Dr. Cara Santa Maria is a clinical health psychologist, television presenter, and science communicator. Since 2014, her podcast Talk Nerdy has been a place for conversations with interesting people about interesting topics.

Latest episodes

Monstrous Bitch w/ Eleanor Johnson

October 7, 2026 · 59 min

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University, and the author of five books, Dr. Eleanor Johnson. They discuss her most recent book, Monstrous Bitch: A History of…
Time Without Clocks w/ Cathy Haynes

September 28, 2026 · 1 hr 7 min

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by UK based curator, writer, artist, and educator Cathy Haynes. Cathy has been researching, writing, and developing a creative practice on aspects of time for more than two decades. They…
Punctuation w/ Florence Hazrat

September 21, 2026 · 1 hr 8 min

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by researcher, writer, and punctuation expert, Florence Hazrat. They discuss her latest book, On the Mark: From Periods to Interrobangs, How Punctuation Remade the World. Follow Florence…
The Datafication of Language w/ Xiaochang Li

September 14, 2026 · 1 hr 12 min

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by assistant professor in the Department of Communication at Stanford University, Dr. Xiaochang Li. They discuss her book, Divination Engines: Natural Language Processing, Artificial…
Sex Is a Spectrum w/ Agustín Fuentes

September 7, 2026 · 1 hr 5 min

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by biological anthropologist and the chair of the Department of Anthropology at Princeton University, Agustín Fuentes. They discuss his new book, Sex Is a Spectrum: The Biological Limits of the…
Cash on the Block w/ Beryl Satter

August 31, 2026 · 1 hr 8 min

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by author, and Professor Emerita of History at Rutgers University-Newark, Dr. Beryl Satter. They discuss her newest book, Cash on the Block: The Broken Promise of Reinvestment in Black Urban…
Black Beyond Borders w/ Edna Bonhomme

August 24, 2026 · 1 hr 4 min

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by American critic, historian of science, and journalist, Dr. Edna Bonhomme. They discuss her latest book, Tending to Our Wounds: A Diasporic Memoir. Follow Edna: @bonhomme
Sex in Public w/ Angela Jones

August 17, 2026 · 1 hr 4 min

In this episode of Talk Nerdy, Cara is joined by writer, and Stony Book University professor of women, gender, and sexuality studies, Angela Jones. They discuss Angela’s latest book, Sex in Public: The Transformative Social Power of Our…