One of my favorite childhood summertime memories is watching fireflies in the evenings. After many firefly-free years, I got to see them again last weekend. Discover why they're so cool and how they do what they do.

A few resources for your enjoyment:

Fireflies: how and why they light up

Insider Science: what's behind the firefly's glow? (YouTube)

Watch: fireflies glowing in sync to attract mates (YouTube)

Stunning fossil trapped in amber reveals previously unknown species that lived during the time of dinosaurs (CNN)

Let it glow: fireflies illuminating Japanese woodlands — in pictures (The Guardian)

Music: Jens East — Daybreak (ft. Henk) www.soundcloud.com/jenseast Licence: Creative Commons Attribution V4.0

Do you know any pigeon-haters, or pigeon-phobes? Pigeons are actually such interesting birds, and they mean us no harm at all. Bring some wonder into your next city or suburban outing, and maybe you'll see pigeons in a new light.

(Not my best-quality audio, I'm afraid, but this will have to do because I've already recorded it twice!)

A few resources:

Are pigeons as smart as primates? You can count on it.

The human relationship with pigeons: forgotten war heroes

Humans domesticated pigeons, then abandoned them. Is it time for a reappraisal?

Pigeon audio clip: BBC Sound Effects

Music: Jens East — Daybreak (ft. Henk) www.soundcloud.com/jenseast Licence: Creative Commons Attribution V4.0

What chance encounters have shaped your life? Don't you look back on them with a sense of wonder — what were the odds?! I'll talk about this phenomenon and also put in a good word for its social cousin, small talk with strangers, even if you're an introvert like me.

Chance encounters (CNN)

Small talk doesn't need to be meaningless: the benefits of talking to strangers

Planned happenstance and your career

Music: Jens East — Daybreak (ft. Henk) www.soundcloud.com/jenseast Licence: Creative Commons Attribution V4.0

Even with the internet's endless magic, libraries remain fascinating and important places. Come to the library with me in this episode, where I'll share three reasons I love libraries and think everyone else should too!

A few resources:

World Book Day

Joanina Library

Great Library of Alexandria: New and improved

The world's most extraordinary libraries

'A cultural masterpiece': the world's best new public libraries — in pictures

Public libraries are not just about books. At their heart, they are about social equity. (The Guardian)

Music: Jens East — Daybreak (ft. Henk) www.soundcloud.com/jenseast Licence: Creative Commons Attribution V4.0

If you haven't heard it from me enough, I'll say it again: cultivating wonder is good for us all! I'm going to share some things you might try today or this week if you're seeking more wonder, awe, and joy.

Why now?

While I always hope this podcast is uplifting, I can't produce it in a vacuum as if I feel all is well in the world. And since I don't feel that way now (and you may not either), I've recorded this episode about how cultivating wonder can be its own form of resistance to the troubling things happening in the world.

The resources I mention:

Heather Cox Richardson on why joy is a form of resistance (YouTube, Red Wine and Blue)

Explore.org

Netflix: Unknown Cave of Bones

Music: Jens East — Daybreak (ft. Henk) www.soundcloud.com/jenseast Licence: Creative Commons Attribution V4.0

Few natural phenomena are as magical and mysterious as bird migrations. I wish I had more than nine minutes, but I'll give you just a taste of why migrating birds are so cool.

"Marshland Elegy" by Aldo Leopold (PDF from A Sand County Almanac, 1949)

These 5 birds are all winners in the migrations Olympics (National Audubon Society)

Bird migration is one of nature's great wonders. Here's how they do it. (National Geographic)

Fabulous flights: 13 amazing facts about bird migration (BBC)

How migrating birds use quantum effects to navigate (Scientific American)

Audubon's Rowe Sanctuary's crane cam (livestream)

Sandhill crane sound clip from the National Park Service: https://www.nps.gov/subjects/sound/sounds-sandhill-crane.htm

Music: Jens East — Daybreak (ft. Henk) www.soundcloud.com/jenseast Licence: Creative Commons Attribution V4.0

How much attention do you pay to ice? Maybe you're sick and tired of all the ice around you this time of year, but what about taking a closer look — even if it's just in your freezer? Ice is a menace on the road or sidewalk and can damage our beloved trees, but have you ever considered ice as an art form? Listen to find out more about this simple form of water that we usually either take for granted or curse. (Bonus topic: why do Americans use so much ice in their drinks?) A huge thank you to Tuula Ahde, who contributed some lovely audio descriptions of her spectacular ice photographs, as well as the feature photo. Tuula Ahde photographer (website)

Tuula Ahde Instagram

The bizarre but true story of America's obsession with ice cubes

Ice Music Festival (Norway)

Ice sound clip from https://sound-effects.bbcrewind.co.uk/search?q=NHU05100199, recordist Stephen de Vere, Antarctica 1992

Music: Jens East — Daybreak (ft. Henk) www.soundcloud.com/jenseast Licence: Creative Commons Attribution V4.0

The world is so noisy! Even if we live in relatively quiet places, we are bombarded by noise thanks to all the pinging and dinging on our phones, the din of terrible news, demands from annoying coworkers...the list can seem endless. So let's focus on the more quiet side of life — quiet places we can visit or imagine. If quiet creeps you out, not to worry — this episode only lasts 9 minutes, and I talk through most it!

A few resources:

Lonely Planet: The Joy of Quiet Places

In the Earth's quietest room, you can hear yourself blink (Smithsonian)

Finding Minnesota: Orfield Laboratories (YouTube)

One square inch: a sanctuary for silence at Olympic National Park

The history of Postman's Park

Music: Jens East — Daybreak (ft. Henk) www.soundcloud.com/jenseast Licence: Creative Commons Attribution V4.0