Episode 568: Bradbury Wasn't Kidding
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life Ben spent the week playing nurse, but at least it was a summer cold—infinitely easier than juggling tissues and PTO requests during the school year. The only upside to a sick kid when the sun’s out? More cartoons, fewer emails. Hearing Ben wiping noses and handing out popsicles, Steven got nostalgic about Scrubs. Remember Scrubs? Wholesome chaos. Heartfelt weirdness. Probably due for a chaotic Gen Z reboot starring TikTok doctors and JD’s ghost AI. Devon was out of town. No details, just gone. Like a Vulcan on shore leave or a cowboy riding off into a logical sunset. We assume...
info_outline
Episode 567: Regular Human Shenanigans
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life Ben showed up with a box of magic and a handful of links, and we spiraled from there. We started off with Piecepack, the infinitely expandable system of tile-based board games. If you haven’t seen it, The Infinite Board Game is a great intro — it comes with a full Piecepack set and over 50 games: 👉 Two standouts we tried: Whirlpool Pond (Tube Wars) — hilariously chaotic and surprisingly strategic. Steven said it reminded him of playing little games at a picnic table on camping trips. 🎯 Moto-X — a racing game with dexterity and movement rules that feel like...
info_outline
Episode 566: Skeletons Or It Didn’t Happen
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life This week, Steven finally found a superhero movie that didn’t make him want to throw his popcorn at the screen. Superman (2025) has arrived, and according to him, it’s the best take we’ve had on the character in years. No origin story nonsense, just straight into Supes doing good and being good. James Gunn gets it—Superman is an immigrant, a boy scout, and a damn firefighter (not a cop). The moral core is there, the cape looks good, and apparently, if you hate it, it’s because it’s “woke”? Whatever. Steven liked it. You probably will too. Meanwhile, Devon has been...
info_outline
Episode 565: Dark Energy, Glowing Yeast
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life Ben took a family trip down to San Diego just in time for the other fireworks night—turns out, there are often more fireworks on the 3rd of July than the 4th. Devon also caught a local 3rd-of-July fireworks show, which has started to feel like the real deal instead of just a warm-up. Ben: “More fireworks on the 3rd than the 4th, easily.” The trend continues. While Ben and Devon were oohing and aahing at sky explosions, Steven stayed home and got some solid mini painting in while the family was off in LA. No notes, just vibes. He and Ben also snuck in a round of Walkabout...
info_outline
Episode 564: Becky Chambers Is My Therapist
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life Ben Ben’s been quietly communing with the universe—and possibly with time travelers—through a book of accidental poetry called . These are poems born from Wordle guesses, wrangled into a strangely beautiful collection. The result feels like overhearing wisdom whispered from another dimension... or from your roommate’s weird dreams. Ben recommends reading it with an open mind and maybe a cup of tea. Or a flux capacitor. Devon Devon had to Dad some emails this week—calmly but firmly correcting errors from people who apparently do not know how email works. He also saw Elio,...
info_outline
Episode 563: Aspergillus Strikes Back
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life This week, real life got weird, itchy, nostalgic, and just slightly chaotic. Ben celebrated a birthday by dragging his family through a hike in tick-infested grass. Friendly reminder: Don’t go into the long grass. We’ve seen Jurassic Park, we know how this ends. Devon may or may not be living in Foreverware straight out of Eerie, Indiana. Start checking those Tupperware lids, folks. Steven escaped a house overrun with cousins the only way he knows how: board game store therapy. Here’s what we’re playing: is only $5 on Steam right now and it still rules. Devon showed us how...
info_outline
Episode 562: The Robot Seems Fun, but the Kids are in Trouble
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life Ben had a pretty heartfelt Father’s Day. The kind that makes you wonder what to do with all those sentimental cards—save them? Repurpose them? Wallpaper a studio? He’s thinking bigger: moleskin notebooks and sketchbooks as repositories for meaningful letters, doodles, and moments. He also caught You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown at SLOREP, which delivered all the nostalgia and Peanuts poignancy one could hope for. Devon saw Annie live and reports back that yes, the sun did come out. Meanwhile, he was also boots-on-the-ground at the No Kings march in Tyler, TX, where roughly...
info_outline
Episode 561: In Search of Small Comforts
Science Faction Podcast
with Travis Barker on drums. Yes, really. Future or Now Devon read and now feels like a hypocrite for still eating meat. The book’s argument: if animals can suffer, they deserve rights. Cue a deep dive into factory farming, animal testing, calorie efficiency, and whether “ethical meat” should be a rare luxury rather than a daily default. They talk about cows, chickens, and baby monkeys; the morality of milk and butter; and why our modern food system depends on people looking the other way. Steven questions how to get enough protein on a vegan diet, and Devon admits it’s complicated...
info_outline
Episode 560: Rat Hustlers
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life Things kicked off with stories from Friday night’s bonfire, where the nature of reality was hotly debated between toasted marshmallows. That conversation somehow spiraled into a serious (and slightly absurd) discussion about Noodles and Soba—Ben’s son’s pet rats—and the potential benefits of getting female rats fixed. Apparently, doing so can add about a year to their lifespan by preventing reproductive cancers, but the surgery’s cost is a tough sell when you’re in what Ben called “debt paydown mode.” Devon floated the idea of unscrupulous “rat hustlers” faking...
info_outline
Episode 559: Yesterday’s Dream was a Full Page
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life Roundup Let’s address the elephant not in the room: Devon is dead. Well, not dead-dead. Just birthday-visit-family-IRL-dead. We pour one out for our absent co-host, and prepare for his resurrection next week. Meanwhile, Steven has been watching robots get wild. The Wild Robot, that is. The new animated flick has dropped (), and Steven's verdict is in: heartwarming vibes, metal clanking emotions, and just enough kid-friendly existentialism to make you question whether your Roomba has feelings. Also, did you know Black Adam shows up in DC League of Super Pets? Steven does. And...
info_outlineReal Life
Devon shared his thoughts on Red One, a Christmas action movie involving a military operation to save Santa, describing it as “a slog and not clever,” though his kid loved Home Alone. Steven wrapped up holiday cleanup and started reading Future Noir, a deep dive into the making of Blade Runner. He also reflected on the differences between narration in Blade Runner and Dark City. Ben has been dealing with his son’s walking pneumonia and spent time playing Inertial Drift (check out the free prologue). On the music side, he enjoyed 311’s cover of The Offspring and The Offspring’s cover of 311.
Future or Now
- Note this: Exploring the Obsidian Digital Garden Plugin, a tool to publish notes from Obsidian directly online. Supports static site generation and free hosting on Vercel or Netlify.
Obsidian Digital Garden Docs | Ben's Demo - All Around the Globe: Discussed Flat-Earthers’ humbling experience in Antarctica while attempting to prove their theories.
Article: Flat-Earthers Travel to Antarctica - Nevermind That Noise You Heard: Highlighted research on the link between poor sleep and mental health issues due to brain deficits that block unwanted thoughts. Related to themes from Reminiscence.
Science Daily Article
Reminiscence IMDB link
Book Club
- Next Week: The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas by Ursula K. Le Guin
Read Online - This Week: Arthur C. Clarke’s The Nine Billion Names of God
Read Online | Audiobook on YouTube
Discussion on its themes appearing in works like Three-Body Problem, Spin, and Blindsight. - Steven and Devon brainstorm the logistics of a Futurama-style “smell-o-scope,” inspired by Godfellas.
Futurama Wiki: Godfellas - Devon: Talked about philosopher Philipp Mainländer and his fascinating, existential ideas.
Wikipedia: Philipp Mainländer