Gastropod

The Klamath River on the California-Oregon border was once the third largest salmon river in the continental U.S. There were so many fish, indigenous histories claim that you could cross the river walking across their backs—which made the peoples who lived in this remote, beautiful region some of the wealthiest in pre-colonial North America. But, for more than a century, salmon have been shut out of the Klamath: thanks to multiple hydroelectric dams that blocked the river, these fish couldn’t reach miles of cold, clear waters where they historically spawned. Their population plummeted to the point where even catching salmon for traditional ceremonies was banned, to help the few remaining fish survive. In just the past couple of months, however, the dams have come down, thanks to a scrappy coalition of local tribes, commercial fishermen, and environmental groups who spent decades fighting to free the Klamath—and bring the salmon home. Listen in this episode for the epic tale of the largest dam removal project in history—but also for the much bigger story of why these fish matter, and what it will take to make the Klamath their home again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today, a half century after Neil Armstrong took one small step onto the surface of the Moon, there are still just ten humans living in space—the crew of the International Space Station. But, after decades of talk, both government agencies and entrepreneurs are now drawing up more concrete plans to return to the Moon, and even travel onward to Mars. Getting there is one thing, but if we plan to set up colonies, we'll have to figure out how to feed ourselves. Will Earth crops grow in space—and, if so, will they taste different? Will we be sipping spirulina smoothies and crunching on chlorella cookies, as scientists imagined in the 1960s, or preparing potatoes six thousand different ways, like Matt Damon in The Martian? Listen in this episode for the stories about how and what we might be farming, once we get to Mars. (encore presentation) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

To painters and poets in late-1800s France, absinthe was "the green muse" or the "green fairy," an almost magical potion that promised vivid dreams, wild ideas, and artistic inspiration with every sip. By the 1910s, this once incredibly popular herbal liquor was banned—not only in France, but in countries around the world. Condemned as the cause of both individual ruin and social decline, absinthe consumption was blamed for seizures, memory gaps, hallucinations, and even murderous rage. So what's the deal: is absinthe just a drink, or is it actually deadly? This episode, we've got the story behind the myths, from witchy distillers to women on bicycles, and military rations to pre-ban bottles. Join us for the trip! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Every day, at the end of service, restaurants throw away tons of entirely edible food: heaps of pastries and whole loaves of bread, vegetables chopped but not cooked, noodle dough, fish off-cuts, and more. An estimated 20 billion meals's worth of still edible food overall is tossed every year here in the US, and more than 85 percent of it ends up in the landfill. Meanwhile, more than one in ten Americans are food insecure. So why is it so hard to keep all of that perfectly good food out of the trash and get it onto people’s plates instead? This week, we’re taking a deep dive into the dumpster (not literally!), to explore the most innovative and surprising new solutions to this toughest of food challenges, including the wizards transforming everything from stale bagels to gallons of banana cream concentrate into a delicious dinner. Did someone order meals, not methane? Oui chef! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices