Best Updike Podcasts (2025)

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EP99: The Second-to-Last Episode 37:31

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11d ago37:31

37:31

That's right, folks. This is the second-to-last episode of "John Updike's Ghost," which will end with Episode 100. But not to worry! We'll be launching a new podcast not long afterward, with a new name and a little bit of a new focus. In the meantime, though, we've got a cracker-jack episode for you this week, with a bunch of books we really like. …

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Ep 187 Hypothermia Part 2: How it helps 1:05:37

14m ago1:05:37

1:05:37

Last week, we took you through all the ways that cold can harm us and the harrowing history of humans perishing at its icy hands. Ending the story there would be skipping over the parts where cold gets to play the hero, rather than the villain. In the second installment of this frosty miniseries, we explore the situations in which we might use cold…

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Ep 186 Hypothermia Part 1: How it hurts 57:35

7d ago57:35

57:35

For all our wondrous adaptations as a species - our big brains, our capacity for language, our opposable thumbs - we humans are not well-equipped to deal with the cold. Take us out of our insulated dwellings, take away our winter clothes, and things can get dicey fast. From frostbite to hypothermia, the cold can settle into our bones, leading us do…

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Special Episode: Lina Zeldovich & The Living Medicine 51:44

14d ago51:44

51:44

The development of antibiotics was one of the greatest turning points in the history of medicine. Bacterial infections that were once death sentences were cured within a matter of days after administration of these lifesaving compounds. But the honeymoon didn’t last long, as resistant bacterial strains emerged and spread. Now, antimicrobial resista…

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Ep 185 The Great Smog of London: “Thick, drab, yellow, disgusting” 1:14:18

21d ago1:14:18

1:14:18

Some things just go together: peanut butter and jelly, bacon and eggs, milk and cereal, London and smog. Or at least, that’s the way things used to be until the Great Smog of 1952. (Don’t worry, the first three pairings are safe). If you’ve watched The Crown, you may remember an early episode in which a thick, noxious smog surrounded the entire cit…

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EP98: Any Good Books on the Booker Long List? 39:12

27d ago39:12

39:12

We're switching it up a little bit this episode, as the Booker Prize Long List has just been released and it's fun to talk about what they've chosen — plus, the judges this year are really interesting! These are "chosen from 153 submissions, celebrates the best works of long-form fiction by writers of any nationality, written in English and publish…

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Ep 184 The Gallbladder: Humor us 1:22:41

28d ago1:22:41

1:22:41

For most of us, there probably hasn’t been a good reason for you to think about your gallbladder. Ever. Much of the time, it sits there, silently storing, concentrating, and, when needed, churning out bile every day. But occasionally, this unassuming organ will announce itself through waves of unceasing, excruciating pain brought on by a blockage o…

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Special Episode: Carl Zimmer & Airborne 49:04

1M ago49:04

49:04

In the first years of the COVID pandemic, a debate raged: was the virus transmitted via respiratory droplets, or was it airborne? For some, this distinction seemed overly technical, pedantic even. But for others, it represented decades of dismissal and missed opportunities - opportunities that had cost untold lives. In this week’s TPWKY book club e…

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Ep 183 SSRIs Part 2: Action 1:10:26

1M ago1:10:26

1:10:26

Last week, we took you on a journey of discovery and innovation, and this week we’re gonna tell you how the heck it all works. That means a deep dive into the nitty gritty of SSRIs, from what serotonin does (A LOT, as it turns out), to why blocking its uptake has the effects it does, from the different side effects of SSRIs, to how effective they r…

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EP97: Death and Time Travel 38:24

2M ago38:24

38:24

This week, Hannah is on vacation, Sam is working hard, but both have two books to talk about and we mostly like them. Yes, there's some embarrassing stuff where Sam has no idea about major biographical elements of the authors he's praising profusely, but let's pretend it's not happening in the moment. On the agenda this week: "A Marriage at Sea," b…

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Charles Hines: Florida Gulf Coast Trail 51:53

2M ago51:53

51:53

Trails are one of the most powerful tools we have for connecting people to nature and fostering a lasting sense of place. By providing direct, immersive access to the outdoors, trails invite us to build personal relationships with the landscapes around us. Whether it’s a shaded stretch of pine flatwood on a rail trail, a sandy path along a coastal …

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Ep 182 SSRIs Part 1: Origin 1:02:00

2M ago1:02:00

1:02:00

Since first hitting the shelves nearly 40 years ago, SSRIs have become one of the most commonly prescribed classes of antidepressants around the world, as well as one of the most discussed and misunderstood. This and next week, we tell the story of SSRIs in two parts. In Part 1, we explore the origins of these medications and their predecessors, a …

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Florida Uncut: Live at the Wild Space Gallery 52:31

2M ago52:31

52:31

In this special episode of Florida Uncut, we’re bringing you our first-ever live recording, captured this past weekend at the Wild Space Gallery in St. Pete. The conversation centers around the behind-the-scenes efforts that brought the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation’s 2024 expedition film to life. Every two years, the Foundation leads a week…

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Special Episode: Wendy Chin-Tanner & King of the Armadillos 56:21

2M ago56:21

56:21

We’ve got a very special episode of the TPWKY book club this week! We’re featuring our very first fiction book: King of the Armadillos by Wendy Chin-Tanner. This novel tells the story of a young man named Victor, who is sent from his home in New York City to a federal treatment facility in Carville, Louisiana after a diagnosis of Hansen’s disease (…

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EP96: Yes, We Read Dungeon Crawler Carl 49:16

2M ago49:16

49:16

This week, Sam and Hannah have spent some serious time on the dock where they ... actually read the same book for once! Amazing. And it's maybe not a book you would have guessed. Plus, we've got a long-lost classic and a really fun summer read (even if it's about rich people. Again), and a good discussion of what makes a 14+ book. On the agenda thi…

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Ep 181 PCOS: Beyond the cysts 1:26:36

2M ago1:26:36

1:26:36

What’s in a name? What can you really tell from a label like “polycystic ovarian syndrome”? And how much of that is more misconception than truth? The answer, as it turns out, is the former. In this episode, we delve into the world of PCOS, a world that shows us how preconceived notions of health and disease, gender and sexuality can do far more ha…

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Ep 180 Food Dyes: It’s all marketing 1:25:32

2M ago1:25:32

1:25:32

This episode, we aren’t asking you to taste the rainbow, but we are scrutinizing the artificial dyes that give it its color. When you’re munching on brightly colored candies or dipping a french fry in purple ketchup, what exactly is it you’re tasting? In this episode, we take you through the story of food dyes, from their serendipitous discovery to…

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EP95: Shepherds, Guards, and Murderers 39:00

3M ago39:00

39:00

This week, Sam is back from Iceland, where he read some Scandinavian literature and visited a bookstore, though mostly just looked at volcanoes, waterfalls, and icebergs. But, have no fear, we have plenty of books to talk about this week. On the agenda this week: - "The Salt Stones," by Helen Whybrow, which is a memoir about leaving publishing to b…

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Special Episode: Professor Steven Mithen & The Language Puzzle 49:29

3M ago49:29

49:29

From the earliest grunts and gestures to the complex sentences we use today to convey a multitude of concepts, language has evolved to become one of humanity’s most powerful tools. It allows us to connect, create, conspire, control, console, catch up, and so much more. How did we come to have this uniquely human trait? What anatomical changes or cu…

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Joe Howard: O2O Expedition Trekker 58:31

3M ago58:31

58:31

Would you like to attend a live recording of Florida Uncut? Be sure to save the date of July 12, 5–9 PM for a new exhibition "Blazing the Trail: From Strand to Slough" and a live recording of "Wild Takes: Florida Uncut Podcast Live" from 5-8pm at the Wild Space Gallery in St. Pete! I’ll be there interviewing the folks behind the scenes of the Flori…

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Ep 179 Fluoride 2: Fighting tooth and nail 1:03:56

3M ago1:03:56

1:03:56

In last week’s episode, we traced the history of fluoridation (and the anti-fluoridation movement) to its roots in the early 20th century, but we left you wondering whether there’s anything to back up the health claims that anti-fluoridationists make. Today, we get deep into the weeds of the fluoride literature, explaining how this mineral works, t…

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EP94: Lesbian Vampires and Pencil-Heart Readers 43:30

3M ago43:30

43:30

This week, Sam and Hannah are back from a heavy Memorial Day Weekend of reading, and Hannah's books, in particular, are once again well-coordinated. Even if they're a little hard to describe. Also, this is a solid Pride episode, sort of by mistake. Here's what's on tap: - "The Book of Records," by Madeleine Thien, which is as meaty a read as we've …

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AFB Possibilities #4 -- A Conversation with Dr. Randy Pierce and Russell Martello on Holistic Approaches to Rehab 54:35

3M ago54:35

54:35

Welcome to another episode of the AFB Possibilities Podcast. To mark Vocational Rehabilitation awareness week, which spans June 9th - 13th, AFB’s Tony Stephens sat down for an engaging conversation with Dr. Randy Pierce of Future Insight and Russell Martello from Visions to discuss the benefits around holistic approaches to rehabilitation. Tony, Ra…

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Ep 178 Fluoride 1: The real tooth fairy 1:02:39

3M ago1:02:39

1:02:39

Is it just us, or does it seem like every other week there’s a new headline about some state or town banning water fluoridation? As it turns out, this has been going on for decades, basically since fluoride was first introduced. Why are some people opposed to fluoride? Is there any basis to their fears? What does fluoride actually do? And how the h…