Another G-rated edit of a classic! This Smologies with Dr. John McCormack of Occidental College is all about evolution, Darwinism, birds, bacteria, natural selection and how our mutations can be our greatest strengths. Also: breaking down terms like genetic drift and Linnaean taxonomy and why Charles Darwin had to face haters under his own roof.

Follow John McCormack on X or the Moore Lab of Zoology on Instagram

A donation went to BirdNet.org

Full-length (*not* G-rated) Evolutionary Biology episode + tons of links

More kid-friendly Smologies episodes!

Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month

OlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, masks, totes!

Follow @Ologies on Bluesky and Instagram

Follow @AlieWard on X and Instagram

Sound editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions, Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media & Steven Ray Morris

Made possible by work from Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Emily White, & Erin Talbert

Smologies theme song by Harold Malcolm

A kid-friendly, shortened version of our classic episode on …flags! E. Tory Laitila, a textile expert who has also handled Honolulu's flag protocol, gives the skinny on the oldest flags, skull and crossbone Jolly Rogers, his favorite state flag, Scandinavian simplicity, the hardest flags to draw, who designed our modern American flag and how you too can have ... fun with flags all year round.

A donation went to Connecting to Collections via CulturalHeritage.org

Full-length (*not* G-rated) Vexillology episode + tons of links

More kid-friendly Smologies episodes!

Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month

OlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, hoodies, totes!

Follow Ologies on Instagram and Bluesky

Follow Alie Ward on Instagram and TikTok

Sound editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions, Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media and Steven Ray Morris

Made possible by work from Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Aveline Malek and Erin Talbert

Smologies theme song by Harold Malcolm

Grab your fire extinguisher and hang on to your eyebrows, we’re building FIRES today. We’ll hear all about how our ancient ancestors learned to wield a flame, tame it, transport it, and use it to make tools, keep us warm, and maybe even make us smarter. So get ready for sharp rocks, hairy jello, sooty caves, glowing coals, iron sparks, fluffy fungus, molten metal, ember tending and more with Yale anthropologist and pyrotechnologist, Dr. Ellery Frahm.

Visit Dr. Frahm’s website and follow him on Bluesky and Instagram

A donation went to Armenia Fund

Full-length (*not* G-rated) Pyrotechnology episode + tons of science links

More kid-friendly Smologies episodes!

Become a patron of Ologies for as little as a buck a month

OlogiesMerch.com has hats, shirts, hoodies, totes!

Follow Ologies on Instagram and Bluesky

Follow Alie Ward on Instagram and TikTok

Sound editing by Mercedes Maitland of Maitland Audio Productions, Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media and Steven Ray Morris

Made possible by work from Noel Dilworth, Susan Hale, Jacob Chaffee, Kelly R. Dwyer, Aveline Malek and Erin Talbert

Smologies theme song by Harold Malcolm