The Story Collider

When life throws challenges our way, sometimes the most surprising people—or even baked goods—step up to save the day. In this week’s episode, both of our storytellers remind us that heroes can come in all shapes, sizes, and forms. Part 1: While on a bike ride with her daughter, Rebecca Stronger comes across an unconscious stranger on the ground. Part 2: The only thing standing between Ruby Mustill and being trampled by elephants is a tent. Rebecca Stronger was born and raised in Brooklyn, and she wants you to know that she HAS left the neighborhood a few times. She is a retired acrobat, a veterinarian, a single mother and is just about ready to start calling herself a writer. Ruby Mustill is an evolutionary biology PhD student at Texas A&M University. Before moving to Texas, she graduated from Columbia University with a BA in anthropology, studied monkeys in Puerto Rico, and managed a remote field site in Kasanka National Park, Zambia. Outside of research, Ruby spends her time knitting and talking at length about her elderly cat, Muffin. She hopes to work at a natural history museum in the future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we bring you two stories about the science of morality. Or morality in science. Either way you want to look at it. Part 1: Political scientist Ethan Hollander interviews a Nazi war criminal as part of his research. Part 2: As a graduate student, Cather Simpson is excited to present her work -- but then her adviser lies about it. Ethan J. Hollander is a professor of political science at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana. He is also the author of Hegemony and the Holocaust: State Power and Jewish Survival in Occupied Europe. Hollander’s published scholarship also includes research on democratization in Eastern Europe and on the Arab Spring. At Wabash, Dr. Hollander teaches courses on the Politics of the Middle East, Ethnic Conflict and Genocide, European Politics, and Research Methods and Statistics. He is a native of Miami Beach, and received his Ph.D. from the University of California, San Diego in 2006. When Cather Simpson graduated from high-school in the USA, she was certain she was going to become a neurosurgeon. She was very, very wrong. In her first year at uni, she discovered scientific research and got completely hooked. She is now a Professor of Physics and Chemical Sciences at the University of Auckland, where she started and directed a super-fun ultrafast laser lab called the Photon Factory. These days, she’s morphed into an entrepreneurial academic. The first company she co-founded, Engender Technologies, uses lasers to sort sperm by sex for the dairy industry. The second, Orbis Diagnostics, uses lasers for infectious disease testing at point-of-care – she is currently CEO there. The latest, Luminoma DX, uses light to screen more effectively for skin cancers. When she’s not enjoying the pleasure and satisfaction from using lasers to solve the knotty problems presented by Mother Nature, she’s doing 5000 piece puzzles and being “Schrodinger’s Mom” – simultaneously the world’s best and worst mother – to two lovely sons. Note: Ethan's story was produced as part of our partnership with Springer Nature's Springer Storytellers program. Find out more at beforetheabstract.com. Cather's story was produced as part of our partnership with SCANZ, Science Communicators Association of New Zealand. Find out more at www.scanz.co.nz. And look for more Story Collider shows in Wellington, New Zealand, in 2018! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Whether you're playing a game of poker or a taking a leap of faith with your future, everything has its risks and possible rewards. In this week’s episode, both of our storytellers share moments when they took a chance. Part 1: Beatriz Perez’s parents want her to use her first pay check to gamble on the slot machines. Part 2: Dave Piontkowski is on a winning streak in Vegas when his severe ulcerative colitis rears its ugly head. Beatriz Perez: I'm a Mexican-American computer engineer working in Massachusetts. I thrive on finding new things to try out and putting myself outside of my comfort zone, hence my new interest for story telling. I have a deep passion for empowering women and young girls in STEM. During the weekends you'll find me traveling to a random country, crafting, working on a new project, or reading a good book. Dave Piontkowski is an NYC based stand-up comedian who performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2023 and 2024 with his one man show 3 Kidneys No Colon which he is currently touring with. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this week’s episode, both of our storytellers share tales about birds that had a big impact in their lives. Part 1: Paula Croxson uses her neuroscience background to get rid of the pigeon family that has taken up residence on her window sill. Part 2: As a new urban park ranger, Tim Lopez gets a call to capture a swan on the loose. Paula Croxson is a neuroscientist, science communicator, musician and open water swimmer. She received an M.A. from the University of Cambridge and a M.Sc. and a Ph.D. from the University of Oxford before moving to New York to run a neuroscience lab. She changed career direction around 5 years ago to focus on public engagement with science, first at Columbia University and then at the Dana Foundation. She is also the flautist in alternative rock band Marlowe Grey and nerdy rock band Pavlov’s Dogz. The swimming is apparently for “fun”. Tim Lopez is a storyteller and educator born and raised in Los Angeles. His stories have been featured on the Moth Radio Hour, KCRW in Los Angeles, and CBS Radio nationwide. He is currently an Interpretive Park Ranger at Channel Islands National Park, where he brings the stories of the natural environment and the history of California to life. He is also a Jeopardy! champion and is legally obligated to mention that fact as often as possible. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices