Best David Flora Podcasts (2025)

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Blurry Hysteria: Jurassic Sharks & Tarmac Snacks | 438 30:39

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12h ago30:39

30:39

This week on Blurry Hysteria, we dive deep—literally—into prehistoric weirdness and modern airport madness. First up, scientists exploring Kentucky’s Mammoth Cave have uncovered two brand new species of ancient sharks, proving that even in a cave, life finds a way to terrify you. Fossilized jaws, razor teeth, and the lingering dread that somewhere …

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171: El Paso, Elsewhere (with Jacob McCourt & Luke Lewis) 1:55:56

1h ago1:55:56

1:55:56

Support my work on Patreon Strange Scaffold is a rare game studio that gets as much, or maybe even more, positive attention for their workplace ethos and number of releases per year as they do for their games themselves. I found myself in that same position, with great respect for their process, but no experience with the games themselves....until …

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David Zweig, "An Abundance of Caution: American Schools, the Virus, and a Story of Bad Decisions" (MIT Press, 2025) 57:39

28m ago57:39

57:39

An Abundance of Caution: American Schools, the Virus, and a Story of Bad Decisions (MIT Press, 2025) is a devastating account of the decision-making process behind one of the worst American policy failures in a century—the extended closures of public schools during the pandemic. In fascinating and meticulously reported detail, David Zweig shows how…

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Elliot Lichtman, "The Computer Always Wins: A Playful Introduction to Algorithms through Puzzles and Strategy Games" (MIT Press, 2025) 48:46

23h ago48:46

48:46

In The Computer Always Wins: A Playful Introduction to Algorithms through Puzzles and Strategy Games (MIT Press, 2025), Elliot Lichtman will teach you some of computer science’s most powerful concepts in a refreshingly accessible way: exploring them through word games, board games, and strategy games you already know. Learn recursion by playing tic…

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Ep 278: General Trivia 21:12

2d ago21:12

21:12

A new week means new questions! Hope you have fun with these! A magnifying glass features what kind of lens? Give any of the 3 types of animals in the titles of surviving plays by ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes. Tyrian Purple, aka Royal or Imperial Purple, was once a highly valued dye secreted by several species of what kind of animal? The S…

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Jeremy Stolow, "Picturing Aura: A Visual Biography" (MIT Press, 2025) 1:19:58

3d ago1:19:58

1:19:58

Picturing Aura: A Visual Biography (MIT Press, 2025) by Dr. Jeremy Stolow is the first book of its kind: an extended historical, anthropological, and philosophical study of modern efforts to visualize the hidden radiant force encompassing the living body known as our aura. This rich, interdisciplinary study by Dr. Stolow chronicles the rise and glo…

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Trans Technologies 1:07:27

4d ago1:07:27

1:07:27

How can technology creates new possibilities for transgender people? How do trans experiences, in turn, create new possibilities for technology? Trans Technologies, (MIT Press, 2025) by Dr. Oliver L. Haimson, explores how and why mainstream technologies often exclude or marginalize transgender users. Trans Technologies describes what happens when t…

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E65: Budget Passage, New Pro Tem, and LA Unrest w/ Asm. Heath Flora 50:28

6d ago50:28

50:28

Assemblymembers Josh Hoover and Heath Flora discuss a number of topics including the formation of the new Capital Caucus, a brief overview of the recently passed state budget framework, the new Senate pro tem, federal action that will suspend California’s gas car ban, Governor Newsom’s lawsuit frenzy, the unrest going on in LA, and other stories of…

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Blurry Hysteria: Bigfoot Bud & Raccoon Rodeo | 435 40:09

7d ago40:09

40:09

This week on Blurry Hysteria, we saddle up for a backwoods double feature that’s fuzzier than a Sasquatch in a fur coat during molting season. First up, a cannabis dispensary in Oklahoma is high on the hunt for Bigfoot—offering discounts to anyone who brings in photographic proof of the hairy legend. Because nothing pairs better with a blurry crypt…

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170: Lunacid (with Dave Cox) 2:36:04

7d ago2:36:04

2:36:04

Support my work on Patreon I was admittedly very late to the King's Field and Shadow Tower bandwagons, energized by my love for FromSoftware's modern titles and a desire to dig into their history some more. However, I didn't anticipate loving those games so much that I wanted more like them, and that's where Kira LLC's Lunacid (2023) entered the fr…

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Ep 277: General Trivia 20:01

10d ago20:01

20:01

A new week means new questions! Hope you have fun with these! What do the initials QI mean for the British comedy panel game quiz show? The title track to Queen's final album, Innuendo, contains a flamenco guitar solo from what prog rock guitarist? Which liqour is the main ingredient of a mojito? Cole Escola just became the first non-binary perform…

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Blurry Hysteria: Artificial Unintelligence & the 583-Person Pile-Up | 434 28:23

14d ago28:23

28:23

This week on Blurry Hysteria, the boys wade into a double feature of WTF?! First up: An AI startup valued at $1.5 BILLION implodes after it's revealed that 700 of its "A.I. Engineers" were just… humans pretending to be AI. That’s right—turns out the real artificial intelligence was the friends we made along the way (and then fired). We dive deep in…

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169: South of Midnight (with Kate Sánchez) 2:26:28

12d ago2:26:28

2:26:28

Support my work on Patreon Some games just grab your attention from the first trailer, and South of Midnight is one of those games. A breathtaking art style and a gothic Southern fantasy setting? South of Midnight jumped straight to the top of my to-play list, and it did not disappoint. Guest info: Kate Sánchez of But Why Tho? Check out all of the …

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Jean J. Ryoo and Jane Margolis, "Power On!" (MIT Press, 2022) 59:40

14d ago59:40

59:40

An interview with Jean Ryoo and Jane Margolis about Power On! A diverse group of teenage friends learn how computing can be personally and politically empowering and why all students need access to computer science education. This lively graphic novel follows a diverse group of teenage friends as they discover that computing can be fun, creative, a…

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Ep 276: General Trivia 21:53

17d ago21:53

21:53

A new week means new questions! Hope you have fun with these! In physics, what is defined as the rate at which energy is transferred or work is done, measured as one joule per second? Featuring the hit songs Come as You Are and Smells Like Teen Spirit, what is the title of Nirvana's 2nd album? Playing a role in the plot of Home Alone 2, which novel…

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E64: Suspense Hearing, Cost Drivers, and CARB Clash w/ Chris Micheli 52:21

19d ago52:21

52:21

Assemblyman Josh Hoover and longtime Capitol insider Chris Micheli discuss a number of topics including the appropriations suspense hearing, the Legislature’s absent affordability agenda, the US Senate vote to overturn California’s gas car ban, a committee clash with CARB, and other stories of the week. Host: Assemblyman Josh Hoover Cohost: Chris M…

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168: Persona 4 Golden (with Flora Merigold) 3:17:57

19d ago3:17:57

3:17:57

Support my work on Patreon- https://patreon.com/realdavejackson Persona games are a tough sell for a guy who does a weekly podcast like this, so thank you to my wonderful patrons for voting Persona 4 Golden onto the show. While it has all of the pacing issues that you would expect an 80 hour game to have, I thought this is, in some ways, the best o…

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Episode 283: David LeBrun and His Memoir, Delirium Vitae 51:22

20d ago51:22

51:22

Available today! Meet Canadian author, David LeBrun, whose first book, a travel memoir, is being published today by Tortoise Books. Delirium Vitae is a recounting of David's adventures in Central America when he fled the cold Canadian winter to party with an old friend, promptly ran out of money, and began the slow journey of discovering what he wa…

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John Horn, "Inside the Competitor's Mindset: How to Predict Their Next Move and Position Yourself for Success" (MIT Press, 2023) 1:45:13

23d ago1:45:13

1:45:13

Inside the Competitor's Mindset: How to Predict Their Next Move and Position Yourself for Success (MIT Press, 2023) offers a roadmap to help leaders predict, understand, and react to their competitors’ moves. It is a valuable tool to help companies stay ahead of their competitors when the competition is intensifying. To make the right choice when a…

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Ann McCallum Staats, "Fantastic Flora: The World's Biggest, Baddest, and Smelliest Plants" (MIT Kids Press, 2025) 50:17

24d ago50:17

50:17

In our lovely interview, we celebrate Ann McCallum Staats' brand new book (just launched this week!), Fantastic Flora: The World’s Biggest, Baddest, and Smelliest Plants, wonderfully illustrated by Zoë Ingram, published by MIT Kids Press, an imprint of Candlewick. This is not your run-of-the-mill picture book. It's over 120 pages long and is intend…

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Ep 275: General Trivia 20:36

26d ago20:36

20:36

A new week means new questions! Hope you have fun with these! The formula πr² calculates the area of what geometric shape? What is the tiger's name in "Life of Pi"? Name either Roman Emperor that agreed to issue the Edict of Milan, making Christianity legal. Foods that are poached are cooked in what? The Recording Industry Association of America li…

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Mitchell Thomashow, "To Know the World: A New Vision for Environmental Learning" (MIT Press, 2020) 39:07

26d ago39:07

39:07

Why we must rethink our residency on the planet to understand the connected challenges of tribalism, inequity, climate justice, and democracy. How can we respond to the current planetary ecological emergency? In To Know the World: A New Vision for Environmental Learning (MIT Press, 2020), Mitchell Thomashow proposes that we revitalize, revisit, and…

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Blurry Hysteria: Alien Art & Grounds for Divorce | 433 35:07

28d ago35:07

35:07

This week on Blurry Hysteria, we brew up some cosmic confusion and pour a hot cup of WTF. First, we head to Colombia where a “UFO” was discovered, and let’s just say… the only thing extraterrestrial might be the logic used to identify it. Was it a spacecraft? A drone? A science project gone rogue? Or just another case of someone yelling “ALIENS!” a…