Dec 28, 2020
Jeb and Blake discuss ants and the "deadly" fire ant invasion of the southern United States. Jeb struggles with ANTipathy towards the topic despite being an ANThropologist. (If you're looking for more wordplay like this in the episode, you'll find it ANTiclimactic.)
It probably won't last but you can currently catch this episode
of ISO on YouTube here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXpM23ikcx0
Nimoy, outstanding in his field.
The episode has some really nice photography, and I especially liked this shot of the ant battlefield at dawn.
Show Topic Links:
Footage of Azteca Ants in a Cecropia Tree
YouTube of people moving a cecropia tree and the ant results.
Smithsonian article talking about the similarities b/w ant war and human war.
Huffpost article about documentary deception
A map projecting what researchers think the likely spread of these ants could be in the US.
AntWiki article on E. Burchellii - the Army Ant of South America
The Ants by Holldobler and Wilson
Ed Yong response to Bugpocalypse Article
Termites are a social cockroach
Ants are related to Bees and Wasps
Jeb would probably appreciate this video of molten aluminum being poured into a fire ant nest to cast the structure.
Pop Culture Links/Resources:
Henry David Thoreau famously wrote about a battle between red and black ants in Walden (1854).
THEM! (1954) Amazon
Escape! Adaptation of Leiningen vs The Ants YouTube
The Naked Jungle (1954) Amazon
The Secret of the Incas (1955) YouTube
Empire of the Ants (1977) Amazon
Phase IV (1974) Amazon