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The Story Collider

Best of Story Collider: Identity Crisis

The Story Collider

Story Collider, Inc.

Arts, Science, Society & Culture, Personal Journals, Performing Arts

4.4824 Ratings

🗓️ 29 August 2025

⏱️ 30 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This week we present two classic stories about people struggling with their identity.

Part 1: When science journalist Katherine Wu interviews a scientist about a new facial recognition algorithm, the conversation turns more personal than she expected.

Part 2: Hurricane Katrina gives Mary Annaise Heglar a new perspective on both her grandfather and home state.

Katherine J. Wu is a Boston-based science journalist and storyteller whose writing has appeared in Smithsonian magazine, Scientific American, NOVA Next, and more. She's also a senior producer for The Story Collider. In 2018, she earned a Ph.D. in microbiology and immunobiology from Harvard University, where she studied how bacteria deal with stress so she could one day learn to do the same. She can spell "tacocat" backwards.

Mary Annaise Heglar is an author and communications consultant based in Birmingham, AL. Her writing has been published in Vox, The Cut, Rolling Stone, and WIRED, among other outlets. She is the author of the novel, Troubled Waters, and the children's book, The World is Ours to Cherish.

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Transcript

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0:00.0

A science story, huh?

0:04.0

Is NYU scientists the...

0:06.0

It felt...

0:07.0

It was so...

0:09.0

And I just thought, well...

0:10.0

It was that golden moment.

0:13.0

Because science was on my side.

0:15.0

... Hey everyone. I'm your host, Misha Gaieski, and welcome to a special edition of Story Clatter.

0:29.5

Today, we're diving back into our archives to bring you some of our most memorable and impactful stories and episodes we've ever shared on the Story Clutter podcast. Why? Because we have over

0:39.0

13 years of true personal stories about science, and no matter how much of an OG listener you are,

0:44.5

we have a sneaking suspicion that you haven't heard all the stories. These timeless tales span a range

0:50.5

of experiences from wild scientific adventures to deeply personal journeys of transformation.

0:55.8

Each story has left a lasting impression on us, and we're excited to revisit them with you.

1:00.3

So sit back, relax, and enjoy this best-dove episode. A science story, huh?

1:18.7

Is NYU a scientist the...

1:20.5

I felt...

1:21.3

I was so...

1:22.6

And I just thought, well...

1:23.6

It was that golden moment.

1:26.7

Because science was on my side.

1:29.3

Hello, everyone.

1:39.3

Welcome to the Story Collider, where we bring you true personal stories about science.

...

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