Synopsis
Three comedians try to guess what a leading expert does all day and learn why their research is important. You're the Expert brings academia out of the Ivory Tower and into your iPhone. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
Episodes
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The Biggest Dinosaur Ever
03/06/2016 Duration: 48minDreadnoughtus is the biggest dinosaur ever found. Dr. Ken Lacovara (Rowan University) is the paleontologist who discovered it. He tells comedians Aparna Nancherla, Hari Kondabolu, and Maeve Higgins all about tiny headed dinos, breaking rocks, and how he once intimidated Harrison Ford. Recorded at the Franklin Institute as part of the 2016 Philadelphia Science Festival. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Robot Geckos
20/05/2016 Duration: 48minDr. Tonia Hsieh (Temple University) is a biomechanist who discovered how geckos are able to stick to walls. She's using her findings to build better robots. Recorded live at the Philadelphia Science Festival, this episode features comedians Aparna Nancherla, Maeve Higgins, and Hari Kondabolu. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Bacterial Batteries and Viral Solar Cells
06/05/2016 Duration: 48minDr. Angela Belcher is an MIT professor and a MacArthur genius. She teaches comedians Aparna Nancherla, Josh Sharp, and Bobby Smithney about how she uses viruses and bacteria to build next generation batteries, solar cells, and much more. She is literally a genius. Recorded at the 2016 Cambridge Science Festival with funding from MIT's de Florez Fund for Humor. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Medicinal Chemistry at the Atlanta Science Festival
23/04/2016 Duration: 47minDr. Stefan France is a chemist at Georgia Tech working on synthesizing new molecules for medicine. He teaches comedians Josh Sharp, Amber Nash, and Shalewa Sharpe about the life of a chemist and why both chocolate and wine might be good for you. Recorded at the 2016 Atlanta Science Festival. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Killer Snails
08/04/2016 Duration: 46minDr. Mande Holford studies venomous sea snails, the "assassins of the sea." Her research holds clues to treating Alzheimer's, solving opioid addiction, and much more. Panelists Tracy Clayton (Another Round), Zhubin Parang (head writer for The Daily Show), and author Maeve Higgins learn about the mysterious world of these underwater killers. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Neanderthal-Human Interbreeding
18/03/2016 Duration: 42minDid you know that you're about 2% Neanderthal? Bridget Alex is a Harvard anthropologist and evolutionary biologist studying how/when our ancestors met and bred with Neanderthals. She teaches comedians Sam Ike, Kenice Mobley, and Steve Macone about the mysteries of evolution and a caveman's love life. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Bees
04/03/2016 Duration: 49minDr. Noah Wilson-Rich is the chief scientific officer at the Best Bees Company. Comedians Bobby Smithney, Julia Claire, and Gary Petersen learn about Noah's research and dive into the secret lives of bees, what it's like to be stung 500 times, and why it's good to be the queen. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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The Science of Nightmares
19/02/2016 Duration: 47minDr. Gary Fireman is the chair of Suffolk University's Psychology Department. He's an expert on nightmares and disturbed dreaming. Comedians Maeve Higgins, Charlie Hankin, and Matt Porter find out where nightmares come from, what they mean, and how they compare to an acid trip. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Airport Biology at SF Sketchfest
08/02/2016 Duration: 48minNatalie Reeder is the official wildlife biologist at San Francisco International Airport. Natalie helps comedians Kristen Schaal, Eugene Mirman, and James Adomian understand how to keep birds away from engines, when snakes actually do get out on planes, and why SFO is full of frogs. Recorded in front of a live audience at SF Sketchfest 2016. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Octopus Defenses
22/01/2016 Duration: 51minDr. Jean Alupay is an octopus expert at USC. Comedians Scott Adsit (30 Rock), Emily Maya Mills (Parks and Rec), and Josh Sharp (CBS) try to guess what Dr. Alupay studies and learn the mysteries of the deep. Whether you're a human or a three-hearted boneless sea creature, this episode is for you. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends. Recorded in front of a live audience at the Nerdist Showroom in Los Angeles, CA.
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Nuclear Power and Molten Salt
08/01/2016 Duration: 48minEugene Mirman, Scott Adsit, and Maeve Higgins learn from Dr. Leslie Dewan, an MIT alum who developed a revolutionary new nuclear reactor that's powered by nuclear waste. It's environmentally friendly, cheaper than other reactors, and it can't meltdown. She's kind of a big deal. Along the way, we learn about the social life of nuclear engineers, why BP really needs some new recruiting videos, and Guy Fieri's cooking. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Live at New York Super Week 2015
18/12/2015 Duration: 34minLive from the Bell House in Brooklyn, this is a special NYSW edition of the show. Dr. Melanie Stiassny, an ichthyologist at the American Museum of Natural History, teaches comedians Scott Adsit, Jo Firestone, and Josh Gondelman about the mysteries of the ocean (and what happens at a museum after hours). Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Super Massive Black Holes
20/11/2015 Duration: 32minWhat's inside of a black hole? How do you measure the universe? What was the first vegetable grown in space? We dive deep into these questions and more with Dr. Anca Constantin from James Madison University's Physics and Astronomy Department. Featuring comedians Maeve Higgins, Anna Drezen, and Nick Vatterott. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Disco Clams
06/11/2015 Duration: 44minLive from the 2015 Bay Area Science Festival, this episode features UC Berkeley's Lindsey Dougherty, a marine biologist who studies disco clams, which light up underwater. Lindsey's trying to figure out why and how these clams act like underwater disco balls. Trying to guess what she studies and learning why it's important are comedians W. Kamau Bell (CNN's "United Shades of America), Kurt Braunohler (Comedy Central), and Emmy Blotnick (@Midnight). Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Bats, Vampires, and White Nose Syndrome
23/10/2015 Duration: 47minNate Fuller studies bats. In this special Halloween show, we go deep into caves full of guano, get bitten by vampire bats, and hear about some extremely unusual first dates. Featuring comedians Jo Firestone, Josh Sharp, and Ken Reid. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Beautiful Throats and Emotional Doctors
09/10/2015 Duration: 44minHarvard Medical School's Dr. Jo Shapiro joins us to talk about her work as a throat surgeon and the head of Brigham and Women's Hospital's Center for Professionalism and Peer Support. Panelists Eugene Mirman, Scott Adsit, and Jo Firestone learn about the beautiful anatomy of the throat, the emotional stress of being a doctor, and why it can be dangerous to eat steak at a Florida IHOP. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Dictionaries & Phone Books at the Boston Book Festival 2015
20/09/2015 Duration: 49minAmmon Shea has read the entire Oxford English Dictionary and the phone book cover-to-cover and written books of his own about each. In this special book festival edition of the show, we cover exotic words, the most expensive phone book in the world, and how to use etymology as a pick up line. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Julie Smith Clem and Pretty Good Friends.
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Outhouse Archaeology
28/08/2015 Duration: 39minJoseph Bagley is the official Boston City Archaeologist. He's in charge of preserving Boston's many historic sites, but his real passion is digging up outhouses and privies to discover what secrets they contain. Panelists Steve Almond, Myq Kaplan, and Bethany Van Delft try to get the dirt on Joe's research and learn about looting, chowder, and bowling ball based crimes. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Inside a Dog's Brain
13/08/2015 Duration: 49minDr. Alexandra Horowitz is the head of Barnard's Canine Cognition Lab. She's also our first ever repeat guest! She was so great the first time, we had to have her on again with our new format. Panelists Mara Wilson, H. Jon Benjamin, and Josh Gondelman try to guess what Alexandra studies and then interview her about her work. Learn the truth about alpha males, guilty dog faces, and what a dog sees in the mirror. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.
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Laughter, Sneezing, and Farting
30/07/2015 Duration: 49minDr. Robert Provine is a neuroscientist who studies "curious behaviors" like sneezing, yawning, laughter, farting, and the hiccups. He teaches comedians Maeve Higgins, Seaton Smith, and Rachel Rosenthal about the science behind his studies and why comedy is so difficult to master. Hosted by Chris Duffy. Produced by Pretty Good Friends.