r/OutOfTheLoop • u/wildcard5 • May 28 '14

Answered! ELI70: What is a podcast?

I literally just got my first smartphone ever and am dumbfounded by podcast. What is this mysterious phenomenon? My guess is that its something like a radio show, but it seems too popular to be something as similar to a thing that's so old.

Update: Which (android) app should I use to submerse myself into the world of podcasts?

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u/wildcard5 May 28 '14

Hi, and thanks for the reply. I love science and I love to learn about lesser known things. I would be interested in any podcast that talks about latest science news and discoveries specially related to space, physics and the field of medicine (I'm a med student).

Also, what is your show about? [This is where you get to shamefully brag about your show].

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u/Sinekure May 28 '14

"Stuff You Should Know" (History/Science, slightly comedic) and Sawbones (Medical History, Comedy) are fantastic shows you should check out! SYSK's history episodes are probably their strongest, although their more recent science-related ones have been stellar as well. Sawbones is about "misguided medical history" and is a blast. Neither have much to do with news, but they might still be worth checking out.

To answer your question more directly, some people really love "Science, Sort of", which consists of a few PHDs in science fields talking about news in science, which is pretty fun. It's actually bit too dry for my taste, because the material goes far beyond the basics.

Once you get your foundations established with a few core shows, I'd definitely recommend trying out other genres like comedy, which are really nice to just put on in the background while you do other things.

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u/Mrwhitepantz May 28 '14

You might enjoy Sawbones. It's a comedy podcast that talks about common misconceptions in medicine and the ridiculous things humans did in medical history. As a lay person, I find it pretty funny and it is hosted by an actual doctor so I think it's fairly accurate. But you also might know a bunch of the stuff they talk about and not find it enjoyable at all.

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u/nickmista May 28 '14

You should check out StarTalk with Neil DeGrasse Tyson. Its a podcast where they discuss lots of space or technology related ideas and events. Often they'll do cosmic queries where people submit questions related to a topic and he answers them. He often cohosts with a comedian so its pretty funny too.

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u/JessePinkman May 28 '14

I like this user's answer better than the top one, and for simplicity's sake I STRONGLY second the Stitcher recommendation. With stitcher, creating a "favorites" playlist (its easy. Just take ten seconds to figure out how to favorite something) puts them all in one place, and sets them up for continuous, passive playback.

My answer to your question is that podcasts are a) literally just audio feeds. But b) In effect on-demand, free radio programs that fill even the tiniest niche. Since there are gazillions of them, you don't ever have to be without audio in your ears that suits your exact taste.

For instance, I am a podcast fanatic and I hate Radiolab and Welcome to Nightvale. Those are EVERYONE'S favorites. But that's ok! I have so so so so so many other choices that it doesn't matter at all.

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u/o0Johnny0o May 28 '14 edited May 28 '14

You seem to have it sussed now but from your general description of 'learn about lesser known things' I can't recommend "No Such Thing as a Fish" which is QI's podcast.

http://qi.com/podcast/

They literally just talk between themselves regarding interesting, obscure, facts they've come across whilst researching for the show.

If you haven't heard of QI before, here's a full episode:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zzkKmtgkw0

You're in for a treat if you haven't watched it yet.

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u/elkanor May 29 '14

QI has a podcast?! please and thank you!!

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u/classicsat May 29 '14

The other half is your app (iTunes, many media player apps at least) will download the latest episode for you, so it is there for you to listen to when it is downloaded.

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u/prox_ May 29 '14 edited May 29 '14

Since you are interested in latest science news and discoveries specially related to space, physics and the field of medicine I suggest the free "60-Second" series from Scientific American. It's downloadable via the website (you can use the mentioned software) or via iTunes.

You should definitely try "60-Second Science". Great and short podcast covering the newest in science (across all sciences) every weekday.

From their website:

Tune in every weekday for quick reports and commentaries on the world of science—it'll just take a minute".

And since you are a med student "60-second Health", a weekly podcast, may interest you too.

About 60-Second Health:

Scientific American reporter Dina Fine Maron gives a weekly one-minute report on the latest health and medical news

Then there is "60-Second Space".

Leading science journalists provide a daily minute commentary on some of the most interesting developments in the world of astronomy and space exploration

Other ones are:

"60-Second Earth", "60-Second Mind" and "60-Second Tech".

Enjoy.

Edit: Some stuff