Livin' la Viva Voce

"Should...High School...bE pAiD?"

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Sat, 22 Jan 2022 13:12:11 +0000

This week, Meg, Adam, and their new guest Caroline(!) attempt to answer the brief: "should universities be free?" We get this is a touchy - politically-loaded question - so of course we don't give it the respect it deserves!! We take a break to eat sushi instead!

Adam Green: @thegreenwords (twitter)
Meg Zhang: @MegJZhang (twitter)
Katie Green: @katiiiiiiiiiiiie (insta)
Caroline Lou

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Delicious Wine and the New Age of Pregnancy

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 14 Jan 2022 16:34:27 +0000

This week, Meg, Adam, and Aubrey explore human cloning! Aubrey discusses the new age of pregnancy. Meg shares deets on a pro-LGBTQ+/pro-immortality cult. Adam, as per usual, plugs The Guardian.

Adam Green: @thegreenwords (twitter)
Meg Zhang: @MegJZhang (twitter)
Aubrey: @Aubreypithecus (instagram)
Katie Green: @katiiiiiiiiiiiie (insta)

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Twitter: @LivinViva

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What came first: The PhD Student or the Supervisor?

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 07 Jan 2022 16:44:48 +0000

We're finally back to our regular scheduled programming! This week, Meg, Adam, and Aubrey attempt to answer: "What came first, the chicken or the egg?" Adam and Aubrey get clinical - Meg goes in a gastronomic direction.

Adam Green: @thegreenwords (twitter)
Meg Zhang: @MegJZhang (twitter)
Aubrey: @Aubreypithecus (instagram)
Katie Green: @katiiiiiiiiiiiie (insta)

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Twitter: @LivinViva

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Prinzessinnentausch: Wieder vertauscht (XXXmas Special)

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Sun, 02 Jan 2022 15:49:06 +0000

First and foremost, HAPPY NEW YEAR! It has been a while. What with the holidays and COVID, Adam and Meg have been busy relaxing and healing. Anyhoo - enjoy this special recording of Adam, Meg, and Aubrey reacting to Netflix's "The Princess Switch 2" in German with Spanish subtitles! If you want to watch along, all you have to do is sync up with the DUN-DUN at the beginning. Tschüss!

Adam Green: @thegreenwords (twitter)
Aubrey: @Aubreypithecus (instagram)
Meg Zhang: @MegJZhang (twitter)

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Twitter: @LivinViva

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Sacrifice! Sacrifice! Sacrifice!

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 10 Dec 2021 21:27:05 +0000

It's the return of Aubrey as our guest supervisor, and our last episode with the lovely Becca! This week, we answer, "what is the deal with human sacrifice?" Adam - as usual - offers some disturbing stats. (Boo!) Meg and Becca get DEEP about motherhood and COVID. (Yay!) If you can't tell by now, it's Meg who writes these episode descriptions ;) Enjoy!

[We know the sound quality isn't the best! We've acquired some new equipment and promise our next recording session will be much better! Sorry for the toilet audio, and thank you for being patient <3]

Adam Green: @thegreenwords (twitter)
Meg Zhang: @MegJZhang (twitter)
Aubrey: @Aubreypithecus (insta)
Becca Stout: @becxjoy (tiktok)

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Twitter: @LivinViva

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Look at All These Chickens!

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Sun, 05 Dec 2021 14:05:26 +0000

Adam, Meg and their guest Becca research and present on whether we should own non-domesticated animals as pets. Meg and Becca play fox and hen. Adam claims that CATS aren't domesticated??? Meg and Becca lose their shit. All in a day's work.

[NOTE: we know the audio quality isn't the best! We've acquired some new equipment and promise our next recording session will be much better! Thank you for being patient <3]

Adam Green: @thegreenwords (twitter)
Meg Zhang: @MegJZhang (twitter)
Katie Green: @katiiiiiiiiiiiie (insta)
Becca Stout: @becxjoy (tiktok)

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Twitter: @LivinViva

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If you're into reality TV, check out our Love Island recap podcast, Love Island La Viva Voce!

Digital Abstinence

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Sat, 27 Nov 2021 01:28:12 +0000

This week, Meg, Adam, and their new guest researcher, Becca attempt to answer the question, "How does technology affect children growing up?" Meg explores playground politics (literally). Adam dips a toe into the Metaverse. Becca shares a story about her dad's Facebook usage. Needless to say, hilarity ensues!

Adam Green: @thegreenwords (twitter)
Meg Zhang: @MegJZhang (twitter)
Katie Green: @katiiiiiiiiiiiie (insta)
Becca Stout: @becxjoy (tiktok)

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Twitter: @LivinViva

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Wooly or Won't He?

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 19 Nov 2021 17:39:49 +0000

It’s the final episode with our lovely guests Aubrey and Bee :( Not to worry! We’ll be back next week with some new folks. Join us as we attempt to answer the brief, “should we bring back mammoths with genetic modification?” (WE DO NOT CONDONE EUGENICS!!!!)

Adam Green: @thegreenwords (twitter)
Bee Rich: @bee_rich_sci (twitter/insta)
Aubrey: @Aubreypithecus (insta)
Meg Zhang: @MegJZhang (twitter)

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Twitter: @LivinViva

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Astro-Nots

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 12 Nov 2021 17:19:55 +0000

Join Meg, Adam, and their guest, Bee this week as they attempt to answer: “Is burying bodies the right way to intern the deceased?” This episode takes you to New Orleans, Space and back! We know…the theme is pretty morbid this week. Good thing we have some hilarious puns.

Adam Green: @thegreenwords (twitter)
Bee Rich: @bee_rich_sci (twitter/insta)
Aubrey: @Aubreypithecus (insta)
Meg Zhang: @MegJZhang (twitter)

Facebook: Livin' La Viva Voce
Twitter: @LivinViva

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Cats! (The Ph.D. Defense)

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 05 Nov 2021 16:00:00 +0000

SEASON TWO BABY! (~AIRHORN NOISE~) We are back and drunker than ever. This time...with guests. It's a bit of a different format this season, y'all. Guest supervisors and researchers galore. No worries though - we are still committed to our chief values and missions: DRUNK. COMEDY. PHD. PODCAST. This episode, we explore and attempt to answer the following questions: "Why are cats assholes?" And, of course, can we play rock, paper, scissors virtually? Answers coming right meow.

Adam Green: @thegreenwords (twitter)
Bee Rich: @bee_rich_sci (twitter/insta)
Aubrey: @Aubreypithecus (insta)
Meg Zhang: @MegJZhang (twitter)

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Twitter: @LivinViva

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Zipline

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 01 Oct 2021 12:00:00 +0100

This is the last episode of the first season! Congrats, you made it! Adam's talk, "The Longest Stuff" is not about Billy Joel. It's about zip-lines, and other heartwarming things.

But really, thank you for downloading and listening! This podcast has been a great way for us as a long-distance couple to hang out, and to cheer us up as PhD students about our respective crumbling industries! Check out our sister podcast, Love Island La Viva Voce. Subscribe. Leave a review. Share it with your friends. We'll be back soon with more! - Meg and Adam <3

Yonkers

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 24 Sep 2021 12:00:00 +0100

We imbibed! So this week, Meg's talk, "Yonkers, or Rather Ten Miles North: The Armour-Stiner House" is half about the New York locale, and half about kettle chips. SPECIFICALLY the betrayal we experienced consuming Kettle brand's Jalapeño potato chips.

Xanadu

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 17 Sep 2021 12:00:00 +0100

What is Xanadu? Glad you asked. Adam's talk this week attempts to answer. Strangely enough, it's mostly a film studies lecture about Olivia Newton-John and roller-skating...

(Also, we know, we know! We have since learned that Xanadu is actually from Coleridge's poem, Kubla Khan, and is actually a name for the Chinese city, Shangdu. Oops! We were inebriated and careless with initial research. Forgive us~)

Westminster

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Sun, 12 Sep 2021 05:49:56 +0100

Okay. So. We don't get drunk these next four episodes. Instead, we rely upon a certain green substance that is permissible in a state like New York (or a country like Canada!) Meg's talk, "Barking Up the RIGHT Tree: The Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show" is, as a result, as much of a ploy to get a Doordash sponsorship as it is about the crazy New York dog competition! Enjoy~~~

Volta

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 03 Sep 2021 18:37:18 +0100

Let's be straightforward here. Adam's talk this week, "Can an Underwater Society Use Electricity?" is a doozy of a floozy. Alessandro Volta, Atlantis, Adventures! Enjoy :)

Also this got cut off! If you enjoyed this episode, or any other episodes, 1) check out our sister podcast, Love Island La Viva Voce (weekly recaps of Love Island UK Series 7), 2) Share Livin' La Viva Voce with your friends (and subscribe and/or leave a review!), 3) Follow us on our social media pages, @LivinViva on Twitter and Livin' La Viva Voce on Facebook! Thanks for listening :)

Utopianism

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 27 Aug 2021 17:35:06 +0100

This week, Meg’s talk, “Utopianism: Ideal Cities and World Happiness” explores the intersections between Thomas More’s hit classic, Utopia, optimistic urban planning, and the UN’s weird way of comparing countries like an aging parent does their middling children. This one’s actually pretty well-researched. So if you’re into this podcast for knowledge, this episode is definitely for you!

Tetris

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 20 Aug 2021 12:00:00 +0100

The Gameboy? Shifty IP laws? AND the Cold War?! How do these ideas stack up? Why in Adam's talk, "Tetris: A Tale of Joy, Greed, and Humility," of course! (Pun intended.)

Sycophant

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 13 Aug 2021 17:00:00 +0100

What do Uriah Heep (Great Expectations), Dr. Jeffrey Steadman (Scrubs), and Waylon Smithers (The Simpsons) have in common? They're all sycophants. This week, Meg chats all about them and the strange scatological, homosocial ties that emerge out of sycophancy (sycophantism???) - from the word's ancient Greek roots to its modern English significance.

Rabid

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 06 Aug 2021 15:04:01 +0100

Adam's talk this week, "Absolutely Rabid: Vaccinating Against Disease" is an outcry for pro-vaccine action! Give it a listen!

Quintuplets

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 30 Jul 2021 17:00:00 +0100

Meg's talk, "I Kid You Not: The Exploitation of Multiple-Birth Children" explores the insane treatment of twins, triplets, etc. by their parents, big entertainment corporations, and even...the GOVERNMENT. It's hard to joke about these kinds of things, so this episode is actually pretty informative. Maybe we'll be back next week with something a little more left-field. Enjoy!

Pneumatics

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 23 Jul 2021 17:00:00 +0100

Adam's talk, "Pneumatics: I Can't Believe They Invented It!" gives a run-down of the history behind pneumatics and hydraulics and ends with a game-show like segment where Adam tests Meg on wacky pneumatics-based inventions from the Victorian period! This episode's...kinda educational??? Good to know we're back on the proverbial wagon. Hope you enjoy!

Open Source

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 16 Jul 2021 17:00:00 +0100

Meg's talk, "Open Up! The Wacky World of Open Source Products" delves into the expansive limits of open source and open collaborative content. This presentation includes rallying against BIG SODA! Recipes included.

Nicaragua

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 09 Jul 2021 17:00:00 +0100

Adam's talk, "Nick a Rag, Wah: An Exploration of Mishearing Words" is all about auditory illusions and mondegreens. It is NOT about the country. There is no educational element to this episode (or let's face it, in this podcast) at all! But hey - at least we're up front about it.

Mid-Season Special

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 02 Jul 2021 17:00:00 +0100

It's the mid-season special! We're phoning it in this week because we're burnt out and lazy. Hurrah! We talk about ourselves, what we research, what we like to drink, our favourite watering holes, and we share some crazy drinking stories. (And you get to hear us do shots around 30:00!) We'll be back next week with a proper episode. Woohoo!!!

Mastercard

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 25 Jun 2021 17:00:00 +0100

Meg demonstrates why she is a PRO in lateral thinking. Her talk, "What is... the Master Card?" reviews the best cards out there! Playing cards, tarot cards, trading cards, gift cards, greeting cards, e-card -- name a card and Meg and Adam will have discussed it in this episode. But here comes the real question...what /is/ the master card? Listen and find out.

Limoncello

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 18 Jun 2021 17:00:00 +0100

This week, Adam's talk, "Celebrity Alcohols of the Less Known Variety" is all about Danny Devito, Steven Soderbergh, and Travis Scott's magical spirits. His presentation's original name is way catchier, but we can't mention it here lest we get sued! Such are the trials and tribulations of being a drunk phd podcast...

(Shout out to the General Wine Company in Liphook!)

Korriban

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 11 Jun 2021 16:30:00 +0100

Nerds, you're in luck! Meg's talk, "Korriban v. Moraband: Controversial Canonicity in the Star Wars Universe" is 40 minutes of ragging on George Lucas's despotic reign! Just kidding - sort of. Meg and Adam get into what it means to be a smaller storyteller operating in a cinematic universe as grand as Star Wars, and how little changes (like the name of the Sith home world) can depreciate authorial agency.

Juggalos

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 04 Jun 2021 17:00:00 +0100

Adam's talk, "Juggalos: Freedom of Expression v. the Right to Safety" unpacks and analyzes the significance of Juggalos - a wonderful, though highly controversial American subculture. If you don't know what this is, PLEASE PLEASE Google Images the words. It is delightfully chaotic.

Imola

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 28 May 2021 11:05:35 +0100

Our first episode recording TOGETHER! (Reunited and it feels so good<3) After a week of illness and travel (not COVID, fret not), Meg's talk, "The Lady of Imola: Caterina Sforza" marks the triumphant return of Viva Voce! (The audio may be a little wonky at times this week. We are trying our best in the coming weeks to reconfigure our recording setup :))

High-Def

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 14 May 2021 13:30:08 +0100

Adam's talk, "Digital v. Analog: High-Definition Audio, or, Does Vinyl Really Sound Better?" pulls the ol' Bob Dylan...What do I mean by that? Do Adam and Meg, in fact, go electric? You'll find out...

Georgian

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 07 May 2021 10:50:12 +0100

Now I know what you're thinking: "Meg's an eighteenth-century British literature scholar. SURELY - PLEASE GOD - she's gonna talk about Georgian era texts right?" WRONG. It's gonna be about MONKEYS! Here's Meg's talk: "The Curious Case of Curious George."

Fibres

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 30 Apr 2021 21:00:00 +0100

FIBRE! Animal, vegetable, mineral? Turns out...CARS! Adam's presentation, "Carbon Fibre, McLaren, and Life or Death: Has Formula 1 changed the World of Road Safety?" dives into whether the wild ways of professional driving trickle down into your everyday pick ups and drop offs.

Check out the John Watson accident that Adam talks about here: https://youtu.be/UPZ_eU8rHWU

Environment

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 23 Apr 2021 00:55:10 +0100

What happens when you have to write a presentation on the word, "Environment," and you don't want to get all depressing re: climate change? Well... this. Meg's talk, "Line of Doody: Sh*t Your Gut Says" takes Adam on an exploration of his insides! From bougie probiotic regimens (4 dollar yogurt shops and kombucha) to fecal transplants ("golden syrup"), this one gets a little stinky. (And yeah...we promise we won't stoop to poop ever again!)

Dinosaurs

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Thu, 15 Apr 2021 11:34:21 +0100

Did you know that Jim Henson did more than just the Muppets and Sesame Street? That’s right. This week, Adam’s talk, "Are you Listening yet? Dinosaurs, The Simpsons, Family Sitcoms and framing Progressive Politics in relatable sentiments" takes us on a deep dive into the eco-critical significance of the late 90s show Dinosaurs, and the shockingly progressive attitudes of other television series. Are you ready I have your mind blown? Meg sure wasn’t.

Computers

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Sun, 11 Apr 2021 01:59:40 +0100

This week it's Meg's turn to present. Her talk, "The Highly Irrational: Computing Conspiracies in the Modern Age" is all about - duh duh duh - COMPUTER CONSPIRACIES! Ever wanted to know more about the Wingdings 9/11 theory and how Deep Blue annihilated Kasparov at his own game? You'll get all that, and more! Also, Adam gets really deep this episode. (Seriously, what he says is PRO-FOUND.) It's what he studies after all!

Burgundy

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Fri, 02 Apr 2021 21:24:22 +0100

In this episode, Adam presents his paper to Meg, “Burgundy: What can Search Results tell us about human nature?” in which he takes a deep dive into some pretty sketchy sources in search for the EXACT right shade of burgundy. Truthfully, it is hard to remember what else took place because of how blindingly drunk we were - but hey, hope you enjoy!

Antiques Roadshow

Adam Green & Meg Zhang — Tue, 23 Mar 2021 18:07:45 +0000

In the inaugural episode, Meg drunkenly presents her talk, "Armchair Archeology: Appraising the Antiques Roadshow in Late-Stage Capitalism" to Adam. Want to learn all about the weird and wacky finds of the show, monetary v. functional use, and the mentally deteriorating effects of Yellowtail Cabernet and lukewarm Bombay Sapphire? Then you're in luck!