Episode 546: Overfilled Wine Glasses, Octavarium, and Overpopulation
Release Date: 02/26/2025
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,...
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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...
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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...
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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...
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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...
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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...
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Episode 558: Starts with S, Ends with T
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life Devon [Redacted silence.] Possibly building up for a season finale of his own. Or meditating on NASA budget cuts. Either way—stoic. Steven We wrapped Andor, and while it stuck the landing, there’s still one huge question: Where are Hera, Chopper, and the Ghost crew?! Justice for space moms and droid chaos: Also, Steven took us on a wild detour into Monopoly studies with college students—spoiler alert: inherited wealth makes people awful. Shocking, we know. Ben Fresh from science camp and rocking a healthy dose of jet lag, Ben managed to be late to his own poetry reading. But...
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Episode 557: You Can't Call Them Skin Babies
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life Devon went full medieval this week with a trip to a Renaissance Fair—this one featuring permanent structures that actually looked “authentic” instead of slapped together by ye olde hot glue. There were swinging rides, wooden horses, and some legit jousting. Unfortunately, the real fantasy was thinking the kids would have fun. Big downer energy. Steven is gearing up for an Arizona trip but had to make a sudden detour into Best Buy territory after his TV gave up the ghost. On the plus side, Andor continues to be amazing and makes up for any consumer electronics woes. (It really...
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Episode 556: Quesorios
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life: Devon would like to make one thing clear: queso is fine. Queso is acceptable. Just… not on everything, okay? Some of us still want to taste the actual food under the goo. That said, he did just survive a kid’s pool party, so maybe he’s earned the right to eat whatever the hell he wants — even fake grass, which he claims is "for winners." We’re choosing not to dig into that statement. Steven, meanwhile, embraced the full Force of May 4th with joy, lightsabers, and an animated binge of Tales of the Empire — now fully released and featuring everyone’s favorite...
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Episode 555: Not His First Time (Building A Lightsaber)
Science Faction Podcast
Real Life Devon just got back from Barcelona, where his sister-in-law’s wedding was equal parts joyful and medically confusing (house-wide illness, mystery IV drip, etc.). Between family chaos and questioning the overwhelming religious vibes, he managed to sneak in a tour of tapas bars—including Bobby’s Free, a barbershop turned speakeasy where you open a safe to get a drink. Also on the agenda: the Sagrada Familia, which still looks like Gaudí teamed up with an alien architect. and judge for yourself. Steven went full Jedi at Disney’s Star Wars Night on Batuu, adding more...
info_outlineReal Life Updates
Devon’s Redecoration Adventure
Devon has been painting and redecorating—at Jen’s request—to make things look more "adult." This involved taking down metal posters to put up a TV for gaming, which led to a frustrating experience with Displate (spoiler: they suck). While redecorating, Devon also came across a fascinating philosophy YouTuber, Alex O’Connor.
▶️ Watch Alex O’Connor: YouTube Link
Also, ChatGPT can apparently generate a perfect glass of wine… all the way to the top.
Steven’s Gaming Corner
Steven has been playing Avowed (part of Xbox Game Pass—so "free"). His verdict? "Pretty fun." Thanks to his beefy new graphics card, he’s playing on PC.
▶️ Check out Avowed: Steam Link
He also tried Keep Driving, a game about driving to the right, avoiding potholes, picking up hitchhikers, and helping a little girl find her parents—all while managing fuel, energy, and car repairs.
▶️ Try Keep Driving: Steam Link
Ben’s Solitaire Obsession
Ben has discovered Scoundrel Solitaire by Zach Gage and Kurt Bieg, a solitaire game played with a real deck of cards and a D20.
▶️ Learn how to play: Rules PDF
▶️ Play online: Itch.io Link
Future or Now: Music & Media
Renee’s Music Question:
Renee’s kid is getting into 90s rock (Weezer, The Offspring, etc.), and that sparked a conversation about favorite musical sounds and guitar solos. Here’s what we came up with:
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Ben: The sound of an orchestra tuning up (potential energy). Favorite solo: We Will Fall Together – Streetlight Manifesto
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Steven: Any heavy bass sound. Favorite solo: Waking the Demon
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Devon: Pinched harmonics. Favorite solo: Octavarium (Razor’s Edge) – John Petrucci
▶️ Dream Theater - Octavarium Guitar Solo: YouTube Link
Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man
We checked out Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, which fills in gaps between the Tom Holland movies. Like X-Men '97, it takes some big swings.
▶️ More on the show: IMDB Link
Devon’s Disturbing Read
Devon is reading Animal Liberation Now by Peter Singer. It’s unsettling, to say the least. More thoughts after he finishes.
▶️ Read it here: Google Books Link
Steven’s Movie Night
Steven watched some of Wicked Part 1 with his kids. They haven’t asked to watch more. Suspicious. He also revisited Return to Oz, which remains a fever dream.
▶️ Return to Oz: Rotten Tomatoes Link
Book Club Corner
Next Week: To Be Taught, If Fortunate by Becky Chambers
A look at 22nd-century space exploration using somaforming—biological modifications that allow astronauts to survive hostile environments. But what happens when Earth moves on without them?
▶️ Audiobook: Audible Link
This Week: Billennium by J.G. Ballard
A classic dystopian short story exploring extreme overpopulation. But why "20,000 million"? And what would you do if you suddenly came into wealth? Would you help others?
▶️ Read it here: PDF Link
▶️ World population discussion: Worldometer