From Mike Nelson of MST3k/Rifftrax fame:

Ah, but the content is hard to beat.

Worth it in every regard. Seriously, the entire thing is awesome.

I should note that I'm generally pretty lucky in this regard. My dad's a civil engineer, so he looks at things pretty rationally, my grandfather is a retired pastor who is more interested in climate science and human rights abuses than theology, and my surrogate grandfather worked for NASA on the Gemini and Apollo…

I would whole-heartedly recommend Matt Fraction's Hawkeye books to anyone, for three reasons.

Yeah, definitely a problematic piece on a few levels. For one, while they talk fairly extensively about the other figures' specific scientific contributions (gravitation, heliocentricism, theory of evolution, relativity, inventions), Curie's actual scientific contributions are glossed over in favor of "She's a woman…

What's wrong with English lit teachers and liberal arts majors? They are people, too, and a surprising number of them work in technology. I'm one of them. Many of us love Star Trek, Lord of the Rings, Doctor Who, Sherlock Holmes, RPGs, video games, and any number of other science-and-tech-adjacent things.

Well, there's your problem. The thing about small talk is that if done correctly, it can lead to large talk. Small talk is where you show that you are a decent human being with something in common with the other person. Once that trust has been established, you can move on to deeper subjects with the understanding…

Rowsdower, can you put out my head?

"Sometimes, there is more truth in legend than in history."

I think the problem is that you have conflated "discussion of science" with "intelligent conversation." What about art? Film? Literature? Music? Theater? Surely you can find something interesting to say about that.

Generally, it helps to have interests outside of science.

It's really a social challenge, more than anything else. I think the rule of thumb is you have to accept that some irrationally-held beliefs can't be overwritten with good argument, and just not push the matter. That doesn't mean that there aren't areas where your hippie family won't find value in science. While they…

Go for the Mitchell/Final Justice double feature, since they really are companion pieces.

This man died as he lived: with his mouth open. HUZZAH!

Nothing to do with pods. Very little to do with people. Everything to do with DEEP HURTING!

Goodbye, JOE!

Yeah, sometimes, you get something that is just plain boring.