What The If?

The whole crew is off on separate adventures this week, so we've unlocked the vault for an encore of one of our most popular episodes ever. Get ready to meet a galaxy ready to tell its own life story…. —— Our special guest this week is Dr. Moiya McTier, “Folklorist to the stars & Astrophysicist to the folks.” Dr. McTier is the host of the popular science podcast Exolore, and the author of the new book, The Milky Way: An Autobiography of Our Galaxy. She writes on her website: "I truly am my ancestors' wildest dream. I grew up in a log cabin in the middle of the woods in rural Pennsylvania. I didn't have TV, a heating system, or running water. My chores included carrying buckets of water from our outdoor pump and chopping firewood to fuel our wood-burning stove. The nearest confederate flag was flying much closer than the nearest Black person. It was an interesting place and way to grow up. Now I have 4 Ivy League degrees and work my dream job as a full-time science communicator in New York City. I've given