Adapt or Die! The Evolutionary Biology of Pop Culture

About Adapt or Die! The Evolutionary Biology of Pop Culture

Darwin did not expect to have "his" theory applied to pixelated creatures...this is payback for taking the limelight over Wallace. On Adapt or Die, Austin (a PhD candidate in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology) explores topics in popular culture that can be dissected with evolutionary theories and ideas. We will ask questions like "Does Pokémon evolution work like actual evolution?" or "How would evolution inform what lives and what dies after nuclear fallout". Combining peer-reviewed science, humour, and a smidge of speculation we will adapt our understanding of pop culture together.

Publisher

Austin Ashbaugh

Category

science

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

31 Jul 2024

Latest episode

15 Apr 2025

Latest episodes

20 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   15 Apr 2025

   18. I Capture the Clefairy: Same-sex behaviour in evolution

   Welcome to this brand new (and final for this season!) episode of Adapt or Die! The evolutionary biology of pop culture hosted by Austin Ashbaugh. The current cultural phenomenon we are discussing this season is Pokémon and todays episode is focused on the fairy type. Our evolutionary connection to the fairy type is the topic of same-sex behaviour in evolution. In the Safari Zone, I get into the difference between sex and gender in an evolutionary context, the evolution of same sex behavior, ...

2. 

   1 Apr 2025

   17. The Draconic History: Phylogenetics

   Welcome to this brand new episode of Adapt or Die! The evolutionary biology of pop culture hosted by Austin Ashbaugh. The current cultural phenomenon we are discussing this season is Pokémon and todays episode is focused on the dragon type. Our evolutionary connection to the dragon type is phylogenetics. In the Safari Zone, I get into what characters we name organisms based on, what aptations, adaptations, and exaptations are as well as illustrating these ideas and describing the characters u...

3. 

   11 Mar 2025

   16. The Meta(pod)morphosis: Evolution of Insects

   Welcome to this brand new episode of Adapt or Die! The evolutionary biology of pop culture hosted by Austin Ashbaugh. The current cultural phenomenon we are discussing this season is Pokémon and todays episode is focused on the bug type. Our evolutionary connection to the bug type is the evolution of insects. In the Safari Zone, I get into what defines an insect and will review the representation of all the major insect orders in the pokémon games. During the pokémon professors rant, I approp...

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Spotify

5.0 / 5

3 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 50 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

70

Social presence

91

YouTube

0

Engagement

32

Contact Adapt or Die! The Evolutionary Biology of Pop Culture

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.