AI Summary
5 min read“I like to hold two truths in my head at the same time,” says Moiya McTier, an astrophysicist and folklorist who had to negotiate her own double major at Harvard because the administration had never considered pairing astrophysics with folklore and mythology. She got her way by pointing out that both departments were too small to lose a student. Her thesis was a science fiction novel set on a real exoplanet, with a plot paralleling the Hawaiian sovereignty movement—a project that required her to travel to Hawaii and talk to protesters during the 30 Meter Telescope conflict. McTier now hosts two podcasts: Exolore, which builds fictional worlds from real astronomical data, and Pale Blue Pod, a cozy show for people overwhelmed by the universe. Her book The Milky Way: An Autobiography of Our Galaxy is narrated by the galaxy itself, which has a healthy ego and is excited about its eventual merger with Andromeda.
Constellations as cultural artifacts, not scientific categories
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What you'll learn
- 1 (01:24) **Welcome & Guest Introduction** - Neil deGrasse Tyson and co-host Matt Kershen introduce the episode’s theme: the intersection of astrophysics and folklore, and welcome guest Moiya McTier, an astrophysicist and folklorist.
- 2 (08:46) **The Milky Way’s Autobiography** - Moiya discusses her book *The Milky Way: An Autobiography of Our Galaxy*, written from the galaxy’s perspective.
- 3 (12:53) **Indigenous Astronomy & Dark Constellations** - The conversation shifts to how different cultures, especially Indigenous ones, see the night sky.
- 4 (18:35) **Updating Constellations & Asterisms** - A listener asks why we don’t rename constellations for modern times.
- 5 (24:58) **Orion Across Cultures** - A listener asks if Orion was seen as a hunter in other cultures, and if Mars (god of war) had similar associations.
- 6 (30:03) **Are Constellations Physically Related?** - A listener asks if stars in a constellation are actually near each other in space.
- 7 (35:10) **Dark Matter & Black Holes** - A listener under the influence asks if dark matter could be matter escaping from black holes.
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Show Notes
Is it time to update the constellations? On this episode, Neil deGrasse Tyson and comic co-host Matt Kirshen dive into astrophysics, folklore, and our ancient connection to the stars with astrophysicist Moiya McTier, Ph.D.
Originally Aired December 6, 2022.
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