Pulse of the Planet Podcast with Jim Metzner | Science | Nature | Environment | Technology

The Ga people of Ghana remember the pain of famine and the celebration of harvest. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A veteran auctioneer explains the intricacies of his craft. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Throughout the Southeastern states, August is the season for tobacco auctions. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An eight-second ride can seem like forever. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are lots of flashier rodeos, but this one's the real deal. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A sound defense against bats! Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tiger moths woo their partners with a series of clicking sounds. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They come in all shapes and sizes, but what are the chances of actually finding a meteorite? Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The surprising truth about why mosquitoes need your blood. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Making male mosquitos with the "Nix Gene". Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Great Gull Island is one of the few remaining places where terns can nest and raise their young in safety. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What to do when an island bird refuge gets overgrown with plants? Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who says elephants can't fly? Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An elaborate Indonesian death ritual takes its cues from the mating habits of the Hornbill bird. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sometimes animals remind us we have more in common with them than we think. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the trail of the world's most sought-after mushroom. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In any forest, there's a complex interdependent web of life underground. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A mushroom is the visible part of a much larger organism. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bears at Alaska's McNeil River have come to rely on an annual fish feast. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over a hundred brown bears in Alaska have learned that every July, the McNeil River is THE place to catch fish. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This summer, an endangered seabird will find one of its last remaining safe havens on the salt marshes off the coast of New Jersey. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fledgling seabirds must the trick of catching fish beneath the surface of the water. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Millions of Muslim pilgrims gather this week in Mecca, in a gathering which transcends the barriers of caste, color, race and gender. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At least once in their lives, all Muslims who are physically and financially able are enjoined to make a pilgrimage to Mecca. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Yet another reason to have electric cars! Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why are moths attracted to light bulbs? Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There's a lot to learn from the big blob left on your windshield by an unfortunate horse fly. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here's a new way to pass the time on a long car ride. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's clamming season in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fierce windstorms in the Gobi Desert force scientists working there to think fast and run even faster. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

These three-ton animals may communicate using sounds below the range of human hearing. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Analyzing butter to detect pollutants worldwide. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A cheap and effective pollution monitoring tool? Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fireworks, marching bands, and words from some famous Americans. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A bullfrog's croak promises warm nights to come. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What's behind the summer's most famous flying light show? Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For ancient Egyptians, the appearance of the constellation Sirius in the dawn sky marked the beginning of an important annual event. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you want Bluebirds in your nesting boxes, it likely means evicting Sparrows and Starlings. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

They're good for the environment, but what's the best way to find native plants? Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Some remarkable music is a highlight at the annual Tun Payram festival. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Black Venezuelans have introduced an African icon into a festival honoring St. John. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An icon is said to hold the power to grant promises. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A Venezuelan festival honoring a Catholic saint has taken on a decidedly African flavor. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There's something we all can do to help protect local animals and plants. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The food millions of people spread on their toast every morning has inspired legends in many cultures. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Learn how to churn your own butter at home. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When it comes to making butter, older methods may be better. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's a tough life for male paper wasps. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Young girls reach for the clouds during this Korean coming of age ceremony. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Usurpers, foundresses, abandoned nests - welcome to the world of the paper wasp. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices