Super Critical Podcast
Tim Westmyer
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Podcast overthinking movies about nuclear weapons with policy analysis, quasi-science, pop culture debates, and too many puns.
Available episodes
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Dec 24, 2022
Episode #70: Blowing Up Right Now
In this episode, our phones were blowing up with alerts to watch Blowing Up Right Now (2019), a romantic comedy about a couple on the rocks forced to shelter in place during a nuclear missile crisis. How does the plot mirror the real life nuclear missile false alarm Hawaiian citizens experienced in 2018? How does a nuclear war crisis look to the average person who can only get information from cable news and Twitter? What nuclear survival tips can we learn after 5 seconds of time on Google (asking for a panicked friend)? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and co-host Gabe answer these questions and more.
Before we hunkered down inside our pillow fort fallout bunker, we recommend:
• Danny Jolles, You Choose: The Full Interactive Comedy Special from Danny Jolles, Don’t Tell Comedy, YouTube, 2022
• Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004 Movie)
• False Alarm (2021 Documentary)
• Daryll Kimball, “Nuclear False Warnings and the Risk of Catastrophe,” Arms Control Association, March 16, 2020
• “Ladybug Ladybug,” Super Critical Podcast, Episode #21, 2018
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, SuperCriticalPodcast@gmail.com, and YouTube.
Enjoy!
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Nov 27, 2022
Episode #69 - Chain Reaction
In this episode, we were fresh out of hydrogen so we need to watch Chain Reaction (1996) to learn how to make some more. How does this Cold Fusion adjacent movie draw on nuclear themes for its plot? Does the subplot about our heroes being framed as spies for China stealing national secrets have parallels to real life events? Did Evel Kinevil ever jump his stunt bike over a mushroom cloud? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and returning special guest Kevin answer these questions and more.
Before we powered the city of Chicago with our Nalgene bottle, we recommend:
-The Fugitive (1993 movie)
-The Saint (1997 movie)
-Gary Taubes, Bad Science: The Short Life and Weird Times of Cold Fusion, 1993
-Eduro Life Media, “Impossible Climb Andler 2019 – Dirt Bike Graveyard – Hill Climb,” YouTube
-David Grann, Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI, 2017
We also recommend checking out:
• Josh Friedman, “I’m Your Friend, Eddie,” I Find Your Lack of Faith Disturbing (Blog), August 24, 2005
• Free Energy Suppression Conspiracy Theory, Wikipedia
• Beth Laski, “Reeves, Davis Ring Up ‘Dead’ Cash,” Variety, January 8, 1995
• Tim Prokop, “Causing a Chain Reaction,” Movie (Aus), January/February 1997
• William J. Broad, “Spies vs. Sweat: The Debate Over China’s Nuclear Advance,” New York Times, September 7, 1999
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, SuperCriticalPodcast@gmail.com, and YouTube.
Enjoy!
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Jul 18, 2022
Episode #68: WarGames - The Dead Code
In this episode, we watched a whopper, err WOPR of a movie in the 2008 direct to video-on-demand sequel to the classic nuke movie called WarGames: The Dead Code. What could go wrong when you put artificial intelligence back in charge of the nukes and the predator drones? How to do you convince a machine that nuclear war is not winnable? What happens when you don’t know what “The Dead Code” is and at this point you’re too afraid to ask? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and returning special guest Lucy Steigerwald (@lucystag) answer these questions and more.
Before we booked our flight to Montreal, we recommend:
-WarGames (1983)
-Miracle Mile (1988)
-The Iron Giant (1999)
-Natasha Bajemna, Rescind Order, 2020
-David Hoffman, The Dead Hand: The Untold Story of the Cold War Arms Race and its Dangerous Legacy, 2009
-Future Man (2017-2020, Hulu TV Show)
-Zachary Kallenborn, “Giving an AI Control of Nuclear Weapons: What Could Possibly Go Wrong?,” The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, February 1, 2022
-Hackers React to WarGames: The Dead Code, Alex Chaveriat, YouTube, July 28, 2021, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PghUBYY4fpE
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, Facebook, SuperCriticalPodcast@gmail.com, and YouTube.
Enjoy!
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Jul 4, 2022
Episode #67: Top Gun - Maverick
In this episode, we found ourselves in the danger zone watching a surprise nuclear weapon plot in the fun movie Top Gun: Maverick (2022) where Tom Cruise needs to teach a crew of hot shot misfits to airstrike a uranium enrichment facility on the Death Star (kind of). Why did Top Gun sequel feel the need to raise the nuclear stakes in the plot? Any real life influence on the story related to airstrikes against similar nuclear facilities? Will this movie series ever run out of teambuilding activities to play on the beach sand? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and co-host/aviation guru Gabe answer these questions and more.
Before we request a tower flyby, we recommend:
-Hot Shots! (1991 parody of Top Gun)
-Amb. Wendy Sherman, Not for the Faint of Heart: Lessons in Courage, Power, and Persistence, 2018
-“Israel Admits Striking Suspected Syrian Nuclear Reactor in 2007,” BBC, Mach 21, 2018
-“Israeli Attack on Iraq’s Osirak 1981: Setback or Impetus for Nuclear Weapons,” National Security Archive, June 7, 2021
-“Top Gun – The Need for Speed,” LockheadMartin.com
-“Tom Cruise Terrifies James in ‘Top Gun’ Fighter Jet!,” The Late Night Show with James Corden channel on YouTube, March 24, 2022
-“Actual TOPGUN, Dave Berke, Reacts to "TOPGUN: Maverick" with Jocko Willink,” Jocko Podcast channel on YouTube, June 3, 2022
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, Facebook, SuperCriticalPodcast@gmail.com, and YouTube.
Enjoy!
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Mar 30, 2022
Episode #66: Star Trek Voyager - Warhead
In this episode, we investigated a distress beacon to find our new artificially intelligent WMD friend in the Star Trek Voyager episode “Warhead” (s5 e25 - 1999) where the crew picks up smart bomb hitchhiker hellbent on finishing his military mission. Why don’t all nuclear armed missiles have a self-destruct feature? How do you deter against a nuclear strike from a planet 80 light years away? How does the USS Voyager convince a nuclear bomb to stop loving itself and not explode? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast), co-host Gabe, and special guest James Sheehan (@jsheehandc) -- consultant working on trans-Atlantic cooperation and public diplomacy -- answer these questions and more.
Before we check out of sick bay, we recommend:
-Russian Roulette, PBS, February 23, 1999
-Dark Star (1974 movie by John Carpenter)
-“One,” Metallica, …And Justice for All (1989)
-Meilan Solly, “The Japanese WWII Soldier Who Refused to Surrender for 27 Years,” Smithsonian Magazine
-The Delta Flyers, Voyager Podcast
-Jetrel, Star Trek Voyager (s1 e15, May 1995)
-Sunshine (2007 movie)
-Star Trek: First Contact (1996 movie)
-Fizban’s Treasury of Dragons (2022), Wizards of the Coast
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, Facebook, SuperCriticalPodcast@gmail.com, and YouTube.
Enjoy!
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Jan 30, 2022
Episode #65: Choose Your Own Adventure Book
In this episode, we flipped our way through the pages of the Choose Your Own Adventure book, The Brilliant Dr. Wogan (1987), where a missing scientist might have a radiation neutralizer that can end the threat of nuclear war. How does the multiple ending and narrative freedom of this book genre help teach kids about nuclear dangers? What does this radiation neutralizer have in common with Ronald Reagan’s Star Wars program? When is the book report on this story due again (this might just be a reoccurring nightmare the podcasts hosts keep having well into their 30s)? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and returning special guest Kevin answer these questions and more.
Before we return the book to the library, we recommend:
-Black Mirror: Bandersnatch (2018, Netflix)
-Paul Lettow, Ronald Reagan and His Quest to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, 2006
-Timothy J. Jorgenson, Strange Glow: The Story of Radiation, 2016
-Pat Frank, Alas, Babylon, 1959
-Kate Moore, Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America’s Shining Women, 2018
-57 North, mobile game published by Mighty Coconut
-Brian Jacques, Redwall, book series 1986-2011
-Peter George, Dr. Strangelove (novelization), 1963
Thanks to pixabay.com for the sound effects used in the episode.
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, Facebook, SuperCriticalPodcast@gmail.com, and YouTube.
Enjoy!
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Jan 2, 2022
Episode #64: A Carol for Another Christmas
In this episode, we found a bootleg DVD in our stocking of the 1964 TV movie A Carol for Another Christmas, which retold the classic Christmas Carol story but with nuclear war. What was the public diplomacy mission of this pro-UN film? How does isolationism and international engagement theories suggest doing with the problem of nuclear weapons? Does the Ghost of Christmas Future know when the last two books in A Song of Ice and Fire come out? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and podcast co-host Gabe answer these questions and more.
Full movie here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbp1du33l0c
Before we get in our crash couches and jump the ship, we recommend:
-Scrooged (1988 movie)
-We’re Doomed! (2019 board game)
-“Time Enough at Last” and “No Time Like the Present,” Super Critical Podcast episode #47
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, Facebook, SuperCriticalPodcast@gmail.com, and YouTube.
Enjoy!
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Nov 21, 2021
Episode #63: The Expanse and Battlestar Galactica
In this episode, we went interstellar with our intercontinental ballistic missiles to talk about nuclear weapons in two science fiction shows: The Expanse and Battlestar Galactica. How are nuclear weapons used as weapons (and themes) in these two stories? What would the impact of a nuclear weapon actually be against a space ship? When are we getting our Gaius Baltar and Paolo Cortázar buddy comedy? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and special guest Stefan Sasse (@StefanSasse), host of the Boiled Leather Audio Hour podcast, answer these questions and more.
Before we get in our crash couches and jump the ship, we recommend:
-John McPhee, The Curve of Binding Energy: A Journey into the Awesome and Alarming World of Theodore B. Taylor, 1974
-Marco Fey, et al., The nuclear taboo, Battlestar Galactica, and the real world: Illustrations from a science-fiction universe, Security Dialogue 47 no. 4, 2016
- Neal Stephenson, Seveneves, 2015
-The Foundation (Apple TV)
-Raised by Wolves (Apple TV)
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, Facebook, SuperCriticalPodcast@gmail.com, and YouTube.
Enjoy!
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Oct 29, 2021
Episode #62: False Alarm
In this episode, we watched the documentary False Alarm (2021) about that time in 2018 no one talks about anymore when the people of Hawaii received an erroneous warning on their phone that North Korea fired a nuclear armed ballistic missile and they had minutes to live. What was the reaction of people who received this ominous message? How does this ordeal stack up to Hawaiians’ long history of being on the short end of the nuclear arms race? Have there ever been a worse case of Textmergency/Textastrophe than this nuclear attack warning appearing on every cell phone in Hawaii? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and the documentary’s director Nick Lyell (@FalseAlarmFilm) answer these questions and more.
The documentary is streaming thru Vimeo On-Demand for the month of November 2021: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/falsealarm/311014137
Movie information: www.FalseAlarmFilm.com
Before we clear our nuclear notifications on our mobile phones, we recommend:
-False Alarm (documentary 2021)
-Super Critical Podcast episode #21 on Ladybug Ladybug (1963)
-Alia Wong, “Pandemonium and Rage in Hawaii,” The Atlantic, January 14, 2018
-Sean Flynn, “The Real Story of the Hawaiian Missile Crisis,” GQ, April 2, 2018
-Noelani Goodyear-Kaopua, et al, A Nation Rising: Hawaiian Movements for Life, Land, and Sovereignty, 2014
-Noho Hewa: The Wrongful Occupation of Hawaii (2008 documentary)
-The Bomb (PBS 2015 documentary)
-Solarpunk Futures (card game made by Nick Lyell and the Solar Punk Surf Club at thefuture.wtf)
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Oct 18, 2021
Episode #61: Crimson Tide
In this episode, we called opened our nuclear launch code safes to pull out the DVD box for Crimson Tide (1995) about two leaders on a submarine butting heads about whether to launch nuclear missiles and possibly start and/or stop WWIII. How accurate did the film portray nuclear command and control launch procedures? What role do boomers play in nuclear deterrence? How does Captain Ramsey’s dog have such a keen sense of a person’s character? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and returning special guests Geoff Wilson of the Council for Arms Control and Nonproliferation (@NuclearWilson) and nuclear expert Will Saetren (@WillSaetren) answer these questions and more.
Note: Tim gets his wires crossed as he recommends a documentary (The Man Who Saved the World) that is actually about Soviet missile launch officer Stanislav Petrov instead of the Soviet naval officer Vasily Arkhipov who Geoff and Will talk about during the episode. The documentary is still excellent and it is scary how many examples of nuclear near misses there are that this mistake could happen.
Before we concur on the latest EAM, we recommend:
-The Man Who Saved the World (2013 documentary) -
-Jeffrey G. Lewis and Bruno Tertrais, “The Finger on the Button: The Authority to Use Nuclear Weapons in Nuclear-Armed States,” CNS Occasional Paper #45, February 2019
-Sherry Sontag, Christopher Drew, and Annette Lawrence Drew, Blind Man’s Bluff: The Untold Story of Submarine Espionage, 2016
-Project Azorian
-Elliot Ackerman and Admiral James Stavridis, 2034: A Novel of the Next World War, 2021
-Robert Moore, A Time to Die: The Untold Story of the Kursk Tragedy, 2016
-Armageddon Letter, http://www.armageddonletters.com/
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, Facebook, SuperCriticalPodcast@gmail.com, and YouTube.
Enjoy!
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Aug 21, 2021
Episode #60: Notorious
In this episode, we called our sommelier for advice on the best atomic alcohol to drink while watching the Alfred Hitchcock movie Notorious (1946) telling a spy romance story that discovers uranium ore stashed in a wine bottle owned by ex-Nazis hiding out in Brazil. How did Hitchcock introduce the first major atomic MacGuffin plot device so soon after the reveal of the Manhattan Project? What could a rogue element do with uranium ore hidden in a wine cellar? Why don’t the ex-Nazis hide the uranium in a bottle of Wild Turkey because nobody would ever want to look closer at that bottle. Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and co-host Gabe answer these questions and more.
Full movie online here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LwPhO2qPcQ
Before we check out tea for poison, we recommend:
-Rear Window (1954 movie)
-The Boys From Brazil (1978 movie)
-Uranium Glass (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uranium_glass)
-Casablanca (1942 movie)
-“How Atomic Physics Helped Solve a Wine Fraud Mystery,…
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Jul 5, 2021
Episode #59: The Heroes Of Telemark
In this episode, we put on our skis and telemarked our way to the winter lodge to watch the movie The Heroes of Telemark (1965) about a team of Norwegian resistance fighters sabotaging a heavy water plant during WWII to prevent Germany from getting closer to an atomic bomb. How close was Nazi Germany from building a nuclear weapon? What is the importance of heavy water in a nuclear program? What is more likely: that Tim builds a homemade nuclear device or Tim properly pronounces all these Norwegian names? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast), and returning special guest returning special guest Will Saetren (@WillSaetren) answer these questions and more.
Full movie online here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axBiR8ZipPM
Before we synchronize our ticking clock time bombs, we recommend:
-William Stephenson, A Man Called Intrepid, 2016
-Neal Bascomb, The Winter Fortress: The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler’s Atomic Bomb, 2017
-The Final Countdown (1980 movie)
-Medal of Honor: Above and Beyo…
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Apr 28, 2021
Episode #58: Twilight's Last Gleaming
In this episode, we put a crew together to seize a movie theater to watch the nuclear missile silo hostage taking movie Twilight’s Last Gleaming (1977). How easy is it to hijack a nuclear Titan ICBM launch site? What does the Vietnam War have to do with the logic of nuclear deterrence? Is “Twilight’s Last Gleaming” what they call the sparkly skin in those vampire movies? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast), Gabe, and returning special guest returning special guest Stephen Schwartz (@AtomicAnalyst), answer these questions and more.
Full movie online here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMnX8Hd0TPQ
Before we disable our cutoffs and inhibitors, we recommend:
-Kiss Me Deadly (1955 movie) also directed by David Aldirch
-The Parallax View (1974 movie)
-David Halberstram, The Best and the Brightest, 1972
-Defence of the Realm (1986 movie)
-A Very British Coup (1988 TV series)
-Minuteman Missile National Historic Site, South Dakota
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for mo…
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Apr 19, 2021
Episode #57: The Day After
In this episode, we looked at our calendars and realized it was finally the day to watch The Day After (1983). What would happen to a “middle of nowhere” city in Kansas in the event of a nuclear war? How did this TV movie impact the public dialogue about nuclear weapons? What about the movie scared Ronald Reagan so much he had to write about it in his diary (this is not a joke)? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and special guest David Craig (@Producing2Power), Clinical Associate Professor of Communication at the University of Southern California and author of an upcoming book - Before The Day After - answer these questions and more.
Full movie online here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iyy9n8r16hs&t=3840s
Thanks to everyone who pointed out that some of the movie's stock footage came from the documentary First Strike: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlPEBROvR9w&t=74s
Before we start power up our ham radios with the rare car battery, we recommend:
-David Craig’s book (Before The…
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Feb 21, 2021
Episode #56: On The Beach
In this episode, we raised the periscope on our nuclear submarine to enjoy the story of On the Beach - both the movie (1959) and book (1957). What is the more likely ultimate catastrophe of a nuclear war: global nuclear fallout or nuclear winter? Why did the Eisenhower administration try to shut this movie down? If you read On the Beach while sitting on a beach, is that just tempting fate? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and special guest Joe Cirincione (@Cirincione), Distinguished Fellow at the Quincy Institute and recent president of the Ploughshares Fund, answer these questions and more.
Before we start our engines at the Australian Grand Prix, we recommend:
-Beverly Gray, “The Continuing Relevance of ‘On the Beach,’” The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientist, August 3, 2015
-Fallout (2013 documentary)
-Collisions (2015 documentary)
-Office of Technology Assessment, The Effects of Nuclear War, May 1979
-Warfare History Network, “One of America’s Most Legendary Generals Had a…
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Jan 30, 2021
Episode #55: The Manhattan Project
In this episode, the high school yearbook voted us “Most Likely to Join the Nuclear Club” after we watched the 1986 movie The Manhattan Project where student Paul Stephens builds a nuclear bomb with plutonium stolen from a secret government lab run by the guy dating his mom. How easy is it to build a homemade nuclear weapon? What motivates a brilliant scientist to devote their life to WMD? Do you enter a homemade nuclear bomb at the science fair under the project category of physics, chemistry, or psychopath? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and returning special guest Stephen Schwartz (@AtomicAnalyst) answer these questions and more.
Before we earn extra credit by weaponizing some anthrax in AP Bio class, we recommend:
-Special Bulletin (1983 movie)
-Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes game
-“Fat Man and Little Boy,” The Simpsons, season 16 episode 5
-Science Fair (2018 documentary)
-Ken Silverstein, “The Radioactive Boy Scout,” Harper’s Magazine, November 1998
-Ken Silverst…
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Dec 20, 2020
Episode #54: Deterrence
In this episode, we left the polling booth to watch the movie Deterrence (2000) about a president fighting a nuclear war against Iraq while stranded in a diner during a snowstorm on the campaign trail. Are nuclear weapons useful to deter chemical, biological, or conventional weapon attacks? Can anyone stop an irrational president from ordering a nuclear strike? Is there a connection between the diner’s famous greasy chiliburger and the IBS News station? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and co-host Gabe answer these questions and more.
Before we reach our positive control point, we recommend:
-Kevin Pollak Chat Show (2009-2019)
-Thomas Schelling, The Strategy of Conflict (1960) and Arms and Influence (1966)
-The Contender (2002 movie)
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reachi…
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Nov 29, 2020
Episode #53: By Dawn's Early Light
In this episode, we scrambled our B-52s so we could watch the in-flight movie By Dawn’s Early Light (1990). What is the U.S. president to do once a nuclear war begins? Who is in command of the nuclear stockpile when POTUS is missing? Why is James Earl Jones always finding his finger on the nuclear button? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and special guest Sylvia Mishra (@MishraSylvia), doctoral researcher at King’s College London where studies nuclear strategy and emerging technologies, answer these questions and more.
Note: Tim mistakenly says in the episode that Tsar Bomba was not a deployable nuclear weapon. While it is not a really practical nuclear bomb (weight, yield size, requiring a HUGE parachute to slow decent long enough for plane to get away safely), it was still an air-dropped test that was deployable. Thanks to everyone who pointed out what we got wrong, nuke wise!
Before we reach our positive control point, we recommend:
-Sylvia Mishra, “Directing Doomsday: Lessons…
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Oct 11, 2020
Episode #52: Testament
In this episode, we got the family together over Zoom to watch the most depressing “Hallmark movie” of all time, Testament (1983). How can one Mom keep the family going after a nuclear attack cuts off their community? How accurately does the movie portray the horrors of radiation sickness? How does nuclear war turn ham radio operators into the most important people on the planet? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and returning special guest Lucy Steigerwald (@LucyStag), contributing editor to AntiWar.com answer these questions and more.
Before we go blow out the candles on our sad birthday cake, we recommend:
-DVD extras for Testament, including “Testament at 20”
-Cormac McCarthy, The Road (2006)
-Airplane! (1980)
-Carol Amen, “The Last Testament,” Ms. Magazine, August 1981, https://www.scribd.com/doc/59083080/Amen-Carol-The-Last-Testament-Ms-Aug-81
-The Day After (1983)
-On the Beach (1959)
-Threads (1984)
-TheStagBlog.com, “Testament”
Check out our website, SuperCritic…
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Sep 13, 2020
Episode #51: Miracle Mile
In this episode, we pulled an all-nighter to watch the thrilling movie Miracle Mile (1986) about star crossed lovers trying to escape Los Angeles at night before a possible nuclear attack. Why do we keep nuclear weapons in North Dakota? How long would you have before the missiles start landing in your backyard? Does Google Maps have a good escape route preprogrammed in the event of a pending nuclear war? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and Gabe answer these questions and more.
Before we answer this random payphone that is ringing nearby, we recommend:
-Cloverfield (2008 movie)
-10 Cloverfield Lane (2016 movie)
-Six String Samurai (1998 movie)
-La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, CA
-Fred Kaplan, The Wizards of Armageddon, 1983
-Minuteman Missile National Historic Site, South Dakota
-NORMS Restaurants
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and a…
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Jul 19, 2020
Episode #50: Spies Like Us
In this episode, we aced our foreign service exam and started our undercover mission to the movie Spies Like Us (1995). How well does this comedy deploy a Soviet road mobile nuclear missile for hilarious effect? Can you actually recall a nuclear missile once it is in the air? Doctor, doctor, doctor, doctor, doctor, doctor, doctor, and doctor. Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and Gabe answer these questions and more.
Before we open up the nuclear disarmament negotiation board game box, we recommend:
-Fletch, 1985
-The Man Who Knew Too Little, 1997
-International Spy Museum
-Nuclear War Card Game, 1965
-Steven Pomeroy, An Untaken Road: Strategy, Technology, and the Hidden History of America’s Mobile ICBMs, 2016
-Get Smart, 1965-1970 TV Show
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by r…
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Jul 5, 2020
Episode #49: Matinee
In this episode, we leave our bunkers and march like atomic ants to the movie theater to enjoy the film Matinee (1993). What does this story about director Joe Dante’s love of B-movies monster flicks have to say about the Cuban Missile Crisis and its impact on kids living in Florida? How do you write an effective comedy about topics that are usually nightmare fuel? When can we equip our own home theaters with Atomovision? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and special guest Matthew Gault (@mjgault), VICE journalist and host of the War College Podcast (@War_College) answer these questions and more.
Before we turn up the Rumble-Rama setting on our seats, we recommend:
-War College Podcast
-Them (1954) and Blast from the Past (1999)
-Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)
-Barry Atkinson, Atomic Age Cinema: The Offbeat, the Classic, and the Obscure, 2014
-Matthew Gault, “How to Survive a Nuclear Bomb,” Vice, January 9, 2020
-L. Douglas Kenney, 15 Minutes: General Curtis LeMay and the Countdo…
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May 28, 2020
Episode #48: Daybreak
In this episode, school is out for nuclear winter break, so we binged the Netflix series Daybreak about high school students surviving post-WWIII. How well does a nuclear war plot mesh with a John Hughes teenage comedy? What is the connection between sunflowers and nuclear disarmament? Who in our high school yearbook was voted “most likely to depress everyone with a podcast about nuclear war movies”? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and special guest Cecili Thompson-Williams (@cecilitw), Executive Director of Beyond the Bomb (@BeyondtheBomb), answer these questions and more.
Before we decide which post-apocalyptic clique to join, we recommend:
-The 100 (TV series)
-BeyondTheBomb.org
-Phineas and Ferb (TV series)
-WarGames (1983 movie)
-Night of the Comet (1984 movie)
-Elizabeth King, “How Growing Up with the Threat of Nuclear War Shapes Kids’ Psyches,” TheCut, June 7, 2017
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at…
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May 10, 2020
Episode #47: Gilligan's Island
In this episode, we tried to get healthy during quarantine by watching an episode of the TV show Gilligan’s Island called “Pass the Vegetables, Please” where the castaways get super powers from eating crops grown from radioactive seeds. Can radiation actually help farmers? What would happen if you ate radioactive food? Is the Professor a stand-in for Dr. Oppenheimer of the Manhattan Project? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and Gabe answer these questions and more.
Before we our three hour tour sets sail, we recommend:
-“HI FI Gilligan,” Gilligan’s Island, season 2, episode 10
-AtomicGardening.com
-“JUGHEAD,” LOST, “season 5, episode 3
-Visiting Tangier Island
-Archipelago tiki bar in Washington, DC
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitte…
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Mar 31, 2020
Episode #46: Air Force One
In this episode released on April 1, the show gets inverted and becomes the Super Critical Angle of Attack podcast to talk about the movie Air Force One (1997). Sure, the movie has some nuclear weapon plots, but how well did it accurately portray POTUS’s airplane? Did the movie do justice to flight physics? If aviation accident prone Harrison Ford is your pilot, would you have a bad feeling about this? New podcast host Gabe and special guest Tim Westmyer (@Westmyer) answer these questions and more.
Before we fired up the Air Force One fax machine, we recommend:
-Countdown to Looking Glass, 1984 TV movie
-Independence Day, 1996 movie
-“The Air Force’s ‘Doomsday Plane’ is in the Shop,” DefenseOne, November 6, 2019
-On Board Air Force One, National Geographic documentary, 2009
-CBS News photo tour of Air Force One
-National Museum of the Air Force in Dayton Ohio
-Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, CA
Enjoy!
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Feb 17, 2020
Episode #45: Fat Man and Little Boy
In this episode, we see how many scientists in the desert it takes to build an atomic bomb by watching the 1989 movie “Fat Man and Little Boy.” How did scientists and the military both collaborate and clash in the pursuit of the first nuclear weapon? What was the role of women scientists in this endeavor? Could you actually buy a condo in Manhattan even if you had the budget of the atomic bomb project? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and special guests/nuke experts Erin Connolly (@Erin_Conn17) and Kate Hewitt (@BlondNukeGirl) from Girl Security answer these questions and more.
Before we started eating our Pentagon cakes, we recommend:
-Day One, 1989 TV Movie
-Robert Serber, The Los Alamos Primer: The First Lectures on How to Build the Atomic Bomb, 1992
-Richard Rhodes, The Making of the Atomic Bomb, 1986
-Denise Kiernan, Girls of Atomic City: The Untold Story of the Women Who Helped Win World War II, 2014
-John Hersey, Hiroshima, 1946
-Kate Brown, Plutopia: Nuclear Families, Atomic…
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Jan 12, 2020
Episode 44: Twilight Zone - "Time Enough at Last" & "No Time Like the Past"
In this episode, we make time to watch two Twilight Zone episodes that deal with both “time” and nukes: “Time Enough at Last” and “No Time Like the Past.” How would the development of thermonuclear weapons impact your reading habit? If you had a time machine, how would you prevent the WWII atomic bombings? Does every household need a 2-in-1 bank vault/fallout shelter to protect their loved ones and valuables? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast), Gabe, and returning guest Elliot answer these questions and more.
Before we update our reading list for the apocalypse, we recommend:
-Twilight Zone episode “Walking Distance”
-Last Man on Earth (TV show, comedy)
-Black Mirror episode “San Junipero”
-Arctic, 2018 movie
-12 Monkeys, 1995 movie
-H.G. Wells, The Time Machine, 1895 book
-Dan Carlin, “Supernova in the East,” Hardcore History Podcast
-Dan Carlin, “(Blitz) The Destroyer of Worlds,” Hardcore History Podcast
-Star Trek episode “The City on the Edge of Forever…
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Dec 18, 2019
Episode #43: Christmas at Ground Zero by Weird Al
In this episode, we ring in the holidays with the Weird Al Yankovic song, Christmas at Ground Zero. What does this 1986 jingle tell us about nuclear war? How does Weird Al repurpose Duck and Cover propaganda footage from the Cold War for his holiday melody? Is “dreaming” about a white Christmas technically a nightmare if it is snowing radioactive fallout? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and returning special guest Kevin answer these questions and more.
Here is the song on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t039p6xqutU
Before the next song on the nuclear war playlist comes on, we recommend checking out:
• We Will All Go Together When We Go, Tom Lehrer
• Amish Paradise, Weird Al, 1996
• Santa with Muscles, 1996 movie with Hulk Hogan
• The Night They Saved Christmas, TV movie 1984
• Running with Scissors, 1999 Weird Al
• Bad Hair Day, Weird Al, 1996
• Blue Christmas, Willie Nelson
Here is a clip of Kevin playing the song on his ukulele: https://twitter.com/Nuclea…
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Nov 11, 2019
Episode #42: Superman IV - The Quest for Peace
In this episode, we explore what happens when someone with superhuman speed tries to finish the nuclear arms race in Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987). How easy would it be for Superman to destroy the planet’s nuclear weapons himself? What happens with Lex Luthor decides to rearm the world? Is that a bird? Is that a plane? Is that… a giant wad of nuclear missiles flying toward the sun? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast), Gabe, and special guest Will Saetren (@WillSaetren), Project Lead in Nonproliferation at CRDF Global, answer these questions and more.
Before we visit Nuclear Man at the nuclear power plant tour, we recommend checking out:
• Injustice: Gods Among Us (2013-2016 comics)
• Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films (2016 documentary)
• The Day the Earth Died!, June 1985, Superman no. 408
• Michael O'Hanlon, A Skeptic's Case for Nuclear Disarmament, 2010
• Watchmen (1986-1987 comics)
• Eric Schlosser, Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons,…
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Oct 20, 2019
Episode #41: When the Wind Blows
In this episode, we picked When the Wind Blows out of the children’s book bin to see what advise the 1982 graphic novel (and 1986 animated movie) have for surviving nuclear war in Britain. How easy was it to follow official government radiation survival guides during the Cold War? What was it like for the average family trying to make sense of nuclear deterrence? Will you ever be able to look at a baked potato again the same way after witnessing this story? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and special guest Sebastian Brixey-Williams (@seb_bw), Co-Director of the think tank BASIC, answer these questions and more.
Dramatization of the graphic novel available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=484h0mnU0-M
Before we give up waiting on the Powers that Be to arrive, we recommend checking out:
-The Atomic Hobo podcast episodes on Meals on Wheels and When the Wind Blows
-Protest and Survive (1980)
-Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, (1987 cartoon show)
-The Snowman (1982)
-Nausicaa of th…
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Sep 22, 2019
Episode #40: Godzilla
In this episode, we explored the nuclear origin story of Godzilla. What famous nuclear test inspired the Godzilla franchise? How did Toho Studios and Hollywood handle the nuclear story over the ages? Will the “King Kong vs. Godzilla” movie have a cameo from Major “King” Kong from Dr. Strangelove? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and special guests Rachel Emond (@Rachel_Emond) and Geoff Wilson (@NuclearWilson) of the Center for Arms Control and Nonproliferation answer these questions and more.
Before we zipped up the rubber monster suit, we recommend checking out:
-Godzilla: Final Wars (2004 movie)
-Pacific Rim (2013 movie)
-Cinemassacre’s Monster Madness (YouTube series)
-Gojira (1954 movie)
-Stranger Things (Netflix series)
-Chernobyl (2019 HBO series)
-Godzilla in Hell (2015 comic book)
-Godzilla: Half Century War (2013 comic book)
-Cloverfield (2008 movie)
-Nukes of Hazard podcast
We also discussed the movie Shin Godzilla. Listen to it as a bonus feature on our YouTube cha…
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Aug 11, 2019
Episode #39: Amazing Grace And Chuck
In this episode, we lived #ShootYourShot and watched the movie Amazing Grace and Chuck (1987) where an NBA legend joins forces with a little league player to protest nuclear weapons. Could a child’s peaceful act of resistance against nuclear war inspire the world to Global Zero? What is the history of anti-nuclear weapon movements in the 1980s? If your chartered jet is exploded by an evil nuclear illuminate, is that technically a traveling violation? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and Pranay Vaddi (@PranayVaddi), a nuclear expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, answer these questions and more.
Before we assemble our Dream Team of professional athlete protesters, we recommend checking out:
-Judith Vigna, Nobody Wants a Nuclear War, 1986
-Laura Yeager, “Talking to Your Children about the Threat of Nuclear War,” July 8, 2018
-“Talking Nukes with Kids,” Awful Library Books, November 9, 2017
-Vincent J. Intondi, African Americans Against the Bomb: Nuclear Weapo…
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Jul 14, 2019
Episode #38: Six String Samurai
In this episode, we plucked Six String Samurai out of the cult movie bin to talk about the zany nuclear plots of this post-apocalypse western Kung Fu musical mashup. How would the power of rock and roll unite the wasteland after a nuclear war? Would Las Vegas be a target during the Cold War? Can this version of Buddy Holly handle the overpressure of ruling Lost Vegas? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and Gabe answer these questions and more.
Before we our post-Bomb sanity snapped, we recommend checking out:
• Fallout video game series, especially Fallout: New Vegas
• Mariachi, 1992 movie
• Red Elvises, band
• Dick Dale, musician
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, Facebook, Super…
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Jun 23, 2019
Episode #37: Chernobyl
In this episode, we figured out how an RBMK reactor explodes by watching the hit HBO show Chernobyl. What caused the nuclear power plant disaster? How did the Soviet leadership and the Russian people respond to the crisis? If vodka is really such a powerful medicinal wonder, can it be covered by your health care insurance? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and special guests Meghan McCall (@Nuclear_Ginger_) and Geoff Wilson (@NuclearWilson) answer these questions and more.
Our special guests also have excellent podcasts on nuke topics to enjoy:
-Meghan McCall's Press the Button
-Geoff Wilson's Nukes of Hazard
Before we hug our dogs closer than normal, we recommend checking out:
-Chernobyl, Podcast by Craig Mazin and Peter Segal
-Chernobyl VR Project, The Farm 51
-The China Syndrome, 1979 movie
-Adam Higginbotham, Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster, 2019
-Svetlana Alexievich, Voices from Chernobyl: The Oral History of a Nuclear Disaster, 2006…
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May 27, 2019
Episode #36: Seven Days In May
In this episode, we debated the virtues of nuclear disarmament and democracy over a couple of days this month, specifically Seven Days in May. Does the movie realistically portray disagreements between the military and civilian leaders over nuclear weapons? What would cause the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to attempt a military coup? How long before General James Mattoon Scott becomes the 40+ person running for president in 2020? Tim Westmyer (@NuclearPodcast) and special guest Stephen I Schwartz (@AtomicAnalyst) answer these questions and more.
Before we went fishing at Blue Lake, we recommend checking out:
-The Manchurian Candidate, both the 1962 and 2004 movies
-International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, www.icanw.org
-Stephen I. Schwartz, Atomic Audit: The Costs and Consequences of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Since 1940, 1998
-David F. Krugler, “This is Only a Test: How Washington, DC Prepared for Nuclear War,” 2007
-The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, https://the…
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May 12, 2019
Episode #35: Game Of Thrones
In this episode, we debate one of the most important questions in international relations and nuclear policy today: are the dragons in Game of Thrones more like nuclear weapons or conventional air power? Does George R.R. Martin deploy the dragons as analogs for nuclear weapons? Do dragons serve more of a conventional air power or close air support role in the story's military battles? Perhaps the dragons themselves aspire to be artists and bakers rather than being typecast as weapons of war? Tim Westmyer (@nuclearpodcast) and Dr. Michael C. Horowitz (@mchorowitz) answer these questions and more.
Before winter gets here, we recommend checking out:
-Timothy Westmyer, “Dragons, Nuclear Weapons, and Game of Thrones,” The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 2014
-Michael C. Horowitz and Matthew Fuhrmann, “Are ‘Game of Thrones’s’ Dragons the Equivalent of Nuclear Weapons? We Don’t Think So,” Washington Post’s Monkey Cage Blog, April 12, 2019
-Matthew Gault, “The Dragons i…
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Apr 7, 2019
Dr. Strangelove - Authors of Mass Destruction Podcast Episode
We want to share with Super Critical Podcast listeners an episode of the Authors of Mass Destruction podcast run by Dr. Natasha Bajema. Her awesome new podcast helps writers and authors tell compelling fiction about nukes while getting the details right. Tim Westmyer was a guest on the podcast – along with Dr. Justin Anderson – to talk about the movie Dr. Strangelove: Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.
We will still try to release a regular episode of the Super Critical Podcast in April 2019. We hope you enjoy this episode, which you can also find on the Authors of Mass Destruction podcast feed. Follow Natasha’s show on Twitter at @WMDgirl and @authorsmass.
Enjoy!
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Mar 31, 2019
Mini-Nuke #12: Starship Troopers
In this episode, we wanted to learn more about the mobile infantry, so we talked about Starship Troopers, both the 1997 movie and 1959 book. How does the story deploy tactical nuclear weapons in the war against the bugs? Why was the book’s author inspired to write a protest against the campaign to end nuclear testing? Who would Herman Kahn enjoy talking to more: Carl or the brain bug? Tim Westmyer (@nuclearpodcast), Will Saetren (@WillSaetren), and Geoff Wilson (@nuclearwilson) answer these questions and more.
This is the 12th in our Mini-Nuke episode series, where we overthink pop culture with a smaller slice of nukes than our usual full-sized episodes.
Before we take a walk down washout lane, we recommend checking out:
-John Scalzi, Old Man’s War, 2005
-Joe Halderman, The Forever War, 1974
-Robocop (1987 movie)
-Helldivers (video game)
-The Day After (1983 movie)
-Robert A. Heinlein, Expanded Universe, 1980
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources an…
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Feb 28, 2019
Episode #34: Nuke Themed Escape Room
In this episode, we convened a team of nuke nerd to play an Escape Room with a nuclear weapon scenario. Did it help (or hurt) to have a background in nuclear weapons policy? How accurate can an Escape Room capture the complexities of nuclear war? How many red buttons were pushed to the limit in the making of this episode? Tim Westmyer and special guest Will Saetren (@willsaetren) answer these questions and more.
Before we look for more clues, we recommend checking out:
-BGNlab YouTube series by Scott Nicholson
-Spin Master Games - Escape Room The Game - “Nuclear Countdown”
-Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes - VR game
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay, Spotify, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, Facebook, SuperCritic…
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Feb 10, 2019
Mini-Nuke #11: 99 Luftballons
In this episode, we tuned the radio to the song 99 Luftballons (or 99 Red Balloons) by the band Nena and talked about its connections to nuclear weapons, the Cold War arms race, and anti-nuclear protests. How did the threat of intermediate range nuclear missiles in Europe inspire Nena to write this catchy dirge? What happens when early warning systems confuse 99 balloons for UFOs and nukes? What artist will win their Grammy with a song about the dangers of Gamma Rays? Tim Westmyer and returning special guest Will Saetren (@WillSaetren) answer these questions and more.
This is the 11th in our Mini-Nuke episode series, where we overthink pop culture with a smaller slice of nukes than our usual full-sized episodes.
Playlist of nuke songs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frAEmhqdLFs&list=PLXh-L52NGj3wWH92cBVAjeW-7giQ2B4vW
Before we hit shuffle on our nuke war mix to lament the death of the INF Treaty, we recommend checking out:
-The Man Who Saved the World (2014 documentary)
-Rush, “D…
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Jan 23, 2019
Episode #33: Sum of All Fears
In this episode, we did the math about what happens when you add a missing nuclear weapon together with neo-fascists and an unassuming CIA desk analyst in the Sum of All Fears (2002). How can terrorists get their hands on a plutonium core? Why did Russia allow the United States so many inspections of its nukes? Why won’t America just let Jack Ryan finish writing his memo. Tim Westmyer, Gabe, and special guest Jon Duke (@VortexAeroMedia) answer these questions and more.
Before we nuke more insects to see what happens, we recommend checking out:
-Peter Feaver, Guarding the Guardians: Civilian Control of Nuclear Weapons in the United States, 1992
-Cresson H. Kearney, “Chapter 13: Surviving Without Doctors,” Nuclear War Survival Guide, 1987, http://www.madisoncountyema.com/nwss.pdf
-The Fourth Protocol (1987 movie)
-Peter Hennessey, The Secret State: Whitehall and the Cold War, 2002
-War Book (2014 movie)
-The Letter of Last Resort, BBC Radio 4, 2013, https://www.bbc.co.uk/programme…
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Dec 26, 2018
Episode #32: THEM!
In this episode, we followed chirping sounds in the desert and discovered GIANT RADIOACTIVE ANTS in the movie THEM! (1954). What happens to insects exposed to radiation in the real world? How did nuclear testing and atomic monster movies change public opinion on nuclear weapons? Where was Ant-man when the people Alamogordo needed him to calm these killer atomic ants? Tim Westmyer and returning special guest Tim Collins (@WarAndCake), PhD candidate studying British nuclear history, answer these questions and more.
Before we nuke more insects to see what happens, we recommend checking out:
-Jonathan Schell, The Fate of the Earth, 1982
-Barry Atkinson, Atomic Age Cinema: The Offbeat, the Classic and the Obscure, 2018
-Spencer Weart, The Rise of Nuclear Fear, 2012
--Richa Malhotra, “Ants Trapped in Nuclear Bunker are Developing Their Own Society,” NewScientist, September 5, 2016
-Gerard J. DeGroot, The Bomb: A Life, 2006
-Richard Rhodes, Dark Sun: The Making of the Hydrogen Bomb, 1996…
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Nov 18, 2018
Episode #31: Mission: Impossible - Fallout
In this episode, we worked out our plutonium cores while watching the movie Mission: Impossible –Fallout. How easy is it for a rogue scientist – Norwegian or otherwise – to build a nuclear bomb if they got access to a plutonium core? Why do apocalyptic terrorist organizations seek nuclear weapons? When does Wolf Blitzer find time to report the news between all his movie shoots? Tim Westmyer, Gabe, and special guest James Finnegan answer these questions and more.
Before we nuke more insects to see what happens, we recommend checking out:
-Ronin (1998 movie)
-Fatman and Littleboy (1989 movie)
-Matthew Gault, “Mission Impossible Fallout Missed its Chance to Tell a Good Story,” The National Interest, July 30, 2018
-C'était un Rendezvous (1976 movie)
-Mythbusters, Episode 160 about Mission: Impossible Masks
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about…
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Oct 21, 2018
Episode #30: Nukes vs. Asteroids
In this episode, we place bets on the biggest fight in the cinematic universe: nuclear weapons vs. asteroids. What do the movies Armageddon, Deep Impact, and Meteor tell us about how planet Earth will defend itself against space rocks? How effective would nukes in these doomsday scenarios? How can we thank the dinosaurs for becoming oil so that the drill team in Armageddon learned the skills necessary to save us from another asteroid extinction event? Tim Westmyer and returning special guest Boris (@bmelnikov) answer these questions and more.
Before we decide to violate the Outer Space Treaty, we recommend checking out:
-“Chicxulub crater,” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicxulub_crater
-Vladimir Rubtsov, “The Tunguska Mystery,” 2009, https://www.amazon.com/Tunguska-Mystery-Astronomers-Universe/dp/0387765735
-“Space Weapons Earth Wars,” Rand Corporation, 2002, https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/monograph_reports/2011/RAND_MR1209.pdf
-Force Majeure (2014…
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Sep 30, 2018
Episode #29: Madam Secretary
In this episode, we took a break from studying our nuclear attack plans binder to watch an episode from the TV show Madam Secretary called Night Watch (Season 4, Episode 22). What happens when the President gets the call that nuclear missiles are incoming to the United States? What systems are in place to prevent mistakes and accidents from signaling false reports? Why don’t they rename the Presidential Emergency Satchel to the Nuclear Skeeball? Tim Westmyer and special guest Jamie Withorne (@JamieWithorne) answer these questions and more.
Before we receive our text message notifying us about our all expenses paid trip to Mount Weather, we recommend checking out:
-Women of Mass Destruction at https://www.womenofmassdestruction.org/
-Fail-Safe (1964), Ladybug Ladybug (1963), WarGames (1983)
-Matt Stevens and Christopher Mele, “Causes of False Missile Alerts: The Sun, the Moon, and a 46-cent Chip,” New York Times, January 13, 2018
-Terry L. Deibel, “The Death of a Treaty,” Fo…
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Aug 19, 2018
Episode 28: Atomic Alcohol
In this episode, we stepped up to the bar and ordered a couple rounds of Atomic Alcohol. The podcast collected ten examples of nuclear themed wine, cocktails, and beer with names, history, or other interesting connections to nukes. Why do breweries and wineries go to the nuclear well so many times? Could a beverage change how you think about the atom? How many drinks can the podcast team have and still sound reasonably intelligent? Tim Westmyer, Gabe, and special guests Will Saetren (@WillSaetren) and Eric Gascho (@EricGascho) answer these questions and more.
Before the bartender announces last call for atomic alcohol, we recommend checking out:
-Alex Wellerstein, “Beer and the Apocalypse,” Restricted Data, 2012
-Frank Kelly Rich, “Boozing with the Bomb: Alcohol in the Atomic Age,” Drunkard Magazine
-Charlie Papazian, The Complete Joy of Homebrewing
Special thanks to:
-Tori Mason at Forbidden Root for the cans of Atomic Child
-Tony Fitzpatrick and Robert Finkel at Forbidden R…
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Jul 22, 2018
Episode 27: Atomic Train
In this episode, we took the midnight train going anywhere... far away from the bad TV mini-series, Atomic Train (1999). Could a dangerous Russian nuke end up on a runaway U.S. train? What would a major city like Denver do to evacuate after a nuclear detonation? How can a movie with a runaway train, nukes, hazardous chemicals, Rob Lowe, and 50+ helicopters be so boring? Tim Westmyer, Gabe, and special guest Elliot answer these questions and more.
Before the atomic train conductor yelled “all aboard,” we recommend checking out:
-Threads (1984 TV movie) and Special Bulletin (1983 TV movie)
-The Stand (1994 TV mini-series)
-Michael Krepon, “Moving from MAD to Cooperative Threat Reduction,” Stimson Center, December 2001, https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/93680/Report41.pdf
-Unstoppable (2010 movie)
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast an…
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Jun 24, 2018
Episode 26: The Hunt for Red October
In this episode, we did a deep dive on the nuclear plot of The Hunt for Red October (1990). Is bigger necessarily better for the Red October? Just how bad would it be if the United States could no longer tracker Russian submarines? How easy is it for a cook to hotwire a submarine launched ballistic missile? Tim Westmyer and special guest Boris take a break from their vacation in Las Vegas to answer these questions and more.
Before we listened for the pings of a slot machine (hopefully more than just a single ping), we recommend checking out:
-Douglas Waller, Big Red: Three Months On Board a Trident Nuclear Submarine, 2001
-Pavel Podvig, Russian Strategic Nuclear Forces, 2004
-Run Silent, Run Deep, (1958 movie)
-Russian Naval Blog, “Even The Russians Know They Suck, Part I,” February 7, 2010
-Tom Clancy, The Bear and the Dragon, 2000
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us k…
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May 30, 2018
Mini-Nuke 10 - Back to the Future
In this episode, we loaded up our DeLorean with plutonium and popcorn so we could talk about the heavy nuclear plot of the movie Back to the Future. How safe was the nuclear time machine? Why was Doc Brown cavorting with Libyan terrorists? Does the Mr. Fusion come in as many colors as a Kitchen-Aid mixer? Tim Westmyer and returning special guest Kevin answer these questions and more.
This is the tenth in our Mini-Nuke episode series, where we overthink movies with a smaller slice of nuclear weapons plot than our usual full-sized episodes.
Before we activated our time circuits, we recommend checking out:
-Back in Time (documentary), 2015
-Malfrid Braut-Hegghammer, Unclear Physics: Why Iraq and Libya Failed to Build Nuclear Weapons, 2016
-Rich Handley, A Matter of Time: The Unauthorized Back to the Future Lexicon, 2012
-Back to the Future: The Game (2010), Tell Tale Games
-DeLorean (documentary), 1981
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related item…
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Apr 23, 2018
Episode 25: Blue Sky & Nuclear Test Site Visit
In this episode, we did some atomic tourism, first to the Nuclear Test Site and then on the emotional journey that is the 1994 melodrama, Blue Sky. How does a mild mannered nuclear test site scientist navigate radioactive cover-ups and family crises? What was it like visiting the former nuclear test site in Nevada? How do you convince your friends it would be more fun to record a podcast in a hotel room than to wander the Las Vegas Strip? Tim Westmyer and special guest Clark answer these questions and more.
Before we get on our horses and ride off into the mushroom cloud, we recommend checking out:
-Radio Bikini, Documentary (1998), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVwzhGtzDuI
-Michael Harris, The Atomic Times: My H-Bomb Year at the Pacific Proving Ground (2010)
-Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (TV)
-Raphael Honigstein, Das Reboot: How German Soccer Reinvented Itself and Conquered the World (2015)
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to hav…
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Apr 1, 2018
Episode 24: Nuke Cage Podcast
In this April 1st edition of the Nuke Cage Podcast, we rage about the multitude of movies where Nic Cage takes on nuclear, chemical, biological, and conventional weapons in a post-Cold War security environment. How accurate are the movies Face/Off, The Rock, Next, and Lord of War? Why has Nic Cage done so many of these films? Can we make Nic Cage an honorary NEST member already? Tim Westmyer and Tristan Volpe answer these questions and more. Follow the podcast @NukeCage and Tristan @ TeeAndersVolpe.
Before we go looking for some VX rockets, we recommend checking out:
-Super Critical Podcast, www.supercriticalpodcast.com
-Jonathan Tucker, War of Nerves: Chemical Warfare from World War I to Al-Qaeda (2007)
-In Time, movie, 2011
-Gregory Koblentz, Living Weapons: Biological Warfare and International Security (2011)
-Sonia Ben Ouagrham-Gormley, Barriers to Bioweapons: The Challenges of Expertise and Organization for Weapons Development (2014)
-W. Seth Carus, Bioterrorism and Biocrimes: Th…
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Mar 6, 2018
Episode 23: Watchmen
In this episode, who watches the Watchmen? Spoiler alert: we did and got super critical about the nuclear war plots of the Watchmen comics and movie. What will keep us from moving the Doomsday Clock to midnight? How would the Cold War play out if Nixon had a walking nuclear superhero? Does Dr. Manhattan make house calls? Tim Westmyer and special guest Luis Navarro answer these questions and more.
Before we meditate our way through the multiverse, we recommend checking out:
-Doomsday Clock Timeline, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, https://thebulletin.org/timeline
-Richard Bensam (editor), Minutes to Midnight: Twelve Essays on Watchmen (2011)
-H. Bruce Franklin (editor), Countdown to Midnight: Twelve Memorial Stories about Nuclear Warfare (1984)
-Atomic Café, documentary, 1982
-Command and Control, documentary, 2016
-Zero Days, documentary, 2016
-Captain America: Nomad, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nomad_(comics)
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources…
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Feb 20, 2018
Episode 22: The Man in the High Castle
In this episode, we stormed The Man in the High Castle television show to explore nukes in a world where Germany and Japan won World War II. What difference would a Nazi nuclear bomb have made in the war? How would Japan go about getting their own nuclear weapon in secret? Who is Joe Blake and why should we care? Tim Westmyer and special guest Tim Collins answer these questions and more.
Follow Tim Collins, PhD candidate studying British nuclear history, on Twitter @WarAndCake.
Before we meditate our way through the multiverse, we recommend checking out:
-Superman: Red Son (2003)
-Wolfenstein video game series (especially the reboots)
-Lawrence Freedman, The Evolution of Nuclear Strategy (1981)
-Transcript of Surreptitiously Taped Conversations among German Nuclear Physicists at Farm Hall (August 6-7, 1945), http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/pdf/eng/English101.pdf
-That Mitchell and Webb Look, “Are We the Baddies?,” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JOpPNra4bw
Check out our web…
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Jan 18, 2018
Episode 21: Ladybug Ladybug
In this episode, we compared the Hawaii ballistic missile threat false alarm in real life and the 1963 film, Ladybug Ladybug. What does an elementary school do when the nuclear attack warning bell goes off? How did Americans respond to similar false alarms during the Cold War? What happens when it is North Korea’s turn to experience an IT problem? Tim Westmyer and Gabe answer these questions and more.
Full movie available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3Io7O_V08E
Before we start our long walk uphill to home after school, we recommend checking out:
-Episode #14: Twilight Zone – The Shelter, Super Critical Podcast
-Alice L. George, Awaiting Armageddon: How Americans Faced the Cuban Missile Crisis (2004)
-Force Majeure, 2014 movie
-“Bart’s Comet,” The Simpsons, Season 6, Episode 14 (February 5, 1995)
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think abo…
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Jan 15, 2018
Mini-Nuke 9: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
In this episode, we passed the nuclear test of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. How did Indiana Jones end up facing down a nuclear mushroom cloud? Can a lead-lined fridge serve as a decent fallout shelter? Is Indiana Jones an immortal superbeing? Tim Westmyer, Gabe, and special guest Alex answer these questions and more.
This is the ninth in our Mini-Nuke episode series, where we overthink movies with a smaller slice of nuclear weapons plot than our usual full-sized episodes.
Before we locked the fridge door, we recommend checking out:
-Nightbreaker (1989 TV movie)
-Doom Towns: The People and Landscapes of Nuclear Testing, A Graphic History (2016)
-Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory YouTube page on nuclear tests
-The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (TV Show)
Credit to Karl Golden on YouTube for his awesome metal cover of the Indiana Jones theme.
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one n…
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Dec 25, 2017
Mini-Nuke 8: The Leftovers
In this episode, we pondered the nuke plot mysteries of HBO's The Leftovers, especially season 3. How easy is it for a random French sailor to launch a nuclear missile? Can forcing the president to kill one person make them think twice about starting nuclear war? What the heck was the departure anyway? Tim Westmyer and Joel answer these questions and more in Joel’s last episode as a regular co-host.
This is the eighth in our Mini-Nuke episode series, where we overthink movies with a smaller slice of nuclear weapons plot than our usual full-sized episodes.
Before we departed, we recommend checking out:
-“Buttons, Not Buttons,” Radiolab Podcast, December 12, 2014, www.radiolab.org/story/buttons-not-buttons/
-Bruno Tertrais, “The Last Nation to Disarm? The Future of France’s Nuclear Weapons,” The Nonproliferation Review 14 no 2, 2007, http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10736700701379344
-LOST
-Nash Bridges
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more r…
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Dec 9, 2017
Episode 20: Octopussy
In this episode, we paid our respects to the late Roger Moore and all the times he stopped a nuclear war by watching the movie Octopussy. Could a rogue Soviet commander trick Europe into disarming its own nuclear weapons? Why did the United States have so many nukes in Europe? How easy is it for James Bond to disarm a nuke while wearing clown makeup? Tim, Gabe, and returning special guest Alex answer these questions and more.
Thanks to our listeners for dealing with the November 2017 hiatus of episodes while Tim moved into a new place and barely survived holiday family visits.
Before our M gives us another mission, we recommend checking out:
-James Bonding Podcast, Earwolf, http://www.earwolf.com/show/james-bonding/
-Amy Woolf, “Nonstrategic Nuclear Weapons,” CRS Report, February 21, 2017, https://fas.org/sgp/crs/nuke/RL32572.pdf
-License to Kill (1989)
Also check out the sources below to learn more about the subjects in this episode – you can also access these links on our we…
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Oct 9, 2017
Episode 19: Fallout
In this episode, we wandered into the wasteland and played the Fallout video game series. What does this particularly popular post-apocalypse tell us about life after nuclear war? Is the video game series realistic in how it portrays nuclear devastation? How much can you mix together comedy and utter bleakness before you go a little insane? Tim and special guest Lucy Steigerwald answer these questions and more.
Follow Lucy on Twitter at @LucyStag and her Apocalypse Project at www.TheStagBlog.com.
Before our Rad count gets too high, we recommend checking out:
-Metro 2033 video game series
-Lovely Umayam, “Why the Excitement Over Post-Nuclear-War Game Fallout 4?” The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, November 4, 2015
-Eileen Welsome, The Plutonium Files: America’s Secret Medical Experiments in the Cold War, 1999
-Walter M. Miller Jr, A Canticle for Liebowitz, 1960
-Neil Shute, On The Beach, 1957
-Robert McCammon, Swan Song, 1987
-Jericho, CBS, TV Show
Check out our website, Sup…
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Sep 18, 2017
Episode 18: Star Trek First Contact
In this episode, we decide to break the ice and watch the Star Trek movie First Contact. Is global thermonuclear war a necessary prerequisite for realizing the utopian vision of Star Trek? How did a Titan II ICBM help humanity go where no man has gone before? Why did Zefram Cochrane get a statue before Lily Sloane? Tim, Gabe, and special guest Manu Saadia (author of Trekonomics: The Economics of Star Trek) answer these questions and more.
You can follow Manu Saadia on Twitter @Trekonomics. We greatly enjoyed his book, Trekonomics: The Economics of Star Trek (May 2016).
(Tim edit on 9/18: There was an encoding error in the original podcast file. It should be fixed now)
Before we get noticed by some Vulcans, we recommend checking out:
-F. White, The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution, 1998
-Disaster at Silo 7, TV Movie,1988
-Command and Control, Documentary, 2016
-Peter Brannen, The Ends of the World: : Volcanic Apocalypses, Lethal Oceans, and Our Quest to Understa…
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Aug 21, 2017
Mini-Nuke 7: The Interview
In this episode, we sat down with North Korea to conduct a podcast about The Interview (2014). Is North Korea’s nuclear weapon program a laughing matter or something to worry about? How does the Kim family stay in power? How to do you show ‘em what your worth when fireworks are banned in your city? Tim Westmyer and special guest Gabe answer these questions and more.
This is the seventh in our Mini-Nuke episode series, where we overthink movies with a smaller slice of nuclear weapons plot than our usual full-sized episodes.
Before we look to see if our tourist trip to North Korea had refundable airfare, we recommend checking out:
-Arms Control Wonk podcast and blog
-Barbara Dimmick, “Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea,” 2009
-North Korea Economy Watch
-Team America: World Police
I'll put up more resources in the coming days here and on show's website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We aim to have at least one new episode every mont…
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Jul 16, 2017
Episode 17: The Butter Battle Book by Dr. Seuss
In this episode, we went to the children’s section of the library to read The Butter Battle Book by Dr. Seuss. Does this 1984 book have anything to tell us about the dangers of the Cold War arms race? What is the right age to start talking to your kids about nuclear war? Why wasn’t there a Goosebumps book about nuclear winter? Tim, his sister Diana, and his 7-year old nephew Jairus answer these questions and more.
Before we fly/hop away in our Utterly Sputter, we recommend checking out:
-Ellen Goodman, “Dr. Seuss and the Bomb,” New York Times, April 24, 1984
-“The Butter Battle Book,” Turner Network Television, YouTube, 1989
-Dr. Seuss, “Oh, The Places You’ll Go,” 1990
-Jonathan Fetter-Vorm, “Trinity: A Graphic History of the First Atomic Bomb," 2012
-Patricia Brennan Demuth, “What Was D-Day,” 2015 (Thanks for the recommendation, Jairus!)
Also check out the sources below to learn more about the subjects in this episode – you can also access these links on ou…
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Jun 19, 2017
Episode 16: Threads
In this extra long episode, we ruined all our sweaters by pulling at the 1984 TV movie, Threads. What would nuclear war look like to average people in an average city in the United Kingdom? How did the British plan to survive a nuclear attack? How do you mind the gap when the gap is a 100-meter crater at a radioactive ground zero? Tim and his special guest co-host Tim Collins (@WarAndCake) answer these questions and more.
Before we the news anchors switched to local sports and the weather, we recommend:
-When the Wind Blows, 1986
-The books of Jonathan Schell, including Fate of the Earth, The Abolition, and The Gift of Time
-Nate Jones, Able Archer 83 : The Secret History of the NATO Exercise That Almost Triggered Nuclear War, 2016
-Peter Hennessey, The Secret State: Preparing for the Worst 1945-2001, 2010
-The Letter of Last Resort, BBC Radio 4 Saturday Drama
Also check out the sources below to learn more about the subjects in this episode – you can also access these links on our…
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May 15, 2017
Episode 15: Special Bulletin
In this episode, we tuned our TV dial to watch the 1983 TV movie, Special Bulletin. How would local broadcast news cover a nuclear terrorism incident? How would the federal government and the news media handle this crisis? WWWBD (What Would Wolf Blitzer Do)? Tim and Joel answer these questions and more.
Before the news anchors switched to local sports and the weather, we recommend:
-Countdown to Looking Glass, TV movie,1984
-Peter Kuran, How to Photograph an Atomic Bomb (VCE, 2006)
-One Day in September, documentary, 1999
Also check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources related to the topic of this episode.
We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on iTunes, Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay Music, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Stitcher Radio, Facebook, SuperCriticalPodcast@gmail.com, and YouTube.
Enjoy!
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May 1, 2017
Episode 14: Twilight Zone - The Shelter
In this episode, we sought shelter in the Twilight Zone and watched the 1962 episode, “The Shelter.” What was the deal with everyone building fallout shelters in the 1960s? Would you share a cozy shelter with friends and neighbors who neglected to build one? What should you prioritize in your shelter: food, water, medicine, a surround sound system, or a Jacuzzi? Tim and Joel answer these questions and more.
Before we double lock our fallout shelter door, we recommend:
-Nukes of Hazard, Hosted by Center for Arms Control and Nonproliferation
-“Bart’s Comet,” The Simpsons (February 5, 1995)
-Twilight Zone Podcast, Hosted by Tom Elliot
For more resources on the topics in this episode, you visit our website at SuperCriticalPodcast.com.
We aim to have at least one new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on iTunes, Twitter @NuclearPodcast, GooglePlay Music, SoundCloud, Tun…
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Apr 4, 2017
Mini-Nuke 6: Jaws
In this episode, we explored the history of nuclear weapons as told by the movie Jaws (1975). What happened to the USS Indianapolis after it delivered parts for the Little Boy atomic bomb? Could Jaws actually be the Godzilla of the sea? Tim and special guest Mike answer these questions and more.
This is the sixth in our Mini-Nuke episode series, where we overthink movies with a smaller slice of nuclear weapons plot than our usual full-sized episodes. For the short nuke scene discussed in the movie, watch it on YouTube here: https://goo.gl/les03N
Before we start looking for a bigger boat, we recommend checking out:
-“Nuclear Shark,” Shark Week, Discovery Channel, 2016
-“USS Indianapolis,” Atomic Heritage Foundation, http://www.atomicheritage.org/history/uss-indianapolis
-“Open Water,” Lionsgate, 2003
-“Open Water 2: Adrift,” Lionsgate, 2006
-“Deep Blue Sea,” Warner Bros, 1999
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more resources and related items. We…
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Mar 12, 2017
Mini-Nuke 5: Batman v Superman
In this episode, we teamed up to discuss the portrayal of nuclear weapons in the 2016 superhero movie Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Just how easy is it to nuke a moving target in space? Do nukes still pack a punch for today’s movie audiences? Why can’t Superman and Batman just talk about their feelings? Tim and Joel answer these questions and more.
This is the fifth in our Mini-Nuke episode series, where we overthink movies with not enough nuclear nonsense for a full-sized episode but nonetheless demand over thinking. For the short nuke scene discussed in the movie, watch it on YouTube here: https://goo.gl/wKDQnt
Before we recharged our alien cells using solar radiation and/or sunflowers, we recommended checking out:
-Frank Miller, The Dark Knight Returns, 1986
-Matthew Gault, “How the U.S. Military Could Kill Superman
Kryptonite… and Lots of Nukes,” WarIsBoring.com, May 31, 2016
-300, Legendary Pictures, 2007
Check out our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com, for more…
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Feb 21, 2017
Episode 13: Star Wars
In this episode, we built a Death Star and made Alderaan pay for it! While waiting for the check to clear, we overanalyzed the Death Star as a stand-in for nuclear weapons throughout the Star Wars movies but especially in Rogue One (2016). How much did the franchise borrow nuclear weapon imagery? What similarities are there in the strategies for using either nuclear weapons or Death Stars? Will the Empire ever consider investing its resources more into galactic poverty reduction and less into overly vulnerable battle stations? Tim and Joel answer these questions and more.
We also play a round of the classic game: Is This a Star Wars Name or Someone Who Invented Nuclear Weapons? (Trademark pending…)
Before we go rogue, we recommend reading:
-Tim Westmyer, “Death Star: Ultimate Weapon of Mass Destruction,” Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, January 4, 2017
-Cass Sunstein, The World According to Star Wars (2016)
-Chris Taylor, How Star Wars Conquered the Universe (2015)
Check out…
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Jan 10, 2017
Episode 12: Terminator Movies
In this episode, we prepared for Judgment Day by watching all of the Terminator movies (1984-2015/forever). How did the franchise end up with some of the most iconic imagery of nuclear weapon use? Should we be worried about artificial intelligence taking over our nuclear command and control systems? Why does Skynet seem to put out more models of terminator than Apple does iPhones? Tim, Joel, and special guest Alex answer these questions and more.
Before we say “hasta la vista… baby,” we recommend reading:
-Jerome Shapiro, Atomic Bomb Cinema, 2001
-Bruce Blair, Strategic Command and Control, 1985 and The Logic of Accidental Nuclear War, 1993
-Joe McGovern, “‘The Terminator’ at 30: An Oral History,” Entertainment Weekly, July 17, 2014
Check out these resources and more on our website, SuperCriticalPodcast.com.
Special thanks to Alicia Dressman (@thedelphivision) for suggesting the episode hook with the quote by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Rogozin.
We aim to have at le…
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Dec 26, 2016
Mini-Nuke #4: The Martian
In this episode, we had a lot of time on our hand after being marooned on another planet, so we watched the 2015 science fiction/comedy The Martian. How dangerous are plutonium fueled Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators? Does cosmic radiation doom Matt Damon life on Mars? Why does every Mars movie need an impossible sandstorm? Tim and special guest host Gabe answer these questions and more. We also hear from Chris Mariasola who breaks down the maritime/space law in the movie for us.
This is the fourth in our Mini-Nuke episode series, where we find movies that do not have enough nuclear nonsense for a full-sized episode but nonetheless demand over thinking.
Before we fulfill our Iron Man fantasies, we recommend checking out:
- Timothy Jorgensen, Strange Glow: The Story of Radiation (Princeton Press, 2016)
-the documentary “To Mars by A-Bomb: The Secret History of Project Orion,” BBC, 2003, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYoLcJuBtOw
-George Dyson, Project Orion: The True Story…
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Nov 20, 2016
Episode 11: Independence Day
In this episode, we took advantage of the new world-wide federal holiday to watch the sci-fi action blockbuster Independence Day (the good one from 1996). How effective are nuclear weapons against 15 mile wide spaceships? Are aliens keeping tabs on Earth’s nuclear stockpiles? How did Jeff Goldblum write a computer virus that works on alien technology? Tim and Joel answer these questions and more.
Before Elvis left the building, we recommend reading
-Michael Rogin, Independence Day, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Enola Gay, (British Film Institute, 1998) http://www.worldcat.org/title/independence-day-or-how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-enola-gay/oclc/39547508
-James Harris, “The Oral History of the President’s Speech in ‘Independence Day,’” Complex Media, June 23, 2016, http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2016/06/presidents-speech-in-independence-day-oral-history
-Kim Zetter, Countdown to Zero Day: Stuxnet and the Launch of the World’s First Digi…
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Nov 7, 2016
Mini-Nuke 3: The "Daisy" Ad
In this episode, we got political and watched the infamous “Daisy” commercial run by the Lyndon Johnson for President campaign against Sen. Barry Goldwater in 1964. What was it like before political ads went so negative? Why was this ad so creepy and yet so effective in portraying the country’s nuclear anxieties? Why didn’t this child actor win an Oscar? Tim and Joel answer these questions and more.
Before we pick off the last petal on our flower, we recommend reading
-Robert Mann, Daisy Petals and Mushroom Clouds: LBJ, Barry Goldwater, and the Ad that Changed Politics Forever (LSU Press, 2011)
-Bombs Away, documentary by University of Virginia Center for Politics, 2014, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChDe9XmbglE
Also, go vote! Find out where here: https://www.rockthevote.com/get-informed/elections/find-your-polling-place/
Also check out the sources below to learn more (you can also access these links on our SoundCloud page):
-Clinton Campaign, “Silo,” October 2016, htt…
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Oct 3, 2016
Episode 10: Nuclear War Card Game
In this episode, we flipped over the Monopoly board to make room to play the dark comedy Nuclear War Card Game from 1965. Does having a background in nuclear policy help win a card game about nuclear war? Will the horrors and intensity of nuclear weapons translate to a card game? Can three loving couples survive three hours of pretending to nuke each other? Tim and his elite team of board game competitors answer these questions and more.
Before we decided this game was too dark and switched to playing Candy Land, we recommend checking out the sources below about the unique and fun history of the Nuclear War Card Game (you can also access these links on our SoundCloud page).
-Photos of the game and the cards at “Nuclear War,” Flying Buffalo, http://www.flyingbuffalo.com/nucwar.htm
-“Nuclear War Card Game,” BoardGameGeek.com, https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/713/nuclear-war
-Dennis McLellan, “Nuclear War Game Bombs Its Way to Success: Fantasy Card Competition Breeds Some F…
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Sep 13, 2016
Mini-Nuke 2: Blast from the Past
In this special episode, we venture out of our cozy fallout bunker to watch the 1999 romantic comedy, Blast from the Past.
This is the second in our new series within the podcast -- Mini-Nuke episodes -- where we find movies that do not have enough nuclear nonsense for a full-sized episode but nonetheless demand over analyzation.
Tim and a special guest -- his sister, Diana -- delve into the history and use fallout shelters. Ranging from the overkill shelter in the movie to the more modest versions you'd find in backyards during the Cold War, this episode tells you everything you need to know to protect yourself from radioactive fallout -- just not what to do if you get stuck in one for decades.
Photos of Tim's trip down into a fallout shelter are up on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.545103975696196.1073741829.437574689782459&type=1&l=be98d22e4f
Before your fallout shelter doors automatically lock for 35 years, be sure to check out these sources:
-Jame…
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Aug 30, 2016
Mini-Nuke 1: Star Trek Beyond
In this special episode, we suppress our emotional sides and explore the logic behind the 2016 science fiction adventure movie, Star Trek Beyond. This is the first in our new series within the podcast -- Mini-Nuke episodes -- where we find movies that do not have enough nuclear nonsense for a full-sized episode but nonetheless warrant some over analyzation.
We go into needless detail about Spock's radioactive jewelry gift to Uhura, which also doubles as a handy tracking device. This plot device has real life inspiration in Trinitite or atomsite glass, a glass byproduct of nuclear detonations in the desert that were the latest fashion trend before they started giving people nasty burns.
Before we jump on ebay looking for our own atomic jewelry, be sure to check out these sources:
-Dan Carlson, "The Story of Vokaya: Beyond a Fan’s Wildest Dreams," Star Trek Minutiae, July 29, 2016, http://www.st-minutiae.com/cafe/archives/2016/07/vokaya.html
-Vokaya, Memory Alpha, http://memory-alph…
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Aug 10, 2016
Episode 9: Fail-Safe
In this episode, we maxed out our conference call lines while debating the 1964 drama-thriller movie, Fail-Safe. What happens when you can't recall your own nuclear bombers en route to Moscow? How many air planes can you knock out of the sky with a nuclear bomb? How do you convince your enemy that accidents -- even nuclear ones -- do happen? The podcast hosts and special guest/TCM guru Victoria answer these questions and more.
Before our podcast's phone line melted in a fireball, we recommended reading L. Douglas Keeney, 15 Minutes: General Curtis Lemay and the Countdown to Nuclear Annihilation (St. Martin's Griffin, 2012) and two articles at the National Security Archive (see links below).
Other sources to check out include -- you can also access these links on our SoundCloud page:
-William Burr, "The Air Force versus Hollywood," National Security Archive, January 15, 2010, http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/nukevault/ebb304/index.htm
-Christopher Bright, "Cold War Air Defense Relied on Wide…
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Jul 4, 2016
Episode 8: The Peacemaker
In this episode, we leave our boring jobs and become Jason Borne Bureaucrats, because we watch the 1997 action-thriller, The Peacemaker. How easy is it to steal a Russian nuclear warhead? What the heck does SS-18 mean? Is it really a good idea to try and stab a plutonium core and smash it with a gun? We answer these questions and more.
Apologies for the audio issues in this episode. We went mobile from our usual podcast studio and we think some of the wires got frayed in the process. The problem was identified and vaporized. There is some great content in this one so hopefully everyone will enjoy it.
Before we jump in the pool to wash off our radioactive debris, we recommend reading Leslie and Andrew Cockburn's One Point Safe (Doubleday, 1997) and John McPhee's The Curve of Binding Energy: A Journey into the Awesome and Alarming World of Theodore B. Taylor (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1994). And have fun on NukeMap (http://nuclearsecrecy.com/nukemap/)!
Other sources to check out incl…
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May 23, 2016
Episode 7: G.I. Joe - Retaliation
In this episode, we are still unaware of what the other half of the battle is, but we do know some things about the 2013 action movie, G.I. Joe: Retaliation. How can a villain trick the world into global nuclear disarmament? Does the U.S. military really have plans to steal Pakistan's nuclear weapons? Does The Rock action figure come with a kung-fu grip? We answer these questions and more.
If you don't want to watch the full movie, you can watch these key scenes on YouTube ("Might be a better option than the whole movie."-Tim):
-The Atomic Summit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1tGCDeOi2o
-Project Zeus Demonstration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlrA-vPOGVQ
-Pakistan's Nukes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4UwbdmTQik
Before we parachute out of our exploding helicopter, we recommend reading Richard Garwin's paper on "Space Weapons: Not Yet" presented atPugwash Meeting No. 283 on May 14, 2003 (http://fas.org/rlg/030522-space.pdf)and Jeffrey Goldberg and Marc Ambinder's article o…
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Apr 24, 2016
Episode 6: Star Trek - Assignment: Earth
In the second part of our two part Star Trek marathon, we continue to boldly overanalyze what no one had deemed necessary to overanalyze before: the nuclear nonsense in the fail Star Trek spin-off pilot, Assignment: Earth. Why did countries think it was a good idea to put nuclear weapons in space? What does it look like when a nuke goes off in the vacuum of space? Is it still okay these days to name your cat Isis? With the continued help of our special guest and Star Trek enthusiast Gabe, we answer these questions and more.
Before we attempt a gravitational slingshot maneuver around the sun to travel back in time, we recommended reading Outer Space in World Politics, an edited volume organized by Joseph Goldsen in 1963, especially the chapter by renowned nuclear deterrence scholar, Thomas Schelling, on "The Military Use of Bombardment Satellites." Also, check out Space Weapons, Earth Wars, a RAND Study prepared for the USAF in 2002 by Bob Preston, Dana Johnson, Sean Edwards, Michael M…
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Apr 17, 2016
Episode 5: Star Trek - The City on the Edge of Forever
In this episode, we boldly overanalyzed what no one had deemed necessary to overanalyze before: the nuclear nonsense in the acclaimed Star Trek episode, The City on the Edge of Forever. How close was Nazi Germany to actually building an atomic bomb? Could one person convince America to stay out of WWII? Will Captain James T. Kirk ever catch a break in his love life? With the help of our special guest and Star Trek enthusiast Gabe, we answer these questions and more.
Before we beam back aboard the Enterprise, we recommended reading Jeremy Bernstein’s called Hitler’s Uranium Club: The Secret Recordings at Farm Hall (Copernicus Books, New York, 2001) and Mark Walker German National Socialism and the Quest for Nuclear Power (Cambridge University Press, New York, 1989).
Other sources to check out include:
-James Tiberius Kirk, "Khaaaaannn!," Captain's Log, The Year 2285, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRnSnfiUI54
-Mark Walker, “Nazi’s and the Bomb,” NOVA, November 8, 2015, http…
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Mar 12, 2016
Episode 4: Broken Arrow
In this episode, we eject from our aircraft and land on John Woo's 1996 slow-motion action opera, Broken Arrow. What happens when a disgruntled Air Force pilot decides to steal from his employer? Does an underground nuclear explosion set off an EMP? Is it really that easy for nuclear bombs to fall out of airplanes? We answer these questions and more.
Before we find the nukes we are looking for, we recommend reading Dr. Stephen Younger's The Bomb: A History (HarperCollins, 2009) and James Mahaffey's Atomic Accidents: A History of Nuclear Meltdowns and Disasters, (Pegasus, 2014).
Other sources to check out include :
-Footage of underground nuclear tests: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSjratvNGmo
-USSR Gas Well Blow Out = Nuclear Bomb Puts Out the Fire: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4iB9QYaSVEo
-Rob Coppinger, "NASA plans 'Armageddon' spacecraft to blast asteroid," FlightGlobal, August 3, 2007
-William Broad and David Sanger, "As U.S. Modernizes Nuclear Weapons, ‘Smaller’ Leave…
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Jan 31, 2016
Episode 3: WarGames
In this episode, we play a nice game of chess. After five minutes of that, we put on the 1983 Cold War movie and techno-horror story, WarGames. Can a country "win" a nuclear war? Could a faulty computer actually lead to WWIII? How did ICBM silo missileers keep themselves occupied before there were portable DVD players? We answer these questions and more.
Before we go back to DEFCON 5, we recommend reading Eric Schlosser's Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety (Penguin Books, 2014). Other sources to check out include :
-"WarGames: A Look Back at the Film that Turned Geeks and Phreaks into Stars," Wired, July 21, 2008
-"In Nuclear Silos, Death Wears a Snuggie," Wired, January 14, 2011
-"A Year Later: Responding to Problems in the ICBM Force," The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, February 12, 2015
-"The Reagan Presidency: Every Night at the Movies," Los Angeles Times, April 28, 1991
We aim to have a new episode every month. Let us know…
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Jan 25, 2016
Episode 2: Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
In this episode, our mission -- we chose to accept -- is to talk about the nuclear nonsense in Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol. Can you nuke a city to save a city? Why is there always an "abort the launch" button? Would the Nuclear Football deflate if it is in Siberia? We answer these questions and more.
Before the podcast self-destructed, we recommended Bruce Blair's The Logic of Accidental Nuclear War (Brookings, 1993) and Alexi Arbatov's The Equation of Security (2000). Other sources to check out:
-"The Russian Nuclear Button," Foreign Policy, May 27, 2010
-"Adventures of the 'Nuclear Briefcase,'" Strategic Insights, Vol. III no. 9, September 2004
-"Cold War Doctrines Refuse to Die," Washington Post, March 15, 1998
We aim to have a new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, Facebook.com/SuperCriticalPodcast, or SuperCriticalPodcast@gmail.com.
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Jan 23, 2016
Episode 1: True Lies
[For new listeners starting the podcast at episode #1, welcome! Also, I promise that the audio quality improves once we get better equipment and learn how to do this right!]
In this first episode of our podcast, we go undercover with the 1994 action spy comedy (masterpiece?) True Lies. What does this movie tell us about nuclear terrorism? Can a nuclear warhead really be confused for a snow cone maker? Why wasn't Tom Arnold at least considered to play the new James Bond? We explore these questions and more.
Books recommend in this episode: On Nuclear Terrorism by Michael Levi (Harvard Press, 2007), Atomic Obsession by John Mueller (Oxford Press, 2012), and Nuclear Terrorism: The Ultimate Preventable Catastrophe by Graham T. Allison (Holt, 2005).
We aim to have a new episode every month. Let us know what you think about the podcast and any ideas you may have about future episodes and guests by reaching out at on Twitter @NuclearPodcast, Facebook.com/SuperCriticalPodcast, or SuperCriti…
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