Are Dams Cute… Or Not So Cute? with Professor Heather Randell

Are Dams Cute… Or Not So Cute? with Professor Heather Randell

Author: Sony Music Entertainment / Jonathan Van Ness October 27, 2021 Duration: 55:54
Dams, what’s their story? Are they scenic sites? Harmful structures? This week, Professor Heather Randell and Jonathan go on a journey through dam history, ecology, and sociology. Listen in to learn about why dams are built; who they serve; and how they can cause displacement, change river ecology, and contribute to climate change. Heather Randell is an Assistant Professor of Rural Sociology and Demography at Penn State. She studies how dam construction affects local communities as well as the health and social impacts of climate change.   You can follow her on Twitter @HeatherFRandell, and at www.heatherrandell.com   Want to learn more about dams? Here are three short films worth checking out:   Guardians of the River Belo Monte: After the Flood (2016) A River Runs Through Us   And here’s a recent article from the New Yorker on the Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com. Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com. Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com. Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You know that feeling when you’re just trying to figure it all out, and you need a guide who’s equal parts insightful and hilarious? That’s the space where Getting Better with Jonathan Van Ness lives. Hosted by the beloved Jonathan Van Ness of Queer Eye, this podcast turns genuine curiosity into a powerful engine for personal growth. Each episode feels like a vibrant conversation with a deeply empathetic friend who isn’t afraid to ask the big, awkward, or wonderfully silly questions. Jonathan sits down with a diverse array of experts, authors, and thinkers, weaving together discussions that are as enlightening as they are unexpectedly funny. The result is a unique blend of education, comedy, and culture that tackles everything from societal issues to the intimate details of self-improvement. You’ll find yourself laughing one moment and having a profound revelation the next, all while feeling less alone in the challenges of modern life. This isn’t about quick fixes; it’s about the ongoing, messy, and beautiful process of understanding ourselves and the world. Produced in partnership with Sony Music Entertainment, the podcast delivers consistently engaging audio experiences that are both a lifeline and a joy. Tune in for a weekly dose of warmth, wit, and the kind of conversations that leave you feeling genuinely better equipped to navigate your own path.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Getting Better with Jonathan Van Ness
Podcast Episodes
What’s Happening With The Supreme Court? with Strict Scrutiny [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:25
What’s better than one constitutional law expert? THREE! This spring we had the honor of speaking with Professor Melissa Murray about the Supreme Court's recent term. Now she’s back, with her brilliant Strict Scrutiny co…
Are Killer Whales Misunderstood? with Dr. Deborah Giles [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:17:34
Southern Resident killer whales are a lot like us. They have family meals, chat in different dialects, and sleep side by side. They even engage in an activity called sword fighting—which is exactly what it sounds like. O…
How Cool Are Caves? with Professor Kathleen R. Johnson [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:44
Getting Curious is going spelunking! Caves are full of evidence about our Earth’s past: they can tell us about monsoons in Laos and sea surface temperatures in Mexico over tens of thousands of years ago. They can also he…
What’s The Science Of Sleep? with Dr. Gina Poe [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:16:56
We spend one third of our lives sleeping. But WTF is going on during those hours?! This week, Dr. Gina Poe gives us an A to Zzzz crash course in all things sleep. Dreams, memory, narcolepsy, naps, sleep demons, traveling…
Who Were History’s Queer Seamen? with Dr. Seth LeJacq [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:09:09
Sea daddies! Sea queens! Land hoes! This week, we’re getting wet and wild with Dr. Seth LeJacq to learn what life was like for queer sailors in the British navy from the 15th century to the 19th century. How did these sa…
Who Are Hollywood’s Paparazzi? with Dr. Vanessa Díaz [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:29
Paris. Lindsay. Kim. We know the celebs in paparazzi photos, but what about the people behind the cameras? This week, Professor Vanessa Díaz takes us inside the world of Hollywood's paparazzi—who are predominantly Latine…
Are Parasites Out To Get Us? with Dr. Sebastian Lourido [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:21:46
Parasites are everywhere: in our bodies, in our water, even in our cats’ litter boxes. Are they agents of chaos—or just misunderstood? This week, Dr. Sebastian Lourido joins Jonathan to discuss the epic world of parasite…
How Can We Ease Eco-Anxiety? (ICYMI) with Dekila Chungyalpa [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:18:22
Last week, Earth hit record-high temperatures—three times. We’re feeling the heat of climate change, literally, and it’s f*cking scary. To help us handle this moment, we’re re-releasing an episode from our archives, with…
How Does The Universe Get It On? with Dr. Chanda Prescod-Weinstein [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:16:54
Is life one big cosmic orgy? To wrap up our Pride Beyond Borders series, we’re going big… with an episode all about our universe! Dr. Chanda Prescod-Weinstein joins Jonathan to discuss why spacetime isn’t straight, what…