Ep 61: Everything Rope, with Knot and Rope Supply

Hello, thank you for joining us today On the Dogwatch, where we consider the natural world and the things that help us experience it. I am Michael Canfield, it is currently 10:37 on the Forenoon Watch, and this is Episode 61. We are back from a break on the podcast and have prepared some exciting…

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Ep 34: Zen and the Art: Motorcycles, Maintenance, and Pirsig

As we get into the warmer weather of spring, many of us On the Dogwatch will start to think of road trips. One of the many great things about these trips is that they can afford us time to think about our lives. There is no more iconic North American road trip than Robert Pirsig’s…

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Ep 52: Baby Talk to Dogs. How? Why?

We’ve all heard people talking to dogs like they are small children. Some people find it cute, others consider it absurd, and there are also those who understand it implicitly. So what do we know about how humans talk to dogs? Today On the Dogwatch we are joined by Bob Mitchell, head of the Animal Studies…

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What is a Dogwatch, Anyway? dogwatch, n.

dogwatch, n. Nautical. A short watch of two hours’ duration instead of the usual four, from 4.00–6.00 p.m. or 6.00–8.00 p.m., that enables the turn of the night watch to be changed every twenty-four hours From 1657 We espied four and thirty ships more, under a Convoye, all coming from Brasil in the first of…

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Ep 2: SIGNAL Coffee Roasters and Cafes

On today’s episode we talk with Brendan Doherty from Signal Coffee Roasters. Signal has several cafes now, with two on Alameda Island and one in Berkeley, CA.  In our conversation, Brendan helps us understand how beans are chosen, the overall process of roasting, and how recent advances in analytics help you get your favorite beans…

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Ep 1: Evolution of Puppy Dog Eyes

In this episode we talk with Juliane Kaminski, a researcher who studies human sociality and social cognition, but who also studies dogs. In the conversation, we discuss the nature of cognition and what we know about how humans interact with dogs, how the familiar “puppy dog eyes” came to be, and what our dogs are…

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Ep 38: Shackleton. The Brand that Prepares, Equips, and Inspires

The Brand that Prepares, Equips, and Inspires, Taking Cues From the Boss Himself. On top of the stack of the world’s expedition narratives, survival stories, and inspiring but hard-to-believe-they-are-true adventure books, sits Ernest Shackleton. The tale of the Endurance and Shackleton has become so legendary not only because of what he and his men did, but…

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Ep 36: Then There Was the Belgica

Before Shackleton and the Endurance There Was the Belgica Most listeners of this podcast will be familiar with the epic adventure of Ernest Shackleton and the crew of the Endurance. However, the Endurance does not have a monopoly on being stuck in Antarctic ice, nor does it have precedence. Before the Endurance, Belgian captain Adrien de…

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Ep 49: The Kala Pocket Sundial

Today On the Dogwatch we have the opportunity to learn about the Kala Pocket Sundial, and to get to know its purveyor, Matt Kala. We go the distance on this episode, and along with learning a bit about Graz and the beauties of Austria, hear the story of how the pocket sundial was inspired by a…

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Ep 56: Notebooks and Paper for the Field

When you head to the field with your notebook and pen in your hand–to either record the natural world or your thoughts while there–you want materials that will hold up to a wicked squall, a blizzard, or any combination of dirt, dung, misplaced hooves and paws, and even spilled coffee. Today we have the opportunity…

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