Bonus 2023
All the extra good stuff this year's podguests talked about, including a mythical disappearing island, the dubious history of the BMI, Victorian death department stores, & more
It's our annual end of year parade of all the extra good stuff this year's podguests talked about, including a mythical disappearing island, geese, human dictionaries, the dubious history of the Body Mass Index, Victorian death department stores, and much more.
In order of appearance, we hear from:
Translator and author Caetano Galindo on how the countril Brazil got its name
Lexicographer and Countdown's Dictionary Corner-er Susie Dent on pleasing words
Academic and collector of dictionaries Lindsay Rose Russell on walking dictionaries and sleeping dictionaries
Writer and Maintenance Phase cohost Aubrey Gordon on the origins and misuse of the BMI and body positivity movement
Historian Dean Vuletic on why we say "Nul points!" about Eurovision losers
Council funeral officer Evie King on alternatives to cremation
Griefcast's Cariad Lloyd on Victorian Brits' rules for grief, and the misuse of the concept of five stages of grief.
Plus! Renaming updates, movie-named knitwear, and my portmanteaus and portmantNOs of the year.
Content notes: this episode contains discussions of death, grief, anti-fat bias, eugenics and racism; I've included warnings in the audio before each section where they're relevant, so you know which specific parts to skip if you need to.
Get the transcript of this episode, and find links to the guests and more information about the topics therein, at theallusionist.org/bonus2023
