Drop everything and listen
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Holiday listening recommendations from the Out There team
If you had to pick one episode of one podcast to recommend, what would it be? We’re not talking about episodes you liked; we’re talking about episodes you LOVED. Episodes you couldn’t stop thinking about. Episodes that made you look at your world in a new way.
Here’s what Out There team members came up with, when asked for their favorites:
“Frozen Alive Redux” from Outside Podcast
Recommended by Stacia Bennett, Out There Ambassador
The entire “Science of Survival” series from Outside is spectacular, but this was my absolute favorite episode, and one I find myself frequently recommending to friends.
The episode describes the process of literally freezing (becoming hypothermic to the point of unconsciousness) from a first-person perspective. It is so vividly detailed, so expertly crafted, and so realistic that you’ll be shivering before long while listening to it, even on a hot summer day. Listen and learn what physiological changes the human body goes through as core body temperature plummets, and how cold we can get and still stay alive.
“Dear Economist, I need a Date” from Planet Money
Recommended by Tiffany Duong, Out There Ambassador
Even though it’s about dating, I have used the lessons from this podcast in so many ways in my life. I used it to change careers, i.e. from law to ocean advocacy, by not falling for the sunk cost fallacy of law school or loss aversion fallacy (I was miserable staying a lawyer, and quitting is scary, but I won’t be worse off than miserable, and I have huge potential upside: being happy). The perceived loss of stability was a red herring because I was so miserable.
I also use it whenever I’m in a funk by making a similar excel spreadsheet and forcing myself to try 50 new things. It works every time.
How to Be a Girl: Daily life with my transgender daughter
Recommended by Willow Belden, Out There Host
I rarely binge-listen to podcasts, but How to Be a Girl is un-put-down-able. It is narrative storytelling at its best: tightly woven episodes that keep you on the edge of your seat and challenge your understanding of what it means to be human. Host Marlo Mack uses the most intimate of stories (her experience raising a transgender child) to explore nuanced psychological and social questions, and she has her finger squarely on the pulse of an important civil rights battle.
Note: This is a serial podcast, so you start with episode 1 and listen in order.
“Bill Nye” from the Armchair Expert
Recommended by Ali Shinn, Out There Ambassador
This episode takes me right back to being a kid again, eager to learn something new. Dax Shepard’s podcast is amazing and informative, but this episode brings one of my childhood heroes into the real world.
Dolly Parton’s America
Recommended by Laura Johnston, Out There Ambassador Coordinator
This show is from the creators of Radiolab and is unique, clever, fun and like an onion with so many layers of depth. It’s chock full of incredible interviews with Dolly Parton herself but also academics, students, freedom fighters, a doctor and other people impacted by her work and her place in the world. To listen to it is to be amazed at how much you’ll learn but also how incredible the reporting and editing is to pack so much into each episode. You don’t have to be a country music fan or a Dolly Parton fan to like this podcast.
If you listen to Radiolab, you’ll love this for a similar style but an entirely different story to tell. Dolly Parton’s America is a 9-part series that is magnetic and fascinating and thought provoking. It explains the history and story of Dolly Parton in her own words and others’ but also how she is able to bring together people who have political, socioeconomic, age, gender and other differences.
This series encourages listeners to think about important and controversial topics that extend from her music and her place in the world. It’s about Dolly, her music, her mountain upbringing and even how we operate as individuals in the world. Even if you don’t start binging on her music, you’ll learn so much about Dolly Parton and her important place in the history.
Could not stop listening!
“Defending your home from a raging wildfire” from Outside Podcast
Recommended by Ashley White, Out There Ambassador
With wildfire so abundant around the world, this episode really struck a chord with me. The storytelling was amazing, and I felt like I was with the main characters throughout their journey.
“Bijlmer (City of the Future)” from 99% Invisible
Recommended by Jessica Taylor, Out There Advertising Manager
