This was a blast–a chance to reconnect and ruminate with my old North Hall pal Sofia Klatzker-Miller. I think that I may have first encountered the idea of signal and noise in the title of a song by Peter Gabriel, another figure who loomed large to my 1993 self.

Ontogeny? Phylogeny? Recapitulates? What the what? This is another pairing that’s been rattling around in my brain forever, and a few years ago I was pleased to learn that Ken Schles is also a fan. Enough time passed for him to forget that conversation, and here we are. A good one.

Another round of “First World Problems” with Andrew Warman. How would you explain “Jackass 3D” to the aliens? Why would they be interested?

This week Roman Mars and I attempt to sort out the differences between mass and weight. We get thoroughly confused in the process, but I think we end up learning something anyway. We’ll see.

The thrilling conclusion (plus post-game wrap-up) of my experiment with Jeremy Broomfield. Next week, back to our usual format.

Jeremy is kind enough to serve as guinea pig as I try out a new format. There’s just too much Broomfield goodness here for a single episode, so you’ll get part 2 next week.

A talk with Beth Isaac about a couple of biology terms that might not even be all that related. Or are the they…?

Peter and I get into some multimedia shenanigans here, or at the very least bend one of the conceits of the format. Watch out for the introduction of the first Necessary & Sufficient sound effect, and the sonic havoc wreaked when I switch microphones midstream!

Michael Isaac and I discuss an idea that I first came across in High Fidelity. Probably the most ruminative episode so far. Enjoy!