porter. 00:40:56 - Like humans, even the gods doth drink, and few moreso than the mighty Thor. However, we see less drinking and more fighitng as we Trailer Trash Talk about Thor 2: The Dark World. If you want some science from this segment, you can read the piece Ryan wrote about the first movie for Marvel.com! 00:53:04 - Now that you know the ant basics it's time to get into the specifics of bleeding edge ant science. Jane tells us first about how faithful ants are to their symbiotic allies. The answer is very. Next up, we learn that ants have to shift their diets when they're busy invading new places. What could it mean?! 01:16:15 - PaleoPOWs are a lot like ants, they come in hordes and can sting you. Eirik bites Ryan over some flubbed Norse mythology from the olden days of the show (i.e. episode 82). Patrick has some critiques from Patrick (a different one we hope) regarding our discussion of the relevance of paleontology in episode 177. But Jane brings us back around with a positive iTunes review left to us by MakoClould. Finally, hear Patrick and Ryan on Podcasting 101 or just Ryan on Generation Anthropocene. Need even more ants? Check out Episode 50 of The Weekly Weinersmith for the science of zombie ants! And be sure to stock up on lab safety gear using our Amazon link!   Music for this week's show: Bug City - Presidents of the United States of America Drink It Like You Mean It - Corb Lund Power - Kayne West Ants Marching - Dave Matthews Band